Big Fabric Haul - end of Month 1 update

So where am I on my plans/hopes to make one charity quilt top a week with this fabric for the next year and a half - or until it is finished?

I figured we got the fabric on July 2 - and it did take me a while to kind of get it together and start to make plans.

But I still want to try to stick with one top a week. These are all going to be easy tops with big blocks as much of the fabric is what is commonly called sportswear weight and is it is hard to use these fabrics with small pieces.

Also some of it is hard to iron as it isn’t necessarily all cotton.

I decided to use 10” cut squares - incidentally, because that is what size the precuts are - they come in 10” squares - and I thought, if per chance, a person wanted to do the same thing I’m doing with precuts, it would make it easier to know how it is going to look.

This is where I am - the first few tops are done.

For all of these I’ve used a 10” block.

Click on the arrows to go to the next one. I wrote at the bottom of each picture a bit about each one.

#1

I tried to “up” the level of interest by using some pretty fabric as the sashing. Overall, however, I found it boring - boring to look at and to make. Will work on a different idea!

I could have made it more interesting with a different outer border but I checked and I had nothing in my stash that was the right color. Can you believe it??? It’s true, though!

#2

Much better! I like it!

#3

I also like it - though I think the sashing second strip floating along the edge looks funny.

#4

I like it again - may end up making many with this idea

#5

Not all all happy with how this one looks. The sportswear I used as sashing was much heavier than some of what I used as the blocks and didn’t work well. Will stick with lighter weight for sashing from now on.

As I’ve been cutting up the fabric, I’ve also cut up some remaining pieces into 8” squares not 8.5”.

I’ll figure something out to do with them.

I thought I’d start with the brown since I actually had so many shades of brown and it is easier to figure out something to do with different shades. Otherwise, I have a lot of black and I’ve been letting my brain just “dwell on it” - as to what to do.

As you can see, I’ve been experimenting on how to make 10” plain squares interesting. Maybe there is something here - or will be at some point, anyway- something you can use.

Here’s a summary photo:

What have I learned so far?

It is much better for me to use individual squares as the sportswear and the sashing as quilting fabric. If you look at my quilt top number 5, I am very unhappy with it - it’s all just too thick! I’m not going to redo it, because I’ll just quilt it reasonably heavily - but I won’t do any more like it.

But the other ones, I really do like.

I want to do more in the style of number 5 with floating squares of color - but then I really also like the ones with pieced sashing!

Since I’m not short of fabric at all - well, I may just keep working on browns for quite a while. I’m already starting to play around with other ideas - we’ll see what happens. I want to keep them 1. big squares and 2. very easy. That will keep the “wow” factor of the brown and also fast. At least that is my idea. I’m really enjoying working with the sportswear though - much more than I had thought. Some of it is just wonderful fabric!

I’ll try to update you once a month on that month’s finishes and keep you posted on where I am.

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Be sure to check out what my sis has for you in the store!

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