Posh Penelope Progress and Postcard

Since making my first two Posh Penelope blocks - pattern by Sew Kind of Wonderful - in April 2023, I knew this would be a long-term project. I originally thought blocks would be a piece-of-cake to make. I was so wrong! Though the pattern doesn't count steps, by my count, each block involves ten steps - sewing and trimming repeatedly, requiring undivided attention for each step. It's no surprise that I stopped making them.

However, my friend Elizabeth at OccasionalPiece-Quilt - having discovered the same thing about making these blocks - recently set a goal for herself to make four blocks a month until all 42 blocks were made. Her friend joined her - love it when quilters make a pact to encourage one another! - though she made eight blocks a month. We all agree that making these blocks assembly-line style, is most efficient. 

So I set an eight-blocks-a-month goal for myself. These are July's blocks. 

I now have 18 of 42 blocks made. Those strips and tiny square in the middle finish at ½"! 

I'm also doing something that isn't in the pattern.

In one of the last steps, at each of the four corners of the four-patch block, a square is place (right sides together) to sew a triangle which is then trimmed ¼" from the seam. Rather than do that, I've been sewing another seam a half-inch away, and then cutting to divide and created an extra half-square triangle square. The little 2" (trimmed) blocks are on the left.

They are not used in the pattern, but when I'm finished making blocks, I should have 168, 2" HSTs! They'll be useable in something, I'm sure. 

Our Central Florida MQG recently arranged a postcard swap with South Florida MQG. Our postcards were to have the theme "It's A Small World," and be mailed by July 1. 

I used the theme as an opportunity to make something from the dozens of Curvelet blocks I've hand-pieced. (Templates by Jen Carlton Bailly of @bettycrockerass). I also used my new "arc" template to make four different center blocks. 

After some rearranging, and hand quilting with perle cotton, this is the postcard I made for Nancy @nancyquiltsquilts of Punta Gorda.

This lovely postcard came from Nancy who said it's the first postcard she's made. I really like her additional of hand quilting too!

By the way, I asked the postal worker to hand-cancel the postcard I sent. He put a special stamp on it that cost me $1.19, so I mailed my postcard as-is, without an envelope. Nancy mailed her card to me in an envelope. Linda