I have a bunch of monthly projects that need to stay current, and the only one I've worked on so far in April is Jan Patek's 2009 mystery quilt. So the last two days I spent making blocks for my North Star Quilters $1 BOM. (You can see the 
posts I've done about this quilt by clicking here.)When I first started I pulled all the fabrics from a collection I bought several years ago - Poetry by April Cornell for Moda. I still love these pastel fabrics - and fabrics like this have almost disappeared from my stash. Wonderful pastels like this just shout "Spring!" to me, and we needed a spring quilt for our bed. So these were a natural choice to use for this BOM.
I added only a very few additional fabrics when I made the first two blocks - and immediately realized I needed more mediums as well as some darks for "punch". So I added at least another 
20-25 fabrics before I made the March blocks. I wasn't that happy with the March blocks either, so before I made April's I added a bunch more fabrics (see all the real oldies I added? Hopefully I can use up some of these!) I think I have a great selection now - except I need more blues. I have lots of blues in my stash, but not 
that many light blues, and most of the ones I have have a greyed look to them because they are from that "mauve and greyed blue period" that occurred in the very late 70's and early 80's. Hmmm . . . maybe I still need to shop a little?
20-25 fabrics before I made the March blocks. I wasn't that happy with the March blocks either, so before I made April's I added a bunch more fabrics (see all the real oldies I added? Hopefully I can use up some of these!) I think I have a great selection now - except I need more blues. I have lots of blues in my stash, but not 
that many light blues, and most of the ones I have have a greyed look to them because they are from that "mauve and greyed blue period" that occurred in the very late 70's and early 80's. Hmmm . . . maybe I still need to shop a little?I really like this month's block - pinwheels - so I made three. I love how they turned out. The last picture shows all the blocks together. I need to work on some of these a bit more - the dark triangles in the top left block just take over - I need to switch them to a medium fabric. 
And a couple of the blocks are a bit too light with no contrast - I need to fix those also. Not sure if I'll remake these or just make new ones and put the others into the orphan bin.
And a couple of the blocks are a bit too light with no contrast - I need to fix those also. Not sure if I'll remake these or just make new ones and put the others into the orphan bin.I'm having so much fun with this quilt!
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Gratitudes:
1. Spring has arrived, along with marvelous spring flowers everywhere. I especially love the blue grape hyacinths and yellow daffodils together.
2. Our daughter continues to improve
3. More time these days for quilting
4. Fiber 1 bars!
Hi Patti
ReplyDeleteI love designs in fabrics by April Cornell. I have a few pieces in the Poetry collection, gathered since discovering April. Being a country Queenslander Aussie, you will be happy to know that your blogs help to inspire quilters right across the globe.
Love how those blocks are all fitting together...wonderful! You mentioned Fiber 1 bars...OMG I'm addicted to those 10:30 every morning that's my snack...Fiber 1 and a diet coke. I get them at Target or Walmart in the jumbo box.
ReplyDeleteAll those fabrics you have pulled play so nicely together. I agree the purple block is a bit overpowering and there are a couple that fade out but I have confidence that you will get them all to work together. I love to hear that others have orphan block bins LOL.
ReplyDeleteCrispy
Gotta love playing in fabric. you have quite a nice selection there and the blocks are looking great.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful quilt! It is going to be stunning. And I really must try the Fiber 1 bars.
ReplyDeletePat
All of the fabrics are so pretty, but oh those yellows are wonderful.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful fabrics. Love the springy colors.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a fun project. Why not leave the dark triangles, and use them again in another 2-3 blocks, then they won't stand out. JMHO.
ReplyDeleteThe addition of fabrics to your original selection is just the punch your project needed. Oh, so nice!
ReplyDeleteI love all your fabics...and the quilt and the fact that your daughter is getting better.
ReplyDeletebeautiful materials!
ReplyDeleteGreat design too.
Oh wow - gorgeous fabric overload! The greens are divine. Love the way the quilt is turning out.
ReplyDeleteI love looking at all your fabric pictures. I couldn't even tell which ones were the old ones. Love the greens! I tried Fiber 1 bars at the beginning of the month. Quite good. I was surprised at how much I liked them. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteooooh, patti, love those moda pastels, really nice...and what a stash, simply gorgeous! glad to hear things are going well...
ReplyDeleteI love your blog. And am glad The Mystery Quilt is the one you're staying current on. I'm stitching on a block right now so I can stay ahead of you :). And I really need to come up with a name for the quilt. Am trying to figure out how to have a contest about the name. Any ideas out there. Again, love your blog. Am signing up to be a follower. This is such an awesome way to keep in touch with people.
ReplyDelete