A Friday Finish 8/30/2013

 

 

Finished Drunkard's Path Pillow

 

 

This went together surprisingly quickly. It's solid green Kona cotton on the back, with a lightweight fusible interfacing for body. A hidden zipper is in one of the seams. It's big - 24" - so most likely it'll be used as a floor pillow rather than on a sofa or chair.

 

Linking up with "Finish it up Friday" at Crazy Mom Quilts and "Can I Get A Whoop Whoop" at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Random Thursday

I love "Really Random Thursday" over at Live a Colorful Life, so today I'm linking up.

My randomness today:

• The dishwasher works. It cost me the equivalent of 22 yards of LQS fabric to get it repaired, but now it washes dishes. 
• The new garage door has been installed and it looks great. So clean! and SO QUIET!
• I'm contemplating submitting a proposal for a book to AQS; outline, project notes, & research in work.
• A friend is coming over today to play in the sewing room and have lunch.
• My studio is not too much of a mess:

my studio, 8/29/2013

Life is good.  Today is gonna be a great day.

WIP Wednesday 8/28/2013

Haven't been able to spend much time in the sewing room lately...
But the good news is, the dishwasher's fixed and the new garage door's installed.

I did get the little Drunkard's Path layered and pin-basted yesterday, and started the quilting. Got the stippling done in about an hour.  Hopefully I can get this finished up this week to show it on Friday.
Here's a sneak peek at the quilting. 

 

Linking up with Lee's "Work in Progress Wednesday" over at Freshly Pieced - check out what everyone else is working on.

Design Wall Monday 8/26/13

 

 

This is the project my Sew Bee It (STLMQG) bee mates did for me; they pieced the Drunkards Path units.  Good job on all those curves; thank you ladies!  Maybe I can get it layered and quilted this week.  It's 24" square, and was intended to be the front of a pillow cover. 

 

Lots of non-sewing stuff going on this week so my time in the sewing room will be limited. 

 

Linking up with Judy over at Patchwork Times; check out all the inspiring projects there.

 

 

 

Stash Report 8/25/13

This weekend my favorite LQS is having their Fat Quarter Frenzy, in which customers can enter to win a 20% discount for a year.  I could use a discount, right?  So yesterday I went over, selected my free FQ and put my name in the drawing.  In addition, for every $10 spent, you could put your name in again. So I selected two half-yard cuts and bucked up for a second entry.  I came home with this pretty coral FQ and these two great low-volume neutrals.

 

 

However, the customer in line ahead of me at the register was buying all the fabric she needed for an entire quilt top, and she got to put her name in the drawing 12 times.... So much for my chances!

 

Yardage in this week - 1-1/4 yards.  Some has been used for the Dresden project and for the Jelly Roll project, but not to the point where I can count it out yet.  I'll tally up all the ins and outs at the end of the month.  Looks like this month is leaning toward stash enhancement.  Guess I'd better get busy!

 

Goals for the week - get these projects to a point where I can count yardage used. Continue researching magazine submission requirements and if possible submit one of these projects to a magazine.

 

Linking up with Judy over at Patchwork Times - check out everyone else's efforts at stash management.

Mundane Finishes

Sometimes you just have to count the boring, uncreative stuff as part of the process.  Today I have two - yes, TWO - finishes.  Finished hanging sleeves and label covers, that is.  Ho-hum.  But in order to enter these quilts into a show, the labels have to be covered and the quilts must have sleeves, so I spent time this week getting the job done.  Does that count for a Whoop-Whoop?

 



Linking up with Friday Finish at Crazy Mom Quilts and Can I Get a Whoop-Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.  Check out everyone else's much more exciting finishes this week.

What's wrong with this picture?

Update Friday 8/23:  Since I also bought a charm pack and yardage to go with this, I decided to use it anyway and trim the strips down to the correct width.  Thank you to all who visited and commented for your suggestions.  I'll be very wary about buying precuts in the future.

 

 

 

Whoever heard of a jelly roll this wide?

 

To use this for a pattern that requires a jelly roll (standard width 2-1/2"), I'll have to cut off a heavy 1/8" from each strip. Yeesh!  Kinda defeats the purpose of buying a jelly roll, doesn't it. 

 

This jelly roll came from a well-known nationwide fabric & craft store, but I bought it last year and I no longer have the receipt, so I can't return it.  Makes me mad! 

Design Wall Monday 8/19/2013 and a memory quilt

I can't actually show what's on my design wall today; still working on a confidential project.  But I do have other stuff I have to get done this month....

One of my August goals is to get hanging sleeves and label covers onto the quilts I plan to enter into The Quintessential Quilt 2013, the juried & judged show produced by Circle in the Square Quilters which hangs in the University City MO library in October. 

One of the quilts I will enter is a memory quilt I made for my dad for his 80th birthday in 2007.  It's hard to see here, but almost every block has text in the white band. The phrases were actually printed using my printer and freezer paper-backed white batik fabric. This quilt is twin size and he actually used it as a bedspread.

Dad's Quilt

 

Here's a close-up:



 

Dad was always a good storyteller. In 1995 he wrote a memoir, a collection of 56 one page stories, anecdotes, and essays about his life. They were mostly about his younger years and his experiences growing up and in the Army. The phrases printed on this quilt are the titles of his stories.  He titled his book "A Legacy of Episodes" and I named this quilt "Legacy."  The bottom row of blocks serve as the quilt's label. They explain the phrases,  note who made the quilt, and conclude with "Happy 80th Birthday, Dad."  The only time I ever saw him with tears in his eyes other than at my mother's passing was when I gave him this quilt.  He was very appreciative of the "blanket" I made him!

 

Unfortunately the quilt had to come back to me.  Dad has severe dementia.  He lives in a care home in Arizona.  He has now declined to the point where he can no longer communicate.  He was a man whose whole life was about communication: Signal Corps in the Army, long professional career as an executive with AT&T, exceptional writer, personable speaker who could pontificate - at length! - on any subject.  He always had something to say, and he was not shy about saying it. Now, sometimes his lips move and the barest whisper might come out, but if there's any words, they don't make any sense.  This once-great communicator can no longer communicate. 

 

I suppose photographic memory quilts are more visually interesting, but when you have words and phrases to work with, you end up finding a way to create something that features words and phrases. I don't know if "Legacy" will be juried into QQ13 because it's not exceptional in workmanship or visual interest, and the quilting is all in the ditch so the stitching doesn't even show. The library has room to display only 17 large quilts where QQ13 hangs, so this quilt will likely be juried out.  But if it gets in, I hope it hangs near the stairs where people can see it closely enough to read the words.

 

So this week I'll get the sleeve & label covers on "Legacy" and I'll continue to work on my other project.  Hopefully I'll have something more interesting to show on Design Wall Monday next week. Linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times - check out all the inspiring projects over there.





 



Stash Report 8/18/2013

Harmonious oranges

Sometimes shades of a color don't play nicely together. I needed some more oranges and the ones in my stash didn't work.  Some were too bold, some were too dreary, some were too yellow or too red, some were batiks which I'm not using for this project....

So I had to buy fabric. That's OK whenever necessary; I'm not forbidding myself to buy fabric, just trying to be mindful of what and how much I buy.  I brought home a couple yards this week. Some of it has already been cut up for a project in work.

I'll tally up the total ins and outs at the end of the month.  If I break even for the month/year I'll be satisfied.

Linking up with Judy over at Patchwork Times. See how others are managing enhancing their stashes!

I'm so excited!!!

Back in July, I entered the 2013 Designer Block Challenge at Modern Quilts Unlimited Magazine. 
Today I received a wonderful e-mail from Vicki Anderson, the publisher.  My block has been selected as one of the 12 finalists!  Of course I can't show the block here on the blog until after the magazine has published it.  But I'm so thrilled I just couldn't wait to share this exciting news!

A Secret Finish

Woohoo - I got my entry in the STLMQG Ohio Star Challenge finished!  Of course, I can't show it to you until the big reveal at the meeting in September, but I can show you the back.  I know, boring, huh. 

 

The problem is, I'll be out of town on the day of the reveal meeting, so I need to find someone to take it to the meeting for me.  I'll ask one of my bee mates, since I have to return this month's bee block and get the new one.

Linking up with "Can I Get a Whoop Whoop" over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict and "Friday Finish" at Crazy Mom Quilts.

You know you're a quilter...

I saw this today over at Domestic Deficit Disorder (whose blog name I just love, totally describes my housekeeping talents):

 

I love it!

 

To this I would add:  "You calculate the value of purchases in number of yards of fabric that money could buy." 

 

Dishwasher repair? OMG, that's 22 yards of LQS fabric! Ouch! Sadly, the dishwasher repair must be the priority so I will have to forgo the fabric for awhile. Oh, well...

Progress...

...on several projects this week:

August Bee Block

 

This is the August block for Sew Bee It. The pattern is called Sea Glass Steps, and my bee-mate requested cool colors.

 

 

Next, still working on Dresdens:



Dresdens

And finally, much progress on my STLMQG Ohio Star Challenge, which I need to have finished by the end of August. I can't show it here until after the reveal meeting, but you can see I have only the binding to finish.

Ohio Star Challenge

Linking up with Freshly Pieced for Work in Progress Wednesday - check out everyone else's progress for inspiration!

Design Wall Monday 8/12/2013

Design table today, actually:

Dresdens

Making Dresdens for a new project.  Unfortunately I won't be able to show any more of this project for awhile; gotta keep it a secret. 

This week I need to set these Dresdens aside and work on finishing my entry into the STLMQG Ohio Star Challenge, which is due in September.  Since that's for a guild challenge, I won't be able to show pictures of that for awhile either. 

I guess I'll have to find a UFO to work on to have pictures to post on the blog.  I'm sure I have something somewhere....Hehe, don't we all have UFOs stashed somewhere!!!

Linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday; check out all the other creativity over there!

Stash Report 8/11/13

Some stash enhancement this week... I added some much needed neutrals for backgrounds.

A few colors had to come home with me, too.

All together, 2-1/2 yards in.

I gave a friend 2 yards from my stash, but I'll shop her stash to replace it sometime, so I don't know if I'll actually count it out or not.  If I count it out then I have to count in what I get in exchange!

I did some cutting and sewing this week. I'll tally up the amounts in and out for August at the end of the month.

 

Check out other stash reports over at PatchworkTimes.



 

 

Charmed Snowballs finished

Charmed Snowballs

 

Finished!

A tutorial is available; click on the Free Tutorials tab above.

Size is 40 x 49", good for a lap or baby quilt or throw.

Skill level easy.

 

Charmed Snowballs back

 

Linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday and Can I get a WhoopWhoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict; check out all the other creative finishes there!

Need your opinion: Which background?

White Dot

Grey Grid

 

I'm thinking about a new project using these colors. Which ground fabric would you choose?

The proportion of color to ground will be about as you see here.

 

White Dot:

Pros: I might have just barely enough; colors harmonize well.

Cons: Juvenile; cannot get more; it's kind of expected

 

Grey Grid:

Pros: More sophisticated; can get more

Cons: Don't have enough; boring?

 

Note: the colors show up better in the Dot photo. The Grid photo is slightly washed out.

 

Please leave a comment and tell me what you think, thanks!

 

Linking up with Freshly Pieced.

 

Work in Progress Wednesday 8/7/2013

First Saturday Blocks, August

I joined The Quilted Fox's First Saturday BOM which started in August and runs for 12 months. Each month there's a main block and an alternate block. We don't know what the finished project will look like, but this year's theme is the Greek Islands and the fabrics are all batiks.  Yum!

Main Block, August

 

Alternate Block, August

I couldn't believe how crowded it was there on Saturday. I ran into several of my friends and we went out for coffee afterward.  I'm going to enjoy this both for the project and the get together with friends!

Linking up with Work in Progress Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced. Check out all the other inspiring projects there!

 

Design Wall Monday 8/5/2013

I didn't think I would have anything to post today. I'm kind of between projects, and the things I need to accomplish this month either can't be shown yet or are too boring to show.  (Who wants to see the latest and greatest in hanging sleeves!!!)

But yesterday my dear SIL & BIL came over for dinner and brought me some antique quilt blocks from their church's garage sale. 

Antique blocks

These are so old they almost look Modern.  They're extremely wonky.  I don't know what - if anything - I'll do with them. 

I'm also contemplating what to do with these blocks:

 

Orphan blocks

 

These were started for a block competition; a fourth one was sliced and diced and reconstituted.  The concept didn't work and I abandoned it.  These are 12" blocks and I don't have any more of the grey print.  I'll leave them up on the wall and see if any ideas come to mind.

 

 

Linking up with Judy over at Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday. 

 

July Stash Report

Well, I couldn't hold out. I had no fabric in up to the 30th, but I needed backing for the snowball quilt. So I blew it. A little more than just backing came home with me - some lights (low volume) for backgrounds, lacking in my stash.  But I'm still ahead for the month and the year, so not bad overall.

Fabric IN July 2013: 4.9 yds
Fabric OUT July 2013: 11.2 yds

Fabric IN 2013 YTD: 85.0 yds
Fabric OUT 2013 YTD: 86.33 yds

Net change:  1.33 yards OUT

Yesterday I went to my LQS for the first meeting of their latest First Saturday BOM project.  I hadn't participated before but this one is batiks which I love, and I have time now, so why not.  I'm not counting yardage from First Saturday blocks because it's all cut pieces specifically allocated for this project.  They had a huge crowd there and I ran into several friends. Some of us went out for coffee later which I really enjoyed.

Here's the finished snowball quilt; this photo was taken indoors with flash. I'll get some better photos outdoors later.

Charmed Snowballs

This week I need to work on labels and sleeves for my two entries into The Quintessential Quilt 2013.  Also need to layer and baste my STLMQG Ohio Star Challenge.  If I get all that done I can treat myself to a new project. Hmm, I'll have to play around in EQ and come up with something.

Linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times - check out how others are managing their fabric addictions.