Creating a mess

My strip boxes are overflowing. I need to get them under control.

I made 4 Housetop blocks with varying width strips to see if I liked making them and I did, but I can't cut them out of scraps alone. Those outer rings take 30" of a strip, and most of mine aren't that long. And the 1.25"strips are what I really want to get rid of. 

So I drew up the Log Cabin block I wanted to make using only 1.25"strips, and went through the boxes and pulled out every bit that wasn't 18" long. My chart showed every rectangle I needed to cut, so it was easy to measure a little strip, then cut the longest piece I could from it.

I dealt with the light strips in short order; it was satisfying to find a use for every little bit, down to a 1.25"square.

All these little smidgeons were converted to logs of the right size, with almost no waste.

Lots of teeny little dark strips found a home too. I haven't touched the larger scraps yet, and I have enough for more than 20 blocks. I have no idea how many I can make out of those 2 tubs, but it will be a quilt's worth.

                                   

All laid out waiting for me to start building. I was going to have 5 rounds, but I think I'll stop at 4 and that will make a 6" block. That 8.25"block just seems too big.

At some stage I will have to think about how I want the blocks set; there are so many possibilities that it's hard to choose.

I've always loved Straight Furrows, 

But then again I love Sunshine and Shadows, 

and Barn Raising.

In fact, my first quilt was a Log Cabin, made when I was 15, in the Straight Furrows setting.

I made it for my Mum, and she loved it, though it was all 70s dressmaking scraps, and pretty wonky.

Those decisions are a long way off yet, so I'll just keep on cutting and sewing.