Bramble Blooms Again and Spring Green

Note: In real life, the browns and tans are lighter than in this photo.  (Which probably means that the other colors are also lighter.)

The center and first border of Bramble Blooms 1 are stitched and finished (though I often include the disclaimer to any quilt in progress, "unless I change my mind"). I don't think I will for this quilt, though. I would have to see some really big problem to decide to unstitch, recreate or create new, and then restitch.

I switched out the solid blue/grey fabric of the flying bird to a tiny, tiny gingham in blue and teal which I thought lightened the bird just enough to make me happy, and didn't change the color too much.  (See the previous blue here if you're interested to compare.)

I thought the blue/grey was just a tad too dark and I'm satisfied with this fabric for the large bird.  I left the smaller bird on the fence as it was, with the solid blue/grey fabric.

This is the tan/light brown fabric I used for the arcs.  I love that it has both red and blue in it.  It was the inspiration to use a blue for the birds.

One odd thing about the half-square-triangle corners at the bottom is that they are not the same. 

I made the one on the left first by cutting a rectangle background, then cutting it diagonally two ways.  For some reason it didn't occur to me that the resulting X would be more like an X and less like a + turned 90 degrees.  I now know that a rectangle will not create a quarter-square-triangle block.  I used a square background piece for the block on the right and decided the two were close enough to use them as they were.  It is an improv quilt, after all!

Audrey will probably post the next prompt in coming weeks.  I try to imagine what it might be:  blocks of our choice, or blocks she suggests?  Another border with appliqued letters?  Or ...?  Will she recommend a color from the ones we've used, or a new color?  We'll see soon enough.  For now, I'll take a little break from Bramble Blooms.

The exciting spring green around here is this ice cream carton of Sweet Woodruff.  Actually, there are two cartons!

In October or November I put several small Sweet Woodruff plants into two large ceramic pots, then dropped one as I moved it.  The best I could come up with to hold the plants and soil were two plastic ice cream cartons with some rocks in the bottom.  I honestly didn't think they would make it through the winter.  Part of the time they were outside but I brought them into our breezeway when it got really cold.  The plants in all three pots looked dead two weeks ago.  Not one to give up, I put them outside to get some sun and fresh air when the warm weather arrived, and left them.  And then it rained, and then it snowed.  I thought, I hope the snow insulates and protects them.  When the snow melted, the pots were waterlogged but there were bright green sprouts coming up in the two plastic pots.  Hooray!  Sadly, the plants in the ceramic pot look like they didn't make it.  This spring I need to just do it:  dig some holes and plant these little ones.  I'm just so pleased to see all that green.  The little pot I have inside is also growing well so that can get planted outside, too.

I'm linking this post to
> Finished (or not) Friday at Alycia Quilts
> Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Thank you for hosting, ladies.

I hope you have a have a great weekend.
--Nancy.