Leo’s Mane Sew Along

Saturday 4 January 2014

Scrappy Saturday, Jan. 4, 2014


This, being the first Scrappy Saturday, hosted by So Scrappy, has produced all kind of anxiety and indecision for me. Well, maybe not the anxiety, but certainly the indecision. There are so many projects I want to do, and I'll never be able to fit them all in. And then there is the decision, do I work on one per week, or do I do a little of each each week? I've finally narrowed it down to 3 different projects, but I reserve the right to add more, depending on how these go. One is a continuation from the one I started last year, the double four patch blocks, where I'm doing 8 blocks out of each colour. The original plan had been to do 2 blocks per week. That was before I found a couple more projects I wanted to do. You see, the idea is to use up scraps. But because I wanted all of the fabrics in each of the double four patch blocks to be the same,
I was cutting from fat quarters, rather than scraps. And then, because I already had the fat quarter out, I continued to cut it down into various strip sizes. That created the situation that, instead of using scraps, I was actually adding to them. So, I have picked 2 more projects that will last at least all year long, to actually use the scraps. One is a quilt from one of my books that I've been eying as long as I've had the book. It will use 3 1/2 inch squares and 2 inch squares. It will end up being a bow tie medallion.  This is from the book Quick Quilts From Your Scrap Bag. I've figured out that, if I do it in the year of different colours, I'll need 13 of the 6 inch bow ties and 10 of the 3 inch bow ties per month.

And the other is going to be 3 different sizes of pinwheels, which will use up 3 1/2, 21/2 and 2 inch scrap strips, when cutting with the Easy Angle ruler. And then, inspired by Cat Patches scrappy sewing machines, and her idea of using the complementary colours for her accents, I'll use the complementary colour for the outer strips and the dark squares. These will finish at 14 inches. Thirty of them will give me a decent sized quilt. This is just a mock up from EQ7. The blues will be much more varied in the actual piece. I think once all the different colours are done, and set side by side, it will be quite striking. So, after making those decisions, all I now need to  decide is, one project per week, or little bits of each per week? Right now, I'm leaning towards one per week. It might be less confusing that way. I'm linking up to ScrapHappy Saturday, and then I'm going to play with some more bright blues.

10 comments:

  1. I like the idea of using 3 different sizes for a block. These will be a great rainbow quilt at the end of the year.

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  2. You are going to love the bowtie quilt. I made one years ago and it is still one of my favorite quilts.

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  3. Wow -- that's going to be some quilt!! I can't wait to see it progress...great forward thinking, Cathy!! :)

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  4. I feel bad for inducing anxiety and think you should stick with the part of your post where you reserve the right to change you mind later. Your projects look great though! Looking forward to seeing them start to come together. Most of all, do whatever is easiest and have fun!

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  5. That bowtie quilt is beautiful and would look great in rainbow colours.

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  6. I love the block that you did in EQ7 with the three different pinwheels. The bow tie quilt is beautiful as well. Hurray for the rainbow scrap challenge.

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  7. I love your blue blocks. Please don't stress with this challenge. Personally, I go to my scraps first. However, if I see something in my stash that I really want to cut and use in this challenge, I do. Life is short. This grandmother is trying to stop saving fabric for later. I want to enjoy my scraps and stash now.

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  8. Love the bow tie idea.
    I will be starting one at our groups retreat in May

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  9. We all start with a plan but reserve the right to change our minds on a whim...and as many times as we like! :)

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  10. Great projects (re)starts. Have fun!

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I love reading all your comments, and am grateful for each one. I try very hard to answer them all, but lately I haven’t quite been able to answer all of them.