"piddlin' "

 Do you google words for a precise definition as I often do?  I was just piddlin' around this morning and wondered what exactly was I doing!  For curious minds, piddling is defined as "pathetically trivial" and piddling around:  "to waste time doing something that is not important or useful", oh, my and my stars! I have just wasted a precious amount of time on this piddlin' quilt ~

How this all started was I was curious and wanted to learn how to make flying geese in multiples.  Now that I know how, must make more...but that's for another time, another story, another blog post.  Once I got my flying geese units made, the thought came to mind that they are the beginning of the simple sawtooth star quilt block....

and one thing led  to another, still piddlin' around, 

until I had used several of my favorite fabrics to complete this 45" x 45" quilt top. Oh, and my favorite fabrics are the Marcia Derse gold stripe surrounding each star and then the 3" inner border in almost equal amounts of Anna Maria Horner and Denyse Schmidt fabrics followed by even more big and bold Marcia Derse....drooling.  Did you know that you can click on a photo for a larger, close-up-and-more-personal view.  

I'll be doing more piddlin' around and will keep you informed of my totally wasted efforts.  Until then, I remain a happy quilt maker  ~ Marty 

Foundation Pieced ~

 

What a delicious group of reds - 

the start of my foundation pieced red and white quilt inspired by a quilt top by an unknown quiltmaker in East Texas - one I saw in The Childress Collection on Instagram.  

I'm pretty much intrigued by anything red and white....my high school colors...And, anything improvisational always causes me to stay and study  a bit. What fun it was, each 10" block constructed without a care to come together in a finish that delights my heart.     

The Marjorie Childress collection includes 300 plus quilts and is growing.  Her collection emphasizes the quilts of the 20th century with a focus on improvisational piecing in a make-do attitude.  Some were shared in a special exhibit QuiltCon 2019, a summary found here in The Reading Room.  Enjoy as much as I enjoyed......Marty 

What I finished before breakfast ~

 

Because my sewing room fabric shelves are almost to the breaking point -  I've been selling fabric. Except that  some just don't move fast enough and between the sales post and an actual sale,

 I came up with a quilt idea for these fabrics.....starting with a yard of Jay McCarroll's  "Center City - Philadelphia".  Combined with Michael Miller's Glitz bars and Alison Glass, Deb Strain and Marcia Derse and even some of my hand dyes, they made up into a cluster of half square triangles

 

which finished a one-of-a-kind improvisational half-square triangle quilt top measuring 55" x 44".....not yet quilted.  I'll use the remaining yardage to piece together the backing.  

Until next time, I remain a happy quilter.  

Marty 

What I did yesterday~

 Of course, what I did yesterday was to make another quilt....or rather, finish another quilt!  The center portion with very dominant Jane Sassaman fabric was a left over from several years ago, but I just re-discovered it a few days ago and pulled more fabric to enlarge the size. 

  So, from start to finish at 42" x 38" -  what I did yesterday.  

Want to see the back?  

Until next time.....Marty

Free Range Quilt Top #2 ~

 Truly, one must keep an open mind to contemplate putting fabrics together that have no obvious compliments one to another.   Thus, in this frame of open mind, I put together fabrics for free range quilt #2 - starting with those numbers:  a Tim Holtz design, then stopped at just the right finish for toddler or picnic table - 64" x 44".

The logic of it all.....the Tim Holtz numbers are hazy pink on almost charcoal gray, allowing the pink to be introduced, then the blue with pink flowers, then more shades of blue.  The yellow with gray designs (from Malka Dubrasky) followed.  So you see how keeping the mind open to color ideas allows one the freedom to add.   Go see free range #1.   

Enjoy the moments with me until next time.

Marty