Seriously happy that it's the last day of January! Now if those sub-zero temps and wind chills would just go away!
Goals reached in January:
I've set a goal to knit a hat a month for the hat and mitten tree at church in December. January's hat is done:
This one was done on straight needles and I had to sew up the ends. I'm not very good at that and I don't like doing it! I've already started the second hat, and it is done on circular needles, so there will be no sewing up! And, I'm loving the pattern of the second hat, so will be finishing it by the end of February and probably do the same pattern for the next one.
Second goal for each month: piece a homeless quilt. Not sure if I can do this every month, once the group starts giving me their tops to quilt, but I did manage to piece one for January, and even quilted it yesterday.
Simple tops work the best for these homeless quilts, and I used up quite a few 2-1/2" squares - although the pile hasn't gone down much! I have started another one, using pinwheel blocks.
Goal Number 3 was purging (actually this is goal #1!) I have managed to take two carloads of stuff to the thrift shop and have another trunk full to take sometime next week, hopefully. I also tossed a lot of stuff into the garbage! I can definitely see a difference in the storage area, which encourages me to finish that job. I have emptied 6 Rubbermaid bins too - which I will keep until I'm sure I don't need them anymore. But, I am trying not to save things I don't need or want anymore, so I really don't want to refill the bins!
Goal #4 was establish an exercise routine again. I have failed miserably at that, but there's still hope for February! I did get new lights installed in the exercise room, and I have spent a couple of days cleaning up that room and my quilting room after the lights were installed. I'm waiting today for the electricians to come back and remove the longarm from a circuit and give it its own circuit since I tripped a breaker running it yesterday.
All in all, I think I'm doing pretty well on my goals for 2019.
Until next time.....blessings.
These are my two fabric cabinets in the basement. My original cabinet wouldn't fit down the stairs, so it's in the spare room holding finished quilts. These were quite a mess - to be sure!
I did finish the right one -- just took a picture before I was done! I have a whole lot of lights that I will be working on using up!
I finished the left one today. The whole top shelf is Christmas fabrics I've been collecting -- someday I'll make another Christmas quilt! I also have a ton of scrap fabric everywhere downstairs. So, I'm hoping to deal with as much of the scraps as possible this year. They will go into homeless quilts for sure. And I have various fat quarters in all areas of the basement I need to do something with too. I still have cubbies full of donated fabric that I need to press and pack into Rubbermaid totes to take to church too.
It would have been fun to play today except for the fact that I have a cold and it decided today was the day to sneeze and blow my nose constantly!
Until next time.....blessings.
This is a pic of the basement lighting that was here when I moved in:
Not real easy to see and very difficult when trying to work on the longarm. The electricians were here Tuesday and Wednesday:
Now I can see to sew - they hung a light over my sewing machines on the left. And definitely can see to cut and quilt!
So, the project for today is to clean up my messes - dust and vacuum and just do a general cleanup down here so I can actually work. I am thrilled with the lighting!
Until next time......blessings.
I'm still here -- just got kinda busy! I dropped the four bins off at the charity, but haven't been in the storage area to sort more -- but I have not given up -- I will get back to it.
I live in southern Wisconsin and we were part of the country that got caught in the big snow storm. I was in No. IL yesterday for our homeless quilt group sew, but left after lunch to stop at the store (packed with people!), and made it home before the snow started up here. It had already started in IL.
We have somewhere between 6"-8" on the ground now.
Just so so you know: I hate snow and winter! So, I'm hunkering down for the weekend -- great weekend to sew!
I joined a new club for my Statler Stitcher, which is the electronic program for my Gammill longarm. It is called Skill Builders and the January project was a tablerunner. We learned all kinds of ways to use some of the parts of the program I don't normally use and it was so enlightening. The program actually can take a square pattern and fit it into a rectangle. So much fun. Here's mine:
That center rectangle has a double crosshatch quilting pattern that is actually designed for a square, but the Statler stretches it to fit perfectly into a rectangle. Love the club and my Statler!
The electricians are coming Tuesday morning at 7 am to start replacing the lighting in the basement -- I'm so excited -- I will finally be able to see to work on the longarm and to sew. The lighting now is canned lights and the guy that lived here put halogen bulbs in them (I'm sure he designed and finished the basement himself), and that serves as poor lighting and the heat in the basement! Yeah, he didn't bother putting any heat in the basement! Once I get the new lighting installed, I'll just bring down a heater that I can turn on when I'm down there.
So, now I'm off to do a little cleaning upstairs and then heading downstairs to work on my quilt!
Until next time.....blessings.
Here are 4 Rubbermaid bins full of stuff to go, including a Santa in the box on top of one. I have hauled them out to the car and will deliver them on Monday. Most of this stuff is Christmas things -- lots of perfectly good strings of lights, and some handmade Father Christmases, and some vases and candle holders I don't use anymore. I found the crocheted stockings I made for us with the kids names on them, and of course, I saved that stuff. I saved stuff my kids made in grade school -- that's more personal stuff.
I filled one empty bin with stuff I'm keeping, but still have 3 empty bins. And the bin on the top right is a ceramic nativity set my sister made for my mother, so I will ask my niece or her daughter if they want it. My niece lost baby Jesus when she was playing with it as a little girl!
These two bins have soap making supplies in them. I'll ask my great niece if she wants the stuff before I take them to the charity place.
This is what this area looked like before the purge started! I'm making progress!
Until next time....blessings.
I managed to get 8 more blocks done on my quilt. Only 4 more to go. I've been working on 4 patches as I sew these blocks together, so hope to have an 8-patch block quilt to add to the homeless quilts this year.
Also dropped the shirt boxes I bought off at church on Sunday, so filled up the car with stuff that's going to charity. This is the real start to the purge of 2019! Included is a 2-piece set of luggage, a whole container of silver plated coffee set and serving trays, and two air beds including the pumps that go with them. And, one big Santa Claus decoration that is in it's original box. Hasn't made a dent in the storage area, but it's a start.
And, I've finally found an electrician, so he will be starting to install new lights in the basement so I can actually see to sew and quilt, in a few weeks.
Until next time.....blessings.
I worked on my quilt today:
8 blocks done -- only 12 more to go! Second from left on top doesn't have enough contrast, but not sure I'm gonna take it apart! I might learn to live with it!
I've also been working on a "betweens" quilt which is using 2-1/2" squares as leaders and enders, and making two patches and today I started making 4 patches out of them. I have a big bin of 2-1/2" squares - don't think I'll run out any time soon. But decided to press and make 4 patches. I'm thinking I'll make 16-patch blocks and maybe sash them to make a 60"x80" homeless quilt. The goal is to use up every scrap in the sewing room, but it's difficult to do when people keep donating fabrics! I spend all my time working on the donated fabric and mine doesn't get used. 2019 is going to be the year I use my fabric! Like the quilt I'm working on, I have a lot of Kansas Troubles Fabrics and a lot of darks - like Jo Morton and Civil War prints. Still need to clean out my fabric stash cabinets too! A woman's (quilter) work is never done!
Until next time.....blessings.
So my design wall was empty for one day!
I am working on piecing a quilt for my bed. There are 20 blocks, sashing and borders. I've pieced the parts of the 20 blocks, and put up one block that hasn't been put together.
All the fabric and the pattern for this quilt is from Kansas Troubles Quilters. Her fabrics used to be my favorites, but I think my taste has changed over the years. I still love her fabrics, but the quilt shop I spend the most time at is more of a brights/soft colors place. Lots of 30's fabrics, lots of Lori Holt stuff, and of course, Bunny Hill -- which is my favorite applique designer. So, I have partially gone over to the dark side (or maybe the light side)! lol
Until next time.....blessings.
I have one last finish for 2018:
I spent New Year's Eve stitching the binding down -- don't I have an exciting life?!
Old Glory is finished. Started and finished in 2018.
I didn't get the second one bound on the 31st, but I did get it done on the 1st day of 2019!:
And today I managed to quilt and bind the little one on the left that was made from orphan blocks.
I feel like I'm on a roll! I started piecing on a quilt for my bed -- I'd set aside the fabric and pattern for it -- years ago actually. And I was surprised to find that I actually had cut most of it out, so today I was able to piece 80 four-patches to start it. I've been spending the time between holidays sorting, organizing and getting caught up on things. I hope to have my antique table cleaned off by the end of January. Maybe I'll even be able to piece some homeless quilts -- usually I'm so busy piecing backings and quilting the homeless quilts the group pieces that I don't actually piece more than one or two, if that, in a year. But, I'm finally able to see the end of the mess, the end of the donated fabric that I need to press and bring in to the quilters at our sew-in. I have a full container of pieces now and another 2-1/2" strips container full for them. If I can, I'd like to start cutting the strips into 6-1/2" strips so I (or someone else) can quickly piece a rail-fence quilt. I also need to clean out my own stash cabinets - they are so messy I can't really see what I have.
It really feels good to see the end in sight!
Until next time.....blessings.
