Time Flies!

Oh my gosh! It's been over a month and I haven't posted, which means that a month has passed that I have not finished a quilting project. (This is how UFOs develop).

So to not look so lame, I'm going to post a photo of my Ugly New York Beauty challenge block which I created as a challenge project for my Yahoo quilting group last month. The object was to pick an ugly fabric and to make it look okay through the use of layout and color.

Obvously I didn't win this challenge, but I did learn how to paper piece, and I got to work with curves, spikes, and most importantly, I got in some practice with freemotion.

And since we're rehashing old projects, what better time to pull out the 'almost' quilts and the UFO....

This is fused applique with machine satin stitching. I made this from a pattern to hang outside my daughter's classroom door. It was fun, but tedious. Not exactly a quilt, but in the same family....kind of like chicken and cornish hen.

This is a wall hanging (also made from a kit) I whipped up for my sister who has a large Americana display. I thought this might go well with it. The cool thing about this was how all the little squares were pieced together. You stitched all the different red strips together lengthwise into a tube and then you cut them into strips along the width. Next you ripped out a seam in different places in the tube so the fabric patterns of the strips were now random and no two fabrics aligned next to each other. Really neat. Stitched in the ditch (do we detect a pattern here?)

Let's close this post with the granddaddy of all UFOs.....my HGTV Strolling the Block quilt. The photo shows a pieced top. We are actually sandwiched, all the ditch stitching is done and we have started some freemotion. I'm not exactly sure what the problem is. Either:

a. I'm sick of it (it's been a work in progress for at least 5 years), or

b. I've got so much time and labor invested in it I'm afraid I'll screw up the quilting, or

c. I have nowhere to use or display this so what is the point?

This is fused applique, every single piece is meticulously hand blanket-stitched. There are major emellishments throughout (embroidery, buttons, charms, fishnet, etc.). More of a wall hanging (albeit it almost twin bed sized) rather than a snuggle under--all that 'charmage' does not bode well for comfort.

One day I'll look back on this and laugh about how long it took to complete (sigh)