Heartstrings block of the month project

Well, my guild had their once a month meeting tonight, and the block of the month for February was a red-centered heartstrings block. Here's a picture of all of us that participated:


We brought in 56 completed blocks. I'm the fat one in the purple shirt, back row. :) We also had two tops to show. Here's mine,using my 30 blocks, forming a pastel heart in the center and red strings around it:


I plan to add one more row of 6 blocks to the bottom of this one. Our quilts are going to be donated to a nursing/convalescent home, so we're using all sizes, from little wheelchair lap quilts to hospital bed size quilts.

And here's the other top at the flimsy stage, Peg B. made a 20 block red-stringed version where she added piano-key style sashing. I like the sashing - somehow I'm ending up with a lot of shorter strips after I use the longer bits on the long diagonals, this would help me use some of them up:


So altogether, the guild has done 106 blocks for heartstrings, and there were more who said they had blocks at home they didn't bring. We're having a contest, with a door prize for the most blocks brought in. This month was red center strips, for March, we'll do blue strips down the center. There was a LOT of interest in making these, so I'm hoping we double our results next month, so actually I'll accept both red AND blue centers.

Still Quilting

*blushes*

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but sometimes life just gets in the way. :)

I have still been working on quilts, just nothing worth picture posting about - I'll bet if you guys see more in-progress pix of the depression/kaleidoscope one, you'll scream! I have got quite a few of the blocks cut and ready to sew though.

Lately I've been just coming home from work and either making web pages or doing mindless heartstrings blocks. My guild is doing heartstrings blocks as our block of the month, and I want to make a good showing. So some nights I sit and cut strips, and some nights I sew.

But of course, I have also gotten my EQ fix in:



I think I'll try the one with the red strings and blue heart, just to be different. :) Besides, I have a lot of red strings made, but not many blue, so it'll be easy to make the 8 blue-string half pastel blocks and two full pastel for the heart.

Even though I haven't been commenting on many blogs, I have been looking and reading. Happy sewing, everyone!

Depression Blocks Done

Well, I've got my 36 depression blocks sewn now. Here's a layout of 25 of them on the big library tables at work. (I've made 36 but have only ironed 26, you all KNOW how I absolutely love to iron, uggh.)


This isn't how the quilt will look, of course, I've got my 36 kaleidoscope blocks to make now, and alternate between these depression blocks. If I were just making a depression block quilt, I'd have tried to make the outer triangles of each block a little more varied - as it was, I tried to make them using only the darker blue shades, so they'd blend in better with the dark kaleidoscope blades.

I've used so much of my blue fabric, I may actually have to go buy some blues, just so my stash isn't totally lacking in blue! I set aside a part of each FQ that I'd cut to make hsts from, so many of my kaleidoscope darks will match fabrics I've used already.

So, tomorrow, a new blade in my rotary cutter, and start on the blue kite shaped wedges and beige triangles. Just what do people do on long cold afternoons if they don't quilt or do some kind of craft?

A Package!

*sings*

I got a Paaaackaaage! I got a paaackage!

Tazzie sent me over $700 in the mail!

My library is going to do a set of special children's programs, on different countries, and I volunteered to get on the Australia group. So I got to e-mailing Tazzie for some ideas, and she sent me an Australian newspaper, plus a bunch of other stuff! Now before you get all excited and start wondering why she'd send me $700 cash, most of it was Australian play money... :) There's also some cute little Australian flag picks, and enough nickels so that each family that comes to the event can have their own Australian nickel.


Thanks, Tazzie!

And if you look UNDER the things she sent, you can see some kaleidoscope and my first few blue depression blocks, that's what I'm working on quilty-wise.

Counting the Blues

Calico Cat got me curious, so I went and counted as I shuffled the stacks and started ironing - I have a grand total of 66 different blue fabrics. This has really been a stashbuster for me. I'm almost out of blue fat quarters now. Each FQ made a nice combo of hsts and matching wedges for the kaleidoscope blocks or, if it had stripes, and I didn't think it'd look good as a wedge, then I got 36 hsts out of it.

I also had a whole bunch of precut 4 inch squares I bought on eBay for a dirt cheap price. They make PERFECT 3½ inch hsts. I sorted out the royals and navys and turquoises and periwinkles and used about 50 of those. SO nice to have them pre-cut, so nice to get them out of the stash. :)

There's only about 14 beiges and tans and creams. I didn't get any of them off eBay.

Finally, 576!

Well, here they are, 576 half square triangles, arranged in 16 stacks of 36 triangles:


Sure doesn't look like that many, does it? Each of the sixteen stacks has different blue fabrics, so I can make 36 blocks with no two fabrics the same. Four stacks have 36 identical blue triangles all the way down, but different tans and creams and beiges... a couple of stacks have 18 different blues, and all the rest of the stacks have 3 different blue fabrics. I'm really looking forward to sewing the blocks now! I'm not into football, so that's what I'll do instead of watch the game.

Anyone want to come over to my house Sunday and iron all these before I start to sew?

434

I was going to just post the number... 434, and get back to sewing, but I'd been showing people at work the EQ pattern I put up way back in December, and got tired of having to go back in the archives to show the bright scrappy one, and explaining that the version Mom had decided on would be done less colorful, only in blues and beiges.

So, here's a blue-toned EQ version of where all 576 (if I ever get done with them) half square triangles will end up:



I've also got one kaleidoscope block done, and ten more cut out. Back to sewing!