November Mini, Wild Center and . . .

This month's mini was so easy. When I made the binding (various strips) for my scrap quilt I had leftover triangles from the trimmings. There was a nice assortment of prints. 

So . . .

I paired them with white and made little 3" blocks. 

I pulled some brown strips from my stash and voila! 

It is 15-1/2" square . . . 

. . . and quilted in chevrons--one of my favorites. It was the first time I tried out my new 'walking foot.' It worked fine :)

We went with my daughter and her husband to the Wild Center in Tupper Lake, NY to see the holiday lights display. But the pathways weren't cleared of ice and snow so we decided to go inside the museum and walk around. It was good timing, too. No crowds to contend with.

If you have a minute or two check out the live cams on their website. We loved watching the otters and the turtles in person.

This is what I'm tackling at the moment:

Finally! But I'll tell you more about it next week :)

Copyright 2022, Barbara Schaffer

 

UFO #6 Barb's Scraps

I know, I know. Two finishes in two weeks?? Yep! I had taken both to Dawn at Cabin Creek Stitchery to be quilted so all I had to do was trim excess batting and backing, cut and sew bindings, and add labels.

Last year I started sewing 1" x 2-1/2" bricks in the center gradually increasing sizes and shapes as I went along. I had no real plan.

But as of last December this is as far as I had gotten. I was stuck and couldn't think of where to go from here. So it sat . . . 

Then one day I pulled it out and draped it over the railing in my sewing room so I could actually see it when I looked up from the family room. I figured out if I added strips on all sides with a large border print on two of them, it would come together.

"Look for the bird." That's what I told Dawn to focus on if she got lost in what direction was up :)

I added strips in varying widths to the top and the bottom. I have an ongoing inventory that I keep just in case.  

 

 

Some strips were really long like the pink/white one in the third row that was trimmed from another quilt a long time ago. I could run it all the way across without a seam. 

 

I was aiming for a finished size of 70" x 90" and added strips on both sides before attaching the wide border.   

Here's the back. That may be the end of that floral stripe--almost! I had purchased 6 yards of it when our local quilt shop in NJ was going out of business years ago.

Here it is all finished hanging from our deck. This is what pure scrappiness looks like and I must admit I love the way it turned out :)

It's finally snowing! We already have 4" and it looks like a winter wonderland.

Enjoy your week and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 

Copyright 2022, Barbara Schaffer

UFO #5 Bits and Pieces ++

 My goal this year is to finish my UFOs--Bits and Pieces is now done. 

In April I started making 10" blocks from Carol Y's scraps and made nine total. You can see the red quilting thread in this one. 

I sliced and diced and just kept sewing and adding . . .
 

. . . occasionally I'd throw in a novelty print . . . 

. . . and really enjoyed adding rounds with whatever came to mind.

The string blocks in the border are 6" finished.

I had purchased a 5" Falling Leaves template for Dawn at Cabin Creek Stitchery to try on her longarm machine. She was excited about it and so was I!

It finishes at 40" x 40" and I thought I got this style out of my system. But there is just something about using lots and lots of (little) scraps that appeals to me. (I photographed it on the floor by standing on a stool but there was a shadow in the lower right. It's not really that dark.)

So with that in mind . . . 

In June, Dana at DanaAuctions.com had listed this Antique Graphic Quilt with Orphan Blocks--her catalog photo is above. I immediately "fell" for this piece and had actually bid on it until it was out of reach BUT . . . 

It looks like Gay at Sentimental Stitches purchased it and is now offering patterns for one 6" foundation-pieced block per week for 54 weeks starting in January. Guess what? I can't resist! Stay tuned . . . 

Moving along to more thrift shop goodies last week. The bargains keep on coming and I keep on buying!

The Eagle Medallion Collection by Windham Fabrics #31699 . . . 

. . . gorgeous repros by P&B Textiles Echoes of the Past: Austen Manor by Harriet Hargrave and Moda's The Spencer Museum of Art Collection by Barbara Brackman/Terry Clothier Thompson . . . 

. . . and The Sampler Collection by Windham #29722. I have a Schoolgirl Sampler board on Pinterest here and try to focus on dated samplers. 

Anyway, that's it for now. We're off to buy some apples at a nearby orchard :)

Copyright 2022, Barbara Schaffer