Whimsy me!!

Yep. By the end of 2018 I had determined that 2019 was going to be my year for progress on projects already started and taking up space in my quilting room.  And so far, I've finished three projects, Whimsy's Doodles, Define Good, and a needle case. (However, none of these projects were already started and taking up space. But finished counts for something!)
I have completed a "Fractured" quilt top, pattern by Kathy Doughty of Material Obsession.  But that's only on Wednesdays at Maple Street charity quilting.  I go in for about 1 - 2 hours to stitch.  I've been working on this quilt top over a year!

My own Fractured quilt top is still pinned to my design wall... It was started sometime around Sept 2017 according to my digital pics log.  It's so close to being done.  I don't know what stops me.  This pic is dated Jan 2018.  That's really long enough on my design wall. I need to finish it this year!!

Ohh! I did make some 12" X 14" or so table mats!  One was a serious attempted at hoopless quilting for the first time.  I decided I am definitely a hoop / frame quilter.
In the process, I kind of invented a new way of quilting with an embroidery chain stitch.  Every line in the heart mat goes through the three quilt sandwich layers and stitches it all together.

Actually, I made several rainbow table mats/mug rugs.  It was an opportunity to practice free motion quilting on my domestic sewing machine.  Lol, now I wonder what to do with them 😋. Anyone want one?

And I've been attaching a piece here and there on the scrappy elongated hexagon top I'm hand piecing.

Besides the hexagon top, there's been no work done on previous quilting projects this year!!

Instead...

 I've STARTED projects!  Yes, this is the story of my life.  The first step to change is recognizing a pattern, right??  I'm still in the first step 😋.

1.  I've started a Bonnie Hunter "Geese on a String" quilt because I attended her class in Pigeon Forge, TN at Mountain Quiltfest 2019.

2.  And I'm going to participate in a PTQ guild medallion quilt challenge (it's another quilt top.)   I haven't actually started this one but it's there and I intend to do it.

3. I'm joining in on a PTQ "ugly" fabric challenge as well. (It will be a small wallhanging.)

And start #4 is what has me blogging today.

Ms. Watana Cantrell invites quilters over to her beehive quilting studio in Vernon, AL.  She calls her group the Wanna Bees.  Anybody that's interested in quilting is welcome.

This past December, each of us quilters received a beautiful layer cake at the Christmas party. (A layer cake is a precut stack of 10" sq pieces of coordinating fabrics.)  

Then she found an excellent layer cake pattern for us to make in the March class to encourage us all to use our layer cake up!! Isn't she wonderful?!!

The pattern, Ribbon Quilt, is a free download from Jordan Fabrics.

I have really enjoyed this project!!  I wish had gotten a picture of the layer cake before I got started.  There was so much colors and prints in it that I wasn't sure I'd be able to make it into something pleasing.

I did pull some light colored solid reading fabrics from my stash to get a better contrast.

By the time I left the Wanna Bees I had a piece I was very pleased with.

This top has definitely kept my interest.  Every thing about it speaks to me.  The over all pattern looks way more complicated than it is.  

It's all straight line piecing and there are no seams less than 5".  No "tiny" pieces in this quilt and no triangles. 🥰 I LOVE that!

And those TexMex colors and prints!! They grabbed my heart immediately.

I was able to keep some symmetry.  I like messy, but I do usually have a method to my madness.

Part of that method... Some of the blocks had a directional print. I used those for the outside setting triangles.  The horses, dogs, and adobe houses are upside up ☺️.

And I had a plan for the borders.  The rust colored fabric I used for the "ribbons" in the light colored blocks will be used for the 1st and 3rd border.

I was sure I'd be using this lighter sage green with geometric shapes for the 2nd border.  It looked like a perfect match to the geometric patterns in the colorful pots...

But look at that! 

Ugh. 

It does nothing for me. 

It's blah blah BLAH!!

~~~~

but this isn't blah! 🤗

It makes me want to add just a bit more like this maybe..

I love when I can add to a pattern in some way that alters the original and shows my personal touch a bit.

Ok! Time to go continue putting this top together! Thanks for letting me tell you about it.  Isn't it perfectly whimsy-like and me?!?! 😄