Alternate Block For The Cake Stand Quilt

 Hey Quilty Friends!  The last couple of days have been scrap-a-licious!  Slicing and dicing through the scrap bins makes me one happy gal.

To be honest most of my time in the last couple of days has been spent outside the Studio taking care of this, that and the other.  That's what makes the little time spent playing with fabric so exciting and fun.  You know the old saying, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder".  That applies to anything in your life, not just your sweetie.  

In my playtime I decided to work on the alternate block for my Cake Stand quilt.  Many quilt blocks were auditioned and failed to tickle my fancy. They all seemed too busy for my little bitty Cake Stand block.

Ultimately, I chose the K.I.S.S. block. If you are unfamiliar with K.I.S.S., do not take offense; it stands for "keep it simple stupid" or "keep it simple silly" if you prefer. The block is not actually called K.I.S.S.; it is simply a basic 16-patch block.

Once the plan was set in stone, it was time to make a test block before cutting for all the blocks.

In just a matter of minutes the block was finished.  Some of you might be wondering "why would I not use just one 5.5" piece of fabric?"  Well, I think the 16 patch is more fun and adds an OMG to the quilt.  Yes, I want the OMG factor, even if I'm the only one to think it's OMG cute.

For this block I decided to press the seams open.  Open seams are not something I do often.  But if I don't do this, it might end up a pressing nightmare and bulky seams.  I would like to be able to rotate this block in the quilt if needed in order to keep matching fabrics from touching.  The only way I see to accomplish this is with open seams on both blocks.  I may regret it but I'm stepping outside my comfort zone and pressing both blocks open...oh this is so scary but I'm doing it! 

Here's the EQ drawing of the quilt.  It will finish at 91x91!  My little bitty blocks are going to be a BIG quilt.  I can't wait to see her finished!

This isn't a quicky quilt, it may take months because cutting the scrap squares for this block may take days or weeks.  Below is the (676) 1.75" squares for the basket blocks.  It took a few days to cut them due to my limited time in the Studio.  The alternate block requires 2304 scrappy squares! 

And let's not forget it's set on point so I still need to cut more than a few triangles.  As I plan this project and think about a timeline I need to consider the time of year.  My hope is for a mid-summer finish, but gardening season is quickly approaching.  Along with mowing as well as other outside chores. And of course, I like to project jump...so I'm thinking this could take months, maybe a finish by November or December?

An update for my fur baby lovers.  Miss Kahleesi's perianal fistulas are still an issue.  She started a new very expensive antibiotic ($198 for 30 days) this week and a new expensive topical antibiotic($84).  She will stay on the oral antibiotic for 6 weeks.  Then a vet visit will decide whether or not to start weening her off the antibiotic. 

The vet also suggested laser light therapy, it cost $75 a week and isn't guaranteed to work.  We're considering it.  I've done so much research on this autoimmune disease.  There is no set in stone treatment.  Each dog responds differently to treatment and foods.  

We feed my girl real food, meat and some veggies.  Going against everything I believe in, I've decided to change her diet to processed dog food that has worked for many other dogs with this condition.  Again, it's not guaranteed to help. 

 It's hard not to cry sometimes.  All I want for her is to be healthy, happy and pain free but no one seems to have the answer.

  You would never know her little bum has oozing open sores.  She acts totally normal except for excessive licking of her bum when not in a diaper.  We could put a cone on her head instead of diaper but I just can't do that.  The diaper keeps her from licking.

My hope is the expensive oral antibiotic will work magic and put her in remission.  We caught it early so the chances of it working are in her favor.

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