What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Rectangle wrangle is finished. I brought it out of the ufo closet in May 2023. I made progress through out the year. I started assembly in July. It was a top in August. I love how it looks and feels. Shirt fabrics are very forgiving, and, so fun to use. Only a few of hubby's old shirts are in this one. The rest are recycled form thrift stores. I see more light than I was expecting while I was making this. I guess that is the magic of using shirt fabrics.

90 x 102 = 27 yards

I enjoy thrift stores for many reasons, but, while I always check the fabric section, I rarely find anything that suits me.

But today…

WOW! I am so pleased: 14-1/2 yards for $1.60/yard.

Can’t beat that. I see a quilt kit, backs for a twin donation quilt and three baby quilts, and red dots (because a person can always use red dots). YAY!

Once, I started cutting shirts for scrappy pinwheels, there was a cascade of shirt related cutting. Ohio stars was an easy decision. I have the accuquilt go die. I need a 5 1/2 inch strip of shirt to cut one block. So, While I was going through the box of shirts, I cut what I could get from a shirt in that size. Once I had been through the box once, I started cutting with the die. It wasn't until then, I checked my list of ufos, and, found I had a project box already cut. hmmm And ...

Susan shared a few of her bits and bobs with me.

The blocks were already 6″, so I did all I could with the assorted half-square triangles and leftover scraps, adding a few other 6″ blocks that caught my eye.

Those strips of 2″ squares became the border.

And, ta-dah!, a cute Christmas table topper or wall hanging. It finished at 30″ square.

Don’t give up on those bits and bobs (or odds and ends, or leftovers). Sometimes they are most of a pretty good idea and just need a little nudge to turn into a quick finish. That ...

It is time to say - see you later- to an old friend. I am retiring this project to the the UFO closet. I have enough pieces cut, I think, but, all shirts go well together. I was hoping for 80 blocks and I have 52 finished. I need to concentrate on some "other" languishing projects to get a bit of organization and less chaos. I  want to move some projects out of easy to reach areas and spread out my current projects. I keep misplacing parts and pieces and really need to clean up and assess where I am. So ...

 I snuck in some sewing of blocks and pieces that are not part of my 5 quilt or rainbow quilting goals. I have a few projects with cut pieces that I like to sew every now and then for fun.

wedding ring

snails trail

I only had a few minutes and I pulled out the snail trails blocks to add anther round. minus 1 -  where did that triangle go? silly triangle

I have finished 10 snails trail blocks. It has taken awhile since I only sew these when I need therapeutic sewing. I have been away from the sewing machine for so long, I hoped it would help me get back into the mood. And, it did. But I seem to be busy with other priorities right now.

I made strawberry jam and strawberry pie filling. yummy

I used the low ...

Today is Earth Day and it is the perfect time to make a pledge to help our planet by recycling, and reusing.  Simple things like refusing a straw, or using paper plates instead of plastic ones can help.  Buy and use things made from recycled materials when you can, especially for things like trash bags with recycled content.  It may not be a lot in terms of individual effort, but every little bit you do is added to the little bit I can do, and our neighbors can do, adding up to big change if we all do some. So ...

This quilt started as the leftovers of THIS quilt. When I decided to size down, the 16-patch blocks were already made.

Too much to throw away. Not quite enough for a complete quilt.

Adding the 4-patch blocks with borders brought it up to 48″ x 60″. A nice throw size.

And the backing is so much fun. It is planned as a gift for a classroom aide at school.

Diane sent me a Second Chances Quilt challenge. She had started this quilt and even cut much of the fabric.

Hmmmm…what to do? I didn’t want to build the tesselated star, but the fabric was already in triangles and rectangles.

Sudden inspiration struck…the triangles could be saved. I could cut a 2″ square and a 1-1/2″ square from each one. Yes, there was some waste, but not as much waste as doing nothing with it at all.

I decided to make snowball blocks in two sizes–6″ and 3″.

Each 6″ blocks uses 4 2-1/2 ...

I just needed a little light sewing. It's easy to pick up some of my "growing" projects and just sew. I don't have to look for anything or read the instructions or scratch my head. And my pile "grows". I sure like sewing with shirt material. It feels so nice.

anvil block

more easy breezy blocks

I need goals and plans, but, sometimes I just need some meditation sewing. I enjoy picking up 2 pieces of fabric and sending them through the machine.

I  am linking to:

oh scrap sunday

The more I concentrate on finishes, the more I need recreational sewing in addition. I haven't been in a hurry to finish these 2 projects. They are mostly cut, and all I need to do is sit and sew. They are not part of my goals to finish them yet. Other wedding ring blocks here

wedding ring

I am using recycled shirts for this quilt. Anvil

 checkered past is a free pattern from quilted twins. I really like her blog and her free patterns. The patterns look intricate but are really quick and easy compared to others. I have many recycled shirt parts in my stash and I like to have at least one in progress. I started putting 4 patches together at an open sew. I used 2 1/2 inch strips from the yokes.

The kitchen/dining chairs really needed new seats. My father built this set in the mid-1970s after one of their old chairs broke while my mother was standing on it to reach the top cabinet to get down the silver chest for a holiday dinner. She broke several ribs. He was very angry and broke the old rickety set to pieces and made one that WOULD NOT BREAK.

I was given the set when I moved out on my own. What a great gift!

It has been used and used. Four children and all their friends. Meals. School projects. Game ...

At last! The blocks sat for a year, more or less, before I came back to them and pushed towards a finish.

And I am pleased with it. Yes, the picture isn’t great due to size and adverse weather conditions, but you get the idea.

Final size is 84″ x 96″. A useful size and reasonable shape. It will be a while before it is a true finish. I need backing fabric and quilting and binding, but, this is a complete top and I am glad of it!

First border. Narrow–just enough to set apart the blocks, but not to add too much to the height.

I think there are three more borders coming…the end is in sight.

Another tentative step forward on an alternate setting for the blocks I have finished for the Safe Haven quilt kit.

I decided to add 1-1/2″ strip around each block.

Each block gets a different color, one that is contained in the block but not dominate on the side.

All of them are finished and it is time to contemplate Step Three. I am going back and forth between 2-1/2″ sashing in the light tan color that serves as a background in several of the blocks, a 1-1/2″ sashing of the same, and just sewing them all together ...