Butterfly Strings

Oh, the finishes are coming fast now. Strange how that happens. I'm excited to share this one: my second finish from my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks from 2019. If you want to see the blocks as I made them, you can click on the RSC19 or Butterfly Quilt labels on the right sidebar or at the bottom of this post. 

This quilt was just so much fun. It's the third quilt I've made from the Dancing Butterflies Mini Pattern by Ellis and Higgs. The quilt in the pattern is just four butterflies and is 15 1/2 inches square. I've made the equivalent of 40 mini quilts (plus one butterfly) or 161 butterflies. So far. Because I wouldn't be surprised if I make another butterfly quilt someday. Or more. If you want to see my other butterfly quilts from this pattern, click on that Butterfly Quilt label. I've made slight variations in each. For this quilt, I made the wing parts with strings from my scraps, the upper wings from lighter scraps and the lower wings from darker. I made the brown bodies when brown came up as the color of the month. I know I messed around with the color of the month a bit throughout the year. I skipped red. When you take a closer look, you will see that the background has little yellow-green dots. The layout only took a few minutes. I knew that I wanted a rainbow progression diagonally across the quilt. 

We were under stay-at-home orders when it was time to pick out a background fabric. I often piece my background from what I have on-hand, but I didn't have enough big chunks to make that practical or fun, so I went online and found a fabulous Splotch Dropcloth (by Whistler Studios) wide back at Backside Fabrics. Their service was wonderful at a time when mail was usually turtle-slow. My only regret was that I didn't buy a whole lot more of this. I love it. I do have a little left, so it will sneak into another quilt someday.

Isn't it interesting how wholecloth pieces take on a different pattern when viewed from far away? Here's a close-up:

I love how it picks up almost all of the colors of the butterflies on the other side--and it's like a butterfly's view of a flower garden.

Let's go back to the front. Close up.

Yes, that's my signature "Piedmont" quilting--wavy lines across the quilt diagonally, and then perpendicular to that section across the rest of the quilt. It goes so fast, is easy on my shoulder, and makes such a luscious texture. For this quilt, I spaced the lines about 3/4 inch apart, extending my guide on my walking foot with a taped-on paper clip to try to keep the spacing even, but there are wobbles, and I don't care. Butterflies can fly however they want to.

Here's the edge. I used excess fabric from the backing for the binding. This narrow, it's kind of delicate looking, but I like it. It lets the butterflies take all the attention. 

This photo is after washing, so the light is different.

And it doesn't really show at all on the back.

While I was sewing the binding on, I looked up and noticed in the mirror behind my machine (I quilt in front of a dresser that holds my quilt) that my top matched the quilt, so of course I had to stop for a photo. Good quilting tip, right? For extreme happiness, match your outfit to your quilt.

Here's a view of my initials and the date before washing. I love using a washable marker that I can trace. So much easier than the tracing paper I used to sew through. 

After washing, I'll be the only one, probably, to know they are there. But it does serve as documentation of a sort, and a way to identify the quilt should it (perish the thought) get lost along the way. Sometimes my thread contrasts a little more, but I don't mind if the initials don't show.

Here's an indoor view:

Here are the stats:

Pattern: Dancing Butterfly Mini by Ellis and Higgs times 14. I trimmed my blocks to 8 inches for a 7 1/2 inch finished block. There's ample leeway in this pattern to adjust size.
Fabrics:  Scraps from my supply going back more than 40 years. I don't know who makes the dotted background fabric. The backing as noted above is Splotch Dropcloth from Whistler Studios. 

Batting: Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 

Thread: Superior-- Masterpiece in Granite for piecing; King Tut in Temple for quilting;Treasure in Old Lace for handstitching on binding. 

Binding: 2 1/2 inches cut, double layer, machine sewn to front and hand stitched on back.cut 
Finished Size: 53 inches by 60 1/2 inches pieced; 52 1/4 by 59 3/4 inches after quilting; 49 1/4 by 56 after washing. 

Machines: Singer Featherweight for piecing; Singer Treadle 115 for walking foot quilting.

And now, my favorite photos in the evening light after washing.

My link-ups this week:

Kelly at My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop

Angela at So Scrappy for Scraphappy Saturday

Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap

I hope quilting is a bright spot in your week, and if you have RSC or scrap blocks lying around, I hope they are becoming quilts.

Let's close with one more photo, because you know, butterfly. This is from our bike ride this week--a brand new monarch strengthening its wings:

Take care and stay safe.

(Just a reminder: I'm not affiliated with any company, so when I mention products, services, or stores I'm just documenting what I used or liked.) 

RSC Butterfly Bits

It's May now, and I know the official RSC (Rainbow Scrap Challenge) color has changed, but I want to share my aqua bits anyway. I made them on the last day of April. Whew! (To my credit, I did do other sewing with aqua earlier in the month, just not scraps.) Luckily, I only had to make butterfly bits last month, not crumb blocks. The background fabric for my crumb blocks has blues but not aqua/turquoise, so those blocks got a rest. The light's been awful for photos lately, but here's what I have:

The colors are prettier and brighter than here. I tried not to let myself be stymied by the whole aqua/turquoise/teal conundrum. Just went with lighter for the top wings and darker for the bottom ones. I think after the next color (ORANGE!) I'll be ready to think about possible background fabric. The butterflies will look so much better with those strings added in on the block corners and with the body pieces. 

So that's it for April. I'll need to get going sooner than the last day of the month for Orange. I have to make both crumb and butterfly blocks. 

I'm linking up this weekend with Angela at So Scrappy for ScrapHappy Saturday and with Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap!

Happy Scrapping!

Bits of Green

It seemed that the month could just slip away from me here. I got involved in another quilt top this week--got it done, in fact--but a post will have to wait a bit. I did work my fingers off during the last two days, though, and have some green to show for my Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC19) projects. First up, some more crumb blocks. I focused on yellow green as that is one of the greens in the background fabric I hope to use with these blocks eventually. I'm still trying to keep the contrast kind of low, so I didn't have many fabrics to pick from, but I'm pleased with how they came out. 

Here they are with their partners from January and February:

And some on the background fabric (I'll trim them down to an even size later):

We'll see how this develops as I add more colors. There is a darker green in the background print, so I may sub that for another RSC color later in the year.

I also made more string pieced butterfly bits (based on the Butterfly Dance pattern by ellis and higgs). It probably would have been better to photograph them somewhere other than on green carpet. Oh well. I haven't figured out yet what I'll use for the background in each block.

Another of my planned RSC projects was to cut 2 1/2 inch squares and strings from my irregular shaped scraps to impose some order to my scrap bins. I did cut some strings from skinny pieces, but had a hard time getting myself to cut squares, and I think I figured out why. I make a lot of different kinds of quilts. Some of them are landscape quilts, and pre-cutting my fabrics into strips and squares does not appeal to me for those. I look at my fabrics and think that maybe I'll want a more irregular shaped piece--or larger piece. I can't picture how I might use a regular shape.This month, I found that that is particularly true with my green fabrics. A lot of them are tone-on-tone and would lend themselves well to landscape making. I think I'll have the same problem when working with my blues and turquoises. After cutting three or four squares I stopped. But I wonder how other quilters handle this issue. What are your thoughts on how you cut and store your scraps? Does my reluctance resonate with you? 

I'm linking up this week with Angela (of RSC fame) at So Scrappy for Scrap Happy Saturday and with Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap!


Have fun quilting this coming week no matter how you cut and store your scraps.

RSC18 Wrap-up

The last several months have been filled with non-quilty activities--some celebratory (the holidays and my dad's 95th birthday) and others related to cares and concerns. My mother-in-law broke her hip early in November, and then entered a time of rapid decline in her overall health. She slipped away from her earthly life early this month. This past weekend, we met with family and friends in the Chicago area for a memorial service and celebration of her life. It is sad to have lost her, but she lived a wonderfully active life physically and socially until the last couple of years, and it was a joy to have her in our lives for such a long time. She would have been 95 on January 28.

I didn't feel much like quilting lately and even less like blogging about what little sewing I did, but now that our lives are on a more even keel, it's time to get back in the flow. (How's that for nautical-speak from a landlubber?) Anyway, at long last, I have a finish. Two finishes actually: my remaining RSC18 quilts. (Never mind that I did not meet the one little goal I had for January, finishing these quilts in time to mail them before the US postage rates increased. It's all good.)

These quilts started with 8 string blocks a month in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge colors of the month (hosted by Angela at So Scrappy) from January to October. The one "rule" I made for myself was to include a strip of one other color of the month in each block. If you'd like to see the blocks as I made them over the year, click on the RSC18 label in the list on the right or at the bottom of this post. There were 8 blocks (pink and purple) that I did not use in one of the quilts. They became this Butterfly quilt. (You can also see it with its mates in the above photo.) I replaced them with blocks in the other colors, bringing the number of my RSC string blocks for the year to 88).

I played with some fun layouts throughout the year, but I pretty much knew how I wanted these quilts to look when I first started making the blocks, with a simple layout and sashing. The other layouts would have had bulky seams, and I didn't want to mess around with those. For the first quilt, I used Kona Snow for the sashing, and laid out the blocks all in the same orientation, with random placement of the colors. 

I'm leaving that sunshine in the photo. We need all we can get in this deep freeze.

For the backing, I found an awesome digitally printed rainbow fabric: Gradients by Moda.

I wanted a more playful look for the other quilt. In a sale bin at my local quilting store, I found a llama print that coordinated with the scrap colors without overwhelming them. For that quilt, I laid out half of the blocks in one direction and half in the other facing direction.

I bought some extra llama print for the backing, but (purposely) not as much as I needed. I knew I had some solids that would work to make a pieced back, saving myself a little money and using more of my fabrics on hand.

I quilted these two quilts last week while waiting for our trip for my mother-in-law's memorial service. It was good therapy. At first I wasn't sure how to quilt the one with the Snow sashing, so I set it aside. On the other quilt, I used my walking foot to stitch through the center and outer corners of the blocks following the direction of the layout, then filled in with more lines between those to create a giant chevron. You can probably see it a little better on the back in this photo. I really like the texture it gives. 

By the time I finished that quilt, I just wanted to be done. I hadn't done FMQ in quite awhile, so I decided to stipple the other quilt. It went really fast, and I do like it. (What's not to like about stipple quilting? No, don't answer that. I know it's not a favorite of some quilters. But it is so relaxing for me.)

I was planning to make a scrap binding for the Snow sashed quilt, but when the time came, that seemed like too much work. I had bought a little piece of another Gradient print for the other quilt, but decided to first use that print on the Snow quilt. It's the fabric on the right in this photo.

(When I showed these fabrics on Instagram, I think some people thought they were quilts. The print is tiny, though. The hourglass squares on the right are only about 1/2 inch on a side.) It just kind of blends in with the backing, but I love how it looks on the front. I stitched it so that it looks like a stripe. I did not have enough to go all the way around on the llama quilt, but there was a bit of the backing left from the Snow quilt (the fabric on the right in the above photo), so I alternated them around the Llama quilt. I had just enough. Yay! (I guess in the course of this post, I have named the quilts. Ha!)

Do you see the subtle change from one Gradients fabric to the other?

I'm really pleased with how these finished. Here are my initials and the dates:

They are going to go to Margaret's Hope Chest, and ultimately the Mother and Baby Program (treatment program for mothers with post-partum mood disorders) at Pine Rest Hospital. The mothers use them as a comforting shawl during therapy sessions. 

So here are the stats:

Design: String blocks made for RSC18. Blocks were trimmed to 5 1/2 inches before quilt construction for 5-inch finished blocks. The sashes finish at 2 inches wide with outer borders finishing at 3 inches. Using a print background for the Llama quilt was inspired by this quilt by Mari at The Academic Quilter.
Fabrics: Scraps from nearly 40 years of quilt-making. 
Snow quilt: Kona Snow for sashing; Gradients in Triangles by Moda for backing, Gradients in Bars by Moda for binding.
Llama quilt: JuxtaPosey Toss by Betz White for Riley Blake for sashing and backing; Kona solids in Robin Egg, Laurel, and Sunflower for backing; Gradients in Triangles and in Bars by Moda for binding.
Batting: Hobbs Premium Heirloom 80/20

Thread: Superior-- Masterpiece in Granite for piecing; King Tut in Temple (Snow quilt) and White Linen (Llama quilt) for quilting; Treasure in Old Lace for hand stitching binding.
Binding: 2 1/2 inches cut, double layer, machine sewn to front and hand stitched on back
Size: Snow Quilt: 60 by 39 inches; 59.5 by 38.5 quilted and bound; 56 by 36 inches machine washed and dried.
Llama Quilt: 60 by 39 inches; 59.5 by 38.75 quilted and bound; 56.5 by 36.75 inches machine washed and dried.

Machines: Singer Featherweight for piecing; Singer Treadle 115 for walking foot and FMQ quilting.

One more photo--just out of the washer and dryer in all their crinkly drapey-ness. And I am so happy to say that there was no dye migration--even from some of those very old fabrics. Yippee!

I had so much fun doing RSC18--even if it didn't really use many of my scraps at all, and I bought even more fabric to make the sashes and backing. Oh well, I used up what I bought, and now I can keep doing RSC. I have some ideas--I want to make some butterfly blocks, maybe some crumbs and/or more strings, and maybe long lines of strings. I have other ideas, too, but need to restrain myself a bit. I want to see just how much I can use up, though. The only thing is, I have only one more day of January as of this writing to get my reds (color of the month) finished. I may double up January and February colors. If you would like to participate in RCS19 check out the links here and here. I have already bought my background fabrics for my quilts (Mexicali Fresh Beaded Paisley from Benartex and Stella Tossed Flower from Red Rooster). Still mulling over how I'll use them.

I'm linking up this week with My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday, Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop,  So Scrappy for ScrapHappy Saturday, Wendy's Quilts and More for Peacock Party and Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap!

Now, let the RSC19 sewing begin! Since we're in the deep freeze in my part of the world, and I am windchill bound, I should make a lot of progress sewing! If you are also in a cold area, stay warm and stay quilting!

(I'm not affiliated with any company, so when I mention products, services, or stores I'm just documenting what I used or liked.) 

DrEAMi Pink and Purple

Throughout this year I have enjoyed making string blocks according to the RSC (Rainbow Scrap Challenge) color prompts hosted by Angela at SoScrappy. I made most of my blocks into two small quilt tops, which will get their own post after I quilt them. You can see them in process here. My original plan was to divide the 80 blocks in two sets of 40, with 4 blocks of each color in each quilt. While laying out the second quilt, I started having second thoughts about the pink and purple blocks. I set them aside (I first was going to say I rejected them, but that's harsh, isn't it?), and as I did so, I suddenly knew exactly what I would do with them. I subbed in other blocks in the second quilt, and then abandoned postponed the bigger quilts and got to work on this fun little project:

I had 8 blocks. I knew I needed one more block for the quilt I wanted to make. Before I addressed that issue, I laid out what I had and tested some possibilities for a border from fabric on-hand. This one just didn't feel right. The border fabric seemed too crisp and modern for the variety of fabrics in the blocks.

I tried some other fabrics too, and then worked on the central block. Rather than make one more string block, I chose a butterfly from a set of paper pieced patterns I have admired for awhile: the Pepper Block from the Butterfly Charm blocks at lillyella.com. These little butterflies are all so cute. I'd really like to make a quilt full of them someday. Of course, I had to change the pattern just a bit to put my own stamp on it and tie it in with the string blocks. So I string pieced the main sections of the wings. Here it is with that same border fabric again. (I was still mulling things over). I had also added sashing to the plan to make the quilt the size I wanted and to avoid sewing a lot of thick seams.

I also inserted a pink strip around the edge of the butterfly block to separate it from the sashing. 

By then, I had let go of the dotty border. But then the project took on a life of its own. I didn't like how some of the strips looked in the blocks. There was a hot pink strip in one that shouted out and grabbed all the attention. 

I replaced it with a tiny calico.

Then there was a purple strip in another, which didn't seem quite right as there were whole purple blocks next to it. 

I replaced it with a gold strip.

And a purple block with a bright red strip and more wine colored purple strips than I would like.

I replaced the red with a tiny red print, and the wines with bluer purples.

If you check out my other posts for RSC 18 (see the label on the right sidebar or at the bottom of this post), you will see that I kept the outlier theme going. The outlier strips are actually kind of strange in this quilt because they don't relate to anything in particular--only the RSC blocks that are in the other quilts. But I think it's kind of neat that I know the relationship is there. It's my little secret. Changing the strips was easy, as I used the old strips as a pattern for their replacements. But I was on the verge of getting carried away. DrEAMi (Drop Everything And Make it) was becoming OBSESSION (except those letters don't stand for anything--I'm not that clever). I had to stop myself. Each time I made a change, another strip in a block would stand out, calling attention to itself, until I told myself, "Enough, already!" 

I considered a solid pink and a solid purple for border and binding, but at the last minute I softened them a bit by subbing in a pink Grunge for the border and three purple prints for the binding. Then, finishing the piecing was easy. 

Because of the busy prints, quilting was simple--mostly walking foot. I outline quilted around the butterfly

and in the ditch around the blocks and (sort of) along seams between every set of two strips. I had to restrain myself because quilting these mini quilts to the nth degree is always my temptation. I wanted to keep it fairly soft. For the border I tried a bit of FMQ. I haven't done much lately and am a little rusty, but it was fun to add butterflies and loops to the top and bottom borders. 

Signed and dated!

The whole quilt is 22 by 24 1/4 inches. I haven't washed it yet, but I expect it will shrink a bit. The blocks finish at 5 inches and the sashings finish at 1 inch wide. The batting is a scrap of Hobbs 80/20. The white is Kona Snow. I pieced on my Singer Featherweight with Superior Masterpiece thread in Granite, and quilted on my Singer 115 Treadle with Superior King Tut in Temple. The back is pieced from the trimmings (three pieces) of another back. I even sort of matched the pattern. 

This view shows the quilting a bit better.

This quilt is headed to A Doll Like Me, the business of Amy Jandrisevets, who makes dolls for children that match their physical characteristics (perhaps with a limb difference, or hearing aids, or any other unique feature that might not be available in commercially-made dolls). Amy also provides doll quilts to include with the dolls under special circumstances. (If you'd like to learn more about Amy's business, you can read this post by Bernie at Needle and Foot from a quilt collection she did in February this year and then go to Amy's Facebook page to read more.) I'm pretty sure there is a child somewhere who is obsessed by pink and purple--and maybe butterflies, too--who will enjoy it with a doll. 

I'm linking up this DrEAMi (OBSESSION) with Sandra at mmm! quilts for her monthly linky party where we all share the squirrels we just had to chase this month. And with Angela at SoScrappy for ScrapHappy Saturday and with Cynthia at Quilting is more Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap! 

I hope you've had fun with your scraps and squirrels this month!

(I'm not affiliated with any company, so when I mention products, services, or stores I'm just documenting what I used or liked.)