the last UFO of 2011

Though the officially assigned UFO for this month was my Garden Variety quilt, I finished that quite early this month...thanks to working ahead in other months.

With that completion, I'd finished 11 of 12 tasks for the 2011 UFO Challenge.  I was feeling pretty good about what I had finished, but still a bit guilty for not finishing that one last project.  I didn't want to get so close and not finish.

I've been putzing along, working a little here and a little there, but I think dreading the set-in seams kept me working at an even slower rate on this Lone Star-Whig Rose quilt.  But I've had the last few days off and decided it was time to dig in and finish the top.  I knew I could do it - the appliques were nearly done and the star was together before the challenge started - I just needed to DO it!

There are 4 squares and 4 triangles that get sewn into the star to make it square.  The squares have been done a while and the triangles were getting there. 

After about a whole season of Desperate Housewives (yay Netflix!), I got this far this afternoon and tried to call my mom to see what she was doing tomorrow.  (Maybe talk her into sewing these into the star?)  She didn't answer and I couldn't sit still knowing I was so close, so I took a chance on waking up the sleeping hubby and started sewing.

(After a quick google search on just how to sew these silly things in there!)

I got this far and Emma decided she was S-T-A-R-V-I-N-G.  She's fed canned food twice a day and has crunchies all the time, but when it gets near mealtime, you'd think she was dying.  I think each corner got worse and maybe it was because I had "help," but I think it was just beginner's luck.

We have a finish!

And it lays flat!

Guessing it measures about 50" square.  (= lazy)

Now what to do with it?

It was started to be a wedding/anniversary gift for my brother-in-law, but that marriage ended more than 7 years ago (yep, it's been a UFO for a while).  I've thought about giving it to my ex-sister-in-law because maybe she deserves it, but I'm not sure she'd want it.  I've also debated donating it for some sort of raffle fund-raiser, but many of us know how poorly those often do.  Any ideas?  (Yes, yes, I know you'd all be happy if I shipped it to your house...)

So let's review where I started in January:

8 projects needing finishing, divided into 12 months of tasks.  (Don't be fooled by the one in the upper right - it's a photo of the quilt from the pattern and was a kit I ordered in the process of making the 2011 blog post-list!)

And now we have:

8 finished tops! 
(Oops - I got the wrong photo in there of the Lone Star-Whig Rose, but you've seen the one above and know it's finished, right?!)

I'm pretty darn proud of myself for getting them all done, though a little surprised that none of them have been quilted and given away yet!

(One I do have plans for, but don't need it until July, so you know I'll be finishing it IN July!)

Now I'm truly ready for the 2012 challenge.

Bring it on, Judy!

In a day or two, I'm going to put together a few more collages to show what else I got done this year because though the list is shorter than it was for 2011, the projects are bigger!  And it's fun to see them all together.  Makes me feel super productive.

Happy quilting!

Katie

december UFO done

It's been done a while (I actually finished it on the 1st!), so it's about time it got its own blog post - my December UFO is finished!

Look at all that snow!

(It's all gone now - it was 58 on Wednesday...what?)

(It was back to freezing on Friday.)

I even made binding!

This quilt was featured in the Summer 2010 issue of Quilts and More and I found the kit at Fat Quarter Shop about a year ago.  As I was making my 2010 UFO list, I found the kit on sale, ordered it and added it to my UFO list. 

Name: Garden Variety

Designer: Holly Holderman

Size: 54"x60"

I haven't been doing much sewing lately, but I have plans to finish binding and labelling Christmas present quilts today.  I've been saying that for far too long now, but I think today it will actually happen.  I got up early and did all my chores, so now all I need is the hubby to keep his promise that he's done Christmas shopping and he won't drag me out to do more.  Soon I'll be able to show photos of those projects!

Happy quilting,

Katie

november ufo done: creepy birdies

I procrastinated effectively this month and only finished my UFO yesterday - two days to spare.

I thought I'd come home from work tonight and go snap a photo quick using the clothesline before the sun really set.

Ahem...there was just a bit of slushy snow on the ground when I left work...1.25 hours later there's about an inch of wet white stuff and LOTS more coming down.  The first true snowfall of the year put lots of people in the ditch (and I'm torn between feeling bad for them and shaking my finger at them for driving too fast) and slowed my commute significantly (it's usually 30 minutes or less).  But I made it home safely, though my photographing abilities are quite hindered.  It's also dark!

So I made do - throw a few pillows off the couch and snap a quick photo - prove it's done!

It's a pattern from Connecting Threads called "Birdies on a Wire" but those eyeball-less birdies are creepy, so I think for now it's "Creepy Birdies".  The fabric is also from CT - Cheep Talk - and I purchased the kit nearly 2 years ago.  60"x66".

(The birdies do get button eyeballs, but I've chosen to leave those off until after it's quilted.)

In December last year, this is what I had:

Well, maybe it was a bit further along than this - quite a few birdie parts had been sewn down, so it didn't take much to complete, which is probably why I was so good at procrastinating.  I knew I could get it done in just a short time.

Look at those long rows to sew together - yech!  But I buckled down last night and power sewed and got them all together.  I had kitties nagging (why wasn't I reading a book so they could sit and snuggle?) and nearly missed my bedtime, but it's DONE!

10/11 monthly ufo challenges done!  (And I'm working on #11.)

Here's a closer look at some of the fabrics:

the strips between the rows of creepy birdies

And look - I even made binding!

I hope you're all staying warm and dry - I'm off to cook a hot, tasty dinner to warm me from the inside out.

Happy quilting!
Katie

PS  I forgot to mention that this ufo challenge is from Judy L over at Patchwork Times.  She's been motivating a lot of us for almost a whole year now, so a big THANK YOU and ginormous HUGS to Judy for this!

october ufo finished!

It's early in the month again, but my UFO for October is done already!

If you remember, my mom got me a jelly roll for my birthday last year...

And not quite a year ago, I took a week off work to have a stay-at-home quilt retreat.  The hubby was out of town, so I set up to work in the living room and sewed like mad.

I had seen the Basket Case quilt pattern and liked it and thought these fabrics could be perfect, so let's get out that rotary cutter!

By the end of Tuesday, I had a top.

It needed borders and I wanted to do something a little fancier than the original pattern.  And here it stalled out.

This is probably where it would be without Judy's UFO challenge.  But this month she pulled its number, so I sat down and started cutting and sewing.

I knew I wanted a pieced border and, considering the limitations on piece size, I opted for flying geese over applique.  But then should the geese go all the way around, or just part way?

(Emma is helping decide...or something...)

Though I was leaning towards part-way, I let bloggy friends help.  Part way won and I'm glad.  I made enough geese to go all the way around, so now I'll have something interesting to put on the back...if I ever finish it past a top...

So here it is...I guess you'd call that sideways since the longer side is hanging from the clothesline, but otherwise it dragged on the ground...

Finished.

Well, a top finished, and that's all I required of myself for the UFO challenge.

After my last post, I went out and took this photo, along with quite a few others of tops I've been working on and have only shown pieces of.  I'll save those for another post in a few days.

Happy quilting,

Katie

october UFO start and an amazing sale

Can you believe it's October already?

That means it's time for the next UFO challenge!

This month Judy picked #5.

That would be my Basket Case quilt.

It needs some sort of borders.

First a skinny white, then...

I'd been toying with flying geese or applique, but had only a jelly roll of the fabric.  That would limit what I could do with applique, so geese it is!

Ready to sew, but I had to take a break about now.

My mom arrived.

In the local paper last weekend, there was an ad "Material $5 Yard."

What?

So off we went - NO idea what we were getting into.

Turns out a relatively new quilt shop not so far from here had gone out of business (which I knew by driving by and seeing the sign gone) and this was her clearance sale.

My purchases.

(And the ad, if you don't believe me!)

The ric-rac will go on the back of the star flower quilt.

The green flowers will go on the back of the MSU quilt.

About 16 yards.

But that's not all that was bought...

(Lexie is checking it out!)

Everything else was 50% off the marked price.

My mom got backs for 3 quilts, quite a few books and patterns and some other odds and ends.

Long story short: we had a blast!

And my mom left here with a list of 5 quilts she wants to measure for when she comes back and we go again!  (I'm betting there will be more than 5 quilts on that list when she returns.)

I also asked to raid her stash to finish the blue/green teen boy quilt, since I'd run out of fabrics in the right colors.  Those have been washed and pressed (her stash, like mine, is a mix of prewashed and unwashed) and are ready to cut already.

But instead of going back to that, I thought I'd work on my montly "assignment" so I can be sure to keep up!

By my calculations, I'll need 110 geese to go all the way around, though I'm not sure I want to go all the way around.  Better to have too many, though, right?

My supervisor.

Shortly before she decided she was S-T-A-R-V-I-N-G

and needed to be a pest.

109 geese.

Oops!

So what do you think...

Geese all around (with solid cornerstones)?

Geese in an L around two corners?

Something different?

I want to go back and sew, but I think I need to scratch my head over this a bit longer.

Happy quilting,

Katie

september UFO done!

I know it's early in the month, but I'm going to show it off anyways!

You'd think I live in "The Windy City" - Chicago - but I don't.  I guess I just have bad timing for photography?

Time for plan B.  That plan should have included tying my hair back...

This project started out the UFO year as blocks pieced and appliqued, but for the most part not embroidered.  The embroidery turned out to be taking longer than I anticipated and most of them weren't very pretty.  I redrew a few of them, but wish I had looked more closely at this kit before purchasing.  I don't think I would have bought it - the embroidery, not the colors, drew me in.  Lesson learned.  :)

There are a lot of places on the quilt where beads would probably add a lot of interest, but since I don't know how well longarm quilting goes with beads present, I'll add those later...if I ever finish it beyond this point.  For now it's been hidden in the sewing room closet - hung up with a bunch of other tops I started for no reason and now don't know what to do with!  (They store easier as tops, folks!)

The official info:
"Floral Breeze" kit from JoAnn Fabric
82" x 91"

But this isn't all I finished on Saturday!

Another top!

That green really made this quilt green.  Yikes!  But it's not a bad thing.

This is for my sister-in-law's second baby, due by c-section the day after Thanksgiving.  (That's November 25th for those of you who don't live in the US.)  Plenty of time to get it quilted (once I figure out what to do), but you all know I'll be sewing the binding down Thanksgiving morning!

I'm really pleased with how this came out.  You may remember the original, shown in my post here (scroll down a bit).  How very different with brighter colors!

And then I made dinner.  :)  Feta and Bacon Stuffed Chicken with Onion Mashed Potatoes but I don't recommend the potatoes.  They were a bit bland and dry.

Sunday afternoon = more football, so back up the sewing room.  I'd found my cutting table (it was somewhere under all the baby quilt fabric!) and clearned some space on the ironing board from the UFO blocks, so I allowed myself to start something new.  Something with a deadline!

Kinda makes me think of fruit slices...

Remember this?

Remember I talked about the head scratching and hair pulling to figure out how much extra fabric to buy?  Turns out I didn't need it.  ARGH!  But that means I have extra in case I make any mistakes (cutting these was not as easy as you might first think) or for throw pillows if I don't!

It took a few deep breaths to cut into this fabric, though.  Three flowers are needed for each block and each of these three is a different size.  Lots to keep track of, but I think it's all good.

I haven't started sewing anything yet, but I hope to soon.

And the pink fabric was for pillowcases, but I'm going to try to get this quilt done (top at least) first and see if I have enough left over to use for cuffs on the pillowcases.  The pillowcases will be for my niece's birthday (in November), but how cool would it be that a month later she gets a quilt that matches for Christmas?!  I hope it works out.

I just hope I can make myself part with this when it's done because it's really cute!

So that's mostly what I've been up to.

Happy quilting,

Katie

PS I nearly forgot to add this!

Proof I passed!  (MPS = Minimun Pass Score)

september book stack and UFO

Here we are again...the 4th of another month...so another book report!

That blue sticky note (that tried to curl up in the awful humidity) marks the top of the stack in July.  I forgot to mark the top of the stack last month, so we'll just leave this as a whole stack reference this year...assuming the sticky glue holds all year!  Not much progress this month, but I've been studying.  My exam is Tuesday.  (Fingers and toes and everything else crossed that I've studied enough to pass!)

And this month, Judy pulled #11 for the UFO number.  That's finishing up the Floral Breeze quilt - into a top.

The blocks are all together, including the applique, but there was a lot of embroidery to be done on this one and I petered out very early into it.  If you enlarge the picture, you can see that the two blocks on the left will take a bit of work, but I think I should be okay.  (And I think once this one is quilted, I will add some beading because some of those viney stems are pretty lonely, but that's for another UFO challenge...ha ha!)

I also have putting the top together as part of this month's challenge, so I hope I don't run into any pieced cornerstones or craziness like I did last month!  (Maybe I should go look at that setting kit now?)

I hope all of you in the US are enjoying your holiday weekend.  My nephew is here tonight, so he and my hubby have the TV on and are each playing handheld video games.  Everything is turned up about as loud as it can go...it sounds like there's about 12 people in my house with those two and they're completely oblivious to each other, but I think they're having a good time.  :)

Happy quilting,

Katie

august UFO done: lavender fudge

The photos just get worse from here.  It is a *bit* windy today, but I wanted this photographed and OUT OF SIGHT.

(At least the wind kept the mosquitos to a minimum!)

I finished the circles yesterday and decided this morning, before the hubby got home from work (remember, he works nights), I'd get started.  Never have I wanted him to come home earlier more than today.  Because when he got home, I could quit!  When did he get home?  20 minutes AFTER the top was together.  Late.  Go figure.

So I've renamed it Lavender Fudge because of all the fudging I had to do to get everything to fit.  Some blocks seemed to be 1/2" too large until I realized my sashing (precut) piece was 1/4" too short.  Some blocks had the reverse problem...  A few points were lost and a few puckers were added - do they cancel each other out?

The stats:

Lavender Mist quilt - JoAnn's kit

about 78" x 99"

Yay for an early finish this month!

Now it's back to the cows because that baby isn't going to wait for me to finish his quilt!

And baking cookies.  It's finally cool enough to stand the heat in the kitchen.  The hubby will be pleased.

Happy quilting,

Katie

august ufo: in the beginning

Another month and another UFO to complete!

Judy chose #7 this month.

Uh oh.  Again.

All that shuffling earlier in the year when putting the whole top together was chosen before I had the blocks made has finally come full circle...I get to shuffle one last time to put the whole top together!

First I have to trim down the applique squares, but that shouldn't be too much trouble (she says while wondering if she'll live to regret that statement).  And I have the air conditioner running, so the iron shouldn't be too much trouble.

My mom is on her way to spend the day quilting (what else should you do when you're unemployed?), so if I have trouble, I'll have her expertise right there!

I'm excited to get this top together, even if I have absolutely no clue where it will end up.  It will mark another UFO completely done!  (Well, the top...)

And since we're talking about UFOs, I mentioned that while on vacation I worked on the Whig Rose appliques from months ago that are the UFO I didn't finish.  I had lots of quiet time with the hubby out fishing and it was just too hot for turning on the iron, so here's my progress:

The bottom two were done before I left.  The top right still needs little yellow centers, but since I wasn't using my iron (remember my circle tutorial?), those still need to be prepped and sewn down.  So instead I layed out the fourth block.  I'm feeling pretty good about these, but I know I still have the triangle pieces to go too, even if they are easier.

And while we're talking about applique, I suppose I could update you on the cows.  I started off with a bang, then slacked off, though they're coming along.

Not quite half done and then come the pinwheels.  I thought about working on those today, but we'll see how the quilt top construction goes...

Hopefully we get lots of quilting done today, but sometimes we end up out shopping and eating instead...  If I get a lot done, you'll know!

Happy quilting,

Katie

vacation quilting: july UFO done

I feel like I've been blogging too much lately, but I finally started unpacking the suitcase of projects and got the hubby to help take a photo of the quilt top I finished, so here I go again.

This is #2 on my UFO list for Judy's challenge.  You may remember that way back in January, I got a little ahead of myself on the challenges and dug into this one.  I thought I had to trim the setting triangles and then add borders, but as it turns out, I only had to add borders!  Easy peasy - I was done in just one morning!

I showed this to the wife of my hubby's fishing buddy (who invited us up to Drummond Island) and she loved it.  I believe this is another quilt that has found it's home!

It's 70x90" (quite big and you'll notice the hubby having a bit of trouble holding it up), made entirely from the Pure fabric line from Moda.  I loved it until I had the jelly roll...now I'm not so in love.  Some of the fabrics I adore (words?  yes please!) and some I find rather 70s-ish, but in all, they did make a nice quilt.

The pattern is called Winterberry and is from the book "A Baker's Dozen" from That Patchwork Place.  I changed nothing except the fabrics.  (For once...)

So this one is in the lineup for quilting now, though the wedding quilt is definitely ahead of it.  Just one month to go and I'm still stalling quilting that baby.  This week - I've got no good excuse because job hunting doesn't take up all my time! 

And since my sister-in-law let us know about 2 weeks ago that she's having another boy, I sat down with some baby and kid quilt books and patterns with the hubby and let him have a say.  It's his sister, after all and I think he is a bit more interested than he'll ever admit.

And then ran to JoAnn's for fabric.  I feel like I keep using the same fabrics over and over again, but their selection of smaller print fabrics is pathetic lately.  While I love the big, bold prints, they just don't scream baby quilt, you know?

So the plan: the cows will be done in the cow print (well, duh, but the print is a bit on the large side, so I'll be fussy cutting a bit), the blue will be the background for the cows, the gold sashing will be done with yellow and the green will be the borders.  The pinwheels are still a work in progress in my head.  (Do I use the cow print in place of white?  Should I just use two contrasting colors?  And why are there circles appliqued over the centers?  I think I may have to make a few trial pinwheels to decide, but any brainstorms you may have are also welcome!  I plan to raid my stash for these, too.)

The fabrics are all washed, but I'm having trouble motivating myself to go cut out pieces.  Maybe it's because my sewing room is so darn hot compared to downstairs in front of the air conditioner?  (It's really not THAT hot here today, but the hubby likes the A/C and once you're in it, everywhere else seems unreasonably hot.)  Maybe tomorrow...

Oh, and I also worked on the Lone Star Whig Rose appliques a lot up north.  Since it was too hot to have the iron on, I did quite a bit of hand-sewing.  I'll have to finish unpacking and get photos of those, though it doesn't look like much because hand-sewing is SLOW going!

Happy quilting,

Katie

PS Stay tuned, as I have two baby quilt reveals coming very soon, too!

june UFO done

Boy am I glad I used my time off wisely and got the UFO for this month mostly done before I started my internship!  I've been so busy studying, it's not even funny.  Add in an hour drive each way, dinner and dishes and I've run out of time, so quilting has taken a very back seat.  (I do try to read blogs and check e-mail every night - it's my time to wind down.)

Weekends give me more time, but my motivation for quilting isn't what it was a month ago.  I'm having a hard time figuring out what to do with my little free time...  But I know it will come back and I know my focus should be my internship, so I'm not worried.

So let's review the UFO.  In December, when I made the list, this quilt was still a bunch of kits.

Because I didn't have 12 quilts needing finished (to the point of being tops), and because I didn't want to overwhelm myself too much, I divided this up into 4 sections.  3 sets of 4 blocks and putting the whole top together.

Judy has drawn numbers for this quilt three times now, so that means all the blocks are finished!

I should have taken a photo of just the blocks I did this month, but I forgot.  I think they're the three on the bottom row plus the top right applique.  (This photo took 4 tries to get one where there was only ONE cat helping!  Apparently that trip to the grocery store made them miss me?)

I'm so happy to have these to this stage.  They have been sitting in the closet, giving me the evil eye when I get close enough to them, for way too long.  But since I have no plan for this quilt when it's done, I didn't make the time to work on it.  Judy has been such a great motivator!  Thanks Judy!

Earlier this month, I thought I might challenge myself to put the blocks together and get a month ahead, but I'm not feeling it yet.  Maybe next weekend?  Or maybe I'll just wait and put them together whenever the last number for this quilt is called.  Either way, I'm not behind on this one.

As for the month of Whig Rose applique, I'm still behind, but I have found a few minutes to work on it.  I'll get a photo when there's really something to show.  :)

And a little more on the internship:  I'm enjoying it.  It's hard and I feel dumb a lot, but I'm learning as I go and everyone is friendly and helpful and kind.  It's going fast and slow at the same time.  At the end of the day, I can't figure out where all the time went, but when I'm trying to understand something and feeling dumb, time crawls!  I know it will be over before I know it and I'm hoping to have a great job soon!

Happy quilting,

Katie

may UFO: done!

Maybe being done so early this month will make up for my failure last month?

Fresh out of the embroidery hoop (the stems on the upper right were last to be done), here are my 4 blocks, the chosen batch for the May UFO challenge.

(You'll remember that the actual number chosen was the one to sew all these blocks together, but since they weren't all complete, I flipped the numbers a bit.)

These blocks are relatively simple, so they go fast.

Now it's back to working on the Whig Rose appliques from last month.  But hey, I feel really good about these being done already.

Not much quilting going on otherwise this week.  Studying my brains out, but it will all be worth it in the end.  I hope to longarm quilt one of the three in the lineup next weekend, schedule permitting!

Happy quilting,

Katie

PS I almost forgot!  Happy Mother's Day!

may UFO

Can you all believe it's MAY?  (I sure can't, which is why maybe I keep trying to write March on everything!)

Time for a new UFO...  This month Judy drew #9.

Uh oh...

That would be putting the blocks together for the Lavender Mist quilt.  Hmmm...they're not all done yet!

But wait!  I left myself a loophole!  Way back here when I listed my UFOs, I said if #9 was called before #s 6, 7, and 8, I'd readjust. 

Phew!

So here's a reminder where I'm starting:

At the start of 2001, not one of those blocks was done.  The kits hadn't even been opened!  But in January, #6 was called, which was blocks 1-4 of the kit, so I've got these done.

I've been waiting patiently to find out what number would be called because I'm antsy to get started on the next assignment.  So this afternoon, after washing dishes, getting groceries, making lunch and other assorted chores, I headed up to the sewing room.  Here's where I am at already:

Two blocks done, two blocks pinned and ready for hand applique and (the one on the bottom right) a little embroidery.  (And those pieces that look blue to me are actually a very pretty purple, but I can't ever get purple to photograph purple.)

I looked at the two remaining block sets (5-8 and 9-12) and opted for 9-12, or #8 on the UFO list because there are two applique blocks in that set and only one in the other set.  I thought I'd get the more time-consuming set out of the way first.

And I don't feel guilty at all starting these because before I cut one template or sewed one stitch, I went out to fight the wind to get a photo of this:

Ha ha ha...just kidding, but really, if I hadn't been patient and fast on the trigger, this is all I would have gotten.

Still not the best (and pardon the dead plant stalks I still have to remove...), but it's a top!  About 50" square and large enough even without the originally proposed circle border.  I'll bind it using the circles instead.

So now I have a lineup of three tops to be quilted.  (No, I've never heard the word procrastination before...what does it mean?) 

And what am I going to do?  I think a nap sounds nice.  The kitties agree.

Happy quilting,

Katie

april UFO: still a UFO

Well, I predicted this mid-month, but here it is the end of April and my UFO for the monthly challenge is nowhere near finished.

Yes, I still have today, but I think if I sat and did ONLY that for the next 11 hours (until midnight), I'd have sore fingers and a STILL unfinished UFO.  So I'm throwing in the towel and I'm okay with that.

But let's review how far I have come, because I think I have accomplished a lot considering everything else going on around here.

I started out with this star (started around 2001),

this inspiration,

and these fabrics.

And here's where I am at now:

Two square corners complete, and a third (partially) pinned and ready to go.  Pieces cut and ready for the remaining one square and four triangle corners.

(For scale, those squares are cut 17" and I used a dime as the template for the yellow flower centers.)

I'll keep working on it in spare moments.  Now that it's started again, I really want to finish it.  Even if I have no idea what I'll do with it when it's done.

I hope the UFO chosen for May is simpler so I'll gain some time to work on this.  And I hope Judy doesn't have something fantastic to give away this month for those who finish because, though I never win, I sure don't want to miss out on the chance either!

And now, instead of working my fingers to bleeding on this, I'm going to go work on the "gargoyle" quilt and see if I can get that into a top!

Happy quilting,

Katie