Behold, Most of the Nine-Patch Quilt Top!
My goodness, was this a tasky little number. Sewing the sashing strips took a bit longer than I expected, all that pinning, tugging, and praying that things would line up was a bear. But, thanks to some dreary foggy mornings around here, I found the time to get it done.

I'm not in love with the way it looks so far, but think it will look better once I add a double border of 2.5" squares, another white row, and then some funky binding. My sweet quilt-holder-upper (that would be John,) is probably counting the minutes right now before he gets off work for two weeks at the Lake! I may go into sewing-machine withdrawal, whilst we are gone, but I just moments ago finished sewing the binding on the Blue Monster (which doesn't seem so horrible as I have been feeling about it,) so I can take it with and hand whip-stitch it to while away the many spare minutes.

I am excited about the big pile of mostly aqua, brown and light blue fabrics I have stacked up on my cutting table right now, they will be the next big project I am going to work on once I get back (oh, after I quilt Mr. Nine-Patch!) I almost want to take them with me to give me inspiration in thinking of a design, but I'm afraid they would get all smokey smelling from the many campfires at the Lake. Fare thee well!

O.K., Now There's 90

I guess I couldn't leave well enough alone, and thought that I should stretch that nine-patch quilt top into (maybe) a queen size, so I rustled up 40 more fabrics to create twenty more blocks! There was a bad photo of them all laid out in the spare room - but having just looked for it, right now, it appears to have vanished. Curious.

I tried not to dither too much on the layout as the colors are so confusing and confused I couldn't really see the point. I came up with various "systems" for the lay out, and finally opted for a loose Roy G. Biv (the acronym for the colors of the rainbow, don't you know,) and just let it lay. I think I only swapped a couple of blocks. I did try to put the 'uglier' blocks to the outside, and my favorites toward the middle.

I like sewing the blocks together, it's a satisfying and progress-evident part of the process. I discovered some really lovely white fabric in my stash for the sashing, which after some internet sleuthing I figured out was the white cotton "Quilter's Dream Sateen" from Dharma Trading. I was nervous I'd run out midway through putting it together, so of course had to buy some more! It came in the mail today, and at first I thought it was the wrong stuff, it looked so stiff and shiny, but after washing, it's the same lovely stuff and I am good to go.

I've been meaning to post some pics of the second in my Blue Quilt Series (that makes it sound so purposeful, instead of the somewhat random event it was,) but I have been busy taking the boys to parks and swim lessons and obsessively playing Bejeweled on Facebook. Oh, the shame. More quilting after the weekend, with some photos to come.

70 Nine-Patch Squares, By Golly!

I finally finished all 70 squares for crazy mom quilts quilt-along! I think the suggestion was that one was to make these squares out of scraps only. Well I dutifully tried that, and scrambled around in my various shoeboxes, baskets and bags for coordinating scraps. That only lasted until about square thirty or so...and then I gave up and started pulling fabric off the shelves, ironing the edge and cutting off 2.5" hunks.



But still? Phew, what a time-consuming project! Probably made all the more time-consuming as I set a rule for myself that I would not repeat a fabric. Yes, for those of you doing the math at home, that's 140 different fabrics! I inadvertently goofed by using an orange polka dot fabric twice, and also gave up on finding a coordinating fabric for another square and re-used a peach-colored paisley twice. I'm kind of impressed with how long I would dither on each fabric choice - each square a dilemma.

This quilt top will be sashed in white, which I think will set off the myriad of different colors nicely. I'm looking forward to using white fabric as I NEVER have! Still curious as to how all the squares will get along - stay tuned.