Design Wall Monday and One Monthly Goal

My design walls currently display a wild variety of projects, ranging from very small, intricate blocks to much larger and simpler blocks. It's that kind of variety that keeps quilting interesting for me.

top: Temperature Quilt

bottom: Quarter Log Cabin

I've posted about the Temperature Quilt project before; you can see a couple of earlier posts HERE and HERE. I've been doing well at keeping up with making the blocks, never getting more than a few days behind. The photo above shows all of the blocks through April 2nd.

Just last week, I figured out the layout for my temperature blocks, and I started joining the blocks together into groups. It's tricky to keep them in the right order and pointing in the right direction, so I have to be very careful during this part of the process.

The lower half of that design wall contains my newest project, Quarter Log Cabin blocks. Our guild is having a community service sewing day in late May, and we will be working on throw quilts to be donated to Meals on Wheels, along with the placemats that we give them. The guild's community service chairperson had put together bundles of fabrics that could be used for 3-yard quilt patterns, and I offered to make a sample to show at the next meeting.

Quarter Log Cabin blocks

The design I chose is the Quarter Log Cabin pattern from the Sew Can She website. Caroline at Sew Can She offers a huge selection of free patterns on her site, including several of the popular 3-yard patterns. If you sign up to receive her daily emails, you can get that day's featured pattern as a free pdf download.

I've been enjoying making this quilt because it is coming together so quickly. Using only three fabrics made the cutting much faster than my usual scrap quilts, and the blocks are very easy to put together. They will finish at 10" each, and I need only 20 blocks for the entire quilt. I especially love the red paisley/floral print that was included in the fabric bundle. One selvage was gone, so there was no maker information on it, but it has a wonderfully smooth feel to it.

Finishing this quilt top will be my One Monthly Goal for April. I will need to make 14 more blocks, join them together, then add three borders. The guild meeting is next week Thursday, which gives me only 10 days to get it done.

Completely on the other side of the spectrum as far as block size and complexity are the latest blocks to be finished for my version of the Jane Stickle sampler quilt. I finished four blocks last week, bringing my total number of finished blocks up to 14 (out of a total of 169.) My current goal is to make at least two blocks each week. These blocks will finish at 4.5".

Top row: Blocks C9, D10

2nd row: Blocks E3, I3

Now you can see what I meant at the beginning of this post about the variety of projects I've been working on. When I'm in the mood for something easy, I can make temperature blocks or the log cabins. If I'm ready to be challenged, I can make some of the Jane Stickle blocks or join more of the temperature blocks together. That's all a big part of the reason why I tend to have multiple projects in the works at the same time.

I'm  linking up with:

One Monthly Goal at Stories from the Sewing Room

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Stash Report and Stitching Time 4/6/2025

My Stash Report for the past week doesn't show a lot of movement, but at least there was a little fabric used and no new fabric added. The fabric used includes 5/8 yard for the deep blue setting/border fabric in my Sewcialites 2 quilt top, shared earlier in the week in THIS POST, plus 3/8 yard in 20 yellow "Terry" blocks for a neglected Rainbow Scrap Challenge project. You can read more about that quilt HERE.

2025 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                  1.0 yards

Used year to date:         28.125 yards

Added last week:                 0.0 yards

Added year to date:          20.75 yards

Net used in 2025:         7.375 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. I spent time on a variety of quilting projects, including blocks for my Temperature quilt and the Jane Stickle sampler, plus the yellow Terry blocks shown above. I also attended a quilt guild board meeting and wrote up the guild newsletter. There has definitely been more than 15 minutes devoted to quilting activities every day this week!

15 Minute Challenge for 2025

3/30 - 4/5                7 of 7 days

2025 Total            95 of 95 days

Success rate                100 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Yellow "Terry" Blocks

It has been several months since this project made an appearance, but I've been wanting to get caught up on my colorwash blocks as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I started making these blocks early last year, inspired by Terry Rowland's colorwash quilts, which are featured in her series of three YouTube videos. That is why I call them my "Terry" blocks.

I made 48 yellow blocks last April and May, and they made a lovely sunny glow on the design wall.

I made blocks in a different color each month, based on the monthly color assigned for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I ended up with more than 60 blocks for some colors later in the year, so I decided to make some more from yellow scraps that hadn't been used yet.

I was easily able to find 20 more yellow fabrics to use for additional blocks. After that I looked at all of the yellow blocks on the design wall together.

These scrappy little blocks will finish at 3" each. There are still a couple other colors that need additional blocks, plus I never made any green blocks last year because I started this project after that month had already ended. The assigned color for April is red, and I will work on those blocks next. I'll continue filling out my block collection over the upcoming months.

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Sewcialites 2 Quilt Top Finished!

I can't believe it is the last day of March already! I'm cutting things a little close here with a last-chance report on the successful completion of my One Monthly Goal for March. My Sewcialites 2 quilt top is done!

Sewcialites 2 quilt top

27" square

Our quilt guild chose the Sewcialites 2 pattern as our Block of the Month for 2024-25. Actually, we made two blocks each month, and I made one extra block at the end. 

Sewcialites 2 originally ran as a weekly block program at Fat Quarter Shop from October, 2022 until April, 2023. All of the block patterns are still available on the Fat Quarter Shop's website. The pattern includes instructions for blocks that finish at 3", 6" or 9". For some crazy reason, I decided to challenge myself and make the 3" blocks.

The above photo shows all of my blocks after I finished making them back in December of 2024. At that point, I had no idea how I would arrange them in the finished quilt.

In February I auditioned some options for the setting fabric. I had expected to go with a lighter aqua/turquoise, but ended up choosing the darker blue for the dramatic contrast. Below are my blocks on the setting fabric before the top was assembled. Some of them changed position, but this gave me a good idea of where I was headed.

 

I'm very happy to have this quilt top done, and I look forward to getting it quilted and hanging on the wall. Making all those 3" blocks convinced me that I could handle the challenges of very small piecing, which is probably what led to my newest project, a Dear Jane quilt.

I'm joining in with the One Monthly Goal link-up, hosted by Anne-Marie at Stories from the Sewing Room.

I'm also linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

TGIFF at Sew Preeti Quilts

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Stash Report and Stitching Time 3/30/2025

My Stash Report for the past week shows no changes to the numbers for fabric used or added. I've mostly been obsessed with getting organized and making a start on my Jane Stickle sampler quilt, and it is very slow going. I finished up a grand total of three blocks for that project this week. All blocks will finish at 4.5".

Block A13

Partially rotary cut, partially foundation pieced

Block B6

This block has 43 pieces in it!

Block G13

I was able to machine piece the curves in this block

I don't think I will try to calculate the amount of fabric used for each block in this quilt. That's just too many tiny pieces and strange shapes. I will buy an equal amount of each color to use in the quilt, and I can just see how much is left at the end.

2025 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                  0.0 yards

Used year to date:         27.125 yards

Added last week:                 0.0 yards

Added year to date:          20.75 yards

Net used in 2025:         6.375 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. My quilting time took a hit this week after an unfortunate encounter between a rotary cutter and my left index finger. It slowed me down, but didn't keep me from doing something quilt related every day.

15 Minute Challenge for 2025

3/23 - 3/29              7 of 7 days

2025 Total            88 of 88 days

Success rate                100 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Starting Something New

A recent trip to Paducah, KY naturally included a stop at Hancock's of Paducah. Actually, I ended up going there twice in the two days we were in town. I didn't have a specific project or plan in mind when I got there, but something about their beautiful lineup of Grunge fabrics really spoke to me, especially the teal and turquoise variations. Here's what I bought.

For some reason, these fabrics sparked the desire to get started on a quilt project that has been on my bucket list for many years. That is the Jane Stickle sampler quilt, commonly known as "Dear Jane." For those who aren't familiar with the name, "Dear Jane" is a book by Brenda Manges Papadakis, originally published in 1996. The full title is Dear Jane: The Two Hundred Twenty-Five Patterns from the 1863 Jane A. Stickle Quilt.

Sampler by Jane A. Blakely Stickle, 1863

80.25" x 80.25"

Brenda was a math teacher and quilt scholar when she became fascinated by the Jane Stickle quilt. She began by drafting the blocks from a photo of the quilt in a book, then later from photos taken by a friend. She was able to see the quilt in person in 1992 and traced the designs for the rest of the blocks.

The Jane Stickle sampler quilt consists of 169 square blocks (13 rows of 13 blocks.)  The finished size of each block is 4.5", and there is 1/2" sashing and cornerstones between them. The border has 52 triangular blocks along the sides, and four kite-shaped blocks in the corners, bringing the grand total to 225 blocks, and all of them are different.

Block E7

The first block to be made was #E7. The blocks are numbered in the book by row, then counting across. I started with this aqua fabric to make sure it wasn't too pale. I put it up on the wall along with squares of most of the other colors. I'm glad I tested it first, because it does look too light to me. The solid squares of that color (Pool) are okay, but in lower light, the pale aqua just disappears. I don't want to put all this work into blocks that blend into the background.

The other colors featured in the above photo all made the final cut for the quilt, although they will not line up in the order shown. The colors from top to bottom are Jade, Horizon Blue, Ocean, Cabana, Turquoise and Prussian. My background choice is Cream (or Creme.)

After figuring out my color choices and assigning them to the quilt diagram, I was ready to begin making blocks. I started at the very beginning of the patterns in the book with A1 and have completed enough blocks for about half of the first row so far. 

Top row: A1, A8, A2

Second row: A4, E7, A3

Third row: A6, A5, A13

Some of the blocks are very simple, but most are not. There are quite a few that include applique, and many are easiest to piece on foundations. I have found a few blogs/websites with tips for making the blocks, but I can generally figure it out for myself too. 

This will be a very long-term project, with no deadline for completion. I have only 1/2 yard of each of the Grunge colors that were selected, so I need to figure out how much more of those to buy, plus I will need lots more of the background. I might end up getting a whole bolt of that. I'm sure there will be plenty of frustration at times, but I'm looking forward to the many challenges of this new project. Wish me luck!

Linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Stash Report & Stitching Time 3/23/2025

Somehow I missed writing a blog post last week with my Stash Report and 15 Minute Challenge updates. We were getting ready for a family gathering that evening, and preparations for that were the priority. It was quite a surprise that I didn't have any blog posts during the last two weeks. I've certainly been spending time in the sewing room, I just haven't been doing well at documenting my progress.

Flannel baby quilt, 35" square

One recent finish was this cute little baby quilt for our quilt guild. It started as a kit of precut squares, plus one yard each of the two fabrics in the borders (light blue solid and large dots.) All of the fabrics are flannels. I quilted it with wavy diagonal lines in the center of the quilt, plus more wavy lines around the large circles in the outer border. The only fabric from my stash was 1/4 yard for the binding.

In preparation for the family dinner last weekend, I finished off the last four placemats to complete a set that had been started about a dozen years ago. The one at the lower left shows the fabric that is on the backs of all of them. 1-3/4 yards of fabric used for these.

Here's a photo from a 2012 blog post when I originally made six of these placemats and a matching table runner.

Earlier this month we felt the need to get away for a couple days and took a quick road trip to Paducah. It was a huge treat to visit the quilt museum and have the place practically to ourselves. They had the "Option Expedition" series by Victoria Findley Wolfe in one gallery, plus a fantastic display of quilts from their collection in the main gallery. It's so hard to pick a favorite, but I'll try.

From "Option Expedition" by Victoria Findley Wolfe

Seeing the next quilt at the museum was like rediscovering an old friend. I believe the first time I ever saw this quilt was at the Sun Prairie, WI quilt show in 1997, the year before it won for Best Machine Workmanship at the Paducah show in 1998. This is Sweetheart on Parade by Diane Gaudynski.

The colors in my photo are off a little bit. The areas that look brown are actually a very dark olive green. This quilt inspired me so much that I started making a similar design in 2000, but it is still mostly a collection of small half-square triangles. I had the good fortune to take multiple classes with Diane in the late 90's/early 2000's while I was living in Milwaukee, and I still refer back to her lessons on machine quilting.

Naturally, the trip to Paducah also included a visit to Hancock's. I didn't have anything particular that I went in looking for, but for some reason I got a little obsessed with the Grunge fabrics. These are the ones that I'm planning to use in a new quilt, and there were some other purchases too. 10.25 yards total added to the stash.

2025 STASH TOTALS

Used last two weeks:             2.0 yards

Used year to date:            27.125 yards

Added last two weeks:         10.25 yards

Added year to date:             20.75 yards

Net used in 2025:            6.375 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. There has been plenty of quilting going on, along with lots of time spent figuring out plans for a new project. 

15 Minute Challenge for 2025

3/9 - 3/22            14 of 14 days

2025 Total            81 of 81 days

Success rate                100 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Stash Report and Stitching Time 3/9/2025

The past week included several appointments and obligations combined with more fun activities like celebrating my sweetie's birthday. One of his birthday gifts was my most recently finished quilt, the Tiny Jewel wall-hanging. I blogged about it in this post.

Tiny Jewel Wall-hanging, 18" x 18"

I've also been working on a quilting project with a deadline, plus I made a placemat for the latest Project Quilting Challenge 16.5: Follow Your Arrow (see it HERE.) That has all kept me plenty busy, and I managed to use 2-3/8 yards of fabric in the process. I did buy some new fabric yesterday, but I haven't calculated the total added yet, so I'll report on that next week.

2025 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                  2.375 yards

Used year to date:            25.125 yards

Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:             10.50 yards

Net used in 2025:          14.625 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. I have definitely been spending more than 15 minutes each day on quilting, but that's partly because I've been thinking about starting a new long-term quilt project. The design and planning stage of that has been filling up more time than it should right now. I need to buckle down this week and finish my Sewcialites 2 quilt before our guild meeting on the 20th. 

15 Minute Challenge for 2025

3/2 - 3/8                  7 of 7 days

2025 Total            67 of 67 days

Success rate                100 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Project Quilting 16.5: Follow Your Arrow

The theme for the fifth challenge of Season #16 of Project Quilting, hosted by Kim at Persimon Dreams and Trish at Quilt Chicken is "Follow Your Arrow. Here is the description:

16.5 Follow Your Arrow

This week’s challenge invites you to explore arrows.

As a motif or shape in quilting, arrows were there from Day One.

Chevrons can be a very modern, streamlined arrow shape.

You can find lots of patterns for arrowhead-and-feathered-shaft Robin Hood style arrows.

And of course tons of very traditional blocks create dramatic arrow shapes across your quilt

Your “arrow” can be simple and literal or deep and introspective (well, only as deep as a one-week deadline allows!).

Rule One: Your completed project must include an arrow shape.

I decided to feature yellow arrows in my project because that is our new color of the month for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. The deep teal background fabric was leftover from another recent project. I made another placemat to add to the collection going to Meals on Wheels.

The backing fabric is quite old, but the colors coordinated perfectly.

Check out all the different projects inspired by this week's Project Quilting theme at Kim's blog, Persimon Dreams. There's only one more challenge left for this season of Project Quilting, to be posted at noon CST on Sunday, March 16th. Come join the fun! I'm also linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and with Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework.

Happy quilting!

Julie in GA

Hummingbird Quilt Finished!

My most recent finish was made as a special gift for my husband, Ed, who loves watching the hummingbirds at our feeders in the summer. We are both fascinated by their behavior, but Ed is the one who makes sure the feeders stay filled.

Tiny Jewel, 18" square

The pattern is called Tiny Jewel, and it was designed by Sylvia Schaefer of Flying Parrot Quilts. The hummingbird is foundation pieced, and three different block sizes are included in the pattern (9", 12" and 18" finished sizes.) I made the 12" block, then added the gradation of green solids as a border.

I pieced the top for this little quilt almost two years ago, soon after I bought the pattern, but it hung around my sewing room unquilted until just recently. I found the perfect fabric for the back at Hancock's of Paducah last December, and that helped motivate me to get this finished. It is now hanging next to our back door, waiting for the return of our favorite little flying acrobats.

Linking up with:

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Happy quilting!

Julie in GA