Scrap Happy in November

 Well, without Scrap Happy Day every month it looks like I wouldn't be blogging at all! However, this old dog has tried a new trick. I've actually repurposed some existing items instead of working from scraps or yardage. 

When our daughter was having her babies I made several flannel receiving blankets for them. Some time ago she returned them to me with a request to sew them all together into something bigger and useful for the members of her family now, 15 - 20 years later. I have finally tackled that project.  

 I didn't take a head count of the number of blankets before I started cutting them apart. I wish now I had. Spoiler alert: I've made a 60" x 76" top and a 66" x 83" back out of the flannels and still have quite a bit leftover!

 This is a sampling of the prints I had to work with. There are a couple of solid colors and tone-on-tone prints that are not in this photograph. My first step was to cut off the hems of the blankets. They were all only two layers sewn right sides together and then turned and top stitched. A few of them were large enough that I'd done some stitching in the center to hold the layers in place. It was tedious work to take out those stitches.  Only one of the blankets had any patchwork. I trimmed up the raw edges of that one and used it for the center of the new quilt. 

 Then I framed it with the pink print border and cornerstones. That was all the plan I had in the beginning, just cut strips and add them round and round the center panel. 

 Eventually, of course, I had to start piecing the strips to go the distance on any given side. Once I'd reached the desired width (60") I just kept adding strips to the top and bottom sides. I was delighted to discover that I had enough of a pink and white polka dot to make a final frame all the way around the top.

 There are a couple of minor design changes I would have made if I hadn't been working with old flannels. Daughter is less of a perfectionist fortunately. 

 I have only just completed piecing a back out of some of the same prints and a couple that didn't make it onto the front. I'll have to be sure to get a picture of it to share later. And then there are the flannels that are still leftover. I'd like to do something with them as well but at the moment I'm not sure what. There might be enough fabric for another, smaller quilt top. In the meantime, check out what the other participants in this monthly hop have repurposed or made out of scrap materials:

Kate, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Viv, Karrin,  Alissa,
Hannah and Maggie

 Scrap Happy Day is hosted by Kate (at the top of the list) every month on the 15th. If you'd like the motivation to use up your scraps or show us how you've repurposed something leave a comment on her blog and she'll be happy to add you to the list!

 

 

Scrappy Remixed Geese

 For Scrap Happy Day back in May I shared the progress I'd made on a scrappy version of the Remixed Geese pattern (free from Robert Kaufman Fabrics). This is what it looked like then:

 It would have finished at 54" x 72." I could have stopped there but I prefer the slightly larger size of 60" x 80" for unknown recipients. There would inevitably be more scraps to cut into geese and background patches so I put it away for a while. 

 I was able to get another ten or so flights of geese made recently. They've been added to the flimsy to make this quilt top:

 Now it will finish at 60" x 80." 😊 

 

Scrap Happy in July

The 15th of each month is Scrap Happy Day as declared by our hostess Kate. Once a month we show and share something we've made from scraps or leftovers. If you've been here recently you'll know I've been working to empty the tin of 2.5" patches that I've cut from scrap or leftover fabrics.

This is the tin when I began:

The stacks of patches reached up to the rim of the tin. Now the tin looks like this:

 All those patches were sewn into 16 patch blocks that finish at eight inches each. I ended up with something like 67. Obviously I could make a few more... and there will be new patches added as I work on new projects. 

Sixty-three of those blocks were put together to create this quilt top:

With all that variety in prints I used the dominant color that ran diagonally as the criteria for placing the blocks.  There were a few outliers but that helped a lot to organize the chaos. The print I used for the borders is black with tiny multi-color hashtags. Two inches down the long sides and 4" across the top and bottom brought the top up to my standard 60" x 80." 😊

You may remember that I was working on a scrappy version of the Remixed Geese pattern back in May. I  have added to that in the last week too but I'll talk about that in another post. In the meantime, here's the list of links to others who usually join us in scrappy goodness each month with out hostess at the top of the list. Enjoy!

Kate, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Viv, Karrin,  Alissa,
Hannah and Maggie

 

 

Scrap Happy in May: A Finish and a Flimsy

 Back at the beginning of this year I made the decision to use up some of the fabric that had been in The Magpie's Nest for decades. I settled on a simple four patch pattern using patches that finish at 3." I had a bunch of 6" (finished) fussy-cut squares that I could use between the four patch blocks too. I had to cut more of those to get the size I was after for the finished quilt. Overall it was a pleasant project. It is finally a finished quilt.

 

My original intention was to donate it for a child in foster care or to Wrap the World With Quilts. However, now I find it to be a comprehensive record of the quilts I've made over the years (and a few I haven't yet made but thought I would). So this quilt is going to stay with me for the time being. 😁

I have continued my quest to use up older prints and remnants. If you've been here before you will have seen some of the scrappy blocks I've been making.  The greatest number were flying geese.

 When I stopped to count them up I discovered I had more than enough for another version of the free Remixed Geese pattern from Kaufman Fabrics. In some flights of geese I used a print for the large triangle (the goose) and sometimes I was able to also use that same print for the background. So when it came time to audition the geese for this new quilt top I tried to avoid using a single print more than once. 

If you follow the pattern directions they have you making only two geese at a time. The quilt top can then be assembled in horizontal rows. I tend to make my geese four at a time and sew them all into a strip. That makes it a greater challenge to lay out the blocks. Sometimes I have to separate the flight into two halves. I don't consider that a huge drawback. 

 The bigger challenge for me is extending my design wall to accommodate all the geese and then keeping everything in place until I can get it sewn together. Pins and the camera in my phone are a great help. Then it becomes akin to assembling a jigsaw puzzle, another activity I enjoy. 

 This is the completed flimsy. It would finish at 54" x 72" at this point. (I added an extra row to the pattern.) I'm currently debating whether to add a 3" border all the way around just to bring it up to 60" x 78." I believe I will be able to send this one out into the world when it is finally a finished quilt. 😊

I'm probably one of the last to post for Scrap Happy Day as this blog hop begins with Kate in Australia and I'm on the west coast of the United States. We all post on the 15th of each month in our various time zones, spanning the globe. You can see how others are repurposing or using up scrap materials all over the world by clicking on the links below.

Kate, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Viv, Karrin,  Alissa,
Hannah and Maggie

 

Welcome Blanket Quilt

 I admit that I composed the layout for the Welcome Blanket in haste and not at the top of my game.This is what I put up for Scrap Happy Day:

Since then I have tweaked the block placements just a bit.

And today I have added the border that will finish at two inches, making the quilt top 40" square.

 

It's kind of busy but I think it works. Not only has this small quilt given me the opportunity to use blocks from the Parts Department and some scrap batting, I was able to use another remnant for the border strips. It's been fun to complete a quilt top so quickly. That's all kinds of success! 😁
 

Black and White Flimsy

 This collection of black and white blocks from the Parts Department...

 

Grew into this assortment of blocks.

Which then became this 60" square flimsy.

Whenever I can I enjoy including little surprises into the blocks I make.

I find it challenging to create backs for quilts smaller than my usual 60" s 80." For some reason, I can wrap my brain around piecing a quilt block but not when it comes to a quilt back. So I'm quite proud of myself for figuring out a giant 4 Patch block to back this quilt. 

detail shot of the center of the back

 

 I had a little over one yard of the two white prints and just enough of the black to pull this off. And now I have less yardage in my stash but more scraps. This won't be the last black and white quilt coming out of The Magpie's Nest!

Scrap Happy in November

 I wanted to be making a quilt but had no motivation to start a new project from scratch. Parts Department to the rescue! I pulled out eight and nine inch blocks, figuring that they would make rows just under 60" each. There are 8" variable stars, 9" wonky or liberated stars, 9" Shoo-fly blocks, and 9" Hole in the Barn Door blocks. (They don't show up in the photo below.)

 They really are a random lot. That's all the wonky/liberated stars I had, and I think the Shoo-fly and Hole in the Barn Door blocks are all gone in that size too. 

 As you can see, I used a tone-on-tone blue for sashing between the rows and as compensating strips at the ends of the rows to bring them all out to 60" wide.

 This is the completed top. The quilt will be about 60" x 80" when it's finished. Not my most original or creative use of random blocks but it got the job done. Someone will now have a warm, colorful quilt to snuggle in and perhaps be entertained by. 😊

You can see how others have used their scrap materials or repurposed something that might have been thrown in the trash by following the links below. Enjoy!

Kate, Gun, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
 Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Nóilin, Viv, Karrin, Alissa,
Tierney, Hannah, Maggie

Scrap Happy in June

 June is half over already??!! How did that happen? Fortunately, I started a new quilt top toward the end of May that totally qualifies for Scrap Happy Day this month. 😁

You may remember that I've been making cat blocks out of my larger scraps. At last count I had 126 cats. And I had no idea what I would do with them. One day I realized I could make six rows of nine cats and end up with a flimsy 45" wide and 54" long. I thought that was a good place to start for a quilt for a child so I started putting them up on the design wall.

Not bad, but what if I made the quilt so that either end could be right side up?

Nope. Makes me seasick just to look at it.

I sewed this collection of 54 blocks together as they were originally laid out on the design wall. But then it called out for a border treatment of some sort. That took some time to sort out. First, they needed some breathing room. I put a white frame around them. Finding the right fabric to use for a final border - already in the stash - took several attempts. In the end I used a tone-on-tone batik in deep blue. This brought the flimsy up to about 53" x 62."

That made the quilt top look a lot more elegant in my eyes. Consequently, I have decided that when this quilt is finished it will go to our local humane society to use for fund raising. Quilting it has posed a challenge. We have discussed a pattern of mice in the blue border but so far an all-over pattern for the interior remains a mystery. While we mull our options you may want to see how others have utilized their scraps this month. 

Scrap Happy Day is hosted on the 15th of each month by Kate in Australia and Gun in Sweden. Not everyone in the list participates every month but there's sure to be something wonderful to see in each blog. If you'd like to play along just leave a comment on Kate or Gun's blogs. 😊

Kate, Gun, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
 Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Nóilin, Viv, Karrin, Amo, Alissa,
Lynn, Tierney, Hannah and Maggie

January Round Up

I completed the scrappy Remixed Geese quilt top I began for Scrap Happy Day. You can see that post here. In the end I chose to keep working until I had the full set of geese called for in the original pattern. I didn't have to make very many more geese to get to 54" wide and 66" long.

 A few of the short seams between geese had to be taken out to simplify assembly of the top. I don't mind reverse sewing in cases like that. The next step will be to make a back for this one. 

On the slow stitching front I have kept up with Kathryn's weekly stitching prompts. So far, so good! You can see week one here and week two here. For week 3 the prompt was "diversity." Kathryn made tiny samples of kantha stitching, boro stitching, darning, and quilting. All over the world the same simple running stitch is used to create or preserve textiles. I chose to cut scraps from fabrics from around the world instead and secure them in place with that same simple stitch. I was delighted to find fabrics in my stash that represented textiles from all around the globe.  

Working from the upper left corner clockwise I have Australia, the UK and/or the USA, Africa, India, the Polynesian islands, Japan or China, and Guatemala. I sewed around a button (which I then removed) to get a circle started. The circles began concentric but evolved into a spiral. 

Kathryn presented week four as an exercise in randomness. It was also a way to use up narrow strips of fabric and leftover threads. A selection of strips went into a container from which we could pull blindly. The first strip was sewn on with large running stitches, essentially basting stitches. Then another strip was sewn on, pulled at random from the bag. We even tried to choose the threads from our ort piles at random. Once I had all my strips in place my square looked unfinished to me. I carried on using up leftover thread ends to cover my piece with stitches.

And for the Color Inspiration project... You can see what I made for the initial prompt in this post. I included subsequent prompts onto a single "page" for my little fabric book. First we were to use a complimentary color to the color we originally worked with and also add black and white. Then Annie tasked us with including a shape as well. I chose a triangle for my shape and cut them from a black and white print. At that point I couldn't see how to include a complimentary color. The black and white was all it appeared to need for contrast.

Finally Annie encouraged us to add texture to our work. I outlined the triangles with a black yarn couched in place. While I was digging through my small stash of yarns I came across a kinky purple yarn intended for doll hair. That purple was just about perfect as a compliment to the yellows I'd used. I dug out some beads in the same shade and couched the yarn in place with them. 

You probably can't see the beads in the photo, not very well at least. I stuck to smaller sizes to avoid adding extra bulk to my page. I also stitched triangles in the background areas with more yellow thread. 

And that pretty much wraps up January here in The Magpie's Nest. I do have a new quilt project underway but I'll save that for a post of its' own. 😊

Scrap Happy Day in November

 I needed something relative simple to sew recently. That led me to my collection of 3" wide strips. The strips are one of the things I cut from scraps and leftovers for blocks that go into my Parts Department. I use them to make 15" (finished) Scrappy Trips blocks. Once I got started I couldn't seem to stop!

I knew there were Scrappy Trips blocks in the Parts Dept. but I didn't think there were enough for a decent size quilt top. When I finally stopped and counted the new blocks and the old blocks I discovered I had enough to TWO quilt tops! 

My go-to size for a personal quilt is 60" x 80." That only requires twenty of these large blocks. But, it also leaves me at 75" in length. So I decided to add two more rows of scrap blocks to the first quilt top.

It was a bit of a struggle but I think I managed to keep the general pattern going. Doubtful anyone but a quilter would notice if I haven't succeeded. 😉

For the second top I opted for a much easier solution to adding that extra five inches:

A whole cloth strip at both the bottom and the top edges. 😁

Now there are no more Scrappy Trips blocks in the Parts Dept. and I put a neglected leftover piece of fabric to good use. 

Scrap Happy Day is open to anyone who wants to recycle or upcycle or otherwise make something new out of scrap materials. We post on the 15th of each month in our various time zones. If you'd like to participate you can leave a comment on Kate or Gun's blogs. They are at the top of the link list and always worth a visit. Enjoy!

Kate, Gun, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Nóilin, Viv, Karrin, Amo, Alissa, 
Lynn, Tierney and Hannah

Scrap Happy in October

 I feel like I should have something seasonal to share for Scrap Happy Day but, I don't. Instead I have another quilt top created from the Parts Department. Frankly, my sewing mojo has been pretty weak of late. Parts Department to the rescue! 

I pulled these 48 postage stamp stars out to see what I could do with them. 

I spent some time arranging and rearranging to try to get an even distribution of colors and such. I knew I didn't want to mash them all together the way they are on the design wall in this picture, although that was an option. While there are tiny pieces of whimsical or juvenile prints in the stars this seemed more like an adult's quilt in the making. Choosing a single color to use as sashing was a challenge. Then I remembered a paisley print I'd been given specifically to be used in donation quilts. Oddly enough, even though it looked like a busy print, it worked!

The paisley has a dark blue background, and the other colors in the print can be found in quite a few of the stars.

Most of the stars have 16 patch centers. Three of them have these Broken Dishes in the middle of the star. They were created from half-square triangles that finish at one inch. I don't think I'll be doing much of that in the future. There are an awful lot of seams in the center of that block. James will probably end up quilting around the center, but it does make for a bulkier block than even the 16 patch centers. 

I "pre-sashed" the blocks by adding a 2" strip (finished) to one side and the bottom of each block. That brought the blocks up from 8" to ten inches each. Once I had the blocks sewn into rows and the rows sewn to each other all I had to do was add a 2" strip to the top and one side of the flimsy for a finished quilt top. 

It could use another, wider, border but I'm going to stop it here and finish it with a dark binding, probably dark blue. It will be about 50" wide and 60" long when it's completed. To me that seems a good size for the destination I have in mind for this quilt. 

Scrap Happy Day is a blog hop hosted by Kate in Australia and Gun in Sweden. They are at the top of the link list below. The idea is to make something new out of recycled materials or the scraps left over from a previous project and then share your creation on the 15th of each month. If you'd like to join in leave a comment on either Kate's or Gun's blog. 😊

Kate, Gun, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Nóilin, Viv, Karrin, Amo, Alissa, 
Lynn, Tierney and Hannah

Farm Fresh Flimsy

 I've had a hankering lately to do a quarter-square log cabin quilt, sometimes known as a chevron log cabin. I figured the easier way to do it, rather than totally scrappy - which can involve much decision making on my part - would be to establish a theme at the outset. And I 'd been buying new prints that look to me a lot like the type of prints you'd see on old feed and sugar sacks. I had to justify those purchases somehow, right? So I pulled out those prints and some others that looked like they could have been of the era, so to speak. Then I went through my aging stash of novelty prints and pulled out anything that remotely related to farm life. 

Cows and tractors and chickens

I started with focal squares that finish at four inches and used two inch (finished) strips for the "logs." This makes for ten inch blocks. 

Pigs and chickens, barn cats and a mare and her foal, and another cow in the cornfield.

I was able to cut pairs from most of the novelty prints. I succeeded in using up a fair number of those older fabrics too. 

Gardening tools, more horses, the farmhouse, and the kitchen cat.

I made 48 blocks in total. Only sewed a log to the wrong side of a block once too! 😁

Chickens, a goose, the mare and foal again, and the orchard out back.

 It was an effort to keep the same print from showing up too close to itself, and I didn't always succeed, but I'm very pleased with the results. Overall the quilt will finish at 60" x 80."

 I already have backing fabric in house. This will probably go to a child in Foster Care in our area. Now, what to tackle next? 

Scrap Happy in June

 Some time ago I sewed scrappy Broken Dishes (and one Pinwheel) blocks into this 18" medallion. 

At the time I couldn't figure out what to do next so it ended up in the UFO pile. More appropriately, it became inventory in the Parts Department. My pile of Un-Finished Objects consists primarily of failed attempts from long ago. Anyway, when I unearthed it and put it on the design wall I suddenly knew what the next step was. 

I found a light lavender in the stash from which I cut 3.5" strips for a frame to bring the medallion up to 24" square. A lot can be done with 24 inches: 3" units, 4" units, 6" and even eight inches. As you can see, I used scrappy flying geese from the Parts Dept., 3" x6", to down the four sides. Then I made the four patch blocks out of more scrappy patches to fill in the corners. Now the flimsy was 36" square. I felt the need of another frame, also three inches finished.

That pretty well used up the purple remnant. That stripe I used in the four patch blocks has been reduced to a narrow strip now too. 

But what to do with a 42" square flimsy? That took me a day or so to figure out. I decided to use more of my scrappy Shoo-fly blocks (6" finished) down the two sides to bring the top up to 54" wide. A final border of three inches will make it 60" wide, a size I think works well for children or adults.

It really helped to have Shoo-fly blocks with both light and dark backgrounds. The next question was what to do with the top and bottom edges. The star blocks I've been making recently came to the rescue.

These were made specifically for this project but they were all made out of more scrappy Shoo-fly blocks and smaller pieces of older prints from the stash. I even found fabric leftover from a previous quilt back to use for the final border all the way around the quilt.

It couldn't have been more suitable if I'd gone to a quilt shop and chosen it fresh off the shelves there! This top will now finish 60" wide and 72" long. There's been a significant reduction in my remnants and my Parts Dept. inventory over the course of the last couple of quilt tops. Feels pretty good! 

Here's the link list for other folks who regularly share how they have used or repurposed scrap materials. If you'd like to join us in posting your scrappy creations on the 15th of the month just leave a comment to that effect on Kate or Gun's blogs. 😊

Kate, Gun, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, Edith
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Debbierose, Nóilin, Viv, Karrin,
Amo, Alissa, Lynn, Tierney and Hannah