Finished Mystery Top

The finished mystery quilt.  The yellow isn't really so taxi cab yellow but it is intense and bright.  I found a leftover piece of blue/green/turquoise fabric exactly the right size for the backing.  It is pieced, ironed and ready to quilt when I feel like it. 

Today's Plans (from Monday, 1/3/11)

• Pick the 5 quilts I'd like to make from my books and patterns and list them somewhere. I came up with about 7 - help! 

• Make 2 kits for Baby Quilt Sew In on Saturday.  Fabrics picked no cutting done.

• Put the last strip on the Trip Around the World.  Determine if it needs to be bigger.  Added the strip and need 2 more strips to make it square and several more to make it into a rectangle. 

• Pick next UFO. Didn't even think about this one.

• Prep triangles for current scrap quilt. I sewed a bunch of the triangles but haven't trimmed yet.  Hum, this got on the UFO list so maybe I did pick the next UFO. 

• Sign up for UFO challenges. Tried Patchwork Times but it closed as of 1/1/11.  Oops.  A day late and probably several dollars short to boot.  I did send my UFO list to Fabricholics Anonymous's UFO Challenge.  So, I guess I did this one too. 

Wow -- I did almost everything on my plan.  Amazing.  Hey, did you know you can change the background color of your type on your blog?  I learn something new every day.

Today I'm not going to be quite so goal oriented.  At least, I don't think I am.  

∆ Ugh -- a couple of loads of laundry. 

∆ Trim up the triangles.

∆ Prep backing for last FCQ charity quilt to be done on Ruthie.

∆ Cut fabs for the baby quilts.

The cute ∆ is made on my Mac keyboard by using the option key (maybe alt key on Windows)  and pressing "J".  The rest of the keys have different symbols but not as cute as the triangle and I used the • yesterday. (option and 8) ° oh my by shifting, option 8 I get the degree symbol.  Hum, I guess I'll need to see what other cute things I can find... 

That's it.  I'm not terribly motivated on ironing the backing of a twin size quilt and darn, the quilt itself will need ironing also.  But, I want to get it done so I can take it north next week. 

Enough goofing off -- although the first load of laundry is probably completely done.   

Happy Quilting All! 

Pinwheel Party

If you visit this blog directly rather than through Google Reader or some other reader you might notice that really nice button with pinwheels. I've jumped into another little project. If you visit Twiddletails you will be able to join the Pinwheel Party also. So here's the deal - every week Anina will be posting a pinwheel block for you us to make. The block instructions are free the first two weeks after being posted. If you miss one you can actually buy it, if you need to. After 12 weeks all the blocks will be done. She will be posting the borders and sashing the 13th week.. So, Blogetts, do you want to join me? I figure I can squeeze one block in a week. I'm sure you can too. Of course, I am already a week late. And, I don't have my fabric picked out. And, it uses 3 YARDS of backing. I may have to buy that much yardage. But, come on we can do it. Sign up. Join me.

I don't think I've shown you a picture of the finished New Years Eve 2009 Mystery. Taa dah!

That yellow and purple sure isn't very subtle is it? Hum. I like this little quilt. And, the pattern is great for setting off special fabric.

Here's a close up of one block that you can actually see the quilting on it. I tend to like light quilting rather than lots of quilting. So, of course, I quilted lightly. I may have to go back and add a little quilting in the purple/yellow sections next to the focus fabrics. I was thinking of appliqueing mittens there or perhaps just using 2 strands of

embroidery floss to stitch a mittens there.

I have gotten pretty good at those little oval shapes around a block. I use a ruler to do those. I haven't been brave enough to do it freehand yet. Well, actually on one of these I did and wasn't pleased with the out come. So, back to ruler.

The Plaza del Sol is coming along again. I hope to have it finished tomorrow. I've been rather lazy the last few days. I've been trying to finish a knitting project -- it is a hood to wear when the weather is bitter cold. I figure I'll finish it and winter will have already ended. But, it will be ready for next winter. And, I used some of my yarn stash. (Yes, I have yarn stash...) It would have been great the nights we walked Raggs and it was 15 degrees out! I think next up on the needles will be another pair of socks. I'm going to try knitting two socks at once. I'm pretty sure I bought the correct needles last year. I know I have two more skeins of sock yarn. I should be good to go.

Next up on Ruthie -- Heidi's pineapple quilt. Pictures to come when it's being worked on. You can see one of the blocks here. Oh fudge, I can't find it and I am pretty sure I posted one of the blocks. So, hold your horses and I'll put pics up when I get it loaded. Hopefully by the end of the week I'll actually be starting on it.

I'm off to finish listening to a book on my mp3. It will drown out the dripping of melting snow. Tomorrow's plans include finishing Plaza del Sol. Let's hope I actually DO it.

Happy Quilting All!

Hey, did you see I learned how to do a strike through?

Friday Night Sew-In

I was working diligently on NYE Mystery 2009 last week. Here is how it turned out pre quilting.

I'm committed to sewing or knitting Friday night for the Friday Night Sew-in. Visit Heidi's blog to sign up for it. I've never participated so this should be fun. I am going to try to make a tote bag that Kevin got me for Christmas. Remember I said my kids sabotaged my efforts to use more fabric than I acquired? He got this nifty kit to make a tote bag from Connecting Threads. Who would have thought there was 2 3/4 yards of fabric in the thing? Not me, that's for sure. I hope to get it made this week. And, I have all the supplies to do so. I know I can put it to good use.

I'm going to be working on a secret project the rest of today and until I finish it. Sorry I can't share it for a while. I am tickled pink to be working on it though.

In the meantime I went through some of my old (and I mean so old I have no clue when I would have gotten it) yarn the other day. I've had a pattern to make a hood tube (I don't really know what it is called) but you put the tube over your head so that it nestles around your neck to keep you warm. If you need it you can pull it up as a hood to keep you warm. I definitely need it to keep my head warm. I was quite proud of myself for using yarn from the yarn collection. Hopefully I'll get it done in the next few weeks. It's been cold up here and my current hat isn't quite warm enough on those 15 degree days!

Raggs has been up to his old tricks -- he's chewed the arm off this snowman. The brown pieces are coffee beans and he got one off the other snowman. Poor snowman. Wrong, Raggs, wrong.

Happy Sewing All

Final Stashbusting Results for 2009

First, remember my kids sabotaged me over Christmas. And, yes, I love all the fabric they gave me so I guess I shouldn't complain too loudly. Here's the final fabric usage report.

December

Fabric used: 7.75 yards

Fabric purchased (acquired) : 6.625 yards

Net fabric USED from stash: 1.125 yards (yea!!!)

YEAR

Year to date fabric used: 91 yards

Year to date fabric purchased: 91.75 yards

Net Year to date USED from stash :(.75) yards

Not too bad even if I didn't really use more fabric than I acquired. I had planned to count the string X quilt as finished in 2009 however, I still haven't finished sewing down the binding. That will be counted in 2010. It will give me a nice start to the year! I was trying to decide if I was going to continue keeping track of my stash usage. Yep! You'll continue to see monthly reports of my fabric usage. Some folks ask why I do this. I think it helps me to use what I have rather than buy new. And, it really helps me to not buy random pieces of fabrics. Of course, I'm spending time piecing backings because of this but I AM using fabrics.

I'm working on a new quilt -- Fabricholics Anonymous' New Year's Eve 2009 Mystery quilt. I didn't start it until after the mystery was over so I'm not following the clues exactly. I have three blocks done cause I really wanted to see how my fabrics looked in the pattern. This will become my winter quilt to hang in the stairs area. Hopefully this will be done in January -- while we still have some snow.

Next blog I'll need your input on the setting for some blocks I have. Hopefully, it won't be another week before I blog.

Happy Quilting All!

New Years Eve Mystery Is Coming

Notice something new in the sidebar? Yep, I've got a new button advertising the upcoming New Year's Eve Mystery on Fabricholics Annonymous yahoo group. You can join the group until Dec. 15th and then it will be closed until Feb. 1. We'd love to have you join us on this mystery.

Ann usually designs our mysteries -- in the past two a year from her. Here are two that I could find pictures of. I believe I was a tester on this one. It is actually a top without borders but I guess I haven't taken a photo of it. I have more of the light blue bumble bee fabric to use as borders but I am trying to force the grey into a little border and I don't think I have enough of that. I should pull it out and finish it.

This was Ann's nickel quilt. It started with 5" squares. I have finished this one and I use it as a bed runner. (that would be a quilt at the bottom of my bed.) I liked this one so much that I have been making these squares for a while. I hope to put another one together for charity. And, hum, same block as the RWB on the post before, I think.

I have ignored Ruthie too long this morning. It is time to finish that quilt off. I have a few miscellaneous blocks I want to finish and some quilts I need to send off to people.

Happy Quilting All!