I reached my goal and have finished piecing the little red and white blocks. All that’s left is to add a small sashing and border and get the little red and white top quilted, which I think I can possibly get done this weekend. So my little Canada Day quilt is going to be ready for July 1!

Even more exciting to me was that I finished piecing the black and white New York Beauty blocks. I love the block, and would have been happy to make many, many more – if, that is, I had been using colours rather than black and white! But it had to be black and white as it works for the border I have planned – sort of.

Why sort of? Initially I had hoped to get a scalloped effect using the blocks but that won’t work without two of the corners looking very odd as I don’t have even numbers on all four sides. So yesterday afternoon I spent what seemed like forever playing with layouts of the blocks in the border – thank heavens for  EQ! – trying to figure out a way to get that scalloped effect in the border with the New York Beauty blocks and maybe doing something a bit different in the corners. That still didn’t work. Then I started looking at setting them on point, which is also a pretty effect, although the corners will still be a challenge. To do that, though, the inner border that has to be added before the New York Beauty blocks is going to have to be just slightly over an inch wider on the sides than on the top and bottom. I think it will work. This weekend I may get all the on-point triangles printed and then piece all the New York Beauty blocks  together on point. Then I’ll see if I can figure out the corners – although I may just end up cutting squares of the white fabric and appliquéing the corner blocks on to them.

I’m very happy Electric Quilt brought out a version that’s Mac compatible. I use it a lot, but yesterday seemed like a marathon as I tried every which way, rotating blocks endlessly, to get that scalloped effect to work and then trying different things in the corners. I can’t even begin to imagine how much time I would have spent trying to do that with the blocks laid out on top of the bed and so depriving the cats of a favourite afternoon snoozing spot. So I guess they’re really grateful I have EQ available too.

After that, I started looking at fabrics that I might use for the Ribbon Flower collection and – oh, my! I think I may have a small quilt that I’ll make of Ribbon Flowers in different colours before I start on the larger quilt that I already know I want to make and that will involve some fussy cutting/printing. I can’t wait to for the collection to be released!

I was asked yesterday about grading my seams. So I got out the Harpsichord Quilt project box and graded the seams on one block. I think, if you click on it to enlarge it, the picture shows pretty clearly that the top fabric in each little seam allowance has had a sliver cut off.

This was the little pile of clippings from that block. When multiplied by numerous blocks, it’s surprising how much bulk it’s removing from the top. It makes the quilt drape better when the seams are graded and that really makes a difference in a quilt made with numerous small blocks. And it’s really beneficial to hand quilters – just a little less of bulky seam allowances to deal with.

I put the sliver I’d cut from the top fabric of one pair of seams next to the ruler.

“Grading the Seams”

Jake was lolling on the duvet yesterday afternoon.

While Baxter had sole possession of the kitty tree.