Sophistication in Shades of Grey

Grey in a appropriate color around here lately.  We've had fog and drizzle, followed by a giant rainbow balanced out the dreariness.  I must admit that I haven't gotten much done with my own shades of grey blocks this month, but I think today is the day.  How about you?  Almost done with all the odds and ends.  Any thoughts on who still needs more blocks and who is ready to start finishing up?  I have a few colors to play catch up with, so that is my plan for next month.  Use the linky below to share your progress so far or plans for next month, then take a few minutes to check out everyone else's posting.

Tiny Tuesday - Old Mississippi

 Do you ever look at old quilt blocks and wonder about the name.  I wonder why this one was called Old Mississippi.  Is there a new Mississippi somewhere?  This block was paper pieced in two sections, and except for trying to sew on of the sections on rotated, it went together pretty easily.  Though it looks symmetrical, the red corner parts are different sizes, so the orientation of the blocks does matter. 

Sydney took a break from her reading to hold it up for me.  Isn't she a cutie?
I will spend the day digging myself out from being gone for the three day weekend.  It was so nice to get to visit with Mom for a while.  She seems to be doing just fine despite her recent medical trials.  While I was in Georgia we all finished off her Christmas shopping, cleared out a bunch of stuff for Goodwill and did the prep work for bunches of sewing that she wants to do for the Holidays.  A mountain of grading waits for me at school, I think today is the last day of the first half of the marking period which means I'b better get it all caught up sooner rather than later.  Fortunately it is only a three day week and since Monday is the most hectic day of the week right now, it should be smooth sailing until Thanksgiving.  Just two days next week means I'd better plan strategically to figure out what I can get in before the holiday.  

Mini Monday - Album

 This is block number 95.  I seem to be going out of order more and more, but I was in the mood for some nice simple non paper piecing and this block fit the bill nicely.

Just simple little 1.5 inch squares with a few triangles to form the edges.  Ryan was my block model today, he thought the arial point of view added a nice perspective to the shot.  

Rainbow Scrap Challenge Gloomy Grey

Though I am out of town this weekend, I hope that you are all finding lots of fun with shades of gray.  I hope to be able to check in with you all while off visiting my mom.

Prep Work

 I am hanging out watching election returns and doing some Midget Block prep work.  Deb was kind enough to let me know that two of the newly published blocks are applique.  As I have a trip coming up next weekend, some applique to do on the plane will be a nice thing to have ready. 

I was a bit worried about long lines when going to vote today.  I knew I would not have a chance until late.  The lines were REALLY long for early voting on Saturday though and I was willing to risk it.  I walked right in this evening, and as I had already filled out my ballot and googled anyone I didn't know, I zoomed right through and walked out right right away.  So now Lizzie and I are hanging out on the couch flipping through the stations and seeing who is winning and who is loosing.  Florida was supposed to go red -- it is looking blue right now.  Any predictions?

Tiny Tuesday - Japanese Garden

 This is Midget Block number 80.  It is called Japanese Garden and is paper pieced in five sections.  It is an odd little block, but it is finished with a minimum of fuss.  I am starting to miss my applique blocks, but I think there is one coming up again soon.

I tried fussy cutting the pieces to focus in on certain patterns in the fabric.  Not too bad, right?  See the little stripe down the middle of the blue, and the peach was part of a bigger allover pattern.  I'm still posting ahead, as soon as I get to the end of the year I'll double back and start doubling up.  Tiny Tuesday AND Mini Monday?  It could happen.  The big question now, will it be done by the end of the year?

Design Wall Monday - November 5, 2012

I worked on geese this weekend.  And then I worked on more geese.  Lots of geese.  I am about half done with the 600 geese and then I will put everything together.  Maybe not this week, but soon for sure.  I was running low on pink for the sky but dug a bunch out of the scrap basket from the backs of several recent quilts.  Finishing quilts liberates so many scraps and infusions of fresh fabric are just what some projects need to keep moving forward.  Head over to Judy's blog to see what everyone else managed to get up on their design walls this weekend.  

Mini Monday - Rope and Anchor

This one was supposed to be done in pink. I seem to have a lot of pink blocks on the wall though and decided to make this one in green.  It was traditionally pieced which is nice change of pace from all the paper piecing.

I think the intersection of the white stripes and triangles make it look like little double headed arrows.  

Scraphappy Saturday in Shades of Grey

The dark colors are all finding a home at the end of the year.  Whether you have the full spectrum from light grey all the way to black or just a few bits, now is the time to pull them all out and find a nice home for them.  If you are empty in this bin, then now is the time to start putting it all together.  November marks the beginning of the end of the year, so it is not too soon to start thinking about tying up all of the loose ends.  If you need a few more blocks to finish off your tops, don't be afraid to look at your owns scraps and get rid of whatever there is a lot of.  Whatever you are up to, use the linky below to share your progress.

What a Week

Oh my goodness!  Some weeks are a nice stroll and others are a mad dash.  This one has been a marathon and a half.  I am so glad it is finally Friday.  This is the last month of the year with an assigned Rainbow Scrap Challenge color.  Next month is set aside for either putting projects together or finishing up your odd ball scraps.  So without further ado this month is devoted from the black to grey spectrum.  Happy sewing!