The Splendid Sampler

There are so many Quilt alongs out there, I rarely participate. But something grabbed me about The Splendid Sampler.  I’ve been listening to Pat Sloan’s podcast for a while now and since she is behind this project I figured why not?  I’ve joined the Facebook page and sort of followed as people were buying fabric and sharing their palates. This is a year long project that will involve 100 blocks from many different designers.I’m stash busting, and was thinking of green, orange purple. Sort of.I figured out very quickly that making 6.5″ blocks is quite a challenge. Yes I’m a very good quilter, but working that small isn’t easy and it’s forcing me to stop, work slower and really pay attention. I’m not very happy with the way this block looks, not the colors, they are fine, but the piecing isn’t to my liking.Neither is this one, the piecing is a little shoddy and going scrappy is one thing, but that row with the same fabrics twice – not good. More about how I solved that in another post. And contrast between the squares. Some will be light and some will be dark.There is the square with both appliqué and embroidery.It’s been fun paying attention to the smallest detail, even if in the long run they can’t be seen.7 blocks done.Then there is one that is only embroidery. Designed by my friend Amy Sinibaldi.  Many people did patchwork on this one. Some people are veering very far from the patterns, which I think isn’t what the developers wanted. They have asked that if you ‘recreate’ the design, do not post pictures. Well that isn’t happening!My efforts are paying off, the points meet, the colors are offering enough of a contrast. 6.5″ isn’t a lot, look at the little eraser next to this block.A friend recommended the Loc-Bloc ruler for half square triangles. I’m a sucker for tools and boy this is a great one, I’ll probably do a whole post one these rulers.  I’m also feeling more confident with color choices with tiny pieces of fabric.I even went back and made the first practice block they released before the official quilt along startedSo far this is the box I’m using for storage, it had some holiday gift in it, it is 7″ square so it’s the perfect size, I don’t think it will hold 100 blocks, so at some point I’ll have to find a new solution but for now it works.