2017 UFO Challenge List #2--finishing

This is the second list that I will be linking up with Judy Laquidara's 2017 UFO Challenge. You can see my first list HERE and read about Judy's "rules" for the challenge HERE. The projects on my second list are finished quilt tops (or close to it, just needing borders.) All of them need quilting and binding. I'm hoping Judy's challenge can help me turn some of these into finished quilts! 

1.   Santa panel--I have several Santa panels stashed away and would love to get at least one of them quilted before next Christmas!

2.   LeMoyne Stars baby quilt--blocks/top made as part of the 2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Needs quilting and binding.

3. Green Crossroads--I made this quilt top in 2014 and got it partially quilted in 2015. I just need to finish up quilting the white squares and the borders, then add a binding.

4.   Blue and yellow nine-patch baby quilt--top made in 2013, needs to be quilted and bound.

5.   Stack & Whack Spinners #2--this quilt top was made as a class sample in 1999; needs to be quilted and bound.

6.   Paisley Placemats--finish 4 more placemats to complete the set of 12.

7.  Thimbleberries Applique--this is an old Thimbleberries pattern that a group of us in a former quilt guild made together in 2001. It would make a nice tabletopper for Christmas.

8.   Storm at Sea Heart--heart was pieced in 2001, inspired by Doreen Speckmann's designs. This needs borders, quilting and binding.

9.   Stack & Whack Spinners #1--this was the first version of the same design as #5, made in 1999. Needs to be quilted and bound.

10.  Chinese Coins (Snowballs)--top made in guild workshop in 1998. This might be my first every scrappy quilt top, and it deserves to get finished!

11.  Reversible Mini Storm at Sea--I was thinking about making a Storm at Sea quilt back in 1998 but couldn't decide if I wanted to use a light or dark background. I made two mini samples (22" square) to help me decide. Partially quilted, needs quilting finished and binding.

12.  Around the Twist--this may be my oldest UFO, dating back to 1995. The quilt top is a half-scale version, measuring only 23 x 31". It was my first attempt at machine quilting and turned out so badly I couldn't finish it. I would like to take out the old quilting (monofilament thread), replace the batting, and try again.

Alternate #1.  Hoffman Challenge Butterflies--top made in 2001, needs quilting (already pinned!) and binding.

Alternate #2.  Stack & Whack Kaleidoscope--quilt top made in 1999 using the old Pointillist Palette fabrics for the background. I might add a border, then quilt and bind.

Alternate #3.  Mini Geese in the Cabin--20" square mini quilt made for a guild challenge in 1999. Quilt and bind.

I am linking up my list at Judy's UFO 2017 page. You can find Judy's explanation of how the challenge will work HERE. Finishing quilts is my least favorite part of the process, and I hope this challenge helps me get some of these UFOs finished!

Happy quilting and happy new year!


Julie in GA

2017 UFO Challenge List #1--piecing

Judy Laquidara at Patchwork Times is hosting a UFO Challenge for 2017. Each participant makes a list of 12 UFO goals for the year. At the beginning of each month,  Judy will draw a number between 1 and 12, and that is the project we work on for that month. This will be a new experience for me, and I'm hoping it will motivate me to finish off some old projects. There are certainly plenty of those around here!

My projects are listed in chronological order, with the dates showing approximately when a project was started. I had a hard time narrowing it down to 12, so I have included a couple of extras/alternate projects. These are all piecing projects, and I will be compiling a second list of quilting/finishing projects.

1.  Fiesta Log Cabin (Feb. 1998)--make more blocks and redo borders to make quilt longer /rectangular instead of square. 

2.  Sawtooth Diamond (Oct. 2000) I made a pile of tiny little HSTs for this Amish-inspired quilt design. It's time to do something with those triangles, although it's quite likely it will bear little resemblance to the inspirational photo.

3.  Ring Around the Stars (May 2001) This one shouldn't be too hard--it just needs the border finished.

4.  Mini Snail's Trail (July 2001) I need to figure out a plan for this quilt, which is often where I get bogged down in a project. After that I can get back to making more of these little 3.5" blocks.

5.  Maple Stars (Feb. 2003) The blocks in this quilt were made as part of a guild exchange. I joined them together into a top, which currently measures 47 x 62". I would like to add to the borders to make the top larger, and also to piece a back for it. 

6.  Pineapple Star (May 2003) I made the first diamond block of the star in a workshop, then made the rest in the following months. This is another project where I need to decide how I want to finish it, then just do it. Possibly make more blocks for a ring of diamonds around the star.

7.  Woven Ribbons #1 (Aug. 2004) The top for this quilt was made in 2004, then quilted around 2007 or 2008. All it needs is binding. I guess this should really be part of the UFO finishing list, but I am going to keep it here.

8.  Dresden Stars (June 2013) I started this quilt in a workshop with Edyta Sitar. The five blocks shown are finished except for the centers. I need to make three more blocks, then set everything together.

9.  Border print tablerunner (Oct. 2013) I made a set of placemats for a niece as a Christmas gift, but need to finish up the matching tablerunner. She and her husband are having a new house built, and this would be a perfect housewarming gift.

10.  Tell It to the Stars (Jan. 2014) This was a mystery BOM by Judy Laquidara in 2014. I kept up through most of the year, but lost my momentum when we got to the borders. I have seen photos of several beautiful versions of this design, and I would love to finish the borders on my quilt.

11.  Stabilstor Organizer (June 2014) This isn't a quilt, but something for my quilting room to help organize my supplies. I got the pattern from Nancy's Notions for an over-the-door organizer to hold rolls of interfacing, stabilizer, etc. Mine is started but needs to be finished. 

12. Rainbow Bowties (Jan. 2015) I made bowtie blocks all through 2015 as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. It's time to get those blocks joined together into a quilt top. The picture is an EQ7 version of the layout I am planning to use.

Alternate project #1.  Scrap Hexies--started in August, 2013 as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. They are English Paper Pieced, and I have all the units made, just need to finish joining them together.

Alternate project #2.  Girl's jacket--I used to teach a pattern similar to this at a quilt shop, and found this partially completed jacket in my collection of UFOs. It just needs the patchwork sections stitched down to the sweatshirt, then the front edge and closures can be finished off.

I am linking up my list at Judy's UFO 2017 page. You can find Judy's explanation of how the challenge will work HERE. I'm not sure I will be able to deal with letting someone else choose what I work on each month, but it's worth a try! I know there are many quilters who do well with these monthly UFO challenges, and I need any motivation I can find to help get some of these UFOs done!

Happy quilting and happy new year!

Julie in GA

Scrappy Rainbows for the New Year

My goal for the week was to get one quilt top assembled from my 2016 Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks. Unfortunately, that did not happen. It was partly lack of time, but mostly because I decided to complicate the finishing plan by adding a scrappy piano key border to the top.

Here you can see some partial rows of blocks with sashing, plus a line of bricks across the top that will become part of the border. The border pieces are not stitched together yet. Right now the border is looking a little dark to me; I will have to work in some more light scrap fabrics.

3D Folded Box Blocks tutorial by Donna Lynn Thomas

I have no idea what blocks I will make for the RSC next year. Actually, a more accurate statement might be that I have way too many ideas and can't make up my mind which ones to make. For now I will concentrate on getting this quilt top done and wait for inspiration to strike. I didn't start making these blocks until late April of this year, so I'm not going to stress over choosing a new pattern for next year.

Be sure to check out all of the wonderful scrappy projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge every Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. 

WISHING EVERYONE A SAFE AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday

It doesn't seem like the best time to be starting new quilting projects considering all the UFOs hanging around my sewing room, but that's just what I did last week. We have two nieces and at least two friends who are all expecting babies that are due around the end of March/beginning of April. I have been invited to a baby shower and brunch in January for one of the nieces, so it's time to get going on making baby quilts.

My inspiration was a quilt I had seen on Sarah Craig's blog "Confessions of a Fabric Addict." Her starting point was a block design by Judy Martin called Star Cluster. Sarah super-sized the pattern to make a one-block quilt, and I loved the way it turned out. Here are Judy's original design and Sarah's version. If you click on the caption below either photo, you will be taken to the original source.

Star Cluster by Judy Martin

12 or 16" block

Interlocking Stars by Sarah Craig

The center of Sarah's quilt measures 64" square. She has included a great tutorial on her blog for making it (click the caption under the photo to go there.) I decided to make my baby quilt half that size. The scrappy squares for my star centers were all cut at 2.5". This part should finish at 32" square, and then I will add a border or two. I hope to finish piecing the quilt top by the end of the week. This may become my go-to baby quilt pattern for the next few quilts.

I am linking up to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag. Check out all of them for tons of amazing quilting inspiration!

Julie in GA

Rainbow Scraps on Christmas Eve

Let's just get the true confessions part of the blog post over with--I was wrong and the Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilters were right! Last week I posted photos of my 2016 RSC blocks along with fabrics I was considering for sashing those blocks. Several readers left comments suggesting that scrappy sashing might be a better option, especially on such a scrappy quilt. YOU WERE RIGHT!! I guess I was just trying to take the easier way out, but once I started cutting 2" strips of assorted backgrounds and putting them on the wall, I could see that it was the right choice.

All my blocks for this quilt are joined into rows along with the sashing strips. The sashing and cornerstones rows are not sewn together yet, they are just placed on the design wall to check the spacing of colors. There are two more rows of blocks below these that you can't see in the photo.

I would love to get this quilt top finished by the end of the year. We aren't travelling for Christmas, so there should be some stretches of time for quilting. This quilt will end up using 30 blocks, and I have enough blocks left for one or two smaller quilts too. Who knows how much might get done before the end of 2016!

Be sure to check out all of the wonderful scrappy projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge every Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. 

WISHING EVERYONE A SAFE AND HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON!

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 12/19/16

After sharing photos of my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks along with sashing options a few days ago, I was persuaded by comments from the other RSC quilters that the best choice for sashing is to keep it scrappy, just like the rest of the quilt.

Folded Box blocks, tutorial by Donna Lynn Thomas

My blocks are now joined into rows with scrappy sashing strips between. Next I will make rows of sashing strips with colored squares in between. After that, I need to figure a plan for the border.

I am linking up to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag. Check out all of them for tons of amazing quilting inspiration!

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 12/18/16

This week's Stash Report contains both good news and bad news, at least as it relates to stash usage. The good news--5.5 yards used for the backing of the most recent Mystery Quilts for Military (MQ4M) designed by the amazing Alycia. The not-so-good news was the addition of more fabric to my already bulging stash. These are fabrics I ordered from Hancock's in Paducah right after Thanksgiving, all batiks, mostly lights for backgrounds. (There are a few more pieces that were in the washer when this photo was taken.)

STASH TOTALS: 

     Used last week:                   5.5 yards     
Used year to date:          98.875 yards

Stashed last week:              16.5 yards

 Stashed year to date:       169.25 yards 

 Net year to date:  70.375 yards stashed

I am joining Kate at Life in Pieces in tracking the number of days each week that I spend at least 15 minutes quilting. I have many projects in the works, and I continue trying to find at least a little time every day for quilting.

15 Minute Challenge:  
12/11 - 12/17                 7 of 7 days

Year to date            319 of 352 days

350 Block Challenge at Prairie Moon Quilts: 

Blocks made 12/11 - 12/17:  5

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Sashing for Rainbow Blocks

I've been MIA on the Rainbow Scrap Challenge link-ups for the last few weeks. Too many other things going on and not enough time for quilting. This week I decided it was time to make an attempt to get my 2016 rainbow blocks joined together.

Folded Box blocks, tutorial by Donna Lynn Thomas

As usual, my photo through the bathroom doorway has some of the blocks cut off along the sides. I have about 60 of the 3D Folded Box blocks, enough to make a throw quilt and two baby quilts. There are chunks of several different fabrics that are being considered for the sashing up on the wall behind the blocks. It's difficult to see much difference between them in this photo, so here are a few close-ups.

I'm pretty sure I will use the fabrics from the first two close-up shots as sashing, but I don't think I have enough of either one for the throw-size quilt. There are two different fabrics with the blocks in the last photo, and either one would be enough for the bigger quilt. 

Be sure to check out all of the wonderful scrappy projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge every Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. 

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 12/12/16

Ever since late October, I've been trying to decide if I wanted to participate in Bonnie Hunter's En Provence mystery. I really enjoyed following along on her Allietare mystery last year and Easy Street a few years ago. For some reason, I haven't been able to come up with a group of colors that I like together, and that has kept from joining in.

There is another quilt mystery that I have been doing, and that is Cheryl's Meadow Mystery. One advantage with this mystery is that the new steps are posted every month, not every week--much easier to keep up! For December, we joined together units from previous months into blocks. The arrangement on the wall is my guess, not necessarily how the blocks will end up.

Cheryl's pattern makes a 60" x 60" quilt. I'm hoping to add 6-10" or so on the top and bottom to make it rectangular. That will make it a good size for a Quilt of Valor.

I am linking up to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag. Check out all of them for tons of amazing quilting inspiration!

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 12/11/16

My huge fabric-buying binge a week ago (see what I got HERE) left me 60+ yards in the red. It took me two full evenings to get all the new fabrics washed and dried, which greatly limited my sewing time. The only fabric usage for the week was finishing up the December blocks for the Meadow Mystery quilt. Those will probably make an appearance on my design wall tomorrow. Since I don't have any quilt photos to share today, I will include one of a favorite Christmas ornament that a friend gave me many years ago.

STASH TOTALS: 

     Used last week:                   .75 yards     
Used year to date:          93.375 yards

Stashed last week:                   0 yards

 Stashed year to date:       152.75 yards 

 Net year to date:  59.375 yards stashed

I am joining Kate at Life in Pieces in tracking the number of days each week that I spend at least 15 minutes quilting. I have many projects in the works, and I continue to find at least a little time every day for quilting.

15 Minute Challenge:  
12/4 - 12/10                  6 of 7 days

Year to date            312 of 345 days

350 Block Challenge at Prairie Moon Quilts: 

Blocks made 12/4 - 12/10:  9

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 12/4/16

My name is Julie, and I am a fabricaholic!

I was feeling pretty good about my stash busting efforts this week, especially since I finished a quilt top. It is my green and beige Mystery Quilts 4 Military (MQ4M) top, and it used 5 yards, all from the stash. I'm planning to piece the back out of stash fabrics too. Once the rain lets up, I will try to get some photos of this completed quilt top, but you can see it in progress HERE.

Yesterday was the monthly meeting of the Glorious Hexagons group at Intown Quilters. We get together to chat and laugh and work on English Paper Piecing our blocks. Mary Lou, the leader of our group, laid out many of her blocks for us to enjoy. Look at all the gorgeous colors and pattern!

After the hexagons group ended, I headed over to Fabric World in Stone Mountain, GA. This is the kind of place that buys and sells remnants plus overstock fabrics and trims. There's no telling what you will find there. The fabric is all jumbled together on big tables, and it's like a treasure hunt trying to see what's hiding at the bottom of the pile. The last time I went, they didn't have any cotton prints at all, just home dec and fashion fabrics. That was not the case yesterday, and I went a little crazy, tossing anything I was even remotely interested in into my shopping cart. Yikes, look at that pile of fabric!!

Once I'd finished digging through all the tables of cotton prints, it was time to sort it all out and narrow down my choices. My original plan was to concentrate on lights/backgrounds, and also to get some teals and greys for a baby quilt. I was very successful at both of those goals, as you can see here. The pieces vary in size from 1/8 yard up to almost 2 yards, with most averaging around 1/2 to 5/8 yard.

Beautiful backgrounds

Enough fabric for several baby quilts!

Same colors, this time in flannels

Unfortunately, I didn't come anywhere close to limiting myself to my original plan. I ended up buying a grand total of 71.5 yards of fabric! I have never bought that much fabric at one time in my life! I was at the store for almost 4 hours; it was a huge surprise to discover that it was dark and raining outside by the time I left. The only good thing about my crazy shopping attack is that the fabric was only $2 a yard!! That is too hard to resist.

Miscellaneous cotton prints--kids, patriotic, tone-on-tone, Kaffe's

Rainbow of flannels--32 pieces

I've dug myself into a hole that I definitely won't get out of by the end of the year. There goes my yearly goal to use more fabric than I add. I'm not even sure where I will put it all, but I'm still terribly excited by the new additions! Next year will definitely be focused on stash-busting projects.

STASH TOTALS: 

     Used last week:                   5.0 yards     
Used year to date:          92.625 yards

Stashed last week:             71.5 yards

 Stashed year to date:       152.75 yards 

 Net year to date:  60.125 yards stashed

I am joining Kate at Life in Pieces in tracking the number of days each week that I spend at least 15 minutes quilting. I will need to find lots of time for quilting in the upcoming weeks/months in order to make a dent in what I bought yesterday.

15 Minute Challenge:  
11/27 - 12/3                  7 of 7 days

Year to date            306 of 338 days

350 Block Challenge at Prairie Moon Quilts: 

Blocks made 11/27 - 12/3:  6

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA