December Mysteries and Quilt Alongs 12/24

I've been neglecting posting the mystery quilts and quilt alongs.  I'm not sure why. But this month I'll post a few that are still going on and some that are starting soon. 

Bonnie Hunter's 2024 mystery has started. "Old Town" is inspired by Bonnie's trip to Poland. You can read about it here and find links to the various posts.  The fabric choices and the first two clues have been posted as of the end of November.  If you decided to participate, keep going to this link as Bonnie will post each clue's link to this page. 

Coriander Quilts is sponsoring a mystery block of month starting in January.  The first announcement has the fabric requirements. https://corianderquilts.com/cali-co-2025-mystery-bom/#google_vignette . A recent announcement has more details including when the patterns will be available.  https://corianderquilts.com/coming-soon-cali-co-mystery-bom-matching-bella-solids/.  

Corn Wagon Mystery Sampler is in celebration of the Corn Wagon Quilts 45 years in business. A non-refundable $85 charge includes club membership, patterns and finishing kit. Monthly kits are $7.00 each. Check out the beautiful fabric and more information: https://www.cornwagonquilts.com/module/class/570825/2025-corn-wagon-mystery-sampler---silver-celebration  This is basically the opportunity to share the mystery with folks who do not live near their shop.  $$

Stitchin’ Heaven is holding a virtual New Year’s Day Mystery Quilt Along on, you guessed it, New Year’s Day.  The 5th annual New Year’s Day event will be live on You Tube. Must sign up by registering your email at https://stitchinheaven.com/pages/new-years-quilt-along . You can still buy fabric kit until 12/1, or later with no guarantee the fabric will arrive before the event. Patterns are free. 

The Fat Quarter Shop has several quilt alongs and stitch alongs starting in January. First up is Hometown Christmas Quilt Along based on Lori Holt’s Vintage Christmas Book.  More info is available at 

https://blog.fatquartershop.com/announcing-the-vintage-christmas-quilt-along/ . Fabric requirements are already available as a link on the above page. Specific dates will be released on December 26,

Next up The Fat Quarter Shop is offering The Quilted Snowman using Lori Holt’s pattern 'The Quilted Snowman.' The specific start date isn’t listed yet. But the pattern is currently available. https://blog.fatquartershop.com/announcing-the-quilted-snowman-quilt-along-and-stitch-along/ .

Minnesota Quilters is again offering a mystery quilt designed by Suzy Webster. It starts Jan 1. Cost for nonmembers is $47.00.  The directions will be emailed to you on the 1st of each month from January to October. Check out the rest of the information at https://web.cvent.com/event/705efe43-0044-416e-89a8-76de0015f88a/summary . 

Design Wall Monday 8 - 31 - 2015

ARGH!  Calendar change coming up tomorrow! Oh August where did you go so fast? 

Here's what's on the design wall today. I'm working on 2014 Row by Row.  Rather than have a long skinny quilt I've decided to break up some of the rows and add the blocks to the side of the quilt.  Unfortunately, not all blocks are the right size so I'm adding some blue sashing around the blocks to bring them up to the correct size.  Here is a fish (from a Maryland shop)block and the ice tea block from Quilter's Corner in Richmond. I have some lemon fabric to use to appliqué a lemon slice on the edge of the glass. I should probably do that before I set these together and add to the rest of the quilt. 




I didn't have a leader ender project to work on while I was finishing these blocks so I took out my Easy Street Mystery from several years ago.  Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville Quips and Snips runs a terrific free mystery every year from the Friday after Thanksgiving until about New Years.  The quilts are usually big -- queen size, lots of pieces and she encourages using scraps and fabric on hand.  Sometime in October she will be giving us information about fabric colors and approximate amounts.  You don't have to use scraps or her colors or even make as big a quilt as she does but it is so very much fun to work on it.  

These blocks scream lime to me.  I know they have some black and white prints around them and some grey four patches.  They are a long way from being finished.  I've used up most of my lime green working on this quilt.  I have most of the smaller units done so it is time to build the blocks.  What I hadn't done was cut 169 3-1/2" squares of lime green.  I finished cutting them yesterday.  I plan to take this project on retreat in 31 days. (I'm not anxious or anything!?) I'm trying to decide whether to separate the units needed for the two blocks.  Still haven't decided whether to do that or not.  It might help so I can make sure I have everything I need to sew it together.  I prefer to cut at home and have kits to work on.  Time will tell. I need to decide on what part to do as a leader ender now that these units are to this stage.  Do I start Block A or do I finish Block B? 

Decisions, decisions. But now, on to my goals from last week. Not bad, but I didn't get everything done. Sigh. 

Week of August 24, 2015

Finish piecing 2014 Row by Row √ making progress

Load and quilt donation quilt√

Load and quilt Dorothy’s R, W, and Blue quilt Oops!

Mail blocks to Joan/FCQEquilter Blocks done but not in the mail

Make backing for soccer quilt√ and quilted!

And this week's goals:

Week of August 31, 2015

Finish piecing 2014 Row by Row

Load and quilt Dorothy’s R, W, and Blue quilt

Sew Talking Turkey blocks together

Mail blocks to Joan

Bind soccer donation quilt

I'm linking up with Main Crush Monday, Monday Makings and Design Wall Monday. (not up yet, I'll come back later and add it.)  Take a look at what others are doing this week. 

Happy Quilting All! 

Another Top Done!

That is the top only, not quilted yet.  

I brought Carolina Christmas and Easy Street to work on while providing a bit of coverage for Kevin while Aimee was on a work trip to South Korea.  (Yep, a way far away trip!)  I'm basically dropping off Ellie and picking her up from day care which works nicely for all of us.  I planned to do some heavy duty sewing on these two quilts.  

It was working well until yesterday afternoon when daycare called to tell us that Ellie was puking.  Yuck.  Everything she ate at lunch was gone through the wrong end.  Pat and I scurried over there to to pick her up.  No day care for Ellie for a while.  Kevin made a doctor's appt for us to take her in the next day.  

At dinner she had another "episode"  but it might have been more that she was eating too fast and perhaps too much.  Who knew there was faucet from stomach back to mouth?  

Fast forward to this am.  She slept really well last night.  Drank a tiny bit of formula and a ate little bit of oatmeal.  A little bit more liquid.  Dr. says, sorry, some sort of stomach bug and don't be surprised if you get it too.  OH FUN.  On the other hand, Ellie has kept everything I have given her down today.  I've upped her formula to 4 oz and she slurped it down so fast I thought we might turn that faucet on again.  But, no.  (Thank you very much.)  She's even slept through some work being done on the house.  I can't imagine she'll sleep all that much longer but she might.  

I did get this Carolina Christmas top completely done.  Remember last picture of it here? No one commented about the left border and the right border not being put on the same way.  I didn't notice it until I was fixing the upper left block of the top border.  The whole left side was put on facing the wrong way.  I ripped and re sewed that.  I fixed the corner block.  I've sewn the bottom border together and then onto the quilt.  It is DONE. (subject to careful review to make sure everything is in the right place.)  Once I get backing for it I will get this one quilted and bound.  Hopefully, soon although I have a lot of things planned over the next few weeks.  

Maybe tomorrow during Ellie's naps I can get a bit farther on my Easy Street. I'm at step 6 but I need to review everything from the first clue to see if I wrote notes about how many blocks I was actually going to make of this quilt.  Ellie can use an extra day away from day care so she doesn't get this bug again. (can bugs repeat once you've had them?) 

I'll be going back home on Saturday unless I have succumbed to the bug.  (I'm having very positive thoughts that I won't get this bug!)  I'll probably sleep for several days cause it is tiring playing with Ellie.  I'll be coming back up for her birthday party next Saturday.  Then it's going to be beach time again.  Not as much quilting getting done but having a good time with Ellie. 

Happy Quilting All.