Monday, December 29, 2014

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

Lots of sewing this week.  The 30's top is done and in the TBQ pile.


I added black setting triangles and was worried they would be too dark but I think they frame the top nicely.  Please see everyone's Design Wall posts at Patchwork Times.

Weekly Goals--

Borders on Island Chain
Borders on Raggy Flower top
Sashings on Two Lips blocks
Sashings on 30's blocks
Christmas Irish Chain piecing
Borders for Bricks and Stepping Stones

That's enough to choose from this week.  Not much piecing, more finishing tops so they are ready to quilt. 

Its cold outside, makes it easy to stay inside and sew. 



Sunday, December 28, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

Last stash report for 2014.  Three finishes this week for 41 yards used.  

In This Week--0
In YTD--96 yds
Out This Week--41 yds
Out YTD--185 yds

I beat stash 89 yds!

During harvest I finished Fall Foliage and promptly forgot about it.  Its over 10 years old.  There are some "where did they come from" fabrics in it.  I added some beautiful batiks and it all worked out.  I made "Magic Binding" and although I like the look I prefer to hand sew my binding.  A little thinking and maybe I can have both.  

Fall Foliage
Next is More Blue Diamonds.  It was originally a king size quilt, but the small squares looked more like blue freckles on a top that large.  It was resized into three smaller quilts, this is the last one.

More Blue Diamonds
Last is Nines Overload.  Swapped 9 patches and some I made in a 9 patch quilt-a-long.  There are some "clunker" blocks in it, maybe they don't quite "go" with the other blocks.  They are as unique as the quilting friends who made them--and I love the variety it adds to the quilt. 


Nines Overload
Not sure what I did to the first two pics, I took them all at the same time.  Two quilts are large queens, I estimated 16 yds in each.  The smaller blue/white quilt 9 yds.  I dyed wide flannel backing for the two larger quilts (a sky blue and a mint green) and pieced two blue fabrics for the Diamond quilt.  

I'm happy with my 2014 stash numbers.  A bit of stash used, several quilts finished and new fabrics for my stash.  100 yds either way is okay with me.  Please see everyone's stash report at Patchwork Times.  


Monday, December 22, 2014

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

These 30's blocks are on my design wall--


Puss in Corner blocks or Uneven 9 Patches as fellow blogger and Stashbuster Gayle Bong calls them.  These are some of the blocks found when reorganizing my sewing room.  What plans I had for them I can't remember.  Luckily another Stashbuster and blogger Kat used her EQ program and drew up setting options.  I was so grateful and relieved!  There are enough blocks for a large quilt and a smaller twin size quilt.  Thank you Kat!   Help from others is REALLY important since my Mojo went south on an extended vacation.  My goal is at least 10 tops to quilt starting in January and I'm hoping to have them done by May 1st.  There are some out of town sewing days planned, and I'm hoping Lorri2Rs will be able to visit and sew at my house in January.  Please see everyone's design wall posts at Patchwork Times.

Last Week's Goals--
  • Sash 30's blocks--I worked on a different set of 30's blocks--oops!
  • Borders on Trail Mix--two borders on
  • Pick borders for Bricks and SS--no
  • Hand sew one binding--one side left
  • Square up Cheddar Delight, Summers at the Lake, and Twirling Spools--no
  • Christmas Irish Chain--no  
The goals were ambitious and although I didn't get to some of them I have been sewing late into the night.  The album blocks have borders and can now go in the TBQ (to be quilted) pile. 



Night pictures are terrible--the wide border fabric is a dark purple print and the narrow border a coral.  This quilt might live forever at my house.  

Weekly Goals--

Finish piecing 30's top
Finish last side of binding
Last border on Trail Mix

More than enough--Christmas is this week and we hope to spend time with Laura Beth, Nick, Mason and Asher.  A few cookies will be baked to share.  

Are you ready for Christmas??




Sunday, December 21, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

Only one more stash report in 2014!  This week I added 11.5 yds.  Will my stash report change again before the end of the year?

In This Week--11.5yds
In YTD--96yds
Out This Week--0
Out YTD--144 yds.

I'm ahead 48 yds!

I'm happy with my numbers.  I've used more than I bought.  My goal is not to eliminate my stash, but allow me to use some older fabrics and add new ones.  Lots of quilting planned for after the holidays.  Please see everyone's stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Rainbow Scrappy Saturday

2014 Rainbow Scrappy Saturdays are almost over.  Although I didn't post often, I did make a set of blocks.  If the color was "blue" that block contained at least a little blue.  These blocks are 2.5" scraps from my partial strip box, my scrap box, scraps from friends, or a random 5" square I cut into quarters.


I like this quilt!  There are blocks made from butt ugly fabricsFeel free to enlarge the pics and look at them.  The block pattern is Album blocks or Great Granny blocks.  I have an outer border picked and still auditioning an inner border.  Please see everyone's projects at SoScrappy.

 

Monday, December 15, 2014

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

My design wall was cleared last week.  It is such a blindingly large white area I swear the reflected light made it hard to sew an accurate 1/4" seam.  So, I pulled out my great granny square blocks--


I am behind on making these, I think at least another row or two.  Then float them with more of the assorted cream backgrounds and possibly small cornerstones.  Please see everyone's Design Wall posts at Patchwork Times.

Weekly Goals--
  • Sash 30's blocks
  • Borders on Trail Mix
  • Pick borders for Bricks and SS
  • Hand sew one binding
  • Square up Cheddar Delight, Summers at the Lake, and Twirling Spools
  • Christmas Irish Chain
There, that will give me some variety this week. I know I won't get it all done, but right now I am practising "one step" moments.  Work on any project to move it one step.  Maybe just 15 minutes worth.  Its the "eating an elephant" method.  One bite at a time!

Last week I finally was able to talk myself into cleaning the sewing room.  The old 9 foot table is out and replaced with shelves.  



Less than 10 UFO's were found while doing this, I thought maybe there were more lurking than that.  Some even had the pattern/directions stored with them.  But I found 54 Puss in Corner blocks made from 30's repros and Kona snow, does anyone know what I was making??  And a set of blocks that is in numbered rows, I will have to slap them on the design wall and see what they look like.  

The weather outside is frightful, a winter storm.  Rain/sleet/ice and now high winds and blowing snow.  We are prepared, plenty of propane in case the power goes out.  Parts of northeastern South Dakota are without power but I doubt that will happen here.  Its good weather to stay home and sew.  

Monday, December 8, 2014

Design Wall Monday

I've been working on Cheddar Delight--featured in the September 2014 Fons and Porter Love of Quilting.  Its a Lynn Roddy Brown pattern--


Two seams and the corner triangles and it will be a finished top!  

This weekend Ken and I spent the weekend with Laura Beth, Nick, Mason and Asher.  It was Asher's 3rd birthday.  How do they grow so fast??  Also will share a picture of Laura Beth and the boys--


An addition to the family is being grown!

Need my weekly goals although this week I am super busy and they will be small.

Weekly Goals--

Finish Cheddar Delight
Pick borders for Bricks and Stepping Stones

This week is guild Christmas party.  I will be at LB and Nicks and babysit for them one night.  A family Christmas on Sunday.  Not much time for sewing.  Please see everyone's Design Wall posts at Patchwork Times.

 




Monday, December 1, 2014

Design Wall Monday

My design wall is 3 layers deep.  But I have Trail Mix on the hanging rod waiting for borders.


I also had a finish that has already gone to a new home--


 Karla knows whenever she needs a hug to wrap her quilt around her and know I would give her one!  

Summer is over and the camper is home.  I'm sad!!  Harvest is over and its now frigid outside.  I've been folding fabric and sorting closets--all boring.   Still having technical difficulties but I'm hoping to have the blog posting sorted out.  Maybe posting will be more regular.  I've been doing lots of sewing, mostly on UFOs so that's good.  

Please see everyone's design wall posts at Patchwork Times.





 

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

Stash in--22 yds
Stash in YTD--84.5 yds
Stash out--15 yds
Stash out YTD-144 yds
I'm ahead 59.5 yds!
Please see everyone's stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Monday, August 25, 2014

Design Wall Monday

This week I worked on--


A purse and a challenge project.  The purse went together easily.  The challenge project, well, its still in the bag.  This week I will work on putting them together into "something".  Please see everyone's design wall posts at Patchwork Times.

I've had a summer break from blogging.  Mostly because I have been unable to do blog posts from my tablet!  There hasn't been much sewing but lots of summer fun, sewing with my friends Pat and Lorri2Rs.  I'm hoping for more regular blog posts now, I have a bit of stash enhancing to report and maybe a finish yet this week.  

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

Time to update numbers--

Stash in--10.5 yards
Stash in YTD--62.5 yards
Stash out--14 yards
Stash out YTD--129 yards

I'm ahead--66.5 yards

My recent finish is a D9P done in black/red/cream--


Its a large quilt, queen size?  90x106" I think. Black flannel backing, it took me forever to bind, only in the afternoon with very good light.  Please see everyone's stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Doing blog posts has been--aggravating.  Frustrating.  Next to impossible.  I thought I had posting from my tablet figured out, but not so!!  Today I bit the bullet and figured out how to tether my laptop to my tablet and of course after a month of vacation (the laptop) it balked at working! 

The past month has been a whirlwind.  DD and SIL's house flooded, not much, maybe 1" in the basement but it was messy.  The area they live in received +10" of rain one evening after +5" a few days before.  No damage except the carpet and padding.  After helping remove the carpet (it was all out but then needed to be carried to the dump trailer) large fans were set up.  Did I say they had bought and moved two weeks prior to this??  Then back to the camper to find a broken window.  Mowing contractor will pay for it, grudgingly.  It is a special window that requires safety glass, the window place will have to custom cut it.  Right now the old window is covered with special tape holding the shattered glass in place.  Two weddings and two quilts gifted this month also.  

It continues to rain here at the camper, Friday night was 4.5", again.  Its not raining near as much at home on our corn and soybeans.  Today I am heading home, Dr. appt tomorrow and then back to Yankton.  Yesterday and today have been the first really hot days, last week a couple of nights I even had to turn a little heater on, it was 50F.  

I'm able to read blogs, as usual commenting is not as easy.  So if you get an email instead of a comment, its because I can do that easier.  

I hope your summer is going well.  Sewing slows down here although I did sew the center of Honeysweet pinwheels together yesterday.  

My garden is two tomato plants in tubs and lots of flowers.  I have several hanging baskets and I bought a plant I have never tried to grow before, a Mandeville.  Its been transplanted to a larger pot and has a trellis.  GROW BABY GROW!!!  If you have any experience with these please give me growing tips.  Its in a spot that receives some afternoon shade, the sun is too intense here during the summer and the flowers fade/falloff and leaves burn.  Its fairly protected from wind.  





Sunday, June 1, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

New Numbers this week--

Stash in this week--0
Stash in YTD--52 yards
Stash out this week--15 yards
Stash out YTD--115 yards

I'm ahead 63 yards!!

Please see everyone's stash report at Patchwork Times.  And because I hate a pictureless post--


A turkey hen comes every evening to snack on spilled bird seed.  I'm sure she has a nest somewhere close.  Soon we hope to see baby turkeys.




Saturday, May 31, 2014

I'm Back!

I'm back, was missing from blogland because I wasn't able to post from my tablet and had forgotten my laptop at home.   We moved the camper on May 22nd and I started volunteering the next day.  On the way to my camp spot all the tread peeled from one of the camper tires.  But since it didn't go FLAT we decided to continue and drive very slowly.  30 miles and I made it to the campground!  No changing tires along the road.  Ken said that was my one "pass" for the year.  He was right. On Thursday I left the Visitor Center to find this--


Not a clue what happened, but I'll guess it was a rock thrown from a mower.  But, no one saw it happen, or reported that it had happened.  To be fair, your attention is watching where you are driving, and they wear big ear protectors for the noise of the mowers and may not have even realized it had happened.  sigh  Next, my microwave died.  Chip, who lives next door, says it can be fixed very cheaply, but I needed my microwave NOW so off to town to pick one up.  We'll fix the other one later.  Through this all I haven't felt well.  Summer cold/allergies I thought.  Over Memorial Day weekend ended up in ER, bacterial bronchitis.  Followup Dr. visit yesterday confirmed still have infection, will start 2nd antibiotic.  So I've had the strength of a cooked noodle.  

But my bird feedes are up, I have orioles who are PIGS they eat so much grape jelly!  Hummingbirds, finches, warblers, chickadees and more.  The robins like when I water my grass--they are busy looking for worms.  And the bird bath, well, they almost have to take numbers they are so busy bathing and drinking! 

Although I haven't done much piecing, I have been hand sewing binding.  I finished my 30's quilt--

Bad picture, bright sun washed the photo out but its all I have.  These are some blocks from my 2013 Rainbow Scrap challenge using my box of 30's fabric and a vintage pattern from a magazine.  I dyed a wide flannel backing, a pretty sky blue, the color of the sky here.  Tomorrow I can count the yards used in my stash report!  WOOHOO!

I also worked on my green challenge blocks.  They aren't done but the color this month is green and I LOVE green.  Please see everyone's posts at soscrappy.




We have a graduate in the family--



Mason graduated preschool and starts kindergarten this fall.  He CAN'T be that old yet!!  

And Gina--this post is for you!!



Saturday, May 17, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

In between farming, spring time errands and rain I finished a Brown Diamond quilt from an old Fons and Porter book.   81x105", I estimate it used 14 yards of stash.

New numbers for this week are::

Stash in this week--00
Stash in YTD--52 yards
Stash out this week--14 yards
Stash out YTD--100 YARDS

I'M AHEAD 48 YARDS!!


Please see everyone's stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Lori

Saturday, May 10, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

A few finishes this week.  First I finished a Bricks and Stepping Stones quilt, 86x108".  Free pattern at Quiltville.com. I estimate I used 14yds of fabric.

Next I finished Sunny Lanes from the book Nickel Quilts.  Its a big quilt 115x115".  About 20 yds of fabric.

So my new numbers are--

Stash in this week--0
Stash in YTD--52 yards
Stash out this week--34 yards
Stash out YTD--86 yards

I'm ahead 34 yards!!

If this post looks strange, I'm doing from my tablet and its all new!  Please see everyone's stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Happy Mother's Day!

Lori

Sunday, May 4, 2014

Sunday Stash Report

New numbers this week, I added 10 yards of various fabrics from Iowa.  On Tuesday I bought 4 yards of batik for borders/binding for Island Chain.  I used 4 yards to back a QOV for my guild.  So that is--

Stash in this week--14 yards
Stash out this week--4 yards
Stash in YTD--52 yards
Stash out YTD--52yards

This week I broke even!


Wow, never thought the numbers would come out even.  I have 8 tops waiting for binding, and no plans to purchase any fabric.  At least, right now!  Please see everyone's stash report at Patchwork Times

Saturday, May 3, 2014

Rainbow Scrappy Saturday

April's color was purple.  Purple is a hard color for me, I really have very little purple in my stash.  The Iowa Ladies (Lorri2Rs, Gina and Rhonda) helped me out.


Ladies, do you see your fabric in there?  With their help I was able to make 4 blocks--


I'm making Album blocks or Great Granny Square blocks.  I'm not trimming them, I'll do that when I have them all made.  Right now I plan on setting them with neutral sashing and "floating" the blocks unless I see another setting I like better.  May's color is green.  I have a lot of green, its my FAVORITE color.  Please see everyone's projects at soscrappy.

 

Monday, April 28, 2014

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

These are what I worked on this weekend--



40 pinwheel blocks for the borders of Honeysweet Pinwheels.  Please see everyone's design wall at Patchwork Times.  I spent the weekend sewing with the Iowa ladies.  Remember that I said these women are hard core quilters?  I made a sign to hang on the door--


One of the ladies is a massage therapist, and her vehicle has her business name and phone number on it.  A few gentlemen studied the vehicle in front of the door, then must have seen the sign.  Gina received a phone call asking if she was in town giving massages?  I do wish they had come inside, would we have been a surprise??  (We sew at the local Sr. Center)

We also made the trek to the fabric store and I did a little stash enhancing.  Not a lot of yardage--


Mostly TOTs for sashings/borders/bindings, a few lights (my stash is sadly lacking in lights) and a couple of purples.   I better get to work on binding before my yardage in overtakes my yardage out!  The QOV from my guild is loaded and ready to quilt--


Its a bento box quilt in red/white/blue.  

Weekly Goals--
  1. Quilt QOV
  2. Setting triangles on Spinning blocks
  3. Honeysweet Pinwheel center together
  4. Bind a quilt
A short list, I'm tired from sewing in Iowa.  Its cold and rainy right now and no change in weather forecast for the rest of the week.  Good weather to stay inside and sew.  Summer is coming though, I need to get the camper cleaned and packed.  I'm looking forward to volunteering again this summer.  Do you have plans?  A vacation?
  
 

Monday, April 21, 2014

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

Usually you see pictures of construction on a design wall, mine is one under "de-construction"--


 This is how the blocks looked before de-construction--


They looked okay but I wasn't in love with them.  And then I saw how Elaine finished her blocks.  WOW!!  And so the de-construction began...  Please see everyone's design wall at Patchwork Times.

Weekly Goals--
  1. Finish center of Island Chain
  2. cut squares for Honeysweet Pinwheels
  3. Load QOV top/piece backing
Its going to be a short week.  Fri-Sat-Sun is sewing with the Iowa ladies.  I need to rest up, those ladies are serious sewers!  Saturday I finished quilting a Bricks and Stepping Stones top--


Next will be trimming/binding it.  I set a personal goal of 10 tops quilted by May 1st, this was #10.  I love this pattern, (thank you Bonnie Hunter) its an anything goes for fabric.  Finishes to 86x106", a nice bed size.  My thread choices were a little different.  I had two threads I liked--

  
A dark purple Permacore and a variegated YLI called Hollyhock.  The Princess likes Permacore.  The YLI was noticeably thicker, especially in the darker dyed sections.  I have had the dark dyed sections be weaker and break during quilting (what a headache).  I thought, what if I put the variegated in the bobbin and it didn't have the stress from running through the needle at high speed?  It worked like a charm.  The dark thread blends in on the busy front, and the variegated looks pretty on the backing--


The weather is definitely more like spring.  The grass is getting green, trees are budding, robins are staking out territories.  Today we put the snowblower away and got out the patio set.  

Has spring arrived where you live?  


Playing Catchup

Its been busy!  Thanksgiving has come and gone, soon it will be Christmas.  We got our vaccinations a couple weeks ago--Covid, RSV, Influena...