August continued ~

 August adjective:  Distinguished

August noun:  8th month in Gregorian calendar.....introduced in 1582  by Pope Gregory XIII 

Whichever way you look at August, it's going my way.  

I took the time yesterday (or perhaps the day before) to flip through the pages of  Roderick Kiracofe's Unconventional & Unexpected,  American Quilts Below The Radar and the one on page 19 stopped me in my tracks.   It was all floral fabrics and  one could say it was an open window to the outside garden.

My inspiration ~

I'm enjoying the magenta floral mix created by Rashida Coleman Hale for Cotton + Steel and the seafoam floral colorway by Maureen Cracknell for AGF.  

Until next time,  I reman a totally satisfied quilt-maker enjoying my month of August and august quilt making.  

  

August Accompli ~

 What's been accomplished this month.....a lot of quilt-top-making in an improvisational patchwork style:

Oh What Fun making this improv patchwork with some Marcia Derse fabric pieces.  This one finished at 42" x 60".

and just from a few scraps....6" blocks surrounded by 1" strips, Oh! My! finished at 46" x 54".  Already sold and shipped.

The quickest sew up of all is this Baby Goose pattern by Running Doe Designs.  Features Lotta Jansdotter fabric Glimma for a 42" x 58" finish. I've made several from this simple pattern just because it's a fast use of fabric (1 1/4 yds) plus six 8" blocks for the geese with six  more 8" background blocks.

 

Whew.....August has been a hot one and it's not over yet.

Celebrate With Me ~

 It's Independence Day.....Let us celebrate.  I've been scrap busting again and that is making me feel very independent in making one-of-a-kind scrap quilts. 

 Scraps add up to yardage

 

and yardage equals a quit block finished....

then another.....with the only plan in my head -  alternating light and dark scraps for a finished 12" quilt block

for a complete quilt top finished in no time.  May you enjoy the freedom to pursue your dream. 

Geese gone wild ~

 It must be the heat! Or, is it that I obsess!  I prefer to think that I'm not obsessing, but rather, reinforcing the process of making four-at-a-time flying geese.  Two toddler size quilts later, I think I've got the hang of it.  My geese blocks measure 3" x 6" making a perfect 36" x 48" delight filled with my left-over fabric scraps.  

What I learned in making my second toddler quilt  was that directional fabric must be viewed with a jaundiced eye.  

 No, I didn't rip, but allowed each block to add interest and in the whole scheme of things, the mis-directed blocks are not noticeable,  unless one searches for the OOPS!  

I rather like these two with the directional background fabric allowing movement in each block.  And a big "thank you" Marcia Derse and Malka Dubrawsky, for allowing me the opportunity to purchase your fabric.  

Here's the whole picture.  Look for all the directional fabric....I count 9 obvious ones...and then you be the judge.

"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 

Tried it.....Liked it ~

Try, in my opinion, is an over-used word to hedge.  I hear folks saying, usually in pathetically whiney voice,  "Well, I tried!"  I want them to finish the sentence.   Tell me the outcome of that "trying" attempt....success, failure, or somewhere in between.  Just try getting out of a chair, then let me know what happened.

Something I tried awhile back and liked the outcome.....painting fabric.   It was a class at Houston Quilt Festival a few years ago, teacher's name has sadly slipped on out of memory, that was all about painting on fabric that piqued my interest enough so that I tried the process.  What fun painting  on this Robert Kaufman linen... so much so that I used it as the back of this improv quilt.  The same linen on the front is left unpainted.  

I didn't have any of the fancy fabric paint so I tried the water based acrylic  which suited me just fine.  And, it didn't wash out because I tried that too.  

When one tries to do something, there must always be an outcome....Just try it and see.  

Still here and living life ~

 I woke up this morning with the strongest urge to add a post to my sadly forsaken blog.  But what's a girl to blog about?  I scanned the sewing room, looked through pictures for an idea and came up with nothing brilliant nor newsworthy.  Oh, well!  

Having nothing to blog about and not to waste a perfectly beautiful morning, I grabbed a stack of larger scraps and hung them on the design wall to audition size and color.  Well, okay, these seem to be working beautifully together so I pressed, then cut off selvedges and rehung them before sewing, shifting a few around as I made progress.  

And, sew it goes, a completed quilt top measures 46" x 60" finished before noon.  

Finally, here's all that remains of those pulled fabrics.  Man, was that cutting it close!  The idea for free range quilt top #1 started with Lotta Jansdotter's "Follie".....the gray stripe leaves.  Make-do creativity starts with an open mind about fabrics that should or should not be included.  

Hope to see you again soon.

Marty 

'Tis The Season ~

 Any season is good for making a quilt, but especially when the air is cool outside.

I only have a few batik scraps left so decided to reduce them a little bit more by making an Ohio Star quilt...AKA Sawtooth Star by some.  It's a 4 block by 4 block construction simply because that's all the lighter batik background fabric there was in my stash.  It's a good community service size - 48" x 48".  Those stars made big are so easy and finished in no time by making the 2-at-a-time flying geese blocks for the star points.   It took another day to patchwork the backing for this star quilt, but now it's ready to be quilted to donate.

And....while dibbling around in batik, I found even smaller scraps and decided to make just one more bucket hat using the free download by Merchant and Mills.  I've really taken advantage of this free pattern....see my other bucket hats HERE.   So easy, so fun and ready to protect my head in cold weather or hot sun.  

'Tis the season to stay inside, relax and sew.

Even more 16-patch quilts

 There was just no good place to stop, once I got started.....making those patchwork 16-patch blocks.  And then there was three quilt tops, each different layout and sizes.   The first one blogged about  at Marty's Fiber Musings

Patchwork 16-patch #2:

I decided the on-point orientation deserved one of my favorite Malka Dubrawsky fabrics to finish.

Then, just this morning I finished the third 16-patch.  It's even more spontaneous and whimsical  with added filler blocks cut from my vintage linen table napkins.  No, I had no fear....either they worked, or they didn't!

This may satisfy my urge to 16-patch for awhile.....at least until I can accumulate more scraps.  So until next time, I remain.....

A happy quilter.  

A 16-Patch ~

 The temperature has cooled this week and has me energized.  A 16-patch quilt has been on my to-do list and now I can strike that one off.  It was a good time pulling from my left over fabric scraps to get 35 16-patches completed in just about no time.  That's when it seemed a need to be a bit larger and since there was plenty of fabric, I made more blocks to get a 48" x 64" quilt top.  Without any ado or over-thinking I lined  up all the blocks on the design wall and stitched in rows.  

The beauty is that there were a few blocks that perhaps the purest quiltmaker would have re-placed but I'm loving that green block against green block and the blocks without high contrast. While it was my goal to line up dark corner to light corner, that wasn't always accomplished as in 6th row, blocks 5 and 6.  But who's complaining.  Certainly not I.   My heart is jumping with pure joy at this little 16-patch quilt top.

 Marty 

.....there's always a story ~

 Yes, a story is always in the making and now it's time to share this one.  Those of you who follow my slow down-sizing path know that I've been doing this for more than a year.  THIS being selling books and patterns and quilts and quilt tops and more.  I've tried selling locally and on FB, Instagram, Etsy and Ebay  and with hard work and tenacity have had goodly success. There's still a lot to be done!  

Anyway, I'm making this story longer than it perhaps should be.  There's one book I've tried to sell several times without success....probably because of the high cost of postage and this being heavy with glossy pages and cover.  I've even tried giving it away to our local library, but with the pandemic, they aren't taking books now for their annual fund-raising book sale.  "Quilts From The Indiana Amish" is an 88 page picture book with a story and it is a delight to gaze upon the quilt collection dating 1875-1940.  

....and the story continues.  While doing some research for another hand quilting project, I pulled out the Indiana Amish book and lo and behold, look what I found.  My eyes locked onto this quilt...."Railroad Crossing"  pictured on the left.    The more I looked, the more I liked and in a frenzy began pulling and sewing strings - forgetting about my original project which I'll come back to later.  

Yes, the  book "Quilts from the Indiana Amish" is still for sale as is the quilt top inspired from page 67.  My quilt top was finished yesterday and it measures 55" x 90" -  a generous twin size.  

If the book doesn't sell, I won't worry.  That just  means I'll have a chance to be inspired by another quilt made somewhere in Amish country by a dedicated quilt maker.  I'll also not despair it the quilt top doesn't sell.  I'll just pick it up one day and get it quilted. Oh, yes, there's always a story and my stories are usually inspired by a quilt.

Have a happy ~

.....and the good news continues ~

 Bucket hats and more:  

There's no stopping me now...and then there were six!  Bucket hats all made from thrift store linen and jersey and denim and more! 

and other good news....the one I called "Meadows' sold today.   The one made using a Kathy Doughty, Material Obsession, quilt pattern.    I'm delighted that it's on the way to St. Petersburg, Florida.