Windblown Flowers

I decided I needed something scrappy and bright to play with after all those drab shabby chic samplers I finished off a couple of weeks ago. But what? I have so many blocks waiting for something to happen to them, it's hard to choose.

So as I was going through my box, I discovered these some painted blocks that I bought in Paducah oh so many years ago when I went. (Click on the picture for a larger view of the blocks.) So in honor of Dawn, I thought I would work with them!

I really didn't buy much when I went to Paducah that year. I was so overwhelmed with the heat that year, the people and the sheer number of the quilts, and how much money I *didn't* have to spend. On the last day, I finally made it to the outlying areas. I can't remember what the name of the building was where this lady was sitting in a corner booth in the very farthest corner, and there weren't 't many people in that building, either. She was bent over her work, and it looked like she was painting. The closer I got, the more I could see that she was indeed painting. But what?

She was sitting there with her "fabric medium" and regular paints and painting things that she said had inked. You could buy the blocks painted or unpainted. I thought the wildflowers were lovely, so I got those first. The more I thought about how soft they looked, and how I was SURE I couldn't ever paint anything as lovely, I decided to get the Sunbonnet Sues that she had done as a "book" with the actual Sunbonnet Sue story. I think there are 26 of the Sues. I can't remember what year this was - maybe 1995 or 1996? There weren't the nice embroidery machines then for the home embroiderer, and there definitely weren't any fabric inks. You had to do it the old fashioned way with "fabric medium" and paint. So I think it's high time that these were completed don't you?

I've also been toying around with the idea of using the windblown block adaptation from Sharyn Craig's Great Sets book. I just love this book, and so far, I think I've used an inkling of an idea from almost everyone of the sets she recommends. It was perfect for these little blocks, too! This book really helps you get excited again when you have sets of blocks and you don't know what to do with them.

I started out using a light cream for the lightest color in every block and by the time I had four blocks cut out, I realized it was just too blah! I wanted color, darn it! So I just started pulling fabrics from the bin that I liked. I only reject a color if I had used it three times already. I also chose a dark, a medium and a light for each color of the block. Old time color placement makes you work hard! I had no idea what the borders were going to be, but I knew I didn't want just a band of color, and I must have gone through about 20 or so pieces of fabric before I landed on this green fossil fern and lavender piece for the outside edges. Hubby was a bit concerned about the "wild colors" when he saw it hanging on the wall waiting for cutting, but now he really likes the way it "shines" around the edges. So do I!

This little quilt ended up being 36" X 41", just the perfect size for my Queen's Powder Room display wall. Now, all I have to do is quilt it. But, that can wait for another day!