Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Take Two and Take Three

January started with a fizzle for me in the quilting department.  I couldn't quite get motivated or inspired.  That's when I decided it was time to pull out a big pile of scraps and make some 'lemonade out of lemons'!


40" x 40"
Take #2

The scraps were from a quilt my daughter started years ago.  Yet another start from her that never made it to the finish line.  I've taken on her WIP's as if they were my own.  Her original quilt is next up for machine quilting ~ That would be Take #1 in this series!  

There was so much fabric to play with for this quilt!!  Some corners, triangles, strips.  I like a good challenge and was determined to use her pieces to see where it would lead me.  I followed her lead on the design of my Take #2 quilt.  Not exactly, but it gave me a starting point.

The fabric is a combination of Shot Cottons and Gee's Bend Cottons.  I don't know if the Gee's Bend fabric is available any longer, they are a lot like hand dyed fabric with subtle inconsistencies throughout.  

Let's not forget about that beautiful Anna Maria Horner floral!  Centerpiece from the Garden Party Collection.  I love the colors and it is gorgeous with all those solids!



So, I began.  I pulled out the HST's and arranged the center square until I was happy with it.




This is the first 'medallion' style of quilt I've done.  Building around the center one piece at a time with not much planning is mind boggling!  Plus, you know...I was determined to use every piece I could!

The center is 12" x 12".


Continuing to build, I added another round.  The corner squares are 6", and paired with a three color panel of strips.



Lastly, I added a gold shot cotton frame and finished it off with the floral.  It can be nerve wracking designing a quilt as you go!  Would I do it any other way?!


Our first snow of the year (hopefully last) was not going by without a photo shoot!  It was a blustery cold day, but I wasn't going to let that stop me!


The back is all Anna Maria Horner!  My daughter bought yards of this print and who am I to turn down fabric...especially AMH?!


I used a combination of free motion and straight line quilting for the final piece to the puzzle.
   

I am in love with the color combination and wish I could take full credit for it!  Thank you Britt for that and for the beautiful stack of scraps...should I thank her for letting me finish her WIP's?  What are mothers for?!

Which brings me to my Take #3 quilt.  This mini from the scraps of the scraps.  I'm wondering what else I can make with the other scraps?  Maybe a mini mini quilt!!  Seriously, this has got to stop!!  

15 1/2" x 15 1/2"
Take #3

Hopefully Take #1 will be finished too!  

I easily get fixated on a pile of scraps.  My fear is they will never be used.  Like a dog with a bone, I become determined to use every last one, usually in a marathon quilting session.  

How do you handle your scraps?  Do you set them aside for later, do you need to use them or lose them?  The mind of a quilter!  Complicated to say the least!!

LINKING:

32 comments :

  1. I love both quilts; your daughter has good taste in fabric!

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    1. Thank you Anita! If I wasn't so in love with the colors, I don't think I would have taken on her scraps and quilt!

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  2. Hi Jayne! So enjoyable post with surprisingly beautiful quilt! I don't think I could have picked these colours but the result is gorgeus! I love the mini, too as I save and use the smallest of smallest scraps. Thank you for sharing your process. I like to see lots of photos and read the story, not only one photo of the finished quilt. Lets catch the scraps! x Teje

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    1. I would never have picked these colors either! It's hard not to include lots of pictures of the process and finished quilts. We all know quilts don't start with a pile of fabric and suddenly become finished! I enjoy seeing processes, reading about it and of course, seeing them finished!

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  3. I think your Take #2 Quilt is just amazing! I love what you did with your daughter's scraps and I love the fabrics she chose. I am definitely filing it away as future inspiration. It is exactly the kind of quilt I want to be making, if that makes sense :) it has a quirky, unusual vibe because of the colors and it all goes together harmoniously because of the piecing. I love it!

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    1. Thank you! You make total sense and it's so wonderful to inspire and be inspired!

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  4. Both Take #1 and Take #2 are simply gorgeous, Jayne! You have a gift for designing as you go and can turn any pile of scraps into a beautiful quilt. I do have a feeling there will indeed be a mini mini version coming soon. Knowing you.....

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    1. I just get on these scrap kicks ~ I can't let them sit or I know I will never use them! I know…me and those mini's…I haven't made one in a while, so guess I had better get to it!

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  5. Wow, Jayne! Your daughter has fantastic taste in fabric and color!! Take #2 is just jaw dropping!! Cannot wait to see Take #1 :)

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    1. I shouldn't complain too much about finishing my daughter's WIP's or getting her scraps! She has an amazing and funky color sense! I need to get going on the original one, after all…it was the start of this whole thing!

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  6. Wow you are very creative, love what you came up with. I tend to sit scraps aside for later. I did use up quite a few last year but you couldn't tell by looking at my tubs, LOL

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    1. I can only take so much credit for this one! If it wasn't for my daughter and her inability to finish her quilts I wouldn't have come up with it on my own!! Scraps are fun to use, but they never really go away! It's a vicious cycle sometimes!

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  7. How fun to get a finished product out of an unfinished one that you didn't even start!. I adore your scrap obsession - I get tired of fabrics too easily. I wish I could just give all my scraps away - they are so guilt-inducing for me...I don't wanna use them! But I don't wanna waste them either. So I sort them and keep them. And keep them and then finally I donate them. At least I don't throw them away, though.

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    1. My daughter's inability to finish quilts has driven me crazy! I think this may be the last of her WIP's! Scraps are a tricky thing! Can't use them, can't get rid of them…it doesn't matter how many ideas and quilts I use them in, there are always more waiting in the wings! I've tried selling my scraps on IG (some did sell). I can't just throw them in the garbage, that I know! It'll never end!!

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  8. I think you are doing an amazing job of using up all the scraps! I keep larger scraps in a scrap bin (to pull from for test blocks and mini mini quilts, and occasionally to raid for a quilt), but I have less fear of letting things go... but perhaps that is not entirely true. When working on a quilt for a customer, I don't tend to keep those scraps as the fabric selections are not typically what I would have purchased for myself in the first place.

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  9. I love #2 -- interested to see #1!

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  10. Very striking color combos. Glad those scraps could get your creative juices flowing again. That, and determination never fails!

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  11. As you know, I have to use every last scrap too. I live puzzling out what to make with a limited amount of fabrics. It certainly keeps the mind sharp!

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  12. I loved watching your process of coming up with Take #2. I probably would have just stared crying and gave up :) I say take those scraps all the way down to a mini mini quilt!

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  13. Lovely quilts! For me, and unusual fabric combination but it is outstanding so I'll have to remember it. As for scraps, they were simply thrown in a box until recently when I sorted them into three size piles. My next task is to trim them to useful sizes such as 1-1/2", 2-1/2", and so on. I have orphan units like HSTs that you've inspired me to use up!

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  14. I kind of hide my scraps away. I would love to play with them more but I don't seem to find time. Those Gee's Bend cottons are gorgeous. Both quilts look great but I'm really partial to the mini.

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  15. You certainly succeeded in making lemonade from lemons! Love both these quilts and I can tell you had some fun along the way. Even better that you used up already cut pieces and fabrics you already had.

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  16. This is sew amazing Jayne! I think a mini mini is DEFinitely in order, so as to have a complete set!!! I love love that coral/orangey color, it really sparks all the others...what a fantasic fun series of quilts!!! And such fun that it all began with your daughter! She must be so proud of her Mama!

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  17. Well, you kinda can't go wrong with a fantastic fabric like that from AMH! Garden Party is still one of my favorite collections, even to this day! Nice mix with the solids to really highlight the print!... what a good mom you are to take on your daughter's WIP's.

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  18. These fabrics are so rich, they look like they would be heavy to pick up! Your design has a very strong magnetic pull, Jayne. Bravo to you and your daughter!

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  19. Both are great!! I love that you were able to create this as you went along. I don't feel confident with doing that, but I know I need to just jump in with both feet. A friend just started a quilt from scraps from another friend, and I've agreed to do the second round on it. Yikes. But looking forward to trying something new.

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  20. Oh, my wonderful quilts and exquisite pictures..so love

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  21. oh what fun! I love the spontaneity of it all!! And what a lovely photo shoot!

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  22. Lovely quilts! So interesting taking on someone else's color choices.
    I save and use every last scrap - that's my paintbox!

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  23. Both quilts look great - I almost wish I got snow where I lived for such an awesome photo backdrop.

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  24. Your photographs of this beautiful quilt just enhance it all the more. The colors are wonderful and the backing is perfect! And I like the mini quilt, too.
    Nancy. (ndmessier @ aol.com, joyforgrace.blogspot.com)

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