Friday, February 26, 2010

Final border is put together!

I've been working like a beaver to get all those stars put together in 4 border rows... and they're done.














Now I have only to cut and sew on a pink floater strip and I will be able to attach the star row. This is a detail of  the star rows.  Can you see the 1 1/2 inch strip that was attached to the side of each star block before the block was then sewn to the one before it.

You can also see here where I have to sew the floater strip between the flying geese and the floating stars.










And here are all four of the rows completed and hanging folded in half awaiting their presentation on my completed quilt top.
My daughter and I went to the Kitsap County Quilt Show last weekend and lo and behold what did I spy but a Stars for a New Day quilt all completed, unlike mine.  The person who made it must have kept up very well with the BOM challenge whereas I was a shirker.  Oh well, at least I can see daylight on mine.  It should be completed within days.

Interesting how different we quilters all are... some like to do small, intricate blocks while others prefer big, simple blocks.  Others like paper piecing... or not, and some sew everything by machine and others only by hand.  I envy the people who love to applique because I find it a challenge.  The love for machine embroidery alludes me but I just adore to embroider by hand.

So as I've complained and whined these many months about how boring it is to make star after star, I was reading Stitches and Seams blog today and she was complaining about the exact opposite as I was.  She prefers to make the same block throughout and finds it tedious to do different blocks while making a sampler quilt.  That is the reason I really enjoyed making my Dear Jane quilt because every tiny little block was different - all 169 of them.  Vive la difference!

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Life happens

So much to do, so little time.  I've been hosting Golden Globe, Grammy and Super Bowl parties and they have taken up much of my time.  And though that looks like a can of Coors in my grandson's hand, it is an empty one... he was just fooling around!















 And then there was Valentine's Day... I loved the tulips that my daughter brought me.


Now that's not an excuse.  I have managed to make a few more 'stars' for the Stars for a New Day quilt.



The cats are still napping in silly positions and usually on my sewing materials... as usual.








And daffodils are blooming right outside my door.  It's been a very warm winter here on the West Coast of the US in case you haven't been watching the Olympics and seen or heard about it.  So pretty!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Flying Geese border done!

I have the FG borders completed ... and sewn on to the quilt. 



















I had lots of help (as usual) in picking color for all those flying geese.

Which was very tiring.. so a nap was in order.









 Peek-a-boo!
I've determined while spending one solid year + working on this quilt that I don't ever want to make a Block of the Month quilt ever again.  For some reason, I just can't stand to look at a quilt on my wall for that length of time.  I have also figured out that I don't like the tedium of making lots of the same block over and over again, so no more stars will be in my future.


This picture shows only a quarter of the quilt because it is now too big for my display wall.  But as you can see, the flying geese border is done.

Now, because I hadn't completed 25 of the small stars for the final border, I am now in the process of making those so I can finish this 'baby'.

I only have 9 stars to go... then I can sew a strip to them and sew them together side by side, staggering them so that the strip is on top on one, then on the bottom of the next.  I am excited to get this last border on but because I'm so bored with making stars I only make one or two a day.  So it's not going quickly at all.

I'm thinking of making a Block of the Week quilt by Twiddletails.  I've never made a black quilt and it might be fun.  The only thing stopping me are all those pinwheels... but they are different sizes so it could be interesting.