More organizing (and Stash Report week 4)

Top o' the morning!  


We aren't Irish, but isn't it a catchy, fun greeting?  How was your week?  Did you get a long weekend?  We started our MLK Day at the pediatric dentist, went to the gym, tried a hamburger joint, and made about three shopping stops.  My son called it our "family day."


I was under the weather most of this week, thanks to enjoying our unseasonable 70 degree weather on MLK Day.  And I am feeling better, much better, and have the urge to get some things done.

Let's work backwards through my week.  After going to Chuck E Cheese yesterday afternoon to use up about 80 tokens left over from DS's birthday party, I got to hang out in my sewing space while DS did some Daddy time watching the Power Rangers and trying out some moves.  (Ugh - of all the stuff my son watches, along with almost everything on the Cartoon Network, this is one of the silliest shows I've ever seen.)

this is what's in it this morning

In my organizing mode of action, I came across this Large Flat Rate Box of fabric - again.  I won it at a blog that is no longer active, which is too bad b/c it was a fun one from another farm girl.  This box arrived at least a year ago and I had every intention to take a few things out and send it along to someone else.  Some of the fabric was a little thin - and I knew that when I entered to win it.  Over the past year, I've used it here and there. 

In my niece's doll quilts.

The flannel above and then all the fabric in this small one.

There were some nice Civil War fabric pieces that went into my guild's BOM blocks throughout the year.


Friday evening and yesterday I pressed pieces and discovered for the first time that there were lots of FQs.  I love FQs for small projects and for use in FQ quilts. However they were not really in my style so I cut them into strips.  This is what lots of scrap quilters advise doing, especially with fabrics that you do not like -- "if it's still ugly, you haven't cut it small enough yet." (think I heard at that a LQS once upon a time)

These fabrics weren't ugly but they work together nicely.  There are at least 15 blue FQs and a few green and neutral ones.  The red pieces were all about 6-7 inches wide.  


There are lots of widths you might cut the strips and squares and I think this is what has delayed me from cutting in the past - indecision.  Since most of these, and my scraps, are smaller pieces, I decided to stick with 2.5", 2", and 1.5".  I had very little waste from my week of cutting. If nothing else, I can make 9 patches and 4 patches til my heart's content.  I'm thinking a postage stamp quilt variation would be a cool, and easily organized, scrap project.

Not feeling like sitting at the sewing machine with a headache, I was content to work on the hexies.  Some of this came from cutting the scraps b/c there were strips that lent themselves to cutting for hexies.  


As we start the next 6 month round of the Inchy Hexagon Swap, I wondered what I was going to do with the 1" hexies.  This week I saw a photo on a blog, the fact that I cannot recall which one tells us that I read too many blogs, that caught my eye.  It was simple - alternate flowers with neutral petals between the fun, scrappy flowers.  Now I need more neutrals!

Then, of course, I had to do another polka dot 3/4" hexie.

Back to organizing, I sat in my chair and watched Netflix while DS was at preschool with a brush in my hand.  


Yes, I went to Joann's last Sunday afternoon and got 2 more yards of polka fabric (and 8 yds of tying tape for drawstring bags) for covering those beer boxes.  

And I wanted to get them finished! Now all those projects that were cluttering up my armoir in various bags are contained in these cute little boxes.

Oh - almost forgot...Dee Dee at Dee Dee Quilts showed these cute little panels on her blog and offered to send them to anyone who wanted them. I asked for one.  It measures about 22"x23".

Why give them away?  You can see the ABC's but what you cannot see is that the picture labels are in Italian!  

One more thing....I bought another stackable organizer at Joann's for my perle cotton.  Isn't it cute?






Okay - two more things...must share this link with you about cleaning your sewing machine.  Don't use canned air!!!  My mom uses this vacuum attachment.



To the numbers...
Used this week: 1.00
Used year to date: 2.15
Added this week: 2.25
Added year to date: 2.25
Net used for 2012: -0.10


Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports.


Have a great week!!