Donation top

Do you remember seeing this photo with these blocks?  

Well, this is what has been done so far with them.  The block size went from 6-1/2" unfinished to 9" unfinished with the addition of triangles on the sides.  Applique is being added to the blue squares.  They just didn't look right without the applique.

Hopefully, this will be a finished top by the end of this week and I can add one donation top done this month for the Chookshed Stitchers Challenge.

Cherish your day, cherish your life!

Log Cabin Chevron

 This was my December binding challenge and I'm so happy to have this quilt done!  

Here is the quilt taken at a different angle.

Quilt Details:

This quilt was started in a class by Heather Stewart.  Of course, I did a twist with the addition of the applique and I'm so much happier that it came out this way.

Started:  October 2012

Top Finished:  October 2023

Quilt Finished:  December 2023

Quilt Size:  66" x 77" (top size before quilting, washing & drying:  67-1/4" x 77-1/2")

Batting:  Hobbs poly batting

Machine quilted by:  Kathy Wareham

This quilt will look lovely hanging alongside my other spring quilts.

Now, I did take another class with Heather Stewart and this was the quilt that was finished back in 2018.  Angles and Squares.  Heather asked us to be creative in making up our top (she just taught us the block) and this is what I came up with.  Of course, my favourite stars made an entrance and viola!

There, all the quilts are now made from the classes that Heather taught.

Cherish your day, cherish your life!

Challenge Update

 Here we are at the end of the second week of January and how am I doing with this challenge?

Borders got added to this Xmas top.

Here are photos of some of the fabrics used.  

Hanging sleeves got added to this quilt!  The red/blue is a very old quilt, but never had a hanging sleeve.  Now it has and is hanging up instead of being draped over a railing.

Here is the quilt hanging up with all my other red/white/blue quilts.  My hubby loves this quilt.  He sees exploding stars every time he looks at it.

My "Pyramids" quilt has the sleeve and is rolled up and stored away until the summer.  This quilt didn't have a label and I had to do a bit of searching for the information and once found, the information was written directly onto the backing.  Done and done!

This is my January binding challenge quilt.  More photos and a post to come next month.

My Log Cabin quilt.  I do have to do a post about this quilt as it was my December binding challenge.

This is my snowball quilt made a couple of years ago.

Oh look .... this quilt still has the felt tabs pinned onto the backing ready for hanging.  This has now been fixed!

Here are five of those quilts now ready for storing away.  You can see my Pyramids quilt all rolled up.  It is lying on top of the quilts and that is how all of the other quilts will be stored away.  

  

In total, six quilts got their hanging sleeves added.  A lot of stitching has been done!  Month of January is going good so far on the quilting front!

We got a dump of snow .... six inches and then another four inches ..... and hubby and I were busy shovelling ..... and it is snowing again.

Linking up to Dreamworthy quilts and the challenge.

Cherish your day, cherish your life!

#6 for the Challenge

The Chookshed Stitchers Challenge is off to a good start.  Well, for me anyway!

#6 was pulled for January.

Now, I could choose what I like and have chosen to work on a donation quilt.  There will be a drop-off date in May and this is a good start.  I would like to have two to donate, but if only one gets done, I'm good with that.  These blocks don't look like much, but they will make up a lap size quilt.  You will just have to wait and see!  LOL

Next, some frankenpiecing of batting pieces for future NICU baby blankets.  One got done so far and yes, it looks wonky on the left hand side .... it just needs to be trimmed to 24" x 24".

Then, this quilt is to have a hanging sleeve added.

Then for my January binding challenge, this quilt is it!  No blog-Mary has opted to finish knitting a sweater that she started in December.  The repeat row is quite nice to do and she has made great progress so far.  A new sweater for our winter will be welcome.  She did send a photo, but it was hard to see the sweater.

Lastly, I would like to finish adding borders to this Xmas top.

So, that will be my month challenges and they will help to keep me busy.

I did complete my December binding challenge and photos and a post to follow soonish.

Soup is simmering on the stove and it is snowing outside.  Has our winter finally arrived and is it here to stay for the next 3-4 months?

Cherish your day, cherish your life!

Up for a Challenge

First off .... this is where I spent my Xmas holidays ..... sick with a cold and sleeping in this chair.  Xmas Eve, my sister picked up fruit from me and made the fruit salad for the morning festivities.  I was supposed to make it, but was in no condition to do the work.  Then, Xmas morning she picked up all of our gifts for the family and later dropped off hubby's and my gifts to us.  A niece sent us videos, so we were able to see some of what went on.  I'm feeling much better now, but still coughing and nose blowing.

 Well ..... I usually don't participate in challenges, but felt with a bit of thought, I would keep up the challenge for the next 10 months.

Lately, I have found that about 5-6 UFO's get completed each year ..... along with some new starts.  

Overall, my UFO list is going down, just not as quickly as hoped for.

Now, for the challenge, this is what I've signed up for:

If you blog and want to join in, then contact Deanna at this link:  https://dreamworthyquilts.blogspot.com/2023/12/chookshed-stitchers-2024-challenge.html  The challenge runs from January to October 2024.

Now for the challenge .... what has been chosen?  Anyone knowing me, knows that I always do things differently.  If I don't then I simply lose interest and that would be unfortunate.

So, without further ado, this is what I'm going to work on.  These UFO's involve a lot of hand work and if I can work on them for more than one month ..... the better to get them finished!

#1- Just Leafing Around

#3 - Almost Amish

#5 - Star

#7 -  Got Circles

#9 -Rail Fence Delight

What about #2, #4, #6, #8 and #10?  The challenge does run for 10 months!!  Here is the twist.   The UFO's shown above will take more than one month to complete.  I just don't want to work on them for a month and then bin them up again for the next month's number.  I want to finish them to top stage.  So, for the even number months, this is what will be worked on with the possibility of still working on one of the above UFO's.

No numbers are being assigned, just listed and depending on the month, something will be chosen and it will be talked about then.

NICU baby blankets

gift or donation quilts

adult bibs

adding hanging sleeves onto quilts

frankenpiecing batting

QAYG Log Cabin

Why am I not putting a number to any of these?  For donation quilts, there are two drop off dates and I want to be able to meet each of those dates and thus pick up those projects suddenly.  

Will I be at the cottage or at home?  No electricity at the cottage but hand work can be done there instead.  In the odd numbers and even numbers, there are hand work projects, so I'm covered for both.

For frankenpiecing batting ..... there are bins and bins and bins still remaining even though a wee dent has been made this year:

Once I get some of the pieces sewn together, they can be used for the NICU baby blankets and also for my QAYG Log Cabin or for one of the donation quilts.  See, thinking ahead!

For adding hangings sleeves onto quilts ..... well, in this pile there are eight quilts and that should keep me busy for a while.  I keep procrastinating doing this job and need a push.

In this bowl are felt tabs that get pinned onto the back of a quilt and then hung up for display.  This work is tedious and once the hanging sleeve is added, then this work gets eliminated.  Not to mention all the pin pricks that happen during the process of pinning, hanging up and then unpinning.

So, that is my wish list to work on for the year.  I will be quite happy to achieve most of them.  My choices will give me the flexibility to work on and finish some projects.

In closing, this is a project that was started at the beginning of this month.  It just needs borders and it would be most welcome to finish before year end.

So, that is where I'm at ..... can't believe another year has flown by.  I always like to have a clean house and freshly made beds for the new year ..... so, must get busy and do a bit here and there.

Bring on 2024!  Do you think we can have some peace in this world for all?

Cherish your day, cherish your life!

Collection for a Cause - Friendship

I've been working on this UFO whenever I had a moment to just sit and sew.  Slowly, but surely, it is starting to come together.

Cornerstone fabric was selected, but it needed something.

Circles in the cornerstones!  Yes, that did the trick and so I started to applique the circles onto the fabric.

You can see that I did a mish mash of sashings and I love the look!

My original plan was to use white in the side setting triangles, but found this red printed fabric that suited better.  Major problem .... the beige cornerstones looked blah against the printed fabric.  So, all the cornerstones were pulled .... any circles that were appliqued were ripped out and white fabric was used instead of the beige.  Much, much better.  The fabric looks pink, but is a red print.

I'm pretty close to finishing the center of this top.  Just one more section needs to be sewn onto the top and bottom sections and then borders can be added and I will be happy to call this UFO done.

The stars aligned in my favour this week and ..... viola ..... we have a completed top!  Backing is ready.  Just need batting and I will probably be using scraps that will get frankenpieced.  This UFO is done.

Binding was sewn onto my log cabin quilt.

Sewing down the binding happened and before I knew it, 1-1/2 sides were done.  I'll putter away at the remaining sides and finish it before year end.

I've been noticing that my hubby has been having difficulty eating his dinner.  We like to watch recorded t.v. programs and sit in our comfy chairs while eating.  So, I got handy in the garage and made him a tray that would sit onto the arms of his chair and sit higher so that he can eat better.  His food now doesn't end up on the floor from his shaking hands.  I've been doing more and more work that my hubby would normally take on and I'm becoming quite handy with tools ..... which is quite fun to work with!  LOL  When I told my sister what I made, she laughed because she never knows what I will end of making these days.

Yesterday, a friend sent us this photo that she had taken of us just before we moved from Toronto to North Bay.  How much we both have changed in 11 yrs.; especially my hubby.

Life is getting busy right now.  I'll be back in the new year with a recap of all that got accomplished this year.

Whatever you celebrate, happy holidays and a Happy New Year.

Cherish your day, cherish your life!

November Binding Challenge

Well, both no-blog Mary and I met our monthly challenge.

Mary hand quilted her small piece and then bound it.  You can see the before and after.

Then, she outdid herself and made a diaper changing pad and bound that one too!  Bravo Mary!

For me, both these quilts were done and donated.  These were shown in this November 6th post with more details.

Life is busy for both of us right now and we may just skip the December challenge.  If by chance, I do find time, then this is the quilt that I will bind.

Cherish your day, cherish your life!