Tessa and her quilt

Couldn't let this week go by without noting that two special someones both had birthdays this past month. Happy Birthday to my two beautiful daughters!  

And while I love them both, this post is more about the furry one of them--and a quilt, of course. 

Our golden retriever, Tessa, has been part of our family for 13+ years. She tolerates us all well, keeps us in line, and manages to do it with style.

Tessa's been having health issues, has lost some hearing and eyesight, but she's still a real sweetie.  She spends most of each day "resting up" for her evening walk with the love of her life, Mr. CatsMeowTwo.   She sleeps either on the cool tile near the front door or by the back patio door where she can see out and pretend to watch squirrels and birds.  Here she is watching her man build a ramp for her so she can get in and out of the patio door more easily.

On brief occasions (if she smells me eating something yummy for lunch or thinks it's her dinner time), she'll come see me and watch me quilt and help me choose a fabric, then will get a drink, but then she usually goes back to nap by one of the doors.  Getting old requires lots of rest!

So one day this April when I went to find her and she wasn't by either door, I was surprised.  I called and called her, but she didn't come (she doesn't always hear my voice--or does somewhat selectively).  I knew she had to be in the house, so began searching all the rooms for obvious spots, calling her, and wondering if she were hurt or sick or well, worse.

After a second time through the house, I was more than a little concerned and beginning to feel that "missing child" panic.  This time searching, instead of looking through the kitchen at the patio door, I walked to the back door and started across my living room, and this is what I saw:

Tessa was sound asleep laying on the quilt I has spread out on the floor so I could decide on a back.   I hadn't been able to see her from the other direction because she was hidden by a desk.

She was happily sleeping away with total abandon, at least until the camera person woke her up.......then she was a bit grumpy.  (Or maybe she was concerned that she'd be in trouble.)  ;)

Tessa NEVER lays on my quilts.  She ordinarily walks carefully around them, although she will walk across one if I leave it out on the floor too long.  Somehow I have to think that she knows that when you don't feel well, nothing makes you feel better than to lay on a quilt--even if it isn't finished!  (and she knows there are few finished quilts at my house)

And so this is my entry to the 2012 Pets on Quilts Show.  You can see all the cute pet photos here.

And, I promise I'll blog soon and catch up about making "Tessa's quilt" and all the other goings on that have been happening here since March--can't believe I haven't posted since then--Yikes!

Sparkle Punch Scrappy Stars?

Remember these?

They were cut in the hopes of reducing my ever growing stash, with the plan to join the Sparkle Punch quiltalong by Oh Fransson!  In starting this, I didn't do any planning and just assumed that the large piece of background fabric I had (actually two pieces) would be plenty, and started stitching away.  This is what I ended up with at the end of cutting:

Then I realized I was short 13 squares--after cutting this up.  (I was making mine a tad bigger than the directions.)  I had trimmed pieces leftover from each strip--not the correct size, but just big enough to "tweak" and make them work if I crossed my fingers while sewing them.  And so the pieces are now this:

(Please forgive the moving quilt--it was breezy, but I had to take the photo in between the rain episodes).  Here's an indoor shot so you can see the fabrics a bit better.  (Any name suggestions would be appreciated.)

and a close up of my favorite blocks:

I've a few other things I've been working on to show you, but this will have to do for now, as I'm off to pick up some new medication for a very special old furry friend of mine who hasn't been herself lately--hope it helps!

And be sure to hop over to Stitched in Color and enjoy all the gorgeous scrap quilts in the Festival of Scrapiness!

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!

2011 was a very "NEW" year!

As I sit trying to figure out what to work on first in 2012 (such freedom!), I realized that I had forgotten to sum up the year.  So here goes (and it's more for me than for you--to help me remember the projects I should be working on), so feel free to stop reading now.

As noted in the previous post, I was able to complete all 12 months of UFO Challenge's (except for one which I shelved to design a new back for).  Six of these UFO's were entirely completed projects (as opposed to just a block), so that feels pretty good.  And four of them were long term UFO's--so nice to have them finally finished!

Entirely Finished in 2011!

In 2010, I had started 5 new projects, and completed only 2 of them (Bordered Diamonds and Yellow Potpourri).  In 2011, I finished 2 more of the 2010 projects (Capriccio and New Wave), leaving only the Roseville unfinished from 2010.  Not too bad...especially considering how much time the Roseville takes.

But in 2011, I started ELEVEN NEW PROJECTS!  Good heavens--what was I thinking!?!!  So much for the UFO Challenge helping me to finish things! 

While I did finish the goals I'd set, I found the limited sew time I had after meeting my goals seemed to "encourage" me to start something new rather than drag out another UFO, and I obviously did just that! 

So here is my collage to help me remember the 2011 and 2010 UFO's I need to continue to work on!  (I'm not making any promises though)

Here's a listing of the photos above (left to right)

 1.  Courthouse Steps - blocks made
 2.  Maple Leaf Rag - pieces cut--barely started
 3.  Capriccio Too - barely started, just some leftover scraps used
 4.  Single Girl - strips cut, colors picked out
 5.  Strippling Vine - top completed, backing purchased, needs quilting
 6.  Portraits in My Garden - completed top, needs quilting
 7.  French General Reine des Abeilles - completed top, needs quilting
 8.  Flower Garden - 9/24 flower blocks completed, 0/4 borders
 9.  King George III - 2/13 blocks completed, 2 cut out
10.  Coming Up Roses - squares cut out and piecing started
11.  Hugs and Kisses - have begun sewing blocks together
12.  Roseville Album (2010) - 10/13 blocks, 1/4 panels, 0/4 borders done

Yikes that's a bunch!  Add to that at least 50 (? maybe more) other UFO's from the thirty odd years I've quilted off and on, and I'm not sure I'll live long enough. 

Then there's the problem of all the tempting projects being shown daily in Blogland.  I know there are several I won't resist this year.  There are way too many groups making BOM's I'd like to participate in.  One project that's sounding really tempting to me (at least today) is the Building Houses From Scraps project here. 

And then there is the stack of new patterns just waiting to be made.  Guess I better get to work--wish me luck!

Happy Stitching!

Farewell to 2011 & Happy 2012!!

2011 was a pretty good year—UFO wise at least.  I was able to finish 12 UFO’s on time, which has got to be a first for me!  (I rarely finish what I start, which is why I have at least a million more UFO’s still to go.) 

MANY thanks to Judy who ran the 2011 UFO Challenge for keeping me motivated!  (Go here to see all the UFO’s everyone else accomplished this month.)

Here’s the UFO completed for December:

And here’s the pieced back….I used up fabric on hand for this--some of it had aged for at least 20 years to get it ready for this magic moment.

I really like how the quilt turned out and the quilting Yvette did on it is wonderful. 

There are things I would change if I did it again, but it is done, and done is good!

Next year—well I confess—I do not plan to participate in the UFO Challenge.  While it definitely made me more productive as far as finishing, I find that sometimes I am just not in the mood to do a particular project when the number is drawn and sometimes (often) I want to have more free time to start something new.  And since I will also have several time constraints coming up this next year, I've decided to skip 2012. 

I’m hoping to take the stick-to-it-ness I learned in 2011 and apply it to projects in 2012.  (Guess we’ll soon find out how that goes!)  There are so many tempting new projects and BOM's springing up all over blogland...

Happy New Year to all of you and Happy Stitching!!

Christmas Show 2011!

It’s time for SewCalGal’s 2011 Christmas Show!  (I'm almost late)

My entry was made from a pattern by Kindred Spirits, called "Let It Snow...Let It Snow."   It’s probably my favorite Christmas/Winter quilt—the colors just make me happy.  It's machine appliquéd and handquilted in red.

The pattern is quite old so I doubt it's still available (I couldn't find it online), but there were a couple on Ebay a few minutes ago if you're interested.    Unfortunately, it’s beginning to show its age as a few of the fabrics are fading with time, especially the black and white stripe.  I'm thinking of adding a pretty ribbon or a bias strip to cover it up--one of these years...just have to figure out the right one!

Be sure to enjoy all the lovely quilts in the show.  And be sure to enjoy the holiday season—and find lots of time to curl up and sew! :)

November's UFO!

November's UFO  was #3, which I finished earlier (instead of doing #11 in September).  Then the plan was to do #11 this month, but I decided to swap it for #12 instead (since they both just need to be bound and #12 is bigger--yaye for easier December!)   So here's my #12, all finished--up close so maybe you can see the lovely quilting Yvette did.

It only took a mere...hmmm...maybe 25 or so years to finish--which never would have happened without the UFO Challenge.  Thanks Judy!

And thanks to my lovely (shy) daughter for showing me she could hold up the whole quilt (relatively well) all by herself! 

Be sure to check out the other November UFO finishes at Judy's Patchwork Times.   Only one more UFO month to go! :)

Scatterbrained October

The Patchwork Times UFO Challenge for October was #5, a Roseville Block that I finished and posted about in early October.  Here it is again for the UFO Challenge followers:

The vase fabric is from a panel of Field Bouquet by Kaffe.  The block reads a bit dark, but I like how it turned out, although it had its moments of stress.  Partway through I managed to cut a hole in it, which led to a few days of depression, then a bit of moving around of the circles.  But it could have been so much worse, and ended up just fine.

With my UFO done so early in the month, you are probably wondering what I did the rest of the month.  Well, so am I--October was a very scatterbrained kind of month!

First, I worked on the King George, and finished this block (totally ignoring the other block already in process).  It probably wasn't the best fabric choices because they blend into each other, but sometimes you just have to try something, and I like that green fabric!

Then we found a new home for the kitty that had adopted us.  I still miss her though.  She would come out to say hello whenever I got the mail in or went outside.  But she'll be much happier--or at least warmer--in her new home.  (I'm afraid she is missing the ability to roam at will, but hopefully when snow comes she'll be happier to be inside.)

Next, I started work on the Roseville house panel--here's a sneak peak of it.  But soon I got distracted, and started the bottom panel too (no photo of that).  Neither are very far along.

And then (here's the confession) I started TWO new projects.  There isn't much to show, and I doubt they are going to move along much until after Christmas, but here's a preview.  The first group is strips for a pattern called Hugs & Kisses, and the second group is just some 2.5 inch squares I started sewing together, a bit of a leader/ender, but once I get started, there is no stopping for awhile, so it's hard to say which is the leader or ender.  Eventually they will likely be used in a quilt called Coming Up Roses, unless I get sidetracked again.  More on these when they're further along...

The UFO Challenge for November is #3 which is another Roseville block (also already finished, because I swapped it for #11 back in September).  Guess I will have to get to work on #11, which is now back from the quilter--before I start another new project! :)  Only two months to go!

Scoreboard for the Month/Year/Total Project:

Roseville Blocks – one finished in October -10/13 blocks, 1/4 panels, 0/4 borders completed

Flower Garden Blocks – none completed in October, 9/24 blocks completed

King George III - 2/12 completed, one in October

UFO Challenges Completed - 10/12, up to date (with the substitution)

Old projects Entirely Completed - 4

New Projects Started – 11, including Hugs & Kisses and Coming up Roses in October

Happy Stitching!

Black Cats visit the Blogger's Quilt Festival!

The quilt I would like to share with you for Blogger’s QuiltFestival is Black Cats. 

Although this isn’t a new quilt (at all), it is my most Halloween-ish quilt, and one I haven’t shown. 

So Happy Halloween from my Black Cats!




The quilt was made from a pattern by Country Threads called Thomas (copyright 1989, so doubtful it is still available). 

 It was a fun pattern to make because of the chance to use so many different fabrics (more fabrics are always more fun!)

The cats are pieced, then appliquéd onto a background which is pieced.

 

  Hard to believe, but I actually did hand quilting on these! (Look at the back legs of the cats)

Be sure to visit the Blogger’s Quilt Festival and enjoy the numerous lovely quilts that are participating!

Happy Stitching and Happy Halloween!

Progress--UFO #5

Finished another Roseville Album block last night.  Hooray!  I've been working on it on and off for awhile, trying to get ahead of the game.  It is UFO #5, and the UFO Challenge for October, so I'm ahead for the month.  My goal is to finish out all my UFO's so December will be a month off to enjoy doing whatever I want.

It's the last block of the center nine, so now there are "only" three panels, three blocks, and the borders to go!  It's a dreary, dark day outside, so the colors don't show up real well, but you can get an idea of what they all look like.   (I would wait, but I want to move the blocks off my design wall.)



Back to work....Happy Stitching!

Spot, Dot and Flo--plus 1

As promised, here are the three Flower Garden blocks I haven't shown you--plus one of their friends who had a circle added to her top to spice it up a bit and was out and about with them at photo time.  They are all on the same background fabric--Kona Snow--but somehow are choosing to look as though they're not.

Spot



Dot

Flo



September's UFO

September was a good month for projects and I accomplished more than usual, so that’s a good thing.  Unfortunately the September UFO wasn’t among the things finished. 

My September UFO Challenge was the two quilt tops shown above which both needed to be finished (bordered, quilted, and bound).  You can read about them here if you want, but the short story is one of the two is at the quilter’s (not due to be finished until October 10^th) and I have decided not to finish the other watermelon one, pending making a new “top” for the back, so I can have a double sided tablecloth.  (Still unfinished, but moved to a “new” UFO category!)

Since I couldn’t finish my #11 this month, I have unilaterally decided to substitute UFO #3 for it—just finished yesterday afternoon:

Next month’s UFO Challenge block is #5, another Roseville Album block—only 1 more center section block to go!  I'll show a photo of all of them all together next month (assuming #5 gets finished!) 

I also finished three Flower Garden blocks, which I'll post as soon as the blocks are ironed and the sun comes out for a photo.

  

Scoreboard for the Month/Year/Total Project:

Roseville Blocks – one in September -9/13 blocks, 1/4 panels, 0/4 borders completed

Flower Garden Blocks – 3 completed in September, 9/24 blocks completed  (photo soon!)

King George III - 1/12 completed, none in September

UFO Challenges Completed - 9/12, up to date (with the substitution)

Old projects Entirely Completed - 4

New Projects Started – 9, including the Portraits in My Garden started in September

                                                                                                               

Happy Stitching!