Still making April's UFO...

Oh dear I knew this one was going to take time.
I've unpicked and remade the centre with the correct blocks, so that's all good now.
The border blocks are sewn together and have been stitched onto the quilt.
I've made the pieced back, my favorite way to back quilts at the moment!
Cut the wadding to size.
Time to layer it up.

Although its not yet finished, and its now the 7th May, I'm reasonably happy with the progress. It is after all  much further on than it has been for the last several years!

April's UFO

Another month another ufo.

This one's a biggie I have part of a quilt made, using  the Bethany Reynolds Stack-n-Whack® method. The centre is pieced as are twenty something blocks required for the border. Having changed my mind about how to do the centre section half of it was unpicked.

On Sunday in a zealous fit of enthusiasm I unpicked the centre. Then chose some blocks to add, cut the extra pieces necessary, and remade the centre section.

On Monday I began to piece the border, this is when I discovered I had used the wrong blocks for the middle. Before I abandoned the quilt top I had clearly made four new blocks for the middle, half an inch smaller than the border blocks, grrrh. Obviously these were not the blocks I chose to add to the centre section on Sunday.

Time to unpick again......

Finishes

March UFO

This is a small bargello wall-hanging I began making back in 2005. I made the quilt top in an online course at the now defunct Quilt University. It was ready for layering up and quilting when I stalled, which is all to often my stalling point. However, I'm glad I didn't quilt this piece back in 2005 as I was nowhere near ready to do it justice, I'm not sure I've done it justice now but I like it.

 Purple Power (size 26.25" x 23.5")

Detail of Purple Power

Although in the pictures it looks blue it is much more purple in the flesh.

The original design is Bargello Blues and was designed by Ruth Blanchet of Arbee Designs where it is available as both a pattern and a workshop.

I quilted it very simply as you can just about see in the detail photo. Following the curves I quilted in the dominant dark purple and every three to four rows on either side. I didn't want to take away from the drama of the design so I used different threads to match the fabrics. Although this meant more stops and starts to the quilting I felt it warranted it.

I also added a faux piped piece just inside the binding.

I love this little quilt and am really happy it is finally finished.

February's UFO

I finally got February's UFO finished albeit in March, it is finished and that's all that counts!

Finished and pinned to the design wall.

Detail

It was quilted using a purple variegated cotton 30 thread from Gutermann. It was actually finished mid March, I've just been rather slow to update the blog.

Progress

The Purple Quilt or Light Fantastic to give it its official name has been progressing well.

Here we have the border pieces laid out ready for piecing.

The quilt top went together like a dream, then I procrastinated about how to quilt it....
I prefer simple quick and easy quilting, I'm not a fan of doing stipple or any elaborate quilting. Not that the design I decided on is particularly quick, but it is easy and a simple design.
Inspiration finally struck whilst browsing through Angela Walters Shape by Shape book. I adapted one of the patterns she suggests for triangles, and I think it'll work well.

Here is part of it layered and marked up ready for the quilting. 

I am running a little behind as this one should have been finished by now, but I'm hoping to be able to catch up this month. I've found the March quilt, a small wall-hanging, which is ready for layering up and quilting, so if I don't procrastinate too long I will hopefully get back on track...

February's Ufo - The Purple Quilt

So The Purple Quilt is on the list for February's Ufo. Again its one I've had on the go for some years. I'm using  Fabric Freedom's Light Fantastic range, and a pattern designed by Sally Ablett.

The bits are all cut:

 The blocks are going together beautifully:

Scrap Attack - update

The pile is growing:

The pile of strips doesn't seem to be reducing though!

Quilt as you go - Scrap Attack

One always seems to have lots of  bits of wadding leftover after any project. These bits are never quite big enough for another project, but too small to discard/recycle, and I positively hate joining wadding, frankly life's far too short for that, so they sit there in their own stash. Then there's the box/es of strips and fabric scraps  along with the ever growing fabric stash. A Quilt As You Go(Qayg) project is called for.

I've cut all the bits of wadding into either 8.5" or 7" squares, anything smaller went for recycling, one has to call a halt somewhere.

I've dug out some of the strips.

Decided to attack the stash and use some of my hand dyed fabrics for back of the blocks, which I've now cut to either 8.5" or 7", with leftovers becoming yet more strips/scraps.

and I'm ready to go...

Hugs & Kisses - UFO January 2017

After much hard work, and just in time, I've finally finished Hugs & Kisses, January's UFO.

This is a terrible picture but its the best I could manage so it will have to do for now!

As you can see from the detail photos the quilting is very simple.

Quilting half an inch either side of the ditch of the blocks and then again on the outermost side of the middle section of the blocks. All done with a walking foot the half inch was chosen as that was the measurement from the edge of the foot to the needle, so no need for marking.

That's one UFO down and so on to February.....

Hugs & Kisses - Progress Report

I'm making good progress, and with a little jiggery pokery, I've now made enough blocks for a single bed quilt.

This is it sitting on my design wall in all its glory.

Now to get on and join the blocks together....

New Year - New Start

Wow, it's been awhile - a slight understatement!

So I'm back to talk about my New Year's Resolution which is to finish some, actually twelve, UFOs (Unfinished objects to the uninitiated!)

Yes I've vowed to do this before... and it didn't work. so what's different this year?

Firstly, in 2015 as I finished a project I recorded it in a notebook, just the date and the fact it was finished. This was useful I could see how productive I'd been and give myself a pat on the back each month and at the end of the year. Though a good idea it had no effect on the UFOs. So last year (2016) I also recorded when I started a project. At the end of the year I had a start and a finish (or not) date for each project, and I could see just how many genuine UFOs I'd actually finished. Turns out it was only two which was disappointing as in my head I'd been going great guns!

A new strategy is called for.
First - Accountability. I'm declaring what I'm up to here
Second - Finish one per month alongside any other ongoing/new projects.

My Rules:
I'm counting anything started prior to 2016 as a UFO, anything started in 2016/17 will be considered and ongoing project. I don't want to be adding more to the list and there are two from last year that are looking suspiciously like it, if given half a chance! Vigilance will be called for.

One project per month, I'm tempted to put minimum here, but that will just lead to overload and consequently abandonment, so I'll stick to one.

I've chosen, I use the word chosen loosely as I've actually just taken the first 12 off one of my UFO lists and allocated them a month chronologically. This might require some adjustment later as I've got some pretty big quilts in the first few months, but I'll deal with that as and when I need to.

January 2017
This month I will be finishing a single bed quilt called Hugs & Kisses, started several years ago using two jelly rolls. At the beginning of this week, when I found it, there were 36 blocks completed and it was destined to be a throw. But I thought if I add a couple more rows it will make a reasonable single bed quilt and use up more of the fabric, thereby adding less to the scrap stash!

This is a glimpse of it up on my design wall.

Now to get on with making more of the extra blocks....

BabyCardigan/Matinee Jacket

I know I said I was bored of knitting but I appear to have been bitten by the finishing bug.

I found a matinee jacket I started knitting when my sister was pregnant with my now seven and a half year old niece. It was almost complete all it needed was for me to finish the buttonhole band and sew it up, how hard can that be? Not as hard as I have clearly been imagining for the past seven and a half years. A little effort and time was all it took.

This is the finished article.

The sewing up might be a little ropey but its finished, and that all that matters. 

It shouldn't really surprise me that it lay waiting all these years it's knit in 4ply yarn, what was I thinking?

Wool Stash (Just how much can I make out of the remains of a ball of yarn?)

I knit a baby dress for the shop some time ago, we'er talking at least one year ago, probably nearer three. It required a little white yarn for some edgings, since I didn't have any lurking I needed to begin a new ball.

After the dress was finished I had lots of white yarn left over, enough, I thought, for a baby cardigan. So I dug out a pattern one which required only 100gms and began. However, before I got it finished I ran out of yarn, so I started another ball, finished the cardigan and was left with considerable amount of yarn.....

This time I'm going to keep it small I'll knit a hat, to be sure I won't run out again I make it a prem baby hat. When its finished I still have lots of yarn left. I weigh the hat and the remainder of the yarn and there's more than enough for another one. This time I make a larger hat, I've still got yarn left. I'm getting bored of hats now. I make baby mitts, still got yarn left. Back to the weighing scales and there's still enough to make another hat, I make another even larger hat. I've still got yarn left. I make another pair of baby mittens. Finally the ball of yarn has about come to the end there is still some left, but if I try to make anything else I am going to have to start another ball and I'll be back where I started! So I've given it to the local school for the children to make something!

This has been going on intermittently throughout this year, in the previous two posts you can see the cardigan and the first hat.

Here is a picture of all three hats and the two pairs of mittens.

I've had enough knitting now for a while....

Knitted Baby Beanie Hat

I've finished another project, one I started in April, I'm good at starting things! Its a beanie hat for a premature baby, I didn't want to make anything too big in case I ran out of wool again and the object of this exercise is to use up some of my stash.

This was using up the wool left over from the white baby cardigan. But there is still lots left so I'm probably going to have to make another!

I just weighed the hat and the remaining wool and there is more than enough for another hat, I think I'll make a larger one next time.

The Year of UFO?

In an attempt to get some discipline into my quilting/sewing/knitting, life I have begun to document all my UFO's/WIP's/PHD's (for the uninitiated that's - unfinished objects, works in progress or projects half done). As very few of mine are WIP's and even fewer are PHD's I think I'll stick with UFO's!

The list appears to be endless, each time I think I'm there I find another. So in the interests of keeping my stress and also my blood pressure at manageable levels, I just take deep breath and add to the list when each new one pops up.

The endlessness of the list is not helped as I keep getting sucked into yet more and more new projects when at the shop!

Now for my first finish I give you the baby cardigan in white:

This was a PHD as all it required was sewing up, I soooo dislike sewing up knitted garments.

I began knitting the cardigan to use up a ball of yarn left over from another project, but there wasn't enough yarn to finish it so I had to get another ball.

Now that I've finished the cardi there is still loads of yarn left.... so I'm going to knit a baby hat, I figure it won't take the whole ball, but at least I won't have to buy another one, hopefully. I'll make the smallest size!

Melting in Milnthorpe & Christmas in July

Wow but its hot. This is England, how can it be 22 degrees at 8 o'clock in the morning?

It seems I've got to an age where I'd rather be inside sewing in weather like this.... what happened Enough about the weather, on to sewing..

At the shop we've taken delivery of Christmas. So I'm now busy making up advent calendars, Christmas stockings and such like.

Starting with the Advent Stockings from Makower UK.

Here's one I finished, just 23 more to go.....

First day of spring

According to google today is the first day of spring... I guess that explains the rain then!

Feeling miffed, I pegged the washing out and missed the start of the rain so the washing is now as wet as when I pegged it out!

Rain on the window

A forlorn daffodil in the garden.

On the positive side there will be no garden guilt as I spend the afternoon sewing!

Electrical Appliances and Christmas

Hope you had a great Christmas. We had a good one just a few family and pretty much chilled.

Can't say that for our electrical appliances though, a week before the big day my washer died. My sister has one in storage so I was able to borrow that for over the festive period, thanks Liz. I am hopeful that mine is fixable and will ring an engineer tomorrow....

The dryer is making a rather strange noise too, I will have to get the engineer to look at that whilst he is here.

My sewing studio is a bit of a disaster zone, I've been ripping jeans apart with gay abandon for a quilt for my nephew for Christmas. There are threads all over the carpet and the bits I didn't use are strewn around the room. Our house guest is out today, I'm not at work and actually have some spare time, so thought I'd begin my next project. But I wanted to have a little clean before I began in earnest, or at least get the threads off the carpet. The vacuum cleaner took one look at the job I had lined up for it and promptly died. So now I've got to get that fixed too grrrrh

Just a tiny area of the carpet waiting for a good clean.

What is it with electrical appliances at Christmas? In the past our fridge decided to die on Christmas Eve, I'm pretty sure the dishwasher died at Christmas too.

I should just get on with the next sewing project.....

A Recent Finish

I've not done a lot of sewing this year as my sewing studio has been in uproar for a good part of it. We've had the decorators in and a new carpet has been fitted which meant getting everything out. I now have the unenviable task of finding homes for much of my equipment. The shelving arrangement I had before just wasn't working so I'm now trying to establish something better. My stuff is lodged around the rest of the house, whilst I make some decisions, which isn't ideal but I want it to be right when we've finished!

In the meantime I've been busy sewing Christmas projects for the shop:

This is a great new Christmas stocking from Makower, featuring Santa on one side and snowmen on the other. Pictured here as a work in progress all ready for quilting and the finished article.

I made the stocking double sided but it could easily be made into two stockings by using a plain back.

You cannot see here but I quilted it using a metallic thread from Gutermann, so it's all glittery.

Goslings Two Weeks on...

What a difference 2 weeks make in the life of goslings, or rather guslings as they are known here, due to the fact they are most often seen eating ;-)

 Captured here in a rare moment giving their jaws a rest, enjoying yesterday's sunshine.

Return of the Bees

It was a better day for bees today, thankfully there were a few more than yesterday but not as many as there ought to bee (sorry couldn't resist that one ;-) )

 Three busy bees hopefully this means we will get some apples in the autumn.