Make-A-List Monday

Make-A-List Monday

The Week of November 12, 2012

(in review)

1.  Pick up my "new-to-me" featherweight from the sewing machine spa.

My pretty little Singer Featherweight came home shiny clean and purring like a kitten.  I've been searching for the perfect name for her and at last it came to me.  I will name her Bonnie, after Bonnie Hunter, Quilter Extraordinaire.

2.  Finish quilting the quilt that is currently on Annie.  

I finished this quilt but I can not post a picture because it is a Christmas present. 

3.  Prepare the backing for my Heather Spence mystery quilt.

I pieced a backing from the leftover top fabric plus a little extra.  It is now ready to join my ever growing stack of quilt tops waiting to be quilted.

4.  Start working on my Christmas Hexagon quilt.

This is the center of my quilt.  I've been trying to find a way to stay motivated on this project as it gets further along.  My goal is to add 5 hexies a day or 35 a week.  At that rate I should be able to finish piecing the top by July 2015. (There are almost 5000 pieces after all!) I did 37 last week so I am ahead of the game.  HAHA!

I know my quilt will not be as spectacular as Bonnie Hunter's of Quiltville.com
but I am so grateful for her inspiration.

5.  Make the Christmas napkins that I didn't get to last week.

The napkins are done and waiting for the big day.

6.  Ryder Time!  

I thought I was going to spend two days with my sweet Ryder but his grandpa took one of them. He had a blast.  He is still trying to decide on a name for Ryder to call him.  Since my husband has been a coach for the past 35 years I thought "Coach" would be a cute name.  His other grandfather wants to be called Grandpa so I thought it would be good to have a different name.  

7.  Start baking Christmas cookies.  

This week I made oatmeal raisin cookies...

and ginger snaps...

                                                     

I plan on doing a blog post later this week with the recipes for these cookies.

8.  Make my November block for the Quilt Square Quilt Along sponsored by Jo Kramer of Jo's Country Junction.  

9.  Plan the quilt I will make for Quilts for Kids in December.

I didn't get to plan the Quilt for Kids quilt for December yet.

10.  Make the December blocks for PQW Saturday Sampler. 

I didn't get to do these blocks either.

11.  Work on a few blocks from the Just Takes 2 quilt project.  

Nope.  Didn't get this done either.

12.  Catch up on the blocks I am doing for The Village Quilter Building Blocks Block of the Month program.

Here are pictures of all 9 blocks I have completed so far.  There are 12 altogether.  I used Bonnie to piece 6 of them this week.

I had only a so-so week getting to all the things on my list.  With Thanksgiving coming this week, and a full house expected, I probably won't get much done again.

The Week of November 19, 2012

1.  Plan the quilt I will work on in December for Quilts for Kids.

I don't think I can attend Q4K in December because I am scheduled for Ryder Time that day.  But I still want to work on a quilt.

2.  Make the December blocks for PQW Saturday Sampler.

3.  Continue to work on my Christmas Hexie Quilt. 

 I hope to get 35 more hexies done the week.

4.  Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies and Snickerdoodles.

5.  Celebrate Thanksgiving with my wonderful children and my in-laws. 

 My DMIL always cooks a scrumptious meal.  I can't wait!

6.  Attend Strip Club at The Village Quilter.

7.  Do all my Christmas decorating.  

8.  Finish the quilting on my 1930's Farmer's Wife quilt currently on Annie.

I'm doing a Baptist Fan pattern on this quilt.

9.  Start working on the new Bonnie Hunter mystery, Easy Street, which begins on Friday.  

Sooooo excited for the first clue which will be released the day after Thanksgiving.

I think I will stop there.  I don't want to over plan with the holiday later in the week.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Make-A-List Monday

Make-A-List Monday

The Week of November 5, 2012

(in review)

1.  Complete the folded fabric table mat I started at The Village Quilter. 

  

I learned a lot making this folded table mat.  I made a few mistakes as you can probably see when you look at the picture.  I want to make another one soon while the process is still fresh in my mind.  It is supposed to be bigger than this but because of a few mistakes I had to cut it down.  It is not lopsided even though it looks that way in the picture.  (well, maybe a little ;D)

2.  Finish quilting the top that is currently on Annie.  

I made another School of Fish quilt with the leftover fabric from Ryder's quilt.  It is basically the same but with a different inner and outer border.

3.  Continue Working on the Heather Spence Mystery Quilt.

 We received the final clue on Friday.  I was able to finish piecing the top.  I decided to change the pattern a little with Heather's permission.  

This is the original pattern made by Libby Duncan.  Although beautiful, I just wanted to try something a little different.  I hope to make another quilt in the near future with this original pattern.

It is hard to believe that these two quilts were made with the exact same blocks...just turned a different way.

4.  Finish choosing and preparing fabric for my Christmas Hexagon Quilt.

Here are all my 2" squares ready to be English Paper-Pieced into my Hexagon quilt.  There are almost 5000 of them!

As mentioned in an earlier post dated October 22, 2012, my Christmas Hexagon quilt is from a pattern by Bonnie K. Hunter.  Bonnie's Hexagon Medallion quilt was started in 1999 when her grandmother was ill and she needed a "carry-along" project when traveling from Idaho to Arizona.

Bonnie has given the following permission to use her patterns on her website Quiltville.com:

"*Note* You may print the patterns from this website for your own use! Feel free to share them with your friends. I encourage you to use the patterns to teach a class, make quilts to sell, to donate to charity and exhibit in your guild quilt shows! However, just because the patterns here are free for your use, does not mean you can use them with the intent to sell the patterns themselves. Please respect copyright policy and keep the pieceful spirit of quilting alive and well!"

Bonnie is so giving and kind to share so many of her patterns with her fellow quilters.  She has even been helpful to me in answering some of my questions as I attempt to replicate this gorgeous pattern.

I will continue to post my progress as I work through this project.

5.  Continue to work on the pieced border for the 2011 NJ Shop Hop quilt as a Leader/Ender project.

My pieced border will have 48 five-inch finished pinwheels.  Here are a few of them.  They will be made with similar colors in the quilt.

6.  Continue to gather fabric for the new Quiltville mystery quilt called Easy Street by Bonnie K. Hunter.

I have gathered all the fabric I will need for Bonnie's new mystery.  The first clue will be released on Friday, November 23, 2012.  

I had plenty of lime green and purple.  I only had a little turquoise and black on white.  I had to purchase more of each of those colors and some gray.

7.  Make labels for 6 quilts that are in need.

Making labels is not one of my favorite things to do but I am happy to report that these 6 labels are done.

8.  Make some Christmas napkins. 

Unfortunately I ran out of time for this project but I should be able to get to it this week.  The fabric has been pre-washed and it is ready to go.  I just need to cut out the squares and sew them together.

9.  Attend Quilts for Kids at PQW.  

I finished the Christmas quilt but did not turn it in since I still needed to wash it.

I used a Dr. Seuss How the Grinch Stole Christmas fabric for the backing.

10..Attend Saturday Sampler at PQW.  Saturday Sampler class at PQW is offered on Thursday afternoon/evening or all day Friday or Saturday.  I usually attend on Friday morning.  This past Friday we were scheduled for a refrigerator repair.  Because of this, I attended the Thursday 4PM class.  Before class I stumbled upon the The Tomato Factory Antiques in Hopewell, NJ.

As I was browsing the store I stumbled upon a Featherweight sewing machine.  

It was manufactured on February 27, 1956.  I have wanted one for a long time and I couldn't believe my fortune in finding one in such good shape at such a reasonable price.  This is a picture of one made at the same time as the one I purchased.  Mine is in equally good condition.  I brought her home and did a little cleaning but she didn't need much.  Her original case did not even have an odor which is typical of featherweights.

On Saturday I dropped her at the sewing machine spa (AKA - Pennington Quilt Works).  She will be ready for me to pick her up on Wednesday.  She will be freshly oiled and lubricated with a new belt and tension adjusted.  She is definitely well rested as her previous owner, Simone Raymond, said she had not sewn on her in 30 years.  

I can't wait to bring her home.  I will post a picture next week.  Now to think of a name.....

11.  RYDER TIME!!!

12.  Attend my friend's surprise 50th birthday party.

The party was so much fun and I think Bob was truly surprised.  The party had a tailgating theme and the decorations and food were amazing.

Happy Birthday, Bob!

The Week of November 12, 2012

1.  Pick up my "new-to-me" featherweight from the sewing machine spa.

2.  Finish quilting the quilt that is currently on Annie.  I have a quilt that will be a Christmas present on Annie now.  

3.  Prepare the backing for my Heather Spence mystery quilt.

4.  Start working on my Christmas Hexagon quilt.

5.  Make the Christmas napkins that I didn't get to last week.

6.  Ryder Time!  I get to see Ryder two days this week.  Lucky me!

7.  Start baking Christmas cookies.  I always bake my cookies ahead and freeze them.  It makes the week before the holiday a little less hectic.  

8.  Make my November block for the Quilt Square Quilt Along sponsored by Jo Kramer of Jo's Country Junction.  

9.  Plan the quilt I will make for Quilts for Kids in December.

10.  Make the December block for PQW Saturday Sampler. 

11.  Work on a few blocks from the Just Takes 2 quilt project.  I haven't worked on this for a while so it will be great to get a few more blocks done.

12.  Catch up on the blocks I am doing for The Village Quilter Building Blocks Block of the Month program.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Make-A-List Monday

Make-A-List Monday

This has been an incredible week for everyone living in the New Jersey/New York area.  Our states, along with many others, have suffered through the devastation of Hurricane Sandy.  

The loss of lives and property has been immense.  We were extremely fortunate.  We only lost a lot of tree branches.  Many people in our town have been without electricity for over a week because the high winds knocked down trees and power lines.  They have taken refuge at friends, neighbors, local houses of worship and government buildings.  

My DS, Kyle, and his family sought refuge with us for a few days while he waited for the electricity to be returned to his house.  

We were able to spend Halloween with them even though celebration of the holiday was canceled throughout the state.

Happily his power was restored on Friday so they were able to return home.  I was thrilled for them but my arms are so empty.

Today my prayers turn toward our neighbors who will survey the damage at their vacation home on LBI for the first time.  They know the house is still standing but the extent of water and sand damage is still a mystery.  I pray that the damage is minimal and that they will be able to enjoy their beautiful beach house again soon.

Now on to my list......

The Week of October 29, 2012

(in review)

1.  Spend Halloween with Ryder. I had a wonderful time with Ryder on Halloween.  It didn't exactly happen the way I thought it would but it was special just the same.  

2.  Work on the PQW Saturday Sampler block for November.

Class is this coming weekend.  My blocks are done and I am ready for the next pattern.

3.  Attend class at The Village Quilter to make a Christmas Stocking for Ryder.

Class was canceled because of the Hurricane.  Hopefully it will be rescheduled for a day I am free.  I was able to get all the prep work done so I am ready when they are.

4. Complete the folded fabric table mat I started at The Village Quilter.

All piecing is done.  I just need to finish the binding.  I will post a picture when the binding is done. 

5.  Continue working on the Heather Spence Mystery Quilt.

This is what I have done so far.  I changed the pattern a little bit to one I like a little more.  After rereading the clue we received last Friday, I may have done a little more than I was supposed to do.  I guess I will find out on November 9th if I have to do a little "frog-stitching."

6.  Embroider some more Christmas presents.

I did not get to this again.

7.  Finish designing my Hexagon quilt to be English Paper Pieced.

This is my final design.  Each little colored box will be a 3/4" Hexagon. I started to gather my fabric.

I will have to cut thousands and thousands of 2" squares for this project.  I have decided to do it in greens, reds and creams.  Last Christmas, when I was decorating, I realized that I did not have a Christmas quilt.  This hexagon quilt will be perfect.  I just hope it doesn't take me ten years to complete.

Even with the hurricane and house guests I was able to accomplish a lot last week.  Now, to plan this week.....

Thanks Bonnie Hunter for the inspiration for this hexagon quilt.

The Week of November 5, 2012

1.  Complete the folded fabric table mat I started at The Village Quilter. 

  All that is left is the binding.

2.  Finish quilting the top that is currently on Annie.  When I made the quilt for Ryder that I gave to him for his Christening I had so much left over fabric. Instead of just throwing it back into my stash I decided to make another quilt very similar to the one I gave Ryder.  That is the quilt that is on Annie, now.

I have sooooo many quilt tops that need to be quilted, probably between 15 and 20.  I find that if I get out of the habit of working on my long-arm a little each day I keep putting it off.  Annie is in my unfinished basement and it is a little creepy down there.  If I force myself to go down and start working I really enjoy it and don't want to stop.  

My plan is to try to get at least one quilt top quilted each week.  Then they will be ready for binding.  I also plan to take these quilts that need binding  when I have my Ryder Time.  There is always time to work on them while he is napping.  

3.  Continue Working on the Heather Spence Mystery Quilt.

I will find out Friday if I need to do any "frog stitching."  For those unfamiliar with this informal sewing term, "frog stitching" is when you have to "rip-it, rip-it."  HaHa!

4.  Finish choosing and preparing fabric for my Christmas Hexagon Quilt.

I started doing this already but then I stopped.  Since I am using soooo many red fabrics I was nervous that maybe I should have pre-washed all the fabric. But after practical consideration I have decided to not wash the fabric.  Since I am planning on using so many squares from my 2" drawer, it would be virtually impossible to pre-wash them all without major shrinkage and distortion.  I will just have to use a lot of Shout Color Catchers and a few prayers when I wash it.

5.  Continue to work on the pieced binding for the 2011 NJ Shop Hop quilt as a Leader/Ender project.

This is a partial view of the pieced top.  I am making a pieced pinwheel border which requires a lot of HST.  

6.  Continue to gather fabric for the new Quiltville mystery quilt called Easy Street by Bonnie K. Hunter.

This is what I have gathered so far.  I have plenty of "Limey Apple Green" and Purple.  I still need to find about 2 1/2 yards of Aqua/Turquoise, 1 yard of Black on White and 2 yards of a grey constant fabric.  Bonnie Hunter's quilts are always very scrappy so I hope a find a variety of these fabrics.  The quilt will have so much more texture and depth if I am able to find a great blend of fabrics.  I have until November 23rd to gather my fabric because that is when the mystery begins.  I am soooo excited.  I can't wait!

7.  Make labels for 6 quilts that are in need.

Here are some of the quilts that need labels.  I don't like to share my quilts on "Show & Tell Tuesday" without labels.  These are just a few that need labels.  Once they are done I will be sure to share them.  

8.  Make some Christmas napkins. 

 We always host a large gathering of family and friends for Christmas and I never seem to have enough napkins.   I got these pretty Christmas fabrics last year and now it is time to get busy making the napkins.

9.  Attend Quilts for Kids at PQW.  I am working on a Christmas quilt.  I hope to quilt it on my DSM this week at class.  

10..Attend Saturday Sampler at PQW.  After class I want to go check out Tomato Factory Antiques in Hopewell, NJ.  I am in search of a Featherweight sewing machine or possibly a treadle machine.  I hope to continue my search on this day.

11.  RYDER TIME!!!

12.  Attend my friend's surprise 50th birthday party.

Again...I'm sure I have over-planned but it will be great to see what I can accomplish.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn