Pressing issues

Celtic Solstice is coming along beautifully.  All my 54-40 or Fight blocks are complete! Don't you love the little gold shamrocks in some of the green blocks?

 Now I'm turning to the alternate block and came across a snag.  Apparently I pressed my pinwheel blocks in such a way that the seam allowances 'spin' in the opposite direction from Bonnie Hunter's. Small problem.

But, not critical.  My saving grace is that I still haven't completed the Chevron blocks.  After making the first three Chevron blocks I could tell that they will not nest right with the pinwheels, so I'll need to re-press each side of the Chevrons before I put them together.  That should do it!  I don't think it will affect how the rest of the block goes together.

Linking up with Quiltville to share my Celtic Solstice progress.

Not as much sewing got done this weekend as I had hoped.  I've come down with something like bronchitis.  Naps and extra fluids have been on the agenda for me.   Outside it's sunny and bitter cold.  Tomorrow will  be colder here than at the North Pole (in January!)  I guess that gives us bragging rights, but that's some serious cold!  High will be -14 F with strong winds bringing wind chills to -50 F.  The closed the schools for a day.  Happy kids here!  Won't last long though.  Back to merely freezing by next weekend.  We are a hardy bunch, and are making good use of all our quilts this week!

I wonder if my friends in London are having a mild spell. Hope so! The weather trends there often are the opposite of what we have here.  And DS may be sent to Thailand again for work.  He'll get some warm weather there!  sigh.

Creating a little heat

It's a bitter cold start to 2014 outdoors here in Minnesota.  Way below freezing!  But indoors the sewing machine is kicking up some heat.  The first flimsy of the year is done.  It's made from four orphan blocks leftover from this quilt which I made for DD way back in 2001.

I've titled this one Ribbons and Roses. Tiny ribbons and roses are featured in the navy fabrics. The pattern was in McCall's Quilting - Quick Quilts winter 1998/99 and designed by Barbara Bennett.  size 83x101 and machine quilted with diagonal lines.

Four of the large 9-patch blocks were left over, and I came across them while I was doing a little straightening up.  I've never tried a Disappearing Nine-Patch and thought I'd try it out.  I cut the blocks through the center, vertically and horizontally, then flipped the two diagonally opposing pieces and sewed them back together.

A couple simple borders and ... ta da!  A 30 inch square doll quilt top.  The plan is to use flannel from an old set of flannel bed sheets for the batting and backing.

The other projects I've been working on are more blocks for my niece's wedding quilt : up to 15 finished now.
and
Celtic Solstice blocks.  All the pieces to block A "54 40 or fight" were completed, so today I sewed up all 24 of those blocks.  I really feel a sense of accomplishment, even though there's a lot yet to do for block B.  My chevrons are half done, and I haven't yet started assembling step 5, though the pieces are cut.  

Staying indoors and sewing while the sunshine streams through the windows is just the perfect thing to do on a frosty day!

Celtic Solstice week 2

Getting a little farther with Celtic Solstice.   The greens are cut, and neutrals too.  Since I goofed up reversed colors and cut all the 'orange' triangles in step one out of yellow, I've decided to first concentrate on the parts of the mystery that have green, blue and neutral.  It should take me long enough just to get that far that the final reveal will be out and I can decide if switching orange and yellow will be ok.  With the yellow reading 'light' and the orange reading 'medium dark' it may make a big difference in the look of the quilt.

Or, it may be just fine.  Bonnie Hunter's quilts usually are very forgiving that way.

So, most of the greens and neutrals have been cut for step two and assembly has begun.  As you can see there are lots of blue/neutral pieces from step one still waiting to be done.  No sewing for me this past weekend because we went to visit DD and SIL in northern Wisconsin.

I've also been working out what to do with the little bonus half-square triangles and came up with an idea.  A traditional block called Irish Puzzle (also called Bear's Paw) will be just the thing!  I've worked out the math to be able to use the 1.25 inch bonus HST's and make a 7-inch Irish Puzzle block.  You can find more details here.

Celtic Solstice first step

In every journey begins with a first step, and so it is with this year's holiday mystery from Bonnie Hunter called Celtic Solstice.  My journey will be more leisurely than most, but I'll try and keep a few blocks up to speed with the clues posted each Friday.

And so, without further delay:

Enough of the pieces to step one have been cut to get me started:
 lovely sky blues and rich golds play with neutral creamy whites,

and the first few blocks have been made.

Another exciting quilting journey begins...  Who knows where the road will lead?

Preparations for Celtic Solstice are underway

There's quite the buzz around Bonnie Hunter's new mystery quilt, and clues begin the day after Thanksgiving.  Since I have NO shopping plans that day, I'll be ready to jump in.  (Long ago I learned my lesson that waiting for hours in long lines is Not worth it to me, even for a great bargain.  And don't even get me started on the stores who insist on opening on Thanksgiving Day.)  But back to important things....

Here are a few of the fabrics I've found to use in my Mystery Quilt.  My neutrals are still in my stash, but I have lots of variety to mix it up there.  On the other hand, my 'orange' will be all the same fabric.  It's that yummy red with just a hint of red-orange.  So, one red, two blues, three yellows and four greens.  Hmmm,  I sense a pattern here.  (laughter)

My favorite find is the Currier & Ives print from Quilting Treasures.  The cottages with rolling hills in blues and greens remind me of my visits to beautiful Ireland.  It's going to be the backing for my Celtic Solstice.  Perfect!  Don't know if I'll use the shamrocks on white- which is sitting on MaryEllen, my 1954 Singer.  Perhaps for binding, but I couldn't help adding that fabric in.  It looks so very Irish!

So, this wee bit Irish girl is ready to sew.  But first, I need to get as many blocks for my Niece's wedding quilt done as I can.  Five done already, but it takes 2 hours to get each block done.  56 pieces in each block, plus a bonus block with another 32 pieces which I'll be using in the borders.  But, that's another blog post altogether.  And I'd better get to work!