I May Have A Scrap Problem... A Challenge For You!

Hi, all!

Well, Wednesday has rolled around, and I'm up to my armpits in alligators - but I didn't want to let the day pass by without a scrappy post!  So today I want to give you a challenge...

Have you been putting off using your scraps for far too long?  I can give your scraps a purpose that will give you a warm fuzzy feeling long after you finish making your scrappy quilt...

This Sunday (March 12th) marks the beginning of the Hands2Help Charity Quilt Challenge 2017!  You can join in the fun of making quilts, choosing from one (or more) of three different charities, and find a home for your scraps where they will be loved and appreciated.

Need inspiration?  Look back on the "I May Have A Scrap Problem..." posts, or on the "Stunning Stars" posts...

Scour Pinterest for scrappy quilts (it's full of them!)  Dig into those tubs of scraps and put them to good use!  Can't you hear them calling you right now.... "Use me... Use me!!"  

There will be giveaways associated with the Challenge (although the biggest benefit is that warm fuzzy feeling...)

Are you up to it?  Come back Sunday and sign up!

Hugs!

Sarah

I May Have A Scrap Problem... May Goals and Small Inspiration Projects

Hi, all!

It's the merry month of May, and time for a new scrappy challenge!  I think I'm going to continue my goal from last month, which was to take this tub full of blue scraps...

...and get it all pressed and folded, pulling out the strings for string blocks, and cutting pieces for another scrap quilt.  I did pull the pieces and make another quilt - this pretty orange peel quilt...

...and the strings are separated, but my string bucket is so full, I left them in the blue tub.  Here's what it looks like right now...

...still awfully full!  So this month I'd like to make at least one more quilt out of this tub, plus some string blocks to add to the pile, and maybe cut some more 2.5" x 5.5" blocks to add to the green ones I cut in March.  That should bring this tub down to a manageable level, and then I can move on to another color!  I spotted this quilt earlier this week, and it's calling my name - maybe this will be what I work on in May!

So that's my goal for the month of May.  What are you hoping to do with your scraps?

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And now for some inspiration - but I thought I'd go small this time. Here are some of my favorite small projects using scraps that I found out and about this month!

Check out this cute tiny pincushion - a very quick little project!

And isn't this a clever idea?  The perfect clock for your sewing studio!

And look at this adorable alphabet - it would use not only fabric scraps, but batting scraps, too!  I really need to make a set of these for my grandkids....

There are so many babies being born right now, these bibs would be a great quick scrap project!

I love rope baskets, and this one made with fabric wrapped rope is so cool!  

And check out this neat piece made with fabric leaf shapes and wire.  I can totally see this in my entry hall!

I have several paper bead necklaces which I love to wear, but if they get wet, they tend to disintegrate.  These beads made with fabric are so colorful, and I want to try making some, experimenting with techniques that might make them less likely to ravel!

And of course, Crazy Mom Quilts is the queen of the scrap project - I love this pillow cover she made recently, and her pincushions are just perfect!  She did 100+ scrap projects last year on her blog, and is working on it again this year, so she's always a great inspiration for not only scrappy quilts, but smaller projects as well.

Are you feeling inspired yet?

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And now it's your turn - you can link up below and share your own goals for May!  Even if it's just a small goal about dealing with your scraps, it's something to work towards - and even baby steps get the job done sooner or later!  The linky will remain open until next Tuesday night, so I hope you'll take time to link up!

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? A Pair of Quilts...

Hi, all!

Here it is, Friday again, and you know what that means! It's time to get our whoop whoop on!!  Are you ready?  I know I am.... I've worked hard to have a pair of finishes to share with you!

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A few weeks ago, I was poking around in my studio, and found a shoebox full of leftover 2.5" wide binding.  I prefer to use 2.25" wide binding, so I decided to clear out that tub and make a scrappy quilt.  After pressing the strips flat, I sewed all of the strips end to end, then assembled them as a jelly-roll race quilt.  After finishing the top, I cut it cross-wise in varying widths.  Determined to use fabrics from my stash, I pulled out a pretty piece of green Kona cotton that I had on hand.  Wonder of wonders, there was enough to fill in between the strips!  Here's the quilt I ended up with...

I also found in my stash a piece of IKEA fabric that I bought on my last shopping excursion there, and with a piece of Grunge fabric, made a back for it!

I quilted leaves on the green strips, and straight lines about an inch apart on the colored strips.

 OK - one scrappy quilt complete!  But I still had a stack of scrap strips that I didn't have room for in the first quilt.  I checked the stash and found a slightly different shade of green Kona - and lo and behold, there was enough to put together a second quilt!

I decided to make this one a bit more modern, with the shorter strips staggered horizontally instead of vertically.

The back is all from stash, too - almost the end of my favorite IKEA fabric, and a little bit more of that green Grunge fabric that's in the first quilt.

And oh, did I have fun quilting this one!  I played with feathers again, wandering them around the quilt and surrounding them with pebbling, echoing, clamshells, some matchstick quilting - whatever struck my fancy at the time!  

Here's a picture of it after washing - you can see all the wonderful texture on this quilt!

And here are the two quilts together! I like to think of these as "sibling" quilts, or "his and her" quilts.  Similar, yet not identical.  Both are completely scrappy and made from stash - even the binding is scrappy!  The first one measures 56" x 60", the second one is just slightly smaller at 53" x 58".  I'll be entering these in Shannon's Scrap Quilt Challenge 5 - are you participating too?  If you haven't heard about it, click on this link and read about it!  Because everyone has scraps!!

I think I'll be listing these two quilts in my shop - because it's time to start earning some Christmas spending money....

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop??

And as you may already know (because I've been talking about it for weeks!) I'll be at the beach for the next week.  My husband forwarded an email to me (that one of his employees sent him) talking about shark warnings on the beach we are going to.  He then brought home this little video to share with me - and I was rolling on the floor laughing!  I hope you'll take a few minutes and laugh along with me....

Wish us luck on our own personal "Shark Week"!!

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you break out in a happy dance?

Share - we want to dance along with you!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Eleven Days & Counting.....

Hi, all!

Here it is, the beginning of the week again and time to set a plan for the days ahead.  I truly appreciate all of you who put up with my list posts and encourage me along the way - it's probably the only reason I get anything finished at all!  Especially this week, as I am now eleven days away from the beach - and boy, am I ready!!  It's been about fifteen months since we went, because of the adoption - having to be on call for babysitting took away our ability to plan vacation time.  I wouldn't change that for the world, but we are SO ready to dig our toes in the sand and veg out!  But there's still eleven days between now and then that shouldn't be wasted....

So let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Make another 1-hour basket for a baby shower gift.

Done!  I'm finally happy with the changes I made to this pattern - it looks exactly like I want it to look!

2.  Make a blankie to go in that basket!

Done!  This was so simple - just two squares of super-soft flannel, bound all around the edges with some simple striped cotton binding.  I highly recommend it as a baby gift!

3.  Come up with a final design for the wedding dress quilt.

I'm still working on this.  I was going to try something on the pillow I have to make out of the same materials, and carefully marked all my guidelines with a disappearing marker.  Unfortunately, by the time I got around to working on it later that evening, the high humidity had caused all the lines to disappear!  And I haven't gotten around to re-marking it yet...

4.  Cut more scraps - mine or the ministry's.

Done!  And cutting those scraps put me in the mood to do some scrappy sewing - resulting in my finish of this morning...

5.  Make more blocks for the retirement quilt.

Done!  I've completed 50 more blocks, giving us about 200 to start with.

6.  Work on Nathanael's Christmas stocking.

In progress!  It's going to take a while to finish this one, so it will crop up on the list probably from now until Thanksgiving, unless I get a burning desire to stitch stitch stitch!!

7.  Make the HSTs for my vacation quilt.

In progress.  Since I have the blocks all bagged up individually, I pull out each block's HST fabrics, sew them up, cut them apart and put them back in the bag.  After I've done a big pile of them, they go to the iron and cutting board to be pressed and trimmed.  I think I've done about 70 blocks' worth or so of them so far.  Doing them a little at a time makes it much less boring!

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

Actually, this was the easiest thing on the list this week because we didn't have any requests.  Thankfully, the needs seem to slow down during the summer, giving us a chance to catch up and catch our breath!!

And because I had a burning urge to do a few different things, 

I made a purse.....

and I started a new blog feature - 

What's On The Bookshelf Wednesdays!

The first book I reviewed was the book that got me headed down the path of charity quilting - a gift from my daughter called Quilting For Peace.  You can read the review here.

Each week I'll be reviewing a book - some new (and maybe not even available yet), others treasures that I found buried on my bookshelf that may have gotten lost in the shuffle of "new and improved".  I promise that any book I review will still be available for purchase in case you decide you must have it!

This week's book is a treasure for free motion quilters and wannabes!  Be sure to come by and check it out on Wednesday....

And now, here's what's on my horizon this week...

1.  Make a back for and quilt the second scrappy green quilt top.

2.  Complete the HSTs for the vacation quilt.

3.  Work on the wedding dress quilt project.

4.  Work on Nathanael's stocking.

5.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that arise.

I'm going to keep the list short this week because I really need to work on all of these things, and without too much distraction.  It's much easier to put off the less-than-fun list items in favor of the ones that tickle my fancy that day!

Strangely enough, I also have a burning desire to clean my house - probably because my daughter has hers looking lovely since they just put it on the market.  That kind of thing is contagious, you know?  So I'll probably spend some time this week doing some deep cleaning... (I can't believe I'm saying this!  Let's hope my husband doesn't read this post - just in case I fail to follow through!)

And here's a heads-up - Wednesday, July 1st is the beginning of the fifth annual Scrap Quilt Challenge over on Shannon's blog, Fabrics N Quilts!  You can enter any scrappy quilt you've made since the end of last year's challenge (October 15, 2014).  There are some guidelines, short and sweet, a minimum size (45"x60"), and your quilt must be finished, not just a top.  But I bet a bunch of the Hands2Help quilts this year were scrappy!  So go check out the guidelines and look through your pictures or quilts - find some quilts to enter!  There are prizes, blogposts by guest bloggers, and I believe Shannon even said something about a mystery quilt to give you a head start on next year's entries!

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

Hugs!

Sarah

Time To Get Ready!

Hi, all!

I'm sure if you're like me, you've been pondering some New Year's resolutions, wondering if you should make them public and therefore become accountable for actually keeping them.  It's a tough decision, I know!

And then I remembered that I promised a quilt-along for the Hands2Help challenge this year, and decided that I could combine keeping a resolution with keeping that promise!

So - - - this year, one of my resolutions is to get my scrap hoard under control, AND actually use some of it.  At my house, I have about twelve tubs of scraps that look like this…

…and I really want them to look more like this!  Neatly sorted, pressed, folded, and ready to be cut….

…with a lot more space in them to add the piles of scraps that aren't in the bins already because the bins are too full!

So for the past couple of days, since my minions left the job unfinished….  I've been turning piles of this...

Into nice neat piles that look like this! Isn't that pretty?  It's amazing how fulfilling it is to make that transition - I really feel like I've accomplished something!

And here's how it connects in with the Hands2Help Challenge...

Presenting the Sweet 16 Quiltalong 2015!!  The first week (next Sunday) I'll post several ways to make 16-patch blocks.  Basic, I know, but you've got to start somewhere!  

The following Sundays, as we are all making our blocks, I'll present a different design in which to use those blocks, one each week.  Make one, make a few, make them all, it's up to you!  And you can use those quilts for your Hands2Help contribution if you choose to, or just enjoy the quilt along on its own.  Just think - you'll have a quilt to enter in the Scrap Quilt Challenge hosted by the lovely Shannon of Fabrics N Quilts, too!  

Think of it as a way to keep your own scrappy New Year's resolution - you know you've got one lurking in the back of your mind!  

So right now, go grab that bag or bin or bucket of scraps you've got sitting around, sit down with your iron and press those babies into submission!  Just think, it will give you something constructive to do tonight while you are watching…

...the season premier of Downton Abbey!  (If you don't watch this show yet (really?) you should!)  I totally blame P. of The Way I Sew It for hooking me on this show….  So you know where I'll be at 8 pm CST tonight - tuned in to Downton and listening to my husband alternately gag and snore in the corner….  ;-)

And if you want to start cutting, you will need squares or strips to make your 16-patch blocks with.  I'll be using 2.5" squares and strips to make mine, but you don't have to be constrained to my size choices.  I'll also be posting a button this week that you can add to your blog - if I can remember how to make the silly thing work!  

So for now, ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!  And be sure to stop by next week when we really get started!!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - A Productive Fourth!

Hi, all!

I hope you all had a fabulous holiday weekend - we did here in middle Tennessee!  Unbelievable weather - Thursday and Friday we had highs in the low 80's!  And very little humidity, so it felt fabulous - and totally not like summer in Tennessee.  It was a good thing, though - because my husband was working on a very special project for our granddaughters.  A little Christmas in July…

 

He built this from CAD plans and a pile of lumber and swing set supplies!  It is an early Christmas present, since Emmy is unable to play on regular playgrounds - plastic slides cause static electricity, which will zap the programming on her cochlear implants.  This way both girls can play at the same time, and Nathanael will be able to play too when he comes home!  Lots of activities - regular swings, a tire swing, a rings-and-trapeze bar, a sandbox, a fort with ladder and a rock climbing wall!  Heck, I want to go play on it!  Am I married to a great guy, or what?

And while all this was going on, I was working on my own little Christmas in July - putting together the giveaway/raffle for Nathanael's Ladder, the quilt I made to help in my daughter's adoption fundraising efforts.  

If you haven't already read about this giveaway, please click here - I hope you'll join in the fun and help us #bringNathanaelhome!  And if we get enough donations, I will be throwing in one or two more quilts (depending on the levels reached).  There are also ways to enter even if you don't feel like you can make a donation, such as sharing about the giveaway on your own blog.  Check it out!

With that said, I didn't get everything done on my list last week - so let's see exactly how it went...

1.  Work on a table topper for a special event.

The top is pieced, but still needs quilting and binding. I used this tutorial, which was so quick and easy - I can see making more of these in my future!

2.  Work on those outfits for the girls!

Nope.  I did look at the fabric occasionally!

3.  Quilt at least two more quilts for the high school mission team to take for Hurricane Sandy survivors.

Nope.  I'll show what I worked on instead below.

4.  Keep up with any new quilt ministry needs.

Done!  We sent this quilt to a woman with bone marrow cancer…

Charm Pack Cherry, pieced by Deb!

…and another went to a teenager who was in a bad car accident; she will be in the hospital for a while.  

This one was pieced and tied by Mary Ann!

5.  Do some cleaning and organizing in my sewing studio..

Well, I did do some cleaning - about five minutes worth - before I got distracted by some pretty fabric that was just itching to be sewed up into something!  Does that count?

And as to what I was working on instead of quilts for Hurricane Sandy survivors (by the way, thanks in part to the wonderful folks who participated in H2H this year, we already have more than 60 quilts ready to go - and it's only July!)…

…I quilted this top, which will be added to the Christmas in July giveaway if donations exceed $500.  I'm calling it A Quick Trick Block Stack, thanks to Dr. Seuss and Fox in Socks.  As I was quilting it, the lines to that book kept going through my mind.

"First I'll make a quick trick brick stack.

Then I'll make a quick trick block stack."

And then I had a request from a friend to proof a couple of her new quilt patterns.  One of them really appealed to me (well, okay, both of them, but I've only had time to work on one!) and I cut out all the pieces for it.  I'm busily working on putting it together so that it can be the quilt we give away if donations for the giveaway top $1000!  I need to check with my friend to see if it's ok to post progress pictures, but I'll show you as soon as I can!

Fortunately it's been an easy month for ministry quilts, and since God doesn't seem to mind me working on other things right now (when He does, I know it - needles break, thread shreds, things just generally go wrong!) I've been enjoying a little semi-personal sewing!  I'm really hoping we'll need to use all three quilts and I'm even up for making another one if things go that well!

So what's on tap for this week?

1.  Finish the potential giveaway quilt I'm working on right now.

2.  Print labels and attach them to the H2H quilts for Hurricane Sandy survivors.

3.  Finish the table topper.

4.  Quilt at least two more quilts for Hurricane Sandy survivors.

5.  Work on outfits for the girls.

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

This may be an ambitious list, because I'm playing chauffeur to Lilli this week as she goes to preschool day camp at my church, plus I have community group sewing on Thursday morning and ministry group sewing on Saturday morning - but it's all good!  I'm sure that everything that needs to get done will!

Another thing that's on my radar is some scrap sewing - because this year I WILL participate in my friend Shannon's Scrap Quilt Challenge!  I hope you'll join in too - you can read more about it here or on the Facebook page here!   I bet you've got some scraps lying around, too - wouldn't you like to turn them into a nice quilt or two?

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

Hugs!

Sarah

Linking up with Eva at Bambisyr med sin Quiltgladje!  Don't ask me what it means - just go check out her new linky party - Show and Tell Monday!!!