Making A Lather: aunt marys double irish chain

Showing posts with label aunt marys double irish chain. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 3, 2020

to do: one monthly goal

I didn't get a single one of my One monthly goals for October done. No, not one. I did finish 3 quilts, but, they were not on the list - 4 patch x , Aunt Mary's double chain, patriotic boxy stars.

That makes November goals easy to decide. But, I think I need to keep it simple. It is crunch time for long arm client Christmas quilts. I need to make sure I can get them done. I will try to sneak this in for quilting after thanksgiving.

1. quilt big easy Christmas - I don't have a start date for this one, it was a class at a quilt store that has been closed a long time. I was in love with the Christmas fabric. One of the owners had made a quilt with the fabric and offered the class. I have the back pieced and the binding made.

big easy Christmas

I have used my sewing time to sew, here and there, whatever is close by the machine. I have spent 2020 with a finishing mindset, and I am missing plain old patchwork piecing. However, that can turn into too many new quilts getting started....again. One thing stays the same, I love scraps, and I love that they find their way to me through the kindness of friends.

I am linking:

I am linking to:

chameleon color linky _

oh scrap

One monthly goal

Friday, October 9, 2020

thoughts on finishing

I made a commitment to finish this quilt and a patriotic one, before, I would do any random sewing or work on wips. I did this because, I had reached overwhelm, with too many plates spinning in the air. With the additional end of the year approaching, I am losing steam. I have had a great finishing year, but I have started too many new projects, too.

I bought this quilt kit at a blog hop a couple of years ago. I spent time making the pieces, and, eventually, assembled the top. It was much smaller than I had pictured in my mind... much smaller. I knew I needed to add to it, so, it went into the ufo closet. Last week, I was looking for a project I was hoping to finish at a workshop, and, I was confronted with how many ufos were actually in the closet. Hang my head in shame. It was classic out of sight out of mind. I have many really great projects that just need a little attention to be finished and marked off the list.

Friday might - pull the quilt out of the box and take stock - no ideas

Saturday - an idea came to me, and, I made the first hourglass block

Sunday - I added the inner border - no thinking there.

Monday made hour glass block using suzies scrap hour glass tutorial. The only math I did was deciding that a 4- 1/2 inch block would make a nice size border.

Tuesday - did a head calculation for how many hour glasses might fit on the quilt and made 55 of them

Wednesday - made half lengths of border, thinking I might have to do an insert in the center to make them fit

Thursday - the border fit perfectly, even making the corner the way I wanted. But, still not big enough.

Friday- decided to add the rest of the scraps in lengths around the outside, and, used all that was left minus a 3x5 inch piece

Saturday - I quilted it.

Monday -I added the binding

I really like it, and it will have a special spot in my heart for all the "experimenting" and working on it until I liked it.

61 x 74

What I learned about myself during this experiment.

I really don't care if I ever finish, I like the process and being creative. Therefore, I don't have an inner voice prompting me to finish.

It was hard not therapeutically sewing, but, I did feel more in control of what I was doing.

I need to trust my feeling that something isn't to my liking, and work on that.

I renewed my appreciation for just how much time it takes to make a quilt.

I have more than enough wonderful ufos to last a lifetime. I need to make them the go to for a new project

I'm linking to:

TGIFF

TG IFF different here and here

Whoop Whoop

creations

phd 20
peacock party
oh scrap
from bolt to beauty
UFO busting

one monthly goal

Monday, October 5, 2020

October goals

October has arrived and so has chilly weather. It's time to set my goals for the month. I want to quilt 3 quilt tops that have been waiting a long time.

big easy Christmas

2.- quilt star gazing - started july 2017 - this quilt is in Bonnie Hunter's book. I have the top finished.

star gazing

3. finish traffic jam - I started this at a retreat in early January 2020. It was supposed to be a quick and easy donation quilt. But, I didn't pick it up again after the retreat.

traffic jam

But, first, I plan on finishing this older ufo Aunt mary's double Irish chain. I have committed to finishing this before anything else. It's small and needs borders. These projects will also help with my phd2020

I am linking:

Friday, October 2, 2020

project box

Last week was a workshop with our quilt guild. Our resident quilt queen had agreed to teach her 2 nd last time 4 patch posey class. I needed to find the two I had already started, to take and finish at the workshop. I, certainly, did not need to start another one with the class, but, it was a committed time to work on finishing. I went through every ufo bucket twice and no luck finding it. I gave it one more try Friday night, and found the bucket. All my buckets are labeled, why was it so hard to find "the" bucket? - too many buckets.

The black floral was Sharon's 1st last time to teach the class in 2016.

This was the 2015 class, and, my first 4 patch posey quilt. The fabric I chose, wasn't busy enough to make some of the really awesome combinations that make a 4 patch posey unique. That is why I took it again with a different fabric.

While I had the bucket out, I decided to reacquaint myself with the projects that were stored together.

I guess I was hoping they had become friends and finished each other. sadly, no. But, I had learned one thing, I have too many ufo projects. I had an actual number, and it was scary. I can't share kind of scary. It's time to make the tough decisions.

This was a cute bug quilt kit I purchased a little while ago. I had forgotten about it. I still want to make it. I think I will make this next year's rainbow scrap challenge. Any color that comes up in a month that is in this fabric, I will at least get started that month. I should have plenty of months as options.

This was an I spy quilt made like a polaroid picture. I hadn't gotten much done on it. I have a large quantity of I spy fabric and scraps. But, do I want to work on it? yes and no - that is always the problem. First, I think I will ask my friends if they want to take it, and see if I can pass it along.

This is a zigzag quilt that uses 1 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch pieces. I think I have 49 blocks. I bet there is enough of the blocks for a baby donation quilt- undecided.

This was a veggie jar quilt kit, that I thought was already made into jars, but, no. I will offer this to friends first.

These are the string blocks for Bonnie Hunter's blue skies quilt from her book string fling. I definitely plan on finishing this someday. It goes back into the project box.

I have 2 of these panels that I had hoped to make into donation quilts. Asking friends if they want to make a donation quilt from these panels.

And a quiltsmart package for the double wedding ring. I looked at the plan for this, and, I have leftover wedges from my dwr quilt that I could make use of with this. This needs to go, and, I need to move on.

I had cut for a book quilt for my daughter who has always been a bookworm. I do want to do this. Another rainbow scrap challenge by color and month.

And, finally, this project was a kit I bought and spent more money than I should have on it, and, it is all pieced. I just need to decide how to finish it. It is smaller than I like, so it stalled. I will finish this and not work on anything else until I do. No cutting, no piecing, no other quilting fun, until I have this finished. Let's see if I can do it. This will part of my one monthly goal and phd 20

I'm linking to:

TGIFF

TG IFF different here and here

Whoop Whoop

creations

phd 20
peacock party
oh scrap
from bolt to beauty
UFO busting

one monthly goal

Friday, September 8, 2017

en provence block

One block finished for En Provence
There are 76 pieces in this block! I am so glad that we piece this by type of block ahead of time. And all I have to do is put the blocks together now. For some reason, I can't find how big this quilt will be finished, and I am worried it won't be big enough for our bed. Which would mean I have to make more parts and pieces. What a fun design! And all just common traditional blocks.

I have finished the center of Aunt Mary's Irish chain quilt and will move on to borders

All the applique pieces are ready for the Spirit of Christmas quilt.

all the quilting is done on the moose quilt and I am ready for hand sewing the binding.

It has been a week of progress on several projects but nothing I can even check off a list. I feel so good at the end of the day, but want to cross things off my list but can't yet. sigh...

I am linking to:

TGIFF

Finished or Not Fridays

Whoop Whoop

crazy mom quilts

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

some parts are just boring

I have a little quilter's ad(h)d - definitely without the h - no hyperactivity here. For Aunt Marys irish chain, I am making flying geese using the quilt in a day flying geese ruler. I am not enjoying the process. It seems like extra work and wasteful. Still, once I committed, and cut the squares, there was no going back. So I have been marking and sewing and marking and sewing and trimming and trimming.

Maybe when all is said and done, the perfect little geese will scream it was worth it, but so far I am not hearing anything. They are cute and tiny - finish at 1 x2, and I need 280 of them.

And then, when I couldn't sew another goose, I started on 9 patch babies made with 1 1/2 inch strips.

And when I was tired of those, well,
I had a fight with winding a bobbin, and just plain stubborness took over and I was determined to rewind the thread, and I found myself an hour later, with this mess. I saved a lot of it but no more. Thread is not that expensive.

I am linking to:

Fiber Tuesday -

Free Motion by the River

to do tuesday

too cute tuesday

Wednesday, August 9, 2017

aunt marys

Last night was small quilt group. I sure enjoy this group. We have a potluck dinner, and take turns hosting it in our homes. It was a funny food night. There were 5 of us and 2 of us brought fresh green beans, and 3 of us brought cantalope. Thank goodness for the others or we would have had a boring meal.

I had cut and prepared this ufo quilt for my away project. I had bought the kit a while back. I bought the quilt in a day flying geese ruler with it as they advised using it.

I was able to get all the first sewing done on the flying geese and the hourglass blocks done. The hard part will be putting it away until next week. But I have other projects I plan to move along.