Author: quiltinggail

SAHRR #4

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For the SAHRR ’24, I am using Island Batik fabrics: a 10″ stack of Limerick in addition to “Teal”, “Egg Shell” and “Cherio-Iris.” For more information on a SAHRR, see THIS POST.

Round #4 is hosted by Brenda @ Songbird Designs.

Brenda gives you a choice. Do something “on point” or a square in a square. I chose to do the square in a square. I used my Accuquilt Cube 8 dies to make them. If you don’t have the dies, the centre square is just shy of 3 3/8ths of an inch. The added triangles are the same size as for the 2 1/2” half square triangles. My blocks finished at 4″ square. I was amazed that the blocks were a perfect fit for the tops and sides. I was totally prepared to add some extra background to make them fit, but I didn’t have to! Can I say that I did a happy dance?

Today’s 4th Round:  Brenda @ Songbird Designs. Visit Songbird Designs to link up

  • February 19:  5th Round: ME!!! @ Quilting Gail
  • February 26:  6th Round:  Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing
  • March 18: Parade: showing all of your finished SAHRRs!

Other Participants

These are the SAHRR in progress by those who do not blog or have IG. The images must be sent to me by midnight on Saturday to make it into my blog post.

I am truly amazed by the creativity of everyone!

Regina S (Round #2), Robin B., Gail H., Charlene B., Judy B., Regina S. #1, Regina S. #2, Jacomina, Rosie, Donna R #1., Donna R #2, Kathy R., Donna #3.

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2024!!! We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win!

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is screenshot-2023-12-15-at-4.47.12-pm.png

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Island Batik’s Log Cabin Blog Hop: My Day!

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I received “Heavy Metal” by Kathy Engle (for Swan Amity Studios) in my January Island Batik box!! This fabric will be shipping to shops in February. This is the fantastic fabric I used for the Log Cabin Blog Hop!

I searched for a pattern that I had on paper and couldn’t find it. I went to EQ8 and downloaded the Heavy Metal SKUs into the fabric portion and started designing various log cabins. I designed this quilt. It’s a based on the courthouse block, with the fabrics placed so that it spirals. Sort of fun, eh?

Spiral Logs

This quilt used every fabric in the collection. So, I started cutting and sewing. I attempted to keep the fabrics in some order so that each block would be totally unique. I surprised myself by doing it! There are 20 fabrics in the collection and of the coloured fabrics, each one is in the centre of each block.

This one is called “Spiral Logs.” The quilting was simple: wavy lines along each of the logs. 

I will give a tutorial on how to make the diagonal backing in a future post.

Quilt Stats:

WAIT!!! There is more!!!

Once I had the blocks up on the design wall for the spiral log cabin and I was ready to web the quilt, I found the sketch of the pattern I had been working on YEARS ago. I stopped in my tracks and designed the block in EQ8. I was a happy camper. Yes, I knew that this would give me 2 quilts, but I can live with that!

I’ve called the second one “Pinwheel” Logs. All of the strips are cut at 2 1/2” wide and finish at 2″ in the quilt. 

Here’s a picture from EQ8 of the designed block with Heavy Metal fabrics inserted. The block is 16″ x 16″.

I started by making 48 half square triangles. Then coloured fabrics were cut in groups of 3 at

  • 21/2“x 81/2“
  • 21/2” x 61/2“
  • 21/2” x 41/2”
  • 21/2” x 21/2“. 

Then the background fabrics were cut

  • (48) 21/2” x 21/2”
  • (96) 21/2” x 41/2“.

And a few progress pictures:

Quilt Stats:

Heavy Metal Give-away

Here’s the Rafflecopter to enter … You must live in Canada or the USA to win. If the Rafflecopter doesn’t work … make sure you do the following:

  • Follow my Instagram: Quilting Gail
  • Follow my Facebook page: Quilting Gail
  • Leave a comment below telling me which of the 2 Log Cabin quilts you like the most (Spiral or Pinwheel)
a Rafflecopter giveaway https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

Thank You!

Disclosure: The fabrics, batting, thread, needles and the iron were generously supplied by the following companies: Thank you, Island Batik,  Aurifil Thread,  Hobbs Batting,  Schmetz Needles, Oliso  

Blog Hop Schedule

February 6:

February 7:

February 8:

February 9:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 1 and Giveaway

February 12:

February 13:

February 14:

February 15:

February 16:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 2 and Giveaway

February 19:

February 20:

February 21:

February 22:

February 23:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 3 and Giveaway

February 26:

February 27:

End of Blog Hop and Final Round-Up

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Island Batik’s Log Cabin Blog Hop

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Have you seen the awesome quilts that were posted this week???? Visit Island Batik’s blog to see a recap and take the opportunity to win some absolutely beautiful fabric!!

On Monday, I will be posting my Log Cabin quilt made with “Heavy Metal. “ The collection was designed by Kathy Engle for Swan Amity Studios. Look at those vibrant purples, blues and close-to neutrals!

Here’s a sneak preview …

And I will have a give-away as well, so come back on Monday! You’ll have to follow the directions on Monday for an opportunity to win! Here’s a picture of the fabric I’ll be giving away. Each one is at least 11″ x 22″ and I may tuck in some other fabric from the collection.

Island Batik’s give-away!

Island Batik is also giving away more fat quarter bundles … Follow the Rafflecopter below for YOUR opportunity to win a bundle of “Love and Peace” or “Monarch.”

a Rafflecopter giveaway https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

This Week’s Blog Hoppers

February 12:

February 13:

February 14:

February 15:

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

SAHRR #3

/ quiltinggail / 23 Comments

For the SAHRR ’24, I am using Island Batik fabrics: a 10″ stack of Limerick in addition to “Teal” and “Egg Shell.”

Round #3 is hosted by Emily @ The Darling Dogwood.

Emily chose “Triangles.” It’s totally up to you how you make your triangles, what size they are and how you want to arrange them.

My triangles were cut with my Accuquilt 8″ Cube die. They were 2 1/2” and finish at 2″ in the quilt. The triangles fit perfectly across the top and bottom, but were a little shy on the sides. I didn’t want to fudge like I did with the piano keys because then I would loose my points. So, I just added a little sliver of background on each end of the triangle row … and now they sort-of fit.

Here is the 3rd Round.

Today’s Round: February 5: 3rd Round:  Emily @ The Darling Dogwood

  • February 12: 4th Round:  Brenda @ Songbird Designs
  • February 19:  5th Round: ME!!! @ Quilting Gail
  • February 26:  6th Round:  Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing
  • March 18: Parade: showing all of your finished SAHRRs!

Other Participants

These are the SAHRR in progress by those who do not blog or have IG. The images must be sent to me by midnight on Saturday to make it into my blog post.

I’m loving the variety of each of these SAHRRs in progress. They are each so different! Awesome!

Judy B., Robin B., Stella, Kathy R., Donna R #2, Donna R #3, Heather F., Jacomina, Rosie, Donna R #1, Kathy P.

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2024!!! We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win!

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is screenshot-2023-12-15-at-4.47.12-pm.png

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Saturday’s Summary

/ quiltinggail / 16 Comments

This is TRUE!!!

Monthly Colour Challenge

January’s colour is Orange!!! Here is my February block. Visit Jen at Patterns by Jen to get your free pattern for February. It’s free for the mo

I’m using Island Batik fabrics for my blocks. Here’s January’s

And the January & February blocks:

SAHRR Round #2 is almost done … ready for Round #3!

The hosts have shown their centre blocks and other’s have joined in on the fun. See This Post for all the details! Here’s my centre block with the first round! Visit Anja @ Anja Quilts to see lots of other Round #2. Return to Quilting Gail on Monday to see Round #3!

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

Of course, with being away and not taking my sewing machine with me, my numbers decreased a LOT! That’s OK … the percentage is bound to increase – as long as I don’t go on holidays again! 😁

  • Jan 1-31: 23 / 31 days
  • Feb 1-3: 3 /3 days
  • Year total: 26 / 34 days
  • 76%

Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. Sorry, no pictures to share!

Piecing projects:

  • SAHRR ’24 (Round 4 & 5 … trying to work ahead!)
  • It Moose be Love: blog hop project

Quilting:

  • Island Batik February Log Cabin Quilt
  • 2023 Fall Mystery Quilt
  • Finish Quilting “Gardenia“

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

I bought backing for my 2023 Fall Mystery Quilt. At least this didn’t put me in the red!!! I shouldn’t have to by backing for quite a while now! 

  • Fabric Used in 2023:    8 1/2 yards  from non-IB: 5
  • Fabric Used this week: 4 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    8 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:              1/2 yard

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from the last report:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” not done
  2. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24 in progress
  3. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“ not done
  4. Work on IB February project in progress
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for next week:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”
  2. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24 (rounds 4 & 5)
  3. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“
  4. Finish IB February project
  5. Work on “It Moose be Love” blog hop project
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

Upcoming Blog Hops

Island Batik’s Log Cabin Blog Hop

Island Batik’s first challenge of 2024 is to make a Log Cabin. I must admit, Log Cabins are one of my favourite quilts to make!! 

Although the Island Batik Log Cabin starts next Tuesday, the first week’s giveaway is live now! Follow the simple Rafflecopter prompts on the Island Batik blog for a chance to win one of the two fabulous Fat Quarter bundles – Breezy by Kate Colleran Designs or Fairy Floss by Tamarinis!

The Log Cabin Blog Hop starts on Monday. 

Here’s what Island Batik has to say about the Log Cabin Blog Hop: We are thrilled to kick off the eleventh season of the Island Batik Ambassador Program with the Log Cabin Blog Hop! It’s a delightful challenge inspired by an enduring favorite in the quilting world. The versatility of the Log Cabin block offers endless creative possibilities. Will our Ambassadors opt for the graceful curves, geometric precision of triangles, whimsical wonky designs, celestial star motifs, innovative twists, or stick with the timeless classic? With boundless imagination and skill, our Ambassadors are poised to showcase a diverse array of interpretations. The sky truly is the limit as we start on this captivating adventure!

Here is the schedule:

February 6:

February 7:

February 8:

February 9:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 1 and Giveaway

February 12:

February 13:

February 14:

February 15:

February 16:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 2 and Giveaway

February 19:

February 20:

February 21:

February 22:

February 23:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 3 and Giveaway

February 26:

February 27:

End of Blog Hop and Final Round-Up

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:  

Island Batik: Unboxing Video January 2024

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I’m excited to be chosen as an Island Batik ambassador for the 6th year!  As an Island Batik Ambassador, I receive 2 shipments from Island Batik; one in January and the other in June/July. This is my unboxing video for the first box. I had to open the box prior to bringing it across the border, but I didn’t see all the contents until I did the video. Enjoy!

Here are individual pictures of everything!

This 2 1/2” strip set of Lavandin came paired with a 2 yard cut of Milk Shake (the off white from the Neutrals collection) and Turtle (the dark green, from the Glorious Greens gradation collection).

These 1/2 yard cuts are from the basics which are available at all times. 

Thistle (Playful Purples)Red Solid (Solids)Marble-Aqua (Blenders)
Dark Grey (Solids)Cobalt (Solids)Bubbles-Cherry (Blenders)
Fuchsia (Solids)Marble-Purple (Blenders)Buff (Ravishing Reds)
Marble-Storm (Blenders)Wave (Brilliant Blues)Blueberry (Brilliant Blues)

This is an awesome neutral fabric! It is called “Almond” and the tiny bluish and purple dots will blend in with everything I received! I’m positive that this 6 yard piece will be used in the near future!

A Strip pack of Playful Purples … (2 1/2” strips, width of fabric, 2 of each of the 20 different fabrics)

This 10″ stack of “Naturally Neutrals” will come in handy!! It’s fun to have a little of each of the neutrals!

This bundle of solid Black, White and Grey will be used in many different projects!

Stash builder rolls are so much fun. There are 5 rolls in each package. Each roll consists of 4 width of fabric 5″ strips. They are so versatile and are fun to give as gifts! And, I use them too!

This is a group of 1/2 yard cuts from the “Heavy Metal” collection. It was Designed by Kathy Engle for Swan Amity Studios (Swan Sheridan). There are also a 2 yard cut of Gears-Purple Hyacinth and 2 yards of Circle Gears-White (both from the collection). I will be using this in my February Blog Hop.

This surprise package will be used in the May Blog Hop. You’ll have to wait to see what it contains.

One of Island Batik’s Industry partners is Deb Tucker from Studio 180 Designs. She provided each of us with a special tool. I received the “Tucker Trimmer I” and a “Magic Wand.” I will be using these tools, along with the 10” stack of Squiggles, Dots and Lines. This stack came paired with a 2 yard cut of Midnight Blue (the dark blue on the left) and Bluebelle (the light blue). Both of these are basics from the Brilliant Blues collection (always available).

Hobbs Batting. A Queen size batt of 80/20!! A perfect batting for almost every project!

Oliso: I’m already loving this iron!!!

Schmetz Needles – lots of quality needles with charts and a booklet to assist in knowing which needle to use!

Here’s a picture of everything together!

One thing that I didn’t mention in my video was that Funky Friends will be an industry partner this year as well. I will be making Taylor the Tiger!

Thank you!

I would like to thank Island Batik and the industry partners who supplied all of the products in this post free of charge! I feel extremely blessed to be an Island Batik Ambassador for 2024!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

SAHRR: Round #2

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For the SAHRR ’24, I am using Island Batik fabrics: a 10″ stack of Limerick in addition to “Teal”, “Egg Shell” and “Cherio-Iris.”

Round #2 is hosted by Anja @ Anja Quilts. Anja chose “2 colours.” That’s correct, 2 colours. You can choose any 2 colours you want, make whatever blocks you want. The choice is totally yours!

I chose to make piano keys using teal and purple. The teal and the white/teal are from Limerick, the purple is a blender called “Cherio-Iris.” (I don’t consider white a colour! LOL!!!)

The piano keys were cut 2″ x 5″ and finish at 1 1/2” x 4 1/2” in the quilt. The piano keys on the sides were about 1/2” too long, so I made 3 of the seams about 1/8” thicker and then it fit like a dream.

Here is the 2nd Round. It finishes at 36″ x 40″.

Today’s Round (#2) is hosted by Anja @ Anja Quilts

Other Participants

These are the SAHRR in progress by those who do not blog or have IG. The images must be sent to me by midnight on Saturday to make it into my blog post.

Kathy P (first block), Heather F, Jacomina, Kathy R, Robin, Judy B., Regina #1 original, Regina #2 alternative, Rosie in Oregon, Donna R #1, Donna R #2, Donna R #3.

And Kathy P sent me her finished quilt from last year’s SAHRR.

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2024!!! We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win!

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is screenshot-2023-12-15-at-4.47.12-pm.png

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Sunday Summary: January 28

/ quiltinggail / 20 Comments

Sounds reasonable to me, too!

Monthly Colour Challenge

January’s colour is GREEN!!! Here is my January block. Visit Jen at Patterns by Jen to get your free pattern for January. Hurry, because you’ll have to pay for January’s block if you wait until the month is over!

I’m using Island Batik fabrics for my blocks. Here’s January’s

SAHRR Round #1 is almost done … ready for Round #2!

The hosts have shown their centre blocks and other’s have joined in on the fun. See This Post for all the details! Here’s my centre block with the first round! Visit Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life to see lots of other Round #1.

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

Of course, with being away and not taking my sewing machine with me, my numbers decreased a LOT! That’s OK … the percentage is bound to increase – as long as I don’t go on holidays again! 😁

  • Jan 1-28: 19 / 28 days
  • 67%

Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing projects:

  • SAHRR ’24 (Round 3 & 4 … trying to work ahead!)
  • IB February (a couple of pictures – works in progress!)

Quilting:

  • 2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” (waiting for the backing)
  • Finish Quilting “Gardenia“

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

No shopping, so nothing new bought!

I did finish my White Rabbit (bunny hugs) quilt. 6 1/2 yards

  • Fabric Used in 2023:    8 1/2 yards  from non-IB: 5
  • Fabric Used this week: 6 1/2 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    4 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             4 1/2 yards 

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from the last report:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” not done (still waiting on backing)
  2. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24 in progress
  3. Finish White Rabbit project. √   DONE. and posted
  4. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“ not done
  5. Work on IB February project in progress
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for next week:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”
  2. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24 (rounds 3 & 4)
  3. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“
  4. Work on IB February project
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

Upcoming Blog Hops

Favourite Finish of the Month

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl is now hosting the Favorite Finish of the Month. 

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:  

Finishing Friday

/ quiltinggail / 14 Comments

This week, I managed to finish this quilt in time for the White Rabbit Blog Hop. The weather has been raining and pouring and raining, not to mention the snow that we had, so I have not been able to take a picture of it outdoors. A picture on my design wall will have to do. 

I used Island Batik’s “Baby Bloomers” collection along with some Porcelain Fireside to add texture to the bunnies. Hobbs 80/20 is in the middle. The quilting was a simple walking foot straight line along with stippling in the dark purple areas. I must admit, I really enjoyed making this quilt! To find links to all of the White Rabbit bloggers, go to THIS POST.

I was featured

Wednesday Wait Loss

Jennifer from Wednesday Wait Loss @  Inquiring Quilter featured this little quilt:

Up coming Blog Hops

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

White Rabbit Blog Hop

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Carol, from Just Let Me Quilt has organized this fun blog hop. Here’s what Carol had to say about the challenge:

Challenge: On the first day of each month, there is a tradition for people to say “white rabbit” first thing in the morning. The phrase is supposed to bring good luck for the rest of the month. Even President Roosevelt did this
Make something with white fabrics, rabbits, or white rabbits. What is a tradition you follow?

Well, I had never heard of this tradition before! And, we don’t have a tradition that we follow on the first of the month. Unless you include changing the monthly calendar! LOL!!! But I have seen white rabbits in the winter, on the snow! Does that count?

When I first saw the name of this blog hop, I immediately thought about the quilt pattern “Bunny Hugs” by The Sugar Pine Company. (If you want the pattern, you can get it HERE.)

I decided to use Island Batik fabric from the “Baby Bloomers” collection along with some Porcelain Fireside to add texture to the bunnies. Hobbs 80/20 is in the middle. The quilting was a simple walking foot straight line along with stippling in the dark purple areas.

Blog Hop Participants

For lots of White Rabbit eye candy, be sure to click on the following links:

JANUARY 22

JANUARY 23

JANUARY 24

JANUARY 25

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

SAHRR Round #1

/ quiltinggail / 23 Comments

For the SAHRR ’24, I am using Island Batik fabrics: a 10″ stack of Limerick in addition to “Teal” and “Egg Shell.”

Round #1 is hosted by Wendy at @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life. She chose the signature block. Typically, the signature block has a white centre, but because we can do what we want, I chose to have the colour in the centre and the neutral where the colour typically goes. I cut the blocks with Accuquilt dies. They will finish at 4″. 

If you don’t have an Accuquilt die to make this block, you can cut a 4.5″ square and add 2.5″ squares to 2 of the corners, with the sew and flip method. HERE is a tutorial with a different sized block than mine. It’s totally up to you which size of block you make, where you put the colours etc.

I debated as to whether I should have them going in different directions, or all in one direction. I ultimately decided to have them all go in the same direction. Once I had it pieced together, I made another decision … and out came my seam ripper!

Since I want this to be a decent sized lap quilt, I decided that I needed to add a neutral border around each block / round. I cut my borders at 2 1/2” and added them on. This meant that I also needed to make a few more signature blocks. I hadn’t tidied up after making the first signature blocks, so the dies were right there, ready to make more blocks! 😁

Here is the 1st Round. It finishes at 24″x 28″. 


January 15: I hosted the first linky party and you can see them all HERE. 

This 1st Round is being hosted by Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life. Visit her blog to link up for your chance to win one of our sponsor’s prizes! Visit the other co-hosts to see their 1st Rounds!

Other Participants

Several people do not have a blog or Instagram, so they are sending me pictures or their centre blocks. They are all so different – it’ll be fun to watch them become quilts!

Kathy R, Jacomina d, Charlene B, Heather F, Judy B, Robin B, Rosie in Oregon, Regina S, Stella M

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2024!!! We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win!

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is screenshot-2023-12-15-at-4.47.12-pm.png

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Sunday Summary: January 21

/ quiltinggail / 17 Comments

A very Sweet sister-in-law sent me this picture: I think she knows me well!!!

SAHRR has started!

The hosts have shown their centre blocks and other’s have joined in on the fun. See This Post for all the details! Here’s my centre block!

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

Of course, with being away and not taking my sewing machine with me, my numbers decreased a LOT! That’s OK … the percentage is bound to increase – as long as I don’t go on holidays again! 😁

  • Jan 1-21: 12 / 21 days
  • 57%

Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. Sorry, no pictures to share!

Piecing projects:

  • SAHRR ’24 (Round 2 & 3 … trying to work ahead!)
  • IB February Project

Quilting:

  • White Rabbit – due on Tuesday!!!
  • 2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” (waiting for the backing)
  • Finish Quilting “Gardenia“

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

I did finish my Helen Godden Christmas Countdown.

But my trip to Hawaii, visiting quilt stores that sold Island Batik fabric, well, that was my downfall! 4 yards of fabric!! But, isn’t it beautiful???

  • Fabric Used in 2023:    2 yards  from non-IB: 1
  • Fabric Added this week: 4 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    4 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             – 2 yards 

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from the last report:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” not done … still waiting on backing
  2. Bind “SS 24 Catalogue Quilt”   √   DONE. and ready to be mailed!
  3. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24 √  a little progress
  4. Work on White Rabbit project almost done – needs binding
  5. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“ not done
  6. Finish Helen Godden’s ’23 Christmas Countdown √   DONE.
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for next week:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”
  2. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24
  3. Finish White Rabbit project
  4. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“
  5. Work on IB February project
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

Upcoming Blog Hop

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:  

We Ran Away …

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That’s right, my husband and I ran away. It was a spur of the moment trip. It started with an idea, it fell into place and away we went.

We went to Hawaii’s Big Island. Compared to all of the other Hawaiian islands – it got it’s name for a reason!

The weather was OK … not good for snorkeling, but a lot warmer than here at home! We explored a lot of places, walked a lot of beaches, saw some sun, some rain and some wind. And, I visited 2 quilt stores. I’d say that was a fun thing to do when it’s raining out!

The first store we visited was Quilt Passions in Kona. It was FULL of fabulous eye candy and lots of Island Batik fabrics!

While in the the store, I met Steve. He showed me a few nifty notions. See the blue scissor holder on the end of his featherweight? That is “Annie’s Tool.” She’s 11 years old and makes them, using a 3D printer. 

Then we went to Kilauea Kreations in Hilo. A smaller store, but friendly and bursting at the seams will all sorts of goodness.

While in these 2 stores, I bought a few yards of fabric and some patterns. So much for my “I’m NOT buying any fabric” mantra!

  • Sea Cookies – Teal Cool
  • Floral – Multi Green
  • Blender: Lg Wheat Leaves (and the rest of the tag was cut off)

A Finish

Just before we left, I did manage to add the binding and finish this Christmas Countdown!  It is a free pattern from Helen Godden Quilts and there are Youtube videos to help you do the quilting. My sister and I Zoom quilted and did this together, after the holidays. I used Island Batik solid white for the base, outlined the bobbles and ribbon with Sharpie Stained markers. Hobbs 80/20 batting is in the middle. It’s quilted with Aurifil Black (Bobbles), Red (Ribbon), White (stippling), and a Green (binding). The bobbles and ribbon were coloured with Inktense pencils and I used Aloe Vera gel to set the colours. This is now destined to one of the Christmas boxes and will appear next December.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

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My Vacuum Attacked Me!

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In my attempt at being diligent at keeping my sewing room tidy – I was vacuuming and was STABBED by a wire sticking out of the hose.

My husband is always great at solving problems and I told him that there was a wire sticking out of the vacuum hose. He’s an electrician and I was positive that he could fix the problem! He took the hose to the garage.

When he returned, I got a lecture (sort of) that went like this:

  • Hubby: So you think it was a wire?
  • Me: Definitely
  • Hubby: Hold out your hand. (I did so. He put a short ‘wire’ into my hand. ) This isn’t a wire, it’s a pin!!! Can you see the head? (I put on my glasses and then I nodded yes). You’re lucky … if that pin had hit the wire in the hose, you could get a huge shock. I keep telling you to make sure you pick up your pins ….

And I won’t bore you with the rest of the conversation … I’m sure a lot of you can relate! 😌

The moral of the story … I guess I either have to be less diligent at cleaning or make sure that I pick up all my pins … but honestly, I know I already pick up the ones that I’m aware of falling to the floor. 😇 And, the pins I use have either a glass head or a button like thing on the end. They are easy to see!!! Someone else dropped the vacuum pin in my room, not me!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Dashing Through the Snow …

/ quiltinggail / 16 Comments

Brenda, of Songbird Designs designed this BEAUTIFUL quilt!!! I tested the pattern for her, but I made it a bit longer by adding extra rows of flying geese. Isn’t it a stunning pattern? Visit Brenda HERE to order your own copy!!!

I used fabrics from my stash, but Brenda used Island Batik “Snowed In” fabric collection. 

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Sunday Summary: January 7

/ quiltinggail / 10 Comments

SAHRR

Five blogging friends and I will take you on the adventure of creating your own SAHRR (Stay At Home Round Robin. ). This will be starting on January 15. You can read more about it HERE.

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

Usually I start the year off with a bang, but this year, I’ve only managed to sew 6 out of 7 days.

  • Jan 1-7: 6 / 7 days
  • 85%

Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing projects:

  • SAHRR ’24 (yes, I’ve started!)
  • White Rabbit Blog Hop Quilt

Quilting:

  • SS 24 Catalogue Quilt
  • 2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” (waiting for the backing)
  • Finish Quilting “Gardenia“

Finishing:

Helen Godden’s ’23 Christmas Countdown. My sister and I zoomed together as we quilted our Countdowns. I used Aurifil thread, black, red & white for the outlining and quilting. Inktense pencils were used for the colouring. Aloe vera gel made the colours stand out more. Now, I need to add binding.

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

The zipper bags I made used 1 yard of fabric. You can read about them HERE.

  • Fabric Used in 2023:    1 yards  from non-IB: 1
  • Fabric Added this year:    0 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             1 yards 

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from last week:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt” not done … still waiting on backing
  2. Sandwich, Quilt & Bind “SS 24 Catalogue Quilt”. almost done – needs binding
  3. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24 √  a little progress
  4. Work on White Rabbit project. √  a little progress
  5. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“ not done
  6. Work on Helen Godden’s ’23 Christmas Countdown √  a little progress
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for next week:

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”
  2. Bind “SS 24 Catalogue Quilt”
  3. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24
  4. Work on White Rabbit project
  5. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“
  6. Finish Helen Godden’s ’23 Christmas Countdown
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

Upcoming Blog Hop

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

2024 Goals

/ quiltinggail / 19 Comments

Here is a list of all the things I hope to do in 2024. I don’t make resolutions … they are just promises that I’m unable to keep. So the list works best for me.

SAHRR

Five blogging friends and I will take you on the adventure of creating your own SAHRR (Stay At Home Round Robin. ). This will be starting on January 15. You can read more about it HERE.

Island Batik

This will be my 6th year as an Island Batik Ambassador. I am so looking forward to all the challenges and working with the most wonderful fabric in the world! You can see all my 2023 Island Batik creations HERE.

2024 Colour Challenge

I’m doing this challenge again in ’24. It’s fun to make all the blocks that Jen has designed. They are always a little different than the usual blocks, but she makes them easy and fun. The block is free for each month, then there is a small charge for it. Here is a link to January’s block. It’s green. I will be using scraps of Island Batik fabrics. You can see my 2023 Colour Challenge quilt HERE.

No PHD in 2024

I will not be doing the PHD in 2024, because I do not have enough UFOs! I’m very happy about that. However, Sharon from MS P Designs is hosting it! Visit her blog if you wish to take part.

Commitment!

This is going to be my word for 2024. The one main thing that helped me reduce my UFOs was to finish what I started. So, I’m committing to finishing what I start. Now, this doesn’t happen on it’s own, I need to be accountable for it. So, I’ve developed a tracker to assist me and I will give monthly updates.

Here is the tracking you can use if you wish:

commitmentDownload

And, since I can’t start the New Year without new projects, I’ve started 3! Here is my commitment:

I have a Finish Already!

Yes! My daughter asked me to make some zipper pouches with Shweshwe fabric. She picked out the fabric and chose the zippers.

Link Parties

I will continue to join in many Linky parties. They are a fun way to share what I’m working on and to see what others are doing! These include, but are not limited to:

Upcoming Blog Hops

Carol (from Just let Me Quilt) and Joan (from Moose Stash Quilting) have a fantastic line of fun blog hops planned for 2024. I hope to participate in each one. 

A Fun Listen!

This song is fun!!! The intro is a bit long, but it tells a bit of the story … if you just want to listen to the song, start at 2:10. And yes, my husband loved it!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Happy New Year!

/ quiltinggail / 30 Comments

I wish everyone a Healthy and Happy New Year!

Please be careful when you’re sewing. I inadvertently sewed through my finger. I’ve never understood how that can happen … now I know. The needle went right through through the nail and out the other side. I refuse to show you the actual injury … there was blood involved, but none got on the fabric!

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

2023 Result:

  • Total:  343 / 365
  • Percentage: 93%

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

2023 Result:

  • Fabric Used in 2023:    254 yards  from non-IB: 105
  • Fabric Added this year:    37 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             218 yards 

I am pleased with all the fabric I’ve used this year. I had been secretly hoping that I’d use at least 100 yards from my stash – and I did!

To Do Tuesday

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do List from last Week

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”. not done … still waiting on backing
  2. Finishing Piecing & adding borders “SS 24 Catalogue Quilt” √   DONE
  3. Work on SAHRR ’24. √   DONE
  4. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“. not done
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do List for next Week

  1. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”
  2. Sandwich, Quilt & Bind “SS 24 Catalogue Quilt”
  3. Continue to work on SAHRR ’24
  4. Work on White Rabbit project
  5. Finish Quilting “Gardenia“
  6. Work on Helen Godden’s ’23 Christmas Countdown
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

Design Wall

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. Sorry, no pictures to share!

Piecing projects:

  1. Island Batik “SS 24 Catalogue Quilt”
  2. SAHRR ’24 (yes, I’ve started!)
  3. White Rabbit Blog Hop Quilt

Quilting:

  • SS 24 Catalogue Quilt
  • 2023 Fall Mystery Quilt”
  • Finish Quilting “Gardenia“
  • Helen Godden’s ’23 Christmas Countdown

Here’s the start of ’23 Christmas Countdown. My light box is the back door window … where I traced the design.

Here’s a picture of Gardenia prior to being a flimsy and partially quilted. And the Fall Mystery quilt. 

Upcoming Blog Hops

Just Let Me Quilt: White Rabbit (January 23. 2024)

Moose Stash Quilting: It Moose be Love (February 20, 2024)

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

PHD in 2023: December Report

/ quiltinggail / 17 Comments

Almost

Yes, I almost have all my UFOs finished … however, my sewing area is NOT perfectly tidy! 🤣

And the following meme is so very true!

Yup, if you don’t work on a quilt, it just won’t get done!!!

Announcing, Ms P Designs …

Last month, I told you that I would no longer be hosting the PHD in 2024. I’m handing over the torch to Sharon, from MS P Designs. Sharon and her sister, Susan, are fantastic designers and wonderful quilters! I’m sure you’ll have fun getting to know them!! Their blog post will be open in early January … make sure that you follow them to keep updated on the PHD in 2024.

Thank you!

I want to thank each and every one of you that has joining me over the years, working on your PHD. You have inspired me to keep working on my UFOs … and for me, until this year, I’ve been very successful at completing my PHD. But, without YOU, I wouldn’t have been so motivated to keep going!

My Tally Sheets

This month, I finished

  • December’s Island Batik challenge
  • My Christmas Placemats
  • The Classic Car Colour BOM (a UFO)
  • Vanishing Hunter’s Star

Here’s my tally sheet:

If you want to keep track of your own progress, please feel free to download the 2023 Template.

template-2023Download

Here’s my Task Sheet of my UFOs. This helps me keep track of what I’ve accomplished with my UFOs and what I need to do.

You can download your own Task list from Ms P Designs HERE.

After all these years, this is the first year that I did not achieve my PHD in 2023! I still have 1 more UFO to complete and 2 New Starts. The Gardenia quilt is half quilted and the Fall Mystery quilt using Island Batik fabrics needs to find a backing. 

However, I must admit that working on my PHD and finishing all new starts has definitely reduced my UFOs over the years!!! 

If you find that being accountable and working on your PHD helps, be sure to follow Ms. P Designs!

Linky Party

Show us your progress with your PHD in 2023!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=c0efdbe6b4add43dd7ef

Favourite Finish of 2023

Cheryl, from Meadow Mist Designs hosts a yearly linky party where you post your best quilt of the year. Unfortunately, often my best or favourite is the latest one I’ve worked on. And, true to my nature, I have more than one … I have 2 !!! 

I’m loving both the Christmas Tree Skirt and my Vanishing Star, using Island Batik’s Celtic Fields.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

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