Fabric Tuesday/WIP Wednesday 5/16/12

Since it's an hour and a half before Wednesday, am combining posts.  I so admire Anita Grossman Soloman's make it easier theory of quilting - love the blocks she comes up with, that I thought I'd give a hand to my own.  So I pulled five different fabrics and played with designing a wonky house that has six cuts, six seams to make five houses. 

                                            Here's my first house:

Right away, I had some qualms about my fabric choices.  When I picked the white/blue fabric for the house, it looked way bright to me - but with this combo it seems to sort of blend together.  So I stitched around the edge of the house with a dark thread.  I still wasn't sure so I make a b/w copy.

With the black and white I see it could be better, but it will do for this experiment.  But check out how the ribbon in the wreath disappears in the b/w version.  That's what's neat about this method of checking value.  Any comments would be appreciated.  I'm lousy at color.

I'll see how the other four turn out.  Maybe I'll make a table runner out of these or placemats.
I'm linking to Fabric Tuesday, Linky Tuesday Party and WIP Wednesday.  You can find them on my sidebar.
What are you working on?

Design Wall Monday 5/14/12

After delivering some teeth (don't ask -lol), going to PT appointment, volunteering at Library, I finally had a few minutes to start on my Craftsy blocks for May.  Have two more strips to add to this one, but first I have to fold laundry.

What's on your design wall?  Go on over to Judy's Patchwork Times and check out all the lovelies there.

Stash Report - Happy Mother's Day 5/13/12

It has been some week.  Monday - funeral; Tuesday - babysit Alan; Wednesday - off to Duarte to babysit Frank and Lily; Thursday - St. Anne's; Friday - recover; Saturday - all day class.  Nothing in and nothing out.  Hope to do better this coming week.  Here are my numbers (not that they've changed):
Used/Donated this week: 0.0 yards
Used/Donated YTD: 61.31 yards
Added/Bought this week: 0.00 yards
Added/Bought YTD: 21.5 yards
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Net Decrease YTD: 39.81 yards

To all the mothers I know and share with - Happy Mother's Day!

Favorite Thing Friday 5/11/12

Some more flowers - these curiosities, at least to me. First, here is a hollyhock with the most unusual flower color I have seen for it.  I got the seeds from a plant that had flower the color close to what you see on the edge of the blooms on left.  Imagine my surprise that they came out this dark, rich burgundy instead of rose!

Next is my apple plant (a succulent) kinda of like an iceplant.  This one has two color blooms on it!  I checked to see if there were two plants growing in the same space - Nope.  This is the first time I see two colors on one plant of these.  This also grew from seed.

Who could have guessed?   I'm linking over at Shay's Favorite Things Friday.  Check my sidebar.  Have a great weekend!