WIP–Summer Treat Quilt Top

Many thanks to Rebecca, who is subbing for Lee at Freshly Pieced, for hosting our WIPs. Click on the link to be taken back over to that site to see others who are sharing their Works In Progress.

Summer Treat Quilt Top is done.  But it is still a work in progress, as now I have to decide borders.  I was visiting with my friend Tracy the other day, and we agreed that we go great guns on a quilt until we get the borders, then its hem and haw and puzzle and finally cut something out and slap it on. Kidding.  Sort of.  I suppose we all have that place where quilting is hard.

Get out your sunglasses.  Scrappy Stars came back from the quilter and I’m in the process of putting on the binding.  I’m still not sure about that name, but can’t think of a better one right now, so like those nicknames from childhood that some people get — like Bubba, or Winky or Elmo or Beezer —  it will probably stick.

I finished up Deb’s Far Flung Bee Blocks.  She’d asked for this block with a grey fabric as the contrast.  Since I’m generally a grey-fabric-hater, I had to really hunt for some grey fabric in my stash.  But I did! and sent these off at the beginning of August.  One of the “rules” of our Bee is that the fabrics come mostly from our stash, so it’s kind of a fun challenge as well to not rush out and buy something.

I also made some row markers, seen on my blog travels somewhere.  *Here’s another version* of them.

Buy yourself some floss bobbins-these little white plastic tab things found on the knitting/embroidery aisle at JoAnn’s.  I laid them out and put decorative washi tape on them, cutting in between each bobbin.

Wrap the tape around and smooth it down.  I wrote the numbers on the front and back of the row markers, and on the front I put an arrow to remind me which way to press my seams, as I’m one of those who presses her seams to the side, and can never remember  — when I’m assembling a quilt top — which way to press.

They work pretty well, I must say.

They kept out of the way when I was sewing the rows together.  Usually I’ve used a post-it note pinned to the quilt, but I’m converted to these now.

And last, here’s a gallery of some recent fabric purchases.  Most were from Long Beach, but that layout on the bottom left is from when a friend bought some Riley Blake — 15 bolts worth — so when my daughter was here we turned my dining room into a fabric shop, cutting and chatting and making plans.  That’s what I do when I see new fabric. I make plans.

Here’s hoping your quilting, cooking, end-of-summer, play plans all come to fruition, leaving you with lots of fun projects, good things to eat and a host of good memories.