Quilt News! What's on Your Sewing Table? Log Cabin Blocks Runner, Four Patch in a Square Blocks a Sashiko Project and Scrappy Pineapple Blocks at Susies-Scraps

My Sashiko Rice Stitch wallet/purse project.

Lining is a silky Liberty print, 5" x 6.5" closed.

'Albersesque' 9" Log Cabin blocks with 1 1/2" borders as a runner.

FourPatch in a Square blocks 6" finished, number 38 now.

Finished Sawtooth scrap pieces as a sampler to remember the process.

 

 

Hello Quilt Friends! April showers bring May flowers the saying goes...

What's on your sewing table? My sewing table has some finished and some in progress projects on it. And also a Peter Rabbit children's book, great colors and to celebrate spring.

 

I finished piecing into a sampler my Sawtooth border scraps left overs from my finished quilt top, Mostly Green. Big stitch quilting and binding in Kona Zucchini made it a done deal.

 

Then I finished stitching my Sashiko project, a small wallet/purse in pink linen, lined with a silky Liberty fabric, stitched in rice stitch using #8 perle cotton in indigo blue. I'm still deciding how I want it to close, maybe with a ribbon or buttons. I found the inspiration in one of my library books written by Karen Kim Matsunaga, Japanese Country Quilting; Sashiko Patterns, published 2012. Amazon is selling her book at a high price, that's why I check it out from my library. I wish it would go into reprint then the price would probably come down.

And why do I think Karen's book Japanese Country Quilting is one of the best for Sashiko? Because Karen is Japanese and writes an excellent history/background of Sashiko and Japanese design. There is a well known European author on Sashiko and her ideas and methods are fine for what she is trying to do, but I feel she doesn't address the very important soul of the art. 

Then I decided to make a runner out of the four 9" Log Cabin blocks made from being inspired by Debbie Jeske's post and challenge of 'Albersesque' blocks. Her idea of course was inspired by Josef Albers, an influencial modern artist specializing in the relativity of color. And so my runner top is finished.

My FourPatch in a Square blocks, scrappy, now total 38. My inspiration is from Beth Shibley's YouTube video, Four Ways to Finish FourPatch Blocks. Beth has good ideas.

Susie @ Susies-Scraps has a great idea and tutorial in her last post, Scrappy Pineapple Blocks.

I'm ready to dive into another project! Oh wait! I have to sit down and plan it out in my notebook first.

When I take the time to do that the project suddenly becomes doable; just a little planning really helps.

And that Quilt Friends is the quilt news from the valley.

I'll be by to visit.

Quilt News! New Block Challenge, 'Albersesque' by Debbie Jeske, Saw Tooth Border Scraps, Four Patch in a Square Blocks Increase, April Calendar Page

'Albersesque' blocks, 9.5" my rendition..

My Four Patch in a Square blocks increase!

Color samples I keep around for inspiration.

My April calendar page, look at those colors!

Hand quilting progress on my #1 Hour Glass Medallion Quilt.

I pieced together sawtooth border scraps into a small sampler.

 

Hello Quilt Friends!

Tulips and camellias are blooming and birds are singing in the early morning.

This week I pieced more of my Four Patch Squares together. I have 20 blocks @ 7"x7" now. My goal is 42 blocks. Little bit at a time.

And Debbie Jeske has a new challenge for one of her quilt groups and she is calling it Albersesque in honor of Josef Albers, his work and theories on color. One of the ideas he had was that color is relative, he used geometric shapes to show his ideas. Well I got inspired to whip up a couple of blocks 9.5" square in the liberated style, showing how colors can look as though they are receding or advancing. I'm not sure where that will lead but I'm considering the possibilities.

Hand quilting progress is moving forward. Like Audrey at Quilty Folk says it is important to hand quilt regular if you're going to commit to it, because then your hand stays supple and in shape. I wear my quilt gloves too and that makes a difference, the warmth.

Saw Tooth border scraps got pieced together as a sampler to remind me of what I've done. It will have binding in the Kona Zucchini, the yellow/green in the lower right of the photo.

My April Butterfly Calendar page is gorgeous with saturated color I had to share it! 

And that is the quilt news from the valley, where spring is in the air and allergens too.... it's all beautiful.

I'll be by to visit!