When I began the Harrington and Hannah BOM, I decided to use Thimbleberries fabrics for the backgrounds--because I had plenty of background fabric and a lot of other scraps for whatever developed during the year. In fact, as I kitted these monthly blocks up for my stitchery friends, I told them (all but one are in Thimbleberries Club) that I planned to use Thimbleberries fabrics, and at some point during the year, I gifted each of them with a stack of 100 charm squares I'd cut from my stash--if they wanted, they could use them in setting their blocks.
Now I'm thinking about setting MY finished blocks, so I hauled out my scrap bags of Thimbleberries fabric . . .
and I spent most of Sunday cutting 1-1/2" squares. Did it make much of a dent in the Thimbleberries scraps? No, not that I can tell. In fact, it seemed like it was harder to get some of the scraps back into the bags!
I really don't have any real idea how many squares I have cut now. I sorted them out into ten different stacks so I could separate the colors from one another, and I started to count how many squares were in each stack, but I stopped when I hit 50 and I was halfway through the first stack. I knew I needed around 300 squares for the sashing and more for the border, so assuming there are around 100 squares in each stack, I should have plenty. If not, I know where there are bags and bags of the stuff . . .
Oh, and guess what? Since I had all these scraps out, I started thinking about that February mug mat I didn't make on Saturday. The heart block I'd made, though, was still fresh in my mind, so I thought I could whip up some small hearts from all the scraps I was working with, and it turned out I was right--I think I probably spent maybe a total of about two hours on this little project including piecing, quilting, and hand stitching the binding.
One of the helpfully convenient things, though, was that I also have a bag full of scrap bindings too, so I didn't have to cut and press the binding--those always seem to take longer than they should, don't they?
I'm not sure this is really going to end up being a mug mat because at 8" square, it seems a bit large, but I think I'll take both of these to work and figure it out once I get them there.
All in all, a reasonably productive and happy weekend! I hope yours was too.
Love your heart mat as well as that cute snowman.
ReplyDeleteNow to remember how to make the heart one...... It's been awhile.
Brrr it's cold outside today so just maybe I might try a bit of piecing.
That heart mat is just so sweet! Funny, as you described cutting all those squares and organizing them by color, those same steps came back to me from making my quilt. That was back before there were too many pastels, so I sorted by blue, red, brown, green, orange, and then anything else. I think your H and H quilt is going to be so cool! Can't wait to see it.
ReplyDeleteI've always loved thimbleberries fabrics but we can't find them anymore in our area. I have to travel to Ohio to restock my stash :-)
ReplyDeleteThe heart mat is so refreshing. Very clever of you to make mats from each one of the squares.
ReplyDeleteI love the snowman mug mat. Is there a pattern for it?
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading your blog on a daily basis.
Linda
Oh that heart mat is so sweet! It is just what I was thinking about making my Aunt who just lost her mother. I love the whole thing! The colors and the hearts are just the right proportion. The snowman is also way cute too! Can I ask what size your center square is for the heart? I really like your hearts because they look more rounded than some I have seen. I am so glad you share this! Thanks for keeping us inspired! K-
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