Dust Off a Quilt Book Blog Hop: Who's Ready For Some Scrappy Goodness?


Hello and welcome to the Morning Latte where we
drink lots of coffee, talk about our projects and 
make lists to make sure everything gets done!


If you're wondering if you missed a day, no, today is
not Tuesday.  It is indeed Monday*, and I am
part of a crew that is kicking off the week-long
(An oversight has led me to now being linked up on Tuesday.)

I will be sharing my most recent project:
Autumn Color Cascade.
(Not sure about that name yet.)
The pattern is Reproduction Chain by Julie Hendrickson
and can be found in The Big Book of Favorite Scrap Quilts,
published by Martingale in 2022.


I'll 'fess up that I really just purchased it last year but as a
pro-quilter, I spend 30 - 40 hours a week in my studio and
I could, in even just a week, kick out enough dust to have
all of my books looking pretty aged!


But actually I clean my room very regularly and because
of that, even the old ones have the same amount of dust
(or usually lack of dust) as the new...
but I'm really digressing here.


I just wanted to give some background talk while you
look through some of the books I have on my shelves.
(Do we share any of the same titles?)
But now let's get on with this fantastically fun quilt!


Has anyone noticed that there is a lot of interest in
scrappy quilts right now?  I think it must be that we
all take stock of our stash at the beginning of the year
and give a little "Ooof!  Some of this has to go!" and
off we go down the scrap-quilt rabbit hole.

Well if you haven't done that yet, I'll save you some time.
I've got a great stash-busting quilt for ya!
This one is pure therapeutic quilting fun!


from pulling random fabrics...


(Or maybe not so random for me?  I'm all over the place
with colors and styles but these are my faves to work with.)


...to her fast strip piecing...


...and watching all of the fabrics come together.


If you love your fabric combo, making these 16-patches
is so very enjoyable--and they fly up onto the design wall.


 Once you start adding in those secondary blocks, 
look at how things change!  Even one of my non-quilting
sisters thought this was looking like a good time!

Above, before the final border

I had hoped to have this one quilted for this post but
as some of you know, I just purchased the Quilt Path
program for my Lucey so I've been spending a lot
of time getting acquainted with a whole new toy.
(Oh, my gosh it is sooo fun!)

Hanging on the design wall, waiting to be quilted.

But I am happy to at least share this finished top. 
I'll likely quilt it today so I'd love for you to pop back
in again very soon to see the finish!

Early in the construction of this quilt, I quickly began to
envision one in Christmas fabrics, a spring theme, maybe
even Halloween.  And then I also realized you could play
with the blocks, a little like a log cabin and make a
diamond pattern (instead of the diagonals) and who
knows what else!

I'm just all over the place with this one
and I expect to have several versions in my Etsy shop by
this fall.  That effort should make a solid dent in my stash.
Hopefully I've inspired you to make little dent
 in your stash, too!  I'd really love to hear your
ideas for this quilt so please leave them below!


When I took advantage of their sale last fall to buy
The Big Book of Favorite Scrap Quilts and a few others,
I had no idea of what Martingale's future (or lack of)
would be but I am especially happy that I did.
Their works made up most (all?) of my book purchases
 over the last few years and they've been the source of
so many of the quilts that I have made lately.
That is to say:  I actually use them!

How many of our books just sit and gather dust?
Thank you, Martingale for publishing books that don't
get the opportunity to accumulate too much dust,
even in some of the busiest of quilt studios!


The oldest quilt book to be found in my studio is
101 Fabulous Rotary-Cut Quilts published by Martingale (!)
in 1998.   I thought maybe I'd have something a little older
but this does make sense as I started quilting right at that
time.  (I'm pretty sure it's the first one I ever bought!)
Plus, I occasionally thin out my books to free up space
 for more fabric to keep things tidy so there just
isn't an old book to be found but I am so curious
to see if anyone has a really old one out there!

Think over your books.  You did buy them for a reason!
How about grabbing a coffee and taking a little time
today to dust them off and give them another look!?


Please check out the other bloggers joining
in on Day 2 (Tuesday) of the hop!

Happy quilting!

Comments

I see some of my books in your stash - I have given away a lot of books over the years as I found others to replace ones that I knew I would never use or had already used and knew I wouldn't again. Some are sitting on the shelves which have been barely open and I think why did I get that book and sometimes it gets passed on to another
Kate said…
Yep, most of your titles are in the bookcase in my sewing room. I take a few down to my bedside table and look a little before I drift off most nights. I need to get caught up on my UFOs before I add anymore new projects. The scrap quilt is really fun and I can see all different versions.
I'm not sure, but I think I bought that book from Martingale during their sale in January (the books arrived the day before I flew out of town). Nice quilt. I do have many of the books on your shelf (and dozens more that I need to go thru).
beaquilter said…
fun post! I love(d) Martingale, sad they are gone now.
piecefulwendy said…
Well, you know we have similar books - LOL. Your quilt is fabulous! I love the colors and the design! You'll have this one done in no time!
Carol Swift said…
This is such a warm and cozy looking quilt with lots of little scraps. So pretty!
Karrin Hurd said…
I have quite a few Martingale books and quite a few of the ones in your stash. Great quilt! Thanks so much for sharing!
Calicojoan said…
How fun peeking into your bookshelf and seeing your fabulous quilt. Scrappy quilts just melt my heart!
Laura said…
Love your scrappy quilt! How wonderful it would be to cozy up in it with a cuppa and a quilt book! :)
Susan said…
We do have some of the same books, but I liked seeing what you've hung onto for 25 years, and what you haven't. This is a GREAT scrap quilt! It's all I make, really, and the scraps keep increasing no matter what, so I may have to try this one. I liked the ideas you had for changes, too.
Home Sewn By Us said…
Hi Cheree! What a beautiful scrappy quilt. It's so cohesive and pleasing to the eye. I really like the addition of those two dark borders. They seem like a great finish to a fabulous piece. Great job. {{Hugs}} ~smile~ Roseanne
It's still Monday, and I found you! I saw "101 Fabulous Rotary-Cut Quilts" and thought, "I have that one!" So I had to go find it and will be reading it tonight. Meanwhile, I just love your Autumn Color Cascade. All that scrappy color is my absolute favorite. It's beautiful, Cheree!
I have that book! And a lot of the other ones you showed. When Martingale announced their sale, I found I already had so many of their books that I didn't need any more. Your quilt is so beautiful. I am adding it to my to-make list.
Julie in GA said…
I loved the photos of your books--I have several of the same ones. Your scrappy quilt is beautiful!
We do share some of the same books, but I do see some that I do not have - I need to add them to my "need list. " Lol. Such a beautiful job on your quilt.
Quilting Gail said…
Your finished top is fantastic! Thanks for sharing!
Kat said…
I love your quilt. The colours are just beautiful together! I have the same book (101 Quilt Blocks). I really like it and have made a few blocks from it for swaps, I think, but I don’t think I’ve actually made a quilt from it. Little Penguin Quilts shared the same book on one of her recent blog posts. It must have been popular (and still is!).

It sounds like you will have lots of fun with your new ‘toy’. I look forward to following your progress.
Linda said…
Your "old" book and random pull made a gorgeous quilt! I must say I love the idea of this blog hop. I came here from Diann's blog, now I'm on my way to Bea's blog. I see we have a few books in common, and I know you have influenced me to buy 2 or 3 (enabler!). I'm going to go have a look and see what my oldest book is.
Linda said…
PS my oldest is 1994. You've got me thinking about all my books now - I may have to just browse today. :)
I recognized some of your books, they look very familiar to me ;) I love the one you choose (I don't own it), and the quilt top you made from. Pretty fabrics too!
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