July APQ UFO Challenge #7

Oh No!!! The July number for the APQ UFO Challenge is #7.  It is my least favorite one!!!

This project has a story!  A sort of long story!  One of the groups I belong to, made Quilts of Valor a year ago. We presented them last Veterans Day week. I wanted to make one. I found a (free) pattern online. I had a patriotic jelly roll that had been in my stash for years. So I set to it.  The pattern is set as a  rail fence, but has colored diagonal pieces added to the corners, giving it spinning stars.

I was using from my stash, and I cut the diagonal pieces double, thinking it would save a little time. All I got was a whole lot of backwards pieces that I could not use. So I substituted a different gold fabric in some stars. I painstakingly laid out the pieces so I could match the gold fabric That is so the stars were all the same, not 2 different fabrics.

Probably quilter error, but as I laid them out, I realized they did not all measure 8 1/2 inches. Especially not where I had cut and sewn the diagonal pieces. UGH!  I bailed on the project, volunteered to head the committee to plan the presentation and food and put them away in a shoebox. 

In the mean time I had come across a post from Julie at Pink Doxies regarding a quilt she called Hurricane Stars.  See her post here. (Reaching the Summit of Scrap Mountain) I thought, "that will work for my QOV blocks!"  I commented on her post and she replied to me with encouragement to  give it a try. But other things were on my plate and the end of the year was approaching.  I printed out her email reply, made a note of the URL address for the post and put it in the shoebox with the "ugh" blocks.

Enter APQ Challenge list for 2018. I am forever an optimist and have great expectations.  So last week, thinking of the QOV blocks and having all my other challenge items complete. I dug out the dreaded "shoebox".  I un-stitched all the block that I had sewn together. 2 columns of 7 blocks and one partial column of 3 blocks. I thought, "at least I  started!"   Well today, APQ announced the challenge number for July!  Yup!  It's #7....the QOV Block re-do!  My plan is to purchase more gold fabric for the center stars......spinning, hurricane, or ??.  I do not have any more gold that is the right shade and not covered with leaves or pumpkins ( Fall not patriotic!).  But I am OK with that.  So that will be first on my agenda. Get some more gold fabric.....should be easy this time of year to come up with gold /patriotic something!   Wish me luck, and I'll hopefully get it accomplished by the end of July!

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Check out Julie's blog today. pinkdoxies.com.  She has a photo of the finished quilt, in all it's glory and struggles. It's amazing!