Summer Stitching - Circles and more

 

I’ve been sewing a bit every day, but can’t seem to muster the time (or energy) to post. 

 I have finished 220 of the 238 appliqued circle blocks needed for my Betsy quilt. I am now waiting for “Maria’s Sky” to arrive to finish the final 18. They finish 4” and no fabric was duplicated. Yes, that amounts to 476 Betsy Chutchian fabrics! Haven’t decided on a border yet. I’ve had fun with the circles. Mindless applique each morning helps get me ready for the day! 

I am not a ruler collector. I have used the same 12 ½” Optima ruler for years. When the numbers faded away, I was able to find one online but it came in a set of 4 different sizes. I took the smallest (4 ½”) one and taped a circle in the center to make the trimming of these little guys a breeze. 

I cut the backs out of all my circles and sent them to a friend who loves to applique circles as much as I do! 

 And, since there was a lull in the circle applique, I decided to start something new. I have wanted to make another “stonewall” (aka “tile”) quilt for quite a while. The center of each block will be some sort of bird surrounded by simple, random shapes of early reproduction prints. And yes, I am once again utilizing the potholder method. There will eventually be thirty two 9” finished blocks and one 18” block in the center. This should keep me busy for the rest of the summer!  

 Hope you are all getting some summer stitching in.