Putting it Together

 I admire some people whose blogs I read that have full time jobs, family and gardens to which they attend and still have time to produce prodigious amounts of art. Well, that's not me. I seem to get slower and slower and less productive the older I get. Or is that just an excuse?

But I am putting together my big circles in a square piece. I am piecing it in two sections and will quilt it in two sections that will then get sewn together to make one big piece. Each half measure 40" x 45" and sewn together will be 80" wide.

 

I finished piecing the first half and am working on the second. I am very much enjoying looking at the squares again. Sometimes I can't remember how I did that stitch or admire how those colors worked together. It is fun, even if am am having to match seams, something not much done in art quilts.

These next three photos were taken of my car's windshield on a drizzly day while waiting in the car for someone. I thought the patterns were so beautiful and each droplet unique. If you click on the picture for a larger view, you see even more patterns surrounding the bigger drops. Then click again for an even closer look. Hmmm...a quilting design?

I am linking up with Off the Wall Friday.

Home again, home again

 I returned home last night from my Florida home to my CT home. In other years we came home to dreadful weather, but this year it is glorious, warm and sunny with Spring flowers and trees starting their magic. 

I didn't do a lot in Florida that was creative. I did a little watercoloring and a little hand stitching, but not a lot. It was so easy to be lazy down there and we throughly enjoyed ourselves soaking up the good weather. 

I thought I had taken a picture of my little circles in squares, but I only had a partial. It was vey hard to get good color. It was either too dark or too washed out. Here is the best I have. 

I thought I should do some samples to see how to piece this thing. I am going to do it in two sections, eleven squares wide which will sew down to 42 inches.

On the first one I sewed some left-over squares together with a walking foot and a quarter inch seam. Seams were pressed to one side and then machine quilted a quarter inch away from each seam. I didn't like the way it looked. Too bulky in the center.

Then I pressed the seams open. Much better.

 This will be an ongoing project, but I want to get it finished soon. It occupies my whole design wall and I have two art quilts that are due soon.

I'm glad to be back blogging and will try to post once a week. I am linking up with Off the Wall Friday.