After working with various greys in my online polymer clay class for the past two weeks it has been a joy to get back to colorful QUILTING!!!!!!

Here's a progress report on my "Hot to Trot" Kaffe Fassett quilt with a photo of the square in a square in a square phase.  Now it is time to work on the next round with completed triangle #9 which I am calling the northeast corner.  I worked long and hard plotting out the first row of fabrics for these four corner triangles so that the "randomness" would remain accurate.  Note that the orange dot on fuchsia background fabric in the first row does not duplicate any of the fabrics used on the adjacent triangles.  Had to ponder over that choice for a few minutes.  Thank goodness I have sixteen fabrics as options.

I'm giggling for all sorts of reasons now.  "random" ahahhaha

Sorry, but you know that "random" with a kit with sixteen fabrics is not the same as "random" with a huge scrap basket with oodles of fabrics.  Glad I could give you a giggle for the day.

There's "chaotic random" and then there is "methodical random", right?

I think I mentioned this on the former forum once before, years ago. DS was working on his math PhD (his topic was in geometry) at the University of Illinois and was home for Christmas break. He came into my sewing room (formerly his sister's bedroom) and I was struggling with a scrap quilt problem getting it scrappy enough.  I sighed and said "Random is hard" and  he nearly fell over laughing at me. 

"Mom" he said with tears of laughter running down his face, "there are guys in the  math grad program at U of I who are almost suicidal because of their thesis work on the chaos theory and you are upset over a quilt!?!?!?"

I still maintain that random is hard in quilting.  I just do not say it when my DS is in the house. 

I was laughing as you know how I would approach random.  random = spaced evenly across the area.

I approach it as no fabric touches its identical twin. 

I absolutely  and totally concur about random.  My brain just doesn't do random.

I've tried the brown bag technique and still want to micro manage.

I once had to piece a totally random quilt for a client and eventually had Mr Pirate write an algorithm for me that told me exactly which random piece of fabric to use next.

I thought the result was *horrible* but the client was enthralled and thrilled ... which is the point.

Pirate (PIRATE_SR) said:

eventually had Mr Pirate write an algorithm for me that told me exactly which random piece of fabric to use next.

If Mr. Pirate lived within a reasonable distance I would try to borrow him.

As it is, I'm doing fairly well on this particular quilt all by myself. After all, I gave birth to a PhD geometer.

Brown bag doesn't work for me either. Half the time I have to dig into the brown bag about five or six times minimum to find something I like.  The other half of the time I just go with the second or third try. 

Monkey's.... that's what's happening here in my home.  These blocks came to me in a scrapbag already cut and the 4-patches partially sewn on the first quilt. The second I made the 4-patches from my stash. They will end up with my Project Linus Group.

Monkey quilt @#1                                      Monkey Quilt #2

THEN I'll continue work on the 10" 4-Patches that I'm making into Disappearing 4 Patch blocks due to the colors in each block. 

Just returned from a 7 week trip to the Midwest.  Got caught in the March 3rd AND March 14th Blizzards. I do NOT have any cold weather clothing, haven't had it over 50 yrs.  I wore my cousin's coats and stayed inside as much as possible.  Only went this time of year due to some family legal issues that were concluding.  May NEVER go back.  LOL

I call most of my scrappy quilts - controlled scrappy!  I usually have to control them in some way.  

Oh me too.   Random and I don't really mix!