Celtic Solstice - The Mystery Begins

It's that time of year again.

 

 Time for annual Bonnie Hunter's Mystery Quilt.  This year's mystery is named Celtic Solstice.
 Her color choices are Green, Blue, Orange and Yellow, a perfect reflection of the Irish countryside.

But before I get into this years project and show off my color choices and first step let me share with you some other tidbits about me and my quilting.



I must admit to being a bit of a rebel when it comes to Scrappy. Scrappy really isn't my thing. My style is much more "Matchy-Matchy", so it is really a stretch for me to go totally scrappy in the quilts. Besides, my stash is almost nonexistent, so when starting a project there isn't a lot to choose from to go scrappy. So that usually means a trip to the fabric store for yardage or FQ's.

This will be my FOURTH Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt. My first one was Orca Bay and I love that quilt. Ok, so it's still a quilt top because it hasn't been finished....yet. I stuck as much with the scrappy technique as I could on it, but was limited to fabrics available. I switched the colors out on it to purple, pink and greens. You can find photos of the Orca Bay quilt progress in my previous blog posts here.

Then came Easy Street. I stuck with Bonnie's  colors on it, but went much more "matchy" and limited fabrics to only a few of each color. It was finished just last week in time to go on the guest bed prior to my daughter and granddaughter arriving for Thanksgiving. Here it is on the bed! I LOVE this quilt, too! The colors are much more vibrant than they appear in this photo. (You can find photos of Easy Street in older blog posts, too.)

I also did Lazy Sunday, which ran in Quiltmaker magazine last summer. I again went with Bonnie's color selection, but pulled strictly from my stash. It is mostly scrappy, but I must admit to again doing some "matchy-matchy" units on it. Just can't help myself! It's the way I am. LOL
Here is Lazy Sunday:

 

The backing is purchased for this one. It's batting got used in Easy Street. Oops. This quilt was actually made for a special purpose. We have an oversized Sheltie named Murphy that is NOT allowed on the couch. Yeah, right! See how innocent he pretends to be? "Who me, on the couch, never!" Except his fur all over it gives him away every time!

He only gets up on the couch when we are not home. So, intent is for Lazy Sunday to be the couch quilt when we are gone. Much easier to throw the quilt in to wash than getting fur off the couch.

I have taken quite a bit of flack from a few people about my NOT doing Scrappy in these quilts. But one VERY IMPORTANT thing to know. Bonnie's patterns/designs are EXCELLENT and work wonderfully whether you are a Happy Scrapper or a "Matchy-Matchy" Traditionalist like me.

Just go out there and make Beautiful Quilts!

Now, for this years FUN! I'm sticking with Bonnies colors, but in a limited number of colors.

 

I have added one more blue to the stack and am considering switching out one of the yellows because I like the way the other color "plays" better. Or may just add it as a 4th yellow to the group. Will make that decision when we start cutting and using the yellows.  I also purchased a 4th green that includes. Here are the additional colors.

That green was just too much fun not to incorporate into the quilt.

The first clue/step in this mystery was an easy one using the TriRecs Rulers. Bonnie has also teamed up with Linda Franz at Inklingo if you don't want to use the rulers. I still may try this technique, but not sure my little old printer can handle the fabric. Hey, it balks at running an envelope though and just loves making paper jams. Usually does ok if set to specialty paper, but still iffy. May just be the incentive I need to get that new printer I have been wanting for awhile.

Anyway, I got busy and cut and sewed step one. Quick and easy this time. Here the units are all laid out and ready to sew.

 The chain has been started. These units match up great and go together quickly.

 Here are some of the white units with one "wing" attached all lined up for pressing. Remember the hint from last year to keep the chain together for pressing? It works great! Much easier than picking up each unit one at a time to iron.

 And here are my Step/Clue 1 units all finished shown with the TriRecs Rulers.

I know, I know....not scrappy....too "matchy-matchy" for some of you. But trust me, this will work!

Thanks Bonnie, for another great mystery. Can't wait to see how this one turns out!