I'm still here...

Oh, my last course was a tough one... now it is over and I'm taking Beginner Greek, which is even worse. However, so glad that the sewing machine (and relief for an over-taxed brain) is just a few steps away. Also that some bright fellow posted a youtube that helped me learn the Greek alphabet in less than 10 minutes. It is corny, but it worked. Learning how to write the letters is another story.**

I only finished a couple more blocks for the Lord of the Rings quilt so will take pictures when the third one is finished... it is close. There are two more after that, then comes the challenge of selecting fabric for the sashing/borders, and arranging the blocks. What a journey this has been. I wonder if the time it took has any relationship to the length of those movies?!  :-)

Now and then, Pinterest attracts me away from doing any work. Can you believe all the marvelous quilts that are out there! I've been saving those that inspire me, and have very itchy fingers when I look at them. Btw, I graduate May 15, so hope all that ambition and my sanity are still with me so I can turn some of the vision into reality.

In the meantime, here is a photo that makes me want to sew a tree ...

** I'm finishing a Masters degree online, started it in 1993 so it is a huge UFO project!

Lord of the Rings Quilt

Here are four more blocks finished (I didn't move the lower left one out of the picture, but it was finished last post.) 

I've one left to sew together which is J. R.'s initials, and another one that so ugly that I'm going to pitch it (no photo of that one!) 

These are scenes from the movie, and I love the one with the blue mountains, Grey Havens. My plan is to do some quilting 'reflections' on the water so that vertical line of contrasting tones isn't quite so prominent.

I'm also glad that I didn't have to put eyes on Gollum. That character gives me the creeps!

I do have a question... if anyone has any paper-pieced patterns that are Lord of the Rings, but different than these, I'd be very interested. I need a couple more blocks and don't want to make duplicates. I might be able to make patterns, but it would be nice to find some already made.

I'm now planning the general layout for this quilt. The plan looks good so far. Choosing the background color and fabric is a challenge though. I'll take pictures of my options and see what you think. 

And another three . . .

These 7" paper-pieced blocks are time-consuming, but I like the precision and the ease of 'pick up/put down' without forgetting what I am doing from one sewing session to the next. 

They represent scenes from the Lord of the Rings movie, including Merrie and Pippin. They are not totally accurate in color because the movie had a lot of dull gray and black which does not make discernible or eye-pleasing contrast for a quilt. I've plans in mind for quilting them in ways to enhance the shapes, etc. I'm still undecided on sashing. 

Three more blocks

Here are the most recent finished blocks for the Lord of the Rings quilt. Again, they will finish at 7" and are foundation paper-pieced. I do love the technique so am having fun. My plan is to quilt-as-you-go if the arrangement will allow it.

Eighteen blocks finished

Progress on this hobbit/Lord of the Rings quilt is slow as I am still taking a degree program online and putting most of my time into that. However, this foundation paper-piecing is fun and easy to put-down, pick-up. 

Here are the 18 blocks on the design wall, in no particular order. Note that some of them are bigger than the 7.5 size. Also, I didn't like three of them, so redid them. One is the prancing pony. I checked it out online and realized I should have done that first with all three. This one is the sign for a pub named The Prancing Pony... and the sign was green with a white horse. 

The hobbit home and the beer mug had the same values all over and were hard to identify. As for that white tree, there was no way I was going to do it at 7"!

The next photo shows the top of my work table with the next block about half finished. It is handy to my desk so easy to just stop reading and writing and go sew.

The photo below it is my folding table loaded with bits and pieces of the colors that are being used. Not sure what I'll pick for the sashing and borders, but there is lots of time for that. 

The pattern calls for 29 blocks, but with the resizing, it may need some more to make it work out. I'm still not sure what size either, but it looks like it might be a queen. 

Patience needed

NOTE: My Internet connection is not working so these posts must go up in the evening instead of early morning. Long story, but I'm in a coffee shop doing this and listening to online lectures for my studies, at least for a few days. Thanks for your patience - and please pray for me to be patient also! One good thing... I quickly realized I have more time to quilt when I cannot read email!

More Hobbit blocks...

Two more Hobbit blocks. Hope my artistic license is not messing too much with the original colors!

This is slow going, not because these patches are impossibly difficult or small (well some of them are only 7" including the bottom one) but because I'm taking a course right now with a huge amount of reading. No time = the bane of most quilters?