4 X 7 -- Week 4 -- A Big Finish!!

The last day of February, 2015!!

I hope it's also the end of the brutal cold spell we've been enduring here in Northeast Ohio!

And the wrap-up of a productive month of stitching!!

 

I'm sure the extra cold weather has been a positive factor in the amount of stitching I've accomplished this month.  There were quite a few days I didn't budge out of the house.  And we've had lots of sunshine -- which is a positive impact of the fact that Lake Erie is completely frozen over. 

Hard to comprehend but it's the shallowest of the Great Lakes and so during a very cold spell, the ice grows quickly. 

 

This week I began to set together the "sunflower" blocks from Nathalie's "not a mystery" sew-along.

You can get to all her posts about the quilt HERE.  Nat's blog is in French so you'll have to learn how to translate it via Google or Bing, but several of my American students have been making it also and had no trouble following along.

 

  It's a charming block, cut with Marti Michell's new 2" Kite and Crown template set.  There are two more rows to add but I'm using the blocks as part of my piecing demos at the Farmpark Quilt Show Vendors Weekend today and tomorrow.  I've started to search my stash for a border fabric, but might need to go shopping on this one!

The BIG finish for the week has been the quilting of my fun, fun, fun fruit and veggie Tessellated Windmill quilt top.  I spread it out on my double bed to get some pics -- Willie refused to move at first.  I used 7" blocks, set 8 by 10, and the quilt measures 55" by 70".

But he finally emerged for a closer look at the ants.

And it has his official seal of approval!! 

I think this is the 9th quilt I've made using this tool since Marti Michell introduced it a couple years ago.  If you can't find the tool locally, I usually have some in stock -- e-mail me at maryhueyquilts@hotmail.com

 Because it can be done in block sizes from 2" to 9" and is easy to cut, easy to piece, and I've found a simple quilting strategy that I use over and over with variations to the border, it's become one of my "go-to" quilts for gifts and donations. 

This one is not a donation or a gift! 

This one is for me. 

My fruit and veggie pile is so much fun to play with and this is the third big project I've made from it.  I was able to come up with enough names of fruits and veggies that I didn't repeat any as I worked my way around the border.  

Finishing this quilt also gives me another "gold star" on my 2015 UFO Challenge list over at http://www.allpeoplequilt.com/how-to-quilt/finishing/2015-ufo-challenge  So I'm two for two and looking forward to the "number" for March. 

 

Wahoo, wahoo, wahoo!!

Hope the momentum I have going carries me through March!!

A big THANKS and a hug to Sarah over at http://www.berrybarndesigns.com/ 

for the motivation of the 4 X 7 Sewing Challenge.

 

Hope you are able to stitch away your weekend!!

 

Mary Huey

www.maryhueyquilts.com