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! )   ;)

Snowballs...and other May flowers

Our weather has been pretty yucky, but thankfully no snow and no tornadoes, so I'm not complaining (too much) about the rain and wind. Despite cold rainy days, we have some lovely snowballs of the floral variety along the side of our house this year:

I've finished a couple more Flower Garden blocks that I started over the Mother's Day weekend.

And I've been working away on Capriccio, too, and have a bigger stack of blocks now, but I don't think it will be completed by the end of May.

In fact, I'm thinking it needs to be a much bigger quilt than originally planned. If my memory is correct, the pattern calls for 30 blocks (5 x 6), but I am aiming at double that or larger (8 x 9), so this may remain a UFO for awhile....anyway, back to stitching!

Moving in the right direction........

After a rainy weekend at home to visit my mom for Mother's Day, I'm back stitching away.  And, the Roseville Album block I mentioned in my last post is finished!

That makes seven of the center blocks done, with another in process.  Here are six of the finished ones along with the single panel I finished first.  (the seventh block didn't make it into the photo)  Still a long way to go, but at least it is still an active project and not a UFO (yet).

I actually have one more block started, but with the work needed for May's UFO, not much will happen on the Roseville until June or later. (How can it be that June is the next month--we haven't had spring yet?  Today is the first sunny day in so long--rain, wind and cold has been our spring so far.)

May's UFO is Capriccio, a colorful pattern by Pie in the Sky Quilts, that I am making in "happy" colors pretty similar to the pattern model.  It involves sewing pieces together, then cutting them up, and sewing them back together.  At the beginning of May, it wasn't very far along.  In fact, it looked mostly like these strips, with a stack of these triangles:

But now there are a few of these squares,  

and a (very) few of these blocks

 
And, I am finding out that I wasn't very accurate in cutting/stitching, so the quilt police are going to have lots of violations if they choose to look. I am just matching seams where I can, and letting those problem pieces do what they must. Since some of the strips are scraps, cut over many years and left over from odd projects, it doesn't surprise me that they vary a bit in size.  Maybe that's why this was a UFO for awhile...Guess I better get busy or it will stay a UFO!
Happy Stitching!

April's UFO

April's UFO, #4, was another Roseville Album block.  And work on  it went well--until I got to the flowerpot/basket.   First I struggled to choose the right fabrics, finally deciding these were the fabrics I would use. 

The next obstacle was the reverse applique.  I am not the most experienced appliquer.  Before attempting the Roseville, I had only made two small wallhangings and a few VERY simple blocks in applique.   I just didn't enjoy it.  Then I saw the Roseville, and, well, sometimes I bite off more than I can do.  The Roseville has definitely been a challenge.   And the reverse applique here totally frustrated me.   The itty bitty tight points just would not cooperate. 

There were several issues.  The first being that my thread did not match perfectly.  Though I've shopped repeatedly for the right color, what I can find is either too light or too blue.  Next problem is my personality.  I cannot believe that a few stitches will ever hold just a few threads securely.  I just fundamentally believe that unless I nip a bit more fabric here and there, the points will wash out after one or two washes.  (I always envision a future woman washing this quilt, having it fall apart, and then using it as a dog blanket.)  I am sure the more experienced among you handle this just fine, but I don't handle it well.  

So after finishing about 1/3 of the basket, I wasn't happy.  I decided to cut new replacement pieces of the same fabrics, to buy some darker (though blue) thread, and try it again.  Practice makes perfect doesn't it?

After cutting the fabrics out a second time, though, I began thinking they were too dark.  Which led to more digging in my sewing room. 

Where I found an old favorite of mine. This is a piece of fabric I bought while vacationing in California, in May 1988 to be exact. (I can remember the date because of the ages my children were when we visited Disneyland, and that we scheduled the trip so that my daughter was able to fly free since she wasn't yet three.)

I loved the fabric from the moment I saw it and it was quite expensive (like $8 or 10 a yard! Imagine that!).  It was at some exclusive Malibu quilt shop I had demanded to stop at after seeing the word quilt as we were whizzing by.  (A risky prospect with tired two and five year olds, and my husband and our friend who was crazy enough to travel with us.)

I've saved this fabric for all these years wanting to use it for something "special" and had been hoping I could integrate a bit of it into my Roseville.  While it isn't the perfect fabric for the basket, because the stripes aren't straight and have a slight wave to them, I think I'd rather live with a waver to my basket instead of mangled reverse applique!  So here's my finished block:

I may decide to add a larger circle in the middle of the basket to distract a bit from the fact that the design waves up a bit in the center, but I'm going to wait to see how it looks when I finish the block next to this one so I can have a better idea of what color to make the circle. 

For now it's finished, and I'm looking forward to May's UFO Challenge, which is number 9--Capriccio.  Hope I can find all the half done pieces I've cut for it and remember what I've done so far! 

I've also been trying to work ahead on my Roseville blocks, so will have another one to show you soon--I hope....

Scorecard for 2011:
4 UFO's Completed, 3 Flower Garden blocks completed, and NO new projects (that's got to be a first!)

Happy Stitching!