March Goals

As I mentioned in my February wrap-up post, I’ve been sandwiching.  Right now I have 6 items ready to quilt and finish, and they total over 32 yards, which is short of my Lenten goal, but still really darn good.  (As an aside, I’m doing well on the crochet and knitting goals as well for Lent.) I also want to average about 1.5 UFOs finished per month and right now I have 1, so by the end of March I need another 3.5.  Well 4 of the 6 are UFOs, so that helps too!

So without further fuss, here are March’s goals:

Quilt and Bind (done done):

Easy Street

Easy Street Mini

Easter Carrie Nation

Easter Carrie Nation Mini

Blue Boxy Stars

X’s and O’s Blue Boy quilt (unearthed while cleaning)

Projects:

Orca Bay – Progress.  I would like the top done.

Beau’s – The first part of the top requires making what I am calling the columns.  I would like the columns made.

Homework – Since none got done last month, I will keep current as best I can.  I will double up or divide between March and April as works best for each assignment.

5 LCRR blocks – I never finished a set for a swapper and she still has one of my sets.  There are 20 blocks total, so I am doing 5 per month.

Just Takes 2 (JT2) – I diligently saved all the downloads last year for me to make them this year.  My colors are unbleached muslin and pink.  Since by the end of April there needs to be another 26 blocks made, I will do 11-23 in March.

String Blocks – Many of these were done as homework last year.  Since the quilt will be 30 blocks, I am taking a third of what is made, making enough more to get to 10 blocks, and joining them together into two rows, as the blocks are QAYG.  I will do 2 months’ worth this month.

Color Challenge Sampler – This is actually 2 challenges in one.  One is a color challenge and another is a monthly free sampler off of someone’s blog.  I’m combining the two.  No clue at this writing on the February color.  Or the March color or block.  I will do both this month.

Yellow Log Cabin / LCRR – Completely undo one row and start sewing the top together.  I will do what I can in light of the rest of the stuff.

BOMs – These I’m caught up on. Easy to maintain.

Also I need to finish 2 crochet things and 1 knit thing.  These are moving along as I would hope.

And I need a table runner for a gift basket.  Since this is a donation, I do not feel bad about starting this new thing during Lent.

February Report

First things first, I passed my insurance exam.  2 down, 3 to go.  Then it’s time for a new sewing machine!

February was the non-sewing month.  I didn’t get a darned thing done.  Not one finish!  Between the insurance exam, Girl Scouts and cookies, DD’s birthday and life in general, it just didn’t happen.  I was hit by migraines twice that were so bad I got sick and had to take off work. 

The last few days / week, I’ve been working on sandwiching quilts.  So here’s the status of stuff.

Easy Street – Done done. 

Actually the top is done and it’s sandwiched.

Orca Bay – Progress.  I will be happy if it is sandwiched and somewhere in the quilting process. 

Not too much progress and that’s OK.

Blue Boxy Stars – Done done.  This was in January’s homework pile; I’ve budgeted 2 months for this one, so now it’s time to finish it! 

Sandwiched.

Beau’s – Started.  Nancy, Near Philadelphia hosted two lovely swaps, a quilt for Miss Melanie and Ashley’s quilt.  If you know anything about Gone With the Wind, you can see where I got the name Beau’s quilt.  I hope to combine all these blocks, pieces and parts together into a very large quilt for my king sized bed that holds two pretty fluffy people!  Any start on this will make my day!

Got an idea! 

Homework – none of that got done.

5 LCRR blocks – I never finished a set for a swapper and she still has one of my sets.  There are 20 blocks total, so I am doing 5 per month.

Just Takes 2 (JT2) – I diligently saved all the downloads last year for me to make them this year.  My colors are unbleached muslin and pink.  Since there are 4 Tuesdays in February, I will do 11-18.

String Blocks – Many of these were done as homework last year.  Since the quilt will be 30 blocks, I am taking a third of what is made, making enough more to get to 10 blocks, and joining them together into two rows, as the blocks are QAYG. 

Color Challenge Sampler – This is actually 2 challenges in one.  One is a color challenge and another is a monthly free sampler off of someone’s blog.  I’m combining the two.  No clue at this writing on the February color.

Yellow Log Cabin / LCRR – Completely undo one row and start sewing the top together.

BOMs – These I’m caught up on.

Feb at the 2/3 Point

So now we are at the 2/3 point for February and this month has been abysmal.  I mean, I haven’t sewn a stitch it feels like.  I have done a lot of crochet.

Tomorrow I have an insurance exam.  Here’s hoping I pass.  Let’s say I do for the sake of conversation.  That give me 8 solid days of quilty time.  I have got to get a lot done in that time.  I have pulled out the Easter Carrie Nation top that is done so I can get that prepared for quilting as well.  The Blue Boxy Starts top is pinned together and I have done some sewing on it.  I found a mistake with a 4 patch in Easy Street.  You can see how this has been going.

So bring on Storm Q and may we get a snow day on Friday.  That would be the awesome.

Big Birthday Bash plans

OK, at noon today we start the big Renee birthday festivities, which run through Tuesday night, due to 2 days off by the school district.  Here are my quilty goals during that time.

Have blue boxy stars sandwiched

Have Easy Street sandwiched

Trim all Beau’s HSTs – they were deliberately made oversized in the swap

Prep blue column for Beau’s quilt as a leader-ender project

Lots of knitting and crochet

Ripping the yellow LCRR

I want to get more done and I haven’t sewn very much this month so far.  I have an insurance exam coming up next week and once that is done I can sew with abandon!

Lenten Challenge

This week was Ash Wednesday, and while I am not as close to my faith as I once was, I am going to take up / give up something for Lent.  I am only going to work on projects that have already been started. I will not start anything new.  I admit I got this from another quilter, but I think it is a good one.  Let’s see how much I can accomplish.

I did start a new project on Tuesday, a crocheted baby afghan.  I have several people who are expecting either children or grandchildren in my life so I am trying to get ahead.  The afghan I started is just going to be one really big granny square in a beautiful pastel ombre-blend color.  5 rounds of granny, one round of hdc, lather, rinse, repeat.  It’s good to work on before bedtime while watching 15-20 minutes of recorded TV.

Maybe, just maybe, I will be able to bust 40 yards during the 40 days, finish 2 crochet things and 1 knit thing.  That would be a lot and it would be awesome.  Stay tuned.

Feb at the 1/3 mark

Yeah, it’s been a less than stellar start to the month.  The month started on a Friday, which was fine, but the Saturday and Sunday were not spent in central IL, so those were non-quilty days.  Monday was a crazy afternoon and evening involving a 65 miles roundtrip to the LQS for my BOM blocks, GS cookies and a GS meeting. 

Tuesday brought a migraine that did not quit until Thursday late afternoon.  Not much of anything happened.  Thursday night I went to a local school and helped a bunch of little Girl Scouts sew for a service project.  And now we are up to today, which is the 8^th.

My goal for this weekend, besides yet even more Girl Scout stuff (sensing a theme?), is to clean my house / basement and sew.  I want to accomplish a few things, but I’m not sure which things so here’s a stab at the list.

Finish all blue boxy stars blocks

Make blue boxy stars top

Sandwich blue boxy stars

Color Challenge Sampler – this month’s color is purple and the block is a Jacob’s ladder.  Since it’s only 2 blocks, that will be do-able.

Ripping on the yellow LCRR

Then for next week during the work week, I hope to quilt on the boxy stars a bit each day, and then work on things in block-quantity order.  So next up would be a 3 block BOM, then the 5 LCRR blocks, then the 8 JT2 blocks, and lastly the 10 string blocks.  I should be able to keep chipping away at Orca Bay as a leader-ender during all of this.  I won’t get all of it done, but at least there is a plan, and after a day at work, that’s what I need.  I know I will have 2 nights away next week, so if I get to the JT2 part, I will be pleased.

I also figured out a plan for Beau’s quilt.  There are HSTs and 4 patches from the Ashley quilt that I will set on point.  The 4 patches will be on point in a long column, with the 4 patches filling in the spots.  The even out the edges on each column, I will use the plethora of 6.5” squares I have from Miss Mellie’s quilt.  Imagine making a Jacob’s ladder block, setting it on point and then trimming it off.  I hope to have a blue column, a brown column and a mixed column.  We shall see what we have.  I am excited, that is for sure.  My goal this week is to sort things into piles and lay them out to confirm I like it.

I'm posting this on Sunday evening.  My weekend has not been as productive as planned from a quilting point of view, but I am OK with that.  I have an insurance exam in 10 days ans I am on pace with my studies.  Tonight I hope to watch the 2 hour Downton Abbey and sort through some of the Beau's blocks and maybe do some hand work.

February Goals

And here are the February goals.  Of course I am ambitious!

Easy Street – Done done.

Orca Bay – Progress.  I will be happy if it is sandwiched and somewhere in the quilting process. 

Blue Boxy Stars – Done done.  This was in January’s homework pile; I've budgeted 2 months for this one, so now it’s time to finish it!

Beau’s – Started.  Nancy, Near Philadelphia hosted two lovely swaps, a quilt for Miss Melanie and Ashley’s quilt.  If you know anything about Gone With the Wind, you can see where I got the name Beau’s quilt.  I hope to combine all these blocks, pieces and parts together into a very large quilt for my king sized bed that holds two pretty fluffy people!  Any start on this will make my day!

Homework

5 LCRR blocks – I never finished a set for a swapper and she still has one of my sets.  There are 20 blocks total, so I am doing 5 per month.

Just Takes 2 (JT2) – I diligently saved all the downloads last year for me to make them this year.  My colors are unbleached muslin and pink.  Since there are 4 Tuesdays in February, I will do 11-18.

String Blocks – Many of these were done as homework last year.  Since the quilt will be 30 blocks, I am taking a third of what is made, making enough more to get to 10 blocks, and joining them together into two rows, as the blocks are QAYG. 

Color Challenge Sampler – This is actually 2 challenges in one.  One is a color challenge and another is a monthly free sampler off of someone’s blog.  I’m combining the two.  No clue at this writing on the February color.

Yellow Log Cabin / LCRR – Completely undo one row and start sewing the top together.

BOMs

Yes I do BOMs too.  I like free ones or the ones where it’s bring your block at the appointed time and get your next block free. 

So, yeah, 2 finishes.  When I need to quilt large quilts, I take over the large kitchen table for quilting and I put up a large table in the living room to hold the quilts when they are not being quilted.  It kinda takes over the first floor.  So when I do it, I try to get a lot done.  I did this over Christmas and got 4 quilts done, so it’s worth it when I do it.  I love my very understanding family!

January Month End Report

OK, way back on January 1 or so, I picked the items I want to work on.  Here’s where I stand:

Old Tobacco Road – Complete!

My version is named The Three Sisters, as it represents corn, beans and squash, the three complimentary crops in Illinois agriculture.  My pieces are 75% of Bonnie’s size, and the quilt is generally smaller.  It busted 1.46 yards and hangs in my cube at work.

Easy Street – Progress

I had hoped to be at the point where the binding was attached, but I am not.  I need to put a 3 inch border all around it so it looks like it’s floating and then sandwich, quilt, etc. 

Orca Bay – Progress

Since Orca Bay Wednesdays (OBW) have returned, I have really made some progress on this one.  At year end, I had one fourth of the top put together.  Now I have a full half done, the rest of the star rows done and I’m working on the last little 3.5 inch string blocks to finish up the connector rows.  Any progress on this one is wonderful.

Yellow Log Cabin / LCRR – Status changed to Homework

I am trying the various techniques in the Marti Mitchell book Machine Quilting in Sections.  However, this has been a disaster on this quilt and I love the blocks too much to just finish for the sake of finishing.  Yes, this means I’m ripping and redoing.  So into the homework pile it goes.  Right now it’s in time out.

Homework

Just like it sounds; I assign myself homework.  This means I only have to do a certain amount on a particular project and then put it aside for the month.  I have 5 items in Homework status here in January.  I am happy to report that I am caught up with my homework!

5 LCRR blocks – I never finished a set for a swapper and she still has one of my sets.  There are 20 blocks total, so I am doing 5 per month.

Just Takes 2 (JT2) – I diligently saved all the downloads last year for me to make them this year.  My colors are unbleached muslin and pink.  Since there are 5 Tuesdays in January, I did the first 10 blocks.

Blue Boxy Stars – I found a bunch of 2.5” blue strips pre-cut, so I decided to make some boxy stars.  The 120 little blockettes are done.  Then I did 8 star blocks.

String Blocks – Many of these were done as homework last year.  Since the quilt will be 30 blocks, I am taking a third of what is made, making enough more to get to 10 blocks, and joining them together into two rows, as the blocks are QAYG. 

Color Challenge Sampler – This is actually 2 challenges in one.  One is a color challenge and another is a monthly free sampler off of someone’s blog.  I’m combining the two.  This month’s color was hot pink.

BOMs

Yes I do BOMs too.  I like free ones or the ones where it’s bring your block at the appointed time and get your next block free.  I’m all caught up on these as well.

The Tale of Woe

I wrote this earlier this week - doesn't matter.

Today is a tale of woe. 

I have been working diligently on finding alternate methods of quilting large quilts, as my main machine is a Janome Gem and has about a 5 inch harp space.  You really can’t blame me for trying.  Meanwhile, Ed, an older Kenmore that I have, has been pressed into service as of late to handle simple quilting. Ed’s internal cams are cracked so he can only manage a straight stitch at this point.  I officially am no longer investing money into Ed in any way; I was told that parts cannot be found.  It’s OK – Ed was a donation from a guy named Ed. 

So in this pursuit of alternate quilting and finishing methods, I bought the Marti Mitchell book about quilting in sections.  One method was to do quilt as you go on small sections, then machine sew the top sections together and hand stitch the backings.  OK, I thought, let’s give this a whirl.  So I took a yellow set of log cabin blocks and got started.  I will tell you that I love these blocks more than I ever thought I would.

The blocks are huge – 18.5 inches unfinished.  I like this large size; they sew up quickly and are fun.  20 make a twin sized quilt no problem.  For those of you following along, I recently took 20 log cabin blocks that were green and white and made them into a lovely St. Pat’s quilt that was quilted on Ed over the span of a week.  Since I finally have a table to sandwich quilts and a machine to handle them, I began to rethink my approach to the yellow blocks.  After all, the St. Pat’s quilt really went together smoothly….

But I forged on.  By the time I quilted the St. Pat’s quilt, the 20 yellow blocks had all been made into individual quilt sandwiches and had all been quilted.  I was in the process of sewing the blocks into rows and then doing all of that joyous hand sewing.  Now, I don’t mind hand sewing, but usually that is the binding and when the hand sewing is done, so is the quilt.  Not the case with this one.

I fought this quilt.  I shoved aside; made excuses not to do handwork, you name it.  But I recently decided enough was enough and it needed to be done.  So last week I sewed a lot of rows together to make the quilt itself so that the final hand sewing could be done.  I even took it in the car with us to Chicago this weekend and made myself work on it.  I sewed on it last night during Downton Abbey.

And then I saw it.  On the front side, there are poofy mountains.  In order to get the proper overlap on the back, I had pulled the two squares together too much and thus the top would no longer lay flat.  It was all over the quilt. All over. I about cried.

And then I decided that I loved these blocks too much.  I had slogged on all this time with the mantra of done was better than perfect and I would never do this method again.  But now done wasn’t any good any more.  It was inferior to my quiltmaking; an insult to my art.  No way. 

I stopped what I was doing.  I made a new plan.  This quilt now has homework status, which means it will be worked on each month until completed, as all of the work is just no fun.  Necessary, but no fun.  For January, I will do no more.  For February and future months, I will have to think about it.  My goal is to have about 4 quilts available for a finish in a month and 5 homework assignments and then BOMs from Peddlers Way.  That’s like 10 things per month to choose from.  I may buy a new backing; there is a wonderful fabric in the sale room at my LQS that would work.  It will be OK.

Blocks are done

I did complete the blocks on Friday; it took about 3 hours just to do the last 13 A blocks.  When I sit down and try and estimate how much time the blocks took, I'm think somewhere in the 10 hour neighborhood.  I had to remind myself to enjoy the process.

I needed that 3 hours of quilting on Friday because work was a beyond stressful day.  We were accepting an accounting file into the accounting system for the first time from a new upstream system and it could have gone one of two ways: smooth sailing and done by 10am or we're working all weekend.  We ended up up working the weekend.  My part is done, but one of my programmers has pieces left to do.

I want to get the top done, sans borders, tonight, but there is a Girl Scout meeting to run.  We shall see.  There's a lot of football on and the return of Downton Abbey (which is thankfully on my DVR), so maybe I will be inspired to sew.

I also worked on cutting out more boxy stars.  When I sort through my precut blue strips, I decided to pull out all obvious prints - the airplanes, the trains, the flowers.  I want this quilt to just read blue.  So when I did all of that I only have 20 blocks and I really want 30.  So more strip cutting will need to be done.

Now on to next week - what are my goals?  I do know that I will be away from home for Monday night and I have to prepare for a large GS event on Saturday, so my time belongs there.  So goals for next week:  borders on Easy Street, backing for Easy Street, sandwiching Easy Street, something (anything!) on Orca Bay and continued work on the yellow LCRR.  On other fronts, 2 sessions in my bedroom and 2 chapters of insurance.

Short a Goose!

I knew I might be short a goose when I had an extra 2 * 3.5 black and white brick lying around.  I held on it it, just in case.  I'm glad I did.

I sewed for another 1.5 hours today (2 episodes on a TV show on DVD).  I got 6 of the remaining 7 B blocks done, but of course I couldn't get the last one done due to the missing goose.  I kitted up all the little parts and will sew that tomorrow.  I also finished sewing the centers of the rest of the A blocks, of which I had 13 left to go.

Tomorrow, thank the universe, is Friday, so I can hopefully get far on the blocks.  My goal is to have the top done, sans borders, by the time I go to bed on Sunday night.  I have a lot of things to accomplish between now and them, many of which do not involve sewing, so here goes nothing.  I am at least equipped with good DVDs.  I am technically ahead of where I wanted to be at this point in the work week, so that has to help.

I also figured out that I am at least #24 on the Queen's list.  I was declared on New Year's Day to be #25 and the queen has already abdicated, and I have no idea how many other finishes were in there.  I have no idea how quickly I can churn something out.  I do have Old Tobacco Road all sandwiched  which  is good, but it's small and I don't want to waste my small finish just yet.

Bit by bit

I can't work flex hours this week because we had a holiday (don't ask).  So when I got home at 4 today, I got right to it.  I planned to sew the centers of the block B (the star block) for Easy Street.  I sewed until 6pm and got all 7 of those centers done and also 6 for block A, plus I started on the outer parts of block B.  I was really productive!

So tomorrow I need to run some errands after work and then go weigh in.  Maybe when I get home I can get an hour in for sewing.  I would love to finish the 7 B blocks; I'm so close.

5 blocks done

I started on Easy Street and got 5 blocks done.  Since it is set on point, I did the 5 block row and now it's lying on my living room floor.  I hope to do 5 blocks per night, but with work, that is probably unrealistic.  I also finished all the side triangles, which I didn't get done last night.

I also made the backing for Old Tobacco Road and got it sandwiched.  I consulted with Ted and I think I even know how it will be quilted.  Whew.  Sometimes that is the hardest part.

I also found some blue 2.5 inch strips and so I started cutting them up for a Bonnie Boxy Stars quilt.  No idea where this is going; just making one for inventory.

I also thought for a while on homework and put it all on a post it in my sewing area.  No out of sight, out of mind if I can help it.

OK, so what can I get done between tomorrow night and bedtime on Friday night?  Let's aim for progress on the Easy Street blocks.  The centers are actually very easy for each block, so I may just line those up and get those done.  I also would like to get 5 boxy star blocks done and one long seam done on the yellow LCRR.

2012 in Review

I finished 17 items in 2012, busting about 77 yards.  Not quite 100 yards, but it's a goal every year.  I am super-happy with my finishes.

30s Barn Raising.

Barnyard Bats

Boxing Day

Christmas 2 BOM

Grandma Says (Anita's Arrowhead)

Mini Hopscotch

Layla's baby quilt

Red, White and Back mat and runner
Chiclets runner

Seaside Rose Jacket back

Seaside Rose Jacket front

Australia fat quarters

Red hearts

Sophia's big girl quilt

St. Pat's LCRR

Watermelon Slice and Seed

Purple Strings

77 yards busted.  A fun year and a lot of quilting.  Here's hoping 2013 holds even more finishes!

Getting It Done Jan 2013

Judy over at Patchwork Times has taken the UFO per month concept to a new place.  Let's list 4 things we want to get done.  It could just be a step of a quilt or a finish; it doesn't matter.  It's about accountability to each other.

So here are my 4:

Three of mine deal with Bonnie Hunter Quiltville quilts; the last is a log cabin.  I only desire to get each one to the point where the binding is attached.  I'll do the handwork when I get there.  All 4 enter 2013 as UFOs.

1.  Easy Street.  As I write this, we are awaiting the last step.

2.  Orca Bay, which I call Green Bay.  This one is lying in pieces, in bins and baskets, all over my sewing area.

3.  Old Tobacco Road, which I call The Three Sisters.  I have shrunken this by 25% in piece size and I am only doing 3 rows of crops instead of 5, and it's not as long, etc.  Right now I hope to finish the top tonight.  I have 3+ hours left to do so!

4.  Yellow log cabin.  The top is half assembled.  Ugh.  I just need to finish it off.

Pray for snow days for both school and work!

Days 6, 7 and 8

On the sixth, seventh and eighth days of Shutdown, my true love gave to me....

...an insane desire to finish this project!  Boxing Day measures 61 * 69 and busted 6.32 yards of fabric.

After finishing the Christmas 2 BOM quilt, I was bound and determined to get rid of my Christmas fabrics.  I mean, I wanted them G O N E.  So I spent the week before Christmas going through all of those scraps and cutting as many 2" strips as a I could (I had a fair amount already cut up from a project from 2011).  On December 23rd I started attaching the strips in a QAYG fashion.  I went as far as I could with the strips I had.  When I ran out of the various random pieces I had, I was done.  The width was determined by the yardage I got for the back, which is a funky pink retro pink and white holiday fabric, which is very complimentary to the pink ornament fabric in the top.  Yesterday I finished the strips and today I did the binding while my DD has a friend over.  Both girls gave it a thumbs-up.

Face it, this is ugly-cute.  I can't bear to part with it.  And yes, there are still scraps left, but I am done for this year.

So far this shutdown, I have busted about 30 yards of fabric and 2 items on my UFO list.  I don't know if I will get any more finishes in this year, but if that's all that happens here on Shutdown, it was not bad.

And to those who have asked about the Christmas 2 BOM quilt and the extra point, Ellen did contact me, confirmed my math and gave me the extra point.

Meanwhile, my DD is conspiring for a sleepover!

Days 4 and 5

On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

..a workday of quilting because it was Christmas Eve.  I worked a lot on my Christmas UFO, plus I started sewing a new quilt that evening.

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

...a finish!  This UFO entitled Christmas 2 BOM used up 9.33 yards of fabric and it's 80 inches square.

This quilt of course has a story.  Way back when we still lived in Brookfield, I did 2 different BOMs at 2 different shops.  Each month, I also made the block out of my Christmas stash, which was made up of remnants and deep sales at Joann's, etc.  Of course, one set of blocks finished at 9 and the other at 10.  And to do this setting, I needed the 25th block.  Then we moved and it languished.

I decided this fall that this was it.  It had to be done.  So I drug it out, sashed the blocks to make them all the same size, made the 25th block, set the whole nightmare together and then did the inner border.  I then worked my butt off on that outer pieced border; some of those rectangles are crumb blocks!  

And then I got stumped after Thanksgiving on how to quilt it.  No joke it sat there giving me the stink eye (one person said it was looking at me askance and I said it was looking at me like o.O).  Anyway, I asked my DH what to do and he said (because he values his marriage and my sanity) to just do some diagonal lines.  I fought this thing.  Putting 80 inches on point through the DSM is like 120 inches and that is no small feat!  After it was quilted, my DH did explain that he felt that the quilt could have standed some beautiful quilting in the setting triangles and borders, but he knew I was at my wit's end.  He's a smart guy, that Ted of mine.

Anyway, on Christmas Eve I attached the binding and on Christmas Day I handsewed the binding down while watching a lot of Harry Potter movies.  A Christmas quilt ready on Christmas - a Christmas miracle, according to a friend of mine!

Enjoy!

On the Second Day of Shutdown...

On the second day of shutdown, my true love gave to me....

...a late post.  Sorry about that.  Yesterday was a travel day to and from family.  But in all sincerity, here's Saturday's item:

...A finished St. Pat's quilt!

Years ago I was in a round robin that made the blocks.  I finally made the top, pieced the back and here is the finished quilt.  Please excuse my bedroom; it's the only spot to take a pic of a quilt this big!  St. Pat's is a meaningful day in our family; my oldest nephew was born on St. Pat's.  

This quilt is 72 x 90, and I did it all by myself.  It busted 9.56 yards from stash.

For the First Day of Shutdown....

Welcome to the 12 Days of Shutdown!  I have ambitious goals for these 12 days, which include busting a total of 56.07 yards.  I am a woman on a mission.

Shutdown is when the university my DH works closes down for 7 days during the holiday season.  I mean everything shuts down.  Everything.  My initial goal was to have that entire time off and be home with my family, but this project I am on at work will not permit that.  I will have to work some time here and there, some of it in the office and some of it at home.  But my 12 Days of Shutdown plans are not deterred!

For the first day of shutdown, my true love gave to me….

A finished 30s Barn Raising quilt.  Pattern is by Michelle at http://mychellem.blogspot.com/ and the pattern is at the http://www.modabakeshop.com/.  This measures 60 inches square and busted 5.42 yards of fabric.  This quilt will go into inventory; it has not yet revealed its owner to me. 

Here’s the story behind this quilt.  A few years ago, my sister asked me about old timey fabrics so that a friend of hers could repair a family quilt.  She and I went on to the Fat Quarter Shop website and looked at styles of fabrics.  My sister Kim determined that her friend needed 30s fabrics for the repairs and that nickels would be fine.  So we ordered 2 packets of Aunt Grace nickels and some 20s nickels as well.  I had them shipped to Kim; Kim gave them to the friend and we both thought that was that.

Fast forward 5 years and Kim comes to my house and hands me her stash.  It was overwhelming her, which means, by stashbuster definitions, it needs to be managed.  She chose to manage it by giving it to me.  It was one garbage bag.  (Comparatively, I have a room or more.)  In there were the nickels, with only 2 used.  I asked Kim about it and she said the friend just gave them back. 

So I chose to make this quilt with these nickels.  The white also came from Kim’s stash.  I only needed to buy the back and the binding.  I don’t have an affinity for 30s fabrics and thus I don’t have any stash of them, so it was a necessary buy.  Nearly every nickel was used; I have a few 2.5” blocks left and those will go into a project that needs a lot of those.

So after the orthodontist today (she’s getting them put on), I hope to continue cutting and preparing for my Boxing Day quilt and some other things.  I left work early yesterday to beat the weather and I made it with 15 minutes to spare before the horribleness set in.  So Renee and I watched a lot of Harry Potter.  She made bead necklaces for a craft fair at school today while I went through an enormous bag of Christmas scraps.  I have plans for the Boxing Day quilt using the scraps, so I was cutting lots of 2 inch strips.  Whatever scraps are left are being put into a littler bag for Christmas crumbs.  I cannot wait to be done with Christmas fabrics!  I cannot believe they have stretched this far; 2 bed sized quilt tops have already been made with them, and Boxing Day will be lap sized and Christmas crumbs will be whatever it turns out to be. 

4 Weeks Left

I did make more progress this week.  I went ahead and finished the St. Pat's LCRR, which is twin-sized.  I also finished 2 BOM blocks, Step 3 of Easy Street and another 25% of Step 1 of Easy Street.  I also worked on quilting the Christmas 2 BOM some more.

So this week I am out 2 nights in a row and then home for 3.  I am also hosting the Schwitzner Sibling Christmas on 12/16, so I have to food shop, present shop and clean my house.  I have given up on my house; I just need to let it go.  Lon g story there, but I need to let it go.

So the goals for this week are to sew 2 short seams on the yellow LCRR during Downton Abbey tonight, and finish quilting this Christmas quilt.  I would like to attach some yellow rows on the LCRR plus finish the BOM blocks plus do the BOM block due on the 15th plus do some work on my interpretation of Old Tobacco Road.  No idea how this is happening.

All of this will come together during the 12 Days of Shutdown.....

5 weeks left

Well, I did accomplish quite a lot this past week.

As of last Friday:

1.  The 30s quilt is done done.
2.  Binding was started on the St. Pat's quilt.
3.  A quarter of the quilting was done on the Christmas 2 BOM quilt.

And the weekend:

1. A lot of binding done on the St. Pat's quilt (Downton Abbey!).
2. A BOM block completed and another cut out.
3. Easy Street step 2 done and a quarter of Step 1 done.

Of course I have goals for the week.  I have one night of meetings, and I'd like to slip away for an evening this week and see Lincoln.  So I have a few goals to get through the week.

By Friday night:

1. Finish the St. Pat's binding.
2. Finish the last 3 BOM blocks.
3. Finish Step 1 for Easy Street.
4. Attach the next row on the yellow LCRR.
5. More quilting on the Christmas 2 BOM.