2022 Temperature Quilt--Post 5

Progress at the end of 2022

First, thank you for your comments on my last post about my return to blogging. I appreciated your words of encouragement and thoughts of work arounds. I heard from Linda H; Pat S and Theresa K via e-mail. I have so missed the interaction of friends, fabric and quilters! 

I thought writing the last post was a challenge. . .well, writing this post was even more of a challenge. Partly, I couldn't choose a topic. Then, I was unable to get my brain focused on the topic. I notice when I'm tired or feeling bad energy, my brain skips around. It doesn't skip like it does when Gertie, my inner squirrel, is sharing ideas, it is more of a leap into emptiness. It is a weird feeling. I find if I acknowledge the skip happened, I can become grounded and I can move forward again. 

Year spacer blocks--far right row

Previous to my accident, I multi-tasked and had a laser focus. I have so much less capacity for multi-tasking and focus now. I hope improvement will happen. Time will tell. I must work on applying patience as well as celebrating small wins. Thanks again for the comments, I was moved that I was missed!

When I began the current temperature quilt last year, I knew I wanted a project that could travel since I planned to spend three months in London with my daughter getting to
know my youngest granddaughter. Once I had picked the pattern, I started making the blocks. I didn't map out size or plan beyond making a block every day.

Auditioning background blocks 

The problem came in September when I realized that this project was going to be long and narrow. (It would measure about 25 inches wide by 72 inches long.) 

Auditioning border fabric

My goal was that it would be a lap quilt. It was headed to be more of a bed runner! I contemplated my options. My London daughter said finish it as it was and move on. I considered that option. The project didn't want to be finished at that size. I decided that I would continue the project for a second year. My London daughter said I was CRAZY!

Early December, I met up with my friend, Gail. I picked her brain for ideas about the border. I showed her options I was considering. I do want to finish this project. I don't want any more challenges!!

Gail provided terrific feedback. For example, I was considering building the black background blocks into a design in the border. Then, I planned to applique the edges to the purple fabric that I had used as the secondary background. She commented that the additional block design would take away from the central blocks. She was right. 

In the end, I decided that I would add dark background blocks around the perimeter. This additional block will balance the dark background blocks that I used to separate the year 2022 from the year 2023. Let's see what I think as time progresses and I finish more of the blocks. I will have a lot of those dark background blocks to make!

Scale of the blocks

I also auditioned a strip of the purple that I used as a secondary background as a border. I like the color. I will think what width of
border that would compliment the project. When I began the project, I thought that I would add more of the dark background as the border. Later, I decided that I liked the points on all those blocks. I didn't want to cut off the edges so add the border. 

My London daughter tells me it is crazy to add more work to this project. She wanted to know if this project was going to become a chicken project! To save all those points, my plan is to applique the border to the top. Yes. . .that is crazy and it will take a lot of time. . .I hope it will look terrific. I do agree with my daughter that I'm likely certifiable when it comes to her definition of crazy!

I'm linking up with Cynthia at Oh Scrap/Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework as I started this project with the scraps from the piecing of the temperature quilt I pieced for 2021.