First thing to work on off the Winter UFO list...

 The Row by Row - 2015 of the duckies looks like the easiest thing to get finished. It is also 'new' and ducks are fun so I'm working on this to be the 'first' finish on the list.

The instructions say to do a buttonhole stitch around the applique. I looked it up - I have never done that before so the bonus is - learning something new! I do like to add to my skills each year, don't you?

This kit was from Fabric, Fabric, Fabric in Rockledge, FL. All I had to do was iron the fusible applique onto the 2 strips of fabric I had sewn together. Looks like I need to buttonhole stitch around all the applique using embroidery thread, trim it, quilt it (hand, machine?) and then bind it and add the buttons for the eyes. 

I think this will look cute hanging in the sewing room. Wish me luck.

Hand work? Check.

Ok, so I did the fifth one on the night of the 4th. 

This was the practice flowering snowball block I made Saturday. It went together so nicely!

 I decided to pull a few FQs I purchased over 10 years ago to make a little quilt.... or however many blocks I can with them. I have more of these 4 colors to make the second block and then will cut more from some different fabrics. I pieced the 3 parts during horses on Sunday. I attached two together in car line and finished it off tonight.

I had planned to work in the sewing room, but I had to clear out and defrost the fridge and freezer tonight. We will see if that stops the noise and get the ice maker working again. Greg investigated the top ice maker in the door and we think it is replaceable. That one has not worked in years and we gave up on it. Lets hope when we plug it back in that the constant noise will stop. 

*** This morning the noise is not happening. Greg did pull out the ice maker and looks like $90 for that part so hopefully that will get the ice working again. 

 

Slow Sunday Stitching.... 2021!

 I seem to have more and more projects that involve slow stitching!

I just started this Flowering Snowball yesterday after purchasing the Accuquilt Die for it for Christmas. Love the middle line up it provides and the quick and accurate cutting. This is my first block and I love it! 

*** I finished this block last night and cut out more parts this morning and have one block all prepped with lines drawn to work on at horses today! So fun to stitch this one!

I plan to add 5 more of the Endless Diamond blocks so I have 25 which will make a nice size quilt of 60x60. Must prep some white kites so I can start on block #21 while Emily is riding later this morning. These are the first 20 blocks.

I started a new 365 project of making one Hexagon Quilt As You Go or QAYG each day using the Rainbow Scrap Challenge guide for colors. Pink is January so here are my first two for the year. Since these are technically finished... once they are all together it is a completed quilt! I really like that concept!

I am back working on the hand quilting of the cat and mouse in the frame now that I finished the hand quilting on the Book Club quilt last week. 

Linking up with Kathy and the other Slow Stitchers where we work on a project one stitch at a time.

RSC Week 1 - Plans for 2021

 For the RSC Challenge 2021 I am planning a few things and hoping when I read through everyone's planning post I don't go after all the squirrels and start tons of new things! 

My main project will be a Hexagon quilt as you go (Hexagon QAYG) that will be a daily block made in the color of the month. These are the first 2 hexagons. 

the back looks like this. Very cute if I do say so myself! I found a bunch of muslin so that will be the backing with a few 'colors' thrown in for fun each month.

A few more prepped and ready for the next few days.

I plan to make some of these blocks -from quilting is more fun than house work. 

I also plan a version of this block from Ann at A Good Yarn. I am thinking the middle 'diamond' will be the color of the month and the rest will be scrappy. I have been using my Accuquilt 8  inch cube to cut out some half square triangles.

The last will be a monthly Table Scraps TRT Challenge. I have plenty of tables in the house and I hear if you cover it with a quilt there will be less dusting! I'd do just about anything to get out of housework!

I somehow missed the Full Stop RSC2021 Challenge quilt Angela is providing! Sigh.... I might need to make that one too! We will see. 

Head on over to the RSC Challenge and see what everyone is planning... and see what gets added to your own list! A big Thank you to Angela for continuing to host this Challenge.

Winter 2021 UFO Challenge.

Since I successfully finished off 3 of my quilts from the Summer Challenge, and 5 from the Fall Challenge. I think I'll join in on the Winter 2021 Challenge.  I never know what I want to work on, so I'm throwing a lot of stuff on the list!

1.) Stashbuster 2020 block - this is a top now. Needs quilting. ***** Finished Feb 2021.

2.) Hexagon flowers on a black background. These are a stack of blocks I hand pieced a few years ago then hand appliqued to the black background a couple years after that!  Not sure if they will become one or two quilts....

3.) This one stayed on the list - needs quilting. Vermont Quilt Festival Booth Hop from either 2008 or 2009.

4.) Crumb blocks.... might these end up in a quilt? Or the start of some baskets?

5.) Keeping this one on just in case - the Kim Diehl kit Bittersweet Briar. 

6.) Sweet Confetti blocks - I have 96 of these made.... need to be put together and quilted.

7.) Midget Applique quilt from Sentimental Stitches. I need to add  more flowers and leaves and the vines... and the bottom yellow border. This one is completely hand pieced.

8.) Ella Maria Deacon blocks - make a few more and finish them off into a top. I believe I was making these by hand. Patterns from Sentimental Stitches.

9.) Cat and mouse is on the frame in process of hand quilting but has been sadly neglected.

10.) Hand pieced quilt along top needs to get hand quilted. ***Finished March 25, 2021.

11.) Green Tumblers - a hand pieced top. 

12.) Purple applique hearts... need to figure out how they want to be set.

13.) Hoarfrost - top is done will it get quilted this year?

14.)  this quilt that has been an on and off, leader and ender for years. My scrappy irish chain. I believe I had a bucket of 2 inch squares next to my sewing machine for a while and would make sets, and rows and blocks in between sewing other things. I think it wants to get competed.

15.) Midget block collection - I started these in Vermont in 2010!

16.) Civil War Blocks

17.) Hand Pieced Lemoyne Stars

18.) Churn Dash blocks

19.) Endless Diamond Blocks - 20 made. Think I need 5 more for a 60x60 quilt. All hand pieced.

20.) Birds in the Air block collection

21.) Baby Bear Paw quilt top ** Made back from a class in 1999 I think from Yankee Pride.

22.) Trip around the World

23.) Y2K Joann's BOM - quilt top

24.) Blue and Purple 9 patch with muslin top Made in the 90's.

25.) Tumbler flag - this did not come out how I imagined.... It might get reinvented after taking parts out. We will see.

25.) 1857 Quilt Along Top

26.) Spring Hexagons - not sure if this wants to be bigger or not.... 

27.) FCQG baby quilt challenge.

28.) Triple Irish Chain - green. 80x80 I think. I did find both fabrics extra with it... Might need a green or cream border first or both... Made in the early 2000's.

29.) Row by Row from a few years ago - picked up near me and over by the beach in Coco. A few were picked up with Angela from the RSC challenge and her daughter Anna!  This is the only one I started so the only one I can include in this challenge. **** Finished Jan 2021.

OMG for January 2021

 I have been thinking all day long of what my goal for January should be. I finally asked one of my kids this evening, after I retrieved them from Grandma's house where they spent New Year's eve. Emily said I should quilt 15-30 minutes each day.  (right now, the kid is my favorite with that answer!) That's a good goal. Do I need to make it more specific? I think so. I do have a new project right now that could easily take that time daily so why don't I combine it into one goal? 

I plan on making a hexagon quilt as you go block each day this year. There is more info on this technique under the Hexagon QAYG tab. I stitched the 'binding' on the first one this morning then added some quilting stitches to it. 

This is the front and back of the little hexagon quilt as you go. The ruler set I have has each hexagon side of 2 inches. I have 4 more prepped for hand stitching and will work on prepping some more this weekend. I am working these with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge where January is using up pink scraps. On January 31st I should have 31 of these pretties if I meet my goal.

Linking up with January 2021 OMG.

Hexagon Quilt as you go......

So I had mentioned earlier in the year about starting some hexagon - quilt as you go blocks (project?) starting in November. Well, November 1st happened and I came down with a cold or flu (still not sure what it was but it hung on!) and things got delayed. Sorry about that! I did make a little Christmas candle mat which has been out with my 3 wick on it since it got finished. I'll have to learn that ladder stitch that Diann is using to connect hers.

I never did hook up with previous years one a day... still love that circle one... so I am thinking I will make one hexagon a day following the RSC colors. Angela has mentioned that pink is the color for January. I might have grabbed a few pinks to cut yesterday before taking Aidan to guitar. I still need to cut my batting (now you know what to do with all those cast offs that are too small to stitch together to make more batting!) and backing fabrics. I am not sure what I will do for backing yet, so it will be a surprise to everyone! It might be scrappy, it might be from one color set with a few colors thrown in..... we will see what I find when I go play in the sewing room today!

Right now, I am thinking I will make them all and then put them together so all the colors are scattered around. But... who know's what I will be thinking towards the end of the year!

For today - now that the pantry is cleaned out and Emily organized, I can work on catching up with the Grassy Creek mystery and get clue #4 done and hopefully start on clue #5. Kids will be off to Grandma's at some point today and Greg has to work this evening so that should give me lots of sewing time.  I figured you all would require proof. There was no before photo. Lets just say after getting his coffee, hubby stood in front of the door looking at it. I asked what he was looking for,' nothing, it just really looks good. Emily did a great job organizing'. Can you tell which of us Emily takes after? It's not me in this department!