Has It Really Been 52 Weeks Since Jan. 2?

The scrappy 5-patch and snowball blocks are all sewn.  I have failed the 52 week challenge miserably, as I knew I would (and apparently others have too - right, Jeanne Kaye? :))  These blocks are a sew-along with A Needle Pulling Thread quilt shop in Digby, and the challenge was to sew one block a week for 52 weeks, using scraps from your stash.

The blocks went together quickly and easily, barely making a dent in the scraps.  I did have to purchase 3 Fat Quarters of cream as I didn't have enough 8" squares for the snowball centres. 

I drew up the design in EQ8 and decided that I wanted a 5-patch in each corner.  An 11 x 11 layout makes the top 82-1/2" square, before borders. That sounded like a good size. I laid out the blocks on the bed, spacing my darker creams and pure whites across the top. Then I picked up the blocks in rows and labelled each row.

We had a bit of snow overnight, so I took it outside this morning for a picture.  I wasn't terribly successful...as the sheet of clear plastic I use under my quilts stiffened up and buckled in the cold, refusing to lay flat.

 For once, the lumps and bumps under the quilt are not Polly (her feet got cold and she went inside.)

 Those lovely plain spaces are just begging for pretty quilting.  I keep seeing feathered wreaths. :).

I will set this quilt aside for a bit and decide what it needs for borders.  I've never made a square bed quilt before, and not sure I will like it.  I may end up making two more rows of blocks, and leaving a border off all together...although a plain border would look great quilted with a big, winding feather.   

 A traditional quilt needs feathers, right? :)

Snow and Sew

Between the snowstorms and the freezing temperatures, it's been a week of stay-inside-and-sew weather. I've put the time to good use, stitching up an overflowing box of scraps into some very pretty blocks.  The credit for this quilt goes to Darlene D'Eon, who owns A Needle Pulling Thread quilt shop in Digby, Nova Scotia.  Each year, Darlene comes up with a one block a week challenge, for 52 weeks, the idea being that at the end of the year you have a quilt top without a whole lot of concentrated effort.  This year's blocks are a 5-patch and a snowball. (That's not a dark spot on the fabric at left, by the way...that's a shadow from the handle on the end of my sewing table.)

Once I start anything, it's hard to stop.  Lots of folks are starters, but I am a finisher.  This is why I have no UFO's!  By my count...less than a week in, I am up to about week 74 on the 52 week challenge... :)  The blocks finish at 7-1/2", which means each small square measure 1-1/2".

So far, I have enough blocks for a 7 x 10 layout,  but think I will continue for a 9 x 11. Border decisions will come later.

Despite making all these blocks, the scrap box looks just as full as when I started.  How is this possible...?