Carol in WI

Iceblossom, I love your finished quilt...I'm so glad that the vision problems have been corrected enough that you can continue to enjoy your passion. So many beautiful finishes posted on this site!!

Iceblossom

Thanks for the kind words, Carol in WI I'm not done yet but I am racing towards a finish!

The border is going along pretty smoothly but I did a recount of pieces remaining and I seem to be short some 4-patches, or they got separated but I will have to triple count today. I made all she told us way back in Clue 2?? was it, and I made a couple of extras because of my extra row. Worst case is I have to make a few extra... I still have lots of little skinny pieces of red and neutral left. If I have to blend in an extra set of fabrics I want to spread it across the remaining 3 sides and not all concentrated on one side.

Iceblossom

Well I have done quite a bit of clean up and looking and I've got to think somewhere there are at least 10 missing, so one clip of sets... I can accept that I guesstimated wrong when I made some extra but it is interesting that having made the correct count at some point that 10 are not there. Yes, I did check the trash bag near the sewing table -- sometimes stuff falls in there unnoticed.

Sewing table looks better than it did, and at this point it will be faster to remake than keep looking. I know, of course, as soon as I make the replacement units I will turn around and the missing ones will fall on my head. Small price to pay for getting towards completion!

joe'smom

I'm making slow progress on my corner units, and have now started to join my horizontal sashing rows. I'm excited to see my quilt put together and start working on the border!

Belfrybat

IceBlossom -- lovely colours and I like your tweaks to get the stars around the cornerstone. Well done, you!
QuiltMouse, take this from someone who obsessed over getting the hues all separated but messed up with some side by side -- they won't be noticed in the quilt as a whole.

Iceblossom

I've gotten my missing 4-patches done, the borders are going together much faster and smoother than I expected. I have the top set done, am working my way down the long side. I counted the extra block/sashing to be 7 additional 4 patches each long side. I am still having problems visualizing where they will be alternating around the corners, but worst case is I have 3 correct corners and one off.

For anyone else doing an extra row, the narrow long inner border was just enough for (2) WoF strips.

I was rummaging around in my fabric and came across that green stripe (along with a handful of other greens) I was looking for back in November -- yay! I found it but if I had found it before I probably would have green stars instead of gold. Also found a small handful of reds that would have been perfect to add. Grrr. Too late now, but they have been combined with the current leftovers for future projects.

quiltmouse

Thank you for the encouragement @Belfrybat

I have 2 dark green half yards in the dryer. The fabric order with the new neutrals was supposed to arrive Mon 3/3. The USPS depot prior to my small town is 70 miles. All day it was in transit between me & thee. Perhaps the truck broke down and the package is stuck on a tow truck or at the repair shop. Maybe even by the side of the road. Might hope be extended to arrival today? Time will tell.

Iceblossom

Well, the long side did come out as I thought/feared -- still not sure if it will correct itself... but as I say worst case I have 3 corners correct and one corner a little off.

As Bonnie designed with 5 blocks across, the rows stop and end on the same color, adding my extra block means my long sides end on different colors. I can turn the corner just fine, and the one after that... am hoping that by the time I get up top I am matching.

We'll all know in a day or two!

Iceblossom

Knowledge is power! The checkerboard made it around the edges just fine. The extra row added 7 extra 4-patch units for each long side. The way Bonnie designed things, each row (not including the corner) starting and stopped on Red. With my extra row, the lengths ended with one end each red and white. The Bottom row then started out with White. But turning the corner and going back up the same number (7) of 4-patches and everything worked out just fine.

I was feeling like the border would be a horrible slog and it wasn't bad at all -- making the 4-patches was the slog!

I'll have more to say and some pictures to show after the hubby gets up and I can use the design bed.

Iceblossom

Just before the finish! First top and bottom, then side and side.I'd have to go back and check the directions, but I think Bonnie had us put on each border as it came, so first the narrow Neutral, then the 4-patches, then the alternating squares. There are some good reasons for doing so, less thought required putting together the 4-patches and checkerboards than the way I did it. I am still just amazed at all the ways things can get twisted together and done wrong when you are just using two colors! The same way I feel I get better results by putting the sashing on around the blocks (so I don't have a big piece and a narrow piece), I just don't like going around and around like that and finds it gives a chance for ripples, loose seams, stretching or other issues.

First, I did stay stitch all the edges on the "bed" of the quilt before I attached the narrow binding on the long sides. Then I put on the long sides, with my extra row, the 2 WoF neutrals was just long enough.

Then, as I constructed the borders I put together the alternating red/neutral squares with the 4-patches. When I got up around 8-units long, I stay stitched both sides (4-patches and checkerboards). The top and bottom borders are made as a unit of the narrow, 4-patch, checkerboard. The long sides already have the narrow on the quilt and are the long sides plus corner units. With the outer stay stitching already done, these border seams will be the last of this project!!

And you will notice (maybe) in my picture that I am using my color coded clips to tell me which end belongs to which side is really an easy-to-do improvement in keeping me the right directions.