Monday Meandering 5 - 9 - 2016

A late Happy Mothers Day!  My son sent me a beautiful box full of tulips.  In fact, there were so many I put them in three different vases and took one up to the studio. It's hard to get a great picture but here they are with the under counter lights on.  I love this pitcher -- I'm sure it was one of my grandmother's.  I think it is Wedgwood but it's upstairs in the studio and I'm downstairs.  

I know you are wondering why I'm showing these off.  There is a definite quilty reason.  This vase and flowers went up to the studio and is sitting on the cutting table.  I was pulling fabric for a new quilt last evening and I pulled these: 

The pattern is from Accuquilt and has flying geese and flowers.  I needed four flying geese colors: green purple, blue and yellow.  All but the blue and green also will be flowers.  The green will be leaves and stems.  Except, looking at the picture I thought the yellow geese really stuck out.  And then I noticed the flowers. 

(darn blogger -- I was trying to add typing next to these flowers but it won't let me. Nor will it let me center it now. Grumble, grumble.)   I noticed I had the green, the yellow but, there is a beautiful rosy colored tulip hiding behind the pink one.  Could I find something that came close to that color? 

Why, yes, yes I can find a deep rose color.  Orange is for star flowers, yellow is for centers.  The rose and purple will be various flowers and the greens are still the stems and leaves.  I love this so far.  Today I cut out all of the flying geese parts and the white.  Tomorrow I will iron on the fusible web (hopefully I have enough) and then will cut them out.  This is all being kitted up for the FCQ retreat starting a week from Friday.  Sunday we are going to the beach house and meet some good friends from college days.  So I only have between now and Saturday to make up a few kits to take to retreat.

I also finished quilting a donation quilt for the hospital NICU.  It's hard to see but I was extremely lucky on this quilt.  I'm holding about 4" of thread which came off the bobbin on the last row.  Yep, for once I came very close but did not run out! YEA! I will probably cut and make the binding and then take that on retreat too. 

Getting this quilted leads me right into my weekly goals. I really didn't do all that well on them last week.  It's probably not going to be all that great this week either.  We've got several things planned that will have us out of the house.  

May 2, 2016

Quilt “Happy Quilt”√

Layout and sew guild’s QOV√

Sew batik rails into 4s. Cut out black sashing√ not finished but started

Finish piecing CP orphan blocks oops! Farther along but not a top yet

Quilt customer quilt √ partially loaded

May 9, 2016

Quilt customer quilt

Finish piecing CP orphan blocks

Cut two quilt kits to sew up at retreat

Make samples for flippy star presentation

That's enough goals for this week.  I'm linking up with Monday Making, Main Crush Monday and Moving It Forward.  Take a look at what's happening in studios across the Internet. 

Happy Quilting All! 

OMG May Goal

For some reason I didn't realize that there was a linky party over at Red Letter Quilts every month for the One Monthly Goal announcement.  I've been announcing next month's goal in the same blog post for the ending of the month. I figured it out this week. So, here's another little post about my next OMG.  Hum, maybe I wasn't eligible for the previous months.  That's ok as I really like getting the UFO I pick done each month. 

I'm working on a batik rail fence variation.  I've been busily sewing together all of the "rails" I got at a retreat swap.  They are now sewn in pairs.  Tomorrow or Friday I hope to get them into "4s" so I can then figure out how much sashing I'm going to need.  Here's what I do know -- I want a bigger quilt.  I figured out I was going to end up with 14 12" blocks of rails.  Hum, a 2 x 7 set? Or 3 x 4 with a few left over?   I don't think so!  

Today I made enough rails to be able to make 3 more blocks.  Except, really 17?  That is definitely not going to work.  Tomorrow I will count all the blocks I have and decide whether I really need more or not.  I will probably want to make 3 more blocks. (I may not have remembered the right number so it could be more or less!)   Twenty blocks would be great as a 4 x 5 set.  Then just add sashing and border/s and I'll have a nice size quilt.  

 

I'm linking up with Red Letter Quilts, Let's Bee Social, and Needle and Thread Thursday.   Take some time to see what folks are doing in their studio.  Mine needs a good straightening as I've been grabbing all sorts of batiks to try to finish my blocks.  I refolded the batiks I wasn't going to use and put them back on the shelf.  I still have a pile of reds out from several weeks ago.  

I'm curious how you store your bits and drabs of scraps.  I do try to keep cutting strips and squares.  But I frequently have bigger pieces that I just don't know what to do with.  Think of the excess fabric backing from trimmed quilts.  I'm considering starting a plastic box for each major color. (The boxes can be stored under my stacks of fabric on the bookshelves and I actually have the boxes. stored They are half full or less with bigger odd pieces.  What's your plan for odd ball size fabrics?  I could sure use some help! 

Happy Quilting All! 

Monday Meandering 5/2/16 and April Stashbusting

My design wall is surprisingly bare today.  I've moved finished tops off of it. Used it to take photos of the finished Dresden Baskets.  Now it is sporting only the Country Piecemaker's Orphan blocks.  Several months ago our program at CP was to use orphan blocks to turn into charity quilt tops. We had a sew in at the library to share ideas and the various fabrics folks had donated.  Lots of tops were completed and we've had lots of finished quilts turned in to the guild. Unfortunately, I could not stay to actually sew.  Instead I gathered a group of blocks to make a quilt as I had time.  Here's what I've done so far. 

The only things I've added so far is the navy blue and the granny square.  I will need some fillers on the bottom row. The blue will be used to bring the two outside blocks in the center row to the same size as the pinwheel.  I'm thinking of making some pinwheels using the polka dot fabric and yellow to make the quilt a little bit bigger.  It's fun to move things around and try different fabrics out.  It will also be nice to have some more fabric go out of the house considering April's stashbusting efforts. 

UGH! 

2016	Fabric In Month	Fabric in Year	Fabric Out Month	Fabric Out Year	Total In or Out Year
April	22.00	38.00	17.375	29.250	-8.750

I finally washed, measured and folded the rest of the fabric from the yard sale I went to in March.  And, I did buy and was given some fabric at the FCQ Quilt show.  On the other hand it could have been much worse!  I finished 3 quilts during April.  Two of them have already been given away and I'm keeping only one.  (note to self... remember to show all of those quilts soon!) 

Moving right along . . .  here's my goals list from last week.  Not too bad. 

April 25, 2016

Quilt OMG√

Label and Bind OMG√

Pick next month’s OMG√

Finish the 9 patches for guild’s QOV√

Pick a top to quilt√

Cut and kit up one project for May retreat Um, nope

And now for this month ... 

May 2, 2016

Quilt “Happy Quilt”

Layout and sew guild’s QOV

Sew batik rails into 4s. Cut out black sashing

Finish piecing CP orphan blocks

Quilt customer quilt

Cut and kit up one project for May retreat

I should be able to get a lot more than these done because I have no outside activities planned this week.  The calendar is absolutely bare. Time to make some great progress on these items. 

I'm linking up with Monday Making, Main Crush Monday and Moving It Forward Monday.  Grab a cuppa and enjoy the show! 

Happy Quilting All!