The Field Report and Merry Runners

We have had an unseasonably cool June (a couple of days in the 80's, but lately, we've been lucky to hit 70, and a few days were in the 50's), and only a little rain, so the soybeans aren't growing very quickly. But they have a few more leaves than last week, and soon, it'll look like a field of something, rather than teeny green lines.

While I was contemplating whether to make a baby quilt or a holiday themed wall hanging with the Royal Order quilt blocks (Moda Merry and Bright Charm Pack fabric- bought for half price, neener neener), I remembered that I also picked up a couple of coordinating Merry and Bright panels. One has a large motif and several smaller squares echoing the designs in the Charm Pack fabrics- the kind of thing that you cut apart and use with other blocks, which is fun but not what I wanted for this project. But the other panel is... get this... a table runner! A table runner that is exactly the size I need as backing for the 8 quilt blocks that I have already done. So, a table runner it is.

And a very pretty table runner it will be. I'm following the pattern and putting teeny little stars on the sashing as well. It's not a difficult process but it is tricky because, unlike the quilt in the magazine, each of my teeny stars is a different color, which means that I have to be very careful which end of which sashing piece gets which folded corners. It should not surprise you to know that I got the colors wrong in several places before I laid the whole thing out on the floor and stopped trying to assembly-line it. I should get the rest of the runner assembled today, and maybe the whole thing sandwiched (I've been looking for a hand-quilting project, but I don't know if this is the right one- lots of seams to work around in this design). I have some nice green fabric to use as binding.

This project is a good stash buster- it's using up almost all of both of the Merry and Bright Charm packs, plus the table runner panel, plus a about a yard of sashing/block fabric (which was, in itself, left over from the backing of a larger quilt), plus the binding (all of which I had on hand). I feel really virtuous about that.

And I am almost done with the Firefly mitered square socks, but I decided that a shot of an additional stripe on the foot was boring. I will probably have a Finished Pair pic tomorrow.