Evening in the Garden Quilts

Adventures in Fabric Art

Tag Archives: Patchwork Times


by 6 Comments

Sunday Stash Report: Happy Easter!

Easter

 

It’s a beautiful Easter morning here in Ohio.  I hope all of you have a wonderful day.

 

The stash numbers are good this week.  I used 7 1/2 yards for the string quilt, and nothing was added.

 

This week: +0 yards, -7.5 yards
YTD: +52.75 yards, -86 yards
Net stash used 2014: -33.25 yards

 

In other news, I’m in day 3 of smartphone withdrawal.  My BlackBerry Q10 (Q for Quilter, right?) wanted me to update the operating system, and when I did, it froze up, and now makes a pretty good paper weight.  It is covered under the warranty, so I could have had it replaced for free, but I decided to change phones.  I’ve been a happy BlackBerry devote’ from the beginning, but I suppose it is time to get off that ship.  It’s kind of like Beta tapes:  we were better, but the industry passed us by.  I’m coveting Android apps and continuity with my tablet, so I’ve ordered a Samsung S4.  It will be here…in just…a few days…  Ack!

I don’t like to think of myself as having to be constantly connected to technology.  I spend much less time in front of a computer than many people, but I am really missing the phone.  The last two years we have taken vacations that took us out of cell and data range for many days at a time, and I was fine with that.  I wasn’t trying to quilt, or fussing much with the blog.  The camera still worked.  DH and I were together, so I knew he wasn’t trying to reach me, and neither was anyone else.  We just communed with nature and had a great time.  I mean, the national parks post the weather forecast right in the visitors centers.  We were good.

But home is different.  I like having the whole world in the palm of my hand.  It might be the camera I miss most.  I was trying to lay out a quilt top.  How was I supposed to tell if the colors are balanced without taking a photo?  I muddled through the old fashioned way, but then I couldn’t share the results with the Twilters.  Or the Easter card I got with fabric bunnies. Or the new box of thread.  A picture is easily worth 144 characters.

I’ve tried to remind myself that many famous quilters were successful without anything remotely electronic.  Jane Sickles, for instance, made a pretty spectacular quilt.  But face it, if she could have, Jane would have Tweeted pics to her friends of each new block she finished.  And snapped a few to see if that border was going to work.  Yes, she would have.

Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine.  And I’ll be much better by Tuesday…or Wednesday.  Don’t expect a post then.  I’ll be busy trying to get my life back into that little plastic thing.

 

Enjoy this spring day!  Hope you’re using that stash!  I’m linking up with Sunday Stash Report at Patchwork Times.

 

 


by 3 Comments

Sunday Stash Report: 4/13/04

Krissi

Krissi is pleased that no new fabric came in this week, but 9 1/2 yards went out as I finished the Yellow and Gray quilt.  We’re both spending more time outside, now that the weather is getting better.

This week: +0 yards, -9.5 yards
YTD: +52.75 yards, -78.5 yards
Net stash used 2014: -25.75 yards

IMG_00000677

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

 

 

 


by 2 Comments

Sunday Stash Report and Goal Check: 3/30/14

The Stash this week:  Nothing in and nothing out.  I felt like I had a finish when I completed the gray and yellow top (140 3″ squares), but I won’t count it until I quilt it.  Good news:  I found the perfect backing for it on sale at Fabric Shack.  Bad news:  It wasn’t the only thing I ordered.  This new biweekly fabric ordering needs to stop, but I needed some navy for a commission…Yeah.

This week:  +0 yards,  -0 yards
YTD:  +44.25 yards,  -65 yards
Net stash used 2014:  -20.75 yards

 

March Goals

1. Assemble Disappearing Pinwheels top.
2. Quilt DP quilt.  Finished, and mailed off for Oso, WA.
3. Make baby quilt for Etsy shop.  Hey, I got on a roll and made three! Chevron Strings, and the Construction Quilts.

4. Make floral quilt for Etsy shop.  Nope.  But I’ll be finished with four pillow covers before the month is over, so that’s something.

 

April Goals

1. Quilt gray and yellow quilt.

2. Make commissioned baby quilt in navy.

3. Make a floral quilt.

4. Design a block for my Slow Quilt.  I’m collecting the fabrics.

IMG_00000660_edit

Also, I found this book at Half Price Books this week.  When I said, “curves”, I was thinking of something simple like Drunkard’s Path (and that’s in here, but fancy).  This is very advanced.  Right now, I think I’m most interested in the bias curves, but the paper pieced stuff is interesting to consider.

 

How did you do in March?

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

 


by 6 Comments

Sunday Stash Report 3/23/14

IMG_00000642_edit

Some new fabric was added this week, but can you blame me?  I need these luscious solids  from Fabric Shack!  Actually, I did need a gray for a project, and it’s silly to pay for shipping on two yards of fabric, right?  Even though they have really low shipping.

And I finished another baby quilt, all from stash.

This week:  +11 yards,  -2.5 yards
YTD:  +44.25 yards,  -65 yards
Net stash used 2014:  -20.75 yards

Hope you’re sewing your stash.  I’m linking up to Sunday Stash Report at Patchwork Times.


by 5 Comments

Sunday Stash Report: 3/16/14

Urbana-20130414-00786

It was a good week for the Stash numbers.  I used 9.5 yards (all from stash!) on the Disappearing Pinwheel quilt, and no fabric was purchased.

This week:  +0 yards,  -9.5 yards
YTD:  +30.25 yards,  -62.5 yards
Net stash used 2014:  -32.25 yards

Hope you were able to sew yesterday for National Quilting Day, and that your Stash is diminishing nicely.

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


by Leave a comment

Getting It Done: January and February

 

Well, we’re four days into February, and it just occurred to me to write this post.  One of those years?  Oh, well.

And it doesn’t look to me like Judy is continuing this link-up at Patchwork Times.  Does anyone know if I’ve missed it, or if she’s quit, or if anyone took it over?  I think I’ll still do it here, but it was fun to connect with everyone.  The goals didn’t work very well for Judy, but they did for me!

January Goals

  1. Make ten pillowcases to go with the two I have for donation. (Still need to get these to the Mason Jar.)
  2. Make HST commission quilt
  3. Make string commission quilt
  4. Scrapitude, step 4

Okay.  You see the problem with this month was that I had some extra time during the snowy weather, so I started piecing strings, which became Bright Strings, which demanded a border, which demanded some fancy quilting, so it dominated my month without even being on the list.  Then the #Twilters talked me into the Disappearing Pinwheels Quiltalong, with which we had/are having a ball.   That’s my story.  These quilts did further some of my goals for the year, though.  While not a planned Slow Quilt, Bright Strings did grow into a slower project with a lot of design decisions.  Both quilts used a ton of stash.  And I quilted something besides feathers!  So, no regrets.

On the commission quilts, I did select fabrics and settle on final designs with the customer, and I’ve made some sewing progress on one this month.

 

IMG_00000562

February Goals

  1. Quilt the log cabin Quilt of Honor quilt. (Did this during the QOV and Sports Bowl Sew-Ins.)
  2. Piece and quilt triangle commission quilt.
  3. Piece and quilt string commission quilt.
  4. Assemble Scrapitude top.;-

 

I’d like to work on the Disappearing Pinwheels, too, but it’s a short month, and I have hopes of getting my back into good enough shape where I can go back to Step class, so I’ll just stick with the four goals.

 

I hope you’re staying safe and warm in this weather, and making progress on your goals.

Please let me know if you know anything about the Getting It Done challenge.

(And I am not doing the Crumb Challenge, no matter how many other #Twilters do.  Just so you know.  😉

 

 


by 1 Comment

Sunday Stash Report: 1/26/14

IMG_1929

 

Greetings from the frozen tundra!  The quilt prints and bunny tracks have been covered twice since I took this photo!

Now the stash numbers look better, since I had the first actual quilt finish of the new year, with the Brights quilt.  I’m figuring it at 11 1/2 yards.  That seems like a lot, but I know string quilts are very fabric intensive, being mostly seams.  How do you figure out the yardage on your scrappy quilts?  If I’ve designed one on EQ7, I use their fabric estimate as a guideline, but I think they are often high (as in, “purchase this much so you’ll have enough”), so I often round down.  And I think you develop a sense of it after a while.  How do you do it?

 

This week:  +0 yards,  -11.5 yards

This year:  +15.5 yards,  -21.5 yards

Net stash used this years:  -6 yards

 

Hope you’re all getting as much sewing time as you like, and are making a dent in that stash!

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

 


by 4 Comments

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

IMG_00000437

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

 

pillowcases

 

Keep warm!

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


by Leave a comment

Quilty Resolutions 2014

IMG_00000038

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

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

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


by 3 Comments

Wrapping Up 2013

New Year

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.

2013 Collage 1

2013 Collage 2

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

  1. Make ten pillowcases to go with the two I have for donation.
  2. Make HST commission quilt
  3. Make string commission quilt
  4. 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.