The Turtle Wins the Race, Right, Rabbit?

While working out this morning I found myself listening to one of the TED Radio hour podcasts from NPR.  Odd topic it was – “Slow”.   The subject focused around appreciating that sometimes, things move slowly for a reason, and that high-tech may not be the ultimate savior of everything; that slow is sometimes the best, most effective approach to a problem or issue. 

Then, as I was looking through a few blogs, it kind of hit me – I am a “slow” quilter.  But, I like that.  I’ve never been one to only want to sew in a straight line – I like curves, I like hand piecing, and I like taking my time to enjoy the process of making the quilt – top to bottom, back to front.  I think that’s why I can easily get frustrated with new patterns and "new" ideas – because some of those are aimed purely at the notion of how fast can we churn out a quilt and move on to the next.  I'm not the rabbit, I guess, and want to enjoy the process of making and composing a quilt - and making it my own.

I see this notion of "slow" relating in one of my latest endeavors – make this quilt that uses 3 ½” blocks – little pieced star blocks.  And, oh yeah, it’ll take 256 (yes, that’s 2-5-6) of them.  But, that’s just the start.  In addition, it takes numerous additionally-cut 3 ½” squares.  What am I?  Nuts for taking on this project?  Yeah, probably so.  But having to make 3 ½” hunter’s stars was a challenge for me.  I normally like to work with big, bold patterns and this one is small (small!).  But, last weekend, I accomplished (crossed the finish line) what I thought would take a lifetime – over 256 little, 3 ½” hunters stars completed. I think this actually took me about 2 years, working off and on.  I admit, I must have gotten overzealous when cutting the last star pieces (probably because I saw the light at the end of the tunnel), and cut a few too many.  Oh well – completed as they are, I’ll use them somewhere. 

Here's the quilt I'm patterning from.  Lots of squares.  But, for me, that's dull, so I'm mixing up the colored squares and free-piecing scraps to add more interest.

So, out of a fabric I bought on-line – and it looked really neat on line, but when I got it, I kind of hated it and set it aside – I now have 256+ star blocks that I smile at every time I look at them.  Funny, when something is cut into little pieces and sewn in a different configuration, something once icky becomes enjoyable.  Lesson learned:  don’t discount those fabrics you don’t like:  cut them up and you may find they take on a new life.  

The original fabric, being cut into 1 1/4" strips to make the stars.  I didn't like this so much to begin with, but cut apart and paired with the white star, I really like the effect.

So, here’s what 256 star blocks look like. 

Staging for keeping track of all the pieces I needed for each star. A block of Styrofoam comes in handy.  

Close up of the 3 1/2" stars.  I liked some of the printing on the edge of the fabric, that I included in the stars.  Gives some clues as to what fabric was used.

And, to complicate the quilt further – instead of cutting all those additional 3 ½” squares to put the block together, I decided to modernize and retro it at the same time by creating the pieces I need out of scraps sewn in wonky ways.  I rather like this treatment as it adds more interest to the quilt.  If I have a path to choose  - one easy and one hard – I’m pretty much taking the “hard way home”.  I’ll get there; it will be slow.  But I enjoy this process and enjoy the excitement that free-sewing can provide.  It’s a bit of freedom that comes along with the process – it’s challenging and fun at the same time. 

This is the finished block.  Each block will look slightly different as I free-piece the colored side of the block.  I'm doing this instead of cutting all those 3 1/2" squares.  I like the effect more as it provides much more interest (at least it does for me).

This the back of the block.  Just for fun.

Have fun in what you enjoy doing.  I think it frees your mind to be even more creative. Linking up with friends this week, after being gone for a while... 

Happy Quilting!

Stardate 2016.91.1

A Day Off of Work Does Wonders for the Soul        

A long time coming, I was finally able to get a day off of work to have for myself.  Sure, myself includes playing with our German Shepherd Dog throughout the day, but he protects, while I manage to quilt, so some play time is much deserved. 

The pup, playing in the snow. A bit dark, but you get the idea that quilting inside was a better option that day (at least for me).

Turns out, it was a great day to part from work. The cold weather set in (yep, anything can still happen in springtime in the Rockies) and the snow started to fly even as the peach trees are trying to bloom.  But, I remained cozy and warm in the house, stitching away on several projects. 

I finally found a border fabric I liked for the pink and chocolate quilt which I’m making for a wedding gift.  I got the border sewn on, and I think it kind of adds a retro/vintage vibe to the quilt.  And now, I’m busy working on free-motion quilting the quilt.  I’m still trying to get used to the new machine I got – trying to figure out how to best maneuver all the bulk of the quilt around without getting frustrated.

Now with the border fabric attached, I'm ready to quilt.  So far, it looks like I'll have this done in time for the wedding in August.  Yeah! 

I also spent some time working on the offset log cabin quilt that I have in the works.  I never thought I liked the Log Cabin pattern (fact is, I still kind of don’t), but I love this offset variation of the pattern.  So, I managed to get some more blocks made for that quilt.  It’s going to take a while because I have to make several blocks with different colors…but I’m at least on my way with this ongoing project.

Blue/Aqua blocks and Orange blocks of the offset log cabin quilt that I'm plugging away at slowly.  Each full "ball" block takes four blocks and each individual block has about 12 individual pieces.  It's taking a while, but it's gonna be cool...

Here's a full "ball" block in the purple color range.  When the quilt top is completed, it'll have several different color "balls", all made in the offset log cabin pattern. 

I also managed to finish another one of the red applique blocks.  That makes 7 blocks completed!  Yeah!  I designed the #8 block, and am currently working on that…Seems I’m never quite happy with re-making someone else’s quilt; I often times find myself injecting my own ideas in the quilt patterns.  So the #8 block will be the second block that I’ve designed to replace some of the original block patterns. 

Here's Block #7 done up in some electric colors.  I think the color combinations turned out well, and will go nicely with the other blocks I've made already.  This quilt will be a long haul, but the turtle wins the race, eventually. 

I love how I'm seeing my color combinations and color tastes change over time with this quilt.  I find myself getting wilder with the color combinations and pleasantly pleased with the outcome of each block.  

It’s great to have productive days off – especially when they involve quilting. I hope you find productive days off – or just productive time to further your own quilting creativity! 
Linking up with Let's BEE Social at Sew Fresh Quilts...