Rainbow Scrappy Saturday and Progress

January's color is blue--I made this blue block using the Missouri Star Pattern "4-Patch Stars"--

A very simple block and I'm using leftover 4 patches from several years ago in the center.  A few each month will yield a nice size quilt.  Please see what everyone is working on at SoScrappy.

Lorri2Rs was here for a visit.  Look what she did--

I'd sorted my leftover bits of batting by type and early one morning she sewed the scraps together into usable size batts--she even labeled them with the size!  Thank you Lorri!!  

Last year I made Monkey Wrench/9 Path blocks and I've gotten them set together--

The borders are made but not on--they are the striped fabric with a narrow blue strip.  

A completed quilt found a new home--

Cecely has graduated from college and will be moving to Nashville.  I was lucky to volunteer with Cecely, I am so going to miss her!  Cecely has worked three years for the Army Corps of Engineers as a Park Ranger while in college.  Lucky is the company who hires her!!  

The weather has turned COLD!  We have a little new snow but not much. Groceries were bought on Thursday and I plan to stay inside all weekend and sew.  Some peasant stew with lots of black eyed peas and kale sounds good.  Ken is a good sport and eats it but I will make him something he likes too.  He doesn't share my love of dried beans and green things!  Ken has one great food love--a burger.  

Has the new year brought you lots of sewing time?  Are you finishing any old projects?  Started any new ones?  How are your resolutions?

~LORI~
  

2016 Goals and Guidelines

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

 Its a new year, and I'm using my 2015 Guidelines again--

2016 Guidelines

Refold/organize ONE cube/spot in my stash per month

Work on ONE UFO per month and move it One more step towards completion.  (add borders, set blocks into a top, etc)

Any piece of stash less than 9" WOF goes into the scrap box to be recut into usable units--noodles, 3.5" x 6.5" bricks, 5" charms.  

Finish a UFO before starting a new project (this one is a bit iffy)

I plan to participate in Design Wall Mondays, Stashbuster's UFO Challenge, Rainbow Scrap Challenge and other internet fun.  Even Stash reports!  I may not post to each one every week--but I enjoy them. 

I plan to make quilts for donation and for family. 

I will participate in internet fun.  

I will remind myself its the PROCESS I love the most!

 

 My words for the year are ENJOY, FOCUS, and BALANCE!!

They have worked well for me, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!"  I did add Focus and Balance to my words.  

How has my year totalled up?   My stash report shows me buying 109 yards more than I used, but I have seven tops to hand sew the binding, I don't count stash out until that step is done so I think I'm pretty close to break even.  Refold/reorganize one section of stash each month has been great.  I find fabric I have forgotten and use it.  Lots of quilts have been finished this year and several of them have new homes.  I've learned a new very helpful phrase--Just One Thing--JOT.  Even if you don't think you have time or don't feel like it, do JOT.  Wind bobbins.  Rip the mistake you laid to the side.  Press the blocks you pieced.  JOT can be locating a pattern, doing math, or making lists.  JOT is a task that might take 15 minutes.  Its a great tool, its used a lot. 

My UFO's numbers have decreased, currently count 42, although I am sure there are more hiding.  

I've been limiting my internet time and sewing more.  Gauntlet Toss--A challenge to anyone to a quilting marathon.  My goal is 12 tops quilted by May 1st.  Tonight I finished #7.

Christmas was postponed due to 9" of snow.   The grandsons got nerf bullet guns, games, toys and new shirts.  They are young enough its great fun.  

Today Lorri2Rs is coming to sew for a few days.  We're going to work on lots of things, Alletaire is a mystery no longer and we can hardly wait to finish ours!

I'm planning pork, cabbage, and Hoppin' John for today.  All supposed to bring you good luck in the new year.  Do you have a special menu or tradition for today?  

~LORI~

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

Nothing on my design wall but I did load a top on the Princess--

Spool blocks I made 3 or 4 years ago for the Rainbow Scrappy Challenge.  Its ready to go whenever I get the urge to quilt.  Please see everyone's design wall posts at Patchwork Times.

Part 4 of Alletaire is being worked on--

Headless flying geese!  Its no secret I don't like diagonal seams.  There are 480 in this clue alone!  Arrggghh!!  The neutral bits need to be sewn to the red bits yet and then this step will be done.  There was a bit of frog stitching--

Both seams angled the same way

Red fabric wrong side up

I like my bits pressed flat.  Once all the parts were pressed I laid them neatly underneath a cutting square--

 Next I weigh the square down with a couple of quilting books--

This insures the pieces will be nice and flat when I come back to sew them together.  I know I know--OCD!!

There was baking today--

Spritz cookies!  Two batches--one of green trees and one of red wreaths.  Ken helped me dip the Buckeyes, Ritz/Peanut butter crackers, and I made a batch of Haystacks (corn flakes, coconut, nuts coated with chocolate and heaped in little mounds).  The outside freezer is where I store my goodies.  I need to store them further away--they are too close!!!  

Liz on Stashbusters issued a challenge/quilt-a-long.  Its Simply Woven at Moda Bakeshop (free pattern)--

Isn't it a great looking quilt?  NO DIAGONAL SEAMS!!  And its very stash friendly--you can cut it all from fabric you already own.  I found a jelly roll in the closet that contains these fabrics-

Its called "Sweet" by Moda for Urban Chiks.  The pattern calls for two jelly rolls, I'm not sure if I'll dig deeper in my stash for fabrics or possibly buy some.  If you'd like to sew along you can join Stashbusters at Yahoo Groups or just sew one.  

Weekly Goals--

I'm still "eating the elephant".  Its a good goal at this busy time of year.   More blocks need to go on the design wall and Alletaire and Star Struck are keeping me busy.  A few more Christmas goodies to be made.  There has been no time to sit in the chair and hand sew binding. 

Are you thinking about goals for 2016?  New Projects?  UFO's to finish?  Any goals that aren't quilty??  

~LORI~
 
 

Rainbow Scrappy Saturday

Are you thinking about next year?  I am!  I've even started a project--

Jacob's Ladder blocks with lime green HSTs. They will be part of my 2016 RSC.  I was influenced by seeing Vic's three finished quilts.

Vic's Three Jacob's Ladder Quilts

Aren't they lovely??  Its one of my favorite blocks and I'm using some 4 patches I made 3? 4? years ago for the RSC.  Any miscellaneous 4 patches I find go in a plastic Ziploc bag and I'm adding them to my Jacob's Ladder blocks.  Please see everyone's posts at SoScrappy.

In addition to the designated color blocks I made each month--I also made R/W/B blocks.  The Monkey Wrench/9 Patch blocks are a finished top--

A tight fit on the wall but I'm liking it.  The stash didn't have enough of a "dark" for a border and I was resigned to buying 2 yards.  (2 yards because I wanted the binding to be the same as the border).  I slept on it, and today I had one last place to look--Dee's box!  Dee in Nebraska had saved me a box of fabric from when she moved and cleaned her stash.  Yes, at the very bottom of the box was the border fabric!  Thanks Dee!  I think it goes perfectly with the blocks--

Dark navy, gray, silver, red, and white.  Now if I can just find some backing........

My design wall is empty--

Tomorrow I will find another set of blocks to cover it.  The empty wall is depressing! 

And because its Christmas and I LOVE Christmas a picture of our tree--

There are no lights on it--the needles are fiber optic and glow and change colors in waves.  I haven't seen one for sale in a store for years.  I have different red lights and snowman below it.  

In less than a week it will be Christmas.  There are presents to wrap and cookies to bake.  Are you ready for Christmas??

~LORI~

Tuesday Check In

Whew--its a busy time of year!  So far this week its been two doctor appointments and some shopping.  Today was eye appointment in Mitchell and of course the weather is changing to rain/snow/sleet/ice.  Interstate 90 is closed from Chamberlain to Rapid City and I'm sure there will be lots of cancellations by morning.  Tomorrow a Christmas party is scheduled where Ken works, but with the weather I won't be surprised if its cancelled. 

First an updated stash report--

Stash in this week--8.00 yards
Stash in YTD--284.00 yards
Stash out this week--0 yards
Stash out YTD--175.00 yards

Stash is ahead 109 yards!

I need to use my calculator more often--I had a mistake on last weeks report!  This week I bought 8 yards of flannel for backing.  The numbers look bleak but there are 6 tops waiting for the hand sewing of the binding.  Five sets of blocks to set into tops.  I've laid out a big top to load on the Princess.  Two more in line.

Last week goals--

Quilt 2013 RSC 30's quilt--done with binding ready to hand sew

Finish Binding Galaxy of Friends--waiting by the recliner

Bind Baby Animals--in line

Sew more of the R/W/B blocks into rows--nope

2015 Quiltville mystery--all caught up

I pieced a backing, made a binding, finished more units for Star Struck (from last winter).  I think I have the 396 units needed, they are pressed and ready to start putting together--

 They will make these blocks--

This is a free pattern at Quiltville.  Thank you Bonnie Hunter.  My project was prompted by one my friend Liz made. 

Weekly Goals--

I think I'm going with "eat more elephant"!  Yes, its the phrase "how do you eat an elephant??  One bite at a time!"  I jump from project to project--but I like a little variety in how my elephant is served.  Progress is progress.  Imagine me madly sewing this week!  I need more tops to quilt for the Gauntlet Toss.

A few weeks ago Asher had his 4th birthday--

 Note the tilted candles, Asher put them in.  Grandma made sure the cake had plenty of frosting--that's Asher's favorite part!

Asher, Mason and Maxwell. 

Do you bake Christmas cookies?  How do you store them?  I use metal popcorn tins and other metal containers.  Last night I was searching in the basement for a favorite cookie tin and instead found this--

A box of fabric someone gave me and I had forgotten about it.  At least 6 yards of this bright print--a future backing??  

I never found the cookie tin so instead I did this--

'Tis the season for colds so make sure you get plenty of Vitamin C!  I like my orange juice with a little peach schnapps and cherries.  

Are you making plans for next year?  These fossil ferns and hand dyes are lurking in the closet--I am formulating a plan to use them.  

I'm in the mood to make cookies and other Christmas goodies.  Laura Beth likes Buckeyes, Nick and Ken like "Clusters", the boys love Peanut Butter stuffed Ritz crackers dipped in chocolate.  A new recipe will be added this year--Sally Ann's.  

http://wyomingbreezes.blogspot.com/2009/12/who-was-sally-ann.html

The dough is frozen in the freezer--I know the recipe willl be a keeper--I tasted the dough!  Thank you Nancy for sharing one of your family traditions!

If you are finishing up Christmas presents and Christmas Shopping you don't have much time left!  Our shopping is almost done and I didn't make any presents. 

~LORI~



 

 

Design Wall Monday and Weekly Goals

This is hanging on my wall waiting for inspiration on quilting--

Its from the class I took at my guild's quilt show Halloween weekend.  Isn't it eye catching?  Too bad its only 20"x25"!!  Lorri2Rs finishing putting it together for me while she was here.  Please see everyone's design wall posts at Patchwork Times.

Weekly Goals

Quilt 2013 RSC 30's quilt

Finish Binding Galaxy of Friends

Bind Baby Animals 

Sew more of the R/W/B blocks into rows

2015 Quiltville mystery

That's enough to keep me busy.  Last night I made the binding for the guild kit top--its ready to quilt when I find a backing.  Made and sewed the binding on the Baby Animals quilt.  Loaded the 2013 RSC 30's top.  Now I need to fold fabric and put it back on the shelves.  

Remember this pic?  See the post it notes on the wall??

Information on the current projects being worked on are stuck to the wall behind the Princess.  Size of the top, size of the backing if it has one.  I leave them up these until the top is quilted and binding on.  I have the brain of a goldfish and would never remember any of this!  If you wonder where the 117" comes from, the wide backing I dye is 117" after washing.  If a top goes into the closet to wait its turn it gets this--

A note with its size pinned to the top and the binding is attached to the hanger.  No backing, there's no backing measurement written on the note.  I hate having to remeasure. 

Most our Christmas shopping is done.  Ken and I ventured out Saturday and we did "one stop shopping".  We bought almost all the grandson's presents at ONE store.  (And it wasn't Walmart!)  Toys were "buy one, get 50% off another".  If some items were cheaper at another store I DON'T CARE!!!  Buying everything at one store makes it easy for returns.  We don't buy $$$ presents or lots of them,  the boys are young enough its all great fun.  Remember when Asher got pillowcases a few weeks ago??  

Although it was a pillowcase it made a better potato sack to hop in!  Kinda like the box being the best part of a present!  Some presents are enjoyed in unexpected ways.

Cooking baking is planned, the ingredients were purchased.  Sour Cream Sugar cookies with frosting, Peanut Butter Blossoms, Haystacks, Buckeyes, Cherry Nut Slices and of course Ritz Crackers filled with peanut butter dipped in chocolate and White Clusters.  I love Mincemeat cookies but I'm the only one.  :-(

What is your holiday tradition? Do you have a favorite cookie to bake?  A special meal?  Do you play Christmas Carols???  

~LORI~

Sunday Stash Report

There has been significant stash enhancing here--

Stash in this week--29.00 yards
Stash in YTD--276.00 yards
Stash out this week--9.0 yards
Stash out YTD--175.00 yards

Stash is ahead 119.5 yards!

Looks bleak doesn't it?  Not really!  I have at least four tops on the Happy Binding Pile.  At least four in the To Be Quilted Queue.  I know there are more lurking somewhere.  My aacquisitions are all good.  Lights, neutrals, blacks and gray, some for the 2015Quiltville Mystery and some because I know my stash is developing "holes".   But before I buy I do lots of this--

I rootle through the stash looking for possibilities! Please see everyone's stash reports at Patchwork Times Blog.

~LORI~