Evening in the Garden Quilts

Adventures in Fabric Art

Tag Archives: christmas


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Sunday Stash Report: 9/15/19

20190913_114644 (1).jpgSo, the fabric that came in.  Did you know that Fat Quarter Shop has its 12 lb. “Grab Bag” boxes again?  I stumbled on them unexpectedly (on sale), and I’ve wanted one for so long I just had to get one.  I know.  I know.  Well, some enhancement was part of the goal.  This is just a…big chunk of enhancement.  (Note:  Today I can’t find these Grab Bags.  I guess you’ll have to check back till they have them again.)

I was initially a little disappointed in this box.  I was looking for bright colors and bold prints, and it took awhile to find any.  Are reproduction calico prints really making a comeback lately?  I sure got a lot of them.  Also, I started sneezing non-stop as I went through the box.  Please tell me I’m not allergic to cotton!  I assume it was the finishes, so they all went right into the washer and dryer.

As I was folding them, I began to look upon the fabrics more favorably.  I got a ton of white-to-cream neutrals, a stack of black prints, various navys, greens, and grays that I really like, a little bit of Grunge, and a single piece of Kaffe!  Maybe a third of the fabrics were prints that I would never have chosen.  But that was the point of a grab bag, to give depth to my stash.  So.

One difference I noticed from several years ago is that there weren’t too many one-yard cuts.  There were lots of half yards, and lots of smaller pieces, even a broken layer cake.  I’m sure it will all be useful.

With all the smaller pieces of fabric, I can’t begin to measure it.  I’m just going to go with Fat Quarter Shop’s estimate and say twenty yards.  That’s bad enough!

PicMonkey Collage TransThe sewing!  It pales in comparison, but I did use four yards this week to make these wall hangings from printed panels.  Now you see where those little stars went!  Look for them soon in my Etsy shop.

 

This week: + 20 yards, – 4 yards

This year: + 74.5 yards, – 72.75 yards

Net destashed added in 2019: 1.75 yards

Ah, well, back behind the starting line.  I still have three and a half months left to destash this year!

Better luck to you!


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Merry Christmas 2013!

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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


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Sunday Stash Report: 12/22/13

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We’ve been doing a lot of this here, what with lots of snow and Christmas movies and Chex Mix, but there’s been some sewing, too.

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This week:  +0 yards,  -8 yards
YTD:  +145 yards,  -259.75 yards
Net stash used in 2013:  114.75

I’m pleased with that.  My projects are all finished and wrapped, so no last minute panic.  I hope you are finished, or at least enjoying your work.

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merry christmas

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


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One Gift Finished

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This week I finished the green and white quilt I’ve been working on for my DS, who attends Marshall University.  It’s a nine-patch, so, really, it sewed up fairly quickly.  I just got a bit tired of green.

 

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Marshall has changed their green over the years.  It’s currently a shade brighter than kelly (emerald?), but at a game one sees every shade, from hunter to this current bright green. So I just rummaged through my 3 1/2″ scraps and my green bin to find a variety of greens that don’t go together at all, but seem to get along in this quilt.  These may be my last pieces of the chartreuse and teal Mirror Ball Dot.  The white is mainly Basic Gray Grunge, with some white, snow, and the odd bit of Fairy Frost.

 

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The backing came from Kelly of SewmuchfunWV  on Etsy (and has a different green from any on the front!).

 

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So that’s one of my December goals finished, and I’m making good headway on another (which I won’t be showing before Christmas!)  See what everyone’s finishing over at Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

 


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Getting it Done in November and December

I hope Judy does this again for next year.  I suppose I could make my own list, but somehow doing it with all of you makes it matter more, and I really am getting things done!

 

November Goals

1. Finish quilting my throw quilt from the Oh My Stars quiltalong.

2.  Finish piecing and quilting OMS throw for my shop,

3.  Finish piecing scrappy red, blue, gray cabin top (Quilt of Valor?)

4.  Piece aqua and gray chevron throw quilt for shop.

5.  Scrapitude Mystery Quilt, Step 3.

 

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December Goals

1. Quilt for DS (Christmas)

2. Placemats (Christmas)

3. Pillowcases (Christmas)

I can’t add links to these because they’re not started yet.  The quilt is designed and I’ve pulled some scraps for it.  Hopefully you’ll see it soon.

 

How did you do with your goals?  Crazy busy time, if you got anything done you’re doing well!

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

 


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Sunday Stash Report: 10/20/13

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Lots of little sewing, not too much fabric used, but none came in, so I’m edging toward my goal of 100 yards destashing.  The holiday wall hangings took 2.5 yards.  Working on using up really old Christmas stash.

 

This week:  +0 yards,  -2.5 yards

YTD:  +123 yards,  -205.5 yards

Net stash used in 2013:  -82.5 yards

 

How are you doing with your goals?

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

 

 


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Coffee Quilt is Finished!

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I used the Labor Day Sew-In on Twitter ( #LDSI ) to make myself focus and get this quilt completed!  On and off all day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we sewed and tweeted away.  Everyone else shared multiple finishes ( it seemed to me), but they encouraged me through the various steps and cheered me along.  Monday morning I finished quilting the border and put on the binding.  Yay!

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Others agreed that we don’t enjoy piecing a large quilt back, but I really think the results were worth the work.  Love this!

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I quilted free-form feathers in all the card trick blocks using orange Highlights from Superior, and did a small stipple in dark brown Bottom Line on the espresso backgrounds.

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In the borders,  I outlined all the cats and books using smoke invisible thread.  I swear by Superior’s Monopoly.  I zoomed through the borders at a fast speed and never had the least bit of trouble with thread breakage.  That’s very important because I can’t see well enough to rethread the needle with that darn transparent stuff!  Honestly, I did not sew around every book;  I “laddered” back and forth, alternating books, which I think still give the appearance of them all being quilted.

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That border gave me fits.  I had found three yards of the out-print-fabric on Etsy, and expected to have enough to use on the back, too.  Au contrare.  First I discovered that the rows of cats did not contain enough space for cutting and seams, so I had to sacrifice a row of cats every time I cut.  Then I discovered that the rows were not all the same width.  Sheesh.  Who’s the nimrod who designed this?  So, in two corners the border miters nicely, and in the other two there is no way.  I feel that it looks as if I were careless, but it was the best I could do.  I trimmed the outer edges in such a way that I think is looks matched, if you don’t look too closely.  Oh, well.  It is a great border print.

This turned out dark and rich and cozy.  I think it will be just right for curling up with a good book, your favorite cat, and a glass of wine or cup of coffee.  And one of my Christmas gifts is finished!

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I’m linking up with Finish it up Friday on Crazy Mom Quilts.


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Tale of a Rescued Christmas UFO

Those of you who chat about quilting with me on Twitter (don’t we have fun?) know about my recent heart palpitations over a Christmas quilt I sold on Etsy that took its own sweet time reaching the new owner, along with unconcerned Postal workers and broken tracking.  It all came out fine.  The new owner (very pleasant to work with) proclaims it, “one of the most gorgeous Christmas quilts I have seen.”  Nice, hmm?  Alas, it was not always so, and I want to share its journey from UFO to beauty.

This really begins several (five?) years ago, when I became intrigued with using blue and white squares to reproduce a gingham pattern.

Blue gingham 011The result was successful, if a little boring.

Blue gingham 1000I jazzed it up with some peacock feather borders and a flat white piping, then quilted it with lovely feathers.  The batting stayed flat and unshrunken (I really think it was Hobbs Heirloom Cotton- could that be?), so the feathers never plumped.

Blue foldedI still think it would have been effective in the right nursery, but it’s never sold.  It will be heading for Project Linus soon.

Next, I thought, Christmas plaid!  Yes, this could be made with 2 1/2 squares in red, green, and white.  Here is what I got.

plaidYeah.  Plaid.  And it just kind of sits there, doesn’t it?  So it kind of sat in my sewing studio for a couple of years.  This doesn’t seem odd to some of you (you know who you are!)  who have oodles of UFOs, but I have hardly any.  At that time, this was the only one.  Now I have two, I think.  So, yeah, I really had no idea what to do with this bit of Christmas ickiness.

Eventually, I took it back out and dove into it.  I pulled out all my stash Christmas fabric.

V C detail4I made borders from gold braid prints and tassel prints.  Better, but still small and square.

V C detail2I created diamond (on point) blocks with varying shades of gold on dark backgrounds, and put rows of these on the top and bottom of the quilt.  Better.  A rectangle now.

IMG_0569Now I cut large borders of printed swags and tassels.  I didn’t have quite enough so I added corner stones.  These brought it to its final size (47″ x 65″) and Victorian glory.  I added lots of quilting in gold metalic thread.

finished ChristmasI knew it was either a masterpiece or a gawd-awful hodgepodge of Christmas fabric, but at least it was a finished quilt.  It was festive and warm.

Victorian Christmas 500Apparently, it is attractive, because it was picked up in several Etsy treasuries after I listed it last month, and favorited by many, and then purchased by this nice appreciative lady who was giving it as a gift before the holiday.  I am so glad it will have a loving home for Christmas, happy it turned out okay, and so happy to have it out of my sewing space!

Yes, Jaye, it is the process.  Some just take longer than others.


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Design Wall Monday

Pillows 2I made up six pillow tops from red and green strings just for our own holiday decor.  The white is Kona “Snow”, which also seemed Christmasy.

pillow3I used random width strings, and thought the effect would be more random.  Now that they are together, it’s almost like I was trying to make diamonds and missed the points.

pillow5I hope that isn’t the finished effect.  I think that they will quilt up okay.  I wanted something fresh and modern, in Christmas colors, to replace my neutral, botanical covers for the holidays, and I think these do it.

pillow4The red and green ones are very rich and nice, more old fashioned.

To work, to work.

I’m linking up with Design Wall Monday on Judy’s Patchwork Times.