Evening in the Garden Quilts

Adventures in Fabric Art

Tag Archives: stash reduction


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Sunday Stash Report 2/17/13

Pretty good numbers this week.  Not feeling terribly inspired or productive this week, but creeping along with fairly mindless string piecing and scrappy nine patches.  My pillow covers used eight yards.

This week:  +0 yds.,  -8 yds.

YTD:  +16 yds.,  -57 yds.

Net stash used in 2013:  -41 yds.  

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Not that string piecing is easy with “help” like this!

I’m coming right along on my February “Getting It ” goals, too:

February Goals

1.  Make a primary or bright baby quilt for Etsy shop.

2. Pillow covers for living room pillows.

3. Floral quilt for Etsy shop.

4.  Mail/deliver charity quilts and pillowcases

 

See more Stash Reports at Patchwork Times.


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Sunday Stash Report: 2/10/13

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Well, a bit of fabric came in this week, but I’m continuing to destash.  I used some fabric, and I’m about to get rid of some older quilts.  Feeling lighter already.

16 yards of fabric came via UPS.  It’s lots of solids, some binding stripes, and some backing.  Good stuff.

The purple and gray floral quilt used 9.5 yards, all from stash.

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I’m meeting a women in a parking lot this week to hand off seven older baby quilts for Project Linus.  I wonder how we will recognise each other?  They are perfectly fine quilts that I made as I was practicing, but they just never sold.  Now they will be loved, and I will have more room.  Win, win.

This week:  +16 yds.,  -9.5 yds

YTD:  +16 yds.,  -49 yds.

Net stash used in 2013:  -33 yds.

See more Stash Reports at Patchwork Times.


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Friday Finish: This one will go to a veteran!

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Here is the blue and green quilt I made completely from stash to replace the first one that I started at the New Years Day Sew In.  Finally gave up on the weather and took these pictures inside, so they are what they are.

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This was Judy’s Quilt of Valor design, but I had a little trouble cutting.  I was a bit feverish one evening and cut all the 2 1/2″ inch bars for the center blocks at 2″, creating some cussing and  a “design opportunity”.  I got out my strings to pull coordinates, and I think it does add interest.

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I quilted between all the blocks, and 1/4″ inside all the frames.  In the centers, I alternated between using straight lines and a design of four leaves.  The leaves do echo some of the fabrics, but I think I just made them because I can, and it seemed too easy to use straight lines everywhere.  Next time I think I will follow my instincts.  Alternating vertical and horizontal lines would have looked great.  This is fine, though.

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I also used straight lines in the border triangles, and stippled over the print background.  It all took awhile, but it finished with a lot of texture, and I like it.

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What did you finish this week?

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


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Sunday Stash Report 1/20/13

Starting the New Year in the black!  This can’t last forever, but I’m doing well so far on stash reduction.  So far I’ve bought some thread and a roll of batting (which don’t count here!), and several customers are talking to me about commissions, so I know there will be fabric purchases soon.  Until then, I will enjoy these numbers.

I used 10 yards for the Winter Nine Patch this week.  That puts me here:

This week:  +0 yards,  -10 yards

YTD:  +0 yards,  -22 yards

Net stash used in 2013:  22 yards

 

How are you coming on your stash reduction?

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See more Stash Reports at Patchwork Times.

 


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Design Wall Monday

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Sometime I’m going to make more intricate blocks.  Really.  I have.  I can.  I just don’t feel like it right now.  Have I mentioned how much I love nine patches?  I’m still not done with them.

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This quilt was inspired by this large-scale snowflake batik from my stash that will be the backing, since I can’t possibly cut it up.  It is a pale aqua, with creamy snowflakes that hold just a hint of yellow.   Now that Christmas is put away, I have no winter throw quilts for the couch, and the spring one looks silly, so this is for me.  I first thought of feathered star blocks for the front to be “snowflakes”.  The more I looked at these and other star-like blocks, the more I knew I wanted to reach for my simple nine patches.

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I pulled favorite fabrics from stash for this:  some aquas that are a little “off” and don’t play well with the others; two kinds of birch trees; some batiks and a Grunge;  some snow-capped trees; and the last of a favorite floral neutral in gray, white, and tan.  Then I coordinated scraps from my 3 1/2″ bins.

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I find the result cool, snowy, and happy.  Twenty-four blocks done, ready to sew together today.

Hope you’re playing with some fabric today!

I’m linking up to Design Wall Monday on Patchwork Times.


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Getting It Done in 2013

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2013 sounds like such a funny, futuristic date to me.  I’m sure we will be used to it soon enough.  I first heard of this year back in 1983 when DH and I took out a thirty year mortgage to buy our first house.  The pay-off date sounded like such a ridiculous, sci-fi kind of thing, in the next century, for heaven’s sake.  Of course, we long ago paid off that mortgage, and bought this place, and paid it off, too, so 2013 no longer holds any real estate significance to us.  We shall have to see what the year brings.

For quilting motivation in 2013, I am going to try Judy’s “Getting It Done”.  This involves listing quilty goals for the coming month, and they can include new projects or portions of them, as well as UFOs.  (Tanesha at Crafty Garden Mom is doing a UFO Along that sounds fun.  I have  very few quilt UFOs , but I might join in later if I ever pick up my knitting needles again.)  On the one hand, I don’t want to be overly focused on productivity, but I also know that I tend to get nothing done if I don’t set goals, so I think I will try this.

GOALS FOR JANUARY

1.  Construct Quilt of Valor top during New Year’s Day Sit and Sew (also #NDSI on Twitter).
2.  Quilt/finish said QOV quilt.
3.  Create and post tutorial about binding a quilt with blanket binding
4.  Create a fun, new quilt of my choice using stash fabric, inspired by playing with said fabric.

DESTASHING GOALS

I feel like my 100 yd destashing goal of last year worked out really well, so I’m going with 100 more yards for this year.  It’s a significant amount, but not so high that it won’t permit me to buy some new fabric when I want to.  Thank you to the readers who assured me that I am allowed to buy fabric, since I’ve been so good, and that quilting is about having fun.  I know, and I really do have fun with it.  I also think that I would find it fun to be able to open the basket drawers where I keep my fabric, instead of them being all stuffed to the gills.  My DS heard that I was down over a hundred yards, and he ran up to my studio to see if he could tell the difference, but he couldn’t. Yeah.  So there must be a lot more hundreds up there.  I don’t want to know, but I do want to keep destashing.  100 yds. in 2013.

So those are my modest goals for the new year.  I look forward to reading about yours and watching your progress.  Good luck to us all!

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Linking up with Gettinhttp://www.patchworktimes.com/2012/12/31/january-2013-getting-it-done/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PatchworkTimes+%28Patchwork+Times+by+Judy+Laquidara%29g It Done on Patchwork Times.


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Sunday Stash Report 12/30/12 (The Last One!)

Final Stash Report of 2012!  I love my numbers!  I love that I’ve largely stopped buying and am really using from my stash.  My numbers are so positive, I considered checking out the sales and stocking up (a little!), but I decided against it.  I do love a sale, but I have plenty.  I know I’ll buy more in the new year, but hopefully that will be mainly to complete projects.  They will have sales next year, too.

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

YTD:  +116 yards,  -240.5 yards

Net stash used in 2012:  -124.5  yards!

How are you doing?  Do you have goals for the new year?  I think I know mine, but I’ll share next week.

See more Stash Reports at Patchwork Times.


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Wrapping Up The Year 2012

It’s that time to look back over the year in quilting and think about what was made and what was learned.

In 2012, I made about 31 quilts or other projects.  Here are most of them:

2012 Quilts

In 2012, I began selling on Etsy.  I’ve made 27 sales so far.  (I also sell on Artfire, but I’ll be ending that.  I did sell in a shop here locally, which was an interesting, if not lucrative, experience.  I stopped that this summer, but kept up the friendships I made there.)  I’m paying for all my fabric and supplies, and showing a profit, so I can’t complain.  I’ve learned about postal rates and customs forms.  Most importantly, I’ve “met” so many nice people, and found homes for my work all over the country and around the world.  I know they’ve gone to new babies, sick friends, nursing home patients, and favorite relatives, and to brighten people’s homes and offices.  I like that.

In 2012, I’ve given quilts and pillowcases to several charitable causes.  I’ve given two to convalescing friends.  I had one appear in Southern Weddings Magazine. (I’ll post more about that when I actually see the magazine and can show you pictures.  So far I’ve only glimpsed a peek online.  The quilt is there, just hidden behind a bridal party.  The nerve!)

In 2012, I got involved with quilters/bloggers/podcasters on Twitter, and I’ve really enjoyed it.  We’ve shared Sew-Ins and holiday preparations and pets and weather and new additions and illness and our quilt successes and questions, etc., etc., etc.   Mostly it’s just a lot of nonsense and love, and it never fails to bring a smile to my face, if not an outright laugh.  So fun to have friends around the country, and a few across the world. If you’re looking for me there, I’m @scooquilt.

And in 2012, I started this blog.  This is really pretty “out there” for me, but I dove in and did it anyway, and I’m glad I did.  This is my 40th post!  I’ve learned a lot from it, and had a lot of encouragement from nice people.  I haven’t begun to meet my goals with it, but it’s a start.  It’s helped me destash 100+ yards of fabric, and pushed me a bit to finish projects and keep working.  I refuse to be a slave to it, but a little structure is a good thing.  I like being part of the wonderful quilting community.

IMG_0004So that’s what I can recall of my quilt life this year.  How was your year?

2013, here we come!


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Baby Quilt Finished

Wills stool

I finished up the baby quilt yesterday, and it’s all washed and dried and crinkly.  This looks different from other baby quilts I’ve made, but I like it.

Will's Quilt

It’s bright and bold and energetic, and I think it will be perfect for a little boy.  I bound it with rayon blanket binding for the touchable edges.  This finish doesn’t seem to sell well for me, but I almost always use it on gifts, because I know the babies like it.  This is made completely from stash.

Wills backThe backing is one piece of pale blue and white cloud fabric.

Will back 2I like this stained glass look where the sun brings the other colors through it.

Wills detailThe piecing and cutting were very quick, perhaps three hours.  The quilting, however, took around six hours.  There’s lots of it, in the ditches and through the block centers.  I used Superior Bottom Line in a pale blue on top and bottom.

Wills folded

The finished size is 36″ x 48″.  I always consider that the binding will take about 2″ off of each side of the design, so I usually add borders.  I didn’t this time, because I thought it was okay to cut off the edges of these Disappearing Four Patch blocks, and I think it works.

I’m linking up with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.


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Sunday Stash Report 12/09/12

Pillows red and green

This is a good week to report.  Those pillows took a long time, but they also used 5 1/2 yards of fabric. I don’t know what the next couple of weeks will bring, because there are a lot of things that should take my attention instead of sewing, but we shall see.  Happy with these numbers, anyway.

This week:  +0 yds, -5.5 yds.

YTD:  +116 yds., -224 yds.

Total stash used in 2012:  108 yds.!

 

I continue to take inspiration and encouragement from my 95 friends at Stash Pact II:  Electric Bugaloo on Flickr.

How are you doing on your deStashing?

Linking up with Stash Reports at Patchwork Times.