Tag: sewing

Almost There….

Yes, the last row looks a bit silly with one block in it.  Later today, I will pick up my final free blocks from Red Rooster Quilts.  Oddly, there are 26 weeks but only 25 blocks.  Not sure what that is about.  Not sure what will happen with week 26.  I guess I will find out later.

I really love orange in quilts, so I think that I am going to keep this one and hang it in my family room.  I am going to call it Hugs and Kisses.  Already have my quilting in mind.  Need to get it finished first, way ahead of myself, as always.

Thinking about all my potential projects, I m going to try very hard not to start anything new until I make significant headway on those already started.  There are so many of those.  It will help, since I am trying not to buy new fabric.  Right now, only want to buy if I need to finish something.   That is so hard.

Lynn and I went out to dinner and fabric shopping last week.  Jelly rolls were 40% off.  I wanted to buy 1  or 2 or 3.  Had one in my hand several times but managed to control myself.  Only fabric I bought was a ½ yard for an in progress quilt (allowed).  Wondering how long it will take me to fall off the wagon.

I also want to use up as much of my scraps as possible.  I have so much scrap. Have been cutting some for a couple of scrap quilts in the works.  I need to get stuff sorted by color.  I guess that will happen when I get my room better organized.  I will get there.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

My contrast quilt or the I am mad quilt

Why might this be the I am mad quilt?  Well, when I get mad or upset, this is the quilt I work on.  I think that is because it is simple.  I need a total of eighty blocks, so I either work on finding fabrics or cutting the leaves or just sewing them on.  Plenty to do, nothing complex.  I actually have about 62 blocks together in various states of sewing.  I try to minimize my thread changing, so, I sew all the ones I can with same color I have threaded in the machine.  It is meant to be a play on colors lights and darks.

I think this quilt will be a bear to make sure the blocks are placed correctly.  My daughter put this on my design wall and I noticed the bottom black/red one is incorrect.  Not a problem, since I am not yet sewing it together.  But I am the person that looked at my safari quilt forever and still had three camels right next to each other in the same row.  Knowing myself, I will have several backwards but wont notice until it is quilted and bound.

I made this from scraps but it would be great for layer cakes.  The base is made from 2, 10 inch blocks, cut in half and then sewn back together with the opposite one.

I really don’t get mad that often, but sewing always puts me at ease and when my mind is racing, best to stick with something simple.  I keep this project in my sewing room neatly in my pizza box.

News:  I was one of the winners for the One Monthly Goal Prize.  thank you Elm Street Quilts!

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

My One Monthly Goal and the coming year

So, for my One Monthly Goal, I am going to completely finish this baby quilt.  It needs quilted and bound.  It has been laying over the gate entrance to my room, for months.  It is just staring at me.  Since I am now imaging my unfinished quilts are staring at me, I should probably just complete.  Then, my non completion guilt should go away….maybe, there are a lot of those pieces.

The one monthly Goal has been so helpful in helping to get items completed.  I very much have that personality that if I say I am going to complete something, then I am going to do it.

For this year I would like to finish all the tops that I have lying around.  I am not sure how many I actually have.  I would guess 7 or 8.  That is a fairly tall order, but it would be great to get done.

I won’t say that I won’t start any new projects, but I do not want to buy fabric to start a new project.  I can purchase stuff to finish things, but I am trying to avoid going out and buying fabric to start new quilts.  We will see how that goes.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

Block #12 I wish you a Merry Quilt Along

Wow, time flies when you are having fun.  My twelfth block of the I wish You a Merry WaterMark_2017-12-09-22-17-55Quilt Along is complete.  I went a bit off the directions with my display of the lights.  It is windy outside and my lights are being blown all different directions.  I kept with all my snowflake themed fabric. that I have collected over the years.  I never thought that I would use them.  Just always liked snowflake fabric.  This quilt already looks festive and it is not even completed.

Now to figure out how to put them all together.  Since completing the top is my one monthly goal, I should figure it out.  I have a couple of ideas.  Just not sure on which one aI will settle on.

I certainly do wish everyone a very festive and happy holiday season.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

Block #11 The North Star IWYAMQA

This is my block #11, The North Star from the I wish you a Merry Quilt Along. The North StarI totally don’t like my block.  I saw so many beautiful blocks and I had something in mind,  but that is not how it turned out.  I am not a paper piecer usually and had to tear out multiple times.  Notice the threads everywhere?  I don’t currently have the patience to make another one.  I needed to stick with my snowflake themed fabric, but somehow, I sort of wanted it reversed, meaning that I wanted the purple on the outside.  Not much I am going to do about that now.  I will be interested to see what the final block looks like.  Not sure how I will put this all together, but I should be thinking about it.

Ohio State Buckeyes are the Big 10 champions, but sadly will not get to play in the national championship.  Thus ends our college football hopes for the year.  I am sure there will some kind of bowl game they get to play in.  Go Bucks.

watermark_2017-12-02-18-51-12.jpgHappy Sewing

Happy Quilting

Hand Quilt Along – More progress and my “other” project

Well, on my last Hand Quilt along post, I did not have a photo of y “other” project.  I sort of call this the swim team project.  Mostly because I work on it during swim practice and al the long weekend meets.  For tis project, I am making hexie flowers.  My long-term plan is to pick a background fabric and make a quilt from all of them.  So, at one time belonged to the Fat Quarter Shops mini charm club Fat Quarter Shops mini charm club.  I got 4 different mini charms each month, so I have quite a collection of them.    They are perfect for making these hexies.  I use a solid center and then each charm pack will make seven flowers.  I have no idea how many I will truly need, I will just keep making them.

My second hand quilt along project is my dog bones dresser scarf.  This is my sit on the WaterMark_2017-11-25-14-26-08could project, because I am not capable of just sitting down and doing nothing.  I need this to get to 54 inches.  I am at about 36 inches.  Still more work to do.

Thank Kathy for organizing this Hand Work Quilt Along.  It will e great to see everyone’s hand work without all the searching.  It is now at the tip of my fingers (and yours) .

Here is the list of others who said they would be joining in the Hand Quilt Along.  I hope you all check out their blogs and maybe even join in the fun.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

A Miracle-I finished a block – I wish you a Merry Quilt Along Block #10

I certainly have not been myself lately.  I seem to get so little accomplished.  Between running around to swim practice and work I hardly have any time to sew.  I do take some hand work to swim.  This past Tuesday I was sitting at  table making flower hexies and a women sat down next to me and started laying them out on the table.  She then proceeded to give me her phone number so I could teach her how to do it.  It was quite funny.  I will always help anyone learn to quilt.

I did manage to finish Block #10 for the I wish you a merry Quilt along.  It was quite a miracle for me to get anything done.  So much to do and next week is Thanksgiving.  I can’t even think about that. It is too much.  I do have a couple of days off, so if I am lucky I will get some sewing time in.  The problem is my mind is going in a million directions for new projects that I really do not need to start.  I have so many started already.  I totally have QADD.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

QADD – A look into the mind of someone suffering from this disorder

Quilting Attention Deficit Disorder (QADD).  I swear it is a real thing.  Just look at that table.  Oh wait, while it a table, it used to be our pool table.  So, needless to say, I have so many projects going on that I got absolutely nothing accomplished the entire week.

Currently, my daughter is on the swim team, which involves practice 4 out 5 nights a week.  Then there are the swim meets that are on the weekend.  This past weekend on Saturday at 5am we had to leave to spend the entire day at the pool.  Totally exhausting.  I have concluded, when I have a lot going on in my personal life, I can’t seem to concentrate on getting anything done in my sewing room.

I worked on this and that, but could not concentrate on anything.  I need to finish my block #10 for I wish you a Merry quilt along, but only managed to get part of it cut out.  I did some quilting in the ditch (which I did not like) on a table topper that has been sitting around a while.  While I was at the swim meet I did some hand work (EPP), but forgot my thimble and quit when my fingers started hurting.  I cut out pieces for a poinsettia table topper that I really did not need to start. Oh yes, and I started making a quilted bag (it is the blue blob in the photo).  Something else I did not need to start.  I have a pile of Christmas Fabric that I wanted to make a table topper out of (leftover from my Jingle bell tree).  Have not figured that out yet.  And I am working on a secret project that I can’t talk about, in case any of the recipients read my blog (wishful thinking).

And, Thanksgiving is less than 2 weeks away.  The only plus side to that is a couple of days off, which I totally need.  But it also beings about anxiety.  I will need to clean off that pool table in case we have guests that might actually want to play pool?  seriously who wants to play pool when we could be playing with fabric?  Apparently I am alone with those thoughts in my home.  So, I have to prepare to have a smaller work area for a few weeks.  I will need to cut a bunch of stuff so I can  just sew.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

What to do, What to do???

These are my daughters receiving blanket from when she was a baby.  I had put them in my cedar chest to make a quilt from them.  I need to make room in that cedar chest for “other things” (more quilts)  for all my future grandchildren.  However, I have a block on this one.  I usually “see” in my mind what I want to do.  I have been staring at this pile for weeks and have come up empty.  There are 13 flannel blankets (several duplicates) so it is a good bit of yardage.  Most are about 36×36 and a few are a bit bigger.  I think there is plenty pf fabric.  I just can’t figure out what to do.  I am thinking it will not be a baby blanket, but something bigger maybe for my future grandchild that might be a big older who would understand that it was made from all the blankets there Mommy was wrapped up in.  Gosh, I sound like a fruit loop!  Being that I did wait until I was 40 to have Haley, I am always thinking that I won’t get to meet her children.  This will be may way of letting them know who Grams is in case I am not here.  If she waits as long as I did, I may not meet them.

If anyone has any suggestions on type of pattern or anything to release my mind block, please let me know.  I always get such good advice from our blogging community.  Thanks!

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting

Jingle Bells Jingle Bells…and a Hand Quilt Along

So, last week at my monthly guild meeting, there was  Quilt ship visiting.  Of course, they brought stuff to sell.  I thought this was such a cute pattern and I needed to make it for my door for Christmas.  I will jungle so nicely every time the door is opened.  I liked the fabric they used and just bought the “kit”.m that way I did not have to go out and look for bells I could sew on.   I imagine that I could find them, but this way, I did not have to risk it.20171102_190307_resized

It turned out, that there is quite a lot of fabric left over, so I may make a holiday table topper with it.  I do like the fabric.

At the beginning of the month, I participated in the guilds “Quilt Wars” However, because we all finished at different times, I did not get any pictures.  So at the last meeting they brought all the quilts that were made.  The quilt my group worked is the second from the right.  All these quilted were made with “Miss Rosie’s Quilt Cp.Cake Mix Recipe #4.  If you have never used them, it made creating these quilts super simple.  It calls for layer cakes, but any 10 ” squares will do.  From each recipe you can create multiple designs.  All of these quilts were created from the same cake mix.  Oddly most of came up with the same design.  They are available all over the internet and at my local quilt shop.  All of the quilts from Quilt Wars are finished and donated to Charity.  It was a fun time.

I almost forgot my Hand Quilt Along.  Kathy from Sewing Etc, a=has stqrted this.  I 20170401_135727_resized.jpgcurrnelty have 2 hand sewing projects.  I will have to post a photo of the other one later.  I am currently trying to finish my last and final dog bone dresser scarf.  I refer to them as “Sit on the Couch Projecrs”.  Take a look and Join us.

Happy Sewing

Happy Quilting