A rainy morning prevented yard work, so I'm thrilled I had a chance to stitch up the July Lotto Block. This was a fun block! If I find more time, I may make another two before the end of the month.

PS...It's so dark, I had to use a flash. The red is darker than it appears in the photo.

Bump.....it's Mid-month already.....gotta get mine made!

Well, no 1/2 square triangles in this month's block, so no need to whine! ;-)

July's block is 1 square in a square unit in the middle surrounded by 4 squares and 4 flying geese units.

The August block has no HSTs, either. So, if you get on a "no HST" roll, you can bang out the next 2 months!

Nice block, Larri!

I have three blocks that will go in the mail on Monday.

Sue

I have no solids that fit the bill so cannot join in this month. Sorry!

Theresa

Just to clarify, as in the past where is says solid that means any solid, blender, tone on tone, or print that reads as a solid in the specified color(s).

I did use true solids in the sample blocks because I had them on hand and they were the "right" color. And because I don't have any patriotic fabric in my stash. Maybe someday I will get around to making a patriotic quilt.

Nice blocks, Polardreams!

If I can find something that reads as solid, I will try to get at least one done today. And the Aug. blocks also call for solids. For some reason, I don't have any in my stash but I may have some that would be close. Will that work? I don't want to spoil the whole quilt effect with rogue blocks.

Theresa

Oh, Oh. it looks like everyone is making blue centers with red points. I made one of each. My one red center with blue points might stand out.

Your blocks look great, Sue!

Have some time in the morning for sewing, and will try to make one with blue points and a red center.

I'm doing both, so don't worry about your standing out, it'll have a mate!

For purposes of the lotto, solid means any solid, blender, tone on tone, or print that reads as a solid in the specified color(s). That's been the case for as long as I've been playing the lotto and we made no changes in that regard for this year. For this year, I simply lifted the language from the prior year at a glance thread.

I will revise the wording when I post the August thread to help clarify. One thing that is different as compared to last year, is that the monthly threads are much shorter and now include a link to the "at a glance" thread for all the detailed information. This is because of the size restrictions imposed by Houzz.

So sorry for any confusion!

Hi Theresa,

For August, please use any bright fabrics in your stash. I made the August sample blocks using blenders, prints, and Kona solids because that is what I had in my stash. But I didn't use the same fabric in any one block so they are definitely scrappy. Can't wait to see your blocks!

Jennifer

No July blocks from me. Sorry but I couldn't find anything I thought would work.

Theresa

Mailing my 3 today!

I mailed my two yesterday. Forgot to take a photo first.

Chris

Hello all, , I was about to post that July is looking a tad lonely, but I read more are on the way...Good news! Here are Jennifer's and my two blocks....can't wait to see more.

I'm having a problem with this one.

The instructions say, "To make a side unit, place a Color 1
square right sides together atop a Color 3 rectangle, with outer edges
aligned. On the back of the top square lightly mark the diagonal. Sew
on this diagonal marking. Cut off the excess seam allowance. Press the
remainder towards the corner. Repeat this with another Color 1 square
on the other end of the rectangle. Make four of these.."

However the drawing shows a gap in the center of the two top squares. If you line them up to the "outer edge" the top squares overlap. I did that. I could sort of see that it might work. Fortunately, I have not trimmed them yet.

The next instruction says, "In the same manner as in the step above, sew Color 3 squares to the four corners of the Color 2 6-1/2" square
to make the block's center unit..."

This one also shows a gap, but instructions say, "as above", which says, "line up to thie outer edges". This doesn't work at all. If you have 3 1/2 inch top squares and a 6 1/2 inch bottom sqares you have an overlap.

How can you line this up and make it work?

I missed something here.

bkay

Bkay,

The gaps in the illustration are misleading. The fabrics should overlap to create your 1/4" seam allowance for both the flying geese units and the square in a square unit.

Check out the first 3 or 4 minutes of this video. It demonstrates the methodology referenced in the pattern for making a flying geese unit. However, please note that she is making a different size unit in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pREAH-ryJqU

Jennifer

I'm not going to make it on time this month. I have 3 about half made, but my sewing machine is acting up (it keeps getting locked up with thread nests) . I may have the machine fixed, but the quilt pieces don't fit right. I've already cut several of the geese again. I'm going to have to take some of them apart and re-sew (and maybe re-cut), but I can't do that until Thursday. I can't send them like this. So, I'll PM the winner and send them directly at the end of the week.

On top of that, my computer crashed and I'm trying to get everything reinstalled and updated.

I apologize for being late again.

bkay

Mailed out two today! Was hoping to get a third made, but I didn't have enough blue.

Sorry to hear you're having machine issues, bkay. Sewing or computer, never fun to have them not working properly.

Hi everyone, 13 awesome blocks as of today, but will wait until Larri's arrive before pulling a name. These look great!

Feel free to go ahead and draw a name, Valarie. Mine are on the way; however, my husband is scheduled for another surgery in a couple of weeks; and as caregiver, I will most likely be out of sewing commission for several months while he recovers. I'd rather the blocks go to someone who can stitch them up sooner. Happy Quilting, y'all!

So Sorry for the delay...we have a winner of our July blocks! Jennifer's name was pulled from the lucky hat...(ok it's a DH golf hat, but it's lucky for the winner!)

CONGRATUALTIONS Jennifer!!!; this will make fabulous summer time quilt! I'll get these in the mail to you asap?

Congratulations! This will be a great quilt!

Sue

Ditto!

Theresa

I was late getting mine in the mail. That one was a bear for me. They went out yesterday. Please wait to send them to Jennifer until mine arrive. Two were good, one was iffy.

Life just got in the way this last week. I still don't have my computer back together. I'm working on that today.

bkay

Will do Bkay! Thank you.

Congratulations, Jennifer!

Awesome!!! Thanks, everyone! I'm just hoping I can do your blocks justice.

I selected this pattern because I see so many sawtooth block variations and I had not yet made one myself. The last time one was made in the lotto was back in 2014 (before I started playing), so it was time to revisit this block. For a walk down memory lane, here's a link to the July 2014 lotto block, which has a pinwheel in the middle: https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/2570192/lotto-2014-july#n=17

And just a few more examples (of what else can go in the middle square):

bkay - I'm sorry you were having issues. I hope your computer and sewing machine are back in business! Yes, anytime you work on a new block or technique for the first time, it can be a bear. However, if you were making a quilt that had a ton of flying geese, I bet you would be proficient in no time. I think it just takes practice.

Jennifer

Well stated Jen! It does take practice and then some more practice. Seems like I never stop learning with quilting!

Congrats Jennifer!

Boy, that one took some precise cutting and sewing to get everything to match up. I never did get them to match up as well as I thought they should. Since I finally mastered HSTs, I figured these blocks wouldn't take long. Wrong!

I found the problem with the sewing machine. I'm not sure it's fixed, but at least I know what it is. The bobbin thread is coming out of the tension slot, so I'm being more careful when threading the bobbin case. There's a forum called Victoriansweatshop.com where you can get technical help with vintage sewing machines. I'll go there for help if it starts happening again.

I'm still working on the computer. I didn't have a complete backup, so I've lost a lot of files.

Thanks for asking.

bkay

The blocks arrived and look awesome!!! Thanks, everyone!