Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? Comfort Sewing For The Win!

 

Hi, all!

Friday has rolled around once again, and it's been another wild and turbulent week, hasn't it?  I don't know about you, but I've been indulging in "comfort sewing" as a way to cope with everything that's going on.  I hope, if you have, you will join in today's whoop whoop session so we can all boost each other up a little bit. That's important in times like these!  So let's get started...

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As I told you, I've been indulging in comfort sewing. That's been a good thing, because I've been ripping through the prototypes for the String Therapy tutorial series that comes up later this month.  Since I last posted, I finished this one...

Hard to believe, but that quilt top came out of strips contained in the plastic storage bin at the upper right of this picture. And it wasn't even full!  It always amazes me how far those scraps will go.

Thursday I grabbed my tub of Kate Spain Latitude batik scraps, and started cutting strips for the next (and final!) quilt.

And here's my progress so far on that one - about 1/3 of the way to finished.  I've still got a ways to go!  But I'm so excited that this is the last one, and I can start writing the tutorials soon!

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share! We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

I May Have a Scrap Problem... But I Am DEFINITELY Working On It!

 

Hi, all!

Well, strange times call for drastic actions - and I have been plowing through scraps like crazy!  Since last Wednesday, I completed the blue string top, which I named "Georgia on My Mind"...

...went on to make this top, utilizing some old string blocks that had been gathering dust for way too long....

...and today I finished all the pieces for this string top!  It is totally appalling to me that it only took the contents of one small tub of strings to make this quilt.  How is that possible? At this rate, I will never plow through all my scraps!

So there's a good bit of scrap-busting going on around here.  It's better than eating your feelings, right?  So I fully anticipate that this trend will continue for the next week or so.  We shall see!

And just in case strings aren't your thing, take a look at some of the beautiful inspiration I found on Instagram this week!

Isn't that a fabulous use of scraps?  Total improv.  It just makes me smile!

This is such a simple block, but it is certainly making a joyful quilt!

This is a fun way to use up left over triangles - one corner of a white square instead of two, and it gives a cool bit of movement to the quilt!

Technically, this isn't a pic of a scrap quilt - it's a design for Sweetwater's new Christmas line, I believe - but wouldn't it be a great way to use up scraps AND work in a leftover piece of needlework or a panel piece?

And finally, this lovely bit of scrappiness that is a great example of gradation!

So now, my fellow scrap hoarders - - - go forth and sew!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - What a Week!

Hi, all!

Well, it has been a week, hasn't it?  I have to say that most of my plans went out the window and I indulged in comfort sewing in response.  Isn't it wonderful that we have that option?  Sewing was definitely my therapy this week.  So let's see just how that week went....

1.  Put all the Christmas decorations back in the attic. 

Done!  All tucked away for another year...

Surprise! There really was a bed under there!

2.  Work on quilting some charity quilts.  

Didn't get to this.

3.  Contact potential H2H charities and sponsors.

Didn't get to this either, although I have added some new potential sponsors to my mental list.

4.  Work on the third quilt prototype for String Therapy.

Done!  I finished this top, which I named Georgia On My Mind...

And then I jumped right in and made this one!

And when I finished that one, I started this...

Told you I was doing comfort sewing last week!

5.  Contact some potential commission customers.

Done, and I even met with one who wants three memory quilts and two t-shirt quilts!  So now I have piles and piles of shirts in my studio awaiting the starting gun...

6.  Decide on colors/fabric for the Boho Heart quilt-along!  

Honestly, I haven't given this much more thought this week. I'm still leaning toward the Grunge bundle, though!

So while I didn't get everything done on my list, I did do a whole lot of sewing - at least I was productive!  I'm hoping to be a little more focused this week, although I'm not promising anything.  If things continue as they have been for the past week, it may be back to sewing!  But here's my list...

1.  Keeping working on the fifth String Therapy prototype.

2.  Write up estimates for the commission quilts.

3.  Contact potential H2H sponsors and charities.

4.  Quilt some tops for the quilt ministry.

5.  Start writing the String Therapy tutorials

6.  Update the H2H Page on my blog.

Here's hoping things start calming down this week - but if they don't, I've got plenty of scraps to keep me busy with comfort sewing!

Does anyone else feel like this?

And now, I really want to know - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Quilting Is The Best Therapy...

 

Hi, all!

It has been quite a week, hasn't it?  Sometimes, though, I find that sewing can help smooth over the rough edges of tumultuous times.  So lots of sewing got done here at my house this week!  And finding the joy in small things is always good, so let's do a little whooping!

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This week I have been working on the prototype quilts for this year's tutorial series, String Therapy.  On Monday, I started a new quilt, dipping into my blue string bin (which ranneth over), and by the Wednesday morning it was almost finished.  As I worked on the final piecing, I reflected on the Senate races in Georgia and realized that I was glad I was working on a blue quilt.  And the name of this quilt became clear in my mind....

Meet "Georgia On My Mind"!  

The completing of this quilt top helped calm my spirit as I disbelievingly watched the horrible events of later that day unfold.  I pressed the final seam in the top just as they were calling the second Senate race for Ossoff.  But it will forever reflect, for me, both emotions of that day.  Quilts are always more than just fabric, aren't they?

On a happier note, the line-up of prototype quilts is starting to fill up...

...with the next one on the wall, in progress! 

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends.

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

I May Have A Scrap Problem... But I'm In Therapy!

 

Hi, all!

Well, I didn't make "scrappy sewing" one of my New Year's Resolutions, but maybe I should have - because I have FINALLY been doing some fun scrappy sewing!

I'm working on the quilts for this year's tutorial series, String Therapy, so I grabbed my blue drawer of strings and a stack of white 5" squares that have been in my scrap drawer F.O.R.E.V.E.R.

This is the block I chose to make.  It's from a tutorial by Christina Cameli and wow is it a quick and easy scrap buster!  This first block went up on the wall Monday afternoon.....

...and by 4:00 on Tuesday afternoon, I had completed all the blocks for this quilt!  There's only one problem, though.....

There's still a LOT of strings left to go back into the blue drawer!  As someone else suggested, I think they replicate when you aren't looking!

This tutorial series will begin on either January 24th or January 31st - I haven't quite nailed the date down yet - and run through February and end right before the start of Hands2Help 2021.  If you want to start getting ready, I suggest organizing your strings so that they are ready to go.  Mine were all jumbled up in one tub, so I pressed my strings, folded them and sorted them by color. That worked for me, but may not work for you.  But however you organize them, it goes much faster if they are neat and ready to be used!

Now that you know what I've been working on, let me know - have you been plowing into your scraps?  Did you make any New Year's Resolutions about your scraps? Or are they just sitting there replicating themselves, unsupervised?

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Fresh Start in 2021!

 

Hi, all!

Welcome to the very first Make-A-List Monday of 2021!  I've got big plans for this year (don't we all, the first week of the year?) but I'm hoping I can keep on track with a little organization.  Here's some of the things I'm hoping to do this year...

Get an early start on H2H 2021

Quilt more charity quilts

Save my commission quilt $$ for a special purchase

Start planning early for the 12 Days of Christmas in July hop

Participate in the Boho Heart quilt-along

I'm sure there are other things I will work on during the year, but those are my primary goals.  With those things in mind, here's my list for this week...

1.  Put all the Christmas decorations back in the attic. Right now they are lounging in one of the guest rooms....

2.  Work on quilting some charity quilts.  I've been working on this already, with three under my belt this year...

All three of these were donated tops, simply waiting back at church for someone to quilt them.  Usually, when we receive a quilt top, we pair it up with a backing and binding, tie it up in a bundle and put it on the shelf so that when someone has time to quilt one, they don't have to waste time getting all the pieces together.  I have about six more that I brought from church, plus a box of tops that I received at my house recently.  The goal is to quilt at least five per week, which is do-able.

3.  Contact potential H2H charities and sponsors.  Yes, it's that time again!

4.  Work on the third quilt prototype for String Therapy.

5.  Contact some potential commission customers.

6.  Decide on colors/fabric for the Boho Heart quilt-along!  I'm so excited about this - I saw this quilt last year, but when I tried to find the pattern it appeared to only be sold in Australia.  Someone told me about the quilt-along that starts in February, though, and I started looking around and found it on Amazon!

I'm still not sure about fabric, only knowing that I don't particularly like the coloration of the one on the pattern.  I did find this pretty bundle of Grunge in my stash, though, and that's definitely a possibility!

So that's basically what I'm working on this week.  We are also trying to get back on the keto bandwagon (not easy after having jumped off wholeheartedly during the holidays!) so I'll be cooking more, and looking for some more good recipes.  Fortunately, we've found several we really like, and the air fryer and instant pot are my friends!  Tonight we had white chicken chili, made with riced cauliflower instead of beans, and cheddar bacon jalapeño chaffles.  It got the "really yummy" from my husband, so it will definitely stay on the regular rotation.  We are learning to love cauliflower - my mother definitely wouldn't believe it!

And now, I really want to know - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Goodbye 2020, Hello 2021!!

Hi, all!

Hello, and Happy New Year!!!  2020 is finally in the rear view mirror, and may 2021 be much less eventful and a lot more normal, right?  It's time for our first whoop-whoop Friday of the year, so let's start it off with a bang.  I'm sure you've got some secret sewing from the past month that you can share now! So let's get started...

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Here's my first whoop whoop - January 1st is a big day around our house - forty-two years ago today, my husband and I got married!  I don't know quite how it got to be 42 years - I'm certainly not old enough for that - but it is what it is.  I can't think of anything I'd rather have done for the past 42 years, so I'm looking forward to the next 42 also!  And I'm truly grateful that my husband bears with my hobbies/obsessions and because of that, I discovered quilting and blogging.  

So yesterday when I went up to my studio to figure out what I would be blogging about today, I found a cute quilt top that was donated to the quilt ministry.  Given its theme, it seemed an appropriate top to quilt and bind for the last finish of 2020!

2020 was a rather prickly year, but this sweet little quilt is soft and cuddly!

A pretty little piece of peach colored tone-on-tone was just perfect for the back.

And a bit of green from my stash made binding to finish it off!  I do love a pretty binding shot, don't you?

I don't recall who donated this adorable hedgehog, but I'm honored to have been able to finish it up.  This last quilt of 2020/first quilt of 2021 will find a good home providing comfort to a child sometime in the next few months, and I can't think of a better way to start a new year!

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's making you whoop it up this week?

What's got you doing a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah