APQ 2016 February UFO

UFO score:  1 down, 11 to go!

The February number was chosen on the 1st and the magic number is 5!  A good choice for me!  

This UFO is a Christmas Lasagna quilt. The pattern is from the "Spring Cleaning" quilt book by Atkinson Designs.  This quilt pattern is described as "An appealing quilt, even when the bed isn't made".  This one is right up my alley!  

If memory serves me correctly, this was a class project.  I started it in the class and didn't finish it at home after the class ended.  Not the only class project I have lurking in my UFO pile!  I have a sneaking suspicion it was not started in this century!  Yikes!  

Here is the project as it stands on February 1st.  The top has made a good start.  Many, if not all, of the strips have already been cut as shown in the picture.  The backing is shown there as well.  I originally thought no borders would be added, but that is not yet carved in stone.  

My plan is to spray baste this one and machine quilt it on my Bernina - with my walking foot from the start this time!  Stay tuned!   

APQ 2016 January UFO

My New Year Resolutions included working on my UFOs, of which I have several many!  I have joined the APQ (All People Quilt) 2016 UFO challenge to complete at least 12 of them.  In my previous post, I listed the 12 I am hoping to do in order by month.  On the first of each month APQ will choose a number of a month and that is the project to be completed for the current month.  So in January, the number drawn was 2 which is the batik log cabin quilt I started as part of a Pat Sloan challenge.  The fabrics for the logs came from a jelly roll of her fabric line and the center rectangles, borders and backing fabrics came from my stash.  The binding was made from the leftover strips from the jelly roll.  

At the start, the quilt top was complete except for the borders.  I needed to add those, piece the backing and the binding strips.  Then (gulp), quilt it.  

The starting point as of January 1, 2016.

The finished quilt as of January 31, 2016.  Actually finished 6 hours before the deadline - talk about pressure! 

Here is what I learned from this UFO:

1. Batiks are very different from cotton fabrics.

2. A new needle and a new rotary cutting blade make all the difference.

3. For the first time, I used a basting spray instead of spending time on my knees inserting hundreds of pins into the fabric sandwich.  It was so much easier than I thought!  I did the spray basting in the garage but it really had no odor.  I used 505 spray.  It also did not gum up my sewing needle!  

4.  Although I bought a new Bernina 350PE several months ago, I did not use it very much.  I guess I was so used to using my Pfaff that I didn't take the time to learn to use my Bernina, despite taking the course to do so.  I bit the bullet and used the Bernina to finish this project.  It took referring to the manual and watching a few You Tube videos (what did we ever do before You Tube!) to accomplish a few tasks but I am glad I took this step.  

5.  I am not very confident about machine quilting but I decided to try "stitch in the ditch" on this quilt. This quilt is staying with me so I felt ok if it had a few "practice" stitches on it.  The stitching went ok on the vertical seams, but I started to get some puckers when I began the horizontal stitching.  The stitching on the back was looking good, attributed to the spray basting.  The puckers occurred at the intersections of the stitching.  Of course, I have some wonderful quilting groups online that I queried.  I found out that the solution to puckers was to use my walking foot.  Hey, one came with my Bernina!  After some angst with attaching that foot, I started stitching again.  Not a pucker in the bunch!  A light bulb moment!  

6.  And finally, I learned the joys of machine binding!  I had always avoided doing the binding by machine because I didn't like the look of the stitching on the back, at least not my stitching.  I have started using the flange method of machine binding but I did not see a way of using this method on this particular quilt.  But, time was of the essence and I had a deadline to meet.  It went better than I expected.  I did pin the binding down first which I think helped a good deal!  

I am happy with the result.  The quilt is not perfect, but I like the 20 feet from a galloping horse rule!  And the quilt is done, done, done!  And done is always better than perfect, or so "they" say!  

I waited with baited breath for February 1st to see what my next UFO adventure would be!  It turned out to be #5 on my list - my Christmas Lasagna quilt!  A good one - lots of straight stitching!  

Here's how it looks now. Partially done top, lots of strips already cut and the fabric for the backing.  I have red and white striped fabric that I may cut on the bias for the binding.  A new technique for me!  I think I will need all 29 days this month!  

A New Year, a New List

Well, happy 2016!  It's been a good year so far and I have been busy quilting already.  I started the year off by cleaning and organizing my sewing room and setting up a better way of storing my stash.  The previous year ended with me trying to finish a quilt for my husband without him knowing anything about it!  Not an easy task to be sure.  The top and backing were completed but the quilting could not be done in time for Christmas.  So, it was presented to him unquilted.  I took it to the long armer at the end of December so I will have a binding project in early February.  I will post photos and the story behind this quilt when it is totally completed.  I am so happy with how it turned out though.  Stay tuned for the preview. 

So, a new year means a new list of things I want to get done.  This year my list contains some new projects, some with new techniques, as well as 12 UFOs.  That number is set since it is designated by the All People Quilt UFO Challenge for 2016. I listed 12 UFOs by month, APQ will pick a number between 1 and 12 which tells me which UFO should be completed that month. More on this later.

MY NEEDS TO DO:

12 UFOs for APQ 2016 challenge - target is end of each month (2/12 done!)
2 mug rugs - target date is end of January March August
1 table runner for our cabin - target date is end of January (done!)
2 baby quilts - target date is mid-February April July
3 pillow cases - target date is 3 in late January March July, 1 in late February April
3 night stand runners - target date is end of May September
1 table runner for foyer table - target date is end of February (done!)
1 large lap quilt will need binding when it gets back from the quilter (done!)

MY WISH LIST:

Double Irish Chain king quilt for our bed
12 Christmas star ornaments
Table runner for my daughter
Holiday runners (10 minute type)
Sudoku wall hanging
Holiday pillow cases (Halloween, Christmas)
At least 1 twin quilt from baseball swap squares
Place mats for cabin table
Several self-binding receiving blankets with flannel on-hand
2 pillows for summer room at cabin


NEW THINGS TO TRY:

Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt - use rotary cutter lessons
Hexie table topper using 1 inch hexagons
Scrappy quilt using Accuquilt cutting dies
A quilt retreat
Small applique project


When I organized my sewing room, I also separated my UFOs into their own location.  I find that I get more accomplished when my projects are visible.  These 12 are the ones I selected for the APQ UFO challenge.  They are in various stages of completion.  That was done intentionally so I would be more apt to finish them within the month for which they are selected.  Here are the 12 UFOs that I plan to finish this year:

      √ 2" square stash challenge lap quilt, needs borders, quilting, binding

      √ Batik string bean lap quilt, needs borders, quilting, binding

      √ Lighthouse wall hanging, needs borders, quilting, binding

• DWR hand pieced table runner, 3rd ring needs to be added, then quilted

      √ Christmas lasagna quilt, needs borders added, quilting, binding

• Jelly roll race quilt, needs borders, quilting, binding

      √ Bright table runner, needs quilting and binding

• Tumbling blocks WH, blocks to be added, then borders, quilting and binding
• Churn dash lap quilt, blocks to be finished, then borders, quilting and binding
• Nickle quilt, blocks to be finished, then borders, quilting and binding
• Civil War lap quilt, blocks to be finished, then borders, quilting and binding
• 2015 BOM, Blocks 4 thru 12 to be made, top completed, borders, quilting, binding

The one chosen for January is the batik string bean quilt, seen below.  I have all of the fabrics on hand for the borders, backing and binding.  The borders and backing came from my stash and the binding will be made from the strips left over from the jelly roll used the make the top.  

The borders will be the aqua fabric, the backing is the orange.  The binding will be made from the left over strips from the jelly roll I used for the top.  This was a challenge from the Pat Sloan quilting group.  The challenge required that some of her fabrics needed to be used, but my own could be used as well.  I don't use many batiks but I loved these and I am happy at how the top came out.  I will be glad to get this one finished although I don't know where it will live yet.  It is named "Outside my box". 
















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Finally, the 2015 Finale!

I have been very remiss in posting anything for several many months but I really have been quilting when time allowed.  We have had a very busy travel schedule this year.  We traveled to Florida for our granddaughter's spring break.  This was one way by car and one way by train.  We have also now taken our first cruise ever to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary.  A one week in Bermuda takes six weeks to plan!  Who knew?  We had a grand time, and yes, I did find a fabric store and purchased 2 yards of pretty, seaside themed fabric.  No plans yet but I will make something special with this fabric!

Then, we traveled to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, one week in May and two weeks in October.  Again, these trips took lots of planning beforehand.  We also have a house in the Pocono Mountains and the great weather brought many visitors who loved to fish and just relax!  Our final trip took us and my sister to Georgetown, Kentucky for a 9 day visit with good friends.  Lots of barn quilts to see here!  One of our most exciting activities was to walk a part of the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania! 

I visited lots of quilt shops in NJ and PA that were participating in the Row by Row event.  I managed to collect lots of the license plates from states including Colorado, Delaware, Maine, Missouri, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  They will be used to make a tote bag for my quilting supplies. 

But, I do want to highlight the quilting  related projects that occupied my time since the last time I posted, so very, very long ago.  Many of the quilted items were gifts and so they could not be posted until they were gifted.

These are two flannel, self-binding receiving blankets made for our niece for her new baby boy.  I had never made these before and could not believe how easy they were to make!

This is another of the Easy Striped table runners that I love to make.  The magic comes from using fabric with multiple repeats.  This one is for our mountain home.

This is my first "10 minute" table runner.  I bought this as a kit which came with the outer and inner fabrics.  It took a bit more than 10 minutes but not more than 30.  This was used on my foyer table during the Thanksgiving holiday.  I have other fabrics in my stash for a variety of holidays and seasons that would be perfect for this type of runner. 

This was another project for our mountain home.  It was made with fabric from my stash and is all fishing related fabric.  I had enough to make a pillow sham as well.  This was pieced from large sections of fabric since I did not want to cut the main fishing fabric into smaller pieces.  It was a very large queen size and is extremely warm, a good thing when the temps drop to below zero outside! 

These are two Christmas runners I made for my sister.  Her home was selected for the Christmas house tour and she wanted some runners to add to her décor.  These were placed in an "L" configuration in one of her rooms that was on display. 

This was probably my last project for 2015.  It was a Christmas gift for my husband but still needs to be quilted.  I did not have enough time to get it to the long arm quilter to have it finished before Christmas.  It will be brought to the quilter tomorrow.  It is made of 80 different food blocks.  We have an inside joke in our family that any trip needs to include a "food event" so I thought it was about time to make the Hubs his own "food event" quilt.  He loved it!   Although I realized that it is near impossible to surprise my husband with a quilt when we are both retired and doing things together all the time! 









I am looking forward to starting a new year with a plan to finish some of my UFOs along with starting a few new projects.  Sounds familiar, doesn't it?  My year will start off with a New Year Mystery Quilt where each step will be provided each hour.  I have chosen my fabrics (from my stash) and will have the initial cutting done by the morning of 1/1/2016.  I will post how that went in my first post of the New Year. 

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!!!!