Black squares & string squares

So, many thanks again to all of you who are sending me black scraps - here's some more of what I am doing with them - I think the effect is showing really well now. I have 63 blocks I am going to sash (they are 8 inch blocks, I'll be setting them 7x9), and will probably soon take a break from working on them to get some other stuff done, but I did want to do a few to make sure the idea was viable. Eventually, the quilt might be a picnic blanket - we could use a bigger one, and that would be fun to have. Will have to think about how to back it - not crazy on the idea of quilting through a waterproof material, but maybe something thicker than your average backing fabric would be an idea. Suggestions gratefully received.

The other thing I worked on today (besides making more progress on the Earth Day cards, which I hope to finish tomorrow but which I didn't photograph today) was some more of the small string squares, which are going to become postcards like the ones featured yesterday. This photo shows three stages of these squares - the far right is a pair of squares ready to be sewn together, the middle is once they have been sewn the first time, and the left is once they have been sewn the second time. I'm aware I'm missing the step where I sliced them apart again, but hey, no one's perfect! They will then get a black border/frame and be ready for mounting to card or vilene, a little quilting and maybe a button or two before going on their merry way.

Some good news, I hope, on the etsy front - I have had several orders for postcards from my etsy shop (hurrah!) but no payments yet, so I hope this is because the folks are busy rather than anything else - I confess I'm not entirely sure how the invoicing system on etsy works from the buyer's side - they should hopefully either get a system generated email or a screen or something with a link to paypal, and so on. Just to be on the safe side, I have emailed invoices today (as it's been a day or two) - if you are one of my buyers and are reading this, I'm not trying to be pushy, I'm just trying to work out how the whole thing works - I knoe pretty well by now how eBay works, but this is a whole new world to me :) Oh, and if you are reading this and you bought something from me - thanks!






Anyway. On to other (more important?) things - today's mail call. The best of it was this card on the left, from Sally, for the FAI Spring card swap (must really get those spring theme cards done) - it's gorgeous and very spring-like. The colour isn't quite right - the wall behind the card is actually a turquoisey blue - someday I will master my digital camera, I promise. :) The fabric on the right is what Annie sent me in exchange for a packet of 3" charm squares, from my swap offer a few weeks ago. And the photos below are some more black scraps, thanks to Irene and Angelika. Hoorah! Some of them may be a bit too colourful, but if they don't get used for this, they will for something else...