Rainbow Scrap Challenge - A New Year, New Blocks

It's the first Saturday in 2017, so it's the first Rainbow Scrap Challenge Link Up over at Soscrappy.  Angela's already posted the new button for the year.  

It's always a dilemma which block to pick for the challenge.  I've done some fun ones.  The first was coffee mugs, back in 2012.  Still not a finished quilt.  

Scrappy Coffee Cups:  Block patterns from Karen F. Srebro and Janet McCarroll
publised in Block Magic and Block Magic Too by Nancy Johnson-Srebro

The next year it was the Butterfly blocks.  Those aren't a finished quilt either.  

Scrappy Butterflies: Block is available in EQ 7 Block Library

For 2014 it was the Inverted Star blocks.  Those are still in their box waiting to be set together.

 Inverted Star by Jessica Boschem of Common Threads
available from Craftsy as a free download

Two RSC projects were started in 2015.  The first was the Twinkle Star blocks.  Not finished either. 

 Twinkle Stars Tutorial by Andrea Feldbush of Soscrappy

The second RSC quilt of 2015 was Angela's sampler quilt.  Flame Test did get finished. 

Flame Test (2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler)
Pattern by Angela Feldbush of Soscrappy

And was promptly confiscated by Drama Teen. She uses it regularly as a cuddle quilt in her room.  It's going to college with her.  

Last year was probably the most challenging block I've ever tried, the Vintage Dresses.  Which as I just finished the last block, isn't a finished quilt either.  

 Vintage Dresses by Charise Randell

There's a definite trend with my RSC blocks, they don't seem to be ending up in finished quilts.  One reason is that I've had a hard time deciding on a setting once the blocks are done.  There is a plan for Vintage Dresses, so I'm hopeful that quilt will get put together this year.  

Considering my poor track record with finishing my RSC projects, I decided to try something new for 2017.  I used Electric Quilt to draft the finished quilt so I can assemble the quilt as the blocks are finished.  I'm not going to show the mock up of the quilt, but here are this year's blocks.  

The paper pieced Fan blocks are going to use the cool colors, purple, green, teal and blue.  I didn't get my background fabric washed and pressed until yesterday so I didn't get very far with my first block, but it is started. 

There will be four 7.5" fan blocks and four 3.5"  fan blocks for each cool color.  

The warm colors of red, orange, yellow and maybe red-violet are going into modified Log Cabin blocks.

There will be four or five 7.5" blocks in each of the warm colors.  

So this year there is a plan for the blocks. I'm hopeful that means I'll have at least a finished flimsy at the end of this year's challenge. I'm heading off for a second cup of coffee, them I'm going to check all the links over at Soscrappy to see past and future rainbow scrappy goodness.  

Also linking up with Oh Scrap on Sunday.  

The Last Let's Book It Challenge Post

Sharon over at Vrooman's Quilts has been running the Let's Book it Challenge for at least the last 2 years.  

The last link up was posted on Monday as Sharon is discontinuing the official challenge.  Though my collection of quilting books is legion, I only had three projects that made appearances on Sharon's linky parties.  

The most recent is Bejeweled, which is still in pieces on the design wall.

 Bejeweled
From the book "All About Strips" by Susan Guzman

From the book "All About Strips" by Susan Guzman.

   
Flame Test had a solo post on Let's Book It.  

Flame Test
Blocks from the 2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler
tutorials by Angela Feldbush of Soscrappy

The idea for the border came from Sunny Steinkuhler's book, "Blocks, Borders, Quilts!"

My longest running project for Let's Book It was from the 2013 December issue of American Patchwork and Quilting.  

I found out last night that Trudy is done with the quilting and Poinsettias will soon be on it's way back for it's finishing binding.

Poinsettias
By Judy Blok for the December 2013 issue
of American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine

Thanks Sharon for all the fun and the motivation to use at least a few of my books and printed patterns.  Linking up with Vrooman's Quilts for the last Let's Book It linky party.  

Sewing Room Successes for 2015

Hard to believe it's already the new year.  I spent the last hours of the old year playing in my sewing room before I was summoned downstairs to participate in the champagne toast and a good luck kiss at midnight.  It was a very good way to end the old year and start the new.  After that, I was ready for bed.

I spent a bit of time yesterday finishing off and archiving my 2015 quilting spreadsheet, then setting up the new one for 2016.  My spreadsheet is my quilting record for the year. I tried to use a journal last year so I would have a non-electronic record, but it only lasted about 4 months before I lost interest in keeping it up.  Paper just doesn't work for me, while I've been really successful in keeping a spreadsheet since 2010.  At any rate here's what my 2015 spreadsheet had recorded for 2015. 

Four finishes.

Flame Test (2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler)
Pattern by Angela Feldbush of Soscrappy
Started January 2014, Finished  May 2015

Grand Illusion
The 2014 Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt
Started November 2014, Finished September 2015

  

Experiments in Paisley (Layer Cake Quilt Along)
Pattern by Konda Lukau of  Moose on the Porch Quilts
Started November 2010, Finished November 2015

Lily Pond (Back to Square One)
Pattern by Judy Laquidara of Patchwork Times
Started June 2013, Finished December 2015

Of the four quilts only Lily Pond is destined for a new home.  It's a gift for the family that hosted Drama Teen's writing workshop last summer.  I haven't had a chance to get photos of the finished quilt, so I had to make do with the photo of the finished flimsy for this post. Three of the four were on the UFO list by the time they were finished.  Grand Illusion was a WIP at the time it was finished.  I ended 2015 with 17 UFOs, up one from 2014. 

It was a good year on the stash management front. I managed to stay on my fabric diet for the year and only added about 30 yards to the stash in 2015, while using 45 yards.  So for the first time in the six years of stash tracking, I ended the year in the black.  I'm really happy with that accomplishment for 2015.  

It may seem silly, but I also track the number of days where at least 15 minutes gets spent in the sewing room.  As I said it seems a bit silly, but it reminds me to get off the computer and get up out of the recliner to go sew.  With a full time job, an active teenager, and a spouse that travels a lot it can be hard at the end of the day to convince myself I have enough energy to sew.  My worst year ever was 2014, where I only made it to the sewing room 191 days out of 365.  I managed 213 days this year.  So 2015 wasn't my best effort, but it was better than 2014.  

So 2015 was a pretty good year.  I'm going to have to do better on all fronts if I want to achieve my 2016 quilt plan.  Wish me luck, I'm going to need it!

Best of Life in Pieces for 2015

Now that Christmas is over, it's time to start thinking about the new year.  In preparation for that, Cheryl over at Meadow Mist Design suggested we look back over our blogs and decide what were the "best" posts for 2015.  

Cheryl left the definition of best up to us.  It could be the posts with the most views or comments.  If you want more of either for 2016, it's helpful to see what those posts had that others didn't.  You could highlight 5 finishes, 5 tutorials, or 5 linky parties. I decided to highlight this year's finishes and works in progress. 

Number 5.  Grand Illusion Finish

Number 4.  Poinsettia Leaders and Enders Project

Number 3:  Back to Square One Finished Flimsy

Number 2:  2015 Rainbow Scrap Project:  Twinkle Stars

Number 1:  2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler Finish

I have one honorable mention that I'd like to include.  The post includes one of this year's quilts, but also has some of my favorite quilts that I've finished since starting up the blog.

Honorable Mention:  The Online Trunk Show

That's it for my "Best Of 2015".  You can find more fun reviews of 2015 over at Meadow Mist Designs.  

An Online Quilt Trunk Show

There's a fun linky party going on over at Whims and Fancies.  I wasn't going to link up, there just hasn't been time to write a post.  But after reading a few of the posts, I got to wondering what my trunk show would look like.  So it's time to write the post to figure that out.  So here's my entry to:

I've been quilting regularly since about 2001, so where to start? Definitely not at the beginning.  The blog started in 2010 and that seems like a much better place to start the show.  

1.  Seeing Stars

Pattern by Amy Heaton, pattern available here

This is the result of my first online quilt along. It was such a fun experience that I've done many more since.  The pattern is available on Electric Quilt My EQ Boutique and if you look close at the catalog page you'll see this quilt in the inspiration section.  More details here.    

2.  And Kiss Me Jack

Pattern by Judy Turner and Margaret Rolf
From the Book "Successful Scrap Quilts"

This is my quilt that almost wasn't.  I hated the first 3 blocks so much they put it way for a few years and then I decided to finish it. I'm so glad I did. There's a purple and yellow flower known as Johnny Junp Ups, which includes a variety called Kiss Me Jack.  That's where the name comes from.  You can find a more detailed post here.  

3. Elements

                               Elements (aka Sweet Treats), Pattern by Judy Laquidara

This was one of those serendipity quilts.  Judy posted the pattern and while I was cleaning up the stash closet I found a pile of 1930's fabrics. The temptation was just too great.  More details here.  

4.  Pieces of a Rainbow

          Pieces of a Rainbow, Pattern is Jigsaw by Alyssa Clancy for Lehmann Quilting

Of all the quilts I've made, this is my favorite.  It was made for Drama Teen.  The color placement isn't perfect, but she doesn't care.  More about this one here.  

And last but not least:

5.  Flame Test

                 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler, By Angela Feldbush of Soscrappy

Of all the Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilts I've started over the years, this is the first one that's made it to the finish line. It's another of Drama Teen's favorites. More about it here.  

That's it for my trunk show. I've made a lot of other quilts, but it appears my bright scrappy ones are the favorites from the lot.  Hope you enjoyed this trunk show.  You can see many more over at Whims and Fancies.  

Bloggers Quilt Festival Fall 2015 - An RSC Quilt for the ROYGBIV Category

The temps have cooled down and Quilt Market is coming up so it's time again for the autumn Bloggers Quilt Festival hosted by Amy of Amy's Creative Side.  

My entry for the ROYGBIV category this time around is the quilt that's featured in the header.  It's my first finish from playing along with Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  Last year she decided to offer a scrappy sampler project as part of the challenge.  The sampler blocks used up lots of scraps so it wasn't hard to justify starting another project.  

The blocks were constructed using Angela's tutorials, but the final setting was up to me.  The black sashing really made the color in the blocks pop,  but a solid black border seemed a bit bland.  After a bit of searching for some inspiration, the idea to add the chevron blocks to the corners was found in Sunny Steinkuhler's book on "Blocks, Borders, Quilts!"  

The color progression in the chevrons is the same as the color progression across the quilt.  The 4 strips added enough color to perk up those bland borders.  

Trudy Lindemann did a wonderful job with the quilting.  She matched the thread color to the block colors and used black in the borders.

Drama Teen wanted something swirly for the quilting and Trudy nailed it.  

Deciding on a color for the binding wasn't going real well. It was hard to pick just one color.  Then I found some yardage left over from backing Drama Teen's first rainbow quilt.  

The rainbow stripe really framed the black while echoing the colors in the blocks.  

Before I could finish adding the binding, the quilt needed a name. Naming quilts is always hard for me and this quilt was no exception.  Drama Teen came to the rescue, she'd just finished a lab in chemistry where they used a flame to identify substances by their color.  You can get just about every color in the rainbow from burning the various elements in the periodic table.  So the name Flame Test seemed appropriate.  I had a lot of fun with the label.  

When I finished photographing the quilt, Drama Teen immediately whisked it away to be her couch quilt.  As you can see in the header picture, Flame Test is already in use and well loved. I've already been informed that it's going to college with her.  

I'm looking forward to checking out all of this year's entries. The rainbow quilts can be found here, while the main festival post is here.   There really is something for everyone.  Thanks for checking out my entry.  

Rainbow Scrap Challenge - 2014 RSC Sampler

I've been MIA for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge the last few weeks. Last month's green blocks still aren't finished so there are no light blue/teal blocks to show for this month. The only progress has been on last year's RSC sampler.  I've been showing hints that last year's RSC sampler project was nearing completion.  The label showed up on a post back in May. 

The 2014 RSC Sampler is now Flame Test, named for a classic elemental analysis test that can produce a rainbow of colors depending up the chemical elements exposed to the flame.  The name was Drama Teen's suggestion.  I finished sewing on the binding a couple of weeks ago but didn't get photos until this week. 

The fabric for the binding came from the scrap pile.  This rainbow stripe fabric was used as the backing on a quilt for Drama Teen a few years ago.  It was absolutely perfect against the black border.  

 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler, By Angela Feldbush of Soscrappy

I'm really happy with how this project came together.  The black border and sashing really makes those brights just glow.  Trudy Lindemann  did a beautiful job with the quilting.  She matched the thread color to the color of the blocks.  You may have to blow up the picture to see the color differences between the blue, purple and black.  

Drama Teen requested something swirly for the quilting and Trudy nailed it.  Speaking of Drama Teen.  I'd no more than gotten the pictures of the binding when she grabbed the quilt and put it to use in her favorite spot so far this summer. 

It's warmed up a lot this week, but last weekend it was still cool enough in the morning to be covered up a bit.  It's nice to know that Flame Test is likely to be just about as well loved as the rainbow quilt that's on her bed.  

Thank you Angela for such a fun challenge project. I've been following along with Angela's monthly color choices since 2012.  Flame Test is the first RSC quilt that I've finished.  There are still three sets of rainbow challenge blocks that need to be set together (not counting this year's Twinkle Star project). One of these days I need to get busy with those.  For now, I'm going to go check out all the other rainbow pretties posted over at Soscrappy.    

A Stash Report and Some Slow Stitching for Week 22

It's been a dreary weekend so far, cold and cloudy.  But at least there hasn't been any rain since early yesterday morning.  It's the kind of weather where you want to just stay snuggled under the covers or curled up on the couch with a good book.  I did sleep in for a few hours yesterday, but only managed an extra hour this morning. I stayed up late last night putting the final stitches on the binding for Flame Test (previously know as the Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler).  I'm hoping to get some pictures of the finished quilt today.  It's supposed to be cloudy all day so that may not happen. I forgot to snap a shot of the slow stitching on the binding, but did get picture of the label being sewn in place. 

The hand stitching took a couple of days, so there wasn't much progress on my other projects.  Most of the outgoing on the stash report is the binding and framing strips for the label.

Used last week:  0.69 yards
Used in May:  2.47 yards
Used year to date:  15.12 yards
Purchased year to date:  0 yards  

So still more out than in so far this year.  I'm doing well on keeping the incoming way down, but I would like to up the outgoing a bit.  Hopefully I'll be making a backing for Grand Illusion next month and that will give a nice boost to the outgoing numbers.  

I'm going to grab a second cup of coffee then check out all the stash reports over at Patchwork Times and the slow stitching going on over at Kathy's Quilts. 

WIPs - Switching Gears for a Finish

The last few weeks I've been showing my progress on the Twinkle Star blocks.  No progress on that front this week because the 2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler came back from being quilted last week.  The binding has been made for several days, but it's not been attached because the quilt needs a label. To finish the label the quilt needed a name.  I put some possible names on Monday's Design Wall post.  The thought was to stick with a name containing "rainbow" or something the referred to the rainbow of colors.  Some of the favorites from the comments included Scrappy Skittles, Cuddle the Rainbow, Color Splash and using the abbreviations of some chemical elements that produce unique colors in a chemical flame test (Cu, Cd, Co, C).  DT wasn't thrilled with any of those choices (she's claimed this quilt as her couch cuddle quilt).  She suggested rather than limit the colors to just a few, why not name the quilt "Flame Test" as the range of elements in the periodic table produce a rainbow of colors when subjected to a flame.  

Drama Teen took chemistry this year and is really considering pursuing a chemistry degree in college, so I bowed to her wish and named the quilt Flame Test.  Now that the name was decided on, I could have fun coming up with the label.  

It's definitely a bit geeky, but Drama Teen loves it.  She and I spent a lot of time bonding over chemistry this last school year while I was making the quilt, so the name will bring back a lot of memories for both of us.  

Unfortunately with the holiday weekend and my quilt naming diversion, nothing else got done on the other WIPs in the sewing room.  But that's OK, it won't be long before I have my first finish for 2015. 

You can check out other WIPs over at Esther's Quilt Blog, Freshly Pieced and My Quilt Infatuation.