Spring Break, Or Should I Say, Spring Fever?

Molly thinking about what she can make from these fabric strings

Took a few days off from sewing.  I could say it was spring break, but it was more like a bad case of spring fever!

The weather here in the Upper Peninsula has been unseasonably spring-like, with temperatures reaching into the 50′s nearly every day this past week.  The snow is melting fast, leaving behind icky-looking piles of dirt and leaves on the sidewalks and streets.  I’m almost ready for it to snow again to cover up the mess.

I found myself at loose ends for a few days.  With all the warm weather, what I really wanted to do was to go out and start working in the yard, cutting brush and  cleaning up for spring.  But since there’s still over a foot of snow on the ground,  it’s just not possible yet.

I wanted to start a new project, but couldn’t seem to settle on what to do.  Somebody on the Heartstrings Yahoo Group had suggested looking at these Project Improv quilts on Flickr.  Project Improv is a charity quilt project started by Jacquie at Tallgrass Prairie Studio over a year ago.

These strip quilts are bright and snappy, as well as being inspiring.  In fact, they’ve inspired me to sort out my fabric strips by color, and also by value–lights, mediums, and darks.  So far I’ve done the 2″ and the 2-1/2″ strips.  Tomorrow I need to continue with the 1-1/2″ strips and also the five or six bags of crumbs that have been lurking in the closet for years.  The picture shows Molly surrounded by fabric strips.  Actually she curled up in a box and went to sleep while I was sorting strips, which was probably a good thing.

This sorting project has been very enlightening.  I thought I didn’t have very many lights, but I discovered that I had a lot more than I had thought!  A lot of the mediums could go either light or dark, too, depending on whether I pair them with lights or darks.

So I’m starting to get jazzed about my next project.  Instead of a scrappy look, my focus will be on just two or three colors at a time.

I’m also considering donating finished tops, and letting someone with a long-arm do the quilting.  Machine quilting is hard on my wrists, so I’d rather avoid it when I can.

It’s been said that a messy studio is a sign of a creative mind.  Think I qualify?  Ah well, things will be tidied up tomorrow.

Tagged with: crumbs • Heartstring Quilt Project • Project Improv • spring fever • string quilts • strip quilts

Filed under: Helpful Cats • Sewing Adventures

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