Nurse Nancy {Finished Project}

“Let us never consider ourselves finished, nurses.  We must be learning all our lives.” ~Florence Nightingale 

The new school year has begun and I was excited to be able to hang a little piece of “home” in my school clinic.  

This block means a lot to me. 

COVID hit in Spring 2020, my first year at my new district at a public school..  I was already feeling pretty overwhelmed and having a worldwide pandemic was daunting as a healthcare worker.  It was perfectly fitting that I was able to pattern test Nurse Nancy for Easy Patchwork.

Little did I know at the time, that the next 3 years would be filled with COVID and very little quilting.  Even this new school year, I am still giving guidance to parents and reporting to the State Department of Health. 

This summer, I finally “found” my studio again and decided I would finally finish the block. I had played around with ideas of wall hangings or making more blocks along the health lines.  But after much thought, I felt the block needed to be by itself as a memory for me.  

I found a frame just bigger than the block.  

Added more background so I could stitch some crosshatch diamond quilting.

I found some cute hexagon cork board to surround her!  I love EPP and it is a lovely nod to that. I hope to have some cute updates as I decorate for each new month. Paper bats in October and butterflies in spring pinned to them?

Even if the kids don't care, it already is something that makes me smile when I walk in and out.  And reminds me that I WILL find balance as soon as the beginning of the year demands and deadlines die down.

Sew Plus and Sew Stamps {Sew Scrappy Spools Quilt Along}

"School bells are ringing loud and clear: vacation's over, school is here." 

-Winifred C. Marshal

I am back at work and the first day is around the corner. I did squeeze in this month's blocks before heading into my clinic this past Monday.

For the details of the quilt along, including pattern, supplies, and dates, see my earlier post announcement HERE.

This Month’s Blocks 

Sew Plus Blocks

I love the play of the two colors with the pop in the center on this block. 

And I can still not get over how much I love this Bee Plaid Fabric line!

Sew Stamp Blocks

I was very worried about how tiny these little blocks were.

But I had so much fun cutting two squares from each fabric in my two bundles. I tossed the in four piles randomly and then just laid them out randomly.

I will admit, I am posting this one day late. I am embarrassed to say that I had the blogpost ready to go, but completely forgot to actually post them. I pray I can find the balance as I return to work again.

 Stay tuned for next month’s block on Thursday, September 14th!

Previous Blocks:
Month One: Sew Four Patch & Sew Cabin Blocks

Month Two: Sew Checkers & Sew Dash Blocks

Month Three: Sew Flag Blocks

Month Four: Sew Flower & Sew Geese Blocks

Month Five: Sew Heart Blocks

Month Six: Sew Patchwork Blocks

Month Seven: Sew Pinwheel Blocks

Meet the other Quilters

• Heather Valentine, The Sewing Loft, (@thesewingloft)
• Jeresther Page, (@Sew_Sweet_SeeBee)
• Jessica Dayon, Skein and Hook, (@jessicadayon)
• Kimberly Bennefield, NW Pepper, (@nwpepper)
• Monica Walser, (@monica.walser)
• Rika King, House of Stitch & Stash, (@houseofstitchandstash)

Keep up with us by following @fatquartershop on Instagram to see and share work from your fellow quilters. Don’t forget to use #SewScrappySpoolsQAL to share your progress on social media on the second Thursday of each month, so we don’t miss seeing your scrappy quilts!

You can find Lori Holt on her blog, YouTube Channel, and Instagram (@beelori1).