QAL, panel, nine patches, meet up

A busy week, starting this, working on this, and then starting another-ever have one of those weeks(or two)?  I did have the finishes for Henry Glass Desire to Inspire which you can see HERE, But I started too many things these past 2-3 weeks. I just couldn't settle down and stick with one project.

At one time a friend gave me a bunch of cut pieces of older fabric, they went into the closet at the time. In the cleaning of my sewing room the past couple months, I came across them and laid them out to take a better look at. Earlier this week I did that and found they were not all 2.5" sqs like I thought. So I trimmed them to 2.25" to have a consistent size, cut some yardage of cream to add to them. Now I am not up on what original 30's fabrics are like, but I think these might be them. These are very thin fabric and just look really old.  I am not one to preserve, but to use. What good are they if they just sit in a box or drawer. So I am sewing them up. Here is what I have so far after a few minutes here and there. It is amazing how much sewing you can get done if it's all cut out.  I am thinking I will sash them, we'll see when they are all pieced.  I will keep them close to the sewing machine for when I just have a few minutes and need to sew:)

Another afternoon I picked these fabrics from the stash to cut for Sandra's Freefall QAL that I want to participate in for the next couple months. She says you can still sign up if you want to check it out.  I chose fall colors for leafs and black for my background.

Yesterday a friend came over so we could take this panel apart and rearrange using only some of the panel to make a wall hanging.  She had 2 of these panels and gave me one as a bribe to help her make one for herself, LOL  She's a dear friend and we have had many good sewing/knitting/crafting times together, so I was more than happy to help her plan it out.  

After cutting, rearranging, adding more fabric from my stash, we each have one almost identical. I didn't have enough of this red, so she used a different one.  So many people are afraid to use a panel, don't be. Just start cutting and adding sashing, borders, and pieced blocks. It's so fun to create with them I think!  Now I have to add mine really is squared up but it is obviously laying crooked on my flannel design wall.  Oh the panel and stash fabrics are all flannel too.

Notice, I added spacers in between the pinwheels, the first purpose of this is to make the piece just the right size to fit together. BUT. it also makes the pinwheels stand out individually.  We had a very fun day!

Another fun think I did this week-I met up with blog friend Wendy from http://www.piecefulthoughts.com/.  She lives just north of me an hour, so I picked her up and we went to a fabric shop called SR Harris-fun fun fun.  Then we had lunch and went to DickBlick and Ikea. All the while we were nonstop chattering. Sometimes you meet people and you either click or you don't, we sure clicked right away!!!  After I got home I emailed her and said well shoot we didn't even get a pic of us together-we agreed we didn't have time as we were talking so much, LOL We'll be getting together again for sure.  I think this is now four blog friends I have met in person.

Ok I think it is time I get busy. Today I am making a backdrop for taking pic's of my quilts outside. I'll tell you more about that later.

Linking at some of the parties on my left sidebar. 

Inquiring quilter