September finish

Time to check in for the end of September with my monthly goals! September has flown by. I'm linking up with Sew Bittersweet's Year of Lovely Finishes.
http://blog.sewbittersweetdesigns.com/?p=4034

1--appliqué the rescue vehicles wheels. Yay! All finished!

I removed the paper foundations prior to starting the appliqué satin-stitching. Not a good idea, I learned! 

The fabric started puckering underneath the wheels and the wheels themselves drew up a bit.

I had lots of scraps of tear-away stabilizer left from machine-embroidering the block of the month, so I tore off strips and used a glue stick to stick them on while I satin-stitched.

Here you can see on the left, that I didn't have stabilizer and the fabric drew in. On the right are the stabizer strips, and the fabric laid much flatter with less draw-in.

2--I know I said I'd complete four whole Swoon blocks, but it took a different direction. Instead, I was able to finish all the HST and flying geese units for all the blocks. That's a lot of prep work for 8 big blocks. So, I count that as a finish and an accomplishment!

I like putting each block (with all its patches and units) into separate baggies. It really helps keep myself organized, and from getting mixed up with so many pieces and units.

Also, I hate waste, so I created lots of bonus HST from the flying geese. Here they are in a big Baggie. I asked Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville, the scrap queen, for help with block ideas from HST. As always, she delivered! She sent along a chart she found on Pinterest, and another reader of hers pointed me to Quiltmaker Magazine's article on the same topic. Wow, I can't believe I missed that one--until I saw it was at the back of the issue. Check it out on page 75 of the March/April 2013 Quiltmaker magazine.

Thanks Bonnie and friends!

I still have a few days until the end of the month, so maybe I will be able to sew together a whole Swoon block or two.

Although, I need to take a break for a couple of baby shower gifts.