Weekly update: a finish and a start

 

Saturday afternoon I walked along this path.  It's part of a bike route that goes through Illinois Beach State Park and then connects with Zion parks and the forest preserves.  

When Zion City was begun in 1901 the prospective residents took the train up from Chicago.   A tower near the train station allowed them to climb up and spot their house lots.  These chunks of concrete are the remaining footings for the tower.  

  

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In the studio:   the homespun half-logs quilt is finished! 

 The back uses an Alexander Henry print from Barb M's garage sale.  It's nostalgic for me.  

When I began quilting in the early 1990's I bought a fat quarter of this print.  I wasn't sure how to use it--it was a few years until I discovered the joy of scrappiness--but I eventually used it all.   

I made the fourth block for the guild BOM.  It's at the bottom with the other months above. 

I need to make a Christmas-themed table runner for an exchange at the guild holiday party next month.  The blocks are  Vicki's Starstruck -- tutorial here .

Uh-oh.  Vicki's design calls for using the  background fabric for sashing between the blocks and for the border.  All I have left are the scraps to the upper left of the blocks.   Yes, I found the fabric online but I'd so like to use what I have!   I'm contemplating a plan B.   Come back to find out what I decide.

Linking up with Oh Scrap! and  Design Wall Monday 

P.S. I have a big stack of library books checked out.  I hope I'll have some time to dig into a couple of them this week.