Out of the scrap bin...

The brown scrap bin yielded 150 slab blocks at 6.5" and looks like I will get three quilts from this pile of scraps. I've added bits from larger pieces and fat quarters, but the brown bin is now empty! How long that will last is anyone's guess.

This first top was designed around an orphan block that someone donated to our guild. Many donors are people who cannot quilt for health reasons, or from families who have lost their quilting mother or grandmother. The block is 18.5" so was perfect for my 6.5" blocks. I had plain ones also so used them to give some space to this orphan. Putting the slab blocks around it was pure fun. 

This top is 63" square and going to the guild community outreach group for quilting. I did make some binding, also leftover scraps, that will work and have some brown backing that will do this one and the second one on the design wall. Photo of it later...

 

Two projects and a Gift!

 I come down to my studio first thing every morning to have devotions. My latest nativity project is on the design wall and there is a small window on the opposite wall, high up. It rarely lets full sun in, but when I looked at the quilt, the sun was shining JUST on the manger. I gulped and grabbed my camera but by the time I got the picture, the sunshine made a rectangle on the quilt. Still it was as if the Lord was saying "Good Morning" to me.  Here is the picture.

 

Brown scrappy is on the longarm, finally. I watched a video that showed how to keep a quilt nice and square while using those plastic clips instead of pinning it to the leaders. It really helped. This top was square and I was afraid of making it wonky. So far so good.

The last picture is my birthday gift from my son. He picked the one with the most buds on it... so if they all bloom at once, there will be 20 or so. I took care of a neighbor's orchids once and that is all I know. Google is a great pal! I hope this one loves the place I put it and the care I give it because it is so dratted pretty! That son is getting more thoughtful day by day... another gift!

Brown Scraps I progress...

 

This top is finished. I need to quilt it and am not using scraps on the back. I thought there was some wide backing in my shelves but no, so went online to look only to discover that no one will sell me 2.5 yards or meters. The checkout rounds it to 2 or ups it to 3. I might try a local store that is doing curbside service, but really wanted to get this one from Hancock's in Kentucky. Their prices and low shipping costs make it about half of what it costs anywhere else. However, they are not shipping to Canada during this pandemic. So my brown scraps, now nicely assembled, will have to wait for a while to get finished. In the meantime, the fabric, etc. for a dozen or so baby quilts are lined up saying "Make me" so I'm not twiddling my thumbs!

I am a bit worried about 'going back to normal' though. Having extra time to quilt and do other things is nice and I've started getting annoyed at any kind of interruption. Oh dear, that is not a good sign!

Progress

This one is slow... no, it is me that is slow. I have a baby quilt on the longarm and a smaller version of this one done to the sandwich stage. This is my 'procrastination' zone. 

Pressing on... no pun intended. The sashing is on one side of the top blocks only since they may need rearranging. 

Did get the studio cleaned up and moved a few things around. It is easier to work in now, if I felt like working.

Dog's Breakfast needs a new name

Only two rows of blocks with only sashing on the sides of the blocks, all pinned to the wall, but I'm starting to love this mass (or mess) of leftover brown, rust, beige, taupe, and oranges (the root color of brown). These blocks finish at 8" and the sashing will finish at 1", narrow but does the trick. It is a black black cut on the lengthwise so should hold its shape well. Not sure how to quilt it yet, but am open to suggestions.

Hope everyone is well, staying home as advised and if a quilter, it is not hard to find things to do!

Dog's Breakfast II

Making progress, even though 'Brown Scrappy' still looks like a dog's breakfast. I will eventually come up with a better name!

Here is the 'so far' and my fav block of the bunch. It is fun using up so many scraps. Btw, no planned pattern is planned. I'll be moving these around but don't want a predictable design. Isn't that a good way to describe our lives right now!

Hubby and I are staying home. He's working via conference calls and I get out 1x week for groceries. Our city is like a ghost town, but that's good.

 So is being able to work on quilts without out much interruption and no guilt at all!

Dog's Breakfast?

I know -- it looks like a dog's breakfast. These are what I have so far from my scrap bin of mostly browns and oranges. There is enough for 80 blocks. They will be all the same (8" finished) and the only thing consistent is the horizontal rows have the largest piece all in the same value and nearly the same color. 

I will likely flip every other row so I don't have to worry about matching seams, and of course rearrange the blocks in the rows until they look better. I've also considered a narrow sashing but not sure what color to use???

I cut all those large patches and a bunch of the other sizes, so lots of assembly and stitching to do. At first, I was cutting pieces at random depending on the size of the scraps. However, cutting and putting the bigger pieces on the wall helped me know how many I needed and in what color. Anyway, it feels good to use up the bits and it will be a nice size to keep someone warm.

Hope everyone is doing okay with all the regulations to stay home, keep your distance, etc. We quilters should love the confinement as those UFOs need some extra hours anyway.