Now that I'm firmly ensconced in my new room, I'm finally working on a number of projects that have been quietly percolating beneath the surface for a while...through the year of house showings, the eventual move, the settling in. I have quite a number of in-progress quilts (as a number of you keep reminding me), but only about half of them still hold my interest and I've decided to no longer feel guilty about the rest. They're gone. *Histoire*! Ok, maybe not literally, but I'm moving on. I don't know if it's my new space, spring or what, but I've been busy prioritizing the ones I plan to finish and starting a few I've been thinking about.
As I've mentioned, I've been itching to use some of my contemporary Japanese prints. I've been collecting these cottons on each trip, so now I have a pretty good selection from which to work. When I first brought them back, the plan was to integrate them into the stash, but I found that the colors just wouldn't work with most of what I had. The yellows all seemed to have more green in them, the turquoises were flatter, the reds more tomato-y, no matter the designer or manufacturer. Recently there seems to be more crossover. A number of American collections seem to be picking up on the Japanese aesthetic so it's easier to mix some in and keep the look I intended.
I'm really excited about how this is developing...just as I had envisioned!..but I'm juggling a lot of balls this spring so it's currently my *reward* project. For the time being, if I get x number of things crossed off my list, I earn some time to work on my quilt for a while. Great incentive.
Well, that was quite the response to my sewing room. So many of you loved the wall color, I did a little sleuthing for you. The previous owners painted it, so my first stop was the basement to check the cans of paint they left behind. One can was marked *new bedroom* (the sewing room is in an addition they added to the house about 10 years ago) but the color information was pretty cryptic. I deciphered the number 634 and swung by the Benjamin Moore paint store on my way home from quilt group yesterday. Sure enough, color 634, Forest Valley Green, matches the wall exactly so I'm confident in passing this along. There you go!
Thanks for that detective work! I'm itching to do some painting around here (a bathroom, my bedroom and the living room/dining room are overdue for new paint) and that swatch card is one of the ones that I had in my 'maybe' pile. Hmmm.....
Oh, and I like that block. Its not hard/complicated but doesn't look 'plain'. Your fabric choices are such fun. Love those Japanese fabrics!
Posted by: Tracey Brown | April 01, 2009 at 08:50 PM
I do love that color, but it would not play well with the other colors in the joint. And I am glad to hear that you are dispensing with guilt...never a productive use of energy, and guilt ridden projects suffer and show it. Then you have to pay for years of therapy for it, quilts have trouble moving on :)
Posted by: lisa | April 01, 2009 at 10:27 PM
So... does that mean this is the first quilt to get put back on the work table? :D Great choice! It looks fabulous and needs to finished and enjoyed.
Posted by: Anita | April 01, 2009 at 10:32 PM
I'm loving the fabric choices and the block, this is going to be a very happy quilt, oh I wish it was mine.
Posted by: Janet | April 01, 2009 at 11:02 PM
Coming out of the woodwork to say hi and I thought of you this morning when I read that the Bohemia Patchwork Klub is hosting an international patchwork association meeting on a boat in the Vltava river this weekend. I followed the links and found a whole world of quilting (and fabrics) here I'd never known about before. Thanks for the inspiration!
Nice sleuth work on the color, it really is a great green, but perhaps better for a bedroom than a workshop.
Posted by: Julia | April 02, 2009 at 03:30 AM
I really like your blocks, Jan! One of my fave fabrics is that green with type (recipes, is it?). I have a large, carefully stashed piece of that. OK, I have to ask, what size are your blocks and would you mind if I copied you??? :-)
Posted by: amy lobsiger | April 02, 2009 at 07:14 AM
so fun to see the mix of fabrics in these blocks. novelties, old fashioned florals, contemporary stripes.... love it. I hope the houses quilt isn't on the "forget it" pile. and the hexagons... would love to see you mix all your blocks into one orphan quilt, the ones you don't want to make into their own quilts anymore.
Posted by: Lazy Gal Tonya R | April 02, 2009 at 07:27 AM
I love your quilting style, in all its variations. I confess to having a picture file of favorite quilts from the Internet. The majority are yours!
Posted by: diane | April 02, 2009 at 08:26 AM
LOVE these blocks as they're coming together. This is an idea I definitely may have to steal. It's a bouncy, happy, springy look. And aren't we all ready for that?
Posted by: KathieB | April 02, 2009 at 08:33 AM
This is another winner quilt. I do love the way you mixed the colors. So unusual and perfect!
Posted by: Cindra | April 02, 2009 at 08:36 AM
I love that design. Your fabrics are wonderful.
Posted by: anina | April 02, 2009 at 11:40 AM
Love the quilt!
Posted by: pam | April 02, 2009 at 01:19 PM
Your quilt looks great! I totally agree about letting the ones that you have lost interest in be - let's enjoy the thrill of starting new ones instead!I for one will not keep reminding you of the old ones, as long as I'm allowed to let mine rest in peace too ;-)
Posted by: mathea | April 02, 2009 at 01:37 PM
Love the way the quilt looks, a great block. You made me feel so much better about not finishing some things. I have such guilt sometimes, and can not just get going on somethings. I have few tops that are finished and not turned into quilts! Oh the guilt! Anyway, it's nice to not be alone with this! Love the color too, we went on a wild goose chase trying to find Fenway Green a few years back, finally found it at Benjamin Moore they do the paint for the Green Monster at Fenway. They have some great colors.It's a lovely room Jan....enjoy it!
Posted by: Wendy | April 02, 2009 at 07:22 PM
thanks for giving us the update on your wall color. And...I love that quilt.
Posted by: Kathie | April 02, 2009 at 10:35 PM
Well that's totally different than the shade I had in my mind and my sewing room! Nice but not similar at all. I think our eyes trick us sometimes!
Posted by: JudyC | April 02, 2009 at 10:38 PM
Wow,beautiful.So much prettiness.Good luck!
Posted by: Mr Lee | April 03, 2009 at 04:13 AM
Don't you wish there were some sort of trading pool where we could send our unfinished projects to new homes with fresh eyes who might find something new & exciting to do to finish them up? Just think, half the work is already done when you get it.....
Posted by: Alison Marie | April 03, 2009 at 01:21 PM
Good on you for saying no to guilt!!!! And I was excited to see your whoopie pie recipe! I too saw that NY article and it got me thinking about them. Any recipe that calls for Crisco and marshmallow fluff is a friend of mine!
Posted by: Scribbles & Bits | April 03, 2009 at 04:34 PM
Oh, I love these bright, colorful quilt blocks. Who needs guilt blocks anyway? 'Course I miss the mittens. : )
Posted by: sonja poor | April 03, 2009 at 06:28 PM
I love that quilt and am very envious of your room... but please please, don't abandon your school house quilt!!
I think about that often...
Posted by: monica | April 04, 2009 at 04:18 PM
Your fabrics and blocks are just lovely! I can hardly wait to see the quilt finished!
Posted by: anne from finland | April 05, 2009 at 02:35 PM
ooh lovely colour! that's just reminded me that i got a load a colour swatches for the hardware store to cut them up and make a college out of them, must get on with it!
Posted by: GUGAW | April 11, 2009 at 06:05 AM