December's One Monthly Goal

In January I started the Block of the Month hosted by Sherri McConnell at A Quilting Life.  My friend, Denise, is always finding projects to talk me into, and I usually go along with her.   I'm always glad, though, so that must be a good thing.  The last BOM I made with her, went to my SIL, Jan, and she loved it.  I did, too!  (You can read about it here.)  

This time I decided to go with Christmas fabrics.  I started with these -

None of the rest of the prints I used were really very "Christmassy".  Maybe you would call them more "classic".  If you're really a fan of Christmas you might even call them "boring".  

The blocks have a consistent fabric for the churn dash, the background, and the sashing.  AND, as you can see, there are a lot of HSTs.  No comment.

My goal for December is to get the blocks into a top.

I may have to convince people it really is a Christmas quilt, since it's not red and green, but that's fine with me; I like it better that way.  (Guess who the grinch is around here?)

Linking up with One Monthly Goal

August Goals and a Stash Report

I'm still so excited about meeting my July goal, that I'm ready to set another somewhat challenging goal for August.  So.  Here we go.

A while back one of my nieces asked me to make a quilt for her daughter-in-law, Cerena, who had loved one of her gramma's quilts so much and for so long that it was completely worn out.  At the same time my friend, Denise, was working on a quilt for her DIL and needed motivation, so we decided to make it a sew-along.  She was using the pattern "Mountain Horizon" by Brittany Lloyd.  Cerena loves all things "The Night Before Christmas", so that was my first fabric choice and coordinating fabrics were soon to follow.

Of course I had to make it my own.  That's the fun part of using patterns!  I made several changes in the main block, combining some of the pieces, because I didn't want to cut up the focus fabric.  That meant creating a new pattern for part of it and making a test block just to be sure.  Can you see what I did?  

Instead of doing curved piecing I just raw-edge applique'd the half circles.  

Getting that first sample block made is always so motivating.

  

My August goal is to have all the blocks finished and get them into a top.  You never know.  I might get even more done than that!

JULY

Fabric Added in July - 15.7 yards

Fabric Used in July - 29.8 yards

Fabric Added Year to Date - 52 yards

Fabric Used Year to Date - 138.9 yards

Net Used in 2022 - 86.9 yards

Days I sewed in July- 28/31

Days I sewed this year - 201/212

Percentage - 95%

Linking up with One Monthly Goal 

RSC-Blue Goals and OMG Goals Met, And Then Some!

What a month!  You would think I was trying to make up for the last two months, or something.  

I got all my blue Pinwheel, Sawtooth Star, and "brick" blocks made for the RSC-2022 scrap challenge. 

Then, I focused on the quilts I had started for my daughter-in-law's friend's twin grand babies.  I wanted them to be similar but not identical, so I made Pinwheel blocks for one and Broken Dishes blocks for the other.  

Huh.  The Broken Dishes blocks made a secondary pattern that looks like - guess what?  Pinwheels!  

They're pretty easy to tell apart, though.  The cornerstones and the backings are different.  More "Seashore Drive" from Moda.  Such a sweet collection.

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My quilting friend and neighbor, Denise, made labels for me with the girls' names on them.  If that doesn't make them different, I don't know what would!

Back to the June goals.  The applique' stars baby quilt is finished.  I made it in time to call it a June finish.  Barely.  This will be a donation quilt for our local St. Jude affiliate hospital.

All that AND a good stash report!

JUNE

Fabric Added in June -  7 yards

Fabric Used in June -  31.2 yards

Fabric Added Year to Date - 36.3

Fabric Used Year to Date - 109.1 yards

Net Used in 2022 - 72.8 yards

Days I sewed in June - 29/30

Days I sewed this year - 173/181

Percentage - 95%

Linking up with So Scrappy! and One Monthly Goal 

A Block by Block

Our local quilt shop, Patches and Stitches, is celebrating their 40th Anniversary. One of their celebration activities is a Block by Block sew-along.  (Oh, yeah, and a 40% discount on a different item or category every week.  But we won't talk about that.)  The owner of the shop designed a quilt using forty different block designs.  Customers received block patterns two at a time as well as directions for the quilt layout.   The first forty customers to return to the shop with a completed quilt, having used all forty blocks in it, received a $40 gift certificate from Patches and Stitches.   (Spoiler Alert --- I got one!) 

This is the quilt made and displayed by Patches and Stitches, done mostly in pastels and finishing at 87" by 96". So. Not. Me.

I used scrappy batiks from my stash for all the blocks ..... 

..... and a really pretty taupe for the sashing.

My friend, Denise, and I had a weekly date to get our patterns and have lunch out.  We kept each other on track, we admired each other's blocks, and we had a lot of fun.  Twenty weeks went by fast, then it was time to take all those blocks I'd made and start to play.  My design wall came in handy!

Since all forty blocks had to be used I chose to make my quilt reversible.  And since I need a quilt to keep in my car "just in case" I decided to make it a car quilt.  

(Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I also added some appliquéd circles.) This is the front .....
  

..... and this is the back.

Denise did her own thing, too by using gray prints and putting her blocks together without any sashing.   It's gorgeous!   This is the photo taken at Patches and Stitches for their Facebook page. 

Because mine is reversible they had to take more than one of me!

To commemorate our experience I had a special label custom made by, who else, Denise!

This was the first time I've participated in a Local Quilt Shop Block of the Month, or Row by Row, or Block by Block, and I'm so glad I did.  I really like my quilt. 

 Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict

T-Shirt Quilt - The Rest of the Story

In the last update in this post Josh's T-Shirt quilt was ready to deliver to my long-arm-quilter friend, Shirley Jackson.   We chose a pantograph, selected a thread, and she got to work.

Getting regular photo updates from her was fun.

 

After watching the progress I was pretty excited to open the box when it came in the mail.

My friend, Denise was kind enough to make a label for me.

Next up was binding - my favorite part!

Done!

Then, it was time to deliver it.  Actually, that is my favorite part.

Oh, wait!  That smile.  That is my favorite part.

Linking up with Tish's Adventures in Wonderland and Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Finding Dory - Another Friday Finish

Even though I bought the "Finding Dory" charm pack two years ago I'm calling this quilt a fast finish.  After all, I just started working on it a few weeks ago.   I told you last week in this post that I had the blocks put together.  What I didn't admit was that I had measured the sashing pieces wrong.  For some reason, knowing full well that charm packs have 5" squares, I cut the strips 5 1/2" long.

That made for extra work because I had to trim twice for every single block.

After the top was put together I noticed that one of the pieces was upside down.  Either that, or these are some very directionally challenged jellyfish!

I did not take the whole thing apart, but I did feel like this -

I wanted to use blue for the border and backing, but I don't have a great selection of blues in my stash.  As I fell asleep one night, trying to figure out what to do, I suddenly remembered --- Gavin's curtains!  Okay, let me explain.   When my grandson was about six years old, I made blue curtains for his bedroom.  Of course all the photos I could find of the curtains have him in them, and in most of them he's jumping on this bed.  I'm okay with that!

The point is, when his room was redecorated a few years ago I deconstructed those curtains and saved the fabric, even the lining.

Basting came next (of course) and then the quilting.  I used yellow thread this time, and I really like it.

Every once in a while I had to leave my sewing room and do something boring -- like making dinner.  That's when I felt like this -

Did I say, "something boring?"  I meant, "something else." (Yes, I'm being silly.  I'm having fun with this. Can you tell I like this fabric?)

It's done and ready to donate to Choose Life of North Alabama.  

I thought you would like to see what Denise made.  It's so cute!  The snowball blocks set with the polka dots - love it!

This is my 11th finish for the year and the 6th for Choose Life.  I'm on a roll.  Just imagine what I could get done if I never had to stop and cook!

I'm linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict for another Whoop! Whoop!