Catching up--a little!

Wow, it's been a long time since I posted!

My darling little baby (and terror) has grown into a big darling, who loves to pull up and eat my hostas and tulips if I dare turn my back.  She also eats every scrap of fabric (and some cut pieces), threads, batting, Kleenexes and one pin, stolen from my table, has been found in her mouth. So not much sewing has been done.  This is her typical pose.  She also sleeps in this ladylike position.

Despite my puppy challenge, I have managed to start a couple of projects.   First, I began a couple of baby quilts, for much wanted babies 2B, only to be told that the parents did not want any quilts.  "Other people are making us quilts."   And yes, the father is MY son.  How did this happen?  I still wonder how I failed him.

I'm sure you all can imagine how I felt about not making a quilt for my FIRST grandbabies--twin girls due this summer.  Severe depression and many tears does not begin to describe it.  To compensate for the depression, I felt it was appropriate to start something new.  Several somethings new, actually.  But this is one I can share. 

 It is from the 1718 Coverlet book by Susan Briscoe.  There is a group on Facebook which is doing it as a quiltalong.  It is a closed group, so you have to join to look at the many quilts--and they are in a wide variety of fabrics. 

I am doing my way as a "quilt-very-far-behind".  It has a lot of applique and I am painfully slow and now have a hurt thumb, so this may become another UFO.  I am using Chicopee, by Denyse Schmidt, and 25+ year old fabric that coordinates nicely with it.  A perfect reason to buy fabric all the time--colors come and go, and a girl must have a stash to meet those needs.

I also finished two more blocks from Just Takes Two.  At this rate, it might be another two decades before I am finished.

I also managed to sew some baby outfits.  Not wonderful, but they are done.  The shower is tomorrow.  I just have to wrap them.  I have lost part of the present that needs to go in the package., so have been hoping it will turn up.  Guess I need to clean house.

 

Unfortunately, AFTER I bought the fabric and started sewing, I learned that the mom2B doesn't like baby pink.  Sigh.  It's been one of those times.  I went with something conservative, instead of Kaffe types in an effort not to be too quilty.  The moral is:  Just be yourself and use the fabric that inspires you.  Let the chips fall where they may.

 

 

 

The photo is confusing, but they are reversible.  The one on the left is the front of the pants, the one on the right is the back of the reverse.  The pants are Quick Change Trousers from a book by Anna Marie Horner,  Handmade Beginnings: 24 Sewing Projects to Welcome Baby.    The pants stitched together easily (although with two of them, seems like forever,compared to one)  The hats are from another book I borrowed from my library, and since they did not go together well, I won't recommend it. 

 

And, for those of you with excellent memories, I did finally manage to finish piecing my pink and green pyramids.  (It will need to rest a bit before I can figure out a back for it--I have to get the pink and green triangles out of my brain).  I'd show you a photo, but I folded it up and tucked it away as soon as I was done.  Maybe I can stand to look at it again in a couple of months.

 

 My design wall is now covered with the 1718 pieces and a bunch of threads.  It's a wonderful change!  I'm also contemplating doing an I Spy economy block quilt for the twins for when they are bigger, but I'm not sure I'm up to two of them. Happy Quilting! 

When it rains...

When it snows, it's only right to make snowmen.  What do you sew when it is grey and drab and rains (pours) all the time?  Well plaid blocks, of course.

I've spent much of the last week making a few more blocks from the Just Takes Two BOM from a year or two ago.  My method is to look through the remaining undone blocks and pick the easiest ones--which isn't a good method as they get harder and harder.  I still have quite a few more to go. 

I'm also trying to use up pre-cut squares I have left from earlier plaid projects.  Definitely forces the blocks to be a bit mixed up, which I like, and blends well with my lack of precision when putting the blocks together, as a couple didn't end up being the right size. 

 

I think there may have been a correction done after I printed out the instructions that I didn't pay attention to (and I apparently can't read), so I've created slightly new blocks.  I figure they will fit together (or not) when I get them all done, and if not, I'll just use a few fill strips or blocks. 

 

 

The basket block is one example--I just sized it up to the next size and will trim off the extra when the time comes.  And the block to its lower right is another example.  They were supposed to be 3 of the little blocks, but since each ended up exactly 1/2 inch too small, I made a 4th and stitched them all together. I may eventually just create a few more blocks of my own.   And note to self:  Measure, READ, and check the math before you cut and sew them.  Duh.  

 

After a week of plaid, though, I'm ready to move on to some sunshine (yes, I'm trying to be hopeful).  And, no, I still haven't done anything about those bothersome pyramids...  Maybe it's their turn this week?  Doubtful.  I've something new I'd like to start.  ;)   

  Hope you are staying warm--Happy Stitching & Happy President's Day!

WIP Wednesday--Just Takes Two

A few more Just Takes Two blocks.......but many, many more to go before I'm caught up. 

Maybe my goal should just be to keep up with the new ones! 

Just Takes Two...

Two hours, two days...maybe two weeks or two months--hopefully not two years :)

Lately I've been working away trying to catch up on Just Takes Two.  I thought I'd done pretty well keeping up with the first group, so I was surprised that even after sewing for several days, I still have roughly 20 more blocks to go.  I guess since I used more than two fabrics for my Just Takes Two, it's only fair that it seems to be taking two=too long.

I had planned to use only my plaid scraps, but often the size just doesn't work. And yes, cutting different fabrics, and hauling them out and putting them away after cutting for one block is more time consuming and makes a lovely mess, which I had to clean it up last night--to find one of our phones.  So these will be the only new Just Takes Two blocks for awhile.

I figure if I work on the rest of them as they come out, plus add 3 more each time, I may be able to catch up.  I decided not to begin stitching the sections together since mine are so varied, that I'm afraid it would end up all unbalanced in color.  So they'll remain as blocks until most (or all) are made.  Also debating just how badly I want to hand applique the remaining blocks--I'm thinking machine applique may be the way to go.  (I'm sure this indecisiveness is what's holding me back on those 20 undone blocks, don't you think?)

In other news, I was lucky enough to win something in a giveaway that I didn't know I'd entered!  Doubly exciting!  I won a Spirit of the Bear Snap Sack kit, with yummy batik fabrics in gorgeous colors from Kelly who blogs at I Have a Notion.  Kelly also sells lots of quilting goodies at IHAN, so it's a good place to check out if you are needing something.  (I was going to steal a photo of my winning kit from Kelly's blog, but since it's protected, and I'm really too lazy to ask or to find my camera, you'll just have to wait until I stitch it up to see it!)

Now I'm off to figure out what to work on in my relatively clean sewing room.  Only one more missing phone to find--surely that is lost in the garage--thank goodness for old fashioned corded phones that can't wander off!  Happy Stitching!

Blah January

Blah.  Just blah. 

January has been nice (too nice) weather wise, so I've no real excuse for feeling so blah.  I think maybe I just have too many things going on, with nothing ending up like I envisioned.  And January has never been my favorite month.  I have been busy stitching, but am having a hard time getting motivated to post about it. Please bear with me. :)

January started with the temptation of Building Houses from Scraps, so I made a few of these:

They are making one a day, and I quickly decided that one a day isn't going to be feasible for me (since I have no discipline and skip from project to project).  Further complicating these is that when I printed out the foundation block to stitch, I didn't realize that it printed at a reduced size.  So they are an oddball measurement. While there may be a few more houses--they are definitely going to be a smaller wall quilt--someday.

Then I spent several days on the road, visiting Phoenix and then my parents, while I worked on this block from King George III:

Our springlike weather helped me finish these Flower Garden blocks which are all tilting to the left (which given the way my neck feels today, I am doing too!)

Then Just Takes Two offered more temptation.  I couldn't decide on just two fabric colors--I don't think I've ever made a non-scrap quilt, and definitely not a two fabric only quilt.  Since I need to use some of the fabric I already had on hand, after much digging around, I decided to do the blocks with scraps and pieces I have from Roberta Horton plaids(1990's) .  I already have a couple ancient UFOs from the fabrics in process, so hopefully I won't end up using up something I'll need for them, but since I couldn't find the UFOs, who knows. Here are some of the blocks that were finished when the photos were taken:

I managed to do all of the January blocks in January (hooray!) and have finished the first group of February ones too, although again I had the printer at less than 100% size and now have a 12" instead of 12.5" block. Not sure that I am going to redo it or just add a strip somewhere.  (Hopefully this lesson is learned now--as long as my memory works.)   I'm using more than two fabrics in some blocks--when using what's left, you use the pieces you have in the right size.

Sometime in January I also felt the need to do some mindless cutting and piecing, and when I ran into the Sparkle Punch quilt along at the Oh, Fransson! blog, yet another new project began.  Since I had leftover strips in many of these colors, cutting was easy (and I didn't feel quite so decadent in starting another new project--I am just using up the stash after all).

I finished all the cutting and the initial stitching of star points, but am at the point where they need to be laid out on the design wall.  Unfortunately my design wall is already occupied by a few layers:

Yes, that's Hugs & Kisses somewhere under there--a project I am tired of, and so obviously avoiding.  And yes, if you are counting, THREE new projects added in January.  (and I've already started another in February!)  Guess that explains the blah feeling!

Blah, Blah and Triple Blah--Happy Stitching!