More Sun, More Time to Quilt

Welcome to the first day of our American Daylight Savings Time. I don't like that it comes early in March. I love having daylight at 6 am and now it will be dark again! I get up early and have enjoyed the NATURAL coming of the sun.

I have been finding leftover blocks (what? You don't have any?) that I abandoned and am trying to see if I can make something useful from them. You know I've had to be creative!

"Leftover from what" you may ask. Well, this is what I called "Descending" from my book Paper Piecing Perfect Points (2013, Martingale).

Descending: 56" x 56"

I think it looks like a colorful sun with shining rays, don't you? When you write a quilting book, most publishers ask that you send them a sample block (along with ALL the other stuff: finished quilt, instructions, artwork, templates, etc) so they can scrutinize it up close and personal. I have also taught this as a workshop, so I had some leftovers.

I cut my patches and printed my foundations:

Background fabrics with brights for my points

These are SUCH SHARP POINTS! I used some leftover 2" strips from another project to make these.

Four paper pieced quarter circles

Then I had some of those skinny donuts in dark pink and turquoise. Notice how I pin the straight ends. I always place an extra pin on the sides to keep them from shifting once I start to sew.

Pinning the donut to the foundation pieced quarter circles

Now let's see how cutting the background fabric. I had a little bit of the original fabric leftover in a light print and only enough for two in the darker print. This is how I challenged myself to get creative. Can I mix the two? Let's find out!

I made my freezer paper templates and cut out four from the light print.

This is how I flip flop my freezer paper template

And up close:

Cutting fabric layered so I can cut two at once

Then how do the parts look like together into one block?

Descending block with light background

And one of the original colorings:

Descending block with dark background

Wait a minute! There's a hole at the bottom of those blocks! Not to worry. I fussy cut two circles and interfaced them so I could appliqué them over those holes!

Circle interfaced

 My little circles ready to put on those centers:

Interfaced and turned circles

 Sew the block units together and adding some plain (floral) squares. NOW I add the circles.

After stitching over the hole

I squeezed the life out of my fabrics. As you can see, I didn't have enough to make that bottom, righthand space a block so I made it a floral square. I had a piece of this awesome Jane Sassaman fabric for the border and I'm pretty proud of myself. What do you think?

New version of Descending

The quilt center is 30" x 30". It looks like it would welcome Daylight Savings Time, don't you think?

You can find the 7 page pdf pattern on my Etsy pattern site, in full color with all foundations and templates ready to print. What a fun use for skinny, leftover strips!