rug catch up

Happy Halloween! I saw this on pinterest - how cute for a quilter's house

My daughter has been catching up on her Splendid sampler blocks. I admire her tenacity. I think there are 100 blocks. I am not a sampler quilter. I like more production and piecing.

I have reached a decision time on my Christmas rug. My mind wants to scallop the edges and add a red "binding" I see quilting has influenced my rug hooking. This rug has an inner border and an outer border. But I would also like to just finish the rug. So what to do? Leave it on the floor and walk around it a few days and maybe it will tell me. sigh....

I was worried I would not have enough of the background wool to finish it this far, but I did - hooray! I did a lot of cutting, mostly using a 7 for the background. It was a subtle plaid but looks very antique. I think there would be enough to do the scallops.

I'm already planning the next rug. I really like this snowman

Mr Wynter. Designed by the talented Karen Thomson of Ottawa, Ontario. 


I am linking to
Patchwork Times
Making Monday
Moving it Forward Monday
Main Crush Monday

Mystery fabric

Bonnie Hunter has released the fabric colors and requirements for this year's mystery quilt. I love the colors. She is calling it En Provence from her trip to France. I quickly found my paint chips at Lowe's and began scrunging through the scrap bins. My husband sent this picture to my quilter daughter.

Magenta is the one constant fabric. The first 2 are my favorite but there isn't enough fabric in either piece. The one on the right has enough but I don't like as well. So I need to decide which is more important to me.

I didn't think I would have trouble finding the greens but I did. I may have to shop for a few more - oh how terrible.

I am so excited about this quilt - the colors were my wedding colors 43 years ago and are still my favorites.


 Stash report

Fabric Used this Week: 15 1/2 yards for finishing Shimmer.

Fabric Used year to Date: 39 1/2 yards

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards  woohoo
Fabric Added Year to Date: 150.5 yards

Net Fabric for 2016: 115 yards in the hole

and I think I need to add shirts I buy to take apart for fabric. I added 0
for total of 10

I am linking to:
Patchwork Times
Slow Sunday Stitching
Sunday Stash

A little Boo

I love Halloween and, probably, stuffed in drawers and crannies are more halloween projects than any other kind. And still I stop and look at the Halloween decorations everywhere I see them. I try not to buy anymore. We are really beyond that part of our lives. But, this guy had to come home with me. I found him at a church bazaar. I love his crooked smile and his "snappy " personality. He was handmade by someone. He has a rusty pin holding his pants on tee hee.  He came with his own pet scarey cat... in a sack. Fun - Best part my adult children think he is hideous. :)

I finished this last week to hang in my kitchen, just in time to fold him and put him away. But, then he won't get dirty.

Now that I have met the deadline for our guild's magazine challenge, I need to finish for the donation deadline next month. I hope to finish two. They are in the ready to be quilted and bound stage.

I am linking to:
TGIFF
Finished or Not Friday
Whoop Whoop
crazy mom quilts

Happy Birds

Everyone in our small group, but me, is making great progress on their Happy Birds quilts. I have been hand apliqueing which is all new to me. Sue machine appliqued raw edge and it looks great.

The others have been making these really cute, but scarey star blocks

Each bird has a different personality - they may be coming to life.....

I have been preparing EPP hexagons for the first border on my Happy Bird quilt. At least I know how to make hexagons. The other stuff not so much.
I managed to finish and send my hexie swap to my swap partner in Ohio. She requested country colors.

I am linking to:
Fabric Thread and Yarn
Needle and thread Thursday
Oh Scrap

Magazine Challenge finished

 I finished my Magazine challenge quilt in time for guild presentation.

The magazine was dated February 2004. I didn't start it then, but I had marked the idea a few years ago.

Templates - I think not. Thank goodness for modern templates and tools, although, my first quilt in the 70s I used scissors and cardboard.

I am linking to:
Let's Bee Social
Midweek Makers
Jo's Country Junction
WOW

Magazine Challenge

Our guild has issued a magazine challenge. Find something in a quilt magazine that peaks your creativity and make it. I had already picked a quilt I wanted to make, so I have been slowly cutting, quilting, and assembling. This is the month we are to reveal our projects.
When I saw this quilt, I loved the wonky stars and figured easy peasy. - not so. Each wonky is carefully engineeered, no improv piecing involved. The designer was actually encouraging accuracy - bummer. It called for blue, green and red scraps- boy do I have a bunch of those. It didn't look like many matching seams. I was wrong again. and lots of points to make right.  Still, each star was fun and was worth a tada.

I free formed the quilting.

To save time, I applied the binding  with the longarm. I don't do that for customer quilts, but I like it well enough for mine. I have enough experience to know that it will finish looking straight even if It is wonky in application. I'm not sure a client could handle that leap of faith. It takes longer to longarm, but when it is done it is ready to go.

I learned the fold over binding technique in the 70s, back when we made quilts by candle light. LOL  I have no present interest in matching and sewing my binding ends together. I like them open and the miter corners too. It dates me, but then something has to.

Soon, a finish! I will be hand binding this while I watch netflix -lovely

I'm linking to fiber Tuesday
Fabric Tuesday
Free Motion by the River

4 patch posie workshop

Our guild's resident expert, has decided to officially retire from teaching. So she did a reprisal of everyone's favorite class, the 4 patch posie. I have one started from a few years ago, but I have not finished it. Still I couldn't miss Sharon's last class.  I had made a bad fabric choice with the last posie class which is why I have not wanted to finish. The fabric had too much empty space. This is my attempt to fix that.... no empty space.

My repeat was just 8 inches, so I was advised to cut 3 1/2 inch squares. It is an amazing quilt. So many different fabric choices, and no idea how they will sew together .
Cindy's...

Julie's...

Linda's...

Wanda's...

These are mine. I really love them.

And just for fun, we had special cookies to celebrate this great event.

 

I am linking to:

Patchwork Times

Monday Making

Moving it Forward Monday

Main Crush Monday

quilting and fabric report

I finished quilting a quilt for a customer so that I can get my guild challenge on the frame and hopefully quilt it and bind it before the deadline.

I used the pantograph Deb's swirls. I really have a hard time with thread color on a red,, white, and blue quilt. I don't like mushing the center with dark thread, but I would rather have a darker on the blue. This looked nice.

I have decided to empty this scrap bin, by cutting into useable sizes and organizing, by setting a 15 minute timer every day until it's done. And then there are more.

 Stash report

Fabric Used this Week: bits and pieces

Fabric Used year to Date: 24 yards

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards  woohoo
Fabric Added Year to Date: 150.5 yards

Net Fabric for 2016: 126.5 yards in the hole

and I think I need to add shirts I buy to take apart for fabric. I added 0
for total of 10




I'm linking to:
Patchwork TImes
slow Sunday Stitching

Progress

I've started adding pink to my Bonnie Hunter Leader /Ender challenge. I have received all my hourglass blocks from the other swappers, but I haven't finished all mine for them.

Our small group met. Our rug Hooking friend is moving along on her fall rug.

Connie has finished quilting a jelly roll quilt.

Judy has made a star circle for Happy Birds

 I am linking to:

Time challenge

While sitting in the dentist waiting room, I spied this book.

I graduated with Rick and Hank. I was reminded how small the world really is. I didn't take any pictures of the inside, but I will have more opportunities later. I have to have a root canal redone. sigh... I thought they were permanent. It has been 8 years, and now it is hurting. weird.

I am trying to meet the guild challenge of finishing our magazine challenge quilt by next week.

1. Iron  - I found the bobbin problem- yesterday's post

1 1/2.  fix bobbin problem      check

2. pick borders by pulling 1,000 different fabrics out of their neatly stacked shelves and fling around the living room     check

3. Attach borders  and discover that all the prewound bobbins have been used. check

3 1/2. rewind bobbins and clean machine since using the bobbins means it's time.    check

4. prepare binding  check

5. make the backing - ick ick ick    ok using  a Christmas print is a little fun     check

6. longarm-  oops I forgot  Julie's quilt is already there and has the same deadline. It's small right? piece of cake. It can still happen...

I have Happy Bird group today and a 4 patch posie workshop Saturday. So maybe longarm on Monday and binding Monday night and Tuesday. Fingers crossed

I am linking to:
TGIFF
Finished or not Friday
Fort Worth Studio
Whoop Whoop