Green is by far, my favorite color. I love all shades of green so it was very easy for me to sit down this morning and pull out my green scrap bin to make my RSC16 projects for the month of May.
I decided to make my blocks for the Gemstones quilt first. You might remember that this pattern was designed by Cynthia over at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework. I’m not sure why, but I hadn’t thought to chain piece these blocks before. This morning I had a revelation though and zipped through the blocks in no time at all.
Love the emerald tones in these blocks. I wanted to use only greens that evoked an emerald gemstone so my options were a bit limited. They look so pretty though!
When I was taking photos (which is becoming a challenge as the blocks stack up) I noticed that I stitched the sashing to the wrong edge of these blocks. I will have to rip those seams and fix that.
Next I moved on to my scrappy blocks that were inspired by Victoria Findlay-Wolfe’s book, 15 Minutes of Play. These blocks are so satisfying. It is playful and freeing to make these because there is really no right or wrong. I branched out and used different shades of green for these, reaching for whichever scrap seemed to fit.
Now that these scrappy blocks are accumulating, it is fun to play with the HST layout. Endless possiblities.
Here is another idea.
The scrappy HST’s remind me of crazy quilts. I am playing around with adding some random stitching to the scrappy side of the HST to give it more of the crazy quilt look. What do you think? I did a few zig zag seams on two of the HST’s. I could also do a blanket stitch which would be characteristic of those quilts. Also, if I do this, maybe I should use some Sulky Rayon threads so that there would be that great sheen Sulky has as well as add more body to the stitching. Opinions please? Finally… should I do these little stitches now or when I actually quilt it? If I do it now, I will have to figure out how to quilt it such that it doesn’t interfere. I could focus the quilting on the polkadot side of the HST’s. Decisions, decisions, decisions!
Glad to have my scrappy green projects checked off the list for this month! Though I must say, it didn’t make the slightest dent in my green scrap bin. Not one little bit.
Linking to my favorites. Check them out at the top of the page, under Link Ups!
Craftsy Update: In a continued celebration of their birthday, Craftsy is offering some of their most popular classes for 50% off. Sale begins Wednesday, May 18th and runs through Sunday, May 22nd! Check them out. I have taken some quilting classes purchased at Craftsy and feel that that the caliber of the classes is first rate! (I am a Craftsy affiliate, meaning if you click through my link and make a purchase, I will receive a small payment.)
I find that what I call a ‘true green’ fabric can be hard to find. Your emerald colors here are great, though, and it is fun to see how the blocks for both projects are working together now that there are starting to be more to layout out. 🙂
Thank you. Yes, as I make more and more of the blocks I am getting excited, watching both projects come together.
Looks like you have been busy… And having a wonderful time! Those blocks are all very pretty. I especially love those scrappy HST’s. The “Crazy Quilting” stitches look great and add a lot of interest to the blocks. Clever idea!
Thanks! Would you do the decorative stitching early on (like I did today) or as part of the quilting process?
I love your greens! Actually that is not entirely true. I love all of your scrappy blocks!
How sweet Claudia. Thanks a bunch. I am loving both of these projects and this month’s green additions worked out well. Take care!
Pretties! I would wait on the stitching until the top is together. That way you don’t have to face the prospect pf ripping out all those stitches if you don’t like them. Better to look at it as a whole, I think. Just my two cents! Looking great already.
I’ve always done the crazy quilt stitching as part of the quilting process, changing thread colour as well as stitch type to keep the craziness going ☺ Love your greens, my go to colour too.
Thank you Allison. I appreciate your input!!
So many pretty blocks! You make me want to run to my sewing room and dive in my scrap bins! Thanks for sharing them all with Oh Scrap!
Not sure what to tell you on the decorative stitches. I guess it would depend how well your machine will stitch them through a sandwiched quilt. I love the idea however.
I am loving this pattern and having so much fun thinking of gems to emulate. Pretty soon the ruby red blocks will be added and that is going to be sooo pretty!
thanks so much for linking up!
your project looks great!
This is my first visit to your link up. I found you via Tami over at Sew Much for Free Time. ?
My goodness you keep busy in your sewing room! I am envious of your productivity! I really like those scrappy HSTs. You are right, they ve a crazy quilt feel. But, the layout that creates the diagonal lines is so modern feeling. It’s a beautiful juxtaposition. Hmmm. I think I’d do the embellish stitching first, then quilt in the grey parts later. I don’t like the idea of seeing the back of all those fancy stitches on the back of the quilt. Either way though, it’s going to be just lovely
I love those Gemstones blocks! It’s hard not to start a new project when I see those!
Very interesting! I love the scrappy triangles.
Thank you Tammy. Nice of you to take a peek at my blog. 🙂
I guess I am going to sound like the negative one here. Since your scrap pieces are so small, I really don’t think it would be worth the time it would take to embellish them. It seems that the decorative stitching would disappear in the patchwork. I love the blocks. I am sure whatever you decide will turn out to be a beautiful quilt. I love all the blocks you are doing this year.
Pam, you are not being negative. I like when I receive honest input. It isn’t helpful if everyone just says positives- know what I mean. I appreciate your opinions!
I enjoyed seeing this ; I have YET to finish anything for RSC16 Green this month, ugh! Well, working on but not finished 🙂
Well, you still have 10 days left in May! And, really, you are working on quite a bit already. It is hard to fit so much into the day. 🙂