Thursday, October 15, 2020

How about you? 6 questions to while away the day...


I need a diversion.  I think you do too.  Instead of writing about history today, I thought I would ask you some questions.  I'll supply my answers but I'm really interested in what you have to say.  My email is below if you don't want to write in the comment area.

1-Do you have a big stash of fabric?  

Well yes I do.  I was fortunate to have been given a lot of fabric by retiring quilters and I've been sewing for a few decades.  A lot of my friends have shopped my stash as well.  I'm always happy to pass fabric along.

2-Are you buying fabric during the pandemic?

 I'm playing a game with myself these days.  During the pandemic, I'm trying to refrain from buying anything but neutrals.  

I've had to purchase black and white fabric once and chose to go with an independent store that would ship.

3-What do you do with your scraps? How do you store them, what kinds of projects do you do with them?  

Mask making reduced my bigger scraps.  I'm down to one drawer, primarily smaller scraps but not including vintage fabric:


My guild has a lot of projects that use up scraps:  placemats for Meals on Wheels, pillow cases, quilts for premie babies.

Before the pandemic I was making hearts with my small scraps and orphan blocks.  

I had joined the "I Found a Quilted Heart" program (here) and left hearts at parks and near the school.  I also embellished a lot of them with buttons and doo-dads.  It was a lot of fun, especially when someone reported that they had found a heart and it had made their day brighter.  

Once the pandemic broke out, we were encouraged to stop leaving them and I did.  But I still make them.  Maybe for Valentine's Day this year, I'll hang some of them on my little tree out front for decoration.

4- Have you ever made a scrap quilt?

Yes but most often, I do this as an I-Spy kind of quilt.  I made this "Cup of Cheer" quilt from Christmas scraps:


and another Christmas scrap quilt, snowballs for a friend's granddaughters (I made two of them):



I'm thinking of doing a "Tiny House" quilt now with scraps using the Missouri Star Company's tutorial here.  A lot of quilters were making this kind of quilt during the lockdown but called it "Shelter In Place."

5- Do you have a lot of quilt tops completed?  Do you have any that you don't like anymore?

Unfortunately, yes and yes. I'm not worried about quilt tops that I want to finish but I do have two tops that I just can't stand anymore.  What do you do in this case?  I'm thinking of taking apart one and making donation placemats out of them (or making it smaller and making a hospice quilt).  The other piece is smaller and I still have no idea what I'm going to do with it.  Suggestions?

6-Lastly, what kind of quilt patterns are you gravitating towards during the pandemic?  

Anything that makes me happy or is simple to make.  I am most definately NOT interested in patterns that are complicated.  There's too much chaos and I need simplicity these days.


Well that is enough questions for you for one day.  Tomorrow is Flower Friday and if you have a photo/image of flowers or floral textile, etc.  Email me at allentownquilter@gmail.com


3 comments:

  1. Yes, I have a huge stash. I'm only buying mainly for "need" during the pandemic -- borders for a pair of twins and wide backs for finished tops. My scraps are in deep Art Bins and I forget to look in them. Yes, I have made scrap quilts but they need to be "controlled." I have far too many finished quilt tops but my LAQ is now accepting projects again. Simple is always best in my book. I let the fabric be the star.

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  2. My stash is enormous. Not only have I gotten bargains at estate sales, I have also been the beneficiary of two destashings and a giveaway this year. I've paid that generosity forward by sending fabric to other quilters. Re: the two flimsies you no longer love and don't particularly want to quilt. I'd give them to another quilter, either someone who does a lot of charity quilting or someone who would like quilts to practice on. The point is to get them out of your sewing room where they are a drag. Then you can make something new that gives you joy!

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  3. My stash is not enormous, but I seem to have plenty to make quilts with! I usually have to buy backings when I'm ready to finish a quilt. I love making scrappy rainbow quilts, and they always turn out like an I Spy quilt. They're so fun! I do have unquilted tops laying there, and this year I sent one to another quilter through Cynthia's (Quilting is More Fun than Housework) Quilty Orphan Adoption.

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