Design Wall Monday - 7/19/10

There was a lot of sewing at casaGrande this weekend - most were itsy bitsy teeny weeny pieces but it was good to be sewing again.

I'm working on the first 100 4-patch units - about two-thirds have all 4 triangles sewn on and now need trimming down to 2". That is my 45mm rotary cutter in the picture for scale. The 4-patches are made with 1" strips and the halfSquareTriangles are cut from 2.5" squares. I only need 344 more of these units before making colored halfSquareTriangles and fashioning them into ShoeFly blocks.

Here's 100 9-patches sewn to 100 2" squares. Again, the 9-patches are made from 1" strips. I only need 450 more 9-patches before making double 9-patches! The subuct storage box is pretty empty at this point but I have some strip sets that need to be subcut and, thanks to Val, I have some strips that need to be sewn into sets. I think it might be a while before I get to sewing more 9-patches since it will take a while to trim the 4-patch units and subcuts and it was just a smidge of itty-bitty-overload this weekend.

And just so you know I'm crazy - here's confirmation - that is an American quarter on the 2" block. As best as I can tell, there will be 9,941 tiny pieces without considering the three Bs. Omigosh, what have I gotten myself into? The tiny blocks are cute but this sucker is going to be heavy with all those seams.

On a slightly larger scale, here are the subcuts for the purple/cream redRover 4-patches using 2.5" strips. I did find a few more purples in the green stash but I also realized I'm gonna need 4" strips for the halfSquareTriangles. I think I bit off another long term project while I accumulate more purples...

Putzing and begging

There hasn't been much meaningful time in the CasaGrande studio lately - too many other activities that need attention. You know, like laundry, mowing, meetings, melting in the heat, garden sitting and making sure the hammock is positioned correctly under the maple tree for reading!

I've putzed with 2.5" neutral and purple strips to begin a "Red Rover." Turns out I don't have as many purple fabrics as I thought...how did that happen? I have two drawers of just neutrals FQs so there is lots of variety there. I think it was Bonnie that got me hooked on neutrals and they are about the only FQ that I regularly buy without a specific purchase. It's fun to look for new and different fabrics or more of a fav that is just about gone.

I've also been putzing with my Omigosh quilt - as you can see my box is pretty full. I've sewed together strip sets and started to subcut them but need to make some room in the box for them so I've also been pinning together subsets until I used all my pins. Subutting. I have tomorrow off so maybe I can actually get something substantial done. It's supposed to rain so it will be nice to stay inside with the pitter patter of the rain through the open windows.

OK, so here comes the begging...anyone want to send/trade 2.5" purple strips or any-color 1" strips? My friend Val already gives me her 1" strips and it has added a lot of variety to my Omigosh but I'll need close to 1,000 tiny 9- and 4-patches so this is a long term project that just begs for variety. Would a cutie kittie change your mind?    TIA.