OMG for July - Quilt Those Quilts!

Can you believe it's July already? June went by in a flash! I had goals I set for myself that were not accomplished during June, but I think I can catch up this month.

Meadowland flimsy

My One Monthly Goal for July is to quilt the three UFOs in my closet. Eternally Yours, a pattern I tested for Julie at Running Stitch Quilts, is sandwiched and ready to quilt. The Coral of the Story, which was my entry for the Pantone Quilt Challenge, is waiting for a backing fabric. Since I didn't win, I may change the name of that quilt - hah! Meadowland was an Instagram SAL and now is a completed top that needs assembly with the backing I have for it.

In other news, I still need to make three blocks for Countdown to Christmas for June, and I have only made one block for the Crochet Quilt SAL. I am also starting two new SALs this month. Am I crazy???

This post is linked to Elm Street Quilts OMG for July.

One Monthly Goal for June - Living Coral Pantone Quilt

The deadline for the Pantone quilt challenge is June 14, and my goal this month is to get this baby finished! You can read the details of the challenge in the coral badge in my sidebar.

My pattern is Home Awaits by Busy Hands Quilts, and it is very well written with helpful tips on pressing, pinning, and assembly. It is based on 10 inch strips and 10 inch squares. I am making the large lap-sized quilt.

The challenge is all about Living Coral, and my fabric selection centered around Pat Bravo's Legendary in Bold. It's gorgeous!

After I got most of the pieces cut, I decided to add in a bit of green to the mix. I'm not a huge green person, but I like the addition.

As always, Rosie has the final say in all sewing matters.

I missed the deadline for the link to One Monthly Goal at Elm Street Quilts, but I will still post at the end of the month linkup!

Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Finish, OMG, and Finished or Not Friday

This is my first time participating in a Hand2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge. Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict has been hosting these challenges since 2011! I'm excited to send this quilt to Bernie at Needle and Foot for her charity Mercyful Quilts.

This is my second time using Yellow Brick Road as a pattern. In spite of the pop of bright fabrics, I am hoping this is neutral gender enough to be used by a male.

For the backing, I had a quilt-width blender in my stash that I purchased from a LQS years ago, and I didn't have to piece it -yay!

I added cornerstones for a little interest, and this is my first time making a border and binding in the same color, which I like a lot!

I tried something different with quilting - a kind of quadrant design. I used a hera marker initially then pretty much eyeballed it. That's why it's a bit wavy and out of line. And I ran out of spray baste, so there are wrinkles after quilting. But as the trendy folks like to say,"it's organic"!

As you can see in the photos below, May was a busy month! Our second grandson was born, and I spent a few days helping out while my daughter was in the hospital, our oldest granddaughter graduated high school, and our son turned 49, and we will celebrate his birthday on Sunday. Garden weeding and planting was a priority this month, and there were times this past week that I doubted I would finish this quilt in time for the deadline on the final linky party. But last night I powered through and finished hand-sewing the binding at 9:00.

Little Everett was born May 7 and named after my Dad. He is so sweet.

Our oldest granddaughter graduated high school May 17. She posed
with my husband and me and my son and his beautiful family.

The garden is starting to come on! We've picked some onions and a few tomatoes so far.

Quilt details:
Finished size:
52" x 70"

Pattern:
Yellow Brick Road by Atkinson Designs

Fabrics:
Skinny Vines in Lime by Valentina Ramos for Robert Kaufman
Solid Lemon
PB&J by Basic Grey for Moda
Road 15 by Sweetwater for Moda
Chamberry by Carolee McMullin for Adorn It
Kona Coal
Grunge in Grey Paper by Basic Grey for Moda
Blue plaid - unnmarked stash fabric
Hobby Lobby's version of Grunge in dark blue

Backing:
From the Mary Rose Collection by Quilt Gate

Border and binding:
Hobby Lobby's version of Grunge in dark blue

Thread:
Superior Threads So Fine #50 in Genoa Grey

I'm happy to link to Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge final linkup. I am also linking to One Monthly Goal at Patty's Elm Street Quilts and Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts.

One Monthly Goal for May

There are so many things I want to get done this month, but my main goal is to complete a comfort quilt for the Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge. Full disclosure: I haven't even started it yet! 😦

Here are the fabrics I chose, suitable for a male. I have at least decided on a pattern! Yellow Brick Road is what I used for my granddaughter's quilt last month, and I enjoyed putting it together.

I am linking this post to One Monthly Goal for May, hosted by Patty at Elm Street Quilts.

A Green Quilt for Granddaughter - OMG for April

In between gardening and life, I finally managed to finish this quilt for my granddaughter, who turned 18 on April 27! We will see her on Saturday, so I will try to get a picture of her with the quilt and update this post. I'm barely squeaking this in for the April One Monthly Goal!

Her current favorite color is forest green, and I found some suitable greens in my stash plus another fabric from Hobby Lobby to make this lap-sized quilt. After doubting my fabric choices, I actually like the way it turned out. The pattern is Yellow Brick Road, a paper pattern I purchased in 2012. As usual my improper pattern reading caused a few delays (via my seam ripper), but in spite of that I enjoyed making this pattern.

I barely had enough of the main backing fabric by Crazy Mom Quilts (Amanda Jean Nyberg). I had a few blocks left over from the front, so I trimmed four of them to 6-inch squares and pieced them in. My husband suggested the darker grey Grunge for the binding.

I quilted this quilt differently (for me) in a 6" wide cross hatch pattern. It is probably the least dense quilting I've done, and I like the casual look of it. I thought about doing more quilting on it but decided not to worry about my batting separating, since mine has a quilting distance of 8-10 inches.

Quilt Details:
Pattern: Yellow Brick Road by Atkinson Designs
Finished size:
52" x 70"

Fabrics:
Grunge by Basic Grey in Christmas Green, Jade Cream, Grey Paper, and Grey Couture
Elizabeth's Dowry by Marcus Fabrics with Karen Styles in Grid Green and Gold with Green
Doglandia Unleashed on Green by Peter Horjus for Blend Fabrics
Lancaster Green Cows by Whistler Studios for Windham
Yellow with green print Elizabeth's Dowry by Marcus Fabrics
Gold print from my stash, no label

Backing (main fabric):
Emma and Myrtle Bedsheets in Butter by Amanda Jean Nyberg for Connecting Threads

Binding:
Grunge by Basic Grey in Grey Couture

Thread:
So Fine #50 Genoa Gray by Superior Threads (piecing)
So Fine #50 Sage Green by Superior Threads (quilting)

I'm linking to Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal linkup for April.

One Monthly Goal for April - A Green Quilt

My goal this month is a carry-over from March. I did not start the "green" quilt for my granddaughter's 18th birthday, and now I have about 20 days to complete it. It is usually procrastination that makes me drag my feet, but this time I wasn't in love with the green fabric choices in my stash. I'll do a patchwork featuring the darker forest greens my granddaughter likes with some neutral blocks in between. I am still undecided about a pattern. Everyone in my family seems to love simple patchwork quilts, so that is probably what I will do.

I am linking to Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal for April, hosted by Patty.

March OMG Finishes

Even though the title says "Finishes", you will find no actual finish here. One of my two goals for March was to stay on track for the Meadowland QAL on Instagram, so I did meet that goal! I've made 15 blocks so far, have another 5 to go, and haven't tapped out yet! I love the way the blocks look together. The pattern by Then Came June is brilliant, in my opinion. I love the pattern and the option of using solids or prints.

The other goal was to to start a quilt in greens for my oldest granddaughter for her 18th birthday in April. I haven't started because I'm not excited about my stash choices so far. However, my LQS just sent an email of a 50% off sale this week, so I hope to find inspiration there!

This post is linked to Pattie's One Monthly Goal March Finish Link-Up.

One Monthly Goal (OMG) for March

One of my goals for this month is to start a quilt for this beautiful girl, our granddaughter Sydney. Her 18th birthday is in April, and she will graduate in May. She requested a quilt in "greens" last Thanksgiving. I took her into my fabric closet, and she loved one of the fabrics that was yellow with a green design. She was vague about the particular greens she wants, so I may make a trip to my LQS and get some suggestions. There should be an ample supply of greens this month!

Another goal is to keep working (and not tap out!) on the Meadowland Quilt-Along on Instagram. I will make the large throw size, 64" x 80". As you can see by the above picture, my version is in light blue, mint, navy, gray, and yellow gold. There are so, so many beautiful versions on Instagram, I can't help but be inspired! I just finished mixing up colors, so I will start on my first few blocks for this week.

I am linking this post to Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal linkup.

Little Bear Quilt - Finish for OMG February and Q#1 Finish-Along

My February OMG goals were to finish the Eternally Yours pattern test for Julie at Running Stitch Quilts and the baby quilt for our future grandson. The pattern test quilt is sandwiched and ready to quilt and will be detailed in a later post. I did finish the baby quilt, which was not only a February OMG goal as well as a first quarter Finish-Along goal. Our daughter, who is expecting our second grandson in May.

This baby quilt is done in the colors my daughter requested, navy, gray, mint green, dark kelly green, mustard, and burgundy, and in the same simple style as for our granddaughter's quilt.

I found a fabric called "Sleepyheads in Blue", which featured a cute little bear.

The back is a pieced combination of flannel and cotton.

My daughter has nicknamed the baby "Little Bear".

I free motion quilted this quilt, using my "new" (used) Janome Horizon Memory Craft 7700QCP, which I purchased last year. This was my first time trying FMQ on this machine. It was so much easier than previous FMQ attempts with my old Janome, and I was happily surprised to find there was no "eyelashing" on the back of the quilt. I used a Supreme Slider beneath the quilt, which helped move the quilt around. I watched a Leah Day video on stippling several times and practiced before I worked up the courage! I have a lot of practicing to do before I feel truly confident. There are really tight stitches and really big stitches, but overall I am feeling much better about free motion quilting!

Jack has given his stamp of approval.

LITTLE BEAR QUILT DETAILS:
Size: 36" x 45"
No pattern, simple patchwork

Front fabrics:
Triangle Tokens Metallic from AGF
Enchanted Pond from Moda
Panache Profundo from AGF
Black Forest Hunter from Cotton + Steel
Elk Family in Sun from Birch Fabrics
North Pole Forest from Dear Stella
Sleepyheads in Blue from Blend Fabrics
Pandalicious from AGF

Backing:
Sleepyheads in Blue from Blend Fabrics
Flannel from Hobby Lobby
Gray solid from my stash

Binding:
Reminisce Meadow Gold by Bonnie Christine for AGF

Thread:
So Fine Genoa Gray and Pearl by Superior Threads

I am linking to Patty's OMG Finish for February link-up. Click to see other quilters' amazing finishes!

Little Bear Quilt: January OMG (Non)-Finish

My One Monthly Goal for January was to finish a baby quilt for our grandson, who is expected to be born in May. Although it is not complete, I did succeed in getting the pieces cut and arranged and will likely finish it in the next couple of weeks. My daughter's friends are throwing her a "sprinkle" (small shower) at the end of March, and I intend to mail the quilt to her in plenty of time to show it off.

I was able to find fabrics in her chosen colors of navy, gray, mint green, dark kelly green, mustard, and burgundy. I haven't shared my progress with her, so even though she knows the colors and saw brief glimpses of fabric, she hasn't seen the little teepees (from Panadalicious by AGF) that I couldn't resist. The colors were perfect, and I hope she likes them!

This post is linked to Patty's OMG January Finish link-up, where you check out others' creations for the month of January.

2019 Goals and OMG for January

It is already the fourth day of January! Goals for 2019 have been rolling around in my mind for many days, so am listing them as well as my One Monthly Goal for January.

1. Catalog my UFOs (unfinished objects), WIPs (works in progress), and ideas for quilts to compile a master list of quilts to be finished or started.
I printed the project sheets pictured above last year and completely forgot about them. They will be helpful for me to see at a glance how far along I am with each project.

Here is this list so far:

1. A baby quilt for my future grandson, nicknamed "Little Bear" by my daughter. He is due in May, and my daughter wants a quilt similar to the one pictured above that I made for our 2-1/2 year-old granddaughter, detailed here. I have the fabric in the colors she wants - blue, gray, green, mustard, and burgundy. This is my One Monthly Goal for January.
2. Craftsman quilt I blogged about here, for my husband. I have The pieces are cut and some blocks are sewn.
3. A quilt for granddaughter #1, who has requested a "green" quilt. She is 17, and I made her a quilt when she was 12, but I suspect it has been folded and put away in her closet - hah!
4. Scrappy Trip Around the World, like this one made by Margaret Ferguson whose feed I follow on Instagram (@quiltsbymargie47). This should be a great project for my scraps.
5. Another Mercyful quilt for Bernie at Needle and Foot. I blogged about the ones I sent to her in this post.
6. Participate in the Hand-Pieced QAL hosted by Patty and Kristin. It has been a long time since I practiced block construction by hand, and it should be very enjoyable. If you'd like to hone your hand-piecing skills, read all about it here.
7. Antique quilt revival, blogged about here. This quilt is just waiting to be restored and loved again! I did a similar project with a vintage quilt top for my niece in 2015.
8. Lori Holt's Vintage Christmas Sampler I have the book and intend to start early!
9. Texas Flag quilt by Aspen Tree - I have the pattern, and the fabrics are cut.
10. Farm Girl Vintage quilt I started in 2015, to be used as a runner across the comforter in our guest bedroom. All the blocks are completed.
11. Make little quilts for my kitties. They are all such good helpers and deserve their own pallets!
12. Moorland Stripe Crocheted Blanket by Attic24 - I have all the yarn and the pattern.
13. A crocheted scarf using Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick yarn in Wheat. I started it this week and also want to make an afghan from the remaining yarn.
14. Vintage Christmas Sampler cross stitch by Lori Holt. I have the book and threads, and am waiting for the oatmeal 10-count linen to be back in stock.

2. Help my husband build fabric and yarn shelves on the wall where yarns and needlework supplies are pictured above.
My fabric stash is currently stored in the closet, and my theory is that if I can see what I have, I won't order more. Like many other quilters, I start the year with a commitment to use fabric on hand and refrain from new purchases, but my resolve usually falters by February!

3. Purge and organize my scrap jar and scrap bins.
When my mother-in-law passed away in 2017, I inherited a beautiful glass canister that has been perfect for scrap storage. But it's full! The scrap bins are a mess inside and have no room for additional scraps. If I organize and purge SIWNU (Scraps I Will Never Use - I made that up!), I will be more likely to use scraps in future projects. Cleaning and organizing makes me happy!

4. Keep "tweaking" my sewing room arrangement to make everything easy to find and convenient.
Rearranging furniture keeps me motivated and excited. I recently turned my cutting/ironing table around to make it more accessible, and it made such a difference! To make the table surface less crowded, I removed the iron and put it on the table behind it (next to my sewing machine). Now my cutting table is exclusively for cutting. My husband made the ironing table as well as a table to hold my laptop, notebooks, pens, and craft items. He enjoys carpentry in his building, and I am happy to provide him with projects!

5. Complete repairs on the vintage quilt I purchased last year and blogged about here.
This quilt is just waiting to be restored and loved again! I did a similar project with a vintage quilt top for my niece in 2015.

6. Create items for purchase in my Etsy shop and add a second shop.
My plan is a Christmas-themed shop with quilts, table runners, mug mats, etc., and another shop to sell quilts similar to the hand-tied ones I made for my kids. As I become more interested in quilt repair, I may offer that service in my shop. We shall see!

7. My garden goals for spring are to have a smaller garden and to plant more flowers.:
During last summer's heat, part of our large garden sweltered, and it was difficult to keep up with watering. This year we will reduce the size for easier maintenance. Last year I planted two packets of zinnias and was astounded at the abundance of butterflies and bees that came to play. We got as much enjoyment from watching them as from the vegetables! So one area of the garden will be reserved just for flowers. Here is the schedule::
Planting in March:

• Tomato plants
• French Breakfast Radish
• Lettuce

Planting in April:

• Seeds purchased from Burpee: Musquee de Provence Pumpkin, Crimson Sweet Watermelon, Butterstick Zucchini, Contender Green Bush Bean, Scarlet Runner Pole Bean, Dragon's Tongue Wax Bush Bean, Supremo Cucumber, Armenian Sunrise Cantaloupe, Garden Sweet Pea, Mammoth Dill, Lady Lavender
• Cowpeas - purple pod and black-eye
• Bell pepper plants
• Zinnias

8. Walk more!
We both got FitBits last year and began walking early mornings. We started a little too strong, walking 5+ miles per day, and my husband developed a knee problem. The doctor fixed him right up, but we lost a couple of months in the process. When we began again, we had more realistic goals, and now generally walk 2-1/2 to 5 miles, four or five times a week. Too much rain this winter created too much mud on our dirt roads, so walking was more difficult. Holidays and colder temperatures have slowed down our motivation. We have a few days of sunshine coming up, so we hope to start walking again.

Here's hoping we all accomplish our goals in 2019! I am linking this post to Patty's One Monthly Goal for January.