UFO Bust Progress

This week was a big step forward toward completing a UFO.

I basted my quilt.

This is the first top I ever pieced. It is from a beginning piecing class taught at Quiltique (in Henderson, NV) based on a book by Alex Anderson. Of course, I changed up the pattern. I thought why spend all this time on a teeny quilt that won’t even cover you up. I made extra blocks and added sashing and cornerstones. It’s been hanging on my wall for almost 2 and a half years. *hangs head in shame*

I found this fabric in my closet and decided that it would be the perfect backing. I have no clue what it is. It feels like faux suede. It is very heavy and super soft. It will give My First Quilt some depth and heft.

Hopefully.

Hopefully it won’t ruin the quilt.

If it does, then I learned something. If it doesn’t, I have a nice warm quilt.

Basting was a pain. Literally.

I basted it on our kitchen floor. We have a tiny apartment galley kitchen. It is long and narrow. There was about a half an inch on either side between the quilt and the wall. The backing is just a hair bigger than the quilt top. I duct-taped the backing to the kitchen floor, then sprayed it with basting spray. I put the batting down and smoothed everything out. I know you are supposed to spray the batting. I think I had a good reason for doing that, but it escapes me now. I sprayed the batting then smoothed the top on. I was putting in some pins to secure all the layers when I realized that the top and back weren’t lining up. So I pulled it apart and did it again. Luckily, the backing is so heavy that the basting spray couldn’t hold it well.

Of course, after looking at this quilt for over 2 years I finally decide to baste it on a week-night about an hour before bed. By the time I got everything repositioned correctly I couldn’t stay up any longer to secure everything with pins. My back and knees were so sore. I folded it up and draped it over my sewing chair.

Maybe this weekend I can decide how to quilt it and get started!

And on a completley unrelated note: Aren't these the most beautiful radishes you've ever seen?! We got a new grocery store in our neighborhood full of fresh, affordable produce. These are the healthiest radishes I've ever eaten.

Civil War Blocks

I’ve been banging out my Civil War Blocks. These are so much fun! My new plan is to spend Sunday laying on the couch, watching TV and cutting fabric on my coffee table. It’s such a relaxing way to spend the day. I hate cutting fabric! This way, I get them all cut out. I stick them in Ziplock baggies and stick them on my sewing room corkboard. I don’t even label them. During the week, I grab a bag, lay the pieces out and guess which block it is by scrolling through the Civil War Quilt Blog. Then I sew it together and keep the baggie for next Sunday. They are so easy and fun to put together!

Except this one. I don’t know what happened. Too many bias edges maybe? I trimmed the three rows down so I could sew them together. I thought it looked nice until I checked the size. It’s from a quarter of an inch to a half an inch short all the way around. Geez.

I found a great blogger who really breaks down the construction of the blocks. She even has suggestions for chain piecing and other piecing shortcuts. I know if I really think about it, there are a ton of time-saving tricks to utilize. I’m just lazy! Lillian's Cupboard is a great blog full of quilting, family, and recipes (waffle-grilled cheese sandwich, anyone?)

Resolution Revisit

The first quarter of 2011 is over. How are my resolutions going? Let’s take some time for a revisit, shall we?

1. Get Healthy. Well, the weight loss never happened. Or…hasn’t happened yet. Any day now…I’ll start a diet…wink, wink. I feel round and a little roly-poly but happy. With the nicer weather here we are getting outside more: playing on a softball team, playing in the park, walking along the river. We are having fun and enjoying our newlywed status. There’s been no cigarettes, or crazy cravings, so we are doing fabulous in that department!

2. Spend 15 minutes per day in my sewing room. I’m doing pretty well! Except for that month with no sewing machine. The break was nice. It was a reminder that quilting is a hobby, not an obsession!

3. Learn how to embroider. I could do better! Embroidery is not nearly as fun as quilting. I need to learn some stitches. I have been working on the Birdie Stitches BOM, but haven’t completed one yet.

Ugh...horrible picture. I promise it does look better in real life. I need to learn a french knot so I can do the eyes!

4. Practice more FMQ. With my sewing machine down for a month, I didn’t go much FMQ in the last few months. I did quilt two small projects. One I like, one I don’t. I am thinking of joining along in Thread Head's Free Motion Quilting Challenge . You FMQ everyday for two weeks and results are guaranteed!

5. Buy a home. We are still saving money. We have a budget and stick to it like glue. We’ve also stepped up our debt repayments and are serious about paying off that credit card.

So there I am. Seems pretty obvious what I need to do. Be healthier. Surprisingly, spending 15 minutes per day in my sewing room is no longer as important to me. I'm not stressing about my creative time. The weather is great, I'm busy, I'm happy, and my quilts are coming along!

LizzieB prizes

My package from the LizzeB Girls arrived today! I actually won two prizes from them within a short while, so they shipped them together.



I won a bundle of their new fabric line: Tuscadelphia! These fabrics are fabulous. Here are some of my favorites:



I love that font print. (I don't know what else to call it!) It says "home is where the heart is," There's no place like home," "Love at home," "Beauty all around," and "Peace surrounds." Pretty cool, huh? Some close-ups:



And some Aurifil thread!



How fun!

Have you heard of the LizzeB girls? They are so much fun. They just began to write these stories that I love: The Adventures of the LizzeB Girls, it's a few chapters (so far, but I see a book in their future!) of two quilters who get themselves into pickles solving crimes, and then get out using notions. Kinda like a quilter Indiana Jones! They also produce an online magazine, design fabric, write a blog, and make the cutest quilts! Check them out!

UFO Bust Report

My first UFO Report. Ack! I'm linking up at Blackberry Creek Home Arts.

Well, I don’t have a Bust to report, but I do have some progress! I have been working on my Layer Cake Quilt Along blocks this week. It feels so good to be catching up on this quilt along and to be progressing on my UFO Bust Goal too! I find that it helps so much if I cut and prep on the week-end and during the week I have my grab-n-go bags. Just like my cooking plan: prep and cook on the week-ends and save the easy stuff for the week nights.









I am almost caught up!

I also put my first UFO on my To-Do list for April. Once I jump in and start quilting it, it should go quickly from there. Procrastination, why do you curse me?!

Thank you Leona!

Lookee what Leona sent me! She sent me a belated Birthday gift. How sweet! She sent me a Birthday card, a bookmark (for all my quilting books, I assume!), and this darling little Moda zip purse. I love it! Yes, there are already cards in my zip purse. It has actually replaced my usual purse. Thanks so much Leona!



I also received my newest shipment from Martingale Book Club. I got two books for free for switching my membership to their newly implemented book club. I like this program better because I now get 35% off all my purchases. If I buy 6 books in one year then my membership renews for free. I’ve already bought 3, so I don’t think that will be a problem!



I got 501 Quilting Motifs from Quiltmaker Magazine. This book rocks. It gives me great ideas and makes beautiful quilting seem to be in my reach! The hard part is picking one of the quilting patterns!



For my free book I chose Simple Seasons by Kim Diehl. This book blew me away. The projects are right up my alley: small pieces, traditional designs, clear instructions. I can't wait to crack open this book. I can't wait to throw some bright, modern fabrics in the mix!



I also received A Baker’s Dozen by Patchwork Place. I seem to find myself buying more and more pre-cuts lately, so the answer is more patterns that feature pre-cuts!

I was so exhausted the other night that I couldn't muster the energy to do anything. So I curled up on my couch, cuddled with my favorite quilt and my sweet kitty, and paged through these books. That's what life is all about!

I'm back!

Oh my, time flies! Last time I checked in, I was just giving up my sewing machine for a little tune-up vacation. I had dreams of appliqué, cutting fabric, organizing my sewing room…anything that didn't involve my sewing machine!



None of that happened! I don't know what I did for a whole month! Maybe I just got sucked into a time warp or something. I did what I usually do: read blogs, go to work, clean the house, cook lots of food, watch a little TV. I went to two weddings (my best friend's wedding and my little brother's wedding). I went on vacation (a few days in Tahoe to play in the snow). That's it. Nothing special!



I guess once you get out of the habit of creating everyday it's hard to get back in the habit. So this weekend I put it on my To-Do list. Saturday night I jumped right in and starting sewing some blocks I had already cut out. I wanted something small and fast to finish, so I concentrated on just one block. Then another. Then another. Wow, I'm on a roll! I forgot how much fun quilting was!



By the end of the night I had finished one of the Layer Cake Quilt Along
blocks and the first five of the Civil War Quilt blocks. And I had a blast!



I spent Sunday cutting more LCQA blocks. For some reason, I just don't like to cut these blocks. I think getting used to a different designer for every block just frustrates me. Some have cutting charts (which are so easy, thank you!), some write 4 steps to get you to cut 4 4X2 strips (I hate that, just tell me what the finished size should be!), and some designer's hide the cutting instructions behind clues (I swear, some I had to read 4 times before I made my first cut!). But now they are all cut and bagged in little Ziplocs and I can't wait to spend a few minutes tonight sewing them together! That's right…I'm back!