January in Review

Looking back through my blog post for the month I have to say January has been a good month. I have quilted five quilts for other people and four for myself. I have carried another four tops out to the quilt shack today ready to quilt. I had counted the tops already out there the other day and I still had eight tops to quilt so add the four I carried today and that makes 12. I will need to get out to the quilt shack more in February or I will be even further behind. One of the four I quilted for me was on my 12 for 12 list, the others were bonus finishes. Three of the four I carried out today will probably go to Habitat, the other is my En Provence. Two of these are on my 12 for 12 list so I have to get at least one of them done in February. One of the tops is one that I was a little short of fabric for the back. This is how I fixed that.

I had five left over blocks from the front so I inserted them in the back to give me the length I needed.

I have also pieced some baby bibs and mug rugs plus one pistol pouch this month as well and three purple blocks for the rainbow challenge.

I also put the blocks together for the North Woods top, but still need to add the border. I also pieced a couple of the 100 piece blocks for another project. All in all a very busy and productive month.

I also read a several books, one I just finished was "Mean Streak" by Sandra Brown , very good.

Hope everyone had as good a month, happy stitching.

Teresa

DWM 1-30-2017

Well the month of January is just about behind us. It has been a very busy month for me. Not working retail has only meant I had more hours and more energy to put back into my quilting. I don't know why I have been going at it like I have to finish everything right now but that attitude has enabled me to get quite a few things done, just not everything. Saturday's post was wrap up weekend and I had four items listed. So the status on those items is:

1. Rust bordered split rail, all I needed to get it going out to the quilt shack was to piece the back. I needed 5 yards for an easy piece, but I only have 4.5 so on to plan B. I have some blocks left over so maybe I can insert them in the back. Check back later to see what I was able to work out.

2. Hop n Blue, I needed to add outer border, make binding and piece back. DONE

3. Press back and make binding for En Provence. I debated on the color of binding for a while. I had enough of the constant pink so that is what I went with over a light purple. DONE

4. I finished the other 8 blocks on this one, got them sashed together and added borders. Way more than I hoped to accomplish on this one. I really liked how the black print grounded all the wildness of it. Not sure if I will use it for the binding or something else.



Got a lot accomplished this weekend (3 out of 4) so there is not a lot on my design wall right now. Oh there is plenty to go back up there and get back to work on later. I hope to get some quilting done this week but things may be stacked against that. A couple of weeks ago Daddy got a letter from Veterans that said they had received notification that he was dead but if that was an error fill out form and also contact social security. Well of course this is just the beginning of the headache. I thought we had it straightened out with social security but he got 3 letters from them on Saturday that are confusing. He has also gotten notification from his 401 K and I am afraid his insurance  may be messed up. Haven't heard anything yet on his other 2 retirements but hopefully we can get this straightened out. In between this and doctors appointments I will be stitching away.

Teresa


    

End of week wrap up

I have been stitching on several different projects this week but haven't finished anything. The units I found to make up another Hopscotch and Butterscotch got put together.

Thursday night I had them this far.

Friday morning I finished putting the center of the top together. I still need to add borders. I am using the same fabric I used for the corner stones. The pink is a Thimbleberries fabric but I didn't have enough to put it as the first inner border. I made 35 blocks and set them 5 x 7 to make sure it was long enough for a twin or full bed.

I made a trip to Ivy's house hunting for  fabric to sash these blocks. I went looking for a lime green but ending up choosing this black print. I don't usually use a lot of black but one blogger commented that black goes with everything. I think I will use a variety of brights for the corner stones.

Since Ivy had plenty of this black I decided to use 3.5 inch sashing plus I am going to make 8 more blocks. This will make it a much bigger quilt, which means more strips sewn together for the pieced border. I worked on those more last night but still not finished.

It is too cold to go out to the quilt shack today, 25 degrees here this morning. So my plans today are to wrap up a few things. Get them ready to move out to the quilt shack.

1. piece the back for this one.

2. add borders, piece binding and piece back for this one.

3. finish last 8 blocks and would like to get this one put together but that might be a bit ambitious

4. press back and make binding for En Province

 Yea right, well maybe will get some of it done. Got to fix supper in there sometime since we ate out last night don't think I can swing that again. I have got a busy weekend, hope you get some stitch time in as well.

Teresa

Zig Zag

These are my zigzag blocks. I am kind of at a stand still now on what to do. I have 24 block, three of 8 different colors.  If I sash them and add borders this will be a nice enough size. If I put them together block to block I probably need to make more blocks. I don't really like have them in such a systematic  or set pattern, I am too non-ocd for this to be pleasing to the eye for me. I think I need to add another color for an odd number or something. I have fixed the pink block in the center where one of the unit in the block was turned the wrong direction. I guess I will let this one gel a while before I make a decision. I mean it is not like I don't have anything else to work on. I am open to suggestions.

Teresa

split rail

For lack of a better title I have been calling this the split rail. It was a pattern I saw on another blog, Nann's with strings attached. I got the borders on and the binding cut and pressed yesterday. I think I have enough of the border fabric for the back. I don't usually use something this dark on the back but I may this time just to get it out of my stash and to not buy anything else. It ended up being 62 x 82 so that will be a nice twin size quilt. As soon as I decide on the back I will move it out to the quilt shack and maybe move it to the head of the to be quilted line. This one is one of my 12 for 12 items for this year. Feels good to get it at least this far.

Opened another box and found part to another favorite Bonnie Hunter pattern.

The pattern in called Hopscotch and Butterscotch and I have already made it several times before. I have two in my living room now. The first on is make with 20 blocks and is made from left over Thimbleberries fabric. I had it out on the porch one cool day when we were sitting watching traffic and Johnny said "why didn't I make it big enough to cover better" so when we came in I came straight to the sewing room and started cutting it from civil war reproduction fabric. I made 30 of these blocks and it is long enough to cover head to toe.

This box held 5 completed blocks and a bunch of 4 patches and a few bar units in a variety of fabrics. If I remember correctly I was just using anything in my 2 inch scrap drawer and when I started putting them together I realized I didn't want the brights mixed with what I call muddy colors. I think I pulled the brights and made a kid quilt with fussy cut centers.

Yes I did, went back and found the picture from July 2012, not sure if I gave this one away or still have it. Oh well I think I will put these blocks together and give it to Ivy for quilts for Habitat.

I will post pictures when I get it together, until later happy stitching,

Teresa

DWM 1-23-17

I have been playing with these super scrappy blocks this week. I have 12 made and am trying out different sash fabric. I think I will look for a lime or turquoise, just don't think the orange or yellow is right. I saw this pattern on pintrest and traced it back to a blog that has now been deleted. But that first day I got enough info on her technique that I knew it was something I had to try and of course there is that overflowing drawer of 2.5 inch strips so jumped right in and got 12 blocks done in very little time. They are 12 inch blocks and with sashing and 8.5 inch piano keys on border it will make a nice size quilt. I still may make another eight blocks to make it larger. It is one I plan to donate to our Habitat program so it may need to be bigger.

This is one I pulled from the to be quilted pile and got quilted Saturday afternoon. I have the binding sewn on an over half way whipped down so this one is all but done. I still have 8 more out in the quilt shack that are ready to quilt but I have two to quilt for other people so mine will have to wait a little longer. But it does feel good to have quilted 4 of mine this month.

Happy stitching,

Teresa

2017 Project List

1. En Province
2. Jamestown landing in green
3. Black and White disappearing nine patch
4. Split Rail
5. 100 patch
6. Three inch shoe fly
7. North woods - king
8. Black white and red rails ---------   January finish
9. Pink 1 x 4 x 16
10. Rick Rack Nines
11. Oversize Pokemon Dreams
12. Blue all around

Glad to be able to mark one off the list. I went back on Facebook and saw where I had posted pictures of some of these blocks on my design wall on August 10, 2016. So these have been done for a while but then not nearly as long as some of my other projects. This is my third finish for January, but the other two were not on my 12 for 12 list, just this one. Hopefully I am headed in the right direction, that is finishing things not starting things. yea right,


Happy stitching,


Teresa

DWM 1-16-17

Not a lot of changes to my design wall this week. Still working on several of those projects. I did get some quilting done this week. The heart wall hanging and the grey and yellow hourglass are quilted and bound and on display at the Antique Basket in downtown Decatur, Ala. I also got this black and white with red rail quilted and am working on the binding. It is a bigger quilt, 66 x 86 so the hand work will take a little longer. This one will work on either a twin or full size bed. You really can't see the quilting but I loaded it sideways and did a semi straight line with circles either sitting on top on the line or dropping off the bottom side. When it is turned right side up like the photo it kind of looks like the circles are climbing the thread to the top.  Still learning a lot when it comes to the quilting and the only way to learn is to try new things. I am happy with how this one turned out.

Check back later to see what else I will be working on this week.

Teresa 

Wrapping up the week

It has been a super busy week. I have attended two guild meetings, Tuesday night in Decatur at Ivy's and Thursday night in Hartselle with the New Beginnings Quilt Guild. It has also been a lot of eat out nights because of all this running around, and that is not necessarily  a bad thing.

Wednesday I got the heart wall hanging quilted. I now have it bound. I even remembered to add a rod pocket to the back. I have it hanging for sale at the Antique Basket in downtown Decatur.

I also got this one quilted and bound. It is also at the Antique Basket.

I have made these three little baby bibs. I tried to use stick on Velcro but it would not stay on and when I tried to stitch it on it just gummed up my needle, so I ended up just hand sewing on a large snap that I already had. I think this box of snaps is thanks to Dianna Smith.

I made four mug rugs from some valentine fat quarters I had. All of these I have carried to my booth at the Antique Basket.


I have stitched a little on several other projects, but nothing to the completion level. I have the black and white with red rail fence loaded on the long arm ready to quilt and hopefully will get to it in the next few days. I have also pieced a few more of the zigzag blocks.

Happy stitching,

Teresa

misc. sewing

Yesterday was a day that I did a little of this and a little of that. Just wasn't able to stick to one thing. I did make yesterday's zigzag in blue. This blue is from yardage I got on a skinny bolt sale after Christmas.  

I did make my binding for the heart quilt and for this gray and yellow one. I had about forgotten I had pieced this throw size quilt. It is made for a layer cake that was called Pastel Pop by Micheal Miller. The pattern was from a tutorial on Missouri Star Quilts called Super Easy Hourglass. It was a fun easy and quick way to make the hourglass blocks but I didn't like having all the biased edges on the outside edges so I probably would not do it again.

So this is another one in the stack ready to go out to the quilt shed. I am still looking for a back for En Province but I don't have anything in my stash. It needs to be a wide back.  The only wide back I had that might have worked really looked better with that North Woods top I put together last week. All I need on it is adding borders and making binding and then off to the quilt shed.

Not sure what will get accomplished today, have some running around to do, but hopefully a little something.

Teresa

DWM 1-9-17

Friday I finished piecing  Bonnie Hunter's mystery En Province. It was a week of pretty intense sewing and I let some other things slide. Saturday was out stitch day at the community center and despite the very cold temperatures we had a great turn out. When I got home I piddled with a few other things and then after supper I started on this heart. I finished the blocks and put it together on Sunday. I had a good start on both the reds and the neutrals in my box of 2.5 inch squares and then cut some more from the 2.5 inch strip drawer. I also had a bag of straps left from a patriotic quilt that I was able to cut some more squares from. Searching further I found a box of scraps that I think just got boxed up when I was trying to clean off my ironing surface. Definitely got a lot of cleaning and straightening to do in this sewing room.

This is the back I have chosen for the heart, have just under a yard of it but that will work since the heart is 31 inches square. I still have to make the binding, and I hope to get it quilted this week.

While I was in the mood to wrap some things up, as in get them ready for quilting, I pieced the backing and made the binding for the black, white and red rail.

It gets added to the list ready to quilt. Since I am still hunting a back for En Province this one may be my January finish and the heart a bonus finish. I also want to do a heart table runner before Valentine's day.

This weekend I also caught up on the zigzag blocks. Doing one a day didn't work this week, but got four done this weekend so I am back on track. I am thinking I will do about 30 which means I can finish in a month.

I have started repeating colors but different fabrics.

Until later happy stitching,

Teresa

En Provence

It is done or at least the top, now to find a back and the right thread. I don't plan to put a lot of quilting in it, may just stipple it. There are so many seams coming together that the simpler the better on the quilting for me. It was a push to get it pieced this week, but now I can take it to our stitch day tomorrow (assuming we don't get a bunch or even a little snow). I still need to stay stitch around the edge but then I will call it a night on this one. Feels good.


Will catch up on some of the other projects in the next few days.

Teresa

Twelve for Twelve

A couple of years ago I made up a list of twelve unfinished projects I had sitting around the sewing room. Each month I would draw a number and that was the project I had to finish that month. At the end of the year I had twelve finished projects. I am not saying this kept me from starting other projects and I even finished some of those, but at least I did finish some of those older projects. So this year I have made another list of twelve projects that are in some stage of completion here in the sewing room. These are not projects that have been boxed up and stacked on shelves in my stash closet (not even going there). These are projects that are out in the open, most have been started in the last few months but a couple have been hanging around for a couple of years. I am not drawing numbers this year just working on one or more of the projects but must finish at least one each month.

2017 Project List

1. En Province
2. Jamestown landing in green
3. Black and White disappearing nine patch
4. Split Rail
5. 100 patch
6. Three inch shoe fly
7. North woods - king
8. Black white and red rails
9. Pink 1 x 4 x 16
10. Rick Rack Nines
11. Oversize Pokemon Dreams
12. Blue all around

I have been working pretty steadily on En Province this week and hope to have the flimsy finished by  Saturday. It is going to be very cold here this weekend so I probably won't get out to the studio and quilt until it warms up some, that is assuming I have something I can use as a back and can find the right thread without ordering some.

I know there are other projects that need to be on the list and maybe I can get some of them completed as bonus projects. Number 2 and 3 were intended as wedding gifts for a niece and nephew, both have now been married 2 years, definitely time to get these done.

Wish me luck,

Teresa

Rainbow Challenge

Getting back into quilting full time as well as blogging has been fun as well as mind boggling. I am so far behind on everything.  Catching up on other blogs that I used to follow I again am seeing folks talking about the Rainbow Challenge. In the past with working full time I knew I wouldn't have time to do something every month. While I should have made a news years resolution not to start anything new I know that is just not me, but maybe just doing a little something each month will satisfy me. It also helped that the color for January was purple and I still had a lot of that color out. Now to decide what block to do each month. I looked at what a lot of others were doing and some that had been done in the past. I decided on one that uses 2.5 inch squares because I have a box of those already cut plus a drawer full of 2.5 inch strips that is over flowing.

This is the block I chose. I have done a similar block that had 16 squares that were framed in white with other squares as sashing.

This is one I did in 2015, I think I gave it to Ivy to use as a Habitat quilt.

As I hung the block on my design wall I realized I already had this block done. It is an orphan block left over from the triplets quilts. So who knows I may do one of each block , doubling the added work in progress. Who is surprised?


Happy stitching,

Teresa

DWM 1-2-17

This is my design wall. Kind of scary, overwhelming to say the least. I have had one week away from full time employment and it has been a super power sewing week. Now not all of this was sewn this week but a lot of it was plus a good bit that there was no room for on the wall. I have done a lot of sewing on Bonnie Hunters mystery for 2016.

 Here is my first block. I am working on the additional quarter square triangle for the sashing strips. I have most of the cut out but not all sewn together .

Hopefully this week I can settle more in to this retirement thing and find a balance. I have quite a bit of quilting to do this week and hope to get to it in the next couple of days. My longarm machine is in a building behind the house and while is heated I don't like to go out there when it is super cold and that is the prediction for next weekend here. Maybe I can get something of my own quilted and then I will be able to sit by the fire and stitch the binding. It is a rainy Monday here with storms predicted for later today or tonight so I may not do a much sewing today, but maybe a little cleaning and organizing.

Until later, happy stitching,

Teresa

Happy New Year 2017

Happy New Year to all my quilting buddies. I got a call this morning before 9 am to tell me the reveal was on Bonnie's blog. This was quite the surprise as I had figured at least another 2 weeks, but as she had traveling planned she wanted to put it on out there. Here is my first of 16 blocks. The sashing is what will really sets it off.

Today's color is hot pink. This is block number 7.

I started setting these blocks together last night. The setting fabric is maybe a little dark but it is what I had enough yardage of and my goal with this one is to use up what I have.

Today has been a rainy dreary day not the best start for the new year, but I do hope to get a little motivated in the cleaning and organizing area. I have a lot of quilting ready to go and lots of unfinished projects that I would like to finish. Hopefully I can get into a routine and settle into this semi-retirement.

Best wishes to all happy stitching.

Teresa