Iceblossom

It is so funny how these things work but immediately after my previous post, I saw this sampler over here:

Whatchamacallit Sampler by Crystal Manning

Check it out! My mojo has been stalled but this is waking me up -- a sampler I really like! I'm seeing with this golden batik background and strong batiks and hand dyes... all stash. I sent the link to my friend in Arizona, and she's downloaded it and put it on the to-do list too.

WMUTeach

Could it be the new, bright colors and unexpected parings of color that have caught your eye? The blocks are just the same old thing, but with a new attitude. Wink, wink! Looking forward to your take on the sampler.

retiredteacher09

Cattitude: Very pretty quilt.

Iceblossom

WMUTeach, I think what I most like about it (and yeah, I recognize a lot of the same old stars) is the different sized blocks and how they fit together. Plus I do love the fabrics but I'm seeing it quite a bit differently in terms of the palette I'd be using, that crisp white is nice but not likely coming out of my stash.

Basic samplers with sashing are the types that I don't gravitate towards. I've seen other people do wonderful things with them, as well as fancier projects with other settings, but somehow it looks like I took a beginning quilting class and barely passed...

Cattitude

Some nice blocks there Iceblossom. Samplers appeal to me on one level.....it would be nice to lose the repetition of making one block over and over. On the other hand I don’t care for the lack of symmetry in most samplers. Does that sound weird from someone who loves scrappy chaos so much? Perhaps if I select maybe five of the block offerings I like best and make enough of each to assemble in a symmetrical manner?

Iceblossom

Isn't it funny how we work? Part of what I like most is the lack of symmetry in this one.

There are plenty of star or other themed samplers out there where you can mix and match which blocks you use. Depending on how much background/quilting space you want, those good old snowball blocks can match the star point dimensions and is a nice setting option, especially if your blocks are rather intricate.

In my own scrappy work while I may use a hundred or more fabrics, I'm not so happy with random chaos. Typically I make variations on a block with each block using a different set of fabrics, instead of the goal of every piece different and sorted solely by value but I've done it both ways.

Before I got stalled this year I had planned to work with my box of civil war fabrics. I have enough to make maybe 3 tops and two backs and then be able to send the rest out -- it was going to be a major stash busting year! One was designed to be the value sorted every piece in a block different (but I would use the fabrics more than once), one is the same block done in different sets of fabrics, and one was to use a striped fabric and then I was going to have rows of simple blocks, like churn dash in one, 9-patch in another, etc., with the blocks probably set on the diagonal with a light muslin background.

Still want/plan to do the tops, but I've just pushed them back on the to-do list for awhile, next year maybe.

retiredteacher09

A person in my church quilting group answered an ad for quilting fabric. Yesterday a couple others in our group went through the fabric and filled 2 grocery bags for me of great quilting cottons. I was told as they went through the fabric, my name was often said: Connie’s pile. Lol!

My friend was anxious to show me some of the cut pieces. Beautifully cut triangles in coordinating fabric and some strips. She wanted to know what I did with the strips. She thought maybe I would use them to put between rows and I told her I could but I will probably sew them together in sets and cut squares from them. Lol! (She sews with the precut squares my church group cuts.) There were also fat quarters and a variety of sizes for other pieces. I need to finish my current project before I dig into the bags and start sorting. It will be a perfect project while watching a baseball game.

One of the ladies sorting yesterday took some of the fabric for baby quilts and there were still 2 more bags to go elsewhere.

WMUTeach

Retiredteache09, showers of blessing on your group.

Iceblossom

One of my first big purges was to a church group that supported many causes and I believe in supporting the quilters too. They got about two black plastic garbage bags full of yardage and UFOs. It was fun, we went through the goodies with about 6 people, different people claiming different things and then the bag left for the rest of them. Most of the time I just pass off the fabric, so it was fun to tell the stories. Some of those had some pretty interesting history, UFOs from estates and such. There was a small collection of true vintage blocks and pieces for Parasol Ladies, fortunately one of the ladies specialized in just that sort of thing.

Every now and then I have a project and a brief regret that I just used up the last of something, or darn, just sent away the perfect fabric. But the reality is there is still plenty more fabric where that came from, even if not the same close enough or maybe it's just time to take a different direction.

I have to remind myself that my goal is to use and not collect fabric right now. Using fabric means that fabric gets used and then its gone! That's what is supposed to happen. It's just sometimes I need the reminder that I'm in reduction mode now...

Rff1010

Iceblossom - wise words - the goal is to *use* the fabric!
which leads me to my question for the much smarter members of the board...
I'm not color blind - but I am color stupid.
I purchased the red rooster fabric because I just love those roosters! And I knew it would need a best friend so I got the blue at the same time. The plan is to make Ohio Stars with the red centers and blue as the star points. The background (top) is from stash but I thought it needs one more punch of color and many of the Ohio Stars I saw used a 3rd color in the QSTs to form a diamond around the center. https://www.seasonedhomemaker.com/ma...r-quilt-block/

Here is the question: I rooted around the stash and found Long Quarters of these which seem to coordinate....
1) do they? (Remember I'm color stupid)
2) mix and match or keep all the same fabric on each block.
3) there is a yellow from the same rooster line but it seems like a waste to buy more if I can make this from what currently exists in house. Also It doesn't really "make my skirt fly up" if you know what I mean.
Thanks in advance