Kalama: Don't know why I always go for a full bed size or larger. Probably has a direct impact on the number of UFOs I have waiting to be finished, now I have even started piecing the back. Maybe I should seek counseling. Trust me I'm not fast just crazy.

Yes Emma that helped,now to cut!!!!! Am going scrappy Thanks so much. jo

You're already piecing the back? Goodness, you are efficient! Call it crazy if you want, but if you're having fun, maybe crazy is a good thing... I'm working on several other quilts at the same time, so I've got plenty to keep me busy, but sometimes I have to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the process since that is the reason I quilt anyway.

My HST are done, but the pinwheels just hit the back burner. My mama had a heart attack yesterday. I'll get back to the quilt when I can. On the upside, I've made a TON of progress on my hexie hand pieced project in the last 24 hours.

Lisa: So sorry about your mom. Hospitals are awful places, hope the hand work gives you some comfort. Let us know how things are going.
Nilla: I really appreciate your faith in me but the comment about piecing backs was general. Its my effort to use more stash. There are so many seams on this one that if I do piece the back it will be very large pieces.

I never thought of it as 1/2 size LOL I am hoping to work it into a queen sized with borders and maybe a center medallion if it works out...

Lisa so very sorry about your Momma...hope she recover's quickly and that things go well for your family

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You're not going to find the steps here on this site. You need to go to Bonnie's site.

http://quiltville.blogspot.de/2013/1...ce-part-3.html

On Bonnie's Quiltville quips & Snips, in the grey section near the top is the tab for the Celtic Solstice. You'll find 1 & 2 there.

I print them out and also save them to my computer.

Hope that helps - - -

Jane

Ditto Lisa, prayers for your Momma!

Lisa! Holding you and your mum in the pocket of my heart. Here's hopeing it was a mild one, the type that are just a wake up call.

Emma, I've pieced my backs for at least 20 years. My dear jane was two sided! Still can't believe what possessed me to do that. I usually just pick a square size, usually in some color range like yellow green orange etc. I complete it to 4 large pieces and when I know the size of the top I add strips across and down to bring it up to size. The beauty of pieced backs is the quilts really are reversible because a plainer back shows the quilting off to advantage. And yet it is good stewardship of my dollars and stash.

I'm just putting the borders on what will be the back of this mystery. Not simple but interesting. Since I'm not at home I don't have access to my stash, but I brought up a stack of reds and some small boxes of leftovers from other quilts. I thought it would probably look like a dogs dinner but am liking it a lot. I'll take a photo when I have the camera out for the next linky.

Quilt Cam tonight 6PM west coast 9 PM east coast USA.

Sharyn

Lisa hope your mom is doing better and she makes a full recovery in health, best to you both

More well wishes for your Mon, Lisa! I have to press a few pieces from clue 3 and am ready for clue 4. I think I'll piece more backs! I started my serious quilting by using primarily FQs and it's time to use up those that keep getting pushed aside. I have enough strips already cut for several quilts.

Lisa, hope you and your Mom are doing well. Isn't it nice to have something for your hands to do and occupy your mind a bit while you are by her side?

Love the chickens. I hope someday to be able to have some too. Although I live in the city they have passed an ordinance indicating how many you can have. Many in my neighborhood do but I just can't see putting them in my concrete yard.

I have part of 1 and 2 done. I have not counted. I have not started on clue #3. May have to wait until after Christmas unless I take it with me.

Didn't think I would complete Step 3 but happily I did thanks to the post on Thangles!! Sorry I don't remember your name but THANK YOU!!! I was having a problem using the Easy Angle and the small pieces. Since I had to square each one off I decided to try Thankgles and so happy I did. All my HST are even, yippee!!
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I love Thangles. Have been using them for years.

I was reading step 2 in my printed page of instructions and I got a little confuse where it says that you start with a unfinished block at 31/2 and finish at a 3'' finished but I notice in Bonnie picture she shows her finished chevron joined units at still 31/2'' my puzzled did I print wrong or I,m I reading wrong

hello miss bluebell how,s your mystery quilt coming alone

I have dropped behind a bit this week but now my Christmas sewing is over and the week full of Christmas dinners almost every night I hope to catch up. I tidied up one of my storage cupboards last night and found some more yellows and oranges to add to this week's clue.

Unfinished meaning it's not sewn together as part of the quilt yet. It should measure 3 1/2 once you are finished making it for now, and it should measure 3 once it's sewn together with other blocks since it will lose 1/4 in on each side for seam allowance. So for now, make sure yours measures 3 1/2.

I was so tried from cutting late last nite , but I understand now lol I had one of those brain stop working and close up shop time lol . but I,m up and running again,thank you Nilla

WOO HOO! 4 patches this week! Maybe I'll be able to get caught up. I still haven't even started clue 3.

Another one that I've not bothered doing Inklingo on. The scant 1/4 seam is just too easy to me yet - I'm young is my excuse - so I just made sure the fabrics worked as I wanted, and I've got my squares sitting with me at my desk. Small and half small are done, have about 100 of the large ones done.

Oh what to do???? Should I take fabric with me to start on steps 3 & 4 or just take the cut pieces for steps 1 & 2? I plan to take to tops with me for Christmas week and do them on my Mom's long arm so not sure if I should take any piecing. I would like to get caught up. Guess we will see how much the suitcase weighs.

Bah hum bug!

Woo hoo! 120 4 patch squares done!!! I love doing 4 patches and just worked on them between other things all day. Now I've got the week to focus on all the other things going on.

I thought I was fast...I did All my four patch units today...96 plus a few extras I ended up with so I am all caught up with clue 4...they look great...I would have never chosen these colours but they look really vibrant and bright....

I too am not going to use Inklingo for this weeks clue...too easy to do these as strips and my June Taylor Shape Cut.
I had things going on today so I only have finished 60 but they were quick and easy thank goodness. I have enough possibly to finish the other 60 strip pieced and cut into 2 inch segments ready for the last seam and pressing. ONe thing I have become better at is the seam "twirling" or " swirling" for the center of the blocks.

There has been a discussion on the Facebook page about getting the 1/4 inch seam as perfect as possible as opposed to being consistent no matter what your seam allowance actually is turning out to be. I used to think that being consistent was OK but once you start with more than a couple of seams coming together and angles as opposed to straight seams you gotta deal with that 1/4 inch...I am hoping that with a bit of fudging on some of the units everything will go together OK...any comments???

I have 31 9 patches made and heaps of strips sewn together ready for more. I am loving the colours of these 9 patches too. I have also put through a few more pieces for the HSTs from the last step.

It is gardening weather here so I spent some time in the garden.

I think that aiming for a scant 1/4 inch is important with Bonnie's quilts with lots of pieces. I am probably slower than some because if I use my 1/4 inch foot with the bar my seam will be too large and my blocks too small so I use another foot that I have to guide just shy of the edge of the fabric to get a scant 1/4 inch.

I have 33 four patch units done. They went pretty quick. I may even be able to catch up with clue #3.

Cathie, using exactly the same methods. Strip piecing and the June Taylor ruler. Can't believe how fast they are going.

I finished my clue four this morning.
http://quiltvillemysterykalamaquilts.blogspot.com/

re: consistent seams, if you ARE consistant, your seams will match across the quilt.
But your items will always be a different size than the pattern.
Where the problems arise? If you are making blocks for a group project. The last guild I belonged to finally started returning wrong sized blocks to the makers. I don't blame them.
Adding borders per the pattern, they won't fit right, so you have guess work combined with a tape measure :)

Looking forward to clue 5, Sharyn

Cathie, I have a foot I love but it results in a seam that's a little over 1/4" so I move my needle over a hair or two to the right if I'm doing a bunch of different shapes and I really want that 1/4". Personally, I like having my seams a little on the generous side so I've been known to cut things a little over, then square them up as I go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGy0VRESRlw This video might be helpful to those who are using the Accuquilt strip die for the four patches. Finishing up my chevrons and pinwheels then on to the four patches! Hugs! Debbie

I had quite a few green pieces left from the chevrons so I'm using them for the 4 patches. It's slowing things down but taking care of a few scraps.
Sharyn...it looks like you have the leader/ender process down pat and with good results. My space is limited and I haven't quite figured out how it set it up so it's handy but not in the way but it's still a goal I have.

120 four patches finished yesterday!
I put everything in my Art Bin tote and it's looking pretty full. I think Bonnie says that it won't be long until we start putting together units into parts!
Yea!
Funny thing is how I can get sewing along and then randomly do an uh-oh block and have to reverse sew and re sew it back again. I think I spend more time doing one of those than 6 or 8 of the correct blocks. LOL
Here's my bin full of clues

Looking good, Cathie.

My Celtic Soltice progress - finally somthing to show
 

I've been picking away at organizing my sewing room for a while now, always with sidetracks, but I've finally gotten some of each step done, and I know if I start posting here on the board, I'll be more likely to stay on top of this project, and maybe be more inclined to complete other projects, ya know, UFO's!

Very nice, pjnesler!

I have been using scraps, some pre-cuts and other bits and pieces. So far, I have worked on each of the four clues posted each Monday. Since I am working with color families, my scraps seem to range from light to dark and every color in between.

These units finishing at three inches square are more detailed than what I have made in the past for a bed quilt. Actually, I am finding it delightful to combine the color families and am quilting outside of the box. Inspiration with instant gratification has me smiling.

What do you do when you are running out of a color family?

I find myself using every scrap available and then cutting the rest of the other colored pieces for the unit. Right now, I have worked on all four clues and haven't completed any section. With this decision I believe that I will have a better idea of what to purchase for fill-ins. If anyone has advice otherwise, please share! Many thanks...

I remain piecefully yours :-)