B-9 Irish Chain
I got a buy this week, as I did this block back in March 2007. I should do another block – I’ve got another 107 to go, but I’m focused on the DWR. Maybe later in the week when I need a break.
What’s On My Design Wall? – 8/24
For those of you expecting the Blue and Yellow Stars, I’m happy to report I finished that top last week.
I am now on to my oldest UFO, the anniversary Double Wedding Ring. The saga thus far is told in this post.
Saturday night I ripped apart the arcs which had not already been sewn to the melons. Sunday I carefully trimmed the pieces with my new templates. By dinner I had reconstructed 4 arcs, sewn them to the melons and attached the melons to the background. I already had 4 rings sewn together in the box, so I added my new ring to the row.
I’ve got to cut more pieces. Before I can do anymore.
Over the next few weeks, this will be my main project, with a few SBS BOW and swap blocks thrown in. I have 26 more rings to piece before I can call this quilt a top.
To see what others have on their design wall, check out Judy’s blog at Patchwork Times.
Stash Report Week # 34
No fabric in this week.
Fabric going out included the borders on the Kansas Spirit BOM, the setting triangles on the Birthday Quilt and a tiny bit on this week’s SBS BOW
This week (and for the next several weeks) I’ll work on my DWR, so there will be no need for fabric to come in. Since I count when I cut the fabric, I need to stop and measure what I have left in my bucket for the quilt and then figure out how much I use each week.
Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added to Date: 168.25 yards
Fabric Used this Week: 3.3.188 yards
Fabric Used to Date: 65.806 yards
Net Stash: +102.444 yards
Check out who others are doing with their stash over at Patchwork Times.
Double Wedding Ring Quilt
This is my Double Wedding Ring (DWR) Quilt – or what I’ve got done so far.
In September 1989 I signed up to take a Double Wedding Ring quilt class. I had previously made my first quilt in 1980 and I had been sewing for nearly 15 years, so I figured I could make this quilt with proper instruction.
The quilt was originally to be finished for our 5th wedding anniversary, which was 14 months away. I thought this was extremely do-able, although the ladies at the quilt shop had doubts since I didn’t have much had next to no quilting experience.
We used Mary Ellen Ingle Hopkins’ book The Double Wedding Ring Book.
I had no experience picking out multiple fabrics for a quilt. I knew I wanted blue and burgundy. The ladies at the shop had to guide me toward texture, print size and color value.
The class met at least twice, maybe more — at this point I can’t remember. I do remember an experienced quilter, who had made a DWR, taking the class. She said she was taking the class to ‘force’ her to get the quilt underway. It seems it was to be a wedding gift and the wedding was just two or three weeks away!
Anyway, I enjoyed the class. By the end of the class I had two rows sewn together. I continued to work on the quilt after the class was over for a while. However, life got in the way of completing it. We moved the following summer and the quilt got packed up. It was not finished for our 5th anniversary.
We moved a couple of more times and I would pull it out and work on it for a bit. My next goal was to finish it for our 10th anniversary, then 15th, and 20th. Well, it’s still not finished.
I really want to finish this quilt for our 25th anniversary — 15 months from now. Again I think this is do-able — probably more so now than it was then. To that goal my intermediate goal is to get the top done by mid-October so I can put it on the quilting frame. Yes, I want to hand quilt this top.
So I’ve got to get piecing. Here’s my most recent problem.
A combination of bad cutting and seam allowances. The arc on the bottom was cut out with scissors. The one on the top is an arc I ripped apart and re-cut using a rotary cutter and the templates my friend’s husband made me. That’s nearly 3/4 of an inch difference at the top of the arc. No wonder the newly cut pieces weren’t going together well. I’ve checked and the new arc is the right length, so I think I’m on the right path.
I’ll post my progress. Perhaps this time I won’t get distracted.
Birthday Quilt Top
This afternoon I finished sewing the Birthday Blocks and Stars together. I really need to settle on a name for this quilt so I know what I’m talking about.
I used my Flip-n-Set ruler to make the side triangles and they came out so much better than if I cut a large square and cut it diagonally twice. The packaging on the back said to cut a square the same size as the finished block then cut it in half diagonally. As a result it’s about an inch too large – but easy enough to fix.
Originally, there was a border planned for this quilt — not that I had settled on a border. But I think I’m going with my DH’s idea of just binding it. It measures approximately 68 x 86.
SBS Block Due 8/19
K-9 Barrister’s Block
60 Pieces!
24 HST triangles finishing at 3/4″ — yes, less than 1-inch
Just don’t look at my points.
Kansas Spirit BOM
Here’s the quilt top I was working on all weekend and which was on my design wall in pieces yesterday. The last border was added to the quilt about 6 this evening which gave me just enough time to do a quick photo session and get to the shop before it closed. (I promise the quilt is ‘square’ and really doesn’t have lumps. It was the flannel behind the quilt and the hangers making it hang weird.)
The pieced blocks are from the book Kansas Spirit, by Jeanne Poore. Connie at Heritage picked out 12 of the 15 blocks to use as a Block of the Month and she choose to use a variety of Kansas Troubles fabrics to use for the blocks. Tomorrow participants are picking up the Courthouse Steps and then there are two more blocks.
This layout is not in the book, but rather one I pulled together. This will be the choice for the smaller of the two quilts (approx. 65 x 83). I’ve got about half of the instructions written for this layout. There will be a larger choice finishing at approximately 89 x 108 which I still have to write. I’ve got it drawn in EQ.
What’s On My Design Wall? – 8/17
Last week I slowly got the Blue and Yellow stars sewn together into rows. Got to the setting triangles and realized I hadn’t washed the fabric. So, while it was in the wash, I took off for Heritage to pick up the finishing fabric for the Kansas Spirit BOM.
Boy did I have a scare when I got the first few blocks up. The contrast between the setting squares and the BOM squares was huge. I felt much better once I got the side setting triangles up — or at least the pieces for them up.
Yesterday I asked my DH about the quilt. The last time he had walked through the room I had the stars up. He was surprised that I had as much of the quilt done since it was a pile of fabric around 4 the previous day. It occurred to me later that he thought I had made all of the blocks and not just the setting blocks.
As soon as I get permission to post a picture of the quilt, I will. In the meantime see what other quilters have on their design wall by visiting Judy’s blog at Patchwork Times.
When Music and Quilting Collide…
…around here you get an original piano composition by my husband which is illustrated by some of my quilts and quilt tops.
My DH is a instrumental music teacher. For the past 10 years he taught beginning 5th & 6th graders string and band instruments. Prior to that he taught at the high school level. Additionally, he has been a member of the Overland Park Civic Band and other ensembles.
To hear some of more of his original compositions or to hear some of his groups perform click here.
Stash Report Week # 33
It was a simple task. Go to the LQS and get the 4 5/8 yards of fabric for the finishing kit for the Kansas Spirit BOM that I’m writing the finishing instructions for. True, I’ll need to get border fabric for my Blue and Yellow stars to finish it, but I don’t have to do that right now. There’s plenty on my plate that I want to finish that I have all the fabric for. But since I was in the store, I wandered back to the clearance shelves to see if anything on them would work for the stars. Maybe – but I’ll need to have the quilt with me before I buy. As I walk out of the room what do I spot but a bolt of fabric with music notes in Red on White!
But I’ve already finished the music quilt top! And I have enough music fabric to make 2 or 3 more — including backing. But I am working on those red work snowmen and they’ll have red and white pieced blocks — so a FQ came home with me in addition to the 4 5/8 yard — ok 5 yards of fabric for the BOM finishing kit.
So much for not making it though the first day of Burton’s UFO Challenge on her blog Quilting Literati
Outbound I made 2 sets of 6 blocks for the SBS swap (6″ blocks), 4 blocks for the birthday swap (12″), the last block for Kansas Spirit and cut all the fabric needed for the setting blocks.
So now for the report:
Fabric Added this Week: 5.25 yards
Fabric Added to Date: 168.25 yards
Fabric Used this Week: 3.865 yards
Fabric Used to Date: 62.618 yards
Net Stash: +105.632 yards
See how others are doing with their stash over at Patchwork Times.
