Finish Goals for 4th Quarter in 2016

Whew, I spent the day cleaning up the sewing room going through every drawer, and cabinet, and shelf, taking inventory and rearranging priorities. This might be a long list...Christmas is a great motivator!

Another great motivator is the Finish-A-Long 2016. It is a place to find motivation and encouragement to complete unfinished projects. This quarter I have listed the following with the hopes and determination to complete some finishes. 




1. Christmas Celebration Tree Skirt
This has been listed on my last two goal entries. I must really make this happen for Christmas this year. This project made me fall in love with paper-piecing. It can be time-consuming, but it is so accurate and there is a certain rhythm in the steps that makes it fun. I just need to sit down and "do it"!






2.  Medallion Quilt

The progress on this one is so slow. I have only two more Lemoyne Stars to piece together and I can begin to add this row. (see previous posts) This is not a top priority  but I listed it anyway with hopes of getting one more row attached. Even though this will not qualify a finish at the FAL 2016, I will be happy with the steady progress.

3. Christmas Simply Wovens

I started this project when this free pattern was featured at Moda Bake Shop. You can get your copy of the free pattern here. All cutting has been done with a few sample blocks completed. A few hours of marathon sewing should get this one done.



4.  Buggy Barn Baskets
 
Another incomplete project I picked up somewhere. Six blocks are already completed and a few more will make a large throw size. I love Buggy Barn Patterns and the fabrics are a Christmas collection from Kansas Troubles. This one will definitely stay at my house when she is finished! Maybe I'll choose a flannel backing to make it extra cozy.

5. Black & Red Checkerboard

Years ago we got a large floor size checkerboard game. Since then, the Checkerboard "rug" has disintegrated and needs replaced. An easy project, right? Yeah, if I could only find the game pieces now! Everyone in the house remembers this game but no one knows where it is hiding/stored. Go figure! I cannot begin this until I find the game so I know what size to make each square.



6. Pillowcases 
 
With so many fun novelty fabrics available on the market today, it is hard not to make a few pillowcases. These will make nice stocking-stuffers for the grandchildren. Scooby-doo, baseball, and airplanes make sweet dreams for the boys. Timeless Treasures fabrics launder so nice too. They should be sturdy and soft.







7. Name Pillows

I have been wanting to make these for some time now. The girls will each get their own body size "Name" pillow. Here are the fabrics I have chosen using colors in their room.  They will love this! I have no pattern - it will just evolve, one letter at a time! Wish me luck!




8. Let It Snow
 
A little embroidery on the borders and it is ready to frame. Low on the priority list, but I will enjoy seeing it on my sewing room wall.  Who does NOT love sewing when it is snowing outside? "Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but my fabrics are so delightful. I have no other place to go. Let it snow, let it snow, let me sew!"



 

9. Friendship Stars from Japan

I had each participant from this year's Quilt Workshop in Ishinomaki sign a star for me using japanese characters (kanji). I'll add 1" sashings and cornerstones to complete a small wallhanging. A perfect and cherished reminder of the people we met and worked with. 



10. Stash Busting Stars 

My first block is competed and I am committed! I could not resist starting this new project with Esther Eliu. I think she may have called it "stash-busting" because each block finishes at 21".  I've been pulling fabrics out of the stash in teals, red/orange, lime greens, and soft yellows. Each color row requires a fat eighth to a fat quarter so it will definitely bust some stash. It is such a nice project for evenings on the couch.


11. Quiet Book

Another project started and needs to be finished so I can empty my shelf of bright craft fabrics. The leftovers will then go into the box for making doll clothes. It is an old Vogue pattern purchased in the 1980's. Each page features a skill for small hands. An alligator's tongue "unzips" out of his mouth to lick an ice cream cone. An elephant wears rollerskates which have buttons on the sides. A giraffe has braids down his neck. Just plain fun! 


My design wall was taken down over the summer and I washed the fleece covering. It is all back together now and I almost hesitate laying anything up on it since it is clean and thread free.  It even seems to have more fluff and nap. It was definitely worth the work of taking it down and putting it back up. 

I'm joining the link up on Leanne's blog She Can Quilt.

What's on your list?

 

Ending 3rd Quarter with Finishes

The summer of 2016 - it has been a really eventful quarter! After months of preparing for our trip to Japan, we were able to enjoy our time there and make new friends. I loved the people and the culture. Because it was a "working" trip, we did not have a lot of time for sightseeing and relaxing, but we managed to squeeze in some time for that. More on that later...

Teaching the ladies (and gentleman) how to piece and quilt was so rewarding. Their faces lit up with the joy of accomplishment as we completed our blocks together. 

The projects we designed and made for the Quilt Workshop in Ishinomaki ended up not being used because of time restraints.

Project One: Dresden Plate
A cheerful round table topper made with a line of fabrics in bright lavendars, greens, teals, and yellows. I added a lot of hand quilting to this little pretty because it feels and lays so nicely. It was given to our friend, Jill, as a reminder of out support and prayers for her and her family living in Japan. 

Project Two:
My own original design made with reds, black, grays and beige. Curved piecing is one of those techniques that come easier the more you practice. I've been intrigued with this design and plan to expand on it some more. Stay tuned. Perhaps I will make it available for download here later.






Trail Mix
Only one 3rd quarter goal was made this time.

I managed to complete my Trail Mix so I did get something finished. I took this in for show and tell at our Material Girls meeting last week and mentioned I have a love/hate relationship with this quilt. I loved the process of making all those little blocks, and I love the little trails made from the light fabrics, but without those trails it would be a muddy mess. 

It has been a great stash-buster though. I went through my container of loose ends and scraps and made a serious dent in its size. I would really like to try another pattern by Mabeth Oxenreider. Her Garnet Trace looks interesting. Maybe after the first of the year. I have much to do before Christmas.

Pumpkin Stars 
One other finish to report, even though it does not count towards anything more than just a picture here.  My bright orange Pumpkin Stars table-topper! 
 
I purchased these 16 paper-pieced blocks somewhere - I don't remember where and I never did anything with them. I put them in my daughter's recent garage sale and they did not even sell for $5.00! So I decided to use them myself (finally). I found some green batik that complemented the blocks well for cornerstones and added sashes to make it total a 16" square. I am so pleased and glad they did not sell. 

3rd Quarter 2016 Finish Along Goals

It is time to set some more goals for 2016. I finished two nice projects last quarter (see previous posts) and hope to accomplish a few more these next three months. It is also fun to see what others have lined up at the linky party at the 2016 Finish-A-Long. Check some of them out for your own inspiration. 

1. Trail Mix Quilt

Another favorite that required lots of little blocks and lots of piecing. This was truly a scrap project! Without those little white "trails" this quilt would be a muddy mess. I have this top completed and the backing pieced, ironed, and ready to send to my long-arm quilter.

 

2. Grand Illusion

This is a carry over from the previous quarter. Almost all of the blocks are assembled, the sashes need to be sewn together, and then I'll probably lose sleep until it is finished. This was Bonnie Hunter's 2014 mystery quilt. 

3.Rainy Day Umbrellas 

This is a "quilt as you go" project from a class I took on machine quilting by Leah Day. What a great class! I learned a lot and gained some much needed confidence in free motion machine quilting. This needs to be completed before I get rusty. Machine quilting is a skill you need to practice with often. 

4. Neutral Jelly Roll Quilt

This is basted and ready to quilt. It needs to come upstairs so I can stitch on it during the evenings when I am being a good wife and watching the ball games on TV with Mr. Wonderful. If I manage to finish the Umbrellas perhaps I will machine quilt it instead. Let's see what happens.

5. Christmas Celebration

A tree skirt that is paper pieced using Judy Niemeyer's pattern. This was another great class. I have no previous experience with paper piecing but this was fascinating. I would love to have the top done and ready to quilt by fall so it will be ready for Christmas. 

6. Medallion Quilt

I only have five more 6" Lemoyne stars left to sew together, then they will be ready to add into the next row. Yes, these are all hand pieced with set in seams. No cheating or shortcuts here. I loved making these. It was purchased as a kit so the color combinations are not mine. I hope it progresses well because a lot of work has been invested into it.

  I have many more projects tucked away in the sewing room but this is a good list for this next quarter. 

See what others have planned at the 2016 Finish-A-Long

 

Blue & Green Mystery Solved and Finished

This was number 1 on my list of goals for the 2nd Quarter Finish A-Long 2016. You can find my list here.


Silly Goose Quilts offered this as a mystery quilt in September of 2015. You can visit her here to make one of your own. It requires lots of piecing but I am drawn to these types of quilts and hope you are too. It is always fun to mix colors. The border idea was my own. I had some leftovers (as usual) and played around to find something I liked. Sometimes borders can be the most fun!


This project finished at 88" x 88" (that is 352 total inches). It is composed of 1,629 pieces and used up 8 1/4 yards of backing fabric, and 7 1/2 yards of various blues, greens, and creams. A grand total of 15 3/4 yards of stash busted!


The colors in this quilt remind me of tropical waters. Twenty years ago I would have never dreamed of using blue and green in a quilt. Aren't we happy there are no rules today! 


The quilt pattern I chose from my long arm quilter was "Water Waves" which worked perfectly.




And the backing was pieced with fabrics from my stash that I have been trying to clear out. It is a bit more interesting than a solid backing. Do you agree? 

Those are teal blue and lime greens. I had to take an indoor shot since it is presently raining outside. 



Beginnings of this quilt are shown. All those pieces waiting for assembly. 

Now it is time to link to She Can Quilt's 2016 Finish A Long blog site. You can join us too as the linky party will be coming up next week for the next quarter. 

Number 2 - Second Quarter Finish A Long 2016

This was number 2 on my list of goals for the 2nd Quarter Finish A-Long 2016. You can find my list here.  

One of my oldest (and dearest) projects is finally finished and is laying nicely on our gate-leg table in the living room. I wonder what took me so long! Well, I have plenty of excuses but now I can Snoopy dance because she is done!

 

Each of these 9 blocks finished at 5 1/2". I drafted and cut the templates which were then hand-pieced. I learned so much in this class. It was definitely a game changer! If you can break it down and draw it, you can do anything you dream of.

I love birds so I had to add a few. And the flowers just evolved as I cut out pieces of leftover fabrics I set aside with this unfinished project. 

Hand quilting on this in the evenings was so relaxing. It was hard to know when to quit. 

Now I am happy to link this finish on 2016 Finish A Long on She Can Quilt. Join with us if you have not already done so.