Got an email from my favorite pattern seller on Etsy.com that made me sit up and pay attention. She wants to collect a bunch of six inch "crumb blocks" from her customers and make a quilt and then she will give that quilt to a "winner". 

Hmmm ... that sounds like a fun "contest", if you want to call it that. "I can do that", says Judy the Elderly quiltmaker who has more or less retired from making quilts. "Now", says Judy the Elderly, "where is that large plastic shoebox full of bits and pieces of very colorful fabric schnibbles?"

After a successful hunt for the box and after reminding myself exactly how large a six inch square is I was off and running. It surprised me how slow I had become (had to rest my aching back quite often)  but all in all it was a pleasant reminder of how much fun I used to have in the good old days.

Twenty-eight assorted colorful pieces of fabric later I had assembled this!  (After all, it was a matter of pride that there could be absolutely no duplicates except for the tiny four patch that I started out with. Can you find it?)

Now to mail it off to Karen Griska and sit back and wait for the results of her "contest".

Very nice, Judy!

I can tell by your post that you are very excited to work on the project. Your blocks are fun.

Very nice and colorful... sounds like you enjoyed yourself!

What fun!!  I'm glad you stuck with it.  Your 6" contribution block is so cheery!!

Oh, Judy, I'm so glad you came out of "retirement" to do some piecing. I bet Cecil Faye was happy to be put to use too.  Your block is so bright and cheerful and will be a great addition to the master quilt.  I wonder how many she will get?  I may have to try making one of those crumb blocks some time--I have the crumbs for sure!  

While I was fiddling around looking for just the right "crumbs" to add next I was thinking of Karen's patterns that I have enjoyed making and wondering the same thing; how many blocks will she get and what will she do with them? I am assuming she will add sashing and make something like an Attic Windows layout but then she is such a clever woman that I suppose she will surprise us with a unique layout.

Oh Judy!  How fun for you to do a small project!  I found that 4 patch!  Although I did have to really search for it!

I know  that you are a teacher at a quilt shop. You might enjoy doing some poking around at Karen's blog and looking for new ideas to share with your students in your part of the quilting world. (Karen's in Connecticut.) She sells her downloadable patterns on Etsy.com and I've bought several of them over the years.

http://karengriskaquilts.blogspot.com/