Finishing Aqua Scraps and a Flimsy

This has been the quintessential spring week here in the Salt Lake Valley. Take yesterday, for example. It was nice but cool in the early morning. Then around 10:30 am the rain showers started. We headed to the grocery store, and by the time we came out an hour later it was sunny, drying, and there were only a few puffy clouds in the sky. So we put the groceries away, had lunch, and Bruce went to work out in the yard. Two hours later it was raining and thundering again and he had to come in. Then the whole cycle repeated again before dinner. I tell you, it’s hard to figure out how to dress for the day!

I have been concentrating on finishing my One Monthly Goal for April, and I did it! But first, let’s talk about wrapping up Aqua for April in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Here are my blocks for the month.

Top Row, L-R:
4  Selvage 4-Patches, 8.5” unfinished
8  Cracker Blocks, 7.75” unfinished
5  Crumb Blocks (6.5”) sewn with last year’s blocks into 3 13.5” Crumbcake blocks

Middle Row, L-R:
8  Anvil Blocks, 8.5"
12  9-Patch variation blocks, 6.5”
8  Garlic knot blocks, 8.5"

Bottom Row:
1 Selvage Tumbler Row (sewn to two previous rows)
4  String Blocks, 9.5”
2  Bitcoin blocks
Total:  52 blocks

Here is how the Bitcoin blocks are looking to date. I probably should be keeping track of total inches sewn as I would like to use them as a border for a Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilt in the future.

I’m linking up to Angela’s Scrappy Saturday link-up, where the scrappy fun never ends!  In addition, I have a completed goal to share. My April OMG - One Monthly Goal - was to complete the top of my Good Fortune quilt. Good Fortune was Bonnie Hunter’s mystery quilt-along quilt that began in November of last year and was revealed in January.

My quilt top started the month out in pieces - not even all of them at that! I had decided to initially make about half to two-thirds of them to begin with. I wanted to wait for the quilt reveal to see what it looked like and what size I would eventually want.

As it turned out, I did like the quilt quite a bit, but prefer rectangular quilts to square ones. So I made several fewer blocks and eliminated one small green/neutral inner border.  I had to do a bit of quilty math and creative piecing on the final side center borders (inserting a narrow strip where the blue HSTs meet in the center), but it all worked out.

I’ll never get an award for my piecing, but I am proud that I was able to keep those borders from flaring out. I had to remove and resew those scrappy neutral borders just inside the final border, but it was worth it to keep it all squared up. The flimsy measures 54” x70”.

So, I’m linking up to Elm Street Quilt’s April OMG Finish post. And breathing a huge sigh of relief!  I now have a few days before the RSC color for May is announced, so I’m going to piece a backing and select a binding for Good Fortune, then just play with my string scraps for a few days while I think on some goals and projects for May!