Back in the Saddle — Covid Quilt Challenge #1

Well, I, like many other right now, have found myself doing new things or returning to old things. This blog would be one of those things. It's a strange time we find ourselves in, and there is just something about it that calls for documentation.

I have switched to working from home full time. It's been 5 weeks now. Somehow staying at home feels like I should have more time than I do, but I seem to have gotten into a bit of a groove.
For a few years my friend and I have attended a quilt show that includes displays from a group that are small and showcase different ideas and techniques. We've commented that it would be a good idea to try in order to get out of our comfort zones and be a little more artistic. Well now felt like the right time to start. We decided we would do things without too much planning/practicing (which we're usually guilty of), so we decide on Fridays what the parameters are and then have the weekend to work.

This weekend was the first attempt. We decided on a technique of curved piecing (which neither of us has done before), and called my friend's nieces for their favourite colours: bluebell blue and neon pink. Then we set to work.

My friend's top

Finished

We worked individually at first, planning and piecing on our own. Once we had our tops together, we shared over Skype as we continued to work. It actually went faster than we thought with both of us getting finished on Saturday.

My improv gentle curves

With quilting

I had sketched a couple of different ideas on Friday night and decided if I didn't try now, I probably never would, so today I made idea #2. (I tried a million different layouts for this one. Our was hard to pick,  but in the end I'm glad I did this.)

It was nice to get out of my head for a bit, and try to be a little more artistic, and try to see where things took me (with just a general plan). There are definitely a few things I would change if I could, but overall I was happy with the process and the results. We'll see what happens next time.