Iceblossum: Your blocks looks great! Because I’m using scrappy neutrals, I found I had to be very aware when adding the HST from this clue. By doing this, I was able to use 13 neutrals in each set. I was less careful in adding the 2nd pink, but I don’t have nearly the variation you do. Your theories on using fabric in blocks is similar to mine. If I’m going to use something weird, I try to make sure that I use enough of it that it feels intentional instead of desperate. It is usually the odd fabrics that give the quilt a bit of zing!

Terry: I used AQ dies for all of the pieces in this block: A HST die for 4 neutrals and 1 pink and the trapezoid for the other pink. If you have the correct Qube, the HST is in the basic set and the trapezoid is in the Qube Corners set. My trapezoid does leave some fabric waste, as it only cuts one from each fabric at a time. I stacked up 4 strips of different fabric, cut, then shifted the stack down to cut the next until I had enough of each fabric for each set.

Wow - so much exciting variety in everyone's blocks - it's clear some of you have incredible stashes to be able to come up with such variety in specific colourways. This is such a fun journey. :-)

Iceblossom and SuzSLO, these observations are so helpful. I'm not doing this mystery but am following along because I'm loving seeing what everyone is coming up with. I think I'm getting some ideas that will help my own project as well.

Thanks for letting me lurk and tag along!

I’m doing half (+ or -) and now have Clue 5 finished. I’m hoping for some more yellow, as well as the aqua.The design in the photo is just me laying out a few of each finished unit. I have no idea how these will go together.

Everyone's units are looking wonderful!

SuzSLO, I love, 'feels intentional instead of desperate,' LOL.

(I'm probably the odd person out on this, but I'm hoping that after the Friday clue, Bonnie will reveal the next morning! --but I don't think it's likely.)

I finished these units today. Can't believe it!
I think one reason I'm enjoying this mystery is the colors. I'm a pink freak!

SusieQ: Your blocks are fabulous. I agree. I love the pink.

ok. So I made my plan to cut out one clue a day which would get me done with the cutting until Friday's clue. Oh woo is me, I am still on clue 2! Am I going to be able to pick up the pace and get that cutting done!! I am impressed with all of you who are keeping up! I see triangles in my sleep already...

Well, I’m only doing half size. So that makes it a lot easier.

But it’s not a race and you’ll finish it when you finish it.

The bad news is that I did the math and we are only about half done as a matter of square inches completed based on the dimensions of the finished quilt given in the Introduction. The good news is that there are likely to be “fillers” like sashing and borders (and maybe setting triangles) that are bigger units.

Yay me, I am caught up ready for the next clue to come out tomorrow, Friday. I did go out and got some groceries yesterday -- mostly snack stuff I shouldn't have but try and stop me...

There was more snow overnight and I am again reminding myself to be thankful for things like electricity and gas heat. Which I am, and water too (especially hot). I can live without all sorts of things but I do require plumbing for comfort.

If I'm not up at my usual time and get the clue posted early, I might be out of power/internet so somebody please post the clue link!

Was talking about the "double uglies" before, I also have a concept of "homely faces" that came from my quilting friend June. Homely faces result from less than ideal combinations of fabrics, like those double uglies. They are going to happen with collections of scraps, as opposed to choosing every piece. While we may be striving for randomness in scraps, what we want is aesthetic/attractive randomness. True randomness includes ugly. It includes putting two of the same piece together, my random is a bit more structured. Sometimes in scrap quilting we talk about the flinch test -- you put together whatever comes up next unless it actually makes you flinch. I was deeply unhappy with some of my combinations in last year's Grassy Creek when I was making them. I was past flinch but not quite up to gag... They come out fine in the quilt as a whole because I was following the design guidelines even if I switched colors. I have a few "less than desirable" combinations this year, but not near as many as last.

Anyway, about the homely faces. June says that when you look at family pictures or beauty contestants or whatever, you sort of glaze over and what you start to pick out is the homely faces. It is the homely faces that help other blocks sparkle. Or sometimes, surrounded by the others they find their own sparkle. I like this concept.

I have about a million wonder clips but could I find them when I needed them? Of course not! I think today is cleaning up day haha

I decided that I had to not only clean up my sewing space, but completely reorganize. So all the furniture is now where it should be (at least in this iteration), but there are boxes of stuff piled on every surface, and nothing is plugged in. And of course, we are getting company today, so need to clean up the rest of the house. I'm just hoping that I can put away enough stuff to be able to start with the next clue.

Iceblossom: Love your double uglies and homely faces concepts. I accidently stumbled upon the double uglies as a way to put the blocks together when I did the 5th clue. While it was easy to put two fabrics that I loved together, I just couldn't bring myself to put two fabrics that I didn't particularly like together. I ended up with a few strange combinations, so we'll see how they look in the finished quit.

Professionally, I am an epidemiologist and statistician, and the whole concept of randomness is why I have shied away from scrap quilts. This is my second, the first being a log cabin that I made about 10 years ago. And this one, like the last, is less a random assignment, and more controlled mixing. On the other hand, I have started planning the first quilt to be made after I retire (June - yeah, only six months away), based on a particular version of random assignment, as a way of easing into retirement. Maybe then, I'll be able to actually embrace scrap quilts.

Woodland -- My college work was a dual major in Business/Sociology, with a BS -- I had to take a lot of math and statistics. I ended up finishing the Business degree as more marketable. Although I started out in Advertising, I spent most of my working career in Engineering and related disciplines, most of the time with large civil projects. Peoples eyes glaze over when I start talking about my concepts of frequency distributions and whatever.

On the other hand Karla Alexander, in her Stack the Deck books does something very similar to what I do in handling my pieces and explains it much better!
https://www.amazon.com/Karla-Alexand...rwt_scns_share
She works in a more modern style and allows my declining vision not-so-picky ways to quilt :)

I first started quilting when I was quite young, so back in the 1970s and I can honestly say I had never seen a scrap quilt that I liked until Judy Martin's book Scrap Quilts came out in 1985. While the instructions are dated (templates even) the discussion and pictures of what a scrap quilt could be changed my view/style in quilting.
https://www.amazon.com/Scrap-Quilts-.../dp/096029709X

I've never placed a piece in a quilt randomly. Is randomness a necessary ingredient in true scrap quilting?

I got rid of almost all my quilt books about 5 years ago but kept Judy Martin's. She's great!

Joe'smom --

Always a good discussion :)

Shortest form I can manage is we each have our own expressions of scrap quilting. Random is one component but not required. I generally have a rule set for each project such as no more than 8 uses of any given fabric, or whatever it might be. I'm happiest making identical (usually "traditional") blocks in different fabric sets, where each fabric for each block is indeed carefully chosen and sometimes even fussy cut.

I'm lucky enough that mostly I make quilts because I like to make quilts. Really, mostly I like to piece and find quilting down a necessary evil, but I'm working on that. Without someone in particular to make a quilt, my choices of design and project can be based on something from -- it's time to do something with that pansy fabric or gee, that purple box is getting pretty full. Or, you know, it's been awhile since you did any set-in corners, maybe you should improve your skills.

I like using these Bonnie Hunter projects as chances to use up small pieces. Sad to say, some of these are 10" squares I got from fabric swapping back around Y2K!! I can follow her directions and trust that it will work out in the end. I don't have to worry so much about perfection in a mystery quilt (I fully understand the folks that don't want to commit until they see the final reveal!). There are going to be some homely faces and maybe a double ugly in there, but when you put it all together (with a little luck) it's all fine.

Anyone working on Leader/Ender projects with these trimmings? I have not ever done this before but thought I should give it a try. Looked up a couple on Bonnie's blog. So today I sewed the triangle trimming from using her Essential Triangle ruler and then corner trimmer, can't think of the name right now, and it turns out to be about a 1 and 3/4 inch square. Pretty little things but I think I'll have to pass on these.

While waiting for the 1st clue in November, I cut out the pieces for a baby quilt to use a leader/ender for the MQ. So far I haven’t gotten very far with the baby quilt, but I think I’ll get more in as we start putting blocks together. Last year, I finished a quilt I started in the 1990s as my MQ leader/ender (happy to say that quilt is now quilted and bound).

I saved the bonus triangles from one of the clues last year. And still don’t know what to do with them. I’m not saving weird sized triangles this year.

The pictures look great! I still haven’t had a chance to do clue 5 so I will need to play catch up at some point. I did finish my big hand quilting project last night. I started it back in 2016 so it’s great to be done!

yup I am making quarter square triangles or whatever you call them. Work up to be 2 1/2 “ squares! Have no idea what I will do with them!

On vacation so I am not able to get to our clue 5. Will have to try to catch up when we get back on Sunday. Love seeing and hearing all the latest.

Here's the yellow I was expecting last week and we see the blocks emerge!

https://quiltville.blogspot.com/2021...-part-six.html

Just a reminder from today’s instructions. Leave 1 set from Clue 5 alone and do not join it into a block. Bonnie says we will use the set later.

Also, we are cutting way more squares in garnet than we are using this week.

I love that we are “coasting” towards the reveal.

I really like the block that she revealed today!

I do too!
I'm really going to have to dig. I don't have much garnet, if any. Maybe I'll be surprised.

That's such a pretty block today!

Do you think calling this 'block A' implies there will be a block B? Or could the QSTs and geese be for an elaborate sashing? And what about that aqua? Bonnie is so good at making this exciting.

I pressed my burgundys yesterday and plan to do my pinks today. Still up in the air on the neutral.

Coffee break! I've gotten my neutrals and yellows cut and counted. On something like this, I'm usually suitably accurate so am cutting/sewing as directed. I'll wait until after sewing and subcuts to cut the garnet.

Before I started cutting this clue, I was putting away all those extras I made of the garnet sections. Put the various sets of HST into sandwich bags with count/size notes, and all of them in a gallon bag and returned the big clips to their proper place. I am tempted to cut down the overcut squares I made for this step. It would be easy enough and I have enough for the ones used in the blocks here. However, I also have enough yardage of each of them to cut a fresh strip, leaving those to be used with the ones already turned into HSTs and I'll need more than what I already have. So, for now at least, I'm just going to cut fresh strips.

Then I will start taking my stack of trimmings and packing them into the box for my crumb quilter. For a number of these yellows, it was the last of a FQ. I took one strip off for this clue, one 6.5" strip for my box of strips, and the remainder, usually around 2-4 inches goes to the crumb quilter. A lot of those are ragged ends from badly cut yardage, so many taper and are not so much WoF. If I have to dive back into the box for a few more yellow bits, they'll be right on top.

Oh goodie! I found a large piece of fabric and asked my husband to tell me what color it is. He said "maroon". It will work!!
I really don't want to buy anything for this quilt.

My test block is done. Really like it. Many more to go. I’m am sewing with squares instead of strips because I had almost neutral and garnet squares. Still need to cut my yellow squares.

Suz- love it!!!

Loving this clue today! I don't remember a time when we assembled some of the bits so early. I love the fact that if you make up till now and life gets hectic, there is a nice block for a quilt.

Yes, I think there will be a block B... I'm going to only do part of this clue before making blocks, I swapped teal for garnet earlier (making hourglasses from leftover tris like Terry and so happy to use them up), so I might stick with the teal for the centers. Time will tell...

Suzslo, I love your block! You have some really cute little prints there.

I decided to put clue 4 aside and work on clues 3, 5 and 6 together. Here's a couple of the ones I got completed. I lost a few points but at least it's the correct size.

So pretty! I can hardly wait to get back home and do some.

Another oooh and aaaah over the pictures!

These blocks are zipping together pretty quickly for me. I believe I'll have them done today. Other than trying to keep the purple tones together (and not having enough), I pretty much let the yellow/neutral/garnet combos go on in random order.

In the good news/bad news sorts of things, the Covid home tests I ordered from Amazon came early. In bad news, Hubby's mild cold does turn out to test positive. He has an official test scheduled for the 3rd. I remain symptom free. We are glad that we did isolate him and reported it to work, otherwise yes indeed, in a "normal" year, he would have been out there spreading germs.

Iceblossum: So sorry to hear about your husband’s positive test. I hope you stay well and he recovers quickly.

QueenBarbiej: The colors in your blocks sparkle. Looking good.

Right there with you Iceblossom, we aren't partiers but covid changed our plans too. DH was exposed at work. The guy with Covid didn't want to miss out on holiday pay. Because of it, DH has to work all weekend. He had to fill in, he's in the water department and it's a licensed job. We have isolated him when he is home because our son returns to college in a week. So far no symptoms. I wish your husband a speedy recovery.

Wow, I am really loving this block and all the colors that everyone are using, I am looking forward to seeing what the next clue has in store especially since there is so much neutral in this quilt.

Iceblossom: Sorry to hear about your hubby, I hope he recovers quickly and you remain unaffected.

Sending well wishes your way, Iceblossom and toverly.

tallchick, that is a good point about the neutral. Those of you who are sewing, about how much of the neutral have you used?

Looking wonderful, Queenbarbiej!