Sunday, December 31, 2017

Stash Report Time

This week I've been unpacking fabric. Some boxes are clearly marked "Fabric" so I found most of my stash. I think. Then there are the boxes marked "Canning Jars" which I needed this week. Lucky I did, because sandwiched between jars were folded fat quarters. I must have run out of packing material when I packed that box almost two years ago. So I could be coming across hidden bits of my stash for the next year.

Looking back at my last stash report in February 2015, my total was 348.5. Today it's 219. So there is a little over 100 yards somewhere, more actually since I've bought fabric in the last few months and it is added to the new total. Probably in the last place I'd think to look. Instead of taking up where I left off in March 2015, I am starting over, and will add in the old stash numbers as I come across it.



Linking to:
Sunday Stash at quiltpaintcreate.

Thursday, December 28, 2017

2018 in the Sewing Room

Yvonne, at Quilting JETgirl hosts a goal planning linky party every year. Most people go over last year's goals and then make new goals. Since we were living in a tiny duplex and all my quilting stuff was in storage, I didn't make any goals for 2017. I barely sewed anything in 2017! But that must change in 2018 even though I don't officially have a sewing room here yet.

2018 Planning Party


Since I don't have any 2017 goals, I'll go straight to the 2018.

1. Organize my sewing space. I cannot work in disorder, and proved it to myself this month when I tried to make a quilt in a short time. And failed. Even though this is my number one priority, it is also going to be the hardest, so will not likely be the first thing completed. I know I need to put together some shelves, possibly even build some. (See, there is a good reason to be both a woodworker and quilter!)

2. Find and list my UFOs. I have no idea how many UFOs I really have because they are tucked into spaces here and there, and of course, still packed away too. Once I find all them, I need a plan to finish them. Melissa, from Sew Bittersweet Designs used to host a monthly UFO finishing party, and that helped me a lot a couple of years ago. I need to find someone else hosting a UFO finishing party to make me work harder.

3. Pull out fabrics bought to make specific quilts and put them in boxes with the patterns, thread, and everything needed to complete the quilt. I hope that will eliminate all the last minute trips to town and gnashing of teeth when I want to work on them.

4. Organize scraps by color and participate in scraphappy's Rainbow Scrap Challenge. My scraps are totally out of control and I need to use enough to get the remainder in tubs that will fit on the shelves.

5. Participate in 2018 Monthly Color Challenge at Patterns by Jen.

6.  Start the cross-stitch quilt block project that first made me want to learn to quilt.

7. Take up Kate's unofficial 15 Minute Challenge. I find when I make myself put in fifteen minutes, it soon turns into thirty and my lagging enthusiam is back.

8. Limit my current projects to four. Any more than that going at one time and I get overwhelmed and scattered. Current month machine project, scraphappy'sRainbow Scrap Challenge forleaders and enders project, hand quilting project, Patterns By Jen for BOM.

9. Start Christmas projects in June.

10.  Go to guild meetings.

11. Last, and most challenging, is that I want to find a quilting machine. I've decided that a Sweet Sixteen fits my needs best.

Other sewing goals:

12.  Take a Craftsy fitting class.

13. Make a clothing project once a month.

Woodworking goals:

14.  Build something for the house every week until the cabinets and organizers are done.

15.  Take a scroll saw class.

Now for other goals:

16.  Exercise 15-30 minutes a day.

17.  Cut out sugar and find 15 good autoimmune recipes by the end of January

18.  Stick to an autoimmune diet in February and then re-evaluate for March.

19.  On days that are over 50 degrees, work on landscaping 15-30 minutes.

20.  Join a book club.

I would set goals for the house build, but since Hubby is doing the wiring right now at his pace, there is really nothing I can do to speed it up.  So for house building goals, I'll reserve the right to add my goals when that is finished.

**********
Quilting Gail is also having a UFO completion challenge. Hers is called PHD in 2018 for Projects Half Done. Her challenge is a bit more, um, challenging as we have to completely finish the quilt, right through the label and binding.  I hesitated to tell her I wanted to do it, because I just don't have a machine that will quilt anything bigger than a twin. But since one of my goals for 2018 is to buy a machine that will quilt bigger quilts, I thought it was worth a try. Details for her challenge are here. The only thing that might derail me is if my eyes continue to deteriorate or if I have eye surgery.
I'm not sure if I signed up in time to participate in it though.  I'm not on the final list.

American Patchwork & Quilting also has a UFO challenge for twelve quilts. The details for that challenge are here.

Here are the UFOs I want to completely finish this year and the state they are in now:
1. Cars. The flimsy is done, backing bought and washed (it's flannel), and batting bought. I need binding and quilting thread.  DONE
2. Trailer Quilt. I have nine of about thirty blocks made and need border fabric, backing, binding, batting, and thread.
3. Second Saturday Sampler. Eleven of 12 blocks are made. I need border fabric, backing, binding, batting, and thread.
4. Christmas Among Friends. All blocks are made, border is made, and binding is done. I need backing and batting.
5. Antique Tile. All blocks are made. I need two or three borders, backing, binding, and batting.
6. Gairden Walk. The flimsy is done and the backing is pieced. I think the binding is done too. I need batting and thread.
6.  Replaced with: Orphan Glory Box.  I want to make this into a wall hanging.  I need to design borders, need backing, binding, batting, and quilting.  DONE
7. Depression Blocks. Twenty-five of the seventy-five blocks are made. I may have border pieced. I need backing, binding, and batting.
8. Baby Bow Tie. The flimsy is done. I need backing, binding, and batting.
9. Double Irish Chain. The top is a flimsy. I think. I know I need backing, binding, and batting. I may need borders too. DONE
10. Raggedy Hearts. Five of twelve blocks are done. I need borders, backing, batting, and binding.
11. Sweet Sixteen. I have twenty of fifty-two blocks done. I need borders, backing, binding, and batting.
12. Summer Crossroads. I have blocks made, and four rows together. I need borders, backing, binding, and batting.

Pictures for most of these are on the right sidebar. The challenge now is where to find all these UFOs.


Linking up to:
2018 Planning Party at Quilting JETgirl
Quilting Gail

Monday, December 18, 2017

Design Board Monday - Cars' Roads is a Flimsy



Sorry for the lousy picture. It's a gray, foggy day and my phone doesn't like low light. Maybe I'll have a sunny day when it is finished and I can break out the good camera for a picture.

I thought I was going to be able to start quilting on this yesterday and finish it tomorrow. But the fates have conspired against me and it looks like it won't get done until after Christmas. That means I can't take it to my daughter, Brownie, over Christmas week. The little one's birthday is the first week of January though, so I will have to get to it right after Christmas.

Linking up to
Moving it Forward at Em's Scrapbag
Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday, December 11, 2017

The Return of the Ripper

It was a dark and foggy night...

Actually, it was a bright, sunny day, but that just doesn't have the same ring to it. But the dreaded ripper returned nevertheless.

What happened is I that dug out a quilting box so I could make a quick quilt for a little boy who loves the Pixar Cars movies. I found out about his birthday Friday and rushed out to buy some Cars fabric and then began work Saturday morning. It was a frustrating project in the beginning, mainly because I only found two rulers (and I don't like one of them) and I am sewing in the attic. Yes, the attic. Low light, sewing machine and iron plugged into an extension cord, and no heat. Or there wasn't heat until I brought up a space heater. THEN, I had to unplug the iron to use it. Not ideal sewing conditions, but I thought I could stand it long enough to get this quilt put together and then wait until a room was finished down below before sewing again.

By Saturday evening, I had also brought up a light bar, reworked my plan twice, and had the center four Cars blocks sewn together with a border of black and white checkerboard. But the checkerboard didn't line up at the corners and looked pretty bad. So Sunday afternoon necessitated the return of the ripper. I replaced the corners with the same red fabric I used between the four cars. After replacing the corners, I pieced on the "road" border around the center and between the side background pieces. And then I had to find Mr. Ripper again to take the red pieces off so add a white strip.



This is where the Electric Quilt software would have really come in handy. Instead of drawing a pattern on a notepad,



I could have had it to scale and with the seam measurements included. But since I forgot to add a half inch when I cut the reds, I had to improvise and add a white stripe to the side of the road.  I actually like it better this way.

Now here is where I have a problem. I hadn't intended to use that red as the background and am now short one 9x11 piece. So a trip to JoAnn's on on the schedule today. The red I had intended to use was a Cars fabric and looked fine under the fluorescent lights at the store, but looked decidedly reddish orange in natural light. Next to it is a fabric with a collage of cars. I was going to use a strip of that at top and bottom of the quilt, but now I am rethinking that also.



Now that I have the quilt center together, I think the style of the collage clashes with it. What do you think?



While at JoAnn's, I think I'll look for some other fabrics to complete the end borders. I have enough scraps from all the fabric I've used so far to piece in something too. Or I could make a strip and applique his name on it.  Or I could find something else that fits the bill.  A trip to the fabric store is always an adventure.

Linking up to:
Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
Main Crush Monday at Cooking up Quilts

Friday, June 30, 2017

A Quilter's Memorial Service



Recently, a woman we knew died from cancer.  I knew her from the quilting guild and Hubby knew her through her husband.  This was what we saw when we entered the santuary:  every pew draped with quilts she had made.  I knew she made a lot of quilts, but thought she gave most of them away. During the service, someone said that this is a fraction of the quilts she made in her lifetime, because she did indeed give most of them away.

It was a lovely service, with readings from a story she wrote of her life for her family, and personal stories from her family.  Most of all, they talked about her rough childhood and how she overcame it and formed a lifelong desire to help other people.  One of the ways she helped was to make and donate quilts to women's groups, veterans groups, and her church.  An amazing lady, and I wish I had known her better.  She will be missed.