Friday Night Sew-In

I was able to get one block done for my Bee Beautiful group. I did get a start on the second block which will consist of smaller squares. I am also trying to finalize my plans for my month for the Sew Modern Bee. It is hard to decide when there are so many amazing patterns to choose from.

Mug Rug

 

I finished my very 1st mug rug this week for my friend. I used some of my leftover colour block swap squares to make it. It was fun to make. In my huge ;-) attempt at machine quilting I put in an o and a x into the middle squares. I keep saying that I will do more machine quilting but I have to admit that after I spend all the time piecing a quilt I want it to be the best machine quilting it can possibly be, and that is not mine. I still have a few more of the colour blocks so I am going to make another mug rug for myself.

I have once again joined up for the Friday Night Sew-In. I am hoping to get a finish and start on my Bee Blocks. I don't know if it is imagined or not but there is definitely an energy I feel when I know so many people are sewing along with me. It is pretty neat!

Bee Catching Up

Here are my Bee Beautiful Blocks for November. Amy wanted Improv Log Cabin. I really enjoyed making these. They will definitely be on my to do list at some point.

This is Sarah's block for the Sew Modern Bee. She designed it herself. It took a while for me to get going on this block until I figured out that making it was the same as paper piecing, except instead we were using fabric as the foundation.

I have signed up for Amy's One Thing, One Week Challenge. Somehow, I missed the last one in December and I was upset about it. I love it for its ability to help me focus on one thing that really needs to get done. This time my challenge is to get caught up in my Bees. I have started on my December block for my Bee Beautiful group and need to do my January block for my Sew Modern group. My month is February for the Sew Modern group and I need to figure out what I want to make. I have a couple of ideas. I just need to figure out which is the simplest for me to organize.



I hope things are going well for you this week.

Design Wall Monday

On my design wall today is one of my UFO's ; #12 to be exact. Things have changed and it may be needed earlier than expected so I decided to start working on it this weekend.  The pattern is Kitty Kitty from Cozy Quilt Designs.

I have promised myself that I will get #6 on my list done by the end of January. Working on these UFO's is definitely giving me momentum! Check out Judy's blog to see what other people have on their design wall.

Progress

 

I am making progress on my Fresh quilt. I have 11 more 4 patches to make and then I can start putting it together. The only thing I wish it had was a bit more red in it. Each charm pack only had 2 squares. I might try to find a bit more red to put with it.

As part of the myself theme I took yesterday off. I was feeling like I was starting to get a bit sick again so a day to recharge my batteries sounded great. I had all these great organizational plans but ended up quilting all day! I got the binding put on my Christmas quilting and started hand stitching to the back. I also had a UFO jump into my hands, that was not one of my 12. Word must be getting around my quilting room, and they are all fighting for a turn. I made a decision about what progress to make with it because that is how it got stuck being a UFO. Then today, I found out that one of my UFOs on my list might need to jump the queue. Next time, when I am hunting UFOs I am going to have to be much quieter! Hope yours are progress well!

UFO landing

Well, a UFO has landed but not the one I had planned for January. My husband's family will be having a couple of babies in the next two months. One we know will be a girl and the other one will be a surprise. I was trying to think about what in my stash I could use to make a quilt when this popped into my head.

They are the squares I did in my colour block swap in the summer of 2009. I had no idea what to do with them. I had tried many different designs but ended up not choosing any and putting the blocks away. I had been reading the Ace of Cakes book and I thought that this quote was quite appropriate:

"You have to remain open while creating a cake. You want it to look like your original concept, your drawing, but you can't get stuck in it. Sometimes the cake is going to go a different way, and you just have to let it." - Duff Goldman

I ended up having a brain wave about these blocks Saturday evening, and I put them all together and got the whole quilt top done. I was looking through my stash too and found the perfect border. I have had that fabric for years waiting for the right place to use it.

It feels great to have a quilt top done ready for the quilter's ahead of the baby's arrival. I am going to count this, as one for myself by creating less stress. On to the next UFO!

One word

I have seen a couple of different groups talking about choosing a word for the year which reflects something you want to focus on in 2011. I thought I would play along too, and did some thinking about what my word would be. I came up with the word:

MYSELF

To me, it means being more true to myself in my quilting, making time for myself, and organizing myself better so that I have less stress. One of the things I did this weekend for myself was meet Ariane for coffee/tea. We had a great time and she gave me this beautiful mug rug, along with a beautiful cup and saucer.

She is so amazingly talented. She wrapped it up in snowmen fabric, and I love snowmen. She also made a beautiful purse for my daughter which I have to admit I already borrowed yesterday.

I am hoping by focusing on myself, I will better be able to support and help the people I care for. I'll let you know how I do.

Re"Fresh" My Memory

Number 6 was the number chosen for the UFO Challenge this month. That is my Fresh quilt.

I was very excited on Saturday to find out the number and I did start working on it. For the full story on it you can go to this post.

I also took time on the weekend to clean up my quilt room and organize all of my UFO projects. I moved them all into their own shelving unit and I am hoping to have it completely empty by December.


I had fun playing with the mosaic pictures so I made another one of all my 2011 UFOs.

1. Mountain Mystery, 2. Half Square Triangles, 3. Butterfly Blooms, 4. Jelly Rolly Sampler, 5. Tulip, 6. Fresh, 7. Red/Aqua, 8. Cameo Block, 9. Cherry, 10. Winter Wonderland, 11. Snowman Applique Quilt, 12. Purple/Aqua Quilt

2010 In Review

2010 was a good year for me. I made many quilts, made new friends and started lots of projects just in time for the year of UFOs. I joined 2 bees and got to try out many different block styles. My friends and family were given the warmth of a quilt and I actually made one for myself.

1. Happy Halloween, 2. From Apple to Zigzag, 3. Blue turns into Green, 4. Potholder Pass Swap, 5. Winter Table Topper, 6. Potholder Pass 2, 7. Potholder Pass 2, 8. Walking down the garden path, 9. school's_out_03, 10. Wind, Sand and Stars, 11. Brother's Quilt, 12. DSCN2054, 13. Friendship Bag, 14. Holly Berry Table runner, 15. Summer Fun, 16. Summer/Fall Table runner, 17. Summer/Fall Table runner, 18. Grammie's garden, 19. Signature Quilt20. Not available



I have decided not to make any promises this year, but I do hope to improve, grow and as always be inspired by you!

Hers

Well, after much time and agonizing my sister's quilt finally got finished late last night. I did give it to her on Christmas Day. The binding was on but it just needed to be sewn to the back.  I am so thrilled that it is finished, and now I came move on to finishing many UFO's.

Happy New Year to Everyone!