Retreat Season

February starts my retreat season for the year - I have 2 in February, and one in March then will have possibly 3 to 4 more, through the year ending with one in October.  Can you see Me doing my happy dance. 
Okay first things first, lets start with the retreat that is coming up next week.  
So what am I going to work on.  First up:

This pattern - using this fabric 

The print fabric in the center will be the borders. 
I am taking batting, backing and binding.  I would like to complete these, not just get the tops done. (We'll see if I can stay focused) 
Next up - I am taking the next of my Christmas project UFO's

This is the pattern picture - I decided to do in multiple colors.  Here are the blocks I have done.

This one is 1/2 done.

So I prepped the other blocks and cut out all the pieces to to finish the top.

Because this one still has the embroidery of the Santa finished and the words I will only complete as much of the top as I can.

Third project: 

I am taking this kit that I had ready for one of the retreats from last year. It's cut and ready to go. If I get this far it will only be the top also.

Before I go on to my last two projects, I'll share that with my Sister in town, and my friends have convinced her to join us for that retreat. She sews, she doesn't really quilt.  I'm not sure how that will work but thank heavens we have a hotel room that she can go up to and take breaks and read.  I've cut out a quilt for her - I mean I helped her cut out a quilt.  😉 

Using this fabric:

The bottom fabric will be the center strips, in the pattern.  

It's a 4 day retreat and she's only wanting to take the one quilt.  I'd have the top done in 1 day but we'll see.  I've taken back ups for her. And my friend that convinced her to come said she cut out 5 quilt tops similar to this for her.  Funny knowing Cheryl she's not kidding.  
So if for some reason I can complete all of this - ha ha - I am also including 2 scrappy UFO's that I started last year.  This will serve as a two fold effect.  If my sister doesn't drag hers out and does complete the top, she can sew the squares together on either of these.

The above needs the sashing sewn on and blocks sewn together. 
The below - I actually started and have 3 rows done. There is still more to go. 

As always I take way too much - but I always know that I have more retreats coming up so what doesn't get done, can go to the next. 
And as you know I will let you know how I/we do.
Blessings,
Lynn 

February OMG Goal

January seemed long in some ways but then it's hard to believe that it's already February.  

I did really well with my January OMG Goal so I am going to try and keep the momentum going and shoot for another of my Christmas/Winter projects to get it done. 

I wrote Here about working on Christmas/Winter Projects all year.  

Next up on my list - 

I started this last year at a retreat - Can you see anything wrong with it? 

Yep I got my V's going the wrong way.  Hmm..  I thought at one point that maybe I could just leave it but no. It just doesn't look right. So I switched that around and using wool instead of the fabric in the kit, I have it fused and it's ready for stitching.  

Yep there is another problem - can you see it.  I didn't until I sent a picture to my friend and she pointed it out.  The stars in the black fabric are in rows and the rows are going the wrong way in the center top and center bottom blocks - So yes I will need to fix that too.  Dang.  

Anyway this quilt is my Elm Street OMG (One Monthly Goal) for February. 

 It will need to have the stitching done on the wool applique, then quilted and bound.  That's my plan and goal. To be honest I have already started the hand stitching on the wool and gotten a big part of it done. But it still needs to be finished and then quilted and bound.  And since February is the start of my retreat season, I will have lots of stuff I'll be working this month.  I'll post more about that later. 

Blessings,

Lynn 

a Finishing Meow

One more little finish for the month of January.  Meet my little Kitty Cat. 

I used to belong to a group that exchanged pincushions.  When I was talking about it with a friend she wondered how you could have so many pincushions so I told her that some day I would make her a special one.  Well considering that she likes cats, I made this for her. 

It was a fun day of sewing and playing.

It's a nice finish to the month.

Blessings,  Lynn 

Cottage Quilt

As I've mentioned several times I go and have open sew at a place called the Cottage every Friday.  It is also where one of our guilds meet.  (Stitch N Rippits) Well - let me tell you a little story: About a year ago, one of my friends found a kit for a quilt that included wool applique.  She is not a hand stitcher for the most part but she loved the quilt so got it.  Lo and behold I have that quilt it's a UFO. Pennies from Heaven 

Here are the blocks I have done.

At the time she was still working and couldn't come every Friday but she came to a Friday here and there and once a month on Saturdays. She would work only on that quilt - she called it her "Cottage Quilt".  In about 9 months with very little work at home she finished that quilt top. Of course that gets your mind going and I said that starting with the new year I would bring one of my UFO's make it my Cottage quilt and work on it until it was done.  I thought about doing this one - but I have so many I just wasn't sure which UFO I wanted to do.  Then I came across my Wool Crazy and Wool Ark Crazy quilts.  They won.  Here is the pattern picture of Wool Ark Crazy.

 

Here is my foundation - This is where I started this month.

I was able to finish the crazy stitches between pieces. 

Before I continue with this one, now that I have the crazy stitches between all the pieces, I am going back to the Wool crazy and finish it up. 

Here is what I have so far - 

When I started this years ago, I did the crazy stitches as I did the applique.  I now want to go back and do all the crazy stitches between pieces and then will finish up the applique.  Some of the applique is fused but needs to be stitched down.  The snowman, the sheep, the hand and the squirrel need to be stitched and have the added detail put in. 

So these are my Cottage Quilts.  I will work on them until they are done - Then tackle my next UFO /  Cottage Quilt. 

Blessings,  Lynn 

Guild Projects

This year for the large guild our intra guild projects are somewhat focused on small charity projects.  Things we can make and give to Senior Centers, Hospitals, Veteran Homes and the homeless.  In for this month we made some more of the homeless totes.  These have a terry cloth towel and fabric and has little pockets to hold soap, shampoo toothbrush and toothpaste.  When the stuff is out of it, it can double for a wash cloth.  

Since my Sister is here and I signed her up for this guild :)  we each made two.  

That was our January project.

For February to be turned in at our February meeting - our project is an Easter Pillow.  I can't remember if they are going to the Alzheimer care facility or the senior assisted living facility.  Regardless here is my pillow.  

Then for the other guild SNR  we do the same thing but we call it our charity projects.  So for January we made "Chemo Port Pillows".  They are little pillows that cancer patients can attach to their seat belt so it doesn't press into the port and hurt.  On the charity sew day I set up the machine for my Sister. One lady cut the fabric pieces, I cut the velcro and pinned in place. She sewed the pillows I trimmed and turned them, another lady stuffed them and someone else sewed the opening closed.  Sis and I got 20+ sewn together.  That day from all of us we made over 50 and as of now I think we have close to 80.  I forgot to get a picture of ours but this is what they look like.  

Next - we like to put labels on the quilts we donate and the lady that owns the Cottage where we sew is the one that usually makes all of them.  So I have started helping her with them I made a dozen or so a while back, those are gone and she's made more in between. So I told her I'd make some more.  Here's another 14. 

The last thing is the workshop that we had at SNR it was a Valentines wall hanging. 

Well - That pretty well sums up the small projects I did this month between the two guilds.

Blessings,  Lynn 

January OMG

I like it when I can start the year with a finish.  Let's keep this momentum rolling.  Yay!
My "One Monthly Goal"  was Let it Snow that was a free block of the month from Buttermilk Basin in 2016.  So yes my finish is also getting a UFO off the list too.  Whoot Whoot.  

I had a lot of fun with this and not sure if I'm keeping or giving away - but it's finished.  
I will be linking this up to One Monthly Goal over at Elm Street Quilts. 

Thanks for stopping by,
Blessings - Lynn 

Happy Scraps

I was going scrap happy strong for a while, now it's in a lull.  I'm new to this scrap happiness so now after playing with is for a month I am re-thinking my approach or should I say end result.  I made 3 different blocks but am now wondering what I want to do with them.  

I made more of each of these and have 10 of each block.  

Then I was able to get some of the HST into this herringbone pattern.

So now I'm not sure if I want to make some rows in other colors or if I want to make some borders.  Like I said I need to re-think how I want to do these scraps so that I can have an end result.  At this point they feel like they're just there.  So I think I will make some of each of these in some of the other colors and put them together.  Then I'm thinking I will choose one pattern per color until I have enough for a top then go to the next pattern.  It's still a work in progress in my brain.  I guess you'll have to come back to see what I figure out along the way.  

I also did a bunch of 2 1/2" squares and using them for starters and enders and they are being sewn into 4 patches. 

That's it for my light blue scraps this month.  I'm sure they will show up with other colors around them at a later date.  For now I'm linking up to RSC2018.

Have a Blessed Day!

Lynn 

Scraps Away!

Well I've been doing pretty good on my want to's for this month.  I am working on my Christmas projects that I want to do all year and I'm almost done with project number one.  Yay! I've started quilting it, I'll show it soon.
The other thing I am working on all year is reducing my scraps.  I'm not a huge scrap quilt person - but I'm trying to embrace them in a controlled way.  I usually keep all my left over pieces because I do a lot of applique - however it's getting overwhelming and on my nerves and I need to downsize them.  I'm doing this with a little help from the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 18 over at Soscrappy. Each month she posts a color and then on Saturdays you can link up and show what you're creating.  Yay! This month's color is light to medium blue. 
Okay - I cut up a these 

I'm using this diagram as a pattern - 

and making these blocks. 

Then I used my friend's cutting machine and cut  these tumbler blocks - 

I also have these HST and cut more blocks to make more.  

I want to use them to make this pattern: 

I did a little more cutting - I want to do a jig saw puzzle pattern like this -

but in several colors so will wait a few months until I put those blocks together.  
Then I saw this block 

and made some in blue.  Oops Pepe wanted Mama's attention. 

Here we go - 

So I'm getting a good start on my scraps for the month.  And now I'm going to link up to: 

Thanks for stopping by - Now go back and check out some of the other scrap challenges.  Scrap Sat #2.

Blessings,  Lynn 

Hello January

Well I hate to admit it but time does fly by doesn't it. 
January is here - Wow!  But of course I did know it was coming it wasn't a surprise. Our New Year Eve was not the event we had planned.  There is a Cold and Flu that has hit our area and is kicking a lot of hiney's around here which included my hubby's - starting on New Years eve.  The hospital is full and even sending people with Pneumonia home. So, we've been laying low and I've been doing some hand stitching.
I think I posted in my last post ... Yep just checked, that I wanted to work on Christmas and Winter projects most of the year because a couple of months before Christmas each year is not enough time to get all these cute Santa's and Snowmen finished.  Sew - with that in mind, my first UFO and project for the month and year is this one - Let it Snow.  This was a BOM from Buttermilk Basin in 2016 I believe and I want to finish it up.  

I need to finish the hand stitching of the two blocks on the right side and then add my borders and quilt. 

I will also be linking this up to OMG at Elm Street Quilts. 

I am also working at down sizing my scrap stash - so I am cutting up scraps. For my organization I chose 5 patterns that I want to use and I'm putting them into piles accordingly.  I am also using the random monthly color suggestions from Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  Each month she gives a color and a link up.  This month is light blue.  I'll post a little more about that later.  

Hope you have a Blessed day filled with lots of sewing.

Lynn