Winding Down

It is hard to believe that December has already arrived.  It is officially time to start finishing up.  If you can't finish it up this year, then feel free to carry it in to next year.  Hopefully though, crossing things off the list will make room for new projects in the new year.

ScrapHappy Saturday - Finishing Up and Catching Up

I worked this summer on scanning in some of the photos which came to us when Kurt's mother passed away last winter.  This one is from Thanksgiving of 1988.  I met him for the first time in May of that year.  Everyone looks so young!
I hope those in the US are all finding some time on the long holiday weekend to squeeze in a little bit of sewing.  I've had some driving time, so handwork has been a nice companion.  No photos yet.  Hopefully you will all help fill the void with some fabric goodness or holiday cheer. 

ScrapHappy Saturday - Last Pink Day

It's the last pink Saturday.  I'll be sad to see this color go, but another year is wrapping up.  There may be time for just a few more baby log cabin blocks.  Though everything is put away from having company last week, it shouldn't take too long to get everything out again and make a lovely fabric mess.  I am off to a bit of a late start.  I was out late going to a barbershop contest with Kurt, but today looks wide open.  Tomorrow is the day for my race, so I'd better get busy early today.  What progress did your pink scraps make this month?  Misterlinky is below, please share with us all.

ScrapHappy Saturday - Painting the Town Pink

My sewing room is temporarily a guest bedroom.  I do have these string blocks in progress.  I might be able to remove the paper and do some trimming this weekend.  I might also try to get caught up on my binding backlog.  Somewhere there is a nice stack of tiny log cabin blocks.  I'll dig them out as soon as the sewing room is hosting sewing again.  First though, I think that we are going to the zoo and then cooking something on the grill.  It is suddenly very fall like here.  I am hoping that my morning run will be enjoyable.  Next week is the half marathon.  Just one more long run to go.   Until then, please share all of your projects so that we can all enjoy your parade of pink happiness.

ScrapHappy Saturday - Pretty in Pink

A new month means a new color here at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  I can't wait to dig into this giant pile of pink scraps.  I'm off for a long run right first.  My half-marathon is at the end of this month and I have just a few more long training runs to go.  I am hoping that when I get back, the water is still working.  We are under a boil water notice right now, and the pressure has been really low since a water main break yesterday.  After a week of heavy rain from an unnamed tropical low sitting off of the coast, the system has finally been overwhelmed.  It was especially surprising after we made it through Irma so well.  Watching anxiously as Nate heads toward the gulf, it has been quite a year for storms.  I hope that you are staying safe through it all.  Misterlinky is below, please share your progress and plans for October. 

ScrapHappy Saturday -- Cool Blue

Hope that you have found some time to dig into your blue.  Think of water and cloudy skies.

ScrapHappy Saturday - Golden

Hope that all is still bright and cheery for you all.   I'm scheduled to be back soon from my trip.  I'm sure it is all going wonderfully and that many circles have been sewn.  I'll be sure to let you all know when I return.  Until then, make sure to share your yellow scrap creations.

ScrapHappy Saturday - Sunny Summer

Still having lot of fun with yellow I hope.  My yellow will be on the road this week.  I am scheduling this post ahead of time.  By the time it goes live I will be off to Kansas City for the AP Biology Reading.  All the AP subjects have these giant meetings over the summer when teachers and professors get together to grade all the essays from the exam.  This will be my first year to participate.  6 days of reading essays for 8 hours!  Wish me luck.  I'll go ahead and schedule today's linky party and next weeks as well.  Don't be surprised if I am not in contact much, but I'll look forward to catching up when I am back again.
Until then, there are plenty of yellow circles ready to be hand stitched on the airplane and in my hotel room.  I'm guessing that after all that essay reading, my book won't get much of a workout.

ScrapHappy Saturday 2017 #1

Welcome to the first Rainbow Scrap Challenge Linky Party of 2017!  Purple will be the color for January this year.  So grab a bin of purple and get ready to sew.
Today is the day for experienced rainbow scrap quilters to share finished projects from this year or from years past.  Feel free to link up as many times as you like.  No need to create a new post, just take us back to the original post you used to share your finished RSC quilt.
It is also the day to share your plans for the new year.  Tell us what blocks and patterns you would like to try out this year.   If there is a link or tutorial for available, we would love to have a link to that as well.  Including it in your post will help everyone else as they settle on plans for the new year.  
The most important part?  After you link up, be sure to visit as many other people as you can and offer encouragement and kind comments.  We will be back every Saturday to follow along.  Feel free to link up as often as you like, and please don't feel guilty if you can't stop by every week.  Life happens after all.  The number one rule at RSC is that there is no quilt guilt allowed.  This is a hobby after all, not a job.  It is supposed to be fun.
While you are here.  Feel free to go over to the right hand margin and grab my brand new button.  If you copy the html code under it into a new gadget on your own blog, the button will show up.  Then all you have to do is click that button to come right back to my blog.  Handy right?

Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2017

We've been doing this for... well... a few years now.  Somehow I don't seem to be out of scraps yet.  (Big Grin).  

One lazy Sunday, I sat playing with scraps, and for no particular reason, sorted them into brightly colored stacks.  Those piles of scraps held so many possibilities that my mind just couldn't stop running through them all.  The thought of using them all at once though, seemed just to overwhelming to ponder.

Instead, I thought it would be fun to take just one set of colored scraps each month and see what it might turn into.

And so began the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  

I invited my blog friends to play along, and tried to offer encouragement and ideas when I could.   The real fun began though, when the inspiration started to flow from one rainbow blogger to another.  It wasn't long before the weekly linky parties began, giving everyone a chance to share and sew together.

Sometimes I even planned out quilts ahead of time, and offered tutorials for those who wanted to join in.  The basic idea though, has always remained the same.  Take your scraps, and use them up, one color at a time.
Along the way, more than a few rainbow quilts have been born.

 Like this Mai Tai Sunrise.  

And this OMG It's a Churn Dash, which is still in the flimsy stage.  

Or even these crumb bricks which turned into my favorite snuggle on the couch quilt.  

So if you are looking for a little inspiration this year, I invite you to join in to the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2017. 

Here is a list of the 10 colors we will be using this year, in case you want to plan ahead:

RED

ORANGE
YELLOW
GREEN
AQUA

BLUE

PURPLE                                       JANUARY

PINK

DARK (BLACK/BROWN)

LIGHT NEUTRALS

MIXED COLORS

I will choose a single color for each of the first 11 months, leaving the December for finishing.  

Start by grabbing a handful of purple scraps and turning them into something.  A mug rug, a placement, a single block.  If you like to plan ahead, you can start now making blocks that will be ready to turn into a rainbow quilt by the end of the year.  

Not sure what block to make?  That is where the weekly linky party will come to the rescue.  Just start looking at all the rainbow scrap quilts that others have made, and find the one that calls to you. Or just pick a block you really love and start with that.  You could even find an existing project featuring the color of the month and work to finish that up.  The details are all up to you.  It can be as simple or as elaborate as you like.  Remember, it doesn't have to be done right away, as long as you are taking your scraps, and turning them into something, you are making progress.  

So, for all the veteran rainbow scrap quilters out there, I am asking for your help.  Saturday January 6th will be the first ScrapHappy Saturday of 2017.  If you could have a finished Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilt or two ready to share, it would be a great inspiration for the new people.  It doesn't have to be a new post, feel free to link to a finished quilt post from the past.  I'd love to bask in all of your accomplishments though, and to show everyone the power of using your scraps.