December OPAM and a year's recap

December OPAM (One Project a Month) was a good month ..... for me ..... a lot got done.

3 Christmas stockings

2 adult bibs, 1 candy cane ornament, 8 octagon coasters

1 ottoman (first done in 2001 and then refurbished this year to a more modern look). 

5 Chairs with new upholstered seats:

While working on my chairs, I happened to notice Miss Ashes making a swipe at Miss Hank's tail ... it was just too tempting.  A quick hiss from Miss Hank had Ashes backing off in a hurry.

 

So, what quilts did I finish this year? 

 

ZERO

 

NADA

 

NONE

 

ZILTCH

 

Oh dear, so sad.  No quilts finished at all.

 

This is the first year since starting my blog that no quilts have been finished.  Yikes, that had better be switched around for 2014.   So, what in the world did I do in 2013?  Here is a recap of some quilting things. 

 

Four tops did get to the flimsy stage (yay, yay, yay, yay):

Five new projects got started:

The following three projects have never been shown on my blog so far.  Posts in the new year will be coming to explain more.

 

The blocks below belong to my day guild's BOM challenge:

Some UFO's did get worked on, but they are still not to the flimsy stage.  These are the UFO's that are still on the go:

 

After sewing on borders, I stopped short of adding the applique onto the borders:

I'm still switching the white strips to blue strips in the sashings .... there is a lot of ripping out to be done first and I do the sashings in stages and I seem to get bored with it very quickly:

Borders just need to be added:

3/4's of the centre is done..... more pieces were sewn together since this photo was taken.  A lot of prepping has taken place over the past few months and since this has been deemed as my cottage quilt, guess when and where I will be working on this UFO? 

The hand quilting on this quilt is never.... ever ..... ending.  Will it be done by the end of 2014?  That is a challenge that I must set out to accomplish!

Two trunk shows were presented to my quilt guilds:

While not one quilt got finished this year, a lot of other things did get done.  A lot of painting and renovations got done in our home and that is where most of my energy was spent.  By night time, I was just too tired to do much of anything else.  It was easy to catch me napping in my chair with the TV on and some handwork and a cat on my lap.

The OPAM (One Project A Month) that Peg and Kris offer each year has helped me a lot.  I will be joining it again for 2014.  It is a good motivational tool for me and for others around the world.

With my night guild (Northern Lights Quilting Guild), I've taken on the position of producing the monthly newsletter and for my day guild (Near North Quilter's Guild) I'm on the Programme Committee. 

I had better get my butt into gear and finish a few more tops ..... because there are a number of new projects that will get started and there will be a few upcoming posts to show you what is planned for next year!  Plus, our guilds' next quilt show is in 2015 and I must have some hand quilted quilts ready for showing and at the pace that it takes me to finish a quilt, I need all the extra time possible to get ready.  This is a warning to myself to get going!!!!  :o)

You know, looking over my recap, it was a good year after all! 

Happy New Year and all the best for 2014!

I've been busy

Christmas is only a few days away and there still are things for me to do.  Some days, I feel like I'm running around with my head in the clouds.

Nothing can be shown at this time ..... all will be revealed later.

In the meantime, here is what our place looks like decorated with quilts/tops for the holidays. 

These are tops .... waiting to be quilted .... but when?  If they can't get quilted, then they are perfect for display rather than being shoved in a bag in the closet.

On my quilt ladder (way back there in the corner) are two more tops.  Oh dear, I am drowning in tops!

The clock is ticking and I must run!

Have a great day!

Just a scrappy trip

Borders are on my scrappy trip.  I did a demo of the block (using Bonnie Hunter's pattern) to my day guild back in October and I'm happy that it is at this stage.

I'll definitely be doing more of these blocks.  They are just so addictive and so easy to do.

Have a great day!

November OPAM and a prezzie

My November OPAM (One Project A Month) has resulted in 8 adult bibs for a local nursing home, 3 dish cloths and 4 kitchen hand towels.

The prezzie came from Australia.  My name was drawn as one of the winners of either July/August OPAM.  Kris sent the following to me:

 A piece of fabric, embroidery floss and the pattern is her own design:

Thank you, Kris, for drawing my name and I do love all the goodies that you sent to me!

Her little stitchery (way on the bottom) is hanging in place of honour on my international wall of treasures.  I do think those two little hangings need to be moved as they sort of get lost there on the bottom of the wall.

Oh, in case some of you are wondering about your treasures that you have sent to me, they are on display in other areas of my studio:

 The angel on the shelf and the doll beside the quilt:

There are more; but they have been tucked away in my seasonal bins and are displayed during those seasons.

Last month at my day guild, I did a trunk show about all the international exchanges that I participated in and all of your quilts/items were brought in and talked about.  A lot of ears around the world must have been buzzing that day.

Have a great day!