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