It's A Top! Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020

It's a top!

Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020 (PSP20)

88 x 88

I caught the Postage Stamp Pandemic back in June 2020 from Sally (Objects of Design) or maybe I caught it from Gayle (Mangofeet).   

Sally mentions in her January  2021 blog post: "the original source for this infection/confection is Lynn Dykstra at Klein Meisje Quilts where Lynn is working on a series of quilts combining solids and prints. Then the infamous quilt infection super spreader Wanda Sykes at Exuberant Color held several large events where I caught my infection. Of course, Wanda had a very short course with her PSP20 infection while mine lingered for quite a long time." 

(Actually I think Sally meant Wanda Hanson of Exuberant Color)

This was a Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) project for a couple of years. I didn't always have postage stamps cut or a solid in the color of the month to make blocks in some months. 

121  blocks that consist of 64- 1.5 inch (unfinished) squares. That makes for a total of 7744 squares. 

I made this big enough for our bed but now I wish I had made it smaller because it is a lot of fun to cuddle up in a quilt like this on a cold winter day and just look at all the fabrics and play an I Spy game with myself. 

I just sewed the blocks together randomly.

I usually kind of keep the darker blocks for the bottom as I web blocks together. 

And I usually try to keep the lighter blocks for the top.  Athough this quilt is square so it doesn't make any difference as to top, bottom or sides. 

I spy a chocolate chip, a couple of different cats, peppermint candy and bottle caps. (Do bottles still have caps that require a church key opener)?

And sew on...

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

 

Scrap Processing: Orange Scraps

Orange was the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month of August. 

Monkey Wrenches

7.5 inch finished

I also made a few with yellow backgrounds because I just need a few more on yellow in order to make a kiddo sized quilt. 

I turned some orange 3.5 inch squares into Snowballs with light corners. These will be combined with some little 3.5 inch Nine Patches with light corners. 

And the ends of 3.5 inch scraps cut 1.5 x 3.5 were made into Switch Plate blocks

Then I made 6 Postage Stamp Pandemic (PSP) blocks. I've been making these off and on since 2020.  My target is 121 blocks and I think I am now up to 97 blocks.  

And sew on...

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Purple Scraps Part I

Monkey Wrench 

10 inch blocks

Purple is the July Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month.  I don't have many purple scraps. I'm going to be away from home a couple of times this month so I thought I would dig right in and complete as many blocks as I could this week from those purple scraps.  I just used smaller scraps that were already cut at the width needed to make my blocks. 

The Monkey Wrench is made of purple and neutral 4.5 inch unfinished HSTs.  Most of the rest of the pieces came out of my little box of 2.5 inch squares. 

At year end these will be made into comfort quilts for kids - 24 blocks to a quilt in a 4 x 6 layout.

Dandy Quilt Blocks

12 inch finished

I've been making these with scraps in the color of the month plus the color complement for the star points and other half of the HSTs. My goal is 30 blocks in a 5 x 6 layout for an adult sized comfort quilt.    I made QSTs with the star point cut offs. I have been collecting the little QSTs for a couple of years for my version of a vintage quilt. 

Horizon Blocks

4.5 x 9.5 (finished)

If I have a scrap already cut 5 inches wide and at least 9.5 inches in length then I make a Horizon Block. I had some gray in with the purple scraps so might as well make those scraps into blocks too.  I really should count how many I have and figure out how many are needed for a quilt. I have quite a pile of these now and they will probably be made into quilts for kids. 

Windmill Blocks

8 inches

Can be cut from 2.5 or 4.5 inch scraps.   I'm making them with dark and light scraps in the color of the month. The light is the background. 

8 Patch

6 x 8 finished

I have quite a few of these now. I should take count. They will be made into donation quilts. 

X and +

7.5 inch blocks

Made with 3.5 and 2 inch scraps. I've been making these for a couple of years. I think my goal is 99 blocks and I think I only have 17 more blocks to go. Most of those will be brown. I've already picked through my 3.5 inch squares and found sets of four brown squares to complete my remaining blocks.  

Postage Stamp Pandemic (PSP20)

8 inch blocks

I've been making these for a couple of years - at the start of the pandemic in 2020. . I think my goal is 121 blocks and I may have over one hundred blocks now. Little by little...

Then I have 3 inch Snowballs with light corners. I'm going to alternate them with some old 3 inch Nine Patches I have with light corners.   The switch plate blocks (3 x 5) can be cut from 3.5 or 1.5 inch scraps.  There's a 3.5 inch width strip for a future Chinese Coin quilt made with pieces less than a 3.5 inch square and 3 inch Square in Square blocks with white on black corners. 

And sew on...

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Pink Pieces and Parts

Pink is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month. So far this month I made a couple of twin sized tops and a baby one using up some small chunks of pink. This week I worked on using what was left of the small chunks after making those tops and a few other small bits and pieces of pink. 

Three x and + blocks that finish at 7.5 inches. 

Three Buckeye Beauty blocks that finish at 6 inches. 

Three Postage Stamp Pandemic blocks that finish at 8 inches. 

Six Puss in the Corner blocks with light corners that finish at 6 inches. 

Three Horizon blocks that finish at 4.5 x 9.5

Eight Bow Ties that finish at 3 inches. 

Two Wonky Log Cabin blocks with black background novelty centers that finish at 12 inches. 

Two Heartfelt slab blocks that finish at 12 inches. 

Two pink Hollow Nine Patches that finish at 7.5 inches.   Then I made a few in other colors because I had some 3 inch squares and some 3 inch width scraps laying around ready for these blocks. (Now I'm going to cut the rest of the 3 inch width scraps in half lengthwise for some 1.5 inch scraps because I have several RSC projects going that take 1.5 inch scraps). 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

 

This, That and The Other Thing and The Other Thing

I like to work on lots of different projects at one time. And that means that a lot of time sewn pieces and parts pile up behind the sewing machine and when blocks are completely finished they sometimes pile up at the end of the ironing board waiting for the final go under the iron. Yesterday I ironed. And this is the story of what I found to iron. 

The Kentucky Crossroads blocks were made in January. I made one back in November to see if I actually could make the block because it was inspired by a vintage quilt. The plan is to use civil war reproduction scraps. 

Postage Stamp Pandemic

I think I now have about 80 or 90 or so of these 8 inch blocks. 

Lynn's Legos

These are 13 inch Lego blocks made Lynn's (Klein Meisje Quilts) way from 1.5 x 2.5 pieces. I cut those pieces when I have scraps - kind of the end of the scrap fabric chain. My little collection box of pieces was full so I decided to see how many blocks were in there.  This is a pretty slow moving quilt for me and that's okay -- no hurry,, no worry.  (2023 or bust? It's just a load of scrap. 

Hearts

I belong to the Sunshine Online Quilt Guild ( a group of us who like to make and donate quilts). It has been a tradition to make six inch hearts to send to a member when a parent, spouse or child passes away.  Someone's father recently passed away and bright hearts were suggested. I used some butterfly scraps. Butterflies are symbols of metamorphosis.  I need to find an envelope and mail these now so they can wing their way to Bev. 

Speaking of hearts...I also made some four inch Hearts for me. I've been reading up on genetic cardiac disorders, sudden cardiac death (SCD) and sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (SADS) and that's what prompted me to make these.   I'm making them in reds and whites. I'll alternate light hearts on dark and dark hearts on light blocks. 

Hearts

The 2.5 inch flippy corners trimmed off of the Hearts were made into HSTs and then sewn into strips for my version of a vintage inspired quilt.  I just whack off those flippy corners with a scissors so they are not precisely trimmed so some HSTs might be wonky as well as the strips and I'm all right with that. 

I've been working on six inch Double Four Patch blocks in an effort to use up a lot of brown scraps. 

I have now finished all 120 blocks - 60 with dark chains and 60 with light chains. I'm going to put these blocks away for now into my "Some Assembly Required" (SAR) box because I just have too many tops piled up right now waiting to be quilted so don't want to keep adding to that pile right now.  And I've already fixed my two boo-boos that had to go under the ripper and needle. 

I also made Jacob's Ladder blocks (webbed together at the moment) with brown scraps so I have a lot of 3.5 inch and 2 inch brown and cream scraps - scraps of scraps- you know how those scraps breed faster than rabbits.  Well, anyway, I used up some of those brown 3.5 inch scraps and made some Four Patches I matched up mostly with yellow scraps since yellow scraps were out since it is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month. 

Some of those brown 3.5 inch scraps were cut into four 2.5 x 3.5 pieces and matched up with some pieces from the Eight Patch project box. I have quite the accumulation of these blocks now. 

3.5 inch brown scraps less than a square were sewn into strips for future Chinese Coins quilts. Gosh I have quite a collection of these strips too. 

I used the brown and cream 2 inch scraps to make Little Bow Ties to add to my collection. I had to fix one little boo boo. 

I used the 3.5 inch and 2 inch cream scraps left over after making the Jacob's Ladder and Double Four Patch for the center and corners of Puss in the Corner blocks. The 2 x 3.5 inch sides were cut from homespun scraps left over after making a few quilt tops with homespuns and plaids.   These light cornered Puss in the Corner blocks will alternate with some dark cornered ones already made. 

A few miscellaneous blocks that got made when I came across scraps of a certain size. Horizon blocks are made from 5 x 9.5 scraps and the Bear Paws from 2.5 and 4.5 scraps. I have quite the collection of both of these blocks and at year end (if not before) will make them all into donation quilts. 

I also put some longer brown 2 inch scraps into the Trip Around The World (TATW) box. And there's a pile of brown 3.5 inch squares for the Squares Bin and a pile of two matching 3.5 inch squares for future Four Patches. There's a little pile of 2.5 inch squares for the Squares Bin and a few pieces for the box of Legos. 

And finally, I ironed some wonky QSTs and trimmed the dog ears. Someday they will all go into my version of a vintage inspired quilt. I have quite the accumulation of these and a center block made. Won't these be fun to put together!

And sew on...

 

Postage Stamp Projects

Double Irish Chain has been one of my Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) projects. My goal is 63 nine inch (finished) blocks. Now I have 55 blocks and hope to get all 63 finished by year end. I've been using light brown or cream for the background and dark brown for the chains.  These will be sashed with cornerstones. 

I took the PSP20 (Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020) blocks out of my RSC projects after I used most every color of solid I had. I've been making these for quite awhile and at various times I have run out of 1.5 inch squares and solids so project gets set aside until I have something to work with. Along the way I won some solids and someone sent me a gallon bag of 1.5 inch squares.  I recently found some purple solids in with my pansy fabrics so will use those to make blocks and decide where to go from there. I now have 89 blocks and am aiming for 121 and a BIG quilt. 

So, these are two projects that won't be in my RSC 2022 list of scrappy blocks. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday