Stash Report and Design Wall

Used since last report:         2.00 yards
Used year to Date:            13.50 yards

Added since last report:     4.00 yards
Added Year to Date:           5.50 yards

Net Used for 2013:              8.00 yards

I am a little late for the stash report but my nasty cold has me operating at "turtle speed" - SLOW!! My Hubby very generously shared his cold with me. Since it was also our 45th Anniversary on Sunday, it was a bit of a bummer that neither of us felt like going out for dinner.  

Usually I do not like to sew anything when I am feeling under the weather, because if it can be screwed up -- I can screw it up!  ;>D   I did manage to get the borders on Easy Street without any major mishaps. I worked on the borders during Quiltcam on Sunday. 

 A friend of mine likes to put a stripe in the border of all her more contemporary quilts and I liked the look so much, that this was a good opportunity to try the look. I did cut the stripe on the bias, so had to be very careful handling the strips. The purple was cut on the lengthwise grain (parallel to the selvage), so there would be no stretch and it would stabilize the bias strips. The border is also mitered to take full advantage of the stripe looking like it is turning the corner. The stripe fabric was even in my stash. I only had to buy the purple and bought enough to use for the binding as well. I really like how it turned out.

I decided to participate in the RSC13 this year and will use the "Basketweave star by The ADD Crafter" for my rainbow blocks (http://www.add-crafter.com/).  I intend to only do one point per month. By the end of the year I should have three complete blocks and can work it into either a table runner or small wall hanging. The points are paper pieced and the background will be a variety of white on black. The color for January is hot pink. Well -- I found out I do not have very much hot pink in the stash or scraps. Guess we will have to do something about that!!!

Last Monday, it was Sew-Sew Monday at a local quilt shop. We didn't have a very big turn out, as it was 15 degrees F. below zero here in Minnesota.  (We have gotten "wimpy" over the last four years.) LOL There is even one knitter that attended. The quilts hanging on the walls are always such welcome eye candy.

While pressing the Blue Ridge Beauty blocks I am working on, I had the opportunity to try out the "Mighty Travel Iron" by Dritz. It is more then cute!! It gets nice and hot and did a nice job of pressing my blocks. Water can be used in it but I used just a dry iron. Of course, I had to buy one of those little cuties. It doesn't count as an addition to the stash!!!  

Wednesday morning I am heading up to Fargo, ND, to house/dog sit for my daughter and her husband. So I am currently deciding what projects to work on while I am up there. Just think - my own private retreat. I plan to take some string quilt projects along, would like to start "Talking Turkey" from Bonnie Hunters "String Fling."  May also take Blue Ridge Beauty along.

Check out Judy's Patchwork Times to see how others are doing:

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/01/27/stash-report-week-4-2013/

and

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/01/28/design-wall-january-28-2013/

Also, check out Scraphappy:

http://superscrappy.blogspot.com/2013/01/scraphappy-saturday-pink-roses-for-hope.html

Beth

Sunday Stash Report

Used since last report:       11.00 yards
Used year to Date:             11.50 yards

Added since last report:      0.00 yards
Added Year to Date:           1.50 yards

Net Used for 2013:             10.00 yards

Wow, I am in the Black----  ;>) I have decided to count the center of Easy Street, since it is completed and I have not decided on the border treatment yet. Will need to go shopping for a purple because I do not have enough of the purple fabric that I used in the pictures. I have a couple of options for a possible border treatment but not positive yet which I will use. Leaning towards the top option. The stripe will be cut on the bias which is a much more interesting treatment than if it was cut on the crosswise grain. All depends on the fabric I find for the main border. May decide to do a pieced border. Shopping is of course such a hardship!!!! LOL 

This week I spent time with Marilyn Bujalski, a fellow guild member.  Marilyn is in charge of our guild web page for St. Cloud Heritage Quilters, http://stcloudheritagequilters.com/. I am in training and will take over the web page in 2014. It is a fun way to learn my way around Wordpress. We learned so much and accomplished so much in one afternoon. She showed me around her studio (which was just tooooo neat for words). After our getting together, she is now enthused about doing more on her blog. Hope she does.

Marilyn makes fabulous quilts using one inch squares and counted cross stitch designs. See the following link for an article about her: http://www.thequiltermag.com/features/158/MarilynBujalski.shtml  She is in the process of writing a book showing her process for making the quilts. 

I am so slow about adding the last border to my Dotty Dresden Plate quilt. Was hoping to count the yardage for this weeks stash report.  I have been asked to teach a class and while I know how I am going to do the border, not sure how I am going to write good clear instructions for inserting the plates around the corner. Still thinking ---  (that can be dangerous)   ;>) 

Check out Judy's Patchwork Times to see how others are doing:

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/01/20/stash-report-week-3-2013/

Beth

Sunday Stash Report - 1/13/13

Used since last report:        0.50 yards
Used year to Date:             0.50 yards

Added since last report:    0.00 yards
Added Year to Date:         1.50 yards

Net Used for 2013:            -1.00 yards

I was hoping to report more fabric usage, but ----  VBG   For the last two days, I have worked on Easy Street. All the blocks are pieced and I have started putting the top together. This has been a fun quilt, and I love the colors. I don't have a border fabric yet.  Guess I need to go "shopping."  LOL  Hopefully I will be able to finish piecing the top today.

Our Featherweight Group meets on the second Thursday of each month.  So on Wednesday evening I decided to take Christine, my little white (celery green) Featherweight, out of her case and try her out. I absolutely love this little machine and I was so bummed when I received her and she didn't work like she was suppose to. I would sew for a while and then the belt would start slipping and the motor would get hot. She sat in the case for two years.  After I took her out of the case, I oiled & cleaned her, lubed the motor and then powered her up and practiced sewing on it. She sewed like a dream. I ran her at slow speeds and fast speeds and did this for an extensive period of time. Christine did not miss a beat. She has been behaving beautifully ever since. Who can figure??? Do you suppose she got over her "hissy" fit after sitting, ignored for two years? So on Thursday, she was able to go to Featherweight Group with me.

At the FW meeting Sarah, one of the members, demonstrated folding paper to make a pattern for fabric boxes. The paper box provides a pattern for making the fabric boxes. So, when I got home I just had to make a fabric box. Still need to make a bow for the top, but the boxes turn out very cute. What a fun way to present small gifts. I found this link which uses the same folding technique shown to us on Thursday:  http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/2011/01/fabric-origami-box-tutorial.html

Couldn't bowl on Tuesday because I had a disagreement with the coffee table and the coffee table won. I stubbed my foot and have not been able to wear my regular shoes. It is slowly getting better (at least it did not interfere with sewing), but my foot was too sore to be able to wear my bowling shoes. Course, my blind score may have been better then my regular score would have been --  Point is, don't argue with the furniture by kicking it. You will not win!!!

Talked to my daughter, Natalie, this morning and she asked if I would like my own private retreat for a few days to  house & dog sit. Of course, I did not turn that down. I have gone up to Fargo ND the last two January's and done this for her and her hubby. My Hubby is welcome to come with but he prefers to stay home. Hummmm, what kind of mischief may he be brewing??? LOL

Check out Judy's Patchwork Times to see how others are doing:

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/01/13/stash-report-week-2-2013/

Beth

"15 Minutes of Play" Book

Almost forgot to report this:

On Christmas Eve day, the FedEx truck pulled into the yard. Hum, I couldn't remember ordering anything more for Christmas presents and I didn't think we were receiving anything else from anyone. So my curiosity was in full gear, wondering what the delivery man had for us.

Well, what do you know, it was the book  "15 Minutes of Play" by Victoria Findlay Wolfe that I won on the blog hop. Couldn't believe that it was actually delivered on Christmas Eve day. That was almost the best Christmas present (not quite). I spent the next hour or so looking over the book. I even shared and let my daughter, Brenda, look it over. (Guess I was in the Christmas sharing mood!!!)

What fun ideas in this book. Thank you Victoria!!

Beth

Design Wall Monday

I sewed most of Sunday on Easy Street. All of Part 7 (pieced setting triangles) is complete. On Part 8, I have three of Block A completed and about half of Block B completed. I love this quilt and think it will make a great graduation gift for my Granddaughter. Since it is two years before her graduation, that gives me plenty of time to machine quilt it after the top is completed. Sometimes I am very slow at getting quilts on the frame and quilted. Also, I do not have border fabric yet that I am completely satisfied with. In a pinch, I do have a Kaffe Fassett fabric that might work, but to me the fabric does not speak young lady!

I started a QOV quilt. It will sew up fast, but because I am only using from my stash, I will need to be creative with the borders to get it up to size. Just not enough fabric to make the center as large as I would have liked.

Make sure you hop over to Judy's Patchwork Times and see what others are doing:
http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/01/07/design-wall-monday-january-7-2013/

and to Bonnie's Quiltville's Quips & Snips:
http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2013/01/mystery-monday-link-up-jan-7th.html

Have a fun and fruitful week -

Beth

2013 Stash Report - 1st of the year

Used since last report:        0.00 yards
Used year to Date:             0.00 yards

Added since last report:    1.50 yards
Added Year to Date:         1.50 yards

Net Used for 2012:            -1.50 yards

I ended 2012 in the red and I am starting the year of 2013 out in the red - but the sale was just too hard to resist!! lol  For Easy Street I used mostly from my stash. This of course created a hole in my "paint box" and because I just may need some of the black on white and greens in the future --- I had to do a little restocking. 

Check out Judy's Patchwork Times to see how others are doing:

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/01/06/stash-report-week-1-2013/

Hope everyone had a wonderful New Years!!

Beth