Three Turn Into Six

Finishing the final three of six paper-pieced blocks hold the key to progress in the studio.  All the reds and greys need to be put away.  But not until I use the scraps.

These will eventually be a zippered shopping tote. 

And then I can move on to some of the other things I want to do! 

Key Wristlets and Paper Piecing

These key wristlets were demoed at the September CMQG meeting and are addictive to make. 

There are now two 12" blocks of six completed from Amy Garro's Paper Pieced Modern.  

This quilt top is on its way to Terri and Frank's to be long-armed.  More about this later...

Mariner's Compass for Janet

There's a great satisfaction in the completion of a project. I'm especially pleased with this wall hanging for a couple of reasons.

First, the Mariner's Compass design is one I have admired for years and never thought I could tackle. I finally did attempt my first paper-pieced compass a few years ago, and it was very hard. It's part of the quilt that hangs in my studio and is on the opening page of my blog. Now that I understand paper-piecing better and have done paper-pieced projects a few more times, this compass - by no means easy - was definitely easier to do.

Second, I love this color combination of teal, lime, and navy. These Jinny Beyer RJR fabrics are beautiful. There's a luminescence as well as movement. One of the border fabrics has a subtle design incorporating these colors. The center medallion is made from eight fussy-cut pieces from this border fabric. The fabric I love the most is used the least. It's the purple fabric with a peacock design on it and appears in each of the four corners. Click on the picture to see the details of these fabrics.

Third, as I was working on this piece, I knew where it was going to live. Janet, my body work specialist whom I've been seeing for ten years, turned 60 shortly after I did. She celebrated my birthday with a three-month clinical study of my issues. I celebrated hers with a dinner at Saffron, my favorite Indian restaurant and with this wall hanging.

A compass gives direction and guidance, very symbolic of the work that Janet does with many people. I've made a quilt for Janet's therapy room and written about the importance of her work before. She is a necessity in my life.

Mariner's Compass - a work in process

Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the beauty of a project I'm working on. And this paper-pieced Mariner's Compass is one such project. I'd love to take credit for the fabric combination, but the credit goes to Jinny Beyer and her terrific color sense. I'm still making some decisions about border fabrics and proportions. But the hard work is done. Click on the picture to see the beautiful details. 24" x 24"