Monday, September 27, 2021

Make-A-List Monday - Chugging Right Along!

Hi, all!

Welcome to a new week!  Fall seems to be flirting with us as the leaves on the trees try on little hints of color and the weather gets cooler.  My favorite season!  Plus fall and winter just seem to be made for quilting, don't they?  And I've definitely been doing some of that this week.  So let's see how last week's list went...
 

1.  Make a back for the hockey quilt.
Done, but no picture - it's just a plain old back!

2.  Quilt at least one of the grands' annual quilts.
Done - and not just one, but two!  AND I made bonus pillowcases out of the leftover quilt backing!



3.  Work on some fun Christmas pillow covers.
This is in progress.  Lilli and I did some seam ripping and pressing to get the blocks ready to become pillow covers, but that's as far as I got.

4.  Lay out and assemble the blocks from my vacation quilt.
Lilli and I laid out the entire quilt last week, and then stacked it in numbered columns - and I got half of the quilt assembled too!  I will be quilting this in halves, then joining the two together - a work-around because my quilt frame isn't large enough for the whole quilt!


5.  Make a few more blocks for my Endless Summer lap quilt.
I did sort through these blocks and take a count, but didn't make any more.  For some reason I had originally planned to make a king size version of this quilt (what was I thinking???) and I only have 25 blocks made so far.  I think I'm going to regroup and make a nice lap size quilt, which will only require another 39 blocks.  Much more manageable!

But don't think I was just lazing around when I wasn't working on those Endless Summer blocks - I was chasing squirrels!


I saw this quilt in the most recent BLOCK magazine, and it's been screaming at me to be made ever since.  So I decided I deserved a little squirrel time!  I already had all the fabric you see, so it was also a stash buster.  Win/win!!

So a good week, all in all!  I had a wonderful time working on finishing things up, and look forward to doing some more this week.  Here's what I'm hoping to get done....

1.  Quilt the hockey quilt.

2.  Assemble the second half of my vacation quilt.

3.  Work on the Christmas pillow covers.

4.  Make some Endless Summer blocks.

5.  Quilt the cat wall hanging.

If I get all of this done, I'll just keep plugging along on the WIPs-B-Gone list - there's plenty of fun things to do there!

So now, I only have one burning question - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Friday, September 24, 2021

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Well Begun Is Half Done...


 Hi, all!

Well, it's official - it's now less than 100 days until the end of 2021!  After today, there are only fourteen more Fridays left in the year.  Hard to believe, isn't it?  This year seems to have flown by - but there's still time to get our whoop whoop on!  So let's get started...

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

You may have read earlier that I am participating in the WIPs-B-Gone 2021 100 day challenge hosted by Leanne (@devotedquilter) on Instagram.  Well, here's my pile of WIPs that I'm hoping to bust through by New Year's Eve...


Right now, there are twelve items on my list of WIPs (although I may add some more as we go along) and Thursday, the first day of the challenge, I finished two of them!


This is Nathanael's annual quilt for 2021, along with a bonus pillowcase I made from the leftovers of the quilt backing.


And here's Emmalyn's annual quilt, along with a bonus pillowcase also made from her quilt backing!  

And before you start thinking "over-achiever!" please know that I spent last week getting my ducks in a row - being sure I had backing material for all the quilt tops I hope to finish, making and pressing the backing so it was ready to go on the quilt frame as soon as the challenge started.  These two were the quickest and easiest to do, so I knocked them out first.  Because, after all, "Well begun is half done"! 

I feel like I've made a good start on the challenge...

So... can I get a whoop whoop?

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

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


Monday, September 20, 2021

Make-A-List Monday - Planning For The Next 100 Days!



Hi, all!

It's a good thing rainy days and Mondays don't really get me down, because it's been raining here for three straight days!  As we watched the TN Titans play in Seattle on Sunday, the sportscasters commented on how unbelievably nice the weather was there - while we suffered through Seattle-like rain all day.  I'll be glad when this system passes through!  We're supposed to have beautiful fall-like weather then for a week or two, which would be really nice.  I am so ready!  How about you?

Last week was a very good week on the quilting front - let's see how it went....

1.  Re-assemble the vintage top and add a border.
2.  Quilt and bind that vintage top.
Done!  This quilt is ready to go to its owner!


3.  Quilt a quilt that will be a farewell gift for someone at church.
Done!  


4.  Keep piecing the hockey quilt.
Done!  And I mean really done - the top is finished!


5.  Bind two ministry quilts.
Done - but alas, no picture!

And with the completion of numbers 1, 2, and 3 on that list, I have finished all of my obligations and can work on what I want for the rest of the year!  I've decided to join in Leanne's (@devoted quilter) WIP challenge, devoting the next 100 days to finishing up my WIPS.  So mostly, my weekly lists will be geared towards that.  Here's what I'll be working on this week...

1.  Make a back for the hockey quilt.

2.  Quilt at least one of the grands' annual quilts.

3.  Work on some fun Christmas pillow covers.

4.  Lay out and assemble the blocks from my vacation quilt.

5.  Make a few more blocks for my Endless Summer lap quilt.

It's fun to think of what I have to work on - I had  bunch that were top of mind (the annual quilts) but when I started digging I found several that I had forgotten about.  Some just need quilting, others need more blocks pieced to move them along, so I'll probably be working on blocks some weeks in between other stuff so I don't get bored with the block-making.  That's usually what stalls a quilt for me.  And in the interest of keeping myself accountable, here's my list of goals for the last 100 days of the year....


It will be interesting to see how much of this list I can finish (and if I end up starting any new quilts at the same time!)

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

Hugs!

Sarah

Friday, September 17, 2021

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Vintage Beauty Restored!

 

Hi, all!

Friday, and the month already more than half gone - how time does fly!  But Friday means that it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on, so I hope you're ready.  Let's get started!

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

A long while back, a friend at church brought me three vintage quilt tops and asked me if I could quilt them for her.  Two were fairly simple jobs, but the third was more challenging...

There were some areas in the sashing that had serious staining - you can see one at the bottom left and there was another one on the top right.  The fabric was feed sacking and I didn't have anything remotely similar to replace it with.  But looking at the layout of the quilt, you can see that the three strips of blocks are each three blocks plus a half block.  I decided to take the top apart and cut it down in size, eliminating the half blocks and laying it out in a three by three grid.  By doing that, I was able to use one of the clean eliminated sashing to replace the stained one, and the other was completely cut off in the remake.


The original outer border fabric was too flimsy and worn to re-use, so I found a copper colored cotton in my stash to replace it with. I actually think this color works better than the original!  (PS the quilt really is square - it looks like it isn't because I had to manipulate the photo to "square up" the picture.)


And now it's all finished - quilted and bound!  I thought it looked particularly nice here beside some of my vintage machines, too.  It's my last commission job for 2021, and now I can work on some "me projects" - or at least fun stuff!

And that leads me to my next whoop whoop - I've finished up that last commission just in time to start something fun...



Leanne, also known as @devotedquilter on Instagram, is hosting a 100 day WIP (works in progress) finishing challenge!  I have lots of projects that need finishing, and this will give me just the little extra encouragement I need to really plow through them. The challenge starts on 9/23, so there's still time to join in the fun.  Won't you join me?  It would be a great way to finish up some Christmas gifts, you know?  And as an added incentive, there are prizes!  

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

&*&*&*&*&*&*

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 then!

Hugs!

Sarah


Monday, September 13, 2021

Make-A-List Monday - Light At The End of That Tunnel!

Hi, all!

Monday is here once again (and thankfully my time sense is back on straight so I KNOW it's Monday!) and that means it's time for a little list-making!  But first let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Quilt the three memory quilts.
Done!  I'm so glad to have these finished! 


2.  Ship my friend's quilts to her.
Done!  She's already received them and sent me a picture of one of them on the bed!


3.  Finish piecing the hockey quilt.
Not finished, but progress made...


4.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.
Again, not finished, but ready to be re-assembled!


5.  Pack up the three memory quilts for shipping.
Packed up and shipped! They should arrive at their 
forever home on Thursday.  


A good week, yes?  And I have almost finished with all my commission obligations, too.  Once that vintage top is repaired and quilted, I will not have any more commissions and won't be taking any more until at least next year.  I've decided I want to make up some of the projects I've had sitting around for fear too long!  It's exciting - now I just have to decide which comes first....

So here's my list for this week...

1.  Re-assemble the vintage top and add a border.

2.  Quilt and bind that vintage top.

3.  Quilt a quilt that will be a farewell gift for someone at church.

4.  Keep piecing the hockey quilt.

5.  Bind two ministry quilts.

I'm going to leave it at that this week, in hopes of getting everything on this list finished.  And then I can play!!!

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

Hugs!

Sarah

Friday, September 10, 2021

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Finishes and Near-Finishes!

 

Hi, all!

It's been a fast week, but guess what?  It's Friday!  And that means it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on!  Are you ready?  Let's go!

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

It's been a good and productive week around here!  When the world goes crazy, sometimes sewing is the only way to deal with it - and that's good for productivity.

Tuesday I quilted this beauty, and put the binding on too!


Wednesday morning it joined this beauty in a great big box and went to UPS!  It's winging its way to Florida and my friend as we speak!


And Thursday was a big day, too, as I finished quilting all three of these memory quilts!  Binding should happen on Friday, with any luck.

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

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


Tuesday, September 7, 2021

Make-a-List Monday - Wait, What? Tuesday?

Hi, all!

Whoops!  Holiday weekends always mess up my internal blogging calendar - I completely forgot yesterday was Monday!  My husband and I spent a lot of time this past weekend cleaning out and organizing the garage in hopes of getting at least one car in it this winter so I didn't get much done on my list after Friday morning, but let's see how it went...
 

1.  Make a back for Nathanael's quilt.
Done!  No picture, but I found a great blue and green sea turtle print that looks perfect with it!

2.  Make a back for a friend's quilt.
3.  Load that quilt on the frame and get'r done!
Done!  I'm happy to say that this quilt...


...is going to join this one....


...in a big box headed to Florida!  They are long past due but I hope my friend loves them as much as I loved working on them!

4.  Load up the memory quilts backing on the frame and start quilting them.  
I did get the backing loaded on the frame and the first quilt is pinned on and ready to go, but I didn't get any further this week.


5.  Start cutting and piecing a Christmas gift quilt.
Started!  I can't show this one on Instagram, but I'm fairly sure the recipient doesn't read my blog, so I'll show peeks here.  I've gotten further than this, but it's the only picture I had on my phone.  I'm past the tough part of this pattern, so the rest should go together pretty quickly.


6.  Find and make a back for Emmy's quilt.
Done!  No picture of this one either, but I found the perfect print - rainbows and unicorns on bright pink!  

7.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.
I didn't get to this one at all.

So actually, not a bad week considering I didn't do much at all (quilting-wise) over the four-day weekend!  But my road for this week is pretty clear, so here's what I'm planning to get done...

1.  Quilt the three memory quilts.

2.  Ship my friend's quilts to her.

3.  Finish piecing the hockey quilt.

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

5.  Pack up the three memory quilts for shipping.

I'm going to keep this list short and sweet and hopefully will get to everything on it!  It would be really nice to report back that I not only finished the list, but did some extra stuff too.  We shall see!

And now the big question is - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Friday, September 3, 2021

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? A Finish, and Progress!

 

Hi, all!

I know it's hard to believe, but it's September!  This year is just whipping along, isn't it?  Now's the time, though, when we'll all start having some finishes - some we can share, some we can't - but we can all cheer each other on as we work!  So gather up your whoop-whoop-worthy stuff and let's get started!

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

Well, it's been a couple of busy weeks around here, and I've finally got my sew-jo back, which means that things are moving right along on the quilting front.  First of all, here's the finish...

Remember when my friend moved and gave me a lot of her quilting supplies? Well, the deal was that in return I would finish two quilts she had started for her.  This is the first of those quilts, and it is ready to go, just waiting for me to quilt the second quilt so I can ship them off together.  

And then I finished piecing Emmy's annual quilt top.  I've also found a great back for this quilt, and it's ready to go on the frame soon.


And I've made a good start on this, another pattern by Lorna at Sew Fresh Quilts (so is the unicorn, by the way).  This one is a little more complicated so I'm moving slower on it, but I'm still having fun!

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

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