Round Robins

I might have said this before and if I have repeated myself too much, I apologize, but my Bee Friends Quilt Group's newest project is round robin quilts.  We have done this a few times in the past, but it has been more than 10 years since we last challenged ourselves this way.  I love working on round robins and I love the challenge each new quilt presents.  Here are the two latest ones I have worked on.  The first one with the brown star in the center, I was supposed to add squares.  I planned and debated about whether or not to make 9 patches or just single squares or four patches.  Once I decided on making four patches, I then worked on the pattern within those four little squares.  Below is the pattern I came up with to bring more light fabric and some teals into this quilt.  It has one more round to go and has already been turned over to the next player for an "anything goes" border. 

I am the last one to add to the quilt top below.  In my "anything goes" border, I knew that I wanted to add some more of that "pink/salmon" fabric to help bring more color into this very dark quilt.  The first pink border was one of my fabrics that I volunteered during our last quilt-in.  However, I didn't have enough of it left to add a larger (or even smaller) border.   I found a fabric that is similar in tone and value to the first fabric and in the picture and in real life, it works really well.  So well that I wished I had more of it to just put an extra large pink border.  That was not the case so I needed to find something else to put on the outside.  I also didn't have enough of the gold fabric (another one I donated at the quilt-in), but didn't really want to detract from the awesome way that fabric shines in this quilt.  So, back to the fabric bag that came with this little quilt.  Hmm.  It is all upholstery fabric and most of it is cut into 4 inch squares.  I lay out a few of those squares and decide, nope that is not the way I want to go.  However, there was a piece about 14 inches wide - give or take curved edges - that I could possibly use.  Thank goodness I was able to square it up and then figure out how wide I could make this border with the fabric I had available.  Of course, I made the first cut too small.  I wasn't even thinking!!  Thank goodness I could piece it together and make it work.  Even though this is really a simple addition to this quilt top, it really finishes it off and that is what this round is all about.  It is a really rich and elegant quilt top and I can't wait to see how she finishes it off and whether she makes a wall hanging out of it or keeps on adding to it to make it into a larger bed spread.  (or even a table topper) (because, beside the pink and the gold fabric - everything else is upholstery fabric)

Okay, that is it for the night.  I have to be at school for a meeting extra, extra early so I better get into bed right now!!!