QALs - the challenge is to keep up

a third blue butterfly

I linked this to Freshly Pieced

I've gone and done it now. I signed on for a number of quilt alongs... (Historically, I haven't been so faithful to the QALs that I've started... something always comes up and I can't see how to stay the course.)  Most of the new ones have a button in the side bar.

The Sweet Sixteen promises to be an easy stitching quilt making preview to the Hands 2 Help Charity Challenge. (A help to getting our charity quilts done.) Sarah will have a weekly linky party, too, I think. The fun starts this coming Sunday. Check it out!

You all know the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, make your own blocks, any size, any method, in a color chosen by Angela of soscrappy for each month. On Saturdays she has a linky party for you to show off your blocks. Make a quilt, or not... no pressure. (And I'm sure that if your color works for the RSC, you could use the same blocks for another QAL. I like a 2 for 1.)

The Project of Doom is a QAL to make a paper pieced Harry Potter themed bookcase quilt. I've wanted to make it since she had the QAL in 2011.  There will be prizes in a Harry Potter theme, but my interest is in making HP blocks again. You know how I love HP, and paper piecing. There's a two for one.

Then there is the Bitty Blocks... oh, I just am so drawn to working tiny. This QAL is talking about sharing the event with a hashtag... Okay. I'm that tech challenged that I really have no idea how to hashtag.  But they are making 3" bow tie blocks... too cute. They will be offering designs for a row along type quilt.  I've gotta figure this one out, too. They don't have a button, but did show a logo that I copied to show you. So you can find out about it from this link. (I do know how to make a link.) This blog is by the staff of QuiltMaker Magazine.




So you can see I'm crazy. I joined Vicky Welch's Drunkard's Path QAL last fall. They all made quilts, I made one block of the Love Ring arrangement before the end. Doing it during our move didn't help either. What will keep me from my dreams this year? I hope I'm not tempting fate by signing on to QALs. Hope I can keep up.

Have a beautiful tomorrow.

Hugs,

Terri

It's not a finish...

I know it's Friday, but I don't have a finish...
I've worked haphazardly on my Drunkard's Path...  we moved 600 miles during the QAL with Vicki Welch. Some of my blocks are missing... I haven't discovered them in their hiding place(s) yet. And there are some already cut and ready to pin and then sew... The scary thing is I've put the templates somewhere and can't find them either. (Good thing my Grandgirl is planning to wait to be married until after they have graduated college. The Love Ring setting of these blocks is to be her wedding quilt gift.) Sew I don't have a finish to link up to Vicky's end of the QAL, but I'll link what I have to show and hope for the best. Here's what I have to show...

Update: Hurray!!! I found the blocks that were missing and the templates... had to weed through a few boxes to find them.  So here they are:

I've got one motif set, and the outer (red and purple) blocks that will continue in the pattern, but be like a border at the end of setting a few motifs together.  So there will be at least 6 motifs - if that works out to be a good size. Ooops! I see a mistook. I've got 2 reds together. Easily fixed now since nothing here is sewn together beyond the 2 piece blocks.

In this picture you can see on the lower right more blocks... Just not enough design wall to accommodate them all. It's a small room and my design wall space keeps getting smaller and smaller as I empty boxes.
As I was emptying boxes I found my box of teas! I've got some variety now. Yay!  So I'm off to brew a cuppa. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas or other Holiday. New Years coming up soon. And on the subject of coming up...

Hope springs eternal... can you see the tulips(?) coming up by my front door? There are about 5 stubby starts. They were done blooming and gone before I saw the house last fall. I have no idea what color or even if they are tulips. Something to look forward to. (I know that's bad grammar, but I really don't want to be that formal.)

Hugs to you all,

Terri

There and Back!

No, we didn't go to see the Hobbit.  We went to Washington - the state - and bought a new house. But first here is my Drunkard's Path quilt start.  I'm going to make the Wedding Ring setting... I'll show one in a day or two.

I made the pattern the night before we left on our house seeking trip. I got the pattern from www.mccallsquilting.com and I made the pieces 142% larger on my printer. Then I applied the pattern to template plastic and cut them out so the curve would be for hand sewing - traced line on the curve is the sewing line and on the straight lines is 1/4" seam allowance for using the sewing machine -  like I did on hundreds of smaller blocks ages ago. I thought I'd sewn a few more red & purple ones...  I started out trying the circle technique, but I don't like what happens when I clip so close and while manipulating a glued bunch the fabric shreds and there's very little seam allowance... see below.

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Now for some pictures of my new house....

The front yard is huge, so it  will fit my magnolia (I started from a seed).

 It's the corner house  of a cul-de-sac. We're going to get the old guy a riding mower, cause that's a lot of lot to mow at his age. It's on a quiet street, and seems like a nice neighborhood. The house is 3 bedrooms (2 are really small) and 2 bathrooms. The kitchen is about 1/2 the size of my old one... Oh, well. Less to clean! Right?

On the way home I took this picture of Mt. Shasta... over 14,000 ft. Magical, I think.

 

So now the big work starts... finish packing, build a bunch of little plants for  Halloween (one of our last days here), coordinate everything and move. Wish me luck. I think we're going to need it.

 

Happy Monday,

Hugs,

Terri

Starting the Drunkard's Path Quilt Along

I've started a couple Quilt Alongs over the years...  I really haven't stuck with them. The Rainbow Scrap Challenge is one of those. This time it is Vicki Welch's Drunkard's Path QAL and the rules sound really easy... See the button in the sidebar.
I've always wanted to make a Drunkard's Path (here after called a DP). I've made some vests and other things of the small version. (2" squares - see below)

Believe it or not - this is a purse with a zipper and shoulder strap! Made from leftovers of a vest I made for my Mom.

 This time I'm going to try to use that new circle technique I showed a few blogs back and see if that works. It is sew easy.

So "Yes" I'm in Vicki....

As I was scanning through an old Quilter's Newsletter Magazine from the 80s I found a DP  listed as  Pumpkin Vine. (Lots of the old patterns have multiple names.) I hope I can find out that DP has another lovely name suitable for my Granddaughter's Wedding.

Sew I'm off - but you knew that. Going to the sewing room.

 

Having a wonderful weekend.

Hugs,

Terri