Evening in the Garden Quilts

January 16, 2014
by Valerie Leave a comment

Work in Progress…Thursday

Well, I missed the linkup, but I’ll put this out here anyway for those of you who follow.

I have finished the stitch-in-the-ditch stabilizing quilting between all the blocks on the Brights quilt, which means it looks like nothing at all has been done to it. One tip I remembered as I did this was to stitch in the same direction on both sides of each row of sashing , so that it wouldn’t distort. You can probably guess how I learned this…

Today I’m on to quilting the sashing, probably with wavy lines using the walking foot, and then fmq-ing the blocks and borders with paisley designs.

Meanwhile those ~~enablers~~ quilters on Twitter, known as the #Twilters, have drummed up a new quilting bee.

We’re all going to make our own versions of the Missouri Star Quilt Co.’s “Disappearing Pinwheel”

quilt. Find the links to the tutorials on Gretchen’s blog, 120 Blocks. We’re going to work on these

during our Martin Luther King Day Sew-In ( #MLKSI ). In typical #Twilter fashion, this is morphing into a whole weekend of fun and silliness, so check out the blogs and podcasts to see what’s going on. Google Hangouts have been mentioned (still no success fixing my webcam…), and there will probably be a Flickr group, so you can participate even if you’re not a Twitter person. I hope you’ll join us.

This is a perfect project to use with two layer cakes, but I don’t have any, so I dug into my stash. I came up with a great batch of large-scale florals and big dots/circles, and this peach blender to serve as my solid. After editing for contrast, the dots failed to make the cut, but I’m excited about what I have. I’ve starched, pressed, and cut my 60 10″ squares, and I’m ready to go on Monday. Or sooner

if they talk me into it.

And the new step has been released for Scrapitude, so I’ll be plenty busy.

Hope you’re make progress on something.

January 12, 2014
by Valerie 3 Comments

Sunday Stash Report: 1/12/14

Nothing in, and nothing out this week. I’ve been working away at the Bright Strings quilt, and the back (all from stash as well) is almost finished, but it’s progressing at a snail’s pace. I’ve had back spasms all week and can’t sit at the machine for very long at a time. Hopefully it will get finished this week.

This week: +0 yards, -0

This year: +0 yards, -10 yards

Net stash used this years: -10 yards

In other news, I have a new ironing board. My tall son leaned on the old one, bending the legs and producing a permanent slant. I don’t know how obvious the problem appears here, but a.) Yuri kept rolling off, and b.) I kept cursing as the fabric and iron slid off.

The new one is Bed Bath and Beyond’s “professional” model. It was too expensive, but I used a coupon. I wanted one quickly, and the main review complaint on the ones from Amazon was that they were arriving damaged, so I went with this. It is 18″ wide, which I like, and it has it’s own electrical cord and outlet for plugging in the iron, so I am no longer fighting the cord as I iron. It has a built in iron rest and cord guide. The padding seems pretty thin and the cover is a rough, cream colored fabric, but I guess I know how to fix those things. Since I haven’t been in the studio much, I haven’t really used it a lot, but so far, so good.

Hope you’re using your stash this year.

I’m linking up with Sunday Stash Report at Patchwork Times.

January 8, 2014
by Valerie 7 Comments

WIP Wednesday: Brights Top is Finished

I finished the Brights top today, and I only had to put the borders on twice to get them right! It’s too large (about 60 x 80″) to get a good picture, but you get the idea.

Now I’m looking at fabrics for the back. I don’t have four yards of anything remotely coordinating, but I do have all these brights, so I think I’ll cut them into large squares and piece them together. Which may procuce more bright strings, and I’ll be right back where I started…hmmm.

Quilting: what do you think? I’m thinking of doing all the quilting in a shiney black thread, or shiney dark gray. Or maybe a varigated colorful thread on just the black borders. Any ideas for color or motif?

Hope you’ve all made the progress you want. I’m linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

January 6, 2014
by Valerie 1 Comment

Design Wall Monday: Brights and Blacks

Here’s a quick peek at my design wall on this cold, cold day. Yesterday I made the forty flying geese blocks for the border, and today I am going to add all the sashing and cornerstones to the center. The layout uses twenty-four of the bright string blocks, so I’ll have six left for the back.

Stay warm and keep quilting!

I’m linking up with Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times.

January 5, 2014
by Valerie 4 Comments

Sunday Stash Report: 1/5/14 The First One

Sending you some bright blocks to brighten your days. Many of us here in the US are overwhelmed by snow and cold. We must fight back by sewing!

A very positive stash report this week, but I will confess that there’s a fabric order on the way…

This week: +0 yards, -10 yards (pillowcases for donation)

This year: +0 yards, -10 yards

Net stash used this years: -10 yards

Keep warm!

I’m linking up to Sunday Stash Report at Patchwork Times.

January 1, 2014
by Valerie Leave a comment

Quilty Resolutions 2014

My quilting the past year felt a little directionless, so I’m trying to sets a few goals for this year.

Bags

I’ve sewn purses and bags through the years, but haven’t tried the new ones popular in this century.

I asked for and received Purses, Bags, and Totes by Moya’s Workshop for Christmas.
I’ve been saving Pins, tutorials, and posts about bags I like on Evernote for the last two years. (Do you use Evernote to save everything in your life? Recipes, blog posts, web pages, everthing, all nice and organized and private. Across all devices. I love it.)
I think little zipper pouches would make good gifts for kids at Christmas, and would be a good way to try out several patterns.

Quilt Variety

I tend to get into ~~ruts~~ extended studies on the same pattern or quilting design. I don’t think that’s all bad, but I want to branch out some this year.

Do more with curved piecing. It’s been a while.
Pick out a block pattern I’ve never used before.
Asked for Fabulous Feathers and Fillers by Sue Nichols for Christmas. Okay, so that’s not different, but maybe I can take them in another direction. And I could stand to learn a new filler or two.
Saw a great old quilt with really bold sashing that I want to try.

Slow Quilt

I do love to pull fabrics with abandon, cut big patches quickly, and stitch up a bright, fresh quilt before the energy can leave me, but maybe it’s time to slow down and make something planned and elaborate and maybe even show quality. Maybe.

Stash

My goal is to have a net use of 100 yards again this year. I’ve done it the previous two years. I think the wire basket drawers where I keep my fabric are closing a little easier… hard to tell, but I must be making progress. At least the fabric is turning over, and the drawers are stuffed with more modern fabric that is more my taste. Sunday Stash Report at Patchwork Times is a great motivator, and I’ve really enjoyed my membership in the Flickr group, Stash Pact II: Electric Bugaloo. I can’t tell if we’re going into the new year, but I hope so. There haven’t been comments in quite a while, but we continue to post photos as we sew, knit, scrap, etc., our way through our stashes. Really positive people.

Getting It Done 2014

I haven’t seen if Judy is doing this again at Patchwork Times, but I hope so, and I expect she will.

January Goals

Make ten pillowcases to go with the two I have for donation.
Make HST commission quilt
Make string commission quilt
Scrapitude, step 4

Wishing all of you a great year in your personal and quilting lives!

December 31, 2013
by Valerie 3 Comments

Wrapping Up 2013

An interesting year (aren’t they all?), lots of ups and downs, happiness and sadness, laughter and tragedy. Some of that is documented here in the quilts.

That’s a lot of quilts. I don’t have one favorite. The most meaningful was probably the flowers for the Project Hope Online Quilt Show, that Sandy and Sandi organized in the wake of Sandy Hook and the Boston Marathon. I pushed out of my own comfort zone, and was awed by the variety of responses.

This year the #Twilters on Twitter named themselves and cheered each other on daily during Sew-Ins, give-aways, and project advice, sharing happiness, heartache, and food and pet pictures. Big moments or small, it’s wonderful to have friends who understand. There began the Quiltcast FitBitters group and #QHC (Quilter’s Health Check? I forget again!). Between us we’ve walked millions of miles and lost lots of pounds. All that while being darned creative!

This is my 201st blog post! Thank you all for reading, responding, and commenting! I’ve met some wonderful people from far away places, and it is such a positive community. I plan to keep it going in 2014.

Getting It Done

I know that I accomplished a lot by focusing on the goals I set as part of Getting It Done with Patchwork Times. We all had a lot of fun encouraging each other, and the limited number of goals each month was very helpful. Hopefully, we’ll do it again, but I can also do it myself for 2014. December’s list is vague, because not everyone has received these yet. Also, I forgot photograph some before they were wrapped. 😦

December Goals

1. ~~Quilt for DS (Christmas)~~

2. ~~Placemats (Christmas)~~ and a table runner!

3. ~~Pillowcases (Christmas)~~

Here is my list for the year.

January Goals

Make ten pillowcases to go with the two I have for donation.
Make HST commission quilt
Make string commission quilt
Scrapitude, step 4

All of you have a safe and festive New Year’s Eve. Join us tomorrow for our New Year’s Day Sew In on Twitter, #NYSI .

May 2014 be prosperous, healthy, productive, and peaceful for you.

I’m linking up with Getting It Done at Patchwork Times.

December 29, 2013
by Valerie 5 Comments

Sunday Stash Report: the last one for 2013

Absolutely no sewing this week because we were in Washington, DC and Annapolis, MD, to attend the Military Bowl, where my son’s college, Marshall University, was competing (and won!), and where my son was marching and playing trumpet in the Marching Thunder band.

Here are the final numbers for the year:

This week: +0 yards, -0 yards
YTD: +145 yards, -259.75 yards
Net stash used in 2013: 114.75

I’m very happy to have made my 100 yard goal, while still enjoying acquiring some fabric. It feels good to lighten the stash for the new year.

Lots of walking around Washington. The weather was very cold, but sunny. It was interesting to see the city decorated for Christmas, and at some times nearly deserted because of the holiday. I did get in one quilty visit. “Workt by Hand” is worth seeing at the National Museum for Women in the Arts. No photos were allowed, so it’s hard to remember everything, but they were beautifully preserved and visually dramatic quilts. Some Amish, lots of crazy quilts, at least one hexi, lots of broderie perse, lone stars, and many more. One idea I came away with was the use of a boldly patterned fabric for sashing.

The people of Annapolis were very warm and welcoming, and enjoyed the parade through the beautifully decorated town as much as we did. It was very moving to see the skydivers, the flyover, and the Medal of Honor winners at the game.

Some crab was consumed during our visit!

I hope you had a good holiday, and that your stash and quiltmaking are flourishing.

I’m linking up to Sunday Stash Report at Patchwork Times.

This week on Twitter, we’re finishing up projects and organizing our lives and our studios to get ready for the new year. It’s the Year End Sew In, #YESI ! If you’re looking for me, I’m @Scooquilt .

December 25, 2013
by Valerie 2 Comments

Merry Christmas 2013!

I’ve spent a most unusual Christmas here, since my DS will be marching with the Marshall University band on Friday at the Military Bowl in Annapolis. I hope all of you have spent the day just the way you wanted, with family, friends, or maybe some sewing. Wishing you beauty and peace, now and in the new year.

Valerie