Stonefields "Four Little Stars" Block 24 + Trimming Appliqué Blocks to Size

Hello and Happy May!  I have another Stonefields appliqué block to share with you, the first of two "Four Little Stars" blocks.  It was quite fiddly but I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Stonefields Block 24, "Four Little Stars"

The other accomplishment I'm proud of is that I finally got over my fear of trimming down the oversized appliqué backgrounds on all of my completed blocks for this quilt, and no applique blocks were destroyed in the process!  Now that all of my Stonefields blocks are 6 1/2" unfinished, it's easier to mix them up on the design wall and get a better feel for how this sampler quilt is taking shape.  That will help me make decisions about which colors, prints, values to use more or less of in subsequent blocks.  Stonefields is a sampler quilt pattern designed by Susan Smith, and this post contains affiliate links .

Stonefields In Progress, All Appliqué Blocks Trimmed to Size

I'll document how I trimmed those blocks for Future Rebecca's benefit later in this post.  First, let's talk about the Four Little Stars block.  

October OMG is Finished: Deco Custom Quilting (Substantially) Finished, Off the Frame

I've finished my OMG (One Monthly Goal) for October, three and a half weeks early!  I am as shocked as YOU are!  My entire 102" x 102" Deco bed quilt (pattern by Lo & Behold Stitchery, available on Etsy here) is now completely stitched in the ditch and all of the digital designs have been quilted as well.  (This post contains affiliate links).  I took one last photo in the Garish Yellow Quilt Studio as I was taking my quilt off the frame:

My 102 x 102 Deco Bed Quilt is Off the Frame!

Now that Deco is off the frame, I can start packing up all of my long arm quilting tools and supplies and Bernie and I can disassemble the frame and pack everything up for our upcoming move back to North Carolina.  However, although I completed what I set out to do on this quilt for this month, the quilt is not yet 100% quilted.  According to the batting manufacturer, I have more than enough quilting to hold the quilt together, but it's uneven quilting in that the digital quilting areas are quilted more densely, with lines of stitching much closer together, than the pieced blocks that are only stitched along seam lines between contrasting fabric patches.  It has always been my intention to complete this quilt with additional quilting in the pieced blocks.  However, it's "quilted enough" for me to feel comfortable taking it off the frame, folding it up, and packing it in a box for our move.

All SID (Stitch In the Ditch) + Digital Quilting Completed

My original plan was to reload this quilt on my long arm machine at the other end of the move to quilt the pieced blocks with decorative ruler work and free motion quilting, but then I got to thinking about how I've always wanted to play around with combining machine quilting and hand quilting on the same project, in different thread weights.