Ladies of the Sea is DONE!! (I think...)

 I've completed my Ladies of the Sea quilt.  At least I think so.  I completed all the hand quilting that I had planned to do, but there are a few spots that look a little barren to me.  But, I can't decide what to put in those spots to make it feel more complete to me, so I decided to trip it, label it and bind it.  So, it't probably done, done, but I reserve the right to change my mind later and add more quilting.

A lot of my friends have been asking what I am going to do with the quilt now that it's done.  Frankly, I have no idea.  I really don't have the wall space to put it anywhere in my house.  I'll probably put it on the bed for a while.  I'll enter it into my guild show, but that won't be until the spring of 2022. Right now it's draped over a chair in the family room.  I guess I should think about putting a hanging sleeve on it so it will be ready when it's time to put it in a show or two.  Until then, I'm just taking glances at it and enjoying.

Winter Completions, Spring Goals

This documents a few finishes and the list of UFOs I plan to work on this next quarter.  Since I've only finished two of the 8 UFOs I listed in the goals for last quarter, none of the projects on the current UFO list is new.

On to the finishes....

I bought the fabric for this purse about a year ago.  I fell in love with the fabric and bought it with a purse in mind.  I had a pattern in mind, but it all came together when I found some leather at another sale.  The pattern is the Renegade Bag from Sew Sweetness.  It's a bit larger than bags I usually carry, but since I also make that little clutch earlier this year, I think this will work out for times I want a larger bag.  

My next finish is this bonus quilt that I made from left over border pieces from the left over Stars quilt I completed last quarter.  I realized it needed something else, and seemed like a good home for the chicken I had put together in another workshop.  The chicken wire quilting was a new technique for me using a template and chalk pounce powder.  I liked the pounce technique for marking the quilt, but it wore off a little too quickly.  I had to learn how much of the quilt I could mark at one time before I had to reapply.


And I finally finished this pair of socks that I started in January.  I just became disinterested in the pattern and yarn and procrastinated working on them.  They turned out lovely, though.











This is the UFO list for spring 2020:

1. Ladies of the Sea

She is in the hoop.  I've completed the outline quilting on 14 of the 16 blocks.  I'm still contemplating how the background will be quilted, but I'm a long way from having to make that decision.  This will not be completed this quarter, it's still on the list so I will make progress.

2. Scrapitude Take 2

My plan was to baste this large top at a quilting retreat that was scheduled for March.  However, the retreat was cancelled due to isolation orders because of COVID-19.  This quilt is large enough that it does not fit on my kitchen floor.  DH suggested the deck.  On a pleasant Saturday afternoon, I swept off the deck and got this pin basted.  I am currently machine quilting it and expect this will be my next completion.



3. Bright Baby Revisited

Again, still on the list.











4. Handy Dandy Scrappy

The next top to be basted and quilted.  I do not, however, have batting for this.  Depending on the timing, I may have to take advantage of the curb-side pick up of a local quilt shop that is struggling to remain open.







5. Maxine

Still here, too.











6. Blue Floral

I've been thinking about what I want to do to finish this piece.  I'm contemplating what kind of blocks I want to make for the border.  I just saw some log cabin blocks placed to make a wave or swag pattern.  That has potential. 

She's Getting Stuff Done!

Although I don't feel like I've gotten a lot done in the past 6 weeks or so, I do have quite a few finishes - just not very many UFO finishes.

OK, first a UFO finish.  I did complete the Left-over Stars quilt.  I think the finished size turned out to be something like 48" x 75".  It's just big enough to cover the top of my double bed with a few inches of overhang.  I like it, but I'm not in love with it.  Mostly I'm glad to have it done.















My next finish are these two adorable cats.  These patterns came courtesy of Val Spiers of Australia.  She published the patterns on her blog quite a few years ago and I used 2 of the 4 as decoration for an applique portfolio I made.  (Val is currently selling very nice American Girl clothing patterns on Etsy, by the way.)  I've always liked the cat patterns and decided to make these as entries to my guild's silent auction in May.  They're about 15" square each.  I hope they bring in good bids.



The next finish is this little purse.  I don't often carry a full-sized purse and my cell phone and my wallet don't always fit into the tiny pockets that are put into women's jeans these days.  I had been carrying another bag about this same size, but it's really not very attractive. I bought this fabric to make a full sized purse and had plenty to make this smaller piece for every day.  This will do just fine.






And there's this little zipper bag that I completed.  This was part of an estate that was donated to the guild.  It was mostly assembled.  I just finished it and am using it to hold a small knitting project. 

That's all for the finishes.  And, there was only one official UFO finish.  But, progress none-the-less.







 In addition to sewing, I started a pair of socks in January.  I've sort of lost interest in these once I got used to the stitch and got the leg on the first sock done.  I've been much more interested in hand quilting.  But, I've picked them back up this week and will try to plod along.

The biggest project is this baby.  I finally got Ladies of the Sea all together, completed hand basting and have started quilting.  As of today, I've completed outlining the applique and blocks on 6 of the 16 blocks.  I'm very much enjoying getting back to hand quilting.  I'm still thinking about what design I would like to use for the quilting.  There have been some gorgeous machine quilted versions of this that I've seen on the web.  I'm not sure how dense machine quilting would translate to hand quilting.  Sue Garman's original is quilted with a cross-hatch design and is stunning.  I've got quite a bit of outlining to do before I make this decision.

That's what's been keeping me busy lately.  I am still entertaining thought of knitting two cardigans.  I have the pattern and yarn chosen for each.  I just don't know when I will squeeze these into my evening hand stitching time.

Autumn UFO Club

I'm in again for the Ravelry UFO club.  I skipped the summer session because I was traveling so much that I knew I wouldn't get anything much accomplished quite-wise.  But, now I'm home for the season, except for a quilt retreat where I hope to make a lot of progress.

So, this is what I'm focusing on for the remainder of the year:

1. Clutter Control

I fully expect to complete this.  It is basted and I've started the machine quilting.  Each block gets its own personality.  Some of them are easier to choose a quilting pattern for than others.  I really do like this quilt, but I have been procrastinating on quilting it for some reason.  This was started in 1993, so it is definitely time to get this completed.

2. Handy Dandy Scrappy

This is the newest top in my stash.  I have the back and binding pieced, so it's just a matter of basting, quilting and finishing.  I would like to have this quilt done in time for our guild show in May and I expect to do that.

3. Left Over Stars

This lap-sized quilt needs a border, backing, basting and finishing.  This is another quilt I would like to have completed by May.  I have the fabric and am planning a keyboard border and white binding.  I am taking this to the quilt retreat and will probably finish the top there.














4. Bright Baby Revisited

This was on the list for one of the quilts I wanted to work on in the Spring, but that never happened.  It  is another of the projects that I will take to the quilt retreat, but it's low priority to finish.  I'm looking forward to playing with machine quilting on this.











5. Ladies of the Sea

I am working on the hand applique on the last two ships in this pattern.  My second priority at the quilt retreat is to get all the 1/2 square triangles for the sashing completed and get the entire top put together.  I have no idea if this is a reasonable goal or not.  But, I want to have the top completed before the end of the year, and that is a totally reasonable goal.  Then starts the hand quilting.  Any bets on how long that will take?



6. Scraptitude Take 2

I completed this top in the spring as a mystery project with my guild.  I've made this pattern before and really like the results. This is another quilt that I would like to have done by May.  It would be great to have a few from the guild completed and displayed together.

7. Blue Floral

Another long-term UFO that I have dug out of oblivion.  I don't expect to have this done by the end of the year, but I want it out of the shadows so I can think about what I want to do with it.  I'm taking another machine quilting class in November and the plan is to use this as a show piece for the great skills I will possess upon course completion. (Yes, I can be that delusional!)



These 7 are still a fraction of the 29 UFOs that are still on my list.  But, I started the year with a list of 35, so 6 completions isn't too bad.  Of course, this doesn't include a few projects that may or may not have been added since I officially counted in January.  The focus is on these 7 for now.  Then I can reevaluate again.

Wish me luck!

Forever has Ended

Remember me talking about the Iris quilt?  This is an applique project that I started some time in 1991.  My family dubbed this the "Forever Quilt" because that is how long I've been working on it. My daughter, now 27, says she cannot remember a time that I haven't been working on this quilt. I haven't been working on this quilt continuously for the past 26 years.  There have been long stretches of time that it sat, tucked away in the closet because I was bored with it, or frustrated, or did not yet have the skills to go to the next step.  As of yesterday, it is complete!

It is hand appliqued, hand and machine stitched, hand quilted and measures just under 100" per side.. And I LOVE it.  But, I don't think I'll let a quilt take me this long to finish again.  I am much better at applique today than I was 26 years ago when I was just starting.  Looking at some of these blocks up close makes me cringe.

Because I have been focused on getting the Iris quilt done (Entitled "My Fantasy Garden"), I have not worked on other projects.  I wanted to be focused and complete this before I started working on other things.  I did one small knitting project between the time I finished the quilting and started the binding.

I wanted to knit a cap for myself and took a few days to knit this up.

I used double pointed needles because  I didn't want to spring for circulars to knit this, but I should have bought the circular needles in the correct size, too.  There were just a bit too many stitches on my DPNs and I dropped a few stitches before the cap was completed.  I found them and fixed the cap, but it would have been easier to just use the correct tools.

I also tackled an upholstery project in January.  This chair was a rescue from a client when we were doing the remodeling business.  The chair it replaced was in much worse shape and this chair has 'good bones'.  The plaid fabric we chose was not my first choice, but the $5.00/yard price tag for the plaid compared to the $25.00/yard for the print that I would have preferred made this an easy choice.  I had to buy extra to match the plaid and the process to do that took more time, but I'm happy to have spent $60 in total for the supplies to make this chair look much better.

Now that the Iris quilt is complete, I am moving onto all sorts of other projects.  But the next highest priority on my list is to get my craft/quilting closet cleaned out and organized.  I have started that and am working at it a little every day.  My plan is to have it complete by the end of February so it doesn't feel like an overwhelming task.

Did I Say Limiting to Four Projects?

Shortly after my last post, I found myself without any sort of mindless sewing to do.  I've finished the wedding top and am waiting for the backing I ordered to arrive.  I've finished the latest Scrapitude clue and won't get another until January.  I have a few blocks to make to keep up with my guild's block of the month and 9-patch exchange, but they will only take an hour or two to complete both.  I wanted something I could pick up and sew on without much thought.

My only complaint about this quilt is that either the person who marked the quilt has much better eyesight or lighting than I do.  I have to darken all the markings before stitching because I can barely see them.  but, remarking is easier than doing it the first time.

So, My current project list has been increased to 5, and we'll see if I can hold there.