Hope’s Journey – Chapter Two

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Carol

Last week I got started on chapter two with the Forest Path block and this week I completed the remaining sampler blocks in that chapter, including the one above, Broken Dishes. This was a fairly easy block to put together and I may consider doing another later on if I require some filler blocks. The sweet little figurine playing the flute was a wonderful $3.00 find in a downtown thrift store yesterday and I couldn’t resist including him in the photo.

I have sewn together the Pine Tree block and although it was a bit fiddly with tiny 1″ finished half square triangles, I think it turned out rather sweet. I was wishing it was larger and so did a bit of a search for tree blocks and came up with a lovely 12″ one to add into the mix.

I really love the contrast in scale between the two trees and it emphasizes the tiny details in the smaller, original block. Even though I started off with a definite colour scheme, I was beginning to notice that my blocks were looking a little monotone and, therefore, decided to add some olive green and yellows into the quilt. They still have a muted tone to them but the ‘yellowness’ livens up the other colours quite a bit and adds a warmer glow.

I also decided to revisit my very first block, the Feathered Star from Chapter 8, and added the sawtooth border to it, which frames the block extremely well. This will now serve as a stronger focal point of the entire quilt and also makes the block even larger.

This has been a great week for sewing – the weather has been brutally cold and windy, leaving no choice but to snuggle inside and quilt. I know that Jeanne at spiralj2.blogspot has been busy sewing and I think that Libby in TN is also joining us on this amazing quilt journey, so be sure to check in to see what they are up to this week. Please feel free to climb aboard the wagon train and make Hope’s Journey with us. Leave a comment if you’re quilting along with us.

Until next time,

happy trails, carol

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Good Fortune Update

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Carol

I was so excited to see the big reveal on Friday but had no time until Saturday afternoon to work on putting blocks together. Once I gained momentum, I did manage to sew all twenty five of the blue and green spinning stars, and now I’m working my way through the orange and orchid chained blocks. I really like each block individually but it will be interesting to see how they look together in the quilt. I love the multiple pieced borders that finish it off so nicely. Let’s hope I can put this one together rather quickly and get it into the quilting line-up, as it would be great to start listing brand new finishes for 2019 😮

p.s. I didn’t have the foresight to crop my photos this time so please excuse the make-shift design wall/curtains that my blocks are pinned to, ha, ha!

Until next time, happy quilting!

carol xox

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Good Fortune Update

Posted on January 3, 2019 by Carol

On New Year’s day a surprising step seven was released for the Quiltville mystery. The reason I say ‘surprising’ is because I think I was expecting the final reveal for the project. Even though I’ve only ever followed along and accomplished one other Bonnie Hunter Mystery quilt, I believe that, traditionally, the reveal is on New Years, but I could be mistaken. I’m hoping that tomorrow will be a BIG day and things can finally be wrapped up, construction wise, as I need to get on with other things and don’t want to leave this project hanging around unfinished for too long because we all know what happens then. That’s how ufo’s are born! At this point in time, I still have all the fabrics pulled out and strewn about, not knowing if I’ll require something for the next step. Although I’m still enjoying the process, I have to admit things are getting a bit chaotic. Come on, Bonnie, don’t leave me hangin’.

as always, carol xox

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Hope’s Journey

Posted on January 2, 2019 by Carol

Happy New Year everyone! It feels great to turn over that new page on the calendar. Starting the year off with a bang, I delved right back into my Hope’s Journey quilt and stitched up the remaining two Lost Ship blocks from chapter one.

Chapter two is titled ‘Forging a New Path’, which seems very appropriate for the beginning of a new year. The first block on the agenda is ‘Forest Path’, which is similar to a Bear’s Paw block.

This block worked up quite quickly, allowing me to focus on other tasks at hand, such as step seven on the Quiltville mystery. As of this morning I’m all caught up on the required units but I’ll leave you in suspense and show those photos another day.

until next time,

happy stitching, carol

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Day 31/31

Posted on December 31, 2018 by Carol

Well, I made it! I posted something on my blog for every day in December (it was not easy with all that happens this month). After checking last year’s blog posts, I realized that I didn’t quite make it until the end. The final post for the year was on December 24th and then nothing until the middle of January. I’m feeling quite puffed up that I was able to continue all the way this year.

As a finale, I’m posting another new photo of one of my favourite pincushion dolls. She’s all dressed up in her elegant, blue silk gown and turban, and has donned her pearls for a New Year’s ballroom party. I’m quite sure she will have a more rousing time than I will. She’ll be sipping on champagne cocktails while I’ll be sipping on chai tea; she’ll be nibbling on canapes and caviar while I’ll be munching on veggies and guacamole dip; and she’ll be dancing until dawn while I’ll be snoring/snuggled under the covers. However you choose to bring in the New Year, I hope it is happy and safe. Soooooo…..

Put on your party dress and your dancing shoes, girlfriend, and have a ROCKIN’ NEW YEAR!!!!

Love from carol xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

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Good Fortune

Posted on December 30, 2018 by Carol

I’m still ticking all the boxes as I keep up with the Quiltville mystery, and step #6 is now complete. I enjoyed making these easy units – there weren’t very many to make and the sewing was fairly simple. I chose to do the strip pieced technique rather than string piecing, in keeping with my other strip pieced units in step #4. Although it came together quite quickly, I’m finding myself running out of those neutrals again. If any fabric shopping happens in the New Year, it will need to be focused on that part of the inventory. I’m continuing to make assessments and plans for 2019, including limited stash enhancements. I see many bloggers are thinking of their annual ‘word’ and some are announcing ufo and bom plans. How about you? Any New Year resolutions? Do share!

until next time,

happy stitching, carol xox

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Day 29/31

Posted on December 29, 2018 by Carol

Option #1

Option #2

Option #3

Option #4

I’ve been playing around with the bonus triangles that I discovered a couple of weeks ago, sewing them together in between other blocks to keep the chain-piece method flowing smoothly. If the thread colour works then just keep sewing, right?

These little units are adding up quickly, measuring 5″ finished, and it’s been fun trying out various configurations to see all my options before I make a decision about the block style. I’ve realized that by sewing four units together I will end up with a 10″ finished block, which is a nice ‘middle of the road’ size to design a quilt around. In the beginning, all I was going to do is Option #1, where the small triangles would just alternate with the larger ones for an all-over scrappy look. I had no plans for sashing but would just sew block to block until I ran out of units. After playing around with the small units I’ve sewn together, this might not be the final design. In the meantime, I’ll just keep sewing and thinking  and playing… there’s no hurry on this one and remember, there’s about a million of those bonus triangles to use up.

p.s. I can’t believe that I only have two days left on my 31/31 challenge. I’m not sure if I’ll be relieved to not have to blog every day or if I’ll be a little sad, but it has definitely been a challenge!

until next time, carol xox

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Secret Santa Sew-Along Update

Posted on December 28, 2018 by Carol

Today was the day! Ta! Da! It’s finished!

This is probably the last finish for 2018 and what a complete pleasure this project was. I enjoyed every part of making this little quilt and worked really hard, thinking I would have the quilting and binding done in time for Christmas. I’ve only just completed the binding this afternoon and I’m just pleased to call it finished this year :o. I’ve read so many comments online about how much fun everyone had with this lovely pre-Christmas gift from Temecula Quilt Co. and I truly hope the generous shop owner has received messages from the quilters who stitched along. I’ve done a few other quilt-alongs with Temecula Quilt Co. in the past but this has been my favourite by far!

Happy stitching, carol

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Mystery Update

Posted on December 27, 2018 by Carol

Today is a good day to post a photo of my step 5 units, just prior to the next step being released tomorrow. I’m ready for it! I have managed to keep up with all the steps, have made every single unit required of me, and I’m now definitely in the mood to start putting all these ‘ingredients’ together to make something delicious! Bring it on, Bonnie!

Happy stitching everyone

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Hope’s Journey

Posted on December 26, 2018 by Carol

My journey with ‘Hope’s Journey’ has officially begun and although I started with a different block, I’ve now gone back to the front of the book and started at the beginning with chapter one. The first block is Lady of the Lake and I’ve seen so many antique quilts made entirely from this block that it would be tempting to do a modern version. That’s one of the things that I love about this book – it is inspiring in so many ways and has my mind swimming in all sorts of quilt ideas. (is that really a good thing? hmmmm?)

The instructions to make this block are very concise and I did end up with two large leftover triangles. I decided to put one to good use right away and construct a second Lady of the Lake block. That’s the most fascinating thing about a quilt like this – there are no rules on which blocks or how many you make. In the end, I’ll narrow down my choices and build the quilt around whichever blocks I like and add fillers as needed.

I did manage to finish the construction of my first block, the Feathered Star, in chapter eight. This was probably the most difficult block I’ve sewn in a very long time, but so worth it! I love it! I chose to start with this block for a few reasons, which I’ll explain as I go along, but mainly I was most intimidated by this one and wanted to get it out of the way at the start. It is also the largest block in the quilt and features quite centrally as a focal point, so by creating this one first, I was hoping to nail down my colour scheme and set the tone for the entire quilt. The remaining blocks will all relate back to this one as I’m choosing fabrics for each chapter. I took my time and switched around the values for the block, in order to create a snowflake type motif on a darker background. This meant lots of notes posted on that page, just to avoid confusion when cutting and sewing.

I know the journey has just barely begun but so far it is quite the adventure. Have you decided to join Jeanne spiralj2.blogspot.com, Tammy (no blog), and myself on this wonderful journey? Next Tuesday is January 1st, which is a very good day to start something new, don’t you think!

until next time, carol

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Merry Christmas!

Posted on December 25, 2018 by Carol

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Christmas Eve 2018

Posted on December 24, 2018 by Carol

Silent Night.

Holy Night.

All is calm.

All is bright.

Peace and Love to all.

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