It is finished!

My Contrary Wife quilt top is finished.  I love the setting I chose.  I made each border as wide as I could with the fabric I had left.  This was all scrap fabric except for the orange - that was a fat quarter I bought for Emily's quilt that I didn't use.  All the scrap fabrics are gone except for the brown. I'm loving this way of emptying the scrap basket!  The oldest fabric in this quilt is the brown and orange acorn print, which I imagine is a VIP from the 1980's.  The border and a few triangles are a Hoffman woodblock print, which is from the early 1990's.  The brown was part of the first fabric collection designed by Connie and Mary of Country Threads (it may have been their only fabric collection) which they called "Wear Warm Clothes".  All the other fabrics - except for the orange - are from the 1990's (I think).  I love the fact that I had to do a couple fabric substitutions in four of the blocks - I think that adds some "zing" to the quilt!

This will be a great table topper for fall.  It will also be a great practice piece to quilt while getting my longarm quilting mojo back.

I've read many times that serious quilt designers do quilts in "series".  I've never done this, and I don't think of myself as a quilt designer.  But I had so much fun playing with this block that I see a series of  little "Contrary Wife" quilts made from scraps in my future.  Maybe I'll start another tomorrow!

Scraps, we love scraps! But I need your help . . .

Because I have this laundry basket of fabric pieces not big enough to fold and put on the shelf - my definition of scraps - I decided to start participating in Kim's Scrap Basket Sundays.   I know if I don't commit myself to something like this I will always pull from the shelf rather than the scrap basket.

Because I spent all day today at the Columbia Gorge Fiber Festival,  and will be there most of the day tomorrow, I spent last night and tonight cutting and sewing scraps.

"1"

Because I'm part of Kathleen Tracy's yahoo group Small Quilt Talk, I decided to use April's block for my first Scrappy Sunday project.  Tomorrow night I hope to sew the blocks together and finish the quilt top.

"2"

The block is called "Contrary Wife", though many may know it by another name.  (Don't you love how block names changed from state to state and era to era?  I do!)  I originally planned to do only four blocks plus borders.  Last night I discovered what a tiny quilt that would be so I decided to make 16 blocks instead - I wanted a square quilt.

"3"

Of course, my chosen scraps didn't go that far - I was able to make only 12 blocks.  I thought about stopping then, but realized there was only one blocks arrangement (that I liked) suitable for 12 blocks.  So I did what our foremothers often did when fabric was scarce.  I dug through the basket for fabrics of similar color and value to the fabrics I'd used up.  I made four more blocks tonight substituting two new fabrics for those I'd used up.  I thought I'd use them in the center of the quilt.  Or in the four corners.  I played with both arrangements and didn't really care for either.  So I scattered those four blocks randomly though the block arrangement.  That looked MUCH better!  (IMHO)

"4"

I thought I knew which block setting I wanted.  But once I started playing with the blocks I realized there were many different settings I liked.  So I'd love your input.

"5"

Which setting do you like best?  Please vote for your favorite, either 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5.  Thanks!