Last Monday of 2019! Plans for 2020!

Plans for 2020

I don’t make resolutions … they never work for me.  However, I do make PLANS.  Plans can be changed … in my mind, resolutions are sort-of set in stone and unchangeable.

My plans for 2020 include:

  • Obtaining my PHD in 2020 (obviously, eh?)
  • Learn how to sew curves!!! I’ve signed up for a class in January!  I want to master, or at least feel more comfortable sewing curves!
  • Use up my stash!!!  Dare I aim for using at least 100 yards?  Can I avoid purchasing fabric???  Lofty plans … but I’ll try!
  • Having a Baby Quilt Marathon on the blog … likely in July – but subject to change.  And, same as last year, if participants want to work on specific projects and not baby quilts- that’s fine!  All that is required is a concentrated effort to work on a project for 26 hours during the time from ?? date to ?? date.   See HERE, HERE and HERE for some posts about the 2019 Baby Quilt Marathon.
  • Have a Baby Quilt Sew-a-long … the EQ picture is done, just need to write out the pattern and figure out the details.  This may happen during the marathon, I haven’t decided yet.

OK … OK … I know you’re wondering, why so many Baby Quilts?  The quilt guild I belong to makes baby quilts for several different charities.  I have TONS of fabric and it’s fun to make small quilts.  Usually they are pretty quick to make.  Occasionally, I practice a different free motion motif on them, sometimes it’s just straight stitching.  Anything goes.

PHD in 2019: Quilting UFOs and Finishing New Projects

YES!!!  I have completed my PHD in 2019!!!!

Emily, from The Darling Dogwood, also completed her PHD in 2019.  YAY, Emily!!!

I haven’t heard from the others, so am not sure if anyone else has completed their PHD in 2019. Continue reading

My Best of 2019

Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs is having a Best of 2019 Linky Party!

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It’s HARD to choose just one quilt that is my favourite for this year!  SEW … as you can see, I chose 8 of them.  I finished many many more, but these 8 are my favourite!  Well, there’s probably a few more that are also my favourite … but I figured I needed to limit the number!

You can see the original posts for the quilts by clicking on the quilt name.  All but the first quilt, Good Fortune, used Island Batik Fabrics (you can see all the Island Batik quilts HERE.)  Good Fortune was made from my stash and was a Bonnie Hunter mystery.  All of the quilts used Hobbs batting … 80/20 or wool … Aurifil thread was used in each project.  Each quilt was quilted on my domestic sewing machine – Janome 8900.

Friday Finish or Not

I have no finishes this Friday, but the quilt below is ready to be quilted.  I used the left-over fabric from a baby quilt I started in November.  I was able to cut most of the 5″ squares from the left-overs … I was a few squares shor … mostly because I cut some at 4.5″ instead of 5″ 😦 …  sew … I took the pieces that were too small and pieced a bunch of them together and then cut those pieces 5″ square.   It will work.  This is a pattern where you sew the blocks straight, do a few big cuts, rearrange the big cuts and you have a quilt that is on point.  Missouri Star has a YouTube Video that shows basically how to make this.   It’s pretty easy!

This quilt will also be donated to the guild.

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fullsizeoutput_c18This is the quilt that had the left-overs that I used for the above quilt.  There were 2 fat quarters that I did not use in the original quilt … one was a mini panel with the blocks of animals and the other was the white /with leaves that is on the outside of the quilt … it was a perfect place to use these fabrics up!

 

 

 

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

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Linking to:

PHD in 2019! DONE!!!

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These are the 3 baby quilts that were started this fall.  They were all donated to the guild.  And they were fun to do.  The one in the middle and the one on the right had flannel on both sides.  I learned that it is difficult to FMQ a 2-sided flannel quilt.   When I tackled the pink one, I just did straight lines with my walking foot.  The quilt didn’t stretch as much and it was way easier to do!  The one on the left had quilting cotton on the top with flannel on the back.  It was very easy to free-motion quilt the wavy lines. Continue reading

Do you have too many UFOs?

If you do – Join me to achieve your PHD in 2020!

Some of you ask, “what is a PHD?” … you know it’s got to have something to do with quilting, but usually a PHD refers to an academic degree.

PHD, in quilting terms, stands for Project Half Done.  Well, it doesn’t necessarily have to be HALF done … it can be started and then put aside.  Many quilters know these as UFOs:  UnFinished Objects.

Do you have a zillion UFOs hanging over your head?  All those projects that you want to get done, but they don’t get done?

And do you start a zillion projects each year, that adds to your ever growing UFO list?

Then you need to join me for PHD in 2020!

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3D Challenge #2

I posted about Challenge # 1 HERE.

Island Batik did not say we needed to do 2 challenges this month … this was my choice.  Especially since this project is also 3D.  And,  since I need to make sewing machine covers, this just made sense to me!

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Friday … Bonnie Hunter – revisited

I’ve been sewing … a lot …  but not a lot to show for it.

I saw this picture on a facebook page … and just cracked up.  The skeleton is obviously working on hand quilting “Good Fortune.”  It’s Bonnie Hunter’s mystery from last year.  And, I love the soft colours that were used!  Or have they just faded over time??? (grin!)

Sarah Young

Continue reading

PHD in 2019 – April Update

PHD in 2019:  Quilting UFOs and Finishing New Projects

I have 5 UFO finishes for 2019!

The first picture shows, Ivan’s Diamonds, Carpenter’s Wheel and a Star Table runner

My 2 April finishes are Good Fortune and a Retreat Bag.

I have an Inlinks party for PHD in 2019 participants to link up to.  However, you you want to link up, feel free!  Just be sure to mention this blog in your blog post, Instagram or Pinterest picture!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

I did Promise you

Close up pictures of a couple of quilts:  This first one was the Island Batik Accuquilt Challenge.  Free Motion quilting did not call to me and it’s totally stitched in the ditch. (And yes, I used my ruler foot and a ruler for most of the quilting.)  I used Aurifil Thread and Hobbs batting.  The fabrics are Island Batik and mostly came from the Stash Builder Rolls or my yardage.

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This is a Close up of Good Fortune and the quilting.  I just did an all-over pattern that was inspired by Roseanne of Home Sewn by US, but then it morphed into my own design.

Christmas RAPPing BLOG HOP

Christmas RAPPers blog

This awesome blog hop is continuing.  If you haven’t checked out the great projects – be sure to do so.  And, there is a chance for YOU to win!  Check it out!

April 29  Joan @  MooseStash Quilting

April 30 Linda @ One Quilting Circle

May 1 Kathy @ Kathy’s Kwilts

May 2 Bea @ Beaquilter

May 3 Sherry @ Powered by Quilting

May 4 Jennifer @ Dizzy Quilter

May 5 Barbara Gaddy @ Bejeweledquilts by Barb

May 6 Nancy Myers @ Patchwork Breeze

May 7 Vicki @ Vicki’s Crafts and Quilting

May 8 Gail @ Quilting Gail  THIS IS ME come back and see what I made!

May 9  Michelle @ Creative Blonde

May 10 Maryellen @ Mary Mack’s Blog

May 11 Denise @ For the Love of Geese

May 12 Maria @

CHANCE TO WIN

Click on the Rafflecopter giveaway link to have a chance to WIN 9 Island Batik FQ’s and 3 Aurifil spools of thread to 2 lucky winners!  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

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Linking to: 

Beginning of April!

WHAT?

I know I often see other’s writing on their blogs and saying “Where did the month go to?”   And, I’ve often thought, “really? It went by one day at a time!”  YUP – one day at a time and each day FLEW by this month.  So fast!  So very fast, I’m wondering, “Where did the month go to?”

Design Wall

Piecing

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This is Week 4: Unit C of the Daisy Chain Mystery. The blocks on the lower left are all trimmed, I still need to trim about half of them.  This step is a little time consuming, but not too bad!  And easy to do.  The directions are very clear and easy to follow.  It’s still not too late to join in the mystery. Continue reading

A Few Secrets

sewing machine pic

There are secret things happening here. Slow progress is being made on each of these.  There are challenge quilts for the upcoming guild show in May as well as Island Batik challenges for the next few months.

Of course – once I am able, I will show you ALL of the secret projects … just not yet. Continue reading

A little of this, a little of that

I haven’t had a lot of time to sew in the last few days … but I’ve done a bit!

Design Wall

img_2943Quilting

The March Island Batik project is sandwiched!  The theme for this month is “Vintage Reimagined.”  It is a fun theme to work with!   I used these fabrics on the right!!!  Oh – what a joy it is to use this beautiful fabric!!!  I’ll show you more when it’s quilted.

Piecing

Good Fortune Mystery Quilt: IMG_3149

  • Border #1 is on.
  • Border #2 (purple triangles) is in progress.
  • Border # 3 is ready to sew on
  • Border #4 is being pieced together.

Continue reading

A Super Fun Class

It was super fun, mostly because I came home with a FINISHED project!!!

We had homework to do before the class … the homework took a LOT of time … like hours and hours and hours …  We had all bought the pattern prior to the class, sew we knew what to do for homework … the pattern is “Jelly Roll Rug Pattern” by Roma Lamson for R.J. Designs …

I already showed you my pile of 2 ½” strips and the start of the rope we had to make.  Our teacher, Dawn,  had 2 beautiful rugs done and now that I’m home, I realized that I forgot to take pictures of them!!!  groan!!!

 

 

My strips were cut from my stash of mostly Kansas Troubles fabric.   I told one lady that I have STABLE.  She looked at me weird … then I explained it meant STash Accumulation Beyond Life Expectancy!  Then she laughed!   And the batting was all Hobbs 80/20 leftovers from the sides of quilts that I have made.  Dawn suggested cutting them 2 ¼” wide … which made it WAY easier than the strips that were 2 ½” wide!  (Hmmm, maybe, just maybe, I had a whole wack of strips that were cut at 2 ½” and I didn’t take the time to cut them down to 2 ¼” …)

Here is my finished Jelly Roll Rug.

Jelly Roll Rug Continue reading

My Progress Report – Feb 17

Design Wall

Piecing:

  1.  Block 5 of CQA’s #52blocks52weeks block is NOT done … not cut out … I should do that soon, before I have 20 blocks that I need to catch up on.
  2. Good Fortune:  Starting to web the centre of the quilt. The purple HST for one of the pieced borders is in progress

Continue reading

I almost forgot!

January Report

PHD in 2019:  Quilting UFOs and Finishing New Projects

Yes, I’ve been so busy with writing about being an Island Batik Ambassador, the Turnabout Patchwork blog hop & the Daisy Chain mystery writing about PHD in 2019 just slipped my mind, or more accurately, got put on the back burner.

The Turnabout Patchwork blog hop is still happening: Continue reading

Not much to show!

I’ve been sick … but I won’t gross you out with the details.

Today I saw a robin!!!  YAY!!! Spring is on the way!  Sorry, no picture,  I wasn’t fast enough before it flew away!

Stash Report

Nothing is finished, so nothing taken away …  no shopping / no fabric buying!

* Fabric Used this week: 0 yards
* Fabric Used this year: 0 yards
* Fabric Added this Week:   0 yards
* Fabric Added this Year: 4.5 yards
* Net Fabric Used for 2019: 3.4 yards
* Husband’s purchases 5 yards

Design Wall

I thought I was making great progress on Bonnie Hunter mystery,  Good Fortune … as I said in my last post, Ithought I had all the grey sides added on,  … I did but I had to unsew about 10 of them as I didn’t have the white making the X.  All I’ve done is finished the ripping, but haven’t sewn them back together.

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Friday … small partial finishes

img_2980.jpgHello!  I’ve been working away … SLOWLY … at the Good Fortune mystery.  I thought I had all of the 4 patch blocks done … until I was doing the final pressing and realized that I have about 10 blocks where the corner 4 patches are turned around …  groan … oh well, I’m just 10 blocks away from finishing these blocks.

PS:  If you want to do this mystery, make sure that you download all the clues before the end of the month! Continue reading

I was Away

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Yes, I was away in Hawaii for 10 days!  I loved every minute!  Here is a picture of the view from our Airbnb on the east coast of Oahu.

Can you imagine listening to the waves all night and waking up to this view?   I loved the warm weather (it wasn’t HOT).  It was pretty great … and is now a wonderful memory.

 

 

Continue reading