Jacob's Ladder

Began 2003. Finsihed February 2021.

To Do Tuesday #79

Today is the last To Do Tuesday at Home Sewn by Us. Chris from Chrisknits is going to take it up next week, so the lists will continue. Thank you to both Roseanne and Sue for starting it and Chris for continuing it!

I have been quilting Jacob's Ladder this week and that is all I've done except some cross-stitching to relax my shoulder. I wanted to have it finished by now, but dragging that quilt through my sewing machine and holding it up so it doesn't pull the stitches is killing my shoulder and I can only do it for short bits of time. So last week's goals are not done, not a single one.

Repeat Goals for February 9, 2021

• Make six more scarf bibs
• Finish quilting Jacob's Ladder
• Rip out the stitching from one pinwheel block so I can reuse the backing
• Quilt the string block on the new square in a square block

This list may be too ambitious, considering how long it is taking me to quilt Jacob's Ladder. But it's easier to keep up with projects if I don't take it off the list.

Linking to:
To Do Tuesday at Home Sewn by Us

Design Wall Monday Week 1 of 2021

If I type 2021 often enough, it might feel like it is really here. 2021, 2021, 2021.

On the design wall today is my Jacob's Ladder quilt. It is facing the wall because I am clipping threads and getting it ready to go to the quilter. I've never done this on the wall, but I like this way much better than laid out flat. It won't work for large quilts, so more backache with those. Next up is the backing for it.

Linking to:
Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

March UFO Finish

Jacob's Ladder Progress and a Quandry

I know now why I stashed this UFO in a box fourteen years ago. Blocks aren't the same size, seams are too small, bias pieces are stretched - the list goes on. And to think that some people buy old quilt blocks at estate sales that are in worse shape and manage to make a decent looking quilt out of them.

I know this is a crummy picture and I'll try to take a better one if there is tomorrow is sunny.  Tonight I'm holding a flashlight on it to take a picture.  Not ideal.  The colors are green and white.

If you remember, I originally had a long narrow strip pieced together. I took the end off and split it into a couple of strips to add to the side. Now it is a throw size, and that's where the quandry comes in. It doesn't seem finished as it is now. I have the strip of four patches on the left, quite a few four inch green pieces, the green remnant on the right and a white piece the same size. The white is really a white on off-white which will make it really hard to match, and since these fabrics are fourteen years old, there is zero possibility of finding more of either fabric.

I've been tossing around some ideas. 1.) There might be enough of the green and of the white to make very narrow borders but I would still need a larger border and binding. 2.) I could make a border out of black or a very dark shade of green and then.... 3.) Totally no idea.

Any ideas?

Linked to:
WIPs on Wednesday at Esther's Quilt Blog

March's One Monthly Goal and Year Goals Review

I decided to work on a quilt that isn't even on my January Goals list. But according to that list, I should have made a quilt for the RV in February and that one didn't get done either. So I am giving myself permission to work on a UFO that I have in hand rather than search through boxes for one that is on the list. For my March One Monthly Goal, I want to get Jacob's Ladder to the flimsy stage, and get the back made. I am not even going to attempt to quilt it.

This morning I took it out of the box it has been in for fourteen years. I didn't take a picture again this morning, but this 36" x 84" section is the part I started working on.

It is not quite as bad as I remembered it, but not as good as I am happy with today. I decided to take off the bottom part and use it to make this a throw size quilt. Then it can be a donation quilt. So my first work on this UFO was with the ripper. I should have a ripper hidden up my sleeve like the bad guys on old tv shows had a derringer that suddenly springs into their hand in an instant.

In reviewing my 2018 Goals (tweaked at the end of January), I can see some things that are working out well and some that still need prodding, and some that just need to be canned.

1. Organize my sewing space. Still no real sewing space here, but I have added some shelving to hold projects, batting, and other things as I unpack them. When we moved here last April, I bought several wire modular shelving cubes to make a big, indoor catio. With workmen in and out, I didn't want to worry about the cat getting out or freaking out because strangers were in his space. But now that we have somewhere else to put him, and because he despised the catio, I took it apart and had it stored in the attic. But now it made the perfect storage for bulky batting and project boxes. So I'm still reporting success here but not complete.

2. Find and list my UFOs. It's possible I have found all of my UFOs, or at least all my known UFOs. I've found a couple that I had completely forgotten about. So success here and I will continue sorting through boxes.

3. Participate in monthly challenges on blogs and facebook to finish these UFOs. My 12 UFOs for both are 1. Cars, 2. Trailer Quilt, 3. Second Saturday Sampler, 4. Christmas Among Friends, 5. Antique Tile, 6. Gairden Walk, 7. Depression Blocks, 8. Baby Bow Tie, 9. Double Irish Chain, 10. Raggedy Hearts, 11. Sweet Sixteen, 12. Summer Crossroads. I am calling this a success, but I do have to revise this list. I can't quilt the larger quilts, so the goal for them will be just to the flimsy stage, and some of these are already there. Also, the facebook group isn't working for me, so dropping that.

4. 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 have done this with several projects. It is a lot easier with the wire cubes and project boxes. So success here but not complete.

5. Organize scraps by color and participate in scraphappy's Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I have found all my scraps now, and have a pattern that is QAYG, so this is easier now. I'm also making string blocks, and scrappy English paper piecing, so will call this a rousing success but not finished.

6. Start the cross-stitch quilt block project that first made me want to learn to quilt. Not too late, but I need to get started soon.  So far a fail. 

7. Take up Kate's Life in Pieces now official 15 Minute Challenge. Doing well with this one, so success so far.

8. Limit my current projects to four. I have four going right now and it may be too much. Maybe if I were more organized or had a bigger space it would work better. I'll try it one more month before cutting down to three. So success here, but it doesn't feel successful.

9. Start Christmas projects in June. This is still pending as it isn't June yet but I don't have a clue what I want to do and time is slipping by fast these days.

10. Go to guild meetings. I don't drive at night and Hubby was out of town on guild meeting night, so I couldn't go. So this is a fail.

11. I want to find a sit down quilting machine. There is no money budgeted for this, so this goal needs to be eliminated. Fail 12. Take a Craftsy fitting class.I said I may have to eliminate this one too and that's what I'm doing now. With no sewing space, this one isn't feasible right now. Fail

13. Build something for the house every week until the cabinets and organizers are done. Still a fail here, but with spring around the corner, I can see that this will change soon.

14. Take a scroll saw class. I don't have time for this. It is a fail and I'm taking it off the list.

15. Exercise 15-30 minutes a day. Still a fail but I need to make it a priority. Too bad there isn't somewhere to be accountable.

16. Cut out sugar and find 15 good autoimmune recipes by the end of February. Still a fail but both Hubby and I need to do this even if he won't admit it.

17. Stick to an autoimmune diet in March and then re-evaluate for April. There is still time for this, so it is not getting a rating yet.

18. On days that are over wind chill over 50 degrees, work on landscaping 15-30 minutes. I changed this last month and I'm going to have to change it again to read "dry" days. Every day in February that was warm enough was either rainy or the ground was soggy. So, not really a fail, but not a success either.

19. Join a book club. Well, finally. Still doing this. It is a success so far.

My results this month were 8 successes, 7 fails, and 3 pending out of 19 goals, and that is a little better than last month. 2 of those failed goals will be removed from my list, which will help next month.  I didn't add any goals this month either.

UFOs and a New Plan

I'm looking forward to this year because I have a new plan to deal with UFOs in 2016.

 Since I have to fold up my sewing table and cutting table in order to get out tables to pin quilts, or to use my quilt frame, I am going to finish piecing all the tops before I begin quilting.  That means I probably won't have many finishes before next fall.

So here are UFOs from 2014 and before:

1. Baby Bow



2.  Gairdin Walk



3.  Around the World from the Couch



4. Depression Blocks



5. Christmas Among Friends



6. Denim Cathedral Windows



7. Ameliorate Sampler



8.  Jacob's Ladder



These are UFOs started in 2015:

9.  Summer Crossroad



10.  Double Irish Chain



11.  Starry QAYG



12.  Sweet Sixteen



These are UFOs that will be hand-stitched and not likely to be finished in 2016:

13.  Colorful Butterflies



14. Star Travel.



15.  Antique Tiles. I made these for a swap that never happened.  So now I have to do something with them.

16.  There will be at least one quilt started in 2016.  I need to make a quilt for the trailer.  I have a modern pattern in mind and already have the fabrics.

Linked to Design Board Monday at Bits 'n Bobs.

2016 Goals

This year is already going by too fast, and it just started! New Year's Eve began with a Sherlock marathon on PBS, so I stayed up most of the night recording them. I'm not sure it was worth the effort though. I've seen the show a couple of times and liked it, but by the end of the last show, I didn't like it quite as well. Maybe it was the late hours, or maybe it was the direction the show took in the end. Anyway, I've got them on DVD now so I can watch them in the trailer when we have limited or no tv reception.


(Tonight, PBS is doing a Doc Martin marathon and I LOVE Doc Martin, so I'll be up until 2 a.m. for it too.)

Yesterday, I planned on wrapping up some end of the year paperwork and then quilting all day. None of that happened. I got a late start on the day since I had stayed up most of the night. If I hadn't set my alarm for 9:30, I probably would have slept past noon. Then Hubby decided he would put up a couple of cameras for our security system. And since that isn't a one-person job, I had to help pull wire and bring things to him in the attic. I finally got in a half hour of quilting after 8 p.m.

I wasn't going to post any goals or resolutions for the year, since by February, I often forget I've even made any. But I've been thinking lately of what I'd like to get done this year so thought I may as well write them down. I even looked up last year's goals to see how I did.

Last year's goals:
1. I am going to make a blog post every day for the month of January, even if it's just one sentence. Hopefully, that will get me back in the habit of posting and inspiration will follow. I actually did that! Good thing I decided to do it in January instead of July. I remember that it was hard though. Sure won't be doing THAT again.

2. I am going to list my unfinished projects on the sidebar with deadlines for finishing.  Wonder why I didn't do this one? Guess I was so busy trying to think of something to say every day that by February I had forgotten.

3. I am going to start a new project every month and not leave it unfinished. Bwahahahaha!

4. I am going to keep track of my projects so I can see what is worthwhile and what is a waste of time and money. Gee, that was a good idea. I wish I had done that one.

5. I am going to host a home improvement blog party for a month this spring and see what happens. Hmmm, I knew I wanted to try a linky party, but forgot I set a topic and date.

6. I am going to clear the clutter and finally hang pictures on my walls, and maybe even find those long lost gift cards. And last, but not least, the old 'clear the clutter' resolution. Well, THAT didn't happen. I'm surprised lose weight wasn't on my list, because I didn't get that done either.

So, in light of all the broken resolutions of 2015, what should I propose for 2016?

1. I would like to lose weight. Or rather, I'd like my clothes to fit a little looser, and I'd like my knees and hips to quit hurting. Now I could go shopping and just buy bigger clothes, but my knees and hips would still hurt. And I'm not sure losing weight will stop the pain, but it beats knee surgery as my first option, so I'm going to try. Plus, back in November, I promised my doctor that I would start walking 30 minutes every day and eating better. But I really only promised because he was blocking the door while he was lecturing me about my weight. Once I was out of his office and drinking my Cherry Pepsi with real sugar, I kind of forgot about it again.

2. I think I'll repeat #4 above, except to say that I will keep an excel spreadsheet for projects every day during the month of January and then re-evaluate.

3. Limit resolutions to a workable number, like 3.  See how easy goals can be?  I've already achieved this one!

------- Here are the UFO's that I said I would finish in 2015:
1.  Showtime!     Finished.



2.  Baby Bow Tie.  No work done on it at all in 2015.



3.  Gairdin Walk.  No work done on it at all in 2015.



4.  Around the World from the Couch. Worked on, but still not finished.



5.  Friends Who Haven't Met.  Finished.



6. Depression Blocks. Didn't touch it in 2015.



7. Christmas Among Freinds. No work done on it in 2015.



8. Denim Cathedral Windows. No work done on it in 2015.



9. Star Travel. No work done on it in 2015.



10. Second Saturday Sampler. No work done on it in 2015. I don't even know where it is now.



11.  Jacob's Ladder.  Not touched in 2015.



Yikes!  Out of  11 UFOs, I only worked on three of them, and only finished two.  2016 has to be the year of UFOs for me.  There will be another post tomorrow listing my UFOs.  Obviously, there are more because I started and didn't finish even more in 2015.

Here is my one and only start to finish in one year.  Notice how small it is.



Linked to Silly Sunday at Comedy Plus. Thanks Sandee!

Sometimes Quilting Makes Me Laugh

Vicki from Field Trips in Fiber challenged us to post about our oldest UFO.  I knew which one it was; I just didn't know where it was. I was afraid it was in the attic, but first I searched every closet and under every bed. It is cold outside and I really didn't want to climb up in the cold and breezy attic, but by the time I had searched all over the house, I was determined to find it. And I did.

When I pulled it out the bag, I nearly died laughing.

It is a Jacob's Ladder pattern, and I actually used a pattern for it.   I checked out the same book again (why I kept checking out that book, I have no idea) that said the Courthouse Steps pattern was the easiest pattern for a beginner. I wanted to see how to put the blocks together. By then, I thought I knew everything I needed to know to make a quilt top. I was so very, very wrong. The second quilt they recommended for beginners was Jacob's Ladder. I think the one in the book was for a twin size, and I bought the amount of fabric based on their instructions. The instructions in the book didn't go into detail about how to join blocks together, such as matching seams. I know, I know, that should be obvious even to a non-quilter, but it wasn't to me. So not only were the blocks not square, they were often offset by a quarter inch. Still, I put a few rows together and pressed the seams open (no instructions on which way to press either). At that point, I either thought it looked fantastic, or I was just overly ambitious, but I decided to make it a king size. So I made more blocks, formed them into rows, and sewed these rows perpendicular to the previously completed rows to make it wider. I think it was then that I realized my rows weren't that straight, or flat, and the blocks had some serious overlap, and I bagged it until I knew more about quilting. And then I forgot about it.  I began it in February 2004, so that makes it my oldest UFO.

Eventually, I took a few quilting classes and learned the basics - things I thought I already knew and much, much more. And I continued to ignore the green and white mess in a bag in the closet. Until this year, that is when the desire to finish ALL my UFO's overcame my desire to forget about that quilt.

Obviously, it needs a major overhaul. No way am I going to put enough effort into this to complete a king size quilt. Plus, the fact that I only bought enough fabric to make a twin size and couldn't get any more now. I just hope I can salvage enough of it to make it a lap quilt for the Quilts for the Elderly project.

So here it is, the sad looking Jacob's Ladder. Contain yourself.

There was also a bag of four patch blocks, but not enough fabric to make any of the half square triangles. I must have lost count while I was making them. Maybe I can make something else out of them.