Strings and things

Got fabric???

Waste not want not they say. 

It is so hard to throw fabric away.

My quilt guild receives an abundance

of unwanted fabric. 

And it multiplies in the night!

This was my challenge.

Using one bag of unlovely scraps...

 could I make something lovely???

After inspiration here http://sotakhandmade.blogspot.com

 I began to sew......

Grab a strip out of the bag...Don't think about it too much,

  just sew it onto another piece.

Keep sewing randomly until you have a block of fabric

Square it up to the size you want ... Mine are 12 1/2''

Keep sewing !!!  Learn as you go what you like.

Don't be afraid to experiment.

Perhaps it is not as lovely as the inspiration

 maybe even bit more quirky than lovely 

but it is what it is and

it is now a finished top!

Somebody will find it cozy. 

I would take it on a picnic : )  

Every handmade thing has love sewn into it

whether you like the fabric or not. 

It  makes me happy in an unusual way.

I have made something useful out of nothing.

I looks like a grandma quilt.... I am a grandma.

Perhaps it is the Stripes around the edge adding calm to the chaos.

Perhaps I'm happy because it is simply finished! 

Several of the blocks have little bears as the center.

So I will call this my "Sending you a Bear Hug"  quilt.

It will be a Charity quilt given to someone who needs a hug. 

If quilts could talk each piece of fabric would tell me 

about the person who once loved the fabric enough to buy it.

The best part of the creative process was making these little houses.

 I left the light on in the attic of one little house

 because that is where I sew : )  

This will be the label on the back.

This is not a precise process.... proving anyone ,

YES anyone

 can sew 2 pieces of fabric together

 and MAKE A QUILT!!!

Make it happen.   

Fabric makes me happy!

TaTa

Janita

She sews Strings and other Things.

 Stretching the boundary lines here  : _) 

with color options I have not chosen.

October sewing for me has been focused on sewing for others.

I belong to a charity sewing group 

called 

Helping Hands.

We make quilts out of fabric passed on to us.

It is not always pretty fabric

It is mostly stash that others no longer have a desire to keep.

It is our job to make it pretty.

Once a month we gather..... 

We cut , we stitch, we create

With the desire to bless others in need. 

Lately I have not been able to meet with the group

 as I am usually babysitting my grandchildren.

So I spent some time sewing at home this month. 

I started with a Walmart bag of scraps.

I love scrap quilts others make.

I am a however bit challenged

 with how to make it all work together.

I found some little bear squares in the bag...

and began to wrap them with strings.

Kind of like a BEAR HUG. 

Most of the blocks are log cabin style though a few are 

more creative in using scraps as the larger bits got used up.

For 25 blocks.....

The whole process of this quilt was

If the string fits.... sew it on.

 I tried not to place clashing colors together.

I tried not to over think this.

I tried to love even the unlovely.

It was not easy. 

It is a mix of 

Big Chunks,  medium Strips  and Little Bits.

I did try to make a couple of traditional log cabin blocks,

light on one side, dark on the other....

I somehow felt..." I should" because

after all I was making a log cabin block.

But in the end when looking at the whole quilt

  I decided it created a hole of white

where those blocks were.

I will not do that if I make another. 

Some blocks have have matching strips

others do not.

I have never made a quilt like this and

 I am just going with the flow !

And then I got tired of sewing with fabric I didn't like.

I was starting to doubt the whole process.

Would anyone want this quilt????

I needed a pick me up.  

My string piecing was getting more challenging

as the bits were getting smaller

and suddenly.....

Creativity jumped the curb. 

I made a couple of string  houses!!

And Smiled.

 After all as a charity quilt I will be sending 

BEAR HUGS  from My house to yours ; ) 

(The light in the attic is because I sew in the attic.)

This will be my quilt label on the back of the quilt.

Favorite thing about this quilt is the pops of lime green.

Makes me think of a child  now in heaven who loved lime green.

So Mr.  TJ Goemaat......

I'm spreading some love to a child in your honor with this quilt.

Hope someone finds it to be cuddle worthy.

 And as long as it is a full color fest here....

 Yea for a touch of  

ORANGE and PURPLE!

Happy colors in my life.

Inspiration picture perfect color combo.

Saying goodbye to October : (  

After struggling most of the summer

My Bacopa seems to love October!

Thank you  for all the goodness of each day :) 

Janita