May goals update

I set pretty small goals for May and am pleasantly surprised with how much I got done in spite of my crazy work schedule and other things that happened in May.  I didn't get back to working on the borders for my Terrain Fat Quarter Stars, but everything else on my list got done.

• Clean up and organize my cutting table area!!!  DONE and still clean
• Row Robin - add a 6" row of blocks (8) to the next quilt passed to me  DONE
• Terrain Fat Quarter Stars - add my borders
• Heart Strings with black centers - finish top and mail to Heart Strings project  DONE
• Saturday Sampler quilt - make block 13  DONE
• February Count On It - re-make this one because I messed up the original  DONE
• September Count On It - hand quilting  DONE
• Trip Around World - make 3 more blocks  2 blocks & 2 more strips sets DONE

In addition to this UFO list, I also got a couple of other little things DONE:

• V is For Violet (block for guild baby quilt)
• T-shirt block (guild bus trip project)
• Twister Witches Hat (Halloween door hanging)
• Binding the "Friends in Stitches" wall hanging & add button embellishments
• Sew binding to Wildflowers quilt, ready to hand stitch
• May block for Year to Crow About

Another "Crow" block

With 2 hours of uninterrupted sewing last night I managed to get another block done in my Year to Crow About quilt. We get 2 blocks each month and I had 4 blocks to make, including the 2 we got this last week.

I love these little stars blocks in this one. And every block has the little checkerboard somewhere in it.  And of course each block has a section of the crow panel framed in dark brown.

More "Scrappy Trip" blocks

Another of my May goals had been to make at least 3 more Scrappy Trip Around the World blocks.  I got 2 more made.

But I also got 2 more strip sets put together. That makes 5 strip sets made, and 5 more cut and ready to sew together.  

I think this project will become a June goal and if I can find more green and blue batiks to use I can add more blocks so that this ends up a decent size.

September Count On It

The rainy Memorial Day weekend was ideal for doing some sewing.  I finished all of the hand quilting on this mini quilt - the September Count On It.  I can check this one off my UFO list now too.  The only one of this monthly series that is left to do is the December one. Maybe I'll get that one done before December arrives again.

Saturday Sampler block 13

I finished the 13th block in the Saturday Sampler series that we just finished. The 13 blocks will be set on point with a sashing and cornerstone setting.  And there will be a wide border too.  Now I just need to decide what colors I want to use for those sections.  They will be batiks, but I just can't decide what colors I want to use. Something that is bright and happy!

Friends and quilting

One of my quilting friends is retiring at the end of June from her job as a high school principal and moving 300 miles away.  She plans to be a full time grandma to her 3 granddaughters, enjoy the beautiful Black Hills on the their motorcycle, and quilt.  We will all miss her a lot and wanted to send something with her to remind her of the friends she is leaving behind.  We gave this to her last night at a retirement party held to celebrate.

The Loralei panel was cut apart and reset into a long narrow wall hanging.  We are each writing a personal message on the back behind the block representing us.  I am the bottom gal in blue.  

  

A binding project

Working on binding a project today.  I'll post some pictures when it's completely done. Didn't Carly do a great job on the apple design quilting?

Hand stitching

I'm about half done with the hand quilting on my September Count On It mini quilt.  It is so small that it should not take me long to do - if I could just sit down and work on it. Maybe this evening.

We had a busy family weekend, with celebrating granddaughter Sophia's baptism. It was really nice going to church with the whole family and then going back to their house to have lunch. Since she is 14 months old we were not sure how well she would react to the whole event, but she was fine except for when the minister wanted to hold her. Then she wanted her daddy.

On a side note - I'm constantly amazed at what good cooks my daughters have both become, and I can NOT take any credit for that. I find myself asking for THEIR recipes these days rather than the other way around.

Check off another small UFO

This UFO can finally be checked off my list too.  These string blocks are made with a muslin foundation block and a black center.  All of the fabrics are from my scrap bin except the black centers.  I'll be mailing this top off to the Heartstrings project and let another volunteer do the quilting or tie it, before passing it along to a deserving charity.

Tiny UFO finish

My February mini quilt from the Count On It series is finished.  Unless I decide that my love birds need eyes.  Can't quite decide yet.  But the hand quilting is all done and I'm going to start quilting the September one.  Baby steps, baby steps, . . .

Relaxation

Ahhh . . . what a beautiful day!  I'm enjoying my lunch outside on my deck today for the first time in months.  And I'm looking forward to an afternoon off to play golf with my husband - also for the first time this spring.  It is supposed to rain this weekend, so there will be plenty of time for quilting and for attending the baptism of granddaughter Sophia.  Maybe I'll be refreshed and ready for another crazy week at work after having some time for fun.

A May goal or two

I'm happy to have a small progress report on my May goals. I have my row finished for the guild Row Robin project and it is all packed back in the box ready to pass along. Can't show it here on my blog yet, but I really like how this one turned out.

And this morning I got the blanket stitching done on the February Count On It mini quilt so it is ready to be sandwiched and quilted this week. September is also ready to quilt. Once those are done I can check them off my goals list and also my UFO list. Small finishes are OK with me right now. I've promised myself that I can't start anything else until these 2 mini quilts are completely done.

Is spring here to stay?

I may have to bring these plants into the garage overnight this weekend, as they are predicting frost again.  But I'm trying to be an optimist.  People who know me well will laugh about me even having plants, because I have a brown thumb.

But I promise to try (harder) to keep these going this summer.  One container tomato plant and one planter.  It doesn't seem like it should be that difficult. 

Good thing we got an inch of rain yesterday since I wasn't home to water them myself.  It is probably my talent for neglect that usually kills my plants.

What will this be?

 

Just a little peek at the fabrics I'm using for a secret project. Don't you just LOVE black and white with just a little pop of color added?

V is for violet

 

I have to share one more Heartland Quilt Guild project.  This one is a darling baby quilt that will be given to the first baby of 2014 born at the local hospital.

This little alphabet quilt is turning out just as cute as can be.  Members selected a block to applique and embroider. Some were done by hand, some by machine, and some are a combination.

My block was the V block and I finished it yesterday.  I need to drop it in the mail to the member who is putting together the quilt top so she can get that row completed.

Another guild project

A few months ago when our guild had a sew-in day, we all worked on making a very traditional star block. We were all instructed to bring a light, dark, and a medium fabric to use in our blocks. This month we put the blocks together into a top. We do need a couple more blocks to finish the final row, but it is looking good. And isn't it amazing how wonderful the blocks all look together?

Butterflies

Heartland Quilt Guild had a sew-in day today and we worked on a couple of charity projects. One of those projects was butterfly blocks for a quilt that will go towards a fundraiser for a local butterfly garden to honor a child who died as the result of a drunk driver.

I think these lovely butterfly blocks are going to make a quilt just as pretty as a spring garden.

Just a little organizing

I took the afternoon off today and spent about 3 hours doing some cleaning and organizing in my sewing room. It isn't completely done by any means, but I did clean and organize my cutting area. Goal 1 for May is actually reached.

My cutting area is a corner section of kitchen counter top sitting on files cabinets. And I have some inexpensive wooden shelving and a rolling drawer system. None of it is fancy or even matching, but they fit the purpose. And it is clean now and ready for some serious UFO work.

May goals are small

I am still going to try to be realistic about my goals for the month of May. We have graduations, baptisms, and baby showers to attend on the weekends, so I know I won't get a huge amount of sewing time. Plus I keep hoping spring will arrive so that I can play some golf without a parka.

So here are my May goals:

• Clean up and organize my cutting table area!!!
• Row Robin - add a 6" row of blocks (8) to the next quilt passed to me
• Terrain Fat Quarter Stars - add my borders
• Heart Strings with black centers - finish top and mail to Heart Strings project
• Saturday Sampler quilt - make block 12
• February Count On It - re-make this one because I messed up the original
• September Count On It - hand quilting
• Trip Around World - make 3 more blocks

Working on a UFO

Finally spent a little time working on a UFO last night.  Unfortunately, that UFO list is not shrinking like I had hoped it would.

I pulled out the Heart Strings blocks I made over the fall and winter and put them all together into pairs.  Then I put the pairs together into a square of 4 with the black center strips forming a diamond.  Two of those units are done and the rest are ready.  This top will be sent to the Heart Strings project to be tied or quilted, and then donated.  It is the second one I've done for Heart Strings and is a great way to use up scraps.  This one has black center strings and lots of bright colors. The first one I made had lime green center strings.

I'll share a photo of the finished top before I mail it.