Arcadian finish and RSC

Arcadian Chain has been completed!  In 2018 Connecting Threads introduced a fabric line Arcadian Dusk which had a warm palette of blues, burgundy, rusty orange, browns, and cream. I used two 10-inch stacks, plus fabric from an earlier Connecting Threads line Heirloom Manor, to sew a simple pattern of nine patches and solid squares to create this Irish Chain style quilt. 

When quilting this project, I stitched a chain link in each of the cream chain squares, then got stuck when trying to figure out what to do with the larger colorful blocks. I wanted to emphasize the colored blocks. After attempting some swooping arcs that looked more jagged than smooth arcs, I spent hours with a seam ripper and finally tried again.  I wanted the colored blocks to really stand out, which meant I needed a less complicated and less dense design. A simple cross hatch did the trick. Then I decided on a rope-like design on the inner border and a simple piano keys treatment for the outer border. This quilt is really striking and I am proud of it.

Many of you quilting bloggers are participating in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2021. I admit it. I was quite jealous of all the bright blocks being posted. I have enjoyed participating in past years, but I have this long list of unfinished projects accumulating in my sewing room. How could I add to it? Finally I caved. 

I decided to make large blocks similar to Good Morning Sunshine by QuiltDivaJulie. That only used up a small handful of scraps. Maybe I should add another RSC project?

Then I saw those pretty Jackknife blocks Bonnie Hunter was making.  After digging up the Sept/Oct 2020 Quiltmaker magazine, I started cutting fabrics for four blocks and began stitching. Oh no! The instructions were wrong! Those hourglass units ended up a full inch too small. [And Quiltmaker did not acknowledge the error on their Addicted to Scraps page.]  If you are considering making this block, Unit C must start with 4.25 inch squares (or better yet, 4.5 inch), not 3.25 inch squares.  I did not have quite enough of one neutral print to redo those units so had to substitute another white fabric. 

A cascade of my own stitching errors made these blocks more difficult and frustrating than they should have been. Finally, I sewed the last stitch and pressed the blocks. Whew - the pinks are done for January.

Aargh! Two more projects to add to my list! Maybe I need to finish up some of the smaller projects to alleviate my guilt. 

Linking to SoScrappy and Monday Making.