BACK AT IT!

I worked diligently, getting all most of my quilting gear unpacked, but then my sewing machine was calling!  I had a collection of oriental print 2 1/2 inch strips, so I started sewing them together.  When I finished I had an odd sized block of fabric, so I pondered what to do with it.




  While looking for Oriental prints, I came across an unused section of strips, pinned and leftover from a kaleidoscope quilt that I made several years ago.  I cut the 4 repeats into small squares, and made 4-patch units, then added triangles made from a cream/metallic gold print, to make them stand "on point". 
 I needed to make the unit longer, so I cut some green strips to stretch the pieces to fit the two short ends. I also used the cream print for border strips.

Finally I used the remainder of the main print to make borders for the quilt top.  I usually plan things before starting, but this seemed to evolve as I stitched.  I think it takes less time to plan before cutting, but this was an interesting experiment.
Now I just have to find some backing fabric.
After lunch, DH and I did some clean-up in our small front and back garden areas of our townhouse.  We put all the leaves into our "green bin" to be collected tomorrow morning.  Our community does lots of recycling, so we usually only fill a green bag with garbage once a month.  The "green bin" takes all the kitchen scraps, including bones and fat, along with paper towels, tissues, and small amounts of garden clippings. 

 I've always had a compost bin at every house we've lived in, but I can't have one here, so this allows me to recycle, knowing that it will be made into good compost.   My irises and day- lilies are sending out new growth, along with many of the perennials.  My chives are full, and even a parsley plant survived the winter.  Some areas are slower to grow, especially in the front as the area near the door gets very little sunshine this time of year.  We took out a large shrub in the front last fall, so I have to decided what to plant in its place.  It had grown too large, so DH dug it up and transplanted it at a neighbour's home, and we hope it survived its upheaval.
I'll be attending my guild's executive meeting on Wednesday evening, and our community quilts coordinator is planning to bring me some pin-basted quilts to stitch.  It will be great to see everyone, after being away for quite a while.