What the ...!!?

That little flower basket quilt ... I swanee!

The rows were all joined and it had been laying on my table for about 4-5 days, but I hadn't trimmed it because all the setting triangles weren't aligned just perfectly, and I had to pay attention when I trimmed it.  So ... yesterday I figured why not just get it out of the way?

So I trimmed it and it's just perfect, right?

Take another look!

See that one row turned upside down?

When I was joining rows I remember one row had the setting triangles turned wrong, so I turned the row around and didn't give it another thought.

Well ...  I should have!  I fixed the problem, the borders have been added, so now it's ready for the flower applique and quilting.

Is that a humongous border, or what??  Seven inches!

Looking at the finished top with all that border space, I probably could have stayed with the 6" baskets rather than downsizing them, but it'll work out.  It's those little things that remind you to stay woke!

Note to self:  Do NOT go to Fabric Place Basement, they are having a sale!  Sew forth and sew on.

Setting decisions

My little flower baskets are all ready to be sewn together, but I should have auditioned more fabrics for the setting and corner triangles!

The fabric on the right has words swirled in different directions and it looked okay with all the blocks laid out on top of it.  But when I sacrificed cut it to get the setting pieces, it looked more like a one-way design as you can see above.

Not gonna work!

I think the fabric on the left has more potential because of the random polka dots that run through it.

I spent my sewing time yesterday adding the setting triangles, it's starting to look pretty good.  Just have to sew the rows together, trim it and add the final borders. 

I've always shied away from setting blocks on point because I just assumed it was too hard, but it isn't.  I found a chart online at Generations Quilt Patterns that has all those measurements figured out for you; all you have to do is cut and sew!

Things are looking up!

That's it for now, have a great Thursday, sew forth and sew on...

Baskets and a box

I found this little decoupaged box at the quilt show last weekend for $1.00.  I figured hey, why not?

It was made in 1971, and it's kinda cute and looks to be handy for lots of things.  Perhaps I'll store small stuff inside, like needle packets or seam rippers or rotary blades. 

Scrappy triangle block 23 - another very easy one with only 4 pieces.

And last but not least ...

I pieced all my baskets - 25!  

After I put in the setting and corner triangles, I'll add another border to bring it up to the 36 x 36" size to meet the challenge.  My friend appliqued flowers in her border, I'll see what the quilt asks for.  Looking good!

That's it for now, sew forth and sew on til later...

Basket weaving

Have you ever watched anyone weaving a basket?  When I was an adolescent and teenager, my aunt worked in a basket factory in South Carolina.  She used to take home leftover strips and flats, and one day I got to see her weave together a basket.  When I saw the finished product, I remember telling her it was "neat"!

I was able to weave together 10 of the flower baskets in the smaller size. 

I'll admit, my math was all over the place!  I arranged 4-inch squares of paper on the floor, next to a yard stick, to see how they'd look finished.

It actually helped!

Now I know I'll need 25 baskets to make it work when I set them on the diagonal. 

But it WILL work!

Using more (smaller) baskets will make this little 36 x 36 wall hanging look cute rather than klutzy. 

I vote for cute every time!

Speaking of cute, that basket on the far right?  It's too dark and needs to come out.  Sew forth and sew on ...

Downsizing

Time to back up and redo the math for my baskets! 

I laid out the 9 basket blocks I already made, but for some reason I don't like how the spacing looks. 

I get the feeling I'll have a weird shaped quilt if I make it 36 x 36, on point.  And I'd really like to  set this one on point!

I recalculated the cutting needed for a 4" block ... 1-1/2" HST units, yikes!

I made a test block and it looks nice made up though. 

What a difference in the size from the 6" blocks I was making!

My question to myself was, can I go the distance with this size block?  Those little 1-1/2" HST are a nuisance to sew together and keep a straight seam!

I'll make enough to set on point and see if I want to go ahead.  Otherwise I might go with my original plan of using a straight set for the 6" blocks.

Either way, this quilt will be done well before the September deadline!

Sew forth and sew on ...

Hearts and baskets

I went by Maryland Live! casino yesterday to get my third Bella Russo bag. 

This week's gift was a reversible tote bag; it's made of vinyl and is sturdy and quite roomy.  

I think I like it best with the flowered print turned to the outside, the other side looks a bit dull, in my opinion.

I can see myself using this tote a lot!

Last October my bee donated heart pillows to Sibley Hospital, to be used by women who have had a mastectomy.  The pillows are placed beneath the armpit for support after surgery, during the healing process.  You can read about it here.

They were very well received and the word spread, so now we're making some for Howard University Hospital too!  Each member of the bee is asked to make at least 5 of these pillows.

It's wonderful to be able to contribute to people in need, but at the same time it's so very sad that so many women need these pillows.  If everyone in the bee makes just five, that's 100 pillows, 100 women needing them...

Four more of the flower baskets have been made.

I had my doubts about the one at the bottom right; a more solid gold would have worked better with that red fabric.  Oh well, it's pieced and will go into the quilt!

Nine baskets finished - looking good!

Have a great Tuesday, sew forth and sew on

How it's made - flower baskets

Today I thought I'd show, step by abbreviated step, how I put together my little flower baskets!

The block measures 6-1/2" pieced, using three different fabrics - I chose red for the petals, black for the basket, and gold for the background. **PLEASE NOTE: I used my Deb Tucker Trimmer to make the HST's, so I cut my fabric for that ruler.  If you use another method, you'll need to cut fabric in the appropriate size needed**

You'll need to cut these pieces:

Black - (1) 4 x 4" square
Gold - (1) 4 x 4" square, (3) 2 x 3-1/2" rectangles, (3) 2-1/2 x 2-1/2" squares, and (1) 2 x 2" square
Red - (3) 2-1/2 x 2-1/2" squares and (1) 2 x 2" square

First you'll create half square triangles using your favorite method.  I'm using my Deb Tucker Trimmer, so I drew stitching lines on the back of the gold 4" square, paired it with the black square, stitched and trimmed.  Your black/gold units will measure 3-1/2" and you'll have two of them. You only need one for this basket, save the extra one for a future project!

Now do the same again, using your gold and red 2-1/2" squares.

After trimming, the red/gold units will measure 2".  You only need five of these units for the block, just tuck the extra one away for a future project.

You'll also need to sew the red 2 x 2" square to one of the gold 2 x 3-1/2" rectangles, using the flip and sew method to create a diagonal corner (I used my Simple Folded Corners ruler).

Lay out the units as shown below:

Remember - this is an abbreviated tut!

Notice how the block now has four main areas - the petals at the left, the petals-plus-basket in the middle, the background with part of the base sticking out on the right, and the base of the basket at the bottom. 

Starting from the left, sew together the two HST pairs and attach the 2 x 2" gold square to make one vertical (petal) unit.  Sew together the HST pair (petals) at the top, and attach it to the black and gold unit (this piece is not yet sewn together in the picture).  Sew the last HST to the bottom of the 2 x 3-1/2" gold rectangle on the right side.  Lastly, sew the remaining 2 x 3-1/2" rectangle and the pieced rectangle together for the base.

We will sew the block together in vertical rows.  Starting from the far left - attach the red and gold petal unit to the middle  (body) of the basket.  Now sew the gold and red panel to the right side of the block.  Lastly, attach the base (it got turned upside down in the picture).

This the finished block.  Please let me know if the instructions are unclear, sometimes I don't say (or type) everything I think - which might not be so bad!  If necessary I can add more pictures.

Sew forth and sew on

 

A little progress

This weather is so funny lately, I don't know whether to pull out my shorts and sandals or my wooley scarf and mittens!  In either case, we've already gone through two of the six weeks ole Punxatawny Phil predicted.

This week's scrappy triangle block #19 reminded me of a circus tent, with those vertical stripes at the bottom.

It gave me a chance to use more of that cute monkey fabric that I got from JoAnn's bargain table last year.

All stripes, easy peasy!

I've sewn a few more of the flower basket blocks, with three more cut out and ready to trim and sew.

There are a lot of different shades of gold in my stash and they will make the quilt interesting, but I don't want to go too dark -  it's a small quilt after all.

I think I'm going to go ahead and try a diagonal layout for these little beauties.  When I get a few more done - maybe 15 or so - I'll be able to play around with it to make sure.

Since the quilt must measure exactly 36 x 36, it might be kinda tricky to do a diagonal layout.  I want to avoid having a border that's almost as wide as the middle!  But that's why they call it a challenge, right?

Right!

That's it for now, have a great Friday, sew forth and sew on.