A Good Ending

All good things must come to an end.

Things like...

Bee Hive hairdos?

Well, maybe that was a good thing to end!

For me this week it was

finally finishing my

leaders and enders quilt. 

A 17 UFO's in 2017 project.

Happy Memories Quilt

60" x 66"

It all started last summer with a free

pattern from 

Temecula Quilt Co.

It was to be a fun summer project.

I decided it was time to dig into my scrap bags and

use only what was there.

A couple of large trash bags worth of 

pieces had taken over a large portion of a closet.

It was time to use it or

pass it on.

It took a lot of cutting,

counting,

and a long time sewing.

I used the leaders and enders approach

and kept working on it for well over a year.

There were lozenger blocks ( 2"x 6") to make along with

and broken dishes (3") and nine patches (4.5").

Combine all those different fabrics together

and what do you get?

A quilt filled with happy memories. 

A quilt made with

fabric pieces from so many past quilts.

It was a trip down memory lane.

It was machine quilted by my friend, Debi,

who kept the swirling feather pattern simple.

When it came to the binding,

it had to be scrappy too.

I found tucked away in the hidden part of a cupboard

some binding pieces

wrapped sweetly on antique wooden spools.

Perfect! 

Use them up!

Yes, all good things do need to come to an end.

Don't you agree?

Until Next Time-

Kyle

Proper Prepping= Perfect Piecing

 Everyone knows the adage 

"Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance"

This week has been all about prepping.

Getting parts of projects planned and assembled so that

 "Proper Prepping = Perfect Piecing.

There's usually a proper approach to 

tackling a task,

but sometimes it might seem daunting or

never ending.

I came up with a plan to 

devote one or two days to one project.

See what I could accomplish and
then move on to another one.

Notice I didn't use the words

complete or finish. 

That was not the plan.

I just needed to focus on 

some proper prepping.

A Star a Day:

This project has been hanging
over my head like a galaxy of stars
 far far away.

I spent some time prepping
 diamond shaped pieces
using a sand paper board and a
very fine lead to mark the hand stitching lines.

 Proper Prepping = Perfect Piecing

Little Wooly Baskets:

These adorable little wool baskets
were a free pattern from Dawn Heese-
of Linen Closet Designs.

 Soon you'll be able to order the
 pattern as a complete set.

I had collected the 12 designs and
finally traced,
cut,

 fused
and cut some more
and finally fused one more time.
You know the drill:


Proper Prepping=Perfect Piecing

Summer Scraps:

This quilt is from the Temecula Quilt Co.

 (image from Temecula Quilt Co. website)
Oh, what a wonderful way to use up scraps,
I thought.

And it will be,
 once I get all the cutting done.
I have been truly using my scraps that
have lingered in a huge garbage sack for years.

It looks like a giant white slug bulging  at the seams.
Not a very pleasant picture image.
Right?

But recently,
Rachael of Blue Mountain Daisy
 referred to her scraps as her
Happy Memory Bucket.
I love the name and image because
it really is made up of the scraps of past quilts
filled with memories.

There, doesn't that look and sound better.

Slowly I'm making progress,

cutting out the right number of pieces and
dwindling down the scraps.
The proper plan will be to
sew it as a Leaders and Enders project
throughout the fall.

There.

My very proper prepping
will certainly equal
very perfect piecing.
I'll keep you posted.

Until Next Time-
Kyle