Sunday, January 31, 2021

January Stash Report and Goals Update

 Well, actually mostly just Stash Report because this is what I listed for January Goals:

1.  No quilt related goals due to moving. 

I do have some goals for February, but due to getting settled into our new home, they're not very ambitious.  

1. Participate in PC Quilters charity sew day
2. Hang flannel on design wall 
3. Pull fabrics for potential new project in work in EQ8
4. Refine design for potential new project
5. Participate in guild Zoom meetings

We'll see how much actual cutting and sewing I get to do. I miss it. 

As far as the stash report goes, I almost got through the month with nothing in and nothing out, but when I ordered the 108" flannel to cover my design wall, a few potential prints for the project I'm designing in EQ jumped into my cart so I could get free shipping. And since more variety is better, I kind of got carried away. So, six yards came in. The stash is up six yards for the month and the year. I'm already in the hole for the year as far as my goal to break even or reduce the stash goes.

In other quilty updates, I joined the PC quilters, and signed up to participate in a charity sewing day for making boy themed quilts for a charity they support. They have a shortage of quilts suitable for big boys, and I can help with that and meet a few people in a small group setting. Socially distanced and masked, of course. 

We're starting to get settled into our new house and find our way around the neighborhood. We hung one of my all-time favorite quilts in the foyer, Seasonal Migration. This is a big quilt, 78 by 90 inches;  this photo was taken from across a double-wide hallway, in the doorway to the den.

To the left is the front door; to the right is the living room and kitchen. Eventually we may get a new credenza for this space, larger and more rustic. That buffet server came from the dining room in the old house but it looks too formal here. 

We've ordered a sofa and an area rug for the living room, but lead times are weeks and months out, so we will make do with bare tile floors and the old futon in the meantime. Murphy doesn't like tile floors so I made him a couple more beds with foam cushions and fleece covers. Two fleece pillowcases, the only sewing I've done in ages! 

I'm looking forward to more sewing in February. 


Friday, January 29, 2021

Big Box Bother

 We, especially DH, are so frustrated with the big box hardware store now. You know, the one where you can never find anything and the employees are not helpful. Well, it seems EVERYONE has been doing home improvements involving shelves lately. Even shopping multiple store locations we can't get the shelves and related hardware for my sewing room. DH tried to order for pick-up, and between when he put the quantity he needed into his cart, added other items, and tried to check out, the items he had put into his cart were cancelled, no longer in stock. We've tried every store location within 25 miles. Grrrr!!!! On line ordering didn't work either, same story. 

So now the plan is to watch the inventory and stop in at the local store whenever we're in that neighborhood and get the parts we need a few at a time until we have them all. 

Meanwhile my fabric stash is still packed and the baskets are stacked up waiting for shelves. 


We did make some good progress, however. The movers brought the foam core panels and the hardware from the design wall in my sewing room in the old house. The foam core panels made the move in surprisingly good shape, only one small dent, not a problem. DH got the panels mounted on the wall and I have 108" flannel on order to cover them. The design wall is 8 feet wide by about 8 feet high; the top of it is as high as I can reach standing on the top step of my ladder. Big enough to lay out a queen size quilt! 


This view is from the doorway to the room. The cutting table is out of view to the left, and from behind that I can photograph the upper 3/4 of the design wall. 

Any progress is good, and when I need to sew I can always open the moving boxes with the fabric and sort through it to find what I need. I may have ordered a bit of quilting fabric when I ordered the wide flannel....You know, to get free shipping. 

In other quilting news, I've officially joined the Pebble Creek Quilters, although I haven't met anyone in person yet. I signed up to participate in a charity sew day on Feb. 20. They only allow 10 people in the room at a time, so it'll be a nice opportunity to meet and interact with a small group. 


Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Alycia Quilts


Friday, January 22, 2021

New Sewing Room

 Whoo-hoo! My new sewing room is coming along. Scroll down to see what it looked like Monday. Now the furniture is in place, and some of the boxes are unpacked. 


There's still a lot to be done, but it will take time. The design wall will go on the wall that's out of the picture on the right (behind where those boxes are) and DH will have to install it but he has lots of more urgent priorities. 

Those boxes are two of five containing my fabric stash, and we need to install shelves in the closet for the stash. Due to Covid we're having trouble locating the parts we need for the closet shelves. Every store and website we've looked at so far for the specific shelf system we want is out of stock on key components. Therefore the fabric stash will remain packed in boxes for awhile. 

But the sewing room is mostly organized and there's definitely been progress since Monday, so I'm happy. 

P.S. We're making progress unpacking the rest of the house, too. 


Link Ups: Confessions of a Fabric AddictAlycia Quilts

Monday, January 18, 2021

Goodbye Old Sewing Room, Hello New

 A couple weeks ago I said goodbye to my old sewing room. It was just an empty room then, and all my stuff was on the moving truck, ready to be transported to my new home. 


Two days ago the truck arrived in Goodyear, and now my new sewing room looks like this:

That's my design wall wrapped in green tape above. It's two big foam core panels, and we're hoping it survived the trip okay. 
There's a closet on the far left in the photo above; it too is full of stuff that needs to be unpacked and organized.

I don't see any sewing going on in here for awhile. 

There are higher priorities for unpacking, and other spaces in the new house that have to be set up first, especially the kitchen. We did, however, cook - actually cook - our first meal, so we're making great progress. 

I'm linking up with Design Wall Monday even though my design wall is still wrapped in packing material and won't be usable for awhile. Something to look forward to!  ☺

Link Ups: Small Quilts and Doll QuiltsLove Laugh Quilt

Friday, January 15, 2021

From Kat for Covered in Love

Last week Kat from Kat and Cat Quilts posted a finished quilt for Covered in Love. The top was made by me and it was quilted by Meloney. You can read more about it at Kat's post here

I was so pleased to see this top quilted and finished and ready to go to a grieving family. Both the light and the dark fabrics in the top are all batiks, all from stash. The design was inspired by something I had seen a couple years ago on Wanda's blog


What a lovely difference Meloney's quilting makes! I'm glad I was able to pass this top along so that it could be finished rather than languish as a UFO forever. 

Thank you, Kat and Meloney, for finishing it and giving it to a CiL family. I hope it offers a little comfort to them. 


Link ups: Alycia Quilts, Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Saturday, January 2, 2021

Dec. 2020 Goals and Stash Update

Just a quick report this time - 

Stash Report: 

Good news on the stash front. My goal was to break even or reduce the stash. Mission accomplished! 

December:
IN this month: 0
OUT this month: 1 yard (Binding for pixelated quilt: 5/8 yard.  Gift pot holders: 3/8 yard)

IN YTD: 101-3/4 yards
OUT YTD: 161-5/8 yards

YTD Net Change: 59-7/8 yards OUT

Goals: 

December recap
1. Finish the pixelated quilt. Done and gifted. He likes it. 

No other quilting goals in December due to preparations for moving.

January 2021: 
No quilting goals due to moving. 

To all my blog readers, Happy New Year! I'm going to pause the blog for a few weeks while I move into my new home, but I'll be back. Meanwhile, I'll still be reading your posts and commenting when I get a chance. 

Best wishes to all for a healthy new year!