5 patch top

32 strip blocks, 31 five-patch blocks, finish at 7 1/2 inches. All made from 2 inch cut strips and squares.
All the dark squares are from plaid shirts. The lights are mainly old neutrals, with a few shirts too.
Borders cut 6 1/2 inches.
It made a nice dent in the neutrals bag. I am using up a lot of old VIP, Cranston, and Peter Pan tiny prints on the back of this one and for the courthouse steps quilt.

five patch

Scaled down from a pattern in Kim Schaefer's Cozy Modern Quilts that had 10 inch blocks.
My blocks finish to 7 1/2 inches.
Strip block: 5 strips cut 2 inches by 8 inches
5 patch block: 13 dark squares, 12 light squares

I am on a mission to sort through fabric that was bagged up in the attic when we re-roofed. My incentive is I get to come up with a new project with what is inside each. This quilt was inspired by the neutrals bag.
I sort into use, stash, share, donate, and throw out.

courthouse top complete

I am going to keep it without borders.
Measures about 64 by 80.

courthouse steps

When the 1 1/2 inch strip drawer needs taming, it is time to make a log cabin.
8 inch finished block made from 2 1/2 inch cut center, rounds cut from 1 1/2 inch strips at 2 1/2, 4 1/2, 6 1/2, and 8 1/2.
I have 40 blocks made, 40 more to go.

quilted and bound

Serendipity snakes with the 2 inch scrap strips.
I quilted this myself with the walking foot.
Bound with four leftover binding scraps.
46 by 59 inches.

S quilt

Seth loved the H quilt I made for my mother, and I recalled Wanda Hansen, in showing how she came up with her H pattern based it on Kaffe's S pattern--so, I went back to the beginning.
I love the secondary design of the backgrounds.
Blocks finish 7 1/2 inches.
Background: two rectangles 6 1/2 inches by 2 inches
Print: three rectangles 8 inches by 2 inches, two squares 2 by 2 inches

Need to make a pile more blocks.

serendipity snakes

There is a method of sewing up strips that I've done for quite a while that is showing up on the web as a way to use purchased strips.
I have taught this as the "snake" method of patchwork.
I use this method to clean up a pile of neglected strips, usually the ones that I leave behind because they are not inspiring me.
Take a pile of strips and sew them together to make a long (very long) snake. (I use straight edge piecing as I think it has a more primitive look--I see many people mitering.)
Take the head of the snake and the tail of the snake and sew them together along the sides to make a snake two strips wide. (You will need to cut the fold that occurs at the new tail of the snake. It may twist in your sewing--that is ok, just cut it before you get to the end to untangle it.)
Again, take the head and the tail and sew them together to make a snake 4 strips wide.
Repeat to 8; repeat to 16, repeat to 32, etc. You can stop at any number and use the panel as fabric and cut it to what you want.
This delightful top came from my two inch light strips drawer. Again, short pieces I had passed over many times come together with serendipity to make something wonderful.
Click serendipity snakes label below to some other examples of my use of this method.

Japan 1989