Schoolgirl Show and Tell

Today's the day!!!!  By the time you read this, I'll be merrily on my way to a sewing retreat. We are a small group, but that's OK. It's the diehards, to be sure. I booked this many, many months ago with a leap of faith that it would work out. And if it didn't? I rolled the dates. I've been doing a LOT of that lately, but hey - when things open up - we have a spot! 

Hopefully, the internet will be good where we're going, and I'll be able to share what I'm getting done. I have tried very hard to contain everything in one container, and for the most part, I have. But then you add in a bag of clothes - what? I have to pack clothes? A container of food, the sewing machine and accessories, the coffee maker (just in case we don't like the one there), some extra lights (just in case), and well, the car is full. NO, make that HALF full as Dede, and I are carpooling. I get half of the back of the car, and she gets the other half. Even though my car is small, this works. 

I can remember the days when I would pack 5 or 6 bags of projects with zero hope of even getting through one of the bags. Now that those bags of projects don't sit around, I can't just grab and go. Things need to be prepped, and I'm prepped. 

Now let's have a look at the Schoolgirl Sampler homework from last month. There are 72 blocks in total, and we make nine each month. We've two more months of making blocks, and then we get to make the center block and start assembling. My blocks are up to date, but I've packed the sashing stuff in my bag with the hopes of getting that done. OH YES -- I'm determined to keep up-to-date with the groups, and so far, I'm not doing so badly. If only I would have been this "desperate" to keep up in the past!

Let's start with Anne. A very soft look with those burgundies and greens and the cream backgrounds. 

Anne

Barb's blocks are looking great in monochrome shades of brown/beige. I should say that this month's homework was probably the worst one of all the months. There were a couple of tricky blocks, but most of them found a way to make them happen, which is super!!!

Barb

Cathy is learning that slow and steady is the way to go. I don't know why people think that they need to sew fast or that they need to keep up with everyone else. I like to find efficiencies in my sewing, but NEVER fast so that I do shoddy work. It's why I take so long to do anything. I gain more from the efficiencies (chain piecing), cutting multiple pieces simultaneously, focusing, but NEVER from fast sewing. Nope - I'm a snail. 

Cathy

Lucy has a nice color scheme happening with the black and white. This is completely different from the original, which is more like Anne's coloring. 

Lucy

These blocks are Margot's with a nice variety of colors to make things pop. And she's using some busy backgrounds, which look great. That's my nemesis - I don't do well with those busy backgrounds - my brain doesn't like them. 

Margot

This next group is Meg's who is putting a modern spin on her quilt. I have to say that I learned something new from Meg's photo. It came in as a .heic. What the heck is that? My computer didn't like it. Well, thanks to Google, I learned that .heic is an extension for Apple. Of course, they have to be proprietary. However, I quickly learned that I could download a conversion tool, and as long as that tool is on my computer, I can open the pictures. I LOVE the bright colors!

Meg

Ruth has this gorgeous soft palette of pink and blue. Not a coloring I would have chosen, but I like it! And notice that most of the group is up-to-date with piecing their blocks. Most of the blocks aren't hard but remember that these blocks finish at 4", so just the size alone can be a challenge with some of those small bits. 

Ruth

Sharon is going for a very scrappy look and has started to lay out her block and sew them in rows according to the placement in the quilt. Notice how I have randomly chosen the blocks. I could NEVER just start at the first block and go to the end. How boring and predictable that would be!! She does have more blocks that need to be added; perhaps we'll get a more complete picture next month. 

Sharon's block so far

OH  - and these are Sharon's blocks for this month. 

Sharon

The last set of blocks belongs to Zildi. I MUST remember to send her a reminder that she has homework to do this month. She always gets it done but leaves it to the last minute. I think she's had a few sleepless nights because of her homework. I'm bad, but I never lose sleep over a deadline!

Zildi

And here are my blocks for May. I did have to get some more lights as I'm using my scrap box for these blocks, and I'm running out of large enough pieces that I can get contrast with. YES - another learning exercise. Hey, if I'm going to do something, I might as well learn from it. That has changed the coloring a wee bit, but I'm sure once I place them on the design wall, that it's all going to work out. I KNOW it will. 

My blocks

Well, that's it for today. I scrambled to get a few last-minute things on a USB stick if I feel like doing some computer work! Well, that's not an option, I have some writing to do, and I accomplished the rough draft last night. It shouldn't take long to edit it, and we'll see how the internet goes as to whether I can upload the file or not. I may have to wait until I'm back home. 

Try to learn something each and every day! And if you don't know the answer to something - I bet Google does. If you don't know what an acronym means (like .heic), I bet Google knows. Have you ever wondering what we did without Google? I'd be lost. 

Now off to walk the girls in the dark and pack the car cause I'm out of here EARLY. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!