It started with Bernie. She held a contest and a giveaway. I did not win. Emily did.
But then Emily forfeited her prize so it came to me. A charm pack of Moda Wovens.
A charm pack of seemingly plain (black, white and gray) fabrics did not match anything in my stash. I should've just set it aside to be addressed at a later date because January was hugely busy month for me. There was the IB Unboxing Video and post (nerve-racking), making of placemats (first IB project) and the challenge of being the first in the IB Create for a Cause Blog Hop.
"Set it aside" or "Pass it Along"would be the logical approach. And therefore, in my completely illogical quilty way, I chose to chase this squirrel. I dropped everything to make this quilt.
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| A New Finish |
I am blaming it on Bernie and Emily. With friends like these who needs enemies :-D I love you both.
There is not much you can do with a single charm pack. However a free pattern by Elizabeth Hartmann is perfect. I know because I have used it to make Finger Lakes.
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| Started here |
I started with wide strips of yellow and started inserting slashed and whole squares. But gosh - it looked so bland. Aren't these the Pantone colors of the year - Ultimate Gray and Illuminating?
What was ultimately illuminating to me was this - I was suffocated. Goodness, this quilt needed color like I needed to breathe.
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| A touch of color |
I inserted a few narrow strips of solid green and solid purple. Although it is still a far cry from my overly cheerful style, these strips of color provided the respite my eyes craved. Of course, addition of these strips skewed the pattern but nothing I could not handle.
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| Solid Green Slivers |
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| Spicy Backing |
I chose a spicy backing to make up for the rather bland front :-) A yellow binding seems to fit.
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| Labelled |
If this yellow-gray quilt is a metaphor for our Covid-suffocated lives, the strips of green and purple are symbolic of my quilty friends. Their connections provide the oxygen and the virtual hugs I need to get past these trying times.
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| Sunkissed |
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| Yellow Binding |
This Dreami quilt finished at 33.5" by 41". It is named Oxygen and is dedicated to Bernie and Emily. I will be linking with Sandra's Dreami Linky.
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Colorful Backing
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And a few more pictures...
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| Oxygen 33.5" by 41" |
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| Walking Foot Quilting |
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| Green & Purple = Happiness |
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| I can breathe... |
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| A Breezy Day |
But wait there is more. A few charm squares were still left over. Time for some scrappy improvisational piecing. A few solids (colorful please) were added to the mix.
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| Using up all the scraps |
After all the Moda Wovens were used up there were some solids left over. Oh my, this was the classic cookies and milk dilemma.
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| Zippers and Lining |
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| I am loving these :-) |
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| Contrasting Zipper Pulls |
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| Finished three Zipper pouches |
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| Color = Joy |
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| Three fine finishes!!! |
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Here are my completed Sister's Choice Blocks in Yellow for the February 2021 RSC. Will be linking with Angela's RSC Linky.
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| Smiling Flower |
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| Focus Panda |
Speaking of RSC, I am basting the second quilt (Leela was first) from last year's RSC, using the Picket Star Quilt Block.
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| Basting |
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| I am in love :-) |
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The two winners from the Create for a Cause Bloghop Giveaway are Comments #25 (Patti) and #58 (Susie H). Emails have been sent to the winners. If I do not hear from you in a week, you will forfeit your prize and I will pick someone else.
If you did not win, there is still a chance to win the grand prize by Island Batik.
I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar. As usual, I 'd love to hear about you. Did you already get vaccinated? Are you holding your breath for the vaccine? What is your oxygen in these suffocating times?
