tractor

tractor
At Plum Loco Ranch, Door County, WI.

Sunday, September 29, 2013

A finish! (Stash Report Week 39)


DSC03439Geesh - what took me so long?!

All I had to do was measure, trim batting and backing, and press the backing to the front and the binding is done.  This poor ol' thing has been sitting around forever.

Unlike lots of quilts, this one looks better in the photo than it does in person.  It will definitely be a picnic or game quilt.  A finish is a finish and my used numbers reeeeaal-llly needed a boost.  It measures 81x81 so that's 16.313 yards out (7.25 yds backing,  9.06 front scraps (backing x 1.25).


UntitledThe yardage for my Star Surround QAL pillow tops is already in the "used" column.  Last night, while DH and DS were camping with the cub scouts, I finally finished binding them.

I had thoughts of getting all kinds of sewing done but then I realized that I was tired. The house was so quiet.  I had to stream Foyle's War from last week - love that show and abhor interruptions when I'm watching some quality television, since it is such a rarity these days.

Before enjoying the house to myself, which has not happened in 6 years btw, quilty friend Karen and I went to a local quilt show, a halloween shop, and out to dinner.  What fun to have adult female conversation and to have someone cook a meal and wait on me!

And, the temps are back to normal after a bit of rain overnight, but not so much to make the campers miserable.  I can't wait to put on a pair of jeans and a jacket!

What made you smile this week?

Used this week: 16.313
Used YTD: 91.348
Added this week: 0
Gifted this week: 0
Added YTD: 100.25
Net used YTD: -8.902

Check out some more stash reports at Judy's Patchwork Times.


Have a great week!

Monday, September 23, 2013

Stash report week 38 - late again!

Our weather was so lovely this weekend - I didn't sew a stitch!  Although, I did buy fabric for Easy Street's border.

Easy St border fabric

What do you think?  Shall I put in a teeny white border between the green and the red?

Quilty friend Charla shared some of her accidental Paper Pieces purchase with me.  The white piece is a 3/4" hexie and the tan piece is a 1/4" hexies - tiiiiiiiiny!

Untitled

I tried using thread to baste a few but that didn't work.  The glue pen is perfect and now I'll be saving even smaller pieces of scraps!

Used this week: 0
Used YTD: 75.035
Added this week: 1.5
Gifted this week:
Added YTD: 100.25
Net used YTD: -25.215

Check out some more stash reports at Judy's Patchwork Times.


Have a great week!

Friday, September 20, 2013

WooHoo - A Top Together!


What a sense of accomplishment!  All the Easy Street blocks are together and WOW! what a feeling!

DSC03429
The best I an do without another pair of hands.


All those little pieces matched up so well.  Once I started, I had to see it in one piece.

Now to decide on borders.  Since my greens don't contrast much against the teal plaid, a green border might help bring them out a tad more.

Head over to Confessions of a Fabric Addict for more finishes.

Have a great weekend!!

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Little by little (stash report week 37)

Yup - little by little this week some of my quilting mojo returned, with effort.  DH came home from work early on Thursday and I descended the stairs to the sewing corner in hopes of not being disturbed after a few false starts, courtesy of the kids out of school early that day.  Then, I continued after dinner.

I decided that I just had to finish my pillow tops for the Star Surround QAL. We're supposed to link up tomorrow.  Sometimes a deadline is what I need.  Otherwise, who cares when/if these UFOs get done, right?


star surround QAL pillows

Sew, I squared, sandwiched, and FM quilted.  I try to do the "fancy" stuff but  find that I do lines better than anything else and they enhanced the stars.  I really don't like my meandering but I did it as a filler on the edges.

I put in the hidden zippers (sew easy with this tut) and put the pillows together using every last bit of that yard of brown background.  Today I will bind them (check out this tut from Jaybird) and they will be done.  Binding a pillow adds a bit of pizzazz.




This weekend our quilty friends had a retreat at Gateway Quilts and Stuff Retreat Center, run by designer Toby Lischko.  I opted to only spend the day yesterday and have two fabulous meals cooked by Toby.  She even bakes fresh bread for guests - yum!

Toby gave us each a FQ at our meals yesterday. And, I raided her scrap bin.  Luckily, Joyce wanted some I Spy fabrics so I had a mission other than stash enhancing while digging through the goodies.




While there I managed to finish my Easy Street blocks - WooHoo!  I've been looking forward to finishing this one.
Easy street block collage
It's the most tedious quilt I've ever done with all those pieces!  And, I've been anxious to see how my colors work out and to decide what, if anything, to do about borders.  This UFO may not stay in pieces long, it just may get bumped to the front of the line.

Used this week: 1.75
Used YTD: 75.035
Added this week: 0
Gifted this week: 0.75
Added YTD: 98.75
Net used YTD: -23.715

Check out some more stash reports at Judy's Patchwork Times.


Here's an article from the UK that confirms what we all know about the benefits of quilting.

Have a great week!

Monday, September 9, 2013

What a funk! (stash report week 36)


Untitled
Flickr Low Volume swap (16 F8s)


A funk!

That's the only thing that describes my attitude these days, especially to my fabric and projects.

Can you believe that I received 5 yards of swap fabric this these past two weeks and didn't feel the thrill of having new fabric in the house?










Untitled
Flickr Writing Surface swap (24 F8s)

I didn't even rush into the house and open the packages!  One sat on a table for about an hour!

Aye, aye, aye - what's wrong with me?  Hopefully, this too shall pass.







In trying rid myself of the "blahhs," I decided to give this mega card wallet a try. It holds 38 cards!

Sew Can She has a daily newsletter and an archive of free pattern links.  The instructions were easy and after cutting it and pressing the pieces, it went together quickly.

Mega card wallet

However, I would suggest having a credit card ready to make sure all the spaces are the right size.  So glad I thought to do this before stitching - wheww!

So, to the numbers that definitely need a finish:

Used this week: 0.375
Used YTD: 73.285
Added this week: 5 (swaps in)
Gifted this week: 0
Added YTD: 98
Net used YTD: -24.715

Check out some more stash reports at Judy's Patchwork Times.


Have a great week!