Always Playing Catch-Up

That just seems to be my MO. I finally got the last six blocks of the Barrister's Sow-Along completed (new ones will be posted next week). Anything that could go wrong did. I cut wrong, unpicked, recut, sewed together wrong, unpicked, resewed, didn't like one of the fabrics, unpicked, cut something else, resewed. They eventually got finished, but it took so much longer than it should have.

I really like these blocks, but they were quite labor intensive (at least with my constant mistakes), so I may only make one or two of them for my Christmas quilt. I know I said early on that I wasn't going to fussy-cut these plaids and stripes, but I just couldn't do that lower right hand block without it.

Here is how all of the blocks look together so far.

I think I will be sashing these and putting them on point--at least that is my plan as of today. That could change. 

The other "catch-up" I always seem to be doing is the SewCalGal FMQ Challenge. The August Challenge was a fun looking design that the instructor, Wendy, called Jester Hats. I struggled to get the hang of where to go after each hat. I couldn't get the flow. My first practice piece ended in frustration. I printed Wendy's tutorial page and traced it repeatedly. I was finally ready to try again. I think it came a little easier this time, but I still had to think really hard. I don't know if this one will ever just flow naturally for me, but I do like the look of it.

So, Sarah was right when she told me that the Temecula Summer Stars SAL final week might just be the setting and not another star. I decided to set mine differently--well, really it is the same as the setting I used for the "Fall"-ing Stars I made and shared in my last post. I just have everything laid out on a design board. I played with different sashings, cornerstones and borders and couldn't seem to get a combination that clicked. This is the one I like the best so far, but the sashing sticks out. I tried a lighter color and didn't like it. Do you think if I bind it in the navy blue that it will tie it all together, or does there need to be a narrow navy border in there somewhere?

August has been crazy busy and September is looking to be the same. I was feeling the need for something fun and DH (who had the day off) offered to drive me to a quilt shop I've been hearing about. It is just under two hours away. I was pleased with what I found at Sages Creek in Pocatello, Idaho. I came away with this pile to add to my stash.

Yes, it was very fun. We had a good visit on the drive to and from--it is a pleasant drive through farmland and small towns--and we had a nice dinner in Pocatello before returning home.
Hope you are finding time to stitch.

Until next time,
Janet O.

My previous post has a link to donate to dravet.org for research (my grandson has Dravet Syndrome) and a chance to win the "Fall"ing Stars mini quilt pictured there, for donating $10 by Sept. 15th.