Design Wall Monday

Over the weekend I started cutting and piecing another Mock Trip Around the World. Pattern found here. I did adjust my strip sizes so that the block would finish at 9 inches and the quilt (without borders) at about 54 x 72. I made one for my DD and DH with borders for Christmas, found here...you just need to scroll sown a bit. BTW, DD nabbed the quilt for her bed!

Sunday night I had all the strip piecing done.

Today I chain pieced the blocks together.

So, which set do you like better?

Black center?

or Blue Center?

Week #5 Stash Report

Nothing added, nothing finished so my numbers stay the same. Good? or bad? lol

Fabric added this week: 0 yards
Fabric added this year: + 22 yards

Fabric used this week: 0 yards
Fabric used this year: -11.5 yards

Net fabric for the year: +10.5 yards

What I accomplished this week:

• label/sleeve onto Milwaukee Admirals (and dropped it off for the show!)
• pieced and quilted Green Bay Packers

Goals for next week:

• bind/label Green Bay Packers (and give it!)
• a fun~just for me project

I decided to make a *fun~just for me* project as a reward for completing (well~almost completing the Packer quilt). This is a system a few of my friends online (Linda, Norma and Pam are just a sampling) use to help stay motivated and sewing! Thanks for letting me steal your ideas! :)

I Like This Better...

...don't you?

pattern: California Roll! by Lyn Brown

WIP Wednesday

Working on my least favorite parts of quilting. :(

Adding a hanging sleeve...

sewing on a label...

and ripping out the part I don't like! :(


But now, it is all done!

My quilt has been turned in for the show~check that off the list!~ and I'm ready to insert a better looking (hopefully) part into the Packer quilt.

A Wrong Turn...

First~Thanks for all the Packer Love on the previous post.

I needed to make the Packer tshirt a little bigger so I decided to frame it out with the gold. I'm just not liking it. Think I will rip it out and then re-frame the tshirt with green. That is~if the shirt is still okay to use. Otherwise a trip to the store might be in my future!

Thanks again for all the positive comments! :)

A Green Bay Packer quilt

My cousin requested a Green Bay Packer quilt with no flowers!

I dug into the green stash and purchased the gold. I'm following Lyn Brown's pattern California Roll!

Thought I might add a portion of a t*shirt to tie it all together. Think I should keep the t*shirt or not? I do have backing that is Green Bay Packer...

Week #4 Stash Report

This was a week of calling in the re-inforcements!

Blues, whites, blacks, greens and backing! Not to mention, some potato novelty fabric for more steamer bags. :)

Fabric added this week: +18 yards
Fabric added this year: +22 yards

Fabric used this week: -3 yards
Fabric used this year: -11.5 yards

Net fabric for the year: +10.5 yards (added!)

What I accomplished this week:

• quilt and bound Beanie Baby Challenge

Goals for next week:

• continue work on Packer quilt
• make/sew sleeve and label onto Milwaukee Admirals

WIP Wednesday

I finished sewing back the binding on my Beanie Baby Challenge. Now to make a label/holder for the Beanie Baby cow to go with the quilt and a temporary hanging sleeve. That will be a project for another day. lol

I quilted it with the Angel Wings panto from Willow Leaf Studio.

DD has started her Milwaukee Admirals player scrapbook, Andreas Thuresson.

It is already a little over an inch thick and the plastic protective sleeve was too small. Last year, a gal from guild demonstrated how she made 3 ring binder covers. So I used her pattern and made a few adjustments. Now Andreas' photo album has a quilted cover to protect it! I made a few *design opportunities* but DD said not to worry as the cover is not going with the album!

To see some of her scrap booking pages, click here. We are lucky to have made friends at the hockey games that are willing to share their picture taking skills which are far superior to mine. Also, as a scrap booking group, we have permission to use anything from the Milwaukee Admirals' website to include in the player scrapbook.

and yes, Maureen! That is Tempting Turquoise!

Design Wall Monday

This is what was on my design wall last week...my Beanie Baby Challenge for my night guild.

I selected the black and white cow as inspiration...seen here perched on Baby keeping a watchful eye!

I was only about 2 inches from the final seam when my thread ran out. I used JudyL's idea and dated my new cone so that I will be able to track the piecing thread usage.

Here is my Challenge piece. The finished size is suppose to be 36 x 36...think mine is a little closer to 37 x 37 but it should work as a preemie isolette cover. I used the red from the cupboard and the black and white are from the strings bin. I did buy backing for it and will use the extra backing as the binding.

Also a Green Bay Packer shirt which will be sewn into a quilt for my cousin...hopefully before their season ends! :)

Week #3 Stash Report

I had one finish, so a good week.

Fabric added this week: +2 yards
Fabric added this year: +4 yards

Fabric used this week: -8.5 yards
Fabric used this year: -8.5 yards

Net fabric for the year: -4.5 yards (used)

What I accomplished this week:

• quilt and bound Flower coins

Goals for next week:

• work off the list!

First Finish of 2011

Yea! My first finish of the New Year!

Wonky and wonderful! A gift for my female cousin who is 2 years younger than I am. As a child, I always looked forward to the Reunions so I could play with my cousins. Funny, although we only lived an hour away~that was the only time we saw each other other than weddings and funerals!

I'm Back...and Week #2 Stash Report

DH had the computer cleaned and fixed so now I am back in business...so to speak! LOL

First order of business:

I finished the flower coins to a flimsy last week. I decided to go with all green as the border, too. I was thinking about green as the inner border and blue as the outer border but...the green was just hanging out on the cutting table and blue was way away in the closet so...green is the winner! I happy to say that almost all the flower coins were pre-cut and waiting to be sewn into this quilt. More dinosaur fabric used~I believe some of this fabric dates from about 2005. I just didn't realize that I had cut my coins at different widths...some 2.5 inches and some 3 inches. Just makes the whole thing a little wonky with no matchy coins... :) wonky is a good thing in my sewing world!

Second order of business:

My Stash Report for Week #2

Fabric added this week: +4 yards (backing for this quilt :))
Fabric added this year: +4 yards

Fabric used this week: 0 yards
Fabric used this year: 0 yards

Net fabric for the year: +4 yards (added)

What I accomplished this week:

• pieced flower coins to a flimsy (see above)

Goals for next week:

• quilt and bind flower coins
• start another project

Thanks for *hanging with me* I've been going thru a bit of January Blues. Not a whole lot of motivation to be creative~either sewing or quilting or card making or scrap booking~

I'm hoping to get back *on track* soon. There are so many exciting happenings around blogland that everyone is sharing! and DD and I need to start a certain player scrapbook...who is now playing with our NHL parent club.

Computer Woes

Going to be off line for a spell, friends!

Our main computer has contracted a virus and is currently at the doctor. Need to figure out how to do pictures next on this little iPad. :)

Wish me some good luck and good charma....thanks!

I'm Sewing!

I pulled out my floral strings box and started sewing the coins together today. Looks like I almost had enough pre-cut coins~only missing about half a strata! It will be easy enough to go to the cupboard and pull 5 florals to complete the strata.

Two Weeks Ago...

...I left the sewing room for my Christmas Holiday looking like this

and this.













Today I spent a little time straightening, putting away scraps, cutting down novelties and cleaning a bit.

Now it looks like this

and this.


Underneath the top pile on the cutting table, I found green and white hst's. Cut-offs from another long forgotten project. :)

So I ironed them open but will save the trimming and joining for another day when the *spirit* moves me.

I really haven't felt like sewing this past week but maybe, with a new *to sew* list and the sewing portion of the crafting room clean, I will feel like sewing again. One can hope, right?! :)

Winter 2011 *To Sew* List

Well, I crossed off a lot of the items off the bottom portion of my list but didn't finish very many of the personal items. I am going to carry over these personal items to the newest list and 'get 'em done!'

In no particular order:

Winter 2011 *To Sew* List

Personal:

• Allison T*shirt
• Cousin G~Packer
• Cousin L~floral coin
• me~grocery bags
• floral rag
• label/hanging sleeve for Milwaukee Admirals
• Oconomowoc Quilt Guild Beanie Baby Challenge

Donation

• Cancer Recovery Totes
• Margaret Hope Chest A
• MHC B
• QOV A
• QOV B

Stash Report Week #1

Easy one! nothing in, nothing out!

Fabric added this week: 0 yards
Fabric added this year: 0 yards

Fabric used this week: 0 yards
Fabric used this year: 0 yards

Net fabric for the year: 0 yards

LOVE IT! zero, zip, nada, nothing!

What I accomplished this week:

• nothing!

Goals for next week:

• can I get back to you?! lol

Starting out slow...hope I can pick up the pace! :)

2011 Quiting Codes

In January, I posted my 2010 Quilting Codes as opposed to Quilting Resolutions. Codes are more a guideline to quilt (or live) by rather than a definite *thing* to do. Make sense?! Let's see how I did, okay? okay...

A. Promise Quilts and Things. ummm...keeper. Still can't say, 'NO' when relatives/ friends ask for homemade quilts and things. Although this category is dwindling as more of my creations are finding homes other than my own. :)

B. Gift Quilts. ummmm...keeper. This is why I began quilting. To gift to others that touch my life in some manner. Now to figure out *how* to get quilts to my favorite Milwaukee Admirals players without seeming like a crazed quilting stalker...thinking I just might give quilts to charities by proxy...if you know what I mean. I made a baby quilt for my favorite player who had his (well his wife did) first child this fall and I donated that quilt to Margaret's Hope Chest. ps: They named their son, Patrick! In my fantasy world...yep...the kiddo is named after me! I never said I was totally sane, now did I?!

C. Donation Quilts and Things. keeper, keeper, keeper. My day guild donates Cancer Recovery Totes to two local Breast Cancer Centers and the Centers are always in need of the totes. My night guild is trying out a few different activities for donations and I'm *all in* on that. I donated a few QOV's to Alycia and her No Soldier Forgotten Quilt Drive. I love the colors of red, blue and tan. :) I also discovered Carin's Margaret's Hope Chest. A perfect fit for me as I am using my dinosaur fabric and helping to cover the youth who have a parent (or parents) in prison.

D. Dinosaur Projects. keeper. Trying to move the older fabric and projects out of the sewing room and cover others in the process.

E. ME Projects. new category...yea! I'm thinking about making seasonal quilts for my bed. More seasonal quilts for the family room. Birthday gifts for the FAB's. Seasonal backpacks as I really like this option as a purse. These are just a few projects that are for me. :)

I still want to keep track of the fabric in/out. Not so much in the stash busting arena but just to *know*. I must say that come October/November, I really dislike reporting that I have added to the stash. :)

Thanks for sticking with me this long on this boring....zzzz....post but I like to put down my thoughts about my sewing year and think about the next! gosh...2011...already!

2011...big year for me! 10 years quilting, 25 years of marriage and 50 years of life. wowza!