Make-A-List Monday - Back in the Groove!

 

Hi, all!

After a tumultuous weekend for much of the South, Monday has finally arrived! If you were affected by Hurricane Ida, my thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.  The scenes we've been seeing on television of the storm damage have been horrific, and it looks like it will be a long time before things are back to normal.  We are now getting the first of the rain bands from Ida here in Tennessee, so we've got a couple of rainy days ahead of us, which means more quilting time!  I've got projects lined up and ready to go...

But first, let's se how last week's list went...

1.  Assemble Nathanael's annual quilt top.

Done!  And I found the perfect print for the back, too.

2.  Figure out why Jolene is skipping stitches, and quilt the top on the frame.

Done!  Turns out that the new needle I put in was bent and was causing her to skip.  After trying everything else, that was all that was left and as soon as I changed the needle, all was well!   And look how pretty the quilt turned out....

3.  Do some very cautious frog-stitching (rip-it, rip-it) on a vintage top to allow for some repair work.  (It takes a lot longer when you have to be really careful....)

Done!   I had to sit with the kids three mornings last week while each one had doctor's visits, and managed to finish deconstructing the quilt top just as Nancy got home with the last kid on Friday!  No pictures, though.  But I'll have pictures after the top is put back together... 

4.  Put out fall decorations on the front porch and around the house.

Done!  I really went all out on the front porch, using most of my stash of fall decorations.  Looks like I'll need to get some more!

5.  Start piecing Emmy's annual quilt.

Not only started, but finished!  Didn't this turn out cute?  I just love Lorna's (Sew Fresh Quilts) patterns!

So a good and productive week, all in all!  And lots to work on this week, too - here's what I'm hoping to get to next....

1.  Make a back for Nathanael's quilt.

2.  Make a back for a friend's quilt.

3.  Load that quilt on the frame and get'r done!

4.  Load up the memory quilts backing on the frame and start quilting them.  

5.  Start cutting and piecing a Christmas gift quilt.

6.  Find and make a back for Emmy's quilt.

7.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.

More than enough to keep me out of trouble, that's for sure!  I'm excited to get some of these obligations out of the way so I can work on some of the projects I've had on the back burner for way too long - my Christmas present to myself.  

And now I have one burning question - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Let's Hear It For Emily's New Book!

 

Hi, all!

Can you believe it's the last Friday in August already?  This year is just flying by - but Friday means that it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on, so I hope you're ready!  Let's go!

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As you all know, I may have a slight scrap problem.  After all, fabric is expensive, so we don't really want to throw even the leftovers away!  But mine are starting take over the studio...

...and I really need to find a way to use them - because they aren't doing anyone any good just stacked in bins!  Well, last week I was contacted by Emily Bailey of Em's Scrap Bag about her new book...

...and she wanted to know if I would be interested in reviewing her new book, Crumb Quilts, on my blog.  Well heck yeah!  I've known Emily for probably close to ten years.  I love her blog, and all of her scrappy endeavors, and her giving heart (she's the driving force behind Quilty Hugs for Happy Chemo, one of our annual charities for Hands2Help) so of course I was willing to help.

As you can tell by the title, this book deals with using crumbs - those bits and scraps, even the smallest ones, left when a quilting project is completed.  Using crumbs means that there's almost no waste involved, which is a great thing!  After all, with fabric costing upwards of $12 a yard sometimes, it doesn't take much in the way of scraps to add up to a good chunk of change.  If you don't believe me, take some of your scraps and weigh them.  A yard of fabric weighs about 5.3 ounces.  How many yards are in that pile of fabric?  See what I mean?

Emily's book has great instructions (with photographs) to show you how to create crumb "fabric", and then she shares fifteen projects to inspire you to make and use your own crumb fabric!  I mean, just look at that quilt above - doesn't it just sparkle?  And I have quite a stash of black and white fabrics just gathering dust.....

But when I saw this picture, I fell in love!  I'm not a huge fan of appliqué, but those leaves!  (Can you tell I'm in the mood for a little fall weather and changing leaves?)  So I looked further on in the book to see what the whole quilt looked like...

...and wow, it didn't disappoint!  I'm definitely adding this quilt to my future sewing plans.  What a scrap buster!

So I think it's easy to see that I really....

...this book!   Small projects, big projects, there's something for everyone - because hey, we all have scraps, don't we?  Emily's book will be released on September 14, 2021, but you can pre-order it right now on Amazon and if the price drops, they'll adjust your charge accordingly.  And then you too can enjoy this beautiful book and use up those scraps!

So let's give Emily a big whoop whoop for a job well done!

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

Make-A-List Monday - Getting Back To Normal!

 

Hi, all!

It's Monday, and I'm actually starting to feel my sew-jo coming back!  I made progress on some things last week, and it feels so good - and I actually want to work on more stuff this week.  So let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Finish the borders on the third memory quilt.

Done!  I love these three quilts and how each is similar, but not exactly alike.  

2.  Make the backs for those three quilts.

Done!  I didn't get a separate picture, but the backs are that blue fabric on the left side of this picture.

I had some leftover pieces from the shirts that I sewed together into a 7" wide strip of pieces.  I cut that strip into three sections 2.5" wide, then sewed it between lengths of backing fabric.  I made one REALLY  long back that I will load onto the frame all at once, allowing me to quilt all three quilts one after the other without having to reload the frame every time.  I've done this before with kids' quilts - should be interesting to see if it works well with larger ones!

3.  Make the back for Lilli's annual quilt.

Done - although I don't have a picture yet.  

4.  Start working on the half-square triangles for Nathanael's annual quilt.

And here's where my sew-jo started coming back!  I went from a pile of sewn squares...

...to a pretty bunch of trimmed HSTs...

...to a whole quilt laid out on the design wall!  I had hoped to get it sewn together today, but didn't have time.  With luck, that will happen tomorrow!

5.  Have a baking day/Spanish lesson day with Lilli.

Done!  This girl is growing up so fast - and I love spending time with her!

And look what we made!  (Actually she made them while I drilled her on the Spanish words for all the ingredients...)  I just had one while writing this post and they are still yummy, but almost gone.  Maybe we should make some more tomorrow!

It was a very good week!  Now if I can just keep that sew-jo in place, despite a very different situation this week.  All three grandkids have their annual doctor visits this week, each one on a different day, and I'm babysitting with the two who aren't going to the doctor that day for a few hours in the morning.  So less time than usual on the sewing machine, but I have other things I can work on while I'm there.  So here's what I'm hoping to get done this week...

1.  Assemble Nathanael's annual quilt top.

2.  Figure out why Jolene is skipping stitches, and quilt the top on the frame.

3.  Do some very cautious frog-stitching (rip-it, rip-it) on a vintage top to allow for some repair work.  (It takes a lot longer when you have to be really careful....)

4.  Put out fall decorations on the front porch and around the house.

5.  Start piecing Emmy's annual quilt.

I don't know if I'll be able to get to all of this, but it's a good place to start!

And a funny story - when I took out the vintage top to work on at my daughter's house this morning, Emmy asked me if I was working on "another quilt".  I told her "always" and that actually I had about five quilts in progress right now - the memory quilts, the one on the frame, Nathanael's quilt, her quilt, and one for her dad (oops, that's actually seven, eight counting the vintage top!)  She looked at me and very seriously said, "Nana, maybe you should just work on one at a time!"  But I explained to her that because I had been going through a time when I didn't really feel like sewing, but needed to, that having several projects going at once meant that I could switch off when I lost the will to work on the current project.  She just looked at me and shook her head!  But Lilli, my granddaughter who always has several books going at once, totally understood.  It's all a matter of perspective!

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

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? Progress is Progress!

 

Hi, all!

Have you had a great week?  I hope so - because it's Friday, and that means it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on!  If you're anything like me, finishes are few and far between lately, but I've got some progress I'm whooping about - maybe you do too?  Let's get started!

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Well, as I said, I've not had much success with finishes this week - my sew-jo is still MIA - but I did move some things along a bit!

There's a lot going on in this picture - I loaded a friend's quilt on the frame, which is the obvious part.  But in the background you can see, on the far right, the three finished memory quilt tops.  To the left of them, you can see the backing I made for those quilts, so they are ready for quilting too!

Then I decided a little mindless sewing was in order, so I sewed up a mess of half square triangles for Nathanael's annual quilt!

I also got to spend some quality time with this kid this week - she did her home-schooling lessons at my place, and once she finished we did some work in the studio, then moved to the kitchen.....

...and made some delicious chocolate chip cookies!  It's pretty bad when she's got the recipe memorized, but they are so good!

All in all, a pretty good week!  Lots of progress AND cookies!

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

Make-a-List Monday - Nope, Still AWOL!

 

Hi, all!

Well, it's official - my sew-jo is still AWOL!  But it's Monday, and that means it's time to look back at last week and take stock, and then look at the week ahead and make plans.  So let's get started with a look at last week's list...

1.  Have a friend over for a long arm "teaching day".

Done, and we had a lot of fun!  And in the process, we quilted this large quilt and put the binding on the smaller one.  And I actually put the binding on the larger one by the end of the week....

2.  Cut out another annual quilt.

Done!  No pictures, but I cut out all the pieces for Nathanael's annual quilt, which will be another version of my Supernova pattern.

3.  Start working on the second memory quilt.

I finished the second memory quilt top.... 

and I started on the third memory quilt top, too!  Made a big booboo when I started putting on the borders, though, and had to do some major ripping.  It kind of put me off wanting to sew....

4.  Begin planning repairs on a vintage top.

Didn't get to this one...

5.  Quilt a top for a patient friend.

...or to this one.

My border mess-up really threw a monkey wrench in the works - I was going pretty well before that!  But I'll get back on the horse tomorrow and finish that third top.  After all, tomorrow is another day!

So here's what I'm hoping to accomplish this week...

1.  Finish the borders on the third memory quilt.

2.  Make the backs for those three quilts.

3.  Make the back for Lilli's annual quilt.

4.  Start working on the half-square triangles for Nathanael's annual quilt.

5.  Have a baking day/Spanish lesson day with Lilli.

I'm looking forward to that last one - since Lilli is home-schooling, we get to go at her lessons in some unusual ways.  She wants to make chocolate chip cookies (and we NEED more chocolate chip cookies!) so I've looked up all the Spanish words for the ingredients and the actions we'll be doing.  It will be interesting to see if we can figure it all out in Spanish!

So now I really need to know - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? A Fun And Fruitful Day....

 

Hi, all!

Friday has rolled around once more, and we all know what that means - it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on!!  I hope you're ready - just remember, it doesn't necessarily mean a finish, just something that you're doing a little happy dance about.  And I hope everyone has had something to whoop about this week!  So let's get started...

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Thursday was a good day in my studio!  A friend of mine who recently got a long arm machine came over and I gave her some tips for quilting, since she hasn't been able to attend any classes yet due to COVID.  She's a member of the quilt ministry, and had been quilting on our machine at church for a while, so she knew some things, but I was able to show her some new tricks, too.  We also went over how to machine bind at the same time...

And this is what we ended up with at the end of the morning - a quilted top for the quilt ministry and a finished baby quilt too!  Piper has a better idea of some simple tricks that will make her quilting go faster and easier, and we had a most excellent time talking, too!  

And then, after Piper left to pick up her kids from school, I finished the second memory quilt top.  Two down, one to go!

All in all, a good day and a good week!

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

Make-A-List Monday - Phil, Where Are You?

 

Hi, all!

Welcome to a brand new week!  Here's hoping my sew-jo has come back (I'm not sure yet, but keeping my fingers crossed!) and it will be more productive than the last one.  So let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Quilt at least three quilt ministry quilts, then bind and wash.

I didn't quilt any, but I did bind and wash seven quilts for the quilt ministry...

With the addition of these quilts, we have a sufficient amount of quilts on hand for immediate needs that we can slow down a bit on quilting.  Hooray!

2.  Complete at least one memory quilt top.

Done!  I am really liking this design, and look forward to finishing the other two.

3.  Cut out at least one annual quilt.

Done!  I finished cutting out Emmy's quilt (man, that unicorn has a lot of little pieces!)

4.  Begin planning repairs on a vintage top.

I didn't get to this one...

5.  Quilt a top for a patient friend.

...or to this one.  Come back, sew-jo!!

So I did manage to get some things done, but still left a lot of work on the table.  Which should make this week's list a little easier to compose!  Here's what I'm working on this week...

1.  Have a friend over for a long arm "teaching day".

2.  Cut out another annual quilt.

3.  Start working on the second memory quilt.

4.  Begin planning repairs on a vintage top.

5.  Quilt a top for a patient friend.

I'm going to leave it at that, and hope it doesn't scare my sew-jo back into hiding.  Maybe I should call it Phil (as in Punxatawney Phil) since it seems to hide every time it sees its shadow!

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

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Or Maybe Just My Sew-Jo....

 Hi, all!

Wow, it's Friday already!  This week flew by, and I don't have a lot to show for it.  So I'm counting on you all to share your whoop-worthy moments (maybe it will make my sew-jo feel guilty and show back up!) So are you ready?  Let's get started!

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As I said, my sew-jo just got up and moved out on me this week.  I couldn't get motivated to sew, but I did put the binding on a bunch of quilts for the quilt ministry....

...so I did battle through some of it.  The struggle is real, y'all!  Of course, it probably didn't help that I had a really good book to read...

And while I was sitting out on the porch reading, I notice that I had a beautiful visitor at my butterfly bush!  He obligingly sat still long enough for me to take a picture.  There were lots of bees, too, but they weren't as accommodating.  

So - - - if you see my sew-jo, could you please send her home?

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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

Make-A-List Monday - And They Just Keep Crankin' Out....

 Hi, all!

Is it as hot where you are as it is here?  Whew, it's been a scorcher over the past week, with ridiculous humidity levels that make it really easy to stay inside.  Unfortunately, my sew-jo seemed to go into hiding so I didn't get as much done as I'd have liked, but I still had a respectable week.  Let's take a look at last week's list...

1.  Bind five quilts for the quilt ministry.

Done - and I've actually put binding on six more too!  We'll get that stash built back up soon at this rate.

2.  Work on three commission memory quilts.

Started! I have all the HSTs made, the center of one top assembled, and three of the four borders for that quilt have been cut.  I'm a little nervous about the last one, as it needs to be railroaded (cut along the length of the fabric rather than across it) and then the corners matched and mitered.  Wish me luck!

3.  Order any needed materials for this year's annual quilts.

Done!  I picked up a couple of pieces at Joann's, and then ordered the balance online.  I'm excited to get started on them!

4.  Get Jolene back up and running (she decided to take a few spa days right in the middle of a quilting marathon, but Joe will be here this week to get her all fixed up!)

Hooray for Joe!  He fixed her, even though it ended up being major work instead of just a spa day.  I hope you're blessed with a great repairman like I am!

(Oops overnight break here as I fell asleep while writing....)

OK - so here's what I'll be working on this week...

1.  Quilt at least three quilt ministry quilts, then bind and wash.

2.  Complete at least one memory quilt top.

3.  Cut out at least one annual quilt.

4.  Begin planning repairs on a vintage top.

5.  Quilt a top for a patient friend.

There's so much more I could add to this list, but I'll stop there.  I'm looking forward to wiping some long-standing obligations off the list in the next few weeks, with any luck.  

So now my only question is - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah