Birthday Exchange Blocks

Here are 13 of 19 blocks that I received in the mail for a birthday  block exchange back in ........oh, I am guessing maybe 2006.   (oops!  later found out they were "only" from 2011)

This group of great gals originated on Alex Andersen's message board way back when.  There was some bickering going on, so the message board was shut down and a good majority of us continued messaging on another site that one of the members set up for us.  We've been friends for years now and actually met centrally once a year in Missouri with gals coming from as far as  California and then all the way from  Maine.  

Anyways, the rules of the exchange were 12 1/2" unfinished block, three choices of stars patterns and we got to request our colors (mine was cream background with a country red). 

Again, I don't know why I waited so long to finally get around to putting these together.  Maybe it was just coming up with the right layout.  I don't know.

Along with these stars, I also, had 12 embroidered stars  (red) given to me by a friend to do with as I pleased.  Since I thought I would kill two birds with one stone by using both types of blocks in one quilt, I had to do some figuring.  The embroidered blocks only measured 12" unfinished.  I cut them down to 9 1/2" and framed them with a windowpane fabric that I recently picked up when  I went on a girls weekend and of course we did a little shopping while we were out.   

First block done looked appealing.

So I continued with the rest.  

I am really happy with how the layout is looking. 

Now that the blocks are sewn into rows and into a finished center (I do have six more pieced stars left over, but there weren't enough of the embroidered star to make it all work out), I will add the borders.

Here's the skinny border to outline the center in a dark brick color. 

Then I am using the windowpane fabric that I used around the embroidered stars as the outer border.  

I am running out of space on the floor for display, but I am loving how this has turned out. 

Binding is  cut from the darker brick colored fabric and ready to go once I get this quilted. 

I will say working on this quilt top brought back a lot of  memories of chatting with these gals on the message boards, getting together at retreat, one is gone from cancer, others I never did get to meet, but the majority of them I got to see almost every year for several years in a row.  How time flies.

So, here's another one for the to-be-quilted pile.  Just need to find a back and it will be ready to go. 

Before putting this all away, I still have six birthday blocks left over. 

 I really didn't want to put them back into the stash, so I decided to make a baby quilt up with them and all the sashing and border fabric I had left over.  

Sashed them.

Put a border on them to make it around 40 x 50"

Also, had enough of the darker fabric to make binding for this quilt, too.  

Until I find some backing fabric for these two quilts, I can put them out of my mind for now.  

That's two more old UFOs done and off my mind and off my list.