15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 12/29/18

Wow, has it really been two weeks since my last blog post! And I've had only four previous posts for the entire month of December. That is a good indication of just how busy the past month has been. The craziness isn't over yet (at least another week or two to go), but I'm hoping to get back to a more regular blogging schedule very soon.

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. Between the crazy work schedule and the Christmas holiday events, I feel fortunate to have gotten any stitching time on 11 out of 14 days. Most of that time was hand stitching, but I did manage to dust off the sewing machine over Christmas weekend. It felt great to get in some piecing time again!

15 Minute Challenge:  
12/16 - 12/29        11 of 14 days
2018 Total          350 of 363 days

The only usage for the last two weeks was 3/4 yard for some Moda Blockheads blocks. I'm not sure why I pulled out this patriotic project over the Christmas holiday, except that it was already in progress and didn't require a lot of planning.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                          .75 yards

Used year to date:                 74.875 yards
Added last week:                         0.0 yards

Added year to date:                  50.25 yards
Net used year to date:        24.625 yards

My stash goals for the year were to use at least 100 yards of fabric (not going to happen!) and to use more than I add. I should be able to meet the second goal, although I am hoping to do a shopping trip for a couple of quilt backings today.

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. I'm also joining up with Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework, since most of the fabrics in my Moda Blockheads blocks were scraps/leftovers.

Happy New Year and happy quilting to all!

Julie in GA

15 Minutes, Stash Report and Slow Stitching Sunday 12/16/18

It was another very long, very stressful week at work, and next week will be more of the same. It's always tough when we are working on a huge show over the holidays. We are all trying to hang on until our four-day weekend for Christmas.

One way I am dealing with the stress from work is by squeezing in some time for quilting. My prime times for stitching are during the train ride to work in the mornings and while "watching" TV in the evenings. I was able to finish joining the last of the hexagons to the center medallion for a wall hanging. This was my first hexagon project ever, started in 2012. I plan to share more about this project in tomorrow's design wall post.

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. My hexie stitching added up to a 7-for-7 week!

15 Minute Challenge:  
12/9 - 12/15            7 of 7 days
2018 Total        339 of 349 days

My only stash usage for the week was 3/8 yard for the hexagons that were added to the medallion. No new fabric added to the stash this week!

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                        .375 yards

Used year to date:                 74.125 yards
Added last week:                         0.0 yards

Added year to date:                  50.25 yards
Net used year to date:        23.875 yards

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces, and see many beautiful projects at Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts. I'm also joining up with Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework, since most of the fabrics in my hexie medallion were scraps/leftovers.

Julie in GA

15 Minutes, Slow Stitching and Stash Report Sunday 12/9/18

Time for quilting continues to be in very short supply. The hours at work keep increasing. The past week started with a one-day trip to New York, up and back in the same day, with a bunch of costume fittings while we were there. There was no chance after that for recovery, just keep pushing through the rest of the week. I am fortunate to have worked only 3 hours on Saturday, and I have the whole day off today. It felt so good to sleep in this morning, helping me feel human again!

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. Surprisingly, I managed to get 15 minutes every day, although there weren't many days with more than 15 minutes. All of my quilting time was spent on hand stitching, mostly on a quilt binding and trying out an idea for a new project. 

15 Minute Challenge:  
12/2 - 12/8              7 of 7 days
2018 Total        332 of 342 days

The new design that I'm playing with is hand-appliqued Orange Peel blocks. I've been needing a new handwork project and have seen many lovely versions of this design. My plan is to applique bright prints onto scrappy black background squares, probably following the color of the month for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. 

My biggest problem so far is keeping the points lined up at the corners of the background square. They want to shift around a bit as I am stitching them. I might scale the peel piece a little smaller so I can trim down the background after the applique stitching. If anyone has made this pattern and has suggestions, I would love to hear them. I'm linking up this project with Slow Stitching Sunday at Kathy's Quilts.

The stash report shows no usage and some sizeable additions this week. I may not have much time for quilting, but that doesn't mean there isn't time for quilt shopping. I had seen a quilt kit on Craftsy a week or so ago that looked like a great deal, but did not buy it at that time. Early this week Craftsy had a buy one kit, get one free sale, making it the perfect time to grab that kit plus another. The first pick was this Solar Flare quilt pattern with Craftsy's exclusive brand Boundless solids. This will be my first time using Craftsy fabrics, and these solids feel very nice. This kit contains just over 10 yards of fabric plus the pattern, and it is still on clearance for only $34!

This is the photo of the Solar Flare quilt from the Craftsy website. Finished size is 71" x 71".

For kit #2, my choice was based more on the fabrics than the pattern. I'm always looking for more red, white & blue prints for my QOV collection. These are from the Yankee Doodles collection by Lily and Loom, another Craftsy exclusive brand. There are 18 fat quarters, plus a 1-yard piece at the top.

The pattern that came with these fabrics is called Suburbia. A very simple design that shows off the great prints very well.

Suburbia Yankee Doodles quilt kit from Craftsy

Altogether, the two kits added 15.5 yards to my stash. It's a good thing that my usage is well ahead of additions for the year! I'm still hopeful of finishing 2018 in the black.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                          0.0 yards

Used year to date:                   73.75 yards
Added last week:                       15.5 yards

Added year to date:                 50.25 yards
Net used year to date:           23.5 yards

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 12/2/18

The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas always seem to be extra busy, but it feels that way even more than usual this year. It started with the news over Thanksgiving weekend that my 15 year old car needs $3500 in repairs! That's not happening, so it's time to start shopping for another car. Then there was the work deadline that suddenly moved to three days earlier than originally planned, leaving us scrambling to finish projects. It also meant working lots of extra hours last week, which seriously cut into my quilting time!

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. I missed posting my stash report and 15 Minute totals last week, and I was surprised to discover that there was only one day with no quilting time during that two week stretch. That is definitely better than expected, even though I don't seem to have a lot to show for it.

15 Minute Challenge:  
11/18 - 12/1        13 of 14 days
2018 Total        325 of 335 days

As for the stash report, over the last two weeks I used 1 yard for the sashing on my first Squared Away quilt top (see it in yesterday's post) and 5/8 yard for the binding on my Circling the Rainbow quilt. I'm up against a deadline on that quilt and need to get the binding finished today!

One last corner to miter!

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                      1.625 yards

Used year to date:                   73.75 yards
Added last week:                        0.0 yards

Added year to date:                 34.75 yards
Net used year to date:           39.0 yards

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. 

Julie in GA

Rainbow Progress

There hasn't been much time for quilting lately, but I have been able to get the blocks joined into rows for my Squared Away sampler. These were all made over the past year as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, hosted by Angela. The block patterns/tutorials were posted each month by Mari at The Academic Quilter. Thanks to both of them for sharing this wonderful project with us!

RSC Squared Away sampler

My blocks finish at 7.5" square and the sashing is 1.5", so this little quilt should finish around 47" x 56". I used the background fabric as the sashing to let the blocks float on the background, plus a solid grey for a bit of contrast as the cornerstones.

The rows haven't been joined to one another yet because I am considering finishing this as another quilt-as-you-go project. One of my major quilting goals for next year is to finish more quilts, and I'm hoping that QAYG will help make that possible.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and with Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 11/18/18

This is the time of year when my stash busting efforts tend to run into trouble. There seems to be so much going on that cuts into quilting time, plus there are too many fabric sales trying to entice me to buy. I haven't given in to the sales yet, but that may change at any time! For the past week I can report 3/8 yard used on five additional blocks for one of my rainbow samplers (see the blocks in yesterday's post.) 

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                       .375 yards

Used year to date:                72.125 yards
Added last week:                        0.0 yards

Added year to date:                 34.75 yards
Net used year to date:       37.375 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. After three weeks in a row of 6 out of 7 days, I managed to find time to quilt every day again this week. I'm discovering that having a project prepped for hand stitching on the morning train makes a big difference--that way if there are other things going on in the evening, I've already gotten in my stitching time. 

15 Minute Challenge:  
11/11 - 11/17         7 of 7 days
2018 Total      312 of 321 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. 

Julie in GA

A Few More Rainbow Blocks

One of my quilting projects for the past week was to play with the sampler blocks that we have been making all year for the Squared Away BOM as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Along with those blocks, I have also been making extra blocks using the patterns from the 2017 Patchwork Quilt Along at the Fat Quarter Shop. Both sets of blocks are based on a 5x5 grid, so they fit together perfectly!

I made a new version of the Squared Away block from January, using a lighter blue that works much better with the grey background. The yellow and red blocks were made from the Fat Quarter Shop patterns.

The next step will be putting all of the blocks up on the wall together to figure out a layout. I have over 50 blocks, 7.5" finished size. That would be enough for a large throw quilt, but I think I will make a smaller throw plus a baby quilt instead. I'm looking forward to trying out different block settings.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and with Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 11/11/18

It was a good week for stash usage, and there were no new additions to the stash. I made two more Flying Dutchman/Dutchman's Puzzle blocks to add to the blocks shown in Monday's post. I also pieced the back to go with the first Scraptastic Stars top.

Flying Dutchman/Dutchman's Puzzle variations
8" blocks

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                    2.75 yards

Used year to date:               71.75 yards
Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:             34.75 yards
Net used year to date:       37.0 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. I had another week with 6 out of 7 days. 

15 Minute Challenge:  
11/4 - 11/10          6 of 7 days
2018 Total      305 of 314 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. I'm also linking up with Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework.

Julie in GA

Flying Dutchman Blocks

Over the weekend I pulled out some blocks that were started about a year ago.   These are a group of blocks that I started making last fall when my musician husband was playing in the orchestra for a production of the opera "The Flying Dutchman."  Dutchman's Puzzle or Flying Dutchman are two of the names used for some of these block patterns.

Dutchman's Puzzle/Flying Dutchman block variations

The blocks in the top and bottom rows finish at 8", and the middle row has 12" blocks. I have no specific plan for where I'm going with these blocks or how big a quilt they will become. For now I'm just enjoying playing with the colors and different pattern variations. I love the spinning motion in these designs!

One of the blocks was made twice because the first attempt (on the left) was spinning in the opposite direction of all the other blocks. Naturally, it was one of the most difficult blocks of the whole group. Those little flying geese at the center measure only 1" x 2"!

I'm linking up to Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 11/4/18

My stash numbers are slowly inching along, with no huge changes in either usage or additions. There was no new fabric added this week, and one yard was used for the sashing and cornerstones on my first Scraptastic Stars quilt top, which you can see in yesterday's post. It doesn't seem likely that I will reach my goal of using at least 100 yards from my stash this year, but at least the net result is in the black. I just have to show some restraint when all of the Black Friday and end of the year sales get going.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                      1.0 yards

Used year to date:                69.0 yards
Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:             34.75 yards
Net used year to date:       34.25 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting. Once again, I went 6 out of 7 days during the week. The day I missed was because we went to a concert in the evening, and I didn't think to get any quilting done earlier in the day. My totals are still very good.

15 Minute Challenge:  
10/28 - 11/3          6 of 7 days
2018 Total      299 of 307 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. 

Julie in GA

Scraptastic Stars

The last of the Scraptastic Stars blocks was made in dark greens this week. I have been making these blocks all year as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. This block was made from 2" squares and finishes at 12".

Scraptastic Stars, 12" block
pattern by Melissa Corey

I was so excited to get the last block done and start joining them together. Here is a preview of the blocks joined into three columns with sashing added. These are all of my 12" blocks (the 16" blocks will get joined together later.) What a treat to see them all together in their beautiful scrappiness!

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and with Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

Back Panel for Tell It to the Stars

It has been a month since I shared my Tell It to the Stars quilt top. Last week I started working on the back for this quilt. I didn't have quite enough of the fabric I'm planning to use for the back, but I  had some leftover/extra parts from making the front of the quilt. There were two of the alternate blocks, plus I made four more of those (see them in yesterday's post.) I also had the setting and corner triangles that didn't make the cut for the front of the quilt.

Setting and corner triangles

All of those alternate blocks and setting triangles have been joined together into a long, narrow panel which will run down the center of the quilt back. The photo shows that panel before the final seam was stitched. I knew there was no way I could get a photo of the entire piece all together--it measures about 17.5" x 103".

I need to add a little of the backing fabric at both ends of this panel to make it a bit longer. After that, all that's left is to attach lengths of backing fabric along each side of the panel--then my quilt will have a finished back (hopefully by the end of the week!)

I'm linking up to Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 10/28/18

It didn't seem like I used much fabric this week, but when I went to total up my numbers for the stash report, it came to 1.5 yards used. I consider that a pretty good week! That includes 3/4 yard for the sashing on the Spinning Boxes quilt, shown in yesterday's post, and another 3/4 yard to make four chain blocks for a pieced panel to insert into the backing of the Tell It to the Stars quilt. No new fabric was added this week.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                    1.50 yards

Used year to date:                68.0 yards
Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:             34.75 yards
Net used year to date:       33.25 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us keep track of how many days each week we are able to spend at least 15 minutes quilting, and my total for last week was 6 out of 7. For the first time in several months, my number of quilting days for the week was not a perfect 7 for 7. The last time that happened was in June when we spent a week visiting family in Wisconsin. This time around was another vacation week, but I spent the entire week at home. You might think that would mean more quilting time, but there were too many other things that really needed to get done instead.  

15 Minute Challenge:  
10/21 - 10/27        6 of 7 days
2018 Total      293 of 300 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. 

Julie in GA

Spinning Boxes Progress

The blocks and sashing for my Spinning Boxes quilt have all been joined together. There are three sections, and I am considering doing some kind of quilt-as-you-go method for finishing this quilt. I'm undecided if I will cut the batting and backing along those diagonal splits or leave them whole. Also unsure about how or when to add the border. If anyone has any suggestions, they would be greatly appreciated.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and with Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 10/21/18

I had a couple of days off from work at the end of the week, which you might think would mean more time spent in the sewing room. Instead, I was so absorbed by other projects around the house that I didn't do any sewing until late in the day. I did spend at least a little time quilting each night, keeping up my excellent record towards Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces.

15 Minute Challenge:  
10/14 - 10/20        7 of 7 days
2018 Total      287 of 293 days

My quilting time for the week used a total of 1.375 yards. 7/8 yard of that was used on the half block setting triangles for the Spinning Boxes quilt that I shared in yesterday's post. The other 1/2 yard went into six more Dutchman's Puzzle/Flying Dutchman block variations. These are a group of blocks that I started making last fall when my musician husband was playing in the orchestra for a production of the opera "The Flying Dutchman." I suppose I should figure out a plan for these blocks one day soon!

Flying Dutchman variations, 8" blocks

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                  1.375 yards

Used year to date:                66.5 yards

Added last week:                    0.0 yards
Added year to date:             34.75 yards
Net used year to date:       31.75 yards

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces. 

Julie in GA

Sashing the Spinning Boxes

Earlier in the week I shared some photos of fabrics being auditioned as possible sashing for the Spinning Boxes blocks that I have been making as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. A choice was made, and I have started joining the blocks into rows with the sashing. The blocks in the upper left corner have all been stitched together, plus the next row is ready to get the long sashing strips added. There is another row in process at the sewing machine, then the lower right corner will finish it off. 

The border strips along the left and top are just hanging out on the design wall to look at the scale. Right now they seem awfully wide to me, but we'll see how they look when the center of the quilt is complete. It's easy enough to trim them down if necessary.

I'm happy with the sashing/border fabric that I was able to pull from my stash for this quilt. I especially like the sparkle that the white spots add to the overall look.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

Sashing Auditions

Since early this year, I have been making Spinning Boxes blocks as one of my projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. The block is my own design, and you can find a tutorial for it HERE. I've made enough blocks for a throw quilt, and now is the time to figure out my setting.

All along I've felt that the blocks will look best set diagonally, and a few weeks ago I tried out a few fabrics for setting triangles. None of those fabrics seemed like the right choice, so I made partial blocks to use as the setting triangles. That leaves me with bias edges all around the quilt. To keep the stretchiness under control, I've decided to add sashing and a border for stability. Over the weekend I auditioned some fabrics from my stash.

Round one was light/medium grey prints. I like grey as a neutral with bright or rainbow blocks, but these greys didn't seem to add any life to the quilt blocks.

For the second round, I pulled out a darker grey strip, plus a few different black prints. I definitely prefer the way the black prints make the bright colors in the blocks pop. Anyone else have an opinion? 

I'm linking up to Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA