So far in September...

In honor of 9/11 (or maybe just for fun) this patriotic balloon passed over our house on September 11, giving us all a treat—except for Tessa (our golden) who felt the need to protect us and bravely chased it off.

Then it was back to work (play).  This month’s UFO Challenge is #11, which for me is two quilts that both need to be quilted.  (What was I thinking--two??!)

One of them, the New Wave, is at the quilter's now.  This is a photo of the top when I first finished it a year or so ago.  I  pieced a back for it, and even though it was on my living room floor for several days, I apparently didn’t photograph it—guess you’ll have to wait along with me until the quilting is finished—likely not until sometime in October.  So it's as finished as can be for now!

The other UFO quilt is a Watermelon top, which is now all ready to be quilted—the borders are on and the back is pieced.  But when I thought about getting it quilted, I had second thoughts.  I’m not sure I want the expense—at least not now (the king size teal quilt and my daughter’s quilt were big and expensive, and I’ve two more currently being quilted.)  I would likely only use it for a summer tablecloth--it does fit perfectly on my picnic table.   Hmmmmm...

Wouldn’t it make more sense to have a two sided tablecloth?  I’d like to come up with a good idea for the back.  Maybe something summery—flowers?  Fireworks?  Fall leaves?  The backing is a tiny green check.  I would love suggestions. 

And what about the quilting?  How do I make it look ok on both sides?  Would I need to hand appliqué something on after the front is quilted?  Or would an all over design quilted right across appliqued flowers or leaves look awful?  Any and all suggestions are welcome!

So with the borders on the Watermelon top, and summer when I’d use the tablecloth coming to an end, I’m considering it done—for now.  Sometimes just making a decision about a project’s next step is enough progress.  While it is still a UFO, it’s a totally different UFO! J

I’ve also started working on the Roseville Album again.  Picking out little bits to appliqué always makes a horrible mess of my sewing room.  One day while I was sitting on the floor (my only clear area), folding up the many Kaffe fabrics I’d auditioned for the latest Roseville block, I came across this pattern.

Forgetful me.  Back in July, Kelly at I Have a Notion had a giveaway, and I was lucky enough to win this lovely pattern designed by Amanda Murphy called Portraits of My Garden.  I'd kept the pattern out—so that I would remember to blog about it, but of course, it got buried in the mess of Kaffe fabrics spread all over the sewing room.  So many THANKS Kelly--sorry to be so slow--I am thrilled to have won it!  (Kelly has several other patterns by Amanda Murphy available in her shop--check them out here.)

And since I was sitting on the floor, and since either getting up or continuing to clean would take effort, I read the pattern instead.  It looked like it would be quick.  I’ve been trying to resist buying new fabrics—except where absolutely necessary (which is pretty often).  So I started trying to remember any fabrics I had that would be big enough for the background piece (I think 2.75 yards if I remember).

Not sure why, but I remembered a piece of fabric I had bought during one of my pregnancies—at least 25 years ago.  I had planned to make a Laura Ashley sort of jumper  (very  IN at the time), and it took quite a bunch of fabric—enough to cover my growing baby bump.

Although I was a bit concerned that the flowers wouldn’t look very good cut up and resewn as in the pattern, the piece was large enough (and then some--that baby bump is now 6'6" tall, and it wasn't little then).  I started digging out any and all fabrics that would possibly coordinate.  This became my own personal stash challenge—no new fabrics.  And in no time, the center portion was done.  (It goes together really quickly.)

Figuring out the borders wasn’t quite so easy.  I confess I hate piecing borders.  I generally like to buy the full length and figure I will use any extra fabric on something else just to avoid having a seam.   So this was a struggle.  Anything I had that was long enough likely was purchased with something else in mind, and rather than use up something that belongs to another UFO, I forged ahead and pieced some borders.  The narrow pink I had plenty of, but the green floral was a remnant I bought on sale to make a pillow or something (??) and was just barely enough.
 

I followed the pattern as written, but after finishing, didn’t like the green borders.  I decided they were too busy and/or wide, or maybe too narrow for such a big print, so I cut them down and added some more of the background fabric to kind of calm it all down.  Actually, I added ALL of the background fabric that was left—which makes determining how wide the borders will be pretty easy.  Here's a close up view:

And here's the finished top, being double checked by my assistant, who is not my cat.  NOT.  Just the neighbor's cat who has decided she would rather live in my yard than at home, and the neighbor doesn't seem to care (or feed her, given her hunger level).  So I guess I have a new outdoor only assistant (I am really allergic).  She's a nice cat though, and wants to learn to quilt, if anyone would like a kitty....

And, I am still working from time to time on the hexies.  More on them to come soon!

Happy Stitching!

Conquering Fears...

My UFO #7 in the Patchwork Times UFO Challenge is finished!  Finally!  I started this quilt about 1992 as a gift for my mom--so hmmmm almost twenty years ago--aren't you impressed with my speed of completion?

When I first started it, the pieces in each block were made of the same two fabrics, with a different two fabrics for each block, but when I put the blocks together, it looked too choppy, so I picked it all apart and stitched it back together with the fabrics mixed.  (insanity!)  Then I decided I wanted the outside triangles on the edge to both be dark to make a bit of definition. So I picked it apart again, and replaced the white with teal.

When the top was complete, I showed my mom. She is a non-sewer, non-quilter, and grew up in the age where poor people had quilts on their beds and rich people had bedspreads. (She was excited when she could afford a real bedspread.) 

Her response to the top was, "Why would I want that?!"




Yes, I was crushed.  But I spread the quilt top out on a queen size bed of mine, looked at it, and decided it would be better as king size anyway, given the block scale, and for balance.  So I took it apart, and added a row.  Of course I sewed the new row into the wrong place and had to pick it out again before it was put in correctly.

And, that is why a quilt takes twenty years to finish--lack of preplanning!  I worry a bit that the fabric will fall apart the first time it's washed--it's been picked apart that much.   Here's a closer view of the lovely quilting Yvette did, and the fabric on the back.

I wanted to hang it and take a long full photo, but it is just too big for me to handle--and yes, that is a whole lot of binding!  And that's all I've accomplished this past month--at least that I finished.  But I have an admission to make.  I've started something new--and not just one new project, but TWO! 

I've always been drawn to the circle type quilts I see on so many blogs, so I purchased a pattern called King George III Quilt, available here.  It wasn't exactly what I had been looking for, but it was close enough and I didn't think I would ever draft circular patterns on my own.  (I later figured out that the pattern I had been looking for is apparently a BOM from Amitie--oh well.  There's also another lovely circle pattern called Camelot by Trish Harper if you, too, want circles.) 

The King George pattern had languished in my sewing room due to my fear of hand piecing.  I've tried hand piecing a bit in the past and found it difficult and tediously slow.  But now for some reason, it doesn't seem so slow (perhaps it is at my pace now).  Here's my first (and only) completed block.

It went together relatively well (although I was short on the green fabric so couldn't make all the pieces match completely--as my daughter points out.)  And I guess the block isn't really done since it is still a circle and not yet put into a square, but since I'm not sure what I'm going to use as the background, this is done for now.

My second new project was with hexagons--another project I had postponed due to fear.  It is from a wonderful French General kit, Reine des Abeilles, I won earlier this year from Thelma at Cupcakes N' Daisies. I had decided I would work on it this fall, so I cut out the pieces this month (to be ready, of course).

But then I couldn't wait, so I started piecing them together.  Here's part of the first panel (on top of the other projects on my design wall).                       

Turns out that circles, hand piecing, and hexies aren't that scary after all!

Scoreboard for the Month/Year/Total Project:

Roseville Blocks -  8/13 blocks, 1/4 panels, 0/4 borders completed, none in August

Flower Garden Blocks - 6/24 completed, none in August

King George III - 1/12 completed, one in August

UFO Challenges Completed - 8/12, one in August  (up to date)

Old projects Entirely Completed - 4, including the Teal Quilt in August

New Projects Started - 8, including French General hexies and King George III in August (this explains a lot about my growing number of UFO's)

UFO's to Finish - More than I can list on two pages!  So sad...and truly SCARY!

Happy Stitching! 

July's UFO (and May's too!)

The number drawn for July’s Patchwork Times UFO Challenge was #2.  Since I’ve been working ahead, my #2 was done back in May—click here to see that post, but for a reminder, here’s a photo of finished #2, which is one of Kim McLean's Roseville Album blocks.

 So what did I do in July? 

Well remember this package?  It was a birthday gift for my dd, and inside the package was this pillow, which was just a teaser for the rest of her birthday present. 

















Which was this:

If it looks familiar, it is my May UFO, Capriccio—ALL FINISHED--but kept under wraps.  Since my daughter opened it last night, I can finally show it to you.

I tried to use bright, happy colors and fabrics that I thought she would enjoy, although I have to admit that it is sadly lacking in dog prints.  I guess I just don’t buy many dog fabrics—cats are a different story thanks to Laurel Burch designs. 

Since the top ended up reading a bit more yellow/green than I planned, the backing fabric I’d purchased didn’t really seem to match the front of the quilt.  But neither did anything else I tried—even yellow or green, and I couldn’t find anything else that I thought would work better.  After mulling it over, I decided to go ahead and use what I'd bought since the red print would give her an entirely different look if she wanted to “redecorate” just by flipping it over.

I’m glad the red stayed as it adds to the cheerfulness, and I think it looks great with the quilting Yvette did in yellow.  The red backing is from the line, Lift Your Spirits by Wendy Bentley for Timeless Treasures.  The pillow center panel and the label on the quilt back are both from that same line too.

Gotta admit, though, my favorite part is the black and white squiggly binding!  I love it and have to remember to buy more! (I think it's by Blank Textiles--called coffee something or opposites attract.) 

But this has been done for a couple weeks now.  So what did I do the rest of July? 

Pretty much nothing!  I have prepped some more Flower Garden blocks, but have barely put in any stitches.  I’ve been itching to start something new (hexagons keep calling my name), and been doing some retail therapy and a little mental planning of a new project, but looking at the calendar (and knowing tomorrow will bring a new UFO Challenge number) is holding me back. 

Maybe I’ll go clean on my sewing room so I’m ready for a new UFO….or work on some quilt binding, or maybe I’ll just take a nap and rest up…..there must be a reason they call these the lazy days of summer.

Happy Stitching!

Two More Flowers...

I finished and ironed a couple more flowers from Kim McLean's Flower Garden pattern.  The background is the same as on the earlier ones, but for some reason looks more tan--perhaps because I'm having to use a different camera/flash now.  The fabric is actually Kona Snow. 

So that makes 8 of 24 finished!  One third of the way (unless you remember those huge borders, but let's not think about that now.)  I tried to make these flowers darker and with less pink because too many of the others are pinkish, but these both ended up partially pink anyway.  Guess I like pink!

 

I have another couple of flowers in process, but after those, I'm guessing I'll go back to work on the Roseville for awhile--or at least until next month when a new UFO number is drawn. (Unless something new calls my name, but I'm trying to be strong--for now!)  Happy Stitching!

So far in July--and today's a very important day!

The UFO challenge number drawn for July was #2, but since my #2 was already finished in May, I decided to work a bit on  #12--Sunshine and Shadows.   It’s pastel and seemed appropriate for a hot summer day.  I originally started it sometime in the 80’s with the grand plan that it would hang on one of the large empty walls in my (then) new house.  It was the third quilt I’d started.  (The second quilt I started is also still a UFO, and my first one fell apart on its first washing, but that’s another story.) 

A couple of babies got in the way and this wasn’t finished.   Which seems to be my pattern—I just don’t finish things, although I do move them forward periodically.  It’s a talent to get things close to finished, but not across the finish line isn’t it?

I do have doubts about whether this should even be finished.   I used whatever fabric I found in the stores back then, not knowing what I was doing, and some is very lightweight.  When I learned a bit more about quilting, I went back and made more blocks, trying to match the feel and colors of it, and replacing the crummiest fabrics, but I didn’t replace everything.  And then, there is the issue of accuracy.  When I started this, it was before the days of rotary cutters (at least in my world), and so these were made with templates, and these templates don’t look real accurate to me--several have even been distorted by an iron--whoops!

At some point in the past 25+ years, realizing that the blocks varied significantly in size, I squared them up rather harshly, and stitched some of them together.  Needless to say, there’s a bit of variety in the size of the strips, which really is OK--perhaps even better since it disguises how poorly these were sewn, but they are definitely not as originally intended.   (The small corner triangles were supposed to be the same size and the strips were the same width, in theory at least!)  But the blocks are the same size--now!

At least half the blocks originally made for this have been set to the side—and will be tossed—their quality just doesn’t justify any more time being spent on them.  The ones remaining that I’d actually stitched together aren’t that much better—I’m guessing they were made of the more substantial strips, or maybe I liked their colors better, or maybe I just had enough to make the size I’d decided on (who knows).  I’d also cut a bunch of squares and started making half square triangles for the border.

So, this week, I stitched the borders together, and attached them.

Then I started to cut cream borders to go outside them, but found I was short--about 8 inches, unless I wanted to piece them.   I'd apparently pilfered a bit sometime in the past 25 years.

So then I "decided" that the quilt borders needed a bit of pizazz, and started playing around with the corners like so...

And, now this top is finished, the backing has been pieced and it's all been ironed and packed up to be taken for quilting--and I forgot to take a photo!  Guess you'll have to see the finished quilt whenever UFO #12 is drawn! 

And most importantly, today is my beautiful dd's birthday!

Happy Happy Birthday honey!  Wish we could be together today, but since not, we'll celebrate as soon as you're home!  Love you!

PS.  Tessa says Happy B-day too!

June UFO Challenge

My UFO Challenge project for June was a set of three patchwork pillows I'd started back in 2005.  (Yikes!)

They'd been intended to liven up my daughter's couch at college, but she's since graduated, and is now in graduate school.  Since her couch stayed home to keep us company while she's away, the pillows haven't been needed--or finished.

At the start of June, the pillows were just three “mini quilts” made from leftover plaid fabric squares (mainly Roberta Horton plaids). One of these had been layered with batting and muslin, and I had begun quilting it, but that’s where the work had stopped.

June’s UFO Challenge has changed that. I quilted a different grid on each of the "mini quilt" pillow tops (straight, diagonal, and off-centered) , added an invisible zipper on one side of each, and stitched the remaining seams closed.

These are two close ups of the invisible zippers and quilting (which will definitely not win any awards).  I like the clean finish an invisible zipper gives to a pillow, and they aren't difficult to put in.



 The backs of the pillows are batiks chosen by my daughter so she could choose to have a more contemporary look.

And now, a mere six years later, they are three completed pillows.

Well almost....I'm one 18" pillow form short, but I'm not buying one until the pillows can go to a home of their own.  So please pretend not to notice that one of the pillows is a bit overstuffed and lumpy. After all, we all have personal challenges....and I think that pillow reminds me of someone I know all too well.

                  Happy Stitching (and Happy 4th of July)!

Long June Days

June's been flying by and I’ve been stitching like a crazed woman--and actually getting a few things done (for a change).  It must be the long June days.   First off, I finished stitching the Capriccio blocks from last month together.  Now they’re a completed top, but I didn't take a photo to show.  :(  (I’ll take one soon—maybe next month.)

Then, since I couldn’t seem to remember to have my husband move some heavy boxes so I could find my June’s UFO, and since my living room floor was empty after finishing up Capriccio, I started working again on this project from back in March.  Do you remember these blocks?

They were for a quilt based on the Stripping Vine quilt made by Kathy Doughty shown in the book, Material Obsession.

I made the star blocks in March, but then got sidetracked by other projects. This month, I decided it wouldn’t take that much longer to move them along into a top.

So the blocks were stitched together in columns (there are 3 columns here--not connected, just next to each other on the design wall.)

Turquoise strips of dogwoods were added in between the orange columns.

Then a black and white stripe was added to the top and bottom.  And I finished it all off with a floral border that just seemed to belong. I love the fabric--Pom Pom Dahlias by Philip Jacobs.  The extra borders are not part of the original pattern design. 

And now it’s a completed top! Hooray! This isn’t a very good photo, but it’s the best I can get of it for now. It’s a bit of an odd color/fabric combination, but it makes me happy, so I don’t care. Since the colors are similar to what I’m using for the Single Girl quilt, I’ve decided to postpone a decision on the back until I’ve finished cutting for that so I can see which fabrics are left before I decide if I want to piece the back for it. 

And then, the floor was empty again and since my living room was already a fabric disaster area, I decided that I could finish the borders on one of my UFO's (#7 Teal Quilt).  Here's the finished top--it’s now waiting to be quilted.  It's a king size, so I'll be stitching on binding for a L O N G  time before it's finished, but at least it's moving in the right direction.

June's been a good month—at least for stitching.  Not so good for my mother-in-law, though, who took a fall and ended up in the hospital with a fracture this past week.  She is now on the mend, and starting to walk again with help. It will be a slow recovery I'm afraid.  Although  the hospital's been a good place to stitch a little Flower Garden applique, I'm guessing July is going to be too busy for much stitching.

And, good news--my sister and her husband are back at work--still coughing and tiring way too easily, but they seem to be finally winning the Whooping Cough battle!  And lucky ducks--they get to spend the weekend with my lovely daughter!

And lest you wonder, I’ve even been working on my June UFO.  Really I have and it's almost done!  Photo of it soon... 
                                               Happy Stitching!  And HAPPY ANNIVERSARY Nate & Kim!

May UFO, a different kind of a finish...

The UFO Challenge for May was #9, which for me was Capriccio--a pattern from Pie in the Sky.  Although I worked awfully hard on it, it isn't a finished top yet.

I've only managed to piece the blocks.  In part because I'm making it larger than the original pattern which has 30 blocks--I'm shooting for making it 8x8.  I've finished 67 blocks, so twice the original number that I'd planned on making with some extras to help with arranging.

When I first starting writing this post, I was feeling really glum, since I hadn't "finished" my UFO despite working on it all the time.  But when I looked at my original UFO Challenge posting to find out what UFO #8 for June was, I reread my UFO #9 goals for Capriccio:

"9. Capriccio - Most of the pieces are cut, and some piecing has been done. Realistically I'd like to sew the next step (the triangle blocks together into the squares). In my dreams, I'd like to make the blocks themselves--maybe even sew it all together, but let's not get carried away!"

I guess I gotten "carried away" with my hopes for the month. Based on my original plan, I actually met my goal, and so I'm counting it a finish, even though it's not the one I'd hoped for!  And, I've begun laying out the blocks on my "design wall".  This isn't a glamour photo, but it shows the progress (and the help I've had from a golden retriever that likes to walk across it.)

The UFO chosen for June is #8, three unfinished pillow covers.  Here's the original photo AND (so I can remember!), my original goal:

"8. Patchwork pillows - These need to be pieced, quilted and stitched together. They were started several years ago for my daughter's apartment, and though I may keep them now, the pillow forms are taking up valuable space and need to make themselves useful!"

Now I just need to find the pieces and their bulky pillow forms--who knows where they ended up when I cleaned the sewing room--December was a long time ago!

Scorecard for 2011:

6 UFO's Completed*, 5 Flower Garden blocks completed, and NO new projects started (two months in a row!!! that's definitely a first!)

*Six UFO's because I finished #2 ahead of schedule--I'm looking forward to a month off someday!

Happy Stitching!

Whoop...Whoop...Whoop?



I added this just for visual interest--it's a wallhanging from years ago!


Whoop whoop.....Whooping Cough...Pertussis....when was the last time you had a shot?  I know this sounds like a public service announcement, but if you are like me, it was back in grade school.  And if you are like me, you believe it is only important for little kids to have the shots as they are the most at risk.  And that is partially true--it IS a deadly serious disease for babies.

But, what no one tells you is what it is like to have whooping cough as an adult.  

My sister (significantly over 40, if not a higher number) now has lab confirmed Whooping Cough.  She went to her doctor for what she thought was bronchitis, but the antibiotic he prescribed was not effective for Whooping Cough, so she got sicker and sicker, developed pleurisy and then pneumonia.  She had asked him for a whooping cough test, but he scoffed and said she didn't have it--that they rarely see it--that she likely had a virus.  After three weeks off work, in awful pain like that of a broken rib from the pleurisy, she finally demanded that labs be run. 

My sister in happier days (and old unsafe crib)

And it is now confirmed to be Whooping Cough.  It is too late for the antibiotics to help her, although they will help minimize further spread (beyond the drug store, grocery store, hospital, work office and doctor's office that she has already coughed her way about).  She (and now her husband who also caught it) have made several trips to the emergency room for trouble breathing and the bills will be BIG.  Plus lost work hours.....and they are still both very sick.

So what no one tells you is that Whooping Cough for an adult means you can't sleep much because of constant coughing, you can't breathe easily,  you feel terrible, you have expensive medical costs, and you shouldn't/can't go to work (or anywhere).  AND it lasts for FOUR TO SIX WEEKS!!!   FOUR TO SIX WEEKS of being really sick is a long, long time!

According to the local health dept. epidemiologist (who I just spent 30 minutes talking with), a Pertussis shot for adults became available about five years ago.  If you last had shots as a child and are now an adult, you need this shot--any resistance from your childhood shots is likely gone.  Also be aware that the shots (even the full set of children's shots) do not work in about 15% of the population. 

You could help avoid passing it to someone for whom the shot didn't work by getting a shot of your own.  Your lovely babies or grand babies, despite being fully immunized, may still be at risk, and you could expose them unnecessarily.  Even if you've already had Whooping Cough, you need the shot because you can get it again--and again.  Also, people over 64 are not given the shot, so they depend upon you not to spread it to them.

So, if you have people you care about, or if you just want to be responsible, or even if you just have better things to do with 4-6 weeks of your time, I strongly recommend you get the shot.   Whooping Cough doesn't look at all fun to have, and just think of all the quilting time you would miss!

(I got my shot this morning.  In case mine doesn't work, please get yours soon too! )   ;)