Progress Being Made

Remember the wool hand appliqued blocks I was working on last year? That sounds like it was forever ago but remember this is just January so last year really wasn't that long ago. Except I think it might have been longer than I think since I finished all 12 of them. Anyway, last week I made all 206 half square triangles and put them together to make the sashing. Actually I counted wrong and really made 216 half square triangles; hate it when that happens. I used Thangles so they were perfect but, as usual, when I started sewing them into rows the rows weren't perfect. What is it about a quarter inch seam that I can't get right? Six of those in a row should have been 9 1/2" long. Instead it was 9 5/8" long. I know that doesn't sound like much and I could have eased it to make it fit ok but the long rows - they had 22 half square triangles in them. If I'd left the seam as I had it that row would have turned out to been nearly 1/2" too long and that's too long to ease. So I moved the needle. Not enough. I moved it some more. Too much. I moved it back. Too much. You get the picture. Between all the needle moving and the trimming I did I was brain dead! Which is why I put two blocks in upside down and one sideways. :( Had to take them out, turn them around, and resew. But isn't it wonderful now, if I do say so myself! I can see a place or two where I might want to take out a short bit and ease it in to make the seams and points match perfectly but that won't be hard. The black and the khaki background fabrics are flannel and that's all machine stitched. But every piece of every flower, every leaf, every bird or dragonfly is wool and every piece is hand appliqued. This pattern is Folk Art Album from Primitive Gatherings and I bought it in a kit at Houston 3 or 4 years ago. I know, I know...3 or 4 years ago and I just started it this year. I'm a tad behind.

I have it up on my design wall and I'm working on the borders. It will have a 7" black border all around it with vines and leaves and flowers (all of wool) all hand appliqued. It took me 4 hours to draw just one fourth of the border pieces onto fusible and iron them onto the wool. Now I'm trimming them and placing them on the border. And I still have 3/4 of the border to go so this won't be finished any time soon.

Don't you just love having a big project going though? I do, and I go through stages while I'm working on it. I start out excited and eager and going full speed ahead. Then I kind of slow down, start to get maybe a little bored, but plod along. Sometimes I take a break. A long break. But then something sparks and I get a little boost of adrenalin and I restart. At some point I can begin to see the end and I get excited again and eager and start to speed up. When I'm finally finished I'm sad to see the end of it.

How about you? Any big projects going? Some of you are doing Dear Jane and I love seeing your blocks. I saw the real Dear Jane in a museum a few years ago and I just stood there mesmerized. For a very long time. So long that Jerry came to check on me. :) I bought Jennifer Chiaverini's book Sylvia's Bridal Sampler and I'm thinking of joining a group from my guild that's working on that quilt. The blocks are 6 1/2" and I'd like to hand piece them. Oh my. Maybe I'm having a senior moment.

P.S. Have I told you lately that I hate Blogger? Why won't it put paragraphs where I want paragraphs? Blogger is like a cranky three year old - it will when it will and it won't when it won't!