The challenge didn't fit with any of my backlogged projects, so I settled on another postcard. To keep from getting bogged down with too many blocks I looked at only 4-patch block patterns. Then I pilfered the pile of black-and-white scrap from my current Midnight Garden project and got to work.
My original plan was six two-inch blocks in the black and grey. I
fiddled with it and got most of them stitched together... and that's when
things went off the rails.
Now that I've finished the 228 black-and-silver triangles it's time to work on the grey-and-black ones!
You may recall I decided to cut the fabric a little larger (maybe an eighth of
an inch) than the pattern called for. I then made myself a set of
plexiglass templates to help cut the stitched together diamonds and larger
triangles down to size. I ended up marking my templates with various
guide lines to help ensure I get all the pesky points in the right
place. Seems to be working pretty well so far... but the final test will
be when I stitch together the full blocks.
Ready for a laugh? I'm still fussing about the layout. Take a look at the next round of OMG-look-at-all-the-designs-by-just-moving-a-few-pieces. I created eight extra light grey triangles simply to make design layout less tedious. I also took the time on the computer visualize the full 56 blocks.
I collaged a few layouts together so this post isn't photo-heavy, but it can still be a bit overwhelming to look at. I think they resemble those magic eye pictures. What do you see?
Sunday I measured Rob's apron, looked at some patterns and dug through my stash. I was tempted to go for a black and grey ombre... but I don't DARE touch any of the potential leftovers of my current project. Not until it's done! I pulled out some greens, blues, neutrals, reds. I ended with a set of 15 pinks and reds: several quilt leftovers, a couple of quilt rejects and a few that simply caught my eye.
My next
thought - why do plain stripes when I could do waves? I had to laugh at
how similar this was last year's
second week challenge. Really, I was going to do something different. Oh, well.
A couple of weeks ago I decided I liked the lighter version of the Midnight Garden blocks, so I went hunting for a grey to replace the black. It took a few hours and a couple of stops to find what I wanted, but I found something that would do the trick.
Or so I thought....
Once I laid out the fabrics I wasn't so sure. They're all good choices. It would be easier to decide if one was terrible. The grey lightened up the whole quilt, which was great, but it looked a little washed out.
Fine.
I decided no matter what, I was going with the Solid Middle layout. Which means I could move forward with the dark diamonds and the silver background. I have to say they make for a pretty star all by themselves.
Woot! Time for a new season of Project Quilting! Looking over my posts I realized this is my fifth year of participating. Wow.
This year's challenges starts out with Mythical Creatures. So many
possibilities! I spent some time researching various myths and stories:
Celtic, Indian, Norse, Greek, Native American. I wanted to avoid
reaching for a dragon or a unicorn. Then I started thinking of some
books I've read in the last year or so that featured djinn. Of course
then there's the
problem of rendering and making it small enough to fit on a post card.
So I settled for wisps of smoke coming from a magic lamp.
Cute. Quick. Fun to make.
