Which Part of Your Stash Works Hardest?

Over and over again I am reminded I am a hard core scrap quilter. Anything I can save from the trash just makes me happy! If I'm really stressed, sewing string blocks always calms me down. Those bonus HST's I've been playing with? What a blast! they are so much fun to make into usable, fun quilts.

I was making these blocks while assembling my latest granddaughter's quilt. Here are four so you can see how they play together, I've got about 20 made so far. It just brings me joy to be able to make something pretty out of what others may call trash. This, to me, is what quilting is about. I've been wanting a couple wall hangings for my sewing studio, and I think this project will be one of them.

I've been getting so excited playing with "new" scraps, I started wondering when I really use yardage. I finally came up with borders and backings, and even on that I'm piecing more and more borders and backings.

I recently found out I have another great niece on the way. I tried thinking of what theme or design I'd like to make her quilt, and I did indeed go straight to yardage. I found some fabric with shoes and purses on it, and decided that may be a fun fabric to use as a backing. I took note of the colors in the fabric, then went straight to my scraps and leftover bits, to see if something came to mind. I realized that this is pretty common for me, I look to yardage for inspiration, but my scraps and small pieces actually do the "work". I do on occasion use a single fabric for a background, and that can use up a LOT of yardage, especially since I make so many king sized quilts. More often than not, yardage is for borders or backings at my house.

I have been waffling back and forth on Bonnie Hunter's next mystery quilt. I hate it when I have to bow out, and last year I was sad I couldn't play along, but I was so busy with two kids getting married and house remodeling, it just wouldn't have worked. This year I have quite a bit going on, and I certainly could make legitimate excuses why I shouldn't do it, but instead, I came up with a legitimate excuse why I should.

DD#1 asked me to make her a new quilt. I told her there was no chance of her getting it this year, but she said that was fine. She lives in South Africa, and they have no central heat, and during the winter (which is mild as winters go), it's often colder inside the house than outside. She wants a quilt to cuddle up with in the living room. I had a design in mind, and even had some fabric in mind, when I remembered she always likes to follow my blog when I'm doing Bonnie's mysteries. I'm not sure how big this year's mystery quilt will be, but I'm sure I can adjust it if I need to. I asked her if she'd be interested in choosing the colors I use, and then we can find out together what her new quilt will look like. She's as excited as I am, and it allows us to "do" something together, even as she's on the other side of the world. We'll talk over color choices when the fabric requirements come out, and then we'll both check the clues as they come out, and she'll be able to guess with me how we think it's going to come together.

I've used Bonnie's mystery quilts as gifts before, if I needed a wedding quilt in certain colors, I've adjusted the colors to meet that need and then didn't have to choose a pattern to do, but let Bonnie do that. This, however, seems quite a bit different than that, since my daughter will be in on the whole process. I went from waffling about doing the mystery quilt, to anxiously awaiting it.