Finding our own way with Stars For A New Day

[Cheryl K.]

As Frank Sinatra sings, "Regrets.....I've had a few.."

Does anyone have any regrets starting the 2009 BOM? I know that I have about a million of them ...all in the shape and size of 1 1/2" half triangles!! :lol: If I didn't love, love, love my Feathered Star (thanks Sherry), I would have moved on weeks ago.

I finished piecing the larger March pinwheels but have yet to attach them to the quilt center. Can one screw up pinwheels? Yep. But they are done at last.

My sewing room is a disaster. Since I am working with my stash, I have spent LOTS of time sorting through it and pulling about piles of fabrics..now all on top of my storage shelves. I will try to have it in an organized pile for the entire year while we work our way through this project. :roll:

My biggest "not gonna do this" moment came after cutting the odd pieces for paper pieced triangles. The first time I did HSTs, I did it Sue's way. Chop, cut, peel of paper, then piece the suckers together. I understand the technique and it works fine. But I personally hate chopping off odd shapes from my yardage and prefer cutting off strips. I guess it's a personal thing and I could cut off the entire 7" or so sized strip and use it up in future months. But if I didn't use them again, I am left storing odd sized pieces inside my stash piece or another spot. The smaller my scrap yardage the more likely it gets wrinkled, squished and overlooked.

I tried the Thangles paper pieced patterns for my first 6" April star block. They work well with larger pieces and I can cut 1 1/2" strips off yardage for both squares and HST shapes, which I like. I prefer not to cut one strip 1 7/8" for the triangles and another size at 1 1/2" for squares. But I still thought pulling paper off the tris was a pain (even with the smaller stitch length). I then tried just using my Easy Angle Ruler and cutting the triangles. This ruler has been around for ages and you can cut the same size strip for your square and triangles alike. This has been my favorite method and I think I will continue with it. Yes, I have to handle the little pieces carefully when stitching the diagonal seam...but I have to be careful with pieces this small no matter what I am doing. No paper mess at least.

So I made great progress this week organizing this project. I have the printed monthly instructions in page protectors in a binder. I numbered each block and placed the properly cut pieces in numbered snack sized ziplock bags inside the page protectors. Each month I will choose 3-4 colors and cut 3" strips from my stash pieces. From those strips, I'll cut 2 1/2" squares for the blocks that need them, then cut the remainder of the piece to the 1 1/2" strips to stack and cut squares and HSTs. Each finished star block goes into the month's page. And sewing? Straight stitch plate, fine thread and yes to pressing the seams open. It's sloooww going.

Some of you had the great idea of getting those border stars out of the way. I have followed your lead and those little guys are also cut and packaged. I also eliminated all the HSTs, preferring to use the rectangle and square method that makes flying geese for the star points. THANKS!

Don't throw Flying Geese at me yet, I haven't figured that out.

Sue's instuctions are so thorough and the assembly pictures are great (still use those). Without her attention to detail, I would have stopped after the Feathered Star. So THANKS SUE!! For now, I am sticking with the BOM even though I may be at my own pace and in my own way. Life gives me enough "have-tos", I can tweak this a bit.

Pics will follow...eventually.

[Cheryl K.]

I'm still finishing up the 2008 BOM! I wouldn't say I regret starting the 2009, but all I've gotten done is the center star, and making a pile of fabrics to pull the rest from! I probably won't get back to it until later this summer, but I know it will get done, probably in 2010! Kathy B.

[Cheryl K.]

Don't know that I regret starting but I wish that I had use flying geese in some of the place with HSTs.

[Marion D.]

kmouse, it sounds like you have had an....educational year! I wish you luck!

In February my daughter got married, and faced with the prospect of friends and family seeing my house for the very first time, I panicked! All of my stash was in the family room. All over it! Then I got a latte, then I got a plan. I hired someone else to clean! Then I went through every fabric in my stash, wrapped it around my 5 X 24 ruler, and stacked it neatly on the shelf by color. Now when I want a particular color, it is easy...and things stack right back. Of course, the whites, bieges, and Christmas fabrics are stacked every which way on the other shelf, but I guess the other daughter will have to get married first. (She is 15.) All the itty bitty scraps I put in a shoe tree. (Turns out all the yellow is there!)

I highly recommend this -- it has made my life so simple!

I can send a picture it you want. One day I will put it on my profile, but right now I have to take my daughter to the orthodontist and I will probably forget.

[Margo C.]

As Frank Sinatra sings, "Regrets.....I've had a few.."

KMouse, I think you just mean "I'll do it MY WAY!" :lol:

I'm glad that you haven't given up on the project, but have found what works for you. I hope you enjoy the process from now on!

[Annis C.]

No regrets yet on the 2009 BOM except for the fact that I have 2 in progress, a king size and a lap quilt. My regrets may come later in the year when it's holiday time and I don't have time to finish them. I will probably skip ahead on the king size since I'm doing the final rounds differently so I won't be under so much pressure. I'm making lots of flying geese in place of some of the half-square triangles. Maybe some regrets on the 2008 BOM. I'm trying to finish it this week before my company arrives for a month. My blocks are finished and all of the pieces are cut for the sashing. I'm putting off doing other things that I really should be doing instead, but it will all be worth it to see the finished quilt.

[Sally M.]

I finished through May yesterday, and have the rest of the Sawtooth Stars ready to sew. I found a secret. While visiting my grands (boy-girl twins who just turned 10) I let them sew on the lines of the blocks I had taken with me. After I did the cutting, some during a 13 hour boat ride while getting their new boat to their marina which included 7 hours on the ocean), I found my grandson loved helping me pull off the paper. We did that at two of his sister's soccer games and during the ocean part of our trip. He even said if I had more to do I should send them to him and he would pull off the paper and send them back. I told him this quilt, the first I have ever made for our bed, will be filled with love with all his help. I'll be gone several weeks through the summer so I am trying to complete the outer blocks in the next few weeks. My goal is to have it ready for Christmas. I'm using the quilt fabrics due to time constraints but wish I had worked through my stash. Congratulations to all who are doing that.

[Keith D.]

No regrets here... except maybe one. And it's happening right now.

I'm making mine with mostly scraps and a few larger pieces from my stash - I'm not purchasing anything for my BOM2009. And I'm using some orphan blocks and UFO's - which means I'm customizing a little.

For example, I'm using some orphan applique blocks for the 6" blocks we're doing right now. So I'm not sharing in the trials and tribulations that others are going through. I can cut my applique blocks to the exact 6 1/2 inches I need. As a result, I don't quite feel like I belong. And I'm not learning all the things I could be learning from the BOM.

I am going to do the geese and I'm doing the border stars just like the Sue's great pattern so I'll fit in better in another couple months.

I'm so happy I'm doing the BOM - I just feel like I'm cheating a bit... And actually I think that's okay. My quilts are my own little world.

[Frances L.]

kmouse,
I gave myself permission to not be done on time. I have the feathered star done and the setting triangles sewn on. I have the four patch borders done but haven't done the math for the floater strips yet. My pinwheels are done but not sewn together yet. The April blocks are still FG and HSTs. May's blocks haven't even been started yet. And I'm going to be in California until some time in June. Then I have some other quilts that I have to get done before starting the BOM again. Maybe I'll get caught up in July. "Life is what happens when you're busy making plans"
Frances who just spent 3 days driving from Austin to Sacramento (I'll see my mom, MargaritaW on Friday)

[Margo C.]

Keith I hope that you and everyone else continue to march to your own drummers!! All of the individualized quilts from last year were wonderful, and I'm sure that yours will be too! I'm looking forward to pictures when you are ready to share.
There are no quilt police here so do what makes your heart sing!

[Cheryl K.]

Keith I hope that you and everyone else continue to march to your own drummers!! All of the individualized quilts from last year were wonderful, and I'm sure that yours will be too! I'm looking forward to pictures when you are ready to share.
There are no quilt police here so do what makes your heart sing!

I have to agree. I read the Show & Tell and celebrate other's progress. Certainly some of the individual changes have "given me permission" to do the adjustments I wrote about earlier. But even then I had the feeling that I was cutting corners or as Keith said, "cheating". It's not cheating at all...it's our own way. I am just not used to doing it.

It's just good to know that I am not the only one.

Back to the sewing room.

[Linda N.]

As I've been fighting with my saw tooth stars, I regret starting! But then I look at the lovely feathered star, the border stars and all those saw tooth stars and I'm very happy that I started this project. I'm hoping that the servicing and "tweaking" of my sewing machine will make the remainder of the stars easier to work on.

[Denise L.]

None of those are cheaters they are "wish I had thought of that ideas".

I fell in love with the quilt in Houston and had to have it as is. I too have "cheated" and used some fabric in my stash that I love so a bit of me is here and there in the quilt.

We all march to the tune of a different drum but our parade will be spectacular!

denise

[Pat L.]

While I don't regret having started the 2009 BOM, I find it frustrating that for me it seems to be very time consuming. I am using Sue's paper pieced method and that is working. I am learning as I go, so that is good. Will this be finished on time, NO. I just finished April, still need to trim, May is ready to start the stitching, removing paper, etc. But when I when I look at my feathered star, I push on. Just wish I had more time to devote to it but I pleased with my progress.

[Pat L.]

I definitely have NO regrets working on the 2009 BOM, I love every bit of it, I've just been following the instructions every month. I have about 1 1/2 hours to devote to it every evening, so usually before the middle of the month I'm done with it, and can work on other projects. I also bought the fabric kit for it at the IQF last year because I felt I'd be overwhelmed in learning to make a feathered star "AND" having to pull fabric for all of it from my stash, so to be sure that I would not get too distraught I took the easy way and bought the fabric kit for that reason, but mostly because I loved the colors of it all. So far it's been a wonderful learning experience for me. I do, however, still have yet to finish the '08 BOM, I'm still working on the inside borders for it. Little by little, it'll all get done. Heidi