Sundry

I'm naming this one Sundry, as a reflection of all the various plus blocks, but this little block started it all.

At times, I forget that this quilt was begun in a Maria Shell workshop back in July. I enjoyed the blocks I made in class, and just kept making them!

The quilt isn't large -54" x 59" - but it's a nicely-sized lap quilt; and seriously, it did use all of my teal-ish solid and low-volume print scraps. So that's a win-win. Along the way, I attempted to make plus or 'cross' blocks in a variety of ways, and that was half the fun. 

I didn't give a lot of thought to the eventual quilt layout, and a lot was determined by the sizes of the improv blocks. But there was one extra-large block that just didn't fit and it prompted me to make two more, so I could put those three on the back. Here's where I ran out of necessary scraps, thus the larger swaths of solid and print fabrics. Happily, I'd found a couple of yards of Kona Sage in my stash that helped a lot in bringing the backing to size, as well as for the binding.

Quilting was done in an uneven grid, one of my favorite things to quilt. I used the unusual (for me) choice of Aurifil 28wt 2021 [Natural White], with 50wt in the bobbin. At times, I felt it showed off a bit too much, but then again, I think it suits this quilt ok. 

So, though the finish was delayed somewhat by other projects, I'm happy to have this very scrappy all completed. The process of making all those improv blocks especially was most enjoyable, and I'm happy to have used up so so many scraps!

Patterns to Try | Groove Quilted Thread Case

The minute I saw Emily Van Hoff's @emilyvanhoff Quilted Thread Case, I really wanted to make one! She used some of her Groove fabrics, so of course, so did I. I chose two prints - Knotted in Moody and Warp in Moody.

Right off, I made a quilt sandwich and hand-quilted the exterior cover using the Aurifil Groove 12wt thread box that Emily had coordinated to go along with her fabric line.

It's kind of difficult to see, but I used the same stripe fabric for a portion of the interior (behind the thread) as I did for the binding. I love that a good-sized piece of wool felt is sewn right into the case, there on the right side. AND a pair of scissors is always close at hand. I did find that the case is a little snug to close, so not quite sure what decision I made to make that happen. No biggy though.

Inside, I arranged the threads so their labels are facing out, so they're easy to read, if needed.

The colors included in the Groove set are such fun together! I'm hoping to stitch a project using just these 10 colors, so we'll see what I decide to do.

Meanwhile, I thoroughly enjoyed making this handy case and look forward to using it.