Make-A-List Monday - Where Did My Week Go?

Hi, all!

Wow!  Where did last week go?  I sat down to look at last week's list, and oh the shame - - - I got so distracted by this...

...that I completely lost sight of many of the things on my list!!  So let's get down to it and see just how badly I did....

1.  Finish the placemats.

Hooray!  I did do this one!  I'm really happy with the way these turned out, and will probably make more like them in the future.

...the fronts...

...and the backs.

2.  Test a pattern for the secret project.

Well, I've done a few of these.  Let's start with the first one - the math challenge!  I wanted to work out a pattern for a circular table topper, and created a 12-blade pieced top.  Cut out all the pieces, put them together, and took it into the den to lay it out on the floor, hoping against hope that it would lay flat.

Crud.  Volcano in the middle.  Back to the drawing board...  I took it back to the studio, started taking it apart and cleaning up each blade, trimming the angles to exactly 30 degrees.  Then I looked over in the corner of the studio...

What!  There's another blade on the fan by my design wall!!! I went back and looked at the picture of the "volcano" and realize that there are only eleven blades in that circle.  Duh!  Talk about a dumb mistake!  But I went ahead and cleaned up all the blade angles and put it back together, and now it lays beautifully flat!  

This pattern test will be turned into a tree skirt, since I had Christmas fabric on hand to make it with and I can always use a pretty tree skirt!

And then I tested this block - I haven't done much curve sewing before, so I wanted to be sure that it wouldn't be too annoying before I committed to a design for a full quilt.  I'm happy to say these worked up really easily and I'm definitely going to make a quilt using this design!

3.  Keep hunting for inspiration and ideas for that secret project!

Oh my - it's a good thing I need to start sewing instead of looking - because I keep finding more great ideas!  I can't wait to share it all with you....

4.  Finish the blocks for the ministry member's quilt.

Didn't even touch these - and I really must get to work on these.

5.  Start deconstructing t-shirts for the next two commission quilts.

This one hit the back burner for a couple of weeks while I work on the secret project.

6.  If time permits, quilt one last H2H quilt for Covered in Love!

Nope.  I'm so ashamed... I really should have taken the time to get this on the frame and quilted.

7.  Review the comments on Rachel's blogpost.

I'm in the process of reading these a little each night and processing all the information in them.  It's fascinating reading!  I'm hoping it will make me a better and more responsible blogger.

8.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that come up.

It was a very easy week - only one quilt.  It always seems like the end of summer gets a little easier, then it will pick back up as the fall begins.  

This beautiful quilt is going to a woman dealing with cancer while working and taking care of her family.  Her friend told us she never asks for anything or complains, and she wanted her to have a quilt to let her know that people were praying for her.

So I didn't do so well on the list, but I did do a few other things during the week - like the wedding shower for my friend Grace, who really loved her quilt...

...and because there was such a lovely response to my Whoop Whoop Friday post about this quilt, I wrote and posted a tutorial for this Postage Stamp quilt on Sunday.  I don't think people believed me that it was quick and easy - but now they can make their own!

And I'm trying to get back in the regular swing of the I May Have A Scrap Problem posts, too.  Fortunately, I've got some scrappy projects this month that will do double duty, getting work done on them and providing blog fodder!

 I had a light bulb moment when trying to figure out how to audition fabrics for a block without actually cutting the fabrics first - I put the fabrics on my color inkjet printer/copier for life-size color representations of the prints that I could cut up and arrange to see exactly what my blocks would look like in the fabrics!  What a stress reliever!!

And I've been playing with one of the kids' toys - these geometrically shaped pieces are great for planning out millefiori designs!

So, I haven't been twiddling my thumbs this week, but I do need to get back on track.  Here's the list for this week!

1.  Keep working on the secret projects.

2.  And just so there's pictures to show next week, work on the string blocks for the ministry member's quilt.

3.  Quilt that last top for Covered in Love.

4.  Start deconstructing the t-shirts for the commission quilts.

5.  Cut down t-shirt backs into usable blocks (for this week's scrap post?)

6.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that come up.

I'm afraid the secret project is going to take up a lot of time for the next few weeks, but aiming for balance, I'll be working on some other things at the same time.  And I think it's time to dust off Jolene and give her a workout - she coughed at me today and asked if I was ever going to play with her again!  School is back in session for the grandkids, so life should get back to a more normal flow.  Here's hoping!

So now, the question is - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Don't you hate secrets?