Lots done this week

This week I finished the top for the I Spy quilt for my granddaughter.  It was quite an organic quilt to make, as I just kept on adding blocks and sashing to it.  Then I wanted to add a border and struggled to find a good fabric in my stash, especially one with enough meterage.  I think the one I found goes well as it is relatively dark, which this quilt needs in the outer border, but still with enough colour in it to be cheerful.  It is quite a busy quilt, but I've decided it will do.  

I've pieced a back for the quilt from stash as well, so am happy that I've used up a few older fabrics.  All cat ones!  I do have a big collection of cat fabrics.  

While cutting for the quilt top and back, I trimmed and cut from odd shaped fabrics for my scrap drawers.  Some time ago, it seemed silly to have numerous small (less that a fat quarter) odd shaped pieces of fabric on my shelves.  So I investigated what other quilters do, and have starting to organise my scraps.  Basically I cut them into a range of sizes, 6 1/2" squares being the biggest.  And I cut them as small as 1 1/2" square.  I also cut 2 1/2" strips if possible, generally not from the scrappy pieces though.  I try to do those WOF.  And strips narrower or shorter than that are put into my scrap strip box, ready to make strip QAYG blocks, ready for donation quilts - at some stage in the future.  I can even use scrap batting for these blocks too, so they really use up scraps.  Here is my first QAYG block, made from scrap strips.  

  

The theory with all this is that I will have enough cut pieces in a range of sizes to easily sew together a range of scrap quilts.  A theory - we will see how it goes in practice!  

More hand quilting in the evenings this week.  I must chase up the special thimble for my middle finger that pushes the needle through.  The skin doesn't like it!  Not badly but I wouldn't want to do more than a couple of hours of quilting in a day.  

So next week's goal is to try and finish the quilting for Azalea's quilt, and attach the binding (already made.)  Not sure if it is achievable but we will have a go!