January I get nuts. I want to do everything. I want to make everything. So my wise sister said "Focus." This is my attempt to focus.
A year ago the Canadian Quilters Association began a block a week. See #52blocks52weeks. Every Tuesday a new block would be released. And pretty soon I couldn't get on with the week until I had that Tuesday block made. Because I have so many scraps, I worked strictly out of my scrap pile. I do love the blocks individually. But I put them up on the design wall against a lovely background. And...I don't love it. I don't hate it either. Would these blocks be better featured in an Attic Windows setting? Maybe... They are coming down. I think they need to rest.
What's going up on the wall is this
little happy quilt of exclamation points designed by the current Chicago Modern Quilt Guild president Laura McDowell Hopper. Laura designed this block to be paper pieced but I just pieced and now have 28 blocks.
While starting new projects and putting fabrics away, I came across this quilt. Years ago I was trying to learn to free-motion quilt. And this was my practice piece. It's maybe half quilted, and I realized two things. One: I don't like doing free-motion quilting. Buddy
Wayne is a genius at it and tried to coach me through. But I am not happy doing it. Two: I realized how much I didn't like the tension of the machine I was using. So I just put it away. I do think it is pretty, and it's a good size, maybe 70" square. So I am adding some stitches with No 8 Perle cotton and will then bind it. I think it might belong in my sister's house.
And speaking of adding stitches, Nikki's quilt was finished for a couple of weeks. And the delivery was postponed several times over the holidays. A few days before gifting it, I decided it need some hand stitching, and I was very happy with the results. It was a peaceful way to welcome in the new year!
