Jake's Quilt & Boomerang Patches

Ten years ago I made this quilt for my then-pregnant niece's baby shower. She and her husband didn't want to know the baby's sex ahead of time, they wanted to be surprised, so I had to make a gender-neutral quilt. Turquoise, lime and coral would do nicely. I gathered fabrics, cut lots of squares - lots! - and made lots of tiny 4-patches.

My friend Sandy quilted it; she was just starting her long-arm business and I didn't have any FMQ skills at all. It has a meander in the center and feathers in the borders. After all these years and many washings, this quilt is soft and crinkly. I was pleased to see that the label held up well, printed on my ink-jet printer.  The wind was helping me take photos this morning. 

The baby turned out to be a boy, and now Jake is a handsome and charming young man who's about to turn 10. His mom lent me his quilt for these photos and for a guild Show & Tell coming up.

Apparently there were a lot of leftover parts after I made Jake's quilt. I must have donated them to a guild destashing event, and someone must have taken them. Fast-forward a few years; my friend Cherie visited the estate sale of a quilter who had passed away and whose daughters were clearing out their mother's stuff. Cherie came away with a partially completed baby quilt top and the rest of the fabrics to go with it. She finished the top and there were still squares left over, so she put them in our guild's Orphan Adoption Event last October.

I noticed the little clamshell of cute 4-patches and I liked the colors, so I adopted it. When I got it home and spread them out, the strangest, most surreal feeling washed over me. OMG, these are my scraps! I had totally forgotten about them and hadn't seen Jake's quilt in years so I didn't recognize them in the box.

Since I adopted that box of patches, I couldn't let them go to waste. I found more of some of those fabrics in my stash, added a couple new fabrics including the green stripe, and the Boomerang Patches quilt was born.

Cherie and I are going to show these quilts and hers at guild Show & Tell later this month. Then Jake's quilt will be returned and Boomerang Patches will be donated.  There are a few leftover patches and they're going to the free table at STLMQG tomorrow. I still love the colors, but I think I'm finally done with these patches.

Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Crazy Mom Quilts

Another Fun Day at the Quilt Cave

Last time the Cave Quilters got together, we made several snake blocks for a QOV and this is where we left off, 14 blocks complete.

Snake Blocks

We got together for another fun day recently, and in between conversation and laughter, we got a lot more work done.

Dar, Kevin & Cherie Working on Blocks

Our day was definitely not all work and no play. There was plenty of play involved, including some scrap diving. 

Cherie & Me with Scraps

We had a great time together, and we really did accomplish a lot. In the afternoon we had enough blocks on the wall to play with layouts a bit. If you turn some of the blocks, they make closed loops or circles. 

Layout Option at the Right

We ended the day with 26 of 48 blocks done; we only need 14 more. We're leaning toward the traditional layout where all the blocks go the same way, creating diagonal "snakes." Even though it's the same block over and over, the fabric variety and the movement created by the wavy diagonals give it a lot of interest. 

26 Blocks, Straight Layout 

I love that we have so much variety in the fabrics even though it's a very controlled color palette. There are several white-on-white backgrounds, dozens of reds, and many dozens of blues. Pulling from four quilters' stashes really helped! 

Fabric Variety

Several people have asked me for the pattern. I don't know if there's a published pattern for this block or not. If I find one I'll let you know. If anyone knows of one, please tell me in the comments. If I don't find an existing pattern, I'll post a tutorial about how to draft it and make the templates. 

Linking up with Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts

WIGSP*

*Work In Glacially Slow Progress

On my wall 3/6/17

This is my Piecing Group project, a hand-piecing bee project that's been in work since 2008. It's been through seven go-rounds when it was my turn to hand out, and a total of 30 people have now worked on it, since people have left the group and others have joined over that time. It won't be handed out in Piecing Group any more because it's now in too few parts to go around.

It's currently in rows and half-rows. There are two rows of black triangles at the top, then three rows of pieced units that form hexies, and these rows are all sewn together and pressed. After that there are half-rows joined in pairs; these were returned after the last piecing go round. Everything down to the horizontal gap has been pressed.

Pressed rows

My friends in Piecing Group know I have arthritis etc. in my hands and hand sewing has become much more difficult than it was when this project was started. Several of the girls got together and joined up the sections they were working on. Everything below the gap on the wall is completely sewn together. I'm very grateful to them for doing so much extra work on my project. The big section they put together is not pressed yet; it will be a tedious job to press it so that's my goal for this week.

Unpressed section

Not on the wall yet are three more rows that form hexies. Then after that there will be two more rows of black triangles for the bottom border. 

It will be awhile - a very long time - until this is a finished top. One of my friends has offered to continue helping me with it, and I appreciate her help very much. When it's finished this will be a queen size quilt and I'm definitely keeping this one for me. I still love the luminous effect of all those sparkling colors against the black.


Linking up with Patchwork Times, Em's Scrapbag, Love Laugh Quilt

Welcome Home - Finished

Welcome Home 

This is a small quilt - 45" square - made from a few FQs I received in a STLMQG swap/challenge event a couple years ago, plus some stash. I don't know the name of the fabric line, so if anyone does, please let me know in the comments.

Welcome Home, Detail

It was pieced at one or another of my bee sew days and the top sat in a box for awhile. I had time in February so I got it quilted and bound. This quilt has always been intended as a donation quilt. I like that it's gender neutral and cheerful.

I was able to use up some stash for the backing, too.

Backing from Stash

Do you follow Sarah Craig's blog, Confessions of a Fabric Addict? Sarah hosts a quilt drive called Hands2Help every spring. One of this year's charities is the St. Louis International Institute, an organization that helps immigrants. Since I live in St. Louis, I'll choose this charity instead of mailing my donation quilts off to one of the other charities this year. I think the houses/trees/neighborhood theme of these prints are perfect, don't you? So I'm calling this quilt "Welcome Home."

I also finished my Boomerang Patches quilt in February:

Boomerang Patches Baby Quilt

It, too, is intended as a donation quilt. At about 36" x 46" it's a nice baby quilt size. For twice left-over and recycled scraps and 4-patches, I think it came together pretty well. I added the green/blue stripe from my stash to the boomerang patches so I could use it for the binding and it would relate. I do love a striped binding!

Boomerang Patches, Detail

Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Crazy Mom Quilts

February Stash & Goals Update

A couple of finishes helped this month:

Donation quilt, 45 x 45", ready for the binding to be sewn down. 

Boomerang Patches Baby Quilt

February Stash Report:
IN: 12.5 yards (3/8 yd white-on-white for snake QOV; 12-1/8 yds from fabric swap)
OUT: 21 yards (1/2 yd for Boomerang top; 3/8 for binding; 1-1/2 for backing; 1-3/4 yd backing for donation quilt & 1/2 yd for binding; 16-3/8 yds donated to fabric swap)
Month change: 8.5 yards out
I definitely did okay at the guild fabric swap. I took 16-3/8 yards to give away and only brought home 12-1/8 yards.

YTD IN: 19-1/4 yards
YTD OUT: 35-1/4 yards
YTD Net Change: 16 yards out

February Goals Recap:
1. Keep up with Pat Sloan Solstice Challenge blocks. Yes, with modifications to suit me.
2. Finish Boomerang Patches baby quilt into a flimsy. Done - not only a flimsy but quilted and bound. 
3. Cut pieces & paper-piece arcs for more snake blocks for next sew day at Kevin's. Cut more blue pieces and made one complete snake block. Still need to make more arcs.
4. Make progress on Roman Road WIP. Not touched. Instead, finished a small donation quilt that was a UFO. 
5. Make progress hand piecing my Piecing Group project. Yes - finished sewing top borders on and started pressing all the sections returned by Piecing Group members.
6. Keep up with bee blocks. Done.

March Goals:
1. Keep up with Pat Sloan Solstice Challenge blocks.
2. Start a Hands2Help donation quilt
3. Start planning a 12 Days of Christmas in July project requested by my son.
4. Make progress on Roman Road WIP.
5. Make progress hand piecing my WIVSP* Piecing Group project.
6. Keep up with bee blocks.

*Work In Very Slow Progress

And because I'm pleased with how the Boomerang Patches baby quilt turned out, here are a few more pics:

I stitched in the ditch around the dark blue border, and quilted it with an allover large meander using light turquoise thread on the front and white on the back.

Lately I've been applying binding to the back first, then glue-basting and stitching it down to the front. I was able to preserve the points even though they go all the way to the edge of the quilt, without adding a surround border.

This little quilt finishes at about 36 x 45". Gotta love that stripey binding! The back is a pale aqua print I got at the fabric swap. I like how the SID quilting around the blue border gives the back a border too.

Monday Link-ups: Patchwork Times, Em's Scrapbag, Love Laugh Quilt

Almost a Finish But Not Quite Yet

Once I finished the Boomerang Patches flimsy I couldn't move on to quilting it because I didn't have enough of anything suitable in my stash for backing, not even enough to piece together. So I set it aside and hoped to get something at the guild fabric exchange. 

Meanwhile I pulled out a UFO, a small top I had pieced at a sew day using FQs from a STLMQG fabric swap/challenge. This was always intended to be a donation quilt. 

I found suitable fabrics in my stash to piece together a backing. I quilted it with an allover meander. 

The binding is prepped. Hopefully I'll get this little quilt (45") bound and finished this week. Unfortunately it's too small for any of the Hands2Help charities, but I'll find a local place to donate it. 

Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict

CSQ Fabric Swap

Last night my guild held our annual Fabric Swap social meeting, always a fun event. The way it works is, you bring whatever you want to de-stash, and you take home whatever you want. This year's fabric swap was special because it included the stash of our late friend Kathleen, who had a deep stash and excellent taste.

Two dining tables, three card tables, a folding table, and a credenza were all filled like this. Everyone circulated and took whatever they wanted, and everyone came away a) satisfied, and b) taking home more than they swore they would. I don't know how many times I heard "Oh, I really don't need anything, but..." as someone picked up yet another piece of fabric.

I de-stashed 16-3/8 yards, some of which was promptly snarfed up by a couple of close friends. I was specifically looking to get backing for my Boomerang Patches baby quilt - I even took swatches with me for color.

I restrained myself - I really did. I found the perfect light aqua for backing and there's enough I won't have to piece it. I should have stopped there, but a few other pieces called my name.

I haven't counted the yardage yet, but I'm sure there's quite a bit. There's a 4-yard piece of navy print that would work for backing for a QOV. A 1-1/2 yard piece of pastel print, good for backing for a donation quilt. And a bunch of smaller pieces, just because I liked them, no specific purpose in mind.

Any fabric that was left over, and there's always some, goes to Charity Sharity where it's used by charitable groups. The only things remaining at the hostess's house were threads, lint, empty tables, and leftover desserts.

Best of all it was a fun evening with my friends, a social event we look forward to every year. So I'm sharing this story at Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts today.