Sometimes ...........

Sometimes you miss the mark and wonder why you thought something was a good idea and why you wasted your time.

I made these Sunday after I went out to get the red Kona cotton. As soon as I cut the red strips to go around the chicken squares I knew I was going down the wrong path. But I kept going and it didn't get any better.  I thought the hanger wouldn't look right  in the middle of the square so I added a triangle and  thought "Oh it looks like a barn".  I kept going and layered them with batting and quilted them and I added batting to the backing and layered everything right sides together and turned them right side out and finished them with more stitching    around them.  What was I thinking?
I decided that I didn't even like the rooster fabric all that much and I would scrap the potholder idea.
I was going to cut the rest of the fabric into I spy squares and add them to the several stacks of I spy squares that are all different singles or pairs.

So.... when I was cleaning up and putting boxes away I saw this black and gray plaid through the side of a clear plastic box.
I've had his for a long time and I think I used it for backing.  Once, in an attempt to rid myself of fabric I was never gong to use for a quilt I made some (ugly) reusable grocery shopping bags.
 I had some chicken squares already cut and I cut 4 1/4 inch red squares to cut on the diagonal and some strips of the black and gray plaid.  That's a little better; I don't hate them. I will make pot holders with the rest of the squares I have already cut. I will use up all that black and gray plaid; that's a plus.

I'm not sure why I thought this fabric would make great pot holders for my kitchen. The Squares are not printed square and they are small (5 inches) and close together. The chicken images are not crisp and distinct, they blend right into the background.
The bright side is I don't hate the new design, I am using up the gray and black plaid, I needed the red Kona cotton anyway, I have some new additions to my I Spy packs  and I can use some new pot holders and I will have some potholders to give away to people who like chickens.

I also have a new resolve  to resist buying fabric that is not something I need in order to  finish something on which I am actually working. I mean it!

Heartbeat Done Binding and All

 My sewing space got cleaned up enough to work in it. I had to do something in order to finish this quilt but I am not really satisfied with it. I got so discouraged that I put everything away with only a little reorganization.

This is my first finished quilt for 2019. I had been waiting to get out and buy the binding and I  finally went shopping last Friday. I was sure I would find what I wanted at the quilt shop but I didn't. I bought something anyway but by the time I got to my car I was having second thoughts. I stopped at Joann's on the way home and found something but by the time I got home I wondered if I might have something better in my  stash, and I did. I didn't consider it before I shopped because I had something specific in mind.

This is a closeup of the binding on the front of the quilt. I had stitched it on the font and turned it to the back and fused it down and then stitched by machine in the ditch on the front.




















This is a corner on the back. The binding is a little wider in some spots, probably because my seam allowance was a bit narrower in places. However, it is all stitched down and it isn't going anywhere.

 These are two shots of the whole 42 inches square quilt.






















I shot the photo below from the side to show up the quilting a little better. The color in this one is a little more true; it really isa little more turquoise .

Now I need to give some serious thought to what I can do to make my space more user friendly.  I am not ready yet to give up on quilting but I find myself doing less and less.