Sunday, January 17, 2016

Sunday Scraps and Stitches

I took my Dear Jane with me to Science Olympiad yesterday.  Even though the kids are all running around madly most of the day, once they are in their events, it gets very quiet.  So I moved the hoop twice during the day.  The weather was absolutely beautiful.  A perfect day to sit outside and hand quilt.  Just three more moves of the hoop should get me back to the begining!  While cleaning out the blue scrap bin, I even found the binding that I had made from the same fabric as the inner border.  
Knowing that Jane is almost done, I pulled out the broken dishes stars and got two new spools of hand quilting thread.  I had wanted to try pearl cotton with some big stitch quilting, but I couldn't find just the right combination of sizes and colors.  I think that regular quilting will work better with the scale of the blocks on this one.  
I was going to do the Bonnie Hunter Mystery last year and cut out the first step before I changed my mind.  That left a lot of pointy spikes which I sewed together into a long strip.  I think that I will use them as a border for these bonus triangles which have been hanging out for many years.  They could also go as stripes into a Chinese Coin type quilt.  I think there are enough of them that I could do both.
Finally, I will use today to catch up on my Leap Year quilt.  I've chosen the fabrics and rough cut circle to hold the days toward the end of the week.  Tuesday has stars from the state of the union.  Friday has tiny buckets for all the rain.  Saturday is a rocket ship for science and today I chose little ice skaters in winter coats for the cold front that moved in last night.  Monday is a school holiday which means an extra day to sew!  Looking forward to every minute of that!  I'm linking up with Kathy for Slow Stitching Sunday as well as Cynthia for Oh Scrap!

16 comments:

gayle said...

Those spikes will make a perfect border!
Lovely projects - enjoy your quilting. I'm looking forward to warmer weather here, so I can enjoy stitching outdoors, too!

Deb A said...

So many great projects. Very exciting to be so close to a quilting finish you get to start prep for the next one. What type of thread is that for the next quilt? I'm always curious as to what type of thread people use for hand quilting. Enjoy quilting tomorrow... I think I'll sneak in some sewing tomorrow... assuming the cleaning goes well today.

Turid said...

Lovely projects, and great way of using up something that was meant to be someting else. That border is fantastic. Love your circles too.

Cathy said...

Your projects are always so lovely and varied. That spikes border is a stroke of genius! Enjoy your Monday sewing tomorrow; I'm sure it will result in some great things to share!

Jennifer Fulton Inquiring Quilter said...

The border on the broken dishes stars quilt is lovely! What a clever way to use up the fabrics you'd cut and sewn but would never use otherwise. Your Leap Year quilt is intriguing. Great work.

Charlene S said...

I still remember days of hand stitching while my girls did their activities. Also grading lots of projects and tests. Oh, and the waiting for school holidays so I could do a bit of sewing. Retirement seems a long ways off then. Now that I am retired I can look back at those days with good memories.

Cynthia Brunz Designs said...

I always enjoy seeing what you are up to. I love how you repurposed those triangles into border strips. Very clever! Thanks for sharing with Oh Scrap!

Art by Rhoda Forbes said...

The spikes will not be wasted, they will be beautiful as a border. You have some very nice work in progress.

Vicki in MN said...

I really like the spikes for the border! Great projects, good luck working toward the finishes ;-)

Alycia~Quiltygirl said...

Very cool project - and so neat that you took it with you!

Delighted Hands said...

A wonderful display of your handiwork! Beautiful!

Jennie in GA said...

I think that your spikes will make a great border. Very creative. Congrats on your Dear Jane. What kind of batting is your favorite for hand quilting? Enjoy your holiday.

Angie said...

Great novelty fabrics for your Leap Year quilt!

Kate said...

You made good use of your weekend time! Lots of fun fabrics in your circle blocks.

Quilter Kathy said...

Love how you are getting another hand quilting project ready as Jane comes close to finishing :)

Ellen said...

Oh my...you have so many great projects to choose from. I really like the re-purposing of the spikes into two different quilts. Perfect!