Design Wall Monday - Dec 16, 2013

This has been on my wall for a long time…so long that I can't remember when I started it and when I stopped. Hopefully I will get back to working on it as it is not overly complicated. I love the design and I love the fabrics, it's just that my quilting mojo has disappeared. I'm hoping that by posting I will get motivated to finish it. The pattern is called Hugs & Kisses by Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts and the fabrics are a Kate Spain line. This was supposed to be a baby quilt but it's probably going to end up a toddler quilt the way I'm going!

To see other design walls go over to Judy's blog at Patchwork Times.

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2013/12/16/design-wall-monday-december-16-2013/

On the Needles - August 16, 2013

I haven't been posting my progress all along but here's where I am now. I'm further along than I thought I'd be! I had to put it on the carpet for a photo because there wasn't enough contrast on other surfaces.

I'm on the 7th of 8 wings and then I'll be binding off. I guess I better learn how to do that before I can finish it! I find it interesting that I've come to enjoy knitting. It is rather relaxing, although I have had my moments of frustration. I had to hunt down how to fix dropped stitches on the internet and almost took out a good number of rows because of it. My husband convinced me to leave it as it was but I think I will have go back with a sharpie and touch up some of the color issues I noticed. I suppose that's the danger with the variegated yarns...mistakes show up more.

One thing I've struggled with is my color choice. I was less than halfway through the project before I decided I really didn't like the yarn I chose. I thought about quitting but then realized finishing would be better as I could give it a different home once I'm done and the practice was good for me. I may have to do this pattern again as it was easy to follow and I didn't have to constantly refer to the pattern. When winter comes around I'm thinking I'll like having that yarn scarf around my shoulders and I really like the design. One thing I know is that I will have to go hunt down some yarn stores in my area and find better choices than I was able to find at Joann's. All in all I'm excited to be this far along and find something new that I enjoy!

On the Needles

I have been following Judy over on Patchwork Times for quite awhile. Along with admiring all the quilting, gardening, and chicken raising she does, I've enjoyed seeing the projects she creates with her knitting. I've been inspired by her creations, so much so, that I've taken up knitting!

My mother was a knitter years ago. I would have loved to have her teach me but she now has Alzheimer's and is unable to do so. She and Dad moved into assisted living over a year ago and in going through her things I found a bag of knitting supplies. So about a month ago I pulled out some needles and yarn and took to the internet to learn. I initially found it hard to work with the metal needles so fortunately I found plastic ones in the bag. After playing around with the yarn for awhile I felt like I had the knit stitch down (I still want to go clockwise with the yarn every now and then though) so now I needed a project. I chose one and then went out and bought yarn, needles, markers, a counter, and a gauge...wow! Who knew there were so many gadgets related to knitting too!

So here's my first post for Judy's Friday posts, On the Needles. It's a free download from Ravelry called Wingspan and so far it's not too bad. I did have some issues with the metal needles but I'm getting better with them and working with circular needles is a challenge but I'm working through that. I should have purchased the bamboo circular needles but I didn't want to put a lot of extra money into this new hobby until I know I'm going to keep at it. I know I have some imperfect stitches in there but I don't care. I am enjoying the process and looking forward to seeing how it all comes out. Maybe I'll even have it done by the time winter gets here!

Almost Design Wall Monday

Here's what I'm working on currently. Given I haven't sewn in about 5 months, it's been good to be at the sewing machine. This is a small wall hanging from an older Debbie Mumm booklet. I'm sorry it's a little blurry. I had to take down my design wall since we're trying to sell our house and I used my cell phone to take the picture for expedience. I'll get a better photo when it's finished. When I'm done quilting it I'll be adding some yo-yo flowers and a couple of bee buttons. The binding will be the checked fabric used in the first border.

I love the pattern but it's now associated with good-byes. Since I live in Utah, the Beehive state, this wall hanging has been something I've made for friends who quilt when they move away. This is the sixth one I've made in 5 years so I think this is it. When I moved here 6 years ago I was part of a small quilt group associated with the local Air Force base. I'm the last one of the original group left and the group has petered out so I think it's time to retire the pattern. Working on it has reenergized me so I'm looking forward to the next project.

Another Overdue Finish

I actually finished this quilt back in January (I think) but I'm embarrassed to say I didn't get it mailed out to the recipient until a couple of weeks ago. What's worse is this quilt was started over two years ago! My brother in law and his wife visited us and loved a flannel quilt I had made for my husband. So, flannel it was and then when I saw a quilt along on Melissa's Happy Quilting blog with a pattern I couldn't wait to try, I had to go forward.  I just didn't expect for it to take so long! I had foolishly promised quilts to all my in-laws almost four years ago when they were visiting us when my husband retired from the Air Force. But....I did warn them I would be slow in getting them out. This is the second of five so I still have three more quilts to do!

I did have a few issues when I made this quilt. First of all I decided that if I ever do another flannel quilt it will have fewer pieces. The thickness of the fabric made some of the seams almost unmanageable. Flannel also leaves a lot of lint! I would stop periodically while piecing and quilting and clean it out. Also, while I love this pattern, I didn't know that some of the corners would be cut off and that's how it was supposed to be. I kept thinking I was doing something wrong until I finally went back and read a post and saw that it was fine. I also started putting it together before reading all the directions so I ended up working harder than I would have otherwise. Next time I'll be sure to "read the fine print!"

 I have another quilt finish I'll share next week. It too was finished in January. I'm thinking I need to get back to sewing so I'll have something exciting to talk about rather than finishes I've done in the past few months! Thanks to Richard and Tanya Quilts and their Friday Finishes. I'm thinking if it wasn't for their focus on linking finishes I might not ever get to posting! Thanks for visiting!

Disappearing 9 Patch

I've been lazy getting back to posting. Of course something about making a quick trip out to California to see my parents and then coming back home only to put the house on the market may have something to do with it. 

So, anyway, here is a recent finish that is loooong overdue. My niece had her fourth child last year...ahem....in the summer. My life was chaotic the last half of this past year, but that's another story. Anyway, she had a baby boy and I was really liking the idea of blue, white, and green. I used charm squares cut from my stash (with a few new fat quarter purchases) to create this and I love how it came out!

I'm linking up to Richard and Tanya Quilts. To see other finishes go to Richardquilts.blogspot.com

It's been a long time.

I've been meaning to update the blog. I've been saying that for quite awhile now, months actually. Life got in the way and then I just didn't have the heart for blogging. There was so much that wasn't positive it became hard to just write it. But, as the saying goes, time marches on. Circumstances change. I'm starting to get the quilting juices going again and want to have someplace to put my process and information other than Facebook. So, it's a new year and I'm giving it a go. Not every day, but when something quilty is going on, I'll have something to say.