Scrappy Log Cabin

This is the second extra-large scrappy log cabin I've made and it was just as much fun as the first one.  So many favourite fabrics and last pieces of many of them.

I love polka dots and they work really well for the setting triangles and the posts.

A pretty Bonnie and Camille floral for the backing with a scrappy binding and Baptist Fan quilting.

Yesterday I posted Friendship Blues to Karen for quilting and that will be the last quilt for this year - there were also a cushion cover and two pillow shams in the package.  Time to start Christmas sewing for the little ones and the house decorating has also begun.  So many social activities in November leading up to Mum's 95th birthday party on 4 December.

I had dinner with The Schoolgirls on Friday night then went to the local races with a bunch of friends for a Rotary Club fundraiser.  Jenni, Kurt and Vinnie stayed over on the weekend and Vinnie went to his first show - his mind was blown seeing The Wiggles in Wollongong.

Holiday Sewing

I had a few grandchildren-free days during my time off work and was able to do some machine sewing.  First was catching up Churn Dash SAL blocks - made the deadline by one day.

Couldn't help myself - I had to sew a few blocks into rows to see how they would look

and then I just kept going until the blocks were all together.

Decided to add a couple of borders to use up the rest of the rosebud fabric.  The quilt is made entirely using Bonnie and Camille fabrics.

This is a close-up of the pretty background fabric.

So happy with this quilt top and so happy I joined Chooky's SAL.

A couple of years ago I decided to make another Scrappy Log Cabin quilt using up loads of fabric strips I had put aside over the years.

When I pulled out the box, I found I had quite a few blocks underway

so it didn't take too long to have enough made to cut them into 4 and start setting them out on the design sheet.

Used the same setting as last time - it was designed by Sarah Cecil and I love the red dots for the setting triangles and the white dots for the posts.

The quilt is pretty big (96-1/2" sq) but it will shrink a bit with quilting.

Last night I cut the wavy edge on "Fireworks" and sewed on the blue/white stripe bias binding.  I've stitched down one side but it will take another couple of nights in front of the tv to finish.

Next quilt to start sewing up is Lissa Alexander's "Friendship Blues".  The four patches were made a couple of months ago and have been put aside while I've been distracted by other pretties.

The photo shows about 2/3 of the blocks.  The original quilt has very wide borders but I think I'll cut them a bit narrower.

It's about time I started my 2022 Scrap Busters Quilt - Tula Pink's "Butterfly".  I have the fabrics set aside.

Jenni and Kurt have bought a home unit and will be moving into it early next week.  They spent last weekend painting Vinnie's room and the office.  Very exciting time for them.

Scrappy Log Cabin

I love this quilt and was hanging out for Karen to finish the quilting.  With the exception of the red spot on white fabric, it's made completely from my scrap boxes.  I had no idea what size it would end up:  93-1/2" square is pretty big.  Really happy with the scrappy binding too.

I love clamshell quilting and think it looks great on the log cabin blocks

I've been saving this Moda 40th Anniversary fabric for a large scrappy quilt and it works so well for this one.

Funny thing happened - I had 18 blocks left after putting the quilt top together.  When I was tidying up the sewing room, I found a string of 17 more half-finished blocks.  Those blocks are now finished along with another 6 and I have enough for a lap quilt.  I'm currently sewing these blocks together - no sashing and posts this time, except on the outer border.

More binding to be made over the weekend for Snippets.

Picking Petals

"Picking Petals" is a mini quilt pattern designed by Carried Away Quilting and the original is made with FigTree & Co fabrics.  I loved the block design and fabrics and decided to make a quilt with nine of these blocks.  Karen quilted it for me using Twisted Tatting design and I was so delighted with how the quilt has turned out.  It is now on its way to a new home in USA.

I've had a little holiday from Easter to ANZAC Day.  There has been more cutting out than sewing in The Pink Room lately.  One of the quilts I cut out was Swoon, a Thimble Blossoms design, using the beautiful Kumari Holiday fabrics my friend Elizabeth sent to me.
 

The quilt is made up of 9 large blocks (24" finished) and the last block was completed on Monday night.

 

I finished sewing "Scrappy Log Cabin" just before Easter and picked it up, along with "Snippets", from Karen last night.

Might make some bindings tonight :)

Colorway

Last night I finished stitching down the binding on "Colorway" - another Thimble Blossoms design made with Bonnie and Camille fabrics as well as white/black spot background fabric I bought in Singapore last year.  The quilt was cut out in November last year and the blocks were sewn together last month.

The backing is a favourite red strawberry print from Bonnie and Camille's "Hello Darling" range and I used the same fabric for the binding.

I think I like the colours in this block best.

I made up one "Wish Upon a Star" block to see how it all went together.  It's a big block - finishing at 18" and it's lovely to work with some larger pieces of fabric for a change.

Over the last few weeks, I've been thinking about making some more Scrappy Log Cabin blocks.  According to Instagram I last worked on these blocks on 16 April 2016.

Yesterday I took out the Scrappy Log Cabin scrap boxes and found another 15 blocks that had been cut into 4 and were half-made.  The purple box is now empty but there is a chest of drawers in The Pink Room with three drawers full of scraps - I'm thinking about starting another Scrappy Spiderweb quilt.

Each block has the large red spot fabric at the centre and the same fabric will be used for setting triangles at the outer edges with white pin dots on red for posts in the sashings.  I'm going to undo these few blocks and use narrower sashings and smaller red squares.

ChaCha had a sleepover with Nanna on Friday night then on Saturday morning we picked up GG and went to Sydney to spend some time with Michael and Gulliver.  The little ones had a great time at the park.  Visited some friends on the way home and then Mum and I had dinner with Elizabeth, Matt and ChaCha - a terrific day.

Things on the Go

I have too many things on the go in the sewing room and I've had to start something new after receiving a request for a Piccadilly Circus quilt to be made from batik fabrics to suit a particular colour scheme and the quilt needs to be in USA by 25 May at the latest.  Fortunately it's a quilt that's pretty quickly put together once all the strips are sewn together and having a long weekend was a big help.

The aqua and chartreuse fabrics will be the backgrounds for the Dresden Plate blocks.

There needed to be a bit of shopping to buy backing for the quilt and it arrived the next day - fantastic service from Widebacks.  I also received two packs of lovely Bonnie and Camille "Vintage Picnic" fabrics from Sew Lux.  As a treat to myself, I joined Sew Lux's Bonnie and Camille Collectors' Club for the year so will receive a f/q bundle on three full ranges over 12 months.

I also purchased "Hello Darling" fabrics to use as backings for a couple of quilts.

While searching through one of my cupboards I came across this quilt - "My Blue Heaven" started in 2006.  It was so close to being finished - only needed three more borders and all the half-square triangles were made.

One night's sewing and it was done.  When quilted, this will join the donations pile to be sent off mid-May.

Before starting the batik Piccadilly Circus, I was playing with scraps making Scrappy Log Cabin blocks - these were very popular last year on Instagram but I'm always late joining these parties.  Feels great to be using up so many scraps and almost making a quilt for free.

Last week Miss ChaCha's crochet overalls were finished - these were started ages before she was born.  Of course, I forgot to give them to Elizabeth when they were down on the weekend but they went off in the post yesterday.

This little jumper was started before both babies were on the way and I sewed it up on Monday night - it should fit Gulliver next winter.

It was a busy long weekend with family and close friends and I have a lot to look forward to in the next few weeks.