Block 4. Phew.

My dad has a saying: "Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." I think it should be revised to add "and quilting". My seam ripper got some serious action on this one. I finally had to say "close enough" or it would have never gotten finished.

I need one more project like I need, well, more fabric. (Which, by the way, is both not at all and definitely!) But after successfully resisting the temptation to join the Farmer's Wife Quilt-along, I succumbed to the Summer Sampler Quilt Along.  12 blocks in 4 weeks.  Seems reasonable, right?  I thought so.  (Although Block 4 might just do me in - I'm still working on it.)  I was also hoping the law of inertia might kick in and once at my sewing machine, I'd tend to stay at my sewing machine.  Thus far, it's held and I've managed to make significant progress on my remaining solid log cabin blocks!

As for the Summer Sampler Blocks, I'm using all fabrics from my stash, including some of my most coveted scraps - like the aqua turtle print.  I have no idea who the manufacturer or designer of this print was, but I do love it so!  I've also raided a bin of aqua and red prints that I've been collecting for a pinwheel quilt.  I don't think they'll be too terribly missed and I'm just not feeling the aqua/red love right now.  My plan is to keep the predominant colors aqua and light green with splashes of color here and there.

So far, so good, I think.  It's looking very summer-ish!

I will say that the precise patchwork is testing my patience a bit, and my seam ripper had to make an appearance on Block 3, but overall I'm having fun, and learning a few new skills.

And now, to finish up block 4!

Block 3

Block 1

Nine down. Six to go. I started these blocks this spring with the intent of donating them to the Quilts for Quake Survivors fundraiser - unfortunately I think I've missed every deadline - but hope to finish up this quilt for another charity focused effort.
It's not so much that I sew slowly, but rather finding one-on-one time with the sewing machine can be challenging. I did manage to sort through the rest of my solids and pick out fabrics for the remaining six blocks though. That should count for something!

I have a tendency to start projects without having them fully planned out (which is probably part of the problem, but I can't believe I'm the only one!) I get a general idea and then just dive in. For these blocks, I cut a whole lotta strips and started sewing, choosing colors as I went. After about five or six blocks, a color scheme for the entire quilt emerged, and I went back to my stash to pull together the fabrics for the remaining blocks. There were two blocks that didn't make the final cut, and I wish I had stuck with either off-white or white, not both, but in the end I think it will work out just fine.