Ready to start making squares

I've lost count, I think this is the 3rd layout and now I'm ready to start sewing the blocks together. The blocks with the lights in the middle are set horizontally and the blocks with the darks in the center are set vertically. This quilt will measure, without borders, 85 x 85 and I can not get the 6 rows of darks and 5 rows of lights on my design wall all at once. I hope when the 2 layouts come together there isn't some glaring big clump of the same fabrics in one corner.

here is the partial layout

ready to start sewing squares together.

Hop on over to Vicki's to see what everyone else is doing with their HSTs.

Not enough pieces

I need 36 dark HSTs and 25 light HSTs sewn into squares of 4 each. Since you can't make one without making the other I will have 11 full blocks of light coloured blocks left over. But that's for later, right now I had to stop the design layout and make more strip sets to make the dark quota. Then realized that I have to start my layout all over again so as not to have the new sets clumped in one part of the quilt. le sigh!

The first layout

Each strip set cuts into 8 HSTs and it was difficult keeping them far enough apart on the first layout of this quilt. The dark strips go in the center of a 4 set and are set vertically and the light strips go in the middle orientation and are set horizontally all in an on-point layout. WHEW! After getting this layout up on the board I realized that I can only accommodate 1/2 the quilt at a time. I've had to rethink how I am going to manage this designing challenge and spent yesterday afternoon cutting more strip sets and getting the design wall back into their 8 sets to start again with a better mix of the HSTs. This is to make sure the HST colour sets are not clumped on each side of the quilt but distributed throughout.
Head over to Vicki's to see what everyone else has accomplished.

HST progress

Not too much progress on this quilt as I didn't attend the group this week where I work on this quilt but here are some strip sets on the design wall ready to be cut into HSTs.
Head over to Vicki's and see the other HSTeria participants.

Slow to get started with this HST sew-along. I got lured into purchasing a jelly roll and then dithered about how to use it. Finally decided to make strip sets of 5, cut 10.5" squares from the set, (garnering 4 squares) cutting these squares in half on the diagonal and rearranging them one column horizontal and one vertical. Sized to be a bed quilt. Here is a photo of my start.

the studio reveal

When Vicki decided to do the Real Studio Tour, I got up from the computer, entered the studio and started photographing; no cleaning up at all.
My room is about 13 x 18 and dominated by my huge padded work table which measures 60" x 90". I used to sew home dec which is why I have such a large table. I can iron on it and pin into it. It was constructed to be comfortable for my height. All sides underneath have built in shelving holding my extra machines and all my laundry baskets of fabric. This room was a family room with a vaulted ceiling and a fireplace. DH put hooks on the ceiling to drape my ironing cords to come from above so I could stop tripping on the cord and causing the iron to leap off the table. The back counter space seems always to have stuff on it no matter how hard I try to keep it uncluttered. Currently it has pieces and fabrics from the needle turn applique project I am doing. The piece on the padded table is a hand dyed fabric I did not like and used it for a practice piece for FMQ. That lump of white batting is draped over my fashion fitting double waiting for a sandwich to happen.

The design wall is build on the closed in fireplace space and holding a UFO that just got its borders added and is now ready to sandwich. 

As we continue to move clockwise around the room is the door to the living room, the shelving built into the wall (which we moved back to make this storage deeper) and the curtained entrance to the room from the kitchen hallway.

Next we are looking at my machine desks along the window wall. I recovered my sewing chair and eventually will make dresses to match for my machines. That contraption you see hanging in front of my sewing machine is two clamps suspended on bungy cords to hold the weight of the quilt while I'm quilting on my domestic machine. (they are clamped to each other here to be more out of the way) When we first put these up, every time I entered the room, it looked like some S&M equipment!!  Alas, I don't have any room for a long arm.

Last year, DH, very generously, gave up a corner of his shop to build me a wet/dye area. As it IS in the shop, I have to keep it really neat or be forced  to dust and wash off everything every time I wanted to do anything here. Normally I keep it covered in old sheets. Ain't it pretty, I am so thrilled to have this space to be messy in and dye sure is messy.

Thanks Vicki for hosting this, it was fun to tour everyone's studios. The internet has certainly made a solitary passion much more sociable. 

Snow dyeing

Here in the Pacific North West we typically don't get much snow and if we do it's gone in a trice. The last few weeks have been frigid and we got some snow. When it was still hanging around at lunch time I abandoned my afternoon plans and did some snow dyeing. Here are my results.