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Here's a photo from a 2012 blog post when I originally made six of these placemats and a matching table runner.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