2019 BeeSewcial "Be (Bee) Counted" January Prompt

Made and mailed by deadline, I'm realizing that my 2019 BeeSewcial blocks aren't anywhere to be found on the blog.  So,  better late than never - I present 2019 prompt for January "Be (Bee) Counted" for Stephanie.

Be (Bee) Counted block 13.5" x25"

Stephanie wrote the following instructions on her  Instagram post : "in anticipation of the 2020 census I’d like for us to count and to be counted. I have always loved the simplicity of Tally Marks. 

As a method of counting they have been around for a very long time and appear in slightly differing variations in many cultures. My vision is a quilt of tally marks: bold ones, skinny ones, all improvisationally pieced"

process detail

The prompt immediately made me think of the score pad for bunko (I was in a group for ten years) and how easy it was to identify which player was tracking by how orderly the marks were. Mine were the messy ones. Deciding on what my number would be was immediately apparent. 

process detail

I love that our members are from all over. It’s pretty much the only time I visit the post office to mail my blocks each month. Mine represent the five digit zip code for Capitola, using spacing for the zeros 95010 and the significance of the red diagonal dash on the five is in honor of our 5th year as a bee.

the underside

Five with a red slash

Freehand rotary and scissor cut for the sections with rulers used to true up. My poor penmanship extends itself to hashtags so they aren’t neat. Intentional irregularity was tricky but fun. 

Check back for blog posts catching up with the February (my month), March and April BeeSewcial prompts.  Happy Stitching, Karen