Eads Quilt Along #10: Gleaned Eads and Anticipatory Sewing.

Eads Quilt Along #10: Gleaned Eads and Anticipatory Sewing.

Yay, Gleaned is out in the world, which means I can start publicly using it in my projects. Whether it’s a collection that you’re awaiting shipping or a secret sewing project that you have up your sleeves, being able to share something that you’ve been working on is exciting.

I’ve been looking forward to mixing some of my newest fabric, gleaned, into this project. Being able to mix gleaned along with everything else–my old/new stuff and other stuff from my stash–meant it was hard to keep block production up with the fabric combinations that I wanted to explore.

I’ve got a couple more than 1 week’s worth of blocks here. First, I got on a roll and had a hard time stopping.

Second, I’m going to be catching up a little bit since I didn’t show blocks the first couple of weeks in this QAL. My personal goal is to have a sewn-together top to show you by the post for week 12. If you’re with me on that, hoorah–if not, this is a go-at-your-own-pace kind of deal, and I’m happy to cheer you on no matter what your own timing is. No pressure.

Greens, pinks, blues, oranges, mustards…there are a lot of colors going on, and I’m really excited about all of it.

Like I mentioned, my eagerness for mixing in the new stuff has meant an overflow of fabric combination ideas and a hearty stack of pairs ready to be made into blocks. Here’s a peek at where it’s heading.

There’s a big run of greens coming up–including some original architextures that I’ve been holding on to since the beginning. I cannot wait for that.

The new blocks are now up on the wall. It’s kind of amazing how fast this side of the design wall is filling up. It’s also amazing how much the new additions perk up my sewing space. And, I continue to lose sight of the top of my sewing table. But that’s normal.

Tips:

+ I’ve mentioned that Eads is a perfect project for creative cardio, and I’ve loved seeing that in action in your own work. This week that’s especially the case for me as the addition of new fabric allows me to engage in new color and fabric combinations. If you’re feeling a bit stuck, take another dive into your stash or another look at the fabric store to see if some new elements might encourage some more enthusiastic mixing.

+ This week I was personally hit with a the feeling of “I can’t believe I did this!” It seems totally stupid to say that, because I make things all the time, and clearly I set out to do this, but it’s feeling really good to have a project nearing completion that very easily may not have. Does that resonate with you? It should, you guys have been rocking your projects and should pat yourselves on the back. While it’s often too easy to focus on the things that we haven’t done, it’s all the more important to celebrate the things that we have done.

Lastly, we have just got a couple of weeks left, and I’m wondering how you guys have felt about this QAL? I hope that it’s been creatively encouraging and engaging for you. I’d like to remind you that you’re always welcome to shoot me an email (info[at]carolynfriedlander[dot]com) or to leave a comment if you have any feedback that might be helpful as I shape the last couple of weeks, think about future plans and/or consider possible QALs in the future.