Stash Report Sunday 8/4/13

No additions and no usage this week. I made 3 Dancing Stars blocks, but that yardage won't be counted until the end of the month. Unfortunately, not much time for quilting right now. Maybe next week will be better. 

Used this week:    0 yards
Used year to date:   59.5 yards    

Added this week:    0 yards

Added year to date:   43.5 yards

Net year to date:   16 yards used 

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Julie in GA

Better Late than Never 8/3/13

I started cutting red scraps for my Dancing Stars blocks before we even got to the end of July, just in hopes that I had guessed the right color for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge for August. Luckily red is this month's color, but I didn't have much time to stitch blocks this week. I finally got these three done this evening. They will be a good addition to my rainbow collection.

I am linking up to the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2013, where you can see all sorts of wonderful ways that other quilters have been using their red scraps this month. 

Julie in GA

Getting It Done--July/August

I came very close to meeting my goals for Judy's Get It Done Challenge last month. I managed to complete four of my five goals, and made a good start on the other. 

I know that August is going to be a very busy month at work, so I need to scale back my goals a bit. I hope to keep up with both of my BOM projects, and get some blocks made for one other quilt.

JULY GOALS

1.  Dancing Stars--make 8-10 blocks in this month's color for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  14 blocks done

2.  Scrappy Sampler BOM--make this month's set of blocks.  Done

3.  Turning Leaves quilt--finish binding. Done

4.  Quilt and bind one more top. Almost done quilting, then need to bind.

5.  Make pillowcases and placemats for guild charity drive.  Made 7 pillowcases

AUGUST GOALS
1.  Dancing Stars--make at least 8-10 blocks in this month's color for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.

2.  Scrappy Sampler BOM--make this month's set of blocks. 

3.  Finish making blocks for red, white & blue scrap quilt.



See how well other quilters did at reaching their goals this month and what they hope to accomplish in the month ahead at Patchwork Times.

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 7/29/13

It seemed like I spent lots of time trying to quilt, but not really accomplishing much over the past week. I think it was that post-finishing let down after I completed my Turning Leaves quilt and finished my teal Dancing Stars blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. That left me wondering what to work on next. My time for quilting was limited and my energy level was rather low, which made it very difficult to get going on another quilt.

I did manage to make the four log cabin blocks for the Scrappy Sampler BOM. They are now attached to the center, along with 2" borders at the ends.

Over the weekend I pulled this little quilt out of my closet of UFOs. I think the block pattern is called Puss in the Corner, but I always thought of it as an uneven nine-patch. Back when I taught beginning quilting, this was made as a duplicate of the class project. It had been layered and pin basted, and the quilting was started but never finished. Yesterday I did the rest of the stitch-in-the ditch quilting along all the seams. Now I need to figure out how to quilt the borders. It is a good size for a baby or small child's quilt, about 38 x 49". I hope to finish the quilting soon and get the binding on it.

It's time for me to link up to Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday. There is an incredible variety of ideas and inspiration there to enjoy, which is the reason why Monday has become one of my favorite days of the week!

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 7/28/13

I have been doing pretty well on not buying much fabric lately. Then last week, I discovered that Connecting Threads had their wide backing fabrics on sale. I fell in love with this fabric when I saw it on their website several months ago and decided that I would get some the next time it went on sale. That accounts for my addition of 3 yards to the stash. It will be the perfect backing when I finish my red, white & blue quilt.

On the usage side, I made four log cabin blocks for my Scrappy Sampler quilt, plus added borders to the ends. I also made some extra pink and orange Dancing Stars blocks.

Used this week:    .75 yards
Used year to date:   59.5 yards    

Added this week:     3 yards

Added year to date:   43.5 yards

Net year to date:   16 yards used 

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Julie in GA

Dancing Stars--teal & others 7/27/13

I finished up four more teal/turquoise Dancing Stars this week. I also made one orange and two pink blocks from pieces that had been cut earlier in the year. 

Here is the whole group of 14 teal/turquoise stars for the month.

Before I put away what was left of my teal and turquoise scraps, I cut rectangles and laid them out as Crossroads blocks. I can't remember where I first saw this pattern. There are links to two different tutorials here and here. I really like the way they look and thought it was time to give the pattern a try. I haven't cut anything for the background fabric yet, but I am liking the way these pieces look on my pale grey cutting mat. 

I am linking up to the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2013, where you can see all sorts of wonderful ways that other quilters have been using their teal and turquoise scraps this month. 

Julie in GA

15 Minute Challenge 7/23/13

I have been spending some of my free time working on an extra costume project, which has limited my quilting time. However, I keep trying to get in at least 15 minutes a day, frequently during my lunch break at work. I have discovered that foundation piecing works well there, because I don't have to worry about trying to get a 1/4" seam allowance on a different machine. I need to figure out a new hand sewing project to have around to work on at night during TV, another good time to make progress.

7/16 - 7/22
Tuesday--Scrappy Sampler
Wednesday--costume project, Turning Leaves 
Thursday--Dancing Stars, costume project
Friday--Dancing Stars
Saturday--Dancing Stars, Turning Leaves, costume project
Sunday--Scrappy Sampler
Monday--costume project


Check out the 15 Minute Challenge posts at Life in Pieces to see how others are finding time for their creative pursuits. 


Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 7/22/13 Turning Leaves finished!

For the first time in several weeks, I have a completely finished quilt to show! This is another of my many projects from 10 or more years ago that are finally getting finished. The handstitching of the binding and hanging sleeve were completed over the weekend.

The pattern is called "Turning Leaves." It was originally published by Quiltmaker magazine in the September/October 2002 issue. The pattern is still available here. I eliminated their pieced border, making mine a smaller version. The finished size is 43.5" x 60".

I made the quilt top in 2003 and taught it as a class a couple of times that year. Then it got packed away with all my other quilt tops and UFOs while I was on the road for seven years. I had it quilted last month by my good friend Jan of Cat's Meow Quilting in Brookfield, WI. 

Here is a close-up to give you a better look at Jan's beautiful quilting. All the fabrics in the top are batiks.

I am so happy to have this quilt finished, and we have the perfect spot to display it.

It's time for me to link up to Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday. There is an incredible variety of ideas and inspiration there to enjoy, which is the reason why Monday has become one of my favorite days of the week!

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 7/21/13

I have a deadline coming up soon for a costume project, and that has filled up most of my extra time this past week. However, I did manage to finish up the rest of my teal and turquoise Dancing Stars blocks. I ended up with 14 blocks for the month, using a total of 1.25 yards. 


Used this week:    1.25 yards
Used year to date:  58.75 yards    

Added this week:    0 yards

Added year to date:  40.5 yards

Net year to date:  18.25 yards used 

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.

Julie in GA

Continuing in Teal

The collection of teal Dancing Stars blocks continues to grow. I now have 10 teal/turquoise blocks finished and 4 more partially done. I had hoped to make another little quilt from my many teal and turquoise scraps this month, but it looks like time will run out before that happens.

I am linking up to the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2013, where you can see all sorts of wonderful ways that other quilters have been using their teal and turquoise scraps this month. My thoughts are with Angela, our hostess for this challenge, following the loss of her mother.


Julie in GA