What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

It's time for me to plan the week and assess how I have done on my goals.  I have 5 quilts I am focusing on right now. I try to work on one task for each quilt at a time working through all five before moving on to the next set of tasks.

1.checkered past -The next step was to make 40 sashings. I sewed 1 1/2 inch creams to 1 1/2 inch shirt strips on the treadle. I pressed and subcut them to the size of the block. tada

 I noticed that I have a lot of 2 inch squares that are not matching for easy breezy. So, when I saw this new block, I knew I could use the non- matching 2 inch squares. Any chance to get scrappy is fun for me. I found this at Suzies-scraps.com, scrappy snowballs.

This has been such a fun, fun project this Spring. We ordered this raised bed from Amazon. I was hoping to get something for our older gardening years. Why is it that we are getting shorter, but, the ground is getting further away. We filled the bottom with sticks followed by wood chips from the recycle place, and, then, topped it with compost from the bulk compost place. It came in a box and hubby had to assemble it. The hardest part was deciding where to put it. We aren't going to ever move it once it is full ...

This seems to be a project for in between finishing a rug and what rug to do next decisions. I generally just do what comes to mind in each of the circles, but, this time, I thought it would be fun to use up leftovers strips from the project I am working currently. I might even add miniatures of the bigger pictures. I think in these circles, I will do Mr. Scarecrow rug. 

I still have 100 more easy breezy blocks to go for the size I want to make. I am slogging through them each day. I try to make at least 2 per day, but, sometimes I run out of any combinations, and, I go foraging in the scraps to cut for awhile, until, I am tired of cutting.  This may take some time. By now, I have a system for making them.

The tulips have been lovely this year, and, didn't mind the snow storm. I am trying to move the rock back from in front of the red ...

Our Friday small group met at the library, and I took the opportunity to use the floor for a design floor.

 I had finished the blocks last year for this Bonnie Hunter free pattern called Florabunda. The color for February  for the rainbow scrap challenge at so scrappy is yellow. And this is one of the UFOs that I am working on for yellow.  I was very disappointed at it looking at it on the design floor. It looked ugly.  So, I spent time thinking how I could not finish the quilt, and, not let all the work go to ...

Sunday I posted about the corn stalk on my Mr. Scarecrow rug. I am slowly making a rug for fall. This rug will have an un hooked background that is overdyed with brown.

Facing the long boring skinny part, I had to play games with myself to keep going. I decided that I would hook one wool strip every day, hoping that once I started, I would get excited and keep going.... no luck, yet

day 1

day 2

day 3

day 4

Day 4 included more than one strip yipee

day 5

more here and here

I am linking ...

I need to keep going on grassy creek mystery quilt at quiltville. I made the first part of clue #5 at retreat. I just need to make flying geese and the clue will be done.

my grassy creek mystery quilt at quiltville

clue 1 clue 2 clue 3 Clue 4 A Clue 4 B

clue 5 A

clue 6

clue 7

I am linking to:

 I have been working with tiny 1 1/2 inch squares that are sitting next to my sewing machine. I collect them, until, I think I can make either waffle stamp blocks  or postage stamp psp20/21. I am always amazed at how many are in the stack. The stack of squares doesn't look like much, but it moves 2 quilts along. I have the solid pieces already cut and waiting in a drawer nearby.

I am linking to:

While I am working on my focus projects, I do a little piecing as leader/enders. It helps break the monotony of millions of hsts, and adding loooong rows to tops I am trying to finish. I am bouncing between rainbow scrap challenge quilts, grassy creek mystery quilt, and country roads top. country roads isn't moving along as quickly as I had hoped. The mystery quilt takes time. I really like the piecing, so, I don't mind.

It has been a cold dreary week here, and we haven't been out and about. We need to get moving ...

I have tried to set some goals for scrap management. Scraps are everywhere, and, are taking over my quilting life. I enjoy cutting scraps, but, when it comes to putting them away, I realize I have no more room for them. I need to use out of what is already cut and ready to go, so there will be room for more. 

1.That is why a few boxes just need to go to the attic, and wait for a better time.

2. when this basket is full I have to deal with it. It is about 14 inches across ...

I had a big milestone yesterday - I added the finished in 2021 tab to the top of the page. I felt hopeful. Not that I can't add one last quilt to 2020.

I think I need to spend the rest of this year cleaning up from all the projects this year, and, try to get a bit more organized for next year. First, I need to reclaim my cutting table. I find, that I will travel around the house to cut, since the cutting table is a mess. It's embarrassing, but, I am sure it will be fun ...

I had a sew day last Thursday, and, I decided to work on a baby quilt I have had cut for a couple of years. I love cynthia Brunz's wiggle time pattern and wanted to try something with these fabrics. I discovered that I had cut 2 strips wrong, and, that meant, I didn't have enough fabric to finish it. I think it will be ok if I mix background fabrics.

Even though, it is not Thanksgiving yet. I baked bread, and loved the smell of that in the house. It just seems like  the holidays. We bought ...

Coming home from a quilt retreat is a challenge to unpack and get back to normal. I crammed a lot of projects into my weekend, and my bags. I wanted to pull them out, one by one, and, make sure everything is taken care to put where they belong.

The first project I worked on, was the big easy Christmas. This was my one monthly goal for November. I had it quilted before I left. I used the big tables at the retreat to trim it, and, then, I attached the binding by machine to the back side of the ...

 I didn't get a single one of my One monthly goals for October done. No, not one. I did finish 3 quilts, but, they were not on the list - 4 patch x , Aunt Mary's double chain, patriotic boxy stars.

That makes November goals easy to decide. But, I think I need to keep it simple. It is crunch time for long arm client Christmas quilts.  I need to make sure I can get them done. I will try to sneak this in for quilting after thanksgiving.

1. quilt big easy Christmas -   I don't have a start date ...

I have an abundance of shirts whole, and in parts. I found a great idea for a block using shirt fabric, and, started cutting. The block uses a 4 1/2 inch center and 10 -2 1/2 inch hsts so I cut and cut and cut...and sewed and sewed and sewed.....

I used my slotted trimmers for the hsts.

oops I am angled challenged

It doesn't use as much from a shirt as I expected, so I have 2 sets ...

 I decided it was time to sort another project box. This one was a bit confusing. I am trying to be very hard core on making decisions, but, it is very difficult for me not to finish everything I come across, or rather, to believe I will finish everything. But, reality, says otherwise. 

I have labels on the boxes to help figure out what I was planning. Still, The black elastic doesn't appear to belong to anything in the box.hmmmm

 I had a chance to make easy breezy blocks, now that, the shoofly blocks are finished, Apparently, I am trying 2 sizes. The bigger one using 2 inch squares, and, the smaller one using 1 1/2 inch squares. So far, I am still using squares that I already have in my square bins. Eventually, I will have to cut from strips.

2 inch squares

oops, I see one turned wrong

A clean cutting table is such a tempting notion. first, I seldom see such a thing, why mess it up? But, that won't do.. it is a playground of exciting potential messes.  What can I cut? mark? pile? Unfortunately, it is hard to get to my clean table, there are a "few" bags of undecided "things" in front of it on the floor. So, there is the boring place to start.

 My Friday group meets at the library. There are 3 of us, that meet regularly, and, we have another 5 that comes many times, but, off and on. They are all very talented, and approach quilting differently. That's why I enjoy it so much. I just like to make quilts. I may not have a reason to make one or a plan on what I am going to do with it. I may have several projects going at the same time, and, I tend to bounce around from project to project. I quilt my own quilts on a longarm ...