Cheddary Challenge is a Flimsy!

 Can you hear me hooting and hollaring and HAPPY!  I took my time and managed to get the last row to fit and attach to my Cheddary Challenge quilt!  It looks bigger in this picture than it is, but it is a good size...largish lap quilt and since it is for me that is just fine.  So many memories in these blocks and I plan to really treasure this one.

And at long last I finally remembered to take a picture of my Easy Street fabrics so far.  Copying Bonnie this time though I keep thinking orange would look good with these colors!  :)

Still Sewing :)

 I decided that since I already had a few extra blocks made and my cheddar quilt isn't quite as big as I envisioned that I would keep on making little bow ties til I got another row made.  Here is last night's block.  I need about three more to make a row and hopefully I can call that top done.  BJ gave me one of the fabrics above--think it was the pink but not sure so it is fun to bits and pieces from other people's stash showing up in this quilt.

I am still working on my Sentimental Stitches October challenge doll quilt.  Here is the picture from the book which is the goal (Kathleen Tracy's book) and below my hand sewn hexies so far.  Today I made the brown one while watching the Packers play the Jaguars.  Seems to work well for me to set a goal of one hand sewn flower per game!  At least I am making progress on it this way.  By the end of the season there should be a little doll quilt made.

I have also been knitting dishcloths.  Right now working on a yellow and white one.  So easy...thinking about signing up for a sock knitting Craftsy class AND for Weeks Ringle's designing class.  I have no real desire to design, but love Weeks and want to see what I can learn from the class anyways!

Friday Funday!

I won this AWESOME tablerunner from Darlene over at Quilting Daze for Christmas Through the Year.  I am having such a good time participating in that and have much of my Christmas list done because of it.  Thanks Darlene!  

I finally added what I had hoped would be the last row to my Cheddar Bow Tie blocks!  I am thinking it is going to get yet one more "last row" LATER!  I have four more blocks done and think I should stick this away for a bit since I am tired of dealing with my seam allowance issues!  

Meanwhile I worked on my Phoenix Modern Quilt Guild name tag.  I like it though I veered off the tutorial in more than one place to make is simpler for me to do.  Thanks again Alissa for the tutorial.  

Another thing I did today was cut and cut and cut out some spools for Bonnie's challenge.  On the left is the huge pile I have accumulated.  Becky gave me some of these, so the pile in the middle is for her and the one next to it is for Kathy (sewing buddy) who also told me she has some for me.  It is fun to trade fabric and have a few friends to do it along with.  The three of us are eagerly waiting Bonnie's Mystery too.  I think BJ and Ros will be joining in on it and I am hoping Lauren will do her first Bonnie mystery this year.   

Last weekend, one of the things I bought at the fabric thrift sale was an incomplete Debbie Caffrey mystery called "Just Around the Bend" the gal had sewn 24 partial blocks and had all the fabric, directions and backing fabric for sale for 20 bucks.  Her sewing is great, this gal has the 1/4 seam allowance down...so I decided to take it and finish it.  I am sure I am the only person out there buying and finishing other people's UFO's lol.  So I finished all the blocks...and played with a few layouts.  There are LOTS of options.

 Pretty sure this second one is what it will wind up being...I tried to layout a third one and wound up twisting the blocks back around to this layout!

 This Christmas one is online at http://www.fibersandstitches.com/10_General_Info/FAS-Consignment-Pg1.htm for sale..but it is the same blocks just in a different layout.  Kind of cool, but I still like the second option better!

 My roommate Randy is happy it is finally cooler outside and is now back to his stained glass hobby.  He makes really cool stuff!  I think this is going to be a little box maybe for his youngest daughter Rachel who just had her first baby (a boy, Leon in Norway).

 I started listening to this audiobook earlier, but Kathy isn't feeling well and has been in bed most of the day.  Last I checked on her she had developed a migraine.  UGH so this book is waiting til she feels good enough to sew because she wants to hear it too!

Now, what shall I sew?

Sewing with Becky and Bonnie :)

I got up really early yesterday because Kathy set up a booth at Barktoberfest and was out the door early.  I couldn't sleep so into the quilting studio I went.  I cut a bunch of bow ties and plenty of spools (for me, Becky and sewing buddy Kathy) and then sewed up a rice heating thingy, one spool and then whipped out the last 100 of the flying geese Hawaii Sunset blocks!  I am SO THRILLED to have gotten this step done I can't even tell you!

Next I sewed a boatload of cheddar bow tie blocks.  I decided whatever I have, I have and extra blocks will either go in the back or into a pillow or two.  

Bonnie was on quiltcam for a few hours and Becky and I enjoyed cutting and sewing with her too!  Another things I did yesterday was dump my leftover bits drawers and grab stuff to pass on to Megan who is happily sewing along on her new machine.  Feels good to lighten my load of things I am tired of and at the same time neaten up what I have!  I reorganized and folded all of my modern fabrics too.  I had bought more at JoAnn's last weekend because it was on clearance and with the Columbus day sale it was 3.00 a yard plus I got 10 bucks off of 50 so it seriously sold itself!  I bought some yarn for bday and Christmas gifts so I easily spent the 50!  

This morning I got up and sewed the bow ties into blocks and these are the last blocks to add to the quilt top.  I am so tickled to get this one done, figure out the backing and set it aside to be longarmed!  Then I can begin working on the spools in earnest!  So far I have 15 made, but lots cut.  

Today we have Megan's boys' birthday party to go to and I need to run to JoAnn's (again!) to get some wonder under stuff to make Monica's quilt label.  We gave up on embroidering one as we discovered my Diamond's embroidery connection is loose and though we can attach it, when we push the arm in it somehow doesn't read that it is plugged in.  Hopefully it is an easy fix, that was one spendy machine and I haven't even played with the embroidery!  I bought it on ebay so I was taking my chances, but I am hopeful it  just needs to be remounted.  We bought an embroidery foot so once it works we will be playing with it--finally!  So then this morning I went to make the label the old fashioned way and I can't find my wonder under--I only had a bit left so I am thinking I must have used it up....I have searched in the likely places...lol time to get another half yard, takes me years to run out of it.  That label is getting made today, that quilt needs to go in the mail tomorrow...it is time! 

Sewing with Bonnie, then with Barb!

 I got up and grabbed some coffee and started sewing with Bonnie in my PJ's!  See she is holding up another completed block and you can see the ones I made today too!

Norway fabric, a block for me and one for Bonnie!

Someone commented to Bonnie about European fabric and Bonnie said something about always trying to find unique or unusual fabric we can't get her in the States which got me to thinking I had fabric from Norway from almost a decade ago.  I have been saving it for something special and the only thing I have used it for was an apron once.  I thought it might work though it does make for a busy block!  I made Bonnie and I matching blocks--so will send hers off to her next week.  Maybe it will wind up in her quilt, or in her backing for it.  I had leftover bits so I made a third one only the third one has the opposite colorway.  Not sure what I am doing with that one, if I find someone making "Moth in the Window" I may just send it on to that person.  

Barb invited me over to sew for the evening, so I finally showered and dressed and loaded up to go sew.  I worked on my two brown SoScrappy Rainbow Blocks for October.  Just have pinwheels to go.  This is of course another Bonnie pattern, Jack in the Box.

I also worked on one hundred flying geese for Hawaii Sunset.  This isn't he final picture, but in the end there were a hundred..so only one hundred more to go!   Finally feeling like I may finish the geese up before Christmas, lol!

Worked a bit on the Cheddary Challenge at home earlier too.  Got another block together and a few more bow ties.  Got two spools done today too!  

I did check to see what the UFO challenge is for October and lo and behold it is Smith Mountain Morning.  I got the binding on that before going to Barb's and will post pictures tomorrow.  It needs a label and then it is off to Monica and Bob's!  

I am not planning to do this month's Schnibble since it is a large quilt and I am just not motivated to get to it.  

What We Worked on This Week...

Did a few more spools for Bonnie's Challenge.  

Got some more Bow Ties done...

Did some cutting and added to my strips in bins and to my strings which I don't think I have ever posted about.  This dresser my mom redid when I was twelve.  I begged for it to be mine and it has survived countless moves and may actually be the piece of furniture I have had the longest.  Should have taken a picture of the front of it too, but here the drawers are pulled out so you can see how I put my strings in sort of by color.  The bottom drawer is where my quilt tops and backings wait to go to the longarmer.  

 Kathy continues to work on a twister border for the Halloween Twister quilt.  Last night I cut a ton of leftover bits into spools for me and a few for Becky.  My basket is now overflowing!  The leftover bits went into the strips and strings.  Every time I get in a cutting mood I am moving through the smaller pieces of fabric I have.  What I don't find a use for goes in a bag for BJ!  She loves scraps.

Cutting and Sewing and Hanging with Bonnie

 Kathy and I were inspired by this large Halloween quilt we saw at Quilter's Bee yesterday.  So I got to cutting the squares and then moved on to cutting all the scraps BJ gave me yesterday into Bow Ties.  I did all of them, even got two sets out of some of them so the bag has extras for down the line when I get around to making another one of these!

 Kathy then cut them into the wedges which are needed for the windwill shape.  At about this point I decided that using the Lil' Twister would be easier for me!  Seriously too many ways to turn these and have to unsew.

 Perk of this method...see that tiny strip of waste?  Each block has one of those, so considerable fabric savings compared to my method.

 The fun part (roflmfao!) was then laying these out so that they could be (ahem) chain sewed.  It too two of us and we hauled up an extra table to lay them on (five dogs means the floor would be a disaster!).

 You lay them out in stacks like so.  Then add the boder, some on top of the stack and some under the stack.  Somehow we messed something up and later we would be unsewing.  (What a surprise!)

 Eventually it started to take shape.  We wound up undoing the stacks and laying them all out on the wall.  Kathy pieced the parts and I put the blocks together and then the rows.  Eventually she said it got easier.  She hasn't tried the other method yet though.

 Getting bigger.  And tada!  Bug had to check it out.  Now Kathy has decided to try doing some small blocks to make the border more interesting.

 I cut and sewed up a mini version of Speck--the Another Year of Schnibbles choice for this month.  It is so very cute and made from Frolic squares I had on hand in the right size.  I can see making this one again, I want to try the X version, but my precuts didn't have two of the same fabric in them to match up.

I also did one little spool block and a nine patch of bow ties.  I really enjoyed Bonnie on quilt cam and then watched several shows on Amazon Prime...finally finding a new one I like--West Wing.  Plenty of episodes left to watch while I sew.  

Yay for the Weekend!

 I got another row on my Cheddary Challenge!  I have two blocks done but they may wind up in the back since I am really ready for this top to be done!  This picture is sideways, but for now you get the idea.

 I then started putting Smith Mountain Morning blocks together (really hoping this is the UFO of the month for September--if not I may switcharoo it!).

I have two more rows together and pinned to be added, then a few more and borders.  I hope to finish this up at Becky's Sew In tomorrow.  For now, I am taking a machine sewing break and watching "V is for Vendetta" with Kathy.  I brought some hand stuff down to do and my knitting, so never fear more crafting is happening tonight!  

So very happy for a long weekend!  I am working a few hours at the crack of dawn on Monday but other than that I am free to sew, sew, sew!

Edit:  This is the UFO that was pulled.  I think I can manage to get this quilted in September!

11. MY BROKEN CROCKERY this one is a flimsy which I love and didn't want to wreck by quilting it myself. I need to either bite the bullet and do it by machine or by hand or just see if Ros can do a tiny one for me.

Cheddary Challenge Progress

I sewed up all but one of these blocks this morning.  I am out of cut bow ties and am hoping this is enough for another row and that they are the right size.  We went to a Hunger Games themed party this afternoon at Madison and Denise's place.  We watched the movie, played a trivia game they made up about the movie and a board game that wound up being too complicated for us.  We had lots of good food, some of it themed with the movie (ants on a log, roaches, lol).  

I was hoping to sew these onto the quilt top tonight, but instead I am being lazy and just reading my blogs and playing on facebook.  My work schedule already changed (lost my afternoon class Mon-Thurs and added an earlier class on Mon, Wed.) so now I have to get up earlier three days a week, grrrr!  

Anyway soon I shall have an update on this quilt and hopefully it will be a completed flimsy!

Weekend So Far...

After work Friday Kathy, Bug and I drove north to spend the day with mom for her birthday.  We got pedicures again (usually I wait more than three weeks, but it is fun to go with mom!) and then we met a few of my mom's friends for drinks and eventually met up with my dad and sister and more friends to dance at the Station.  I had never been there, but the band was pretty good and it was nice to see some of mom and (step) dad's friends again.  We spent the night and dad made us all breakfast and then we headed home.  On the way up there we stopped off at Olde World Quilt Shoppe and I bought the only three double pinks they had for Hawaii Sunset 1848.  I also couldn't resist the fabric with the anchors on it..it was on clearance (along with four others from that line--I made a Schnibble in it awhile back) and I thought it would make a good background for a QOV down the line.  

 On the way home we stopped at the rug store that has fabric for 2.99 a yard to see what they had.  This pictures isn't so great, but I got one yard each of two light fabrics and two yards of the one with the blue flowers...thought it looked like a shirting and would wind up in a Bonnie Hunter quilt.  All for under ten bucks, yay.  Notice I didn't tell you the total for the earlier purchase, lol.

 I could hardly wait to get home to start working on the bindings for the quilts that Joanne quilted (over at http://insanelycheapquilting.blogspot.com/ ) which came in the mail the end of last week.  I am SO excited to get all three of my Dad's memory quilts (Mourning Crosses Quilts) all bound and labeled and in the boxes to be mailed!  WHOOT.  This first one is for my Uncle Jim in Minnesota.  He is going through some medical stuff right now and so the timing of this couldn't be better.  I also decided to send him my yellow Flock of Triangles quilt that I made the beginning of the summer two summers ago.  It is the quilt I was making when DJ and several other Deaf people were staying at my house (long before we got together) and it has alot of sentimental value for me for some reason...it was also the quilt that almost hung in the quilt show the first Christmas DJ and I were together and so I have resisted getting rid of it.  I decided my uncle needs a blanket of sunshine because he is truly the light of our family.  My Dad was a better Dad because of him and his unwavering faith has been an influence in my life.  I hope it helps heal him and lifts his spirits.  For this I can let it go :)

 The back of his quilt has a camping theme and is one I bought just after my dad died in the Trego quilt shop.  My Uncle Jim and Dad took me, my sister and my cousins, Carla and Tricia to the Boundary Waters several times when we were kids and we have so many good memories from those trips.  Learning to dig a trench (in the rain since us girls didn't think we really needed one) while our Dads watched from their own two man tent was one of the highlights.  They let us set our tent up on a hill with a slight incline once and we rolled downhill and kept taking turns being at the bottom of the tent all night too.  So anyway, that is how I decided on his backing fabric.

 This one is Margie's.  She is a serious flamingo collector and so that and bits of one of my Dad's shirts is on the back of her quilt.  So this little quilt is soon on its way to Spooner or Trego--wherever Margie decides to hang it.

 This one is for my sister.  Next trip North I will pass it one to her.  I love that the pocket is there from one of Dad's shirts and know my sister will love that too!

Here are all three of the labels, they are now all handsewn on too.  You can see the camping fabric a bit in this picture.  I used some of the leftovers to make a bow tie too.

 Roll, Roll, Cotton Boll is also quilted...still needs binding (the only one that didn't get done in the box of six completed quilts!).  Just had to add a picture of it though.

 I also did the binding for Kathy's NYE Mystery.  We used the backing fabric for binding and it looks great. Not sure, but this may wind up being a Christmas gift for Kathy's niece Ayla.

 Here is Lincoln Schnibbles all quilted and bound.  This one will be a Christmas gift for someone.  I really like this one, but I have a red, white and blue one already so may have to part with this one!

 Here are the four boxes and Rachel's baby gift to go to Norway (still needs a box, but this one also got a label).  One of these boxes has Kathy's Irish themed mystery quilt for her dad.  She actually sewed her own label (dog) on too.  Her dad is in ICU in Mass. so hoping this quilty hug comforts him.  There is a Monday trip to the post office here!  So happy to be able to truly cross so many close finishes off my list!

I managed to make one bow tie block...have a whole stack of the little bow ties just waiting to become another row...if I get to sew tomorrow that is what I am shooting for.  August is almost over...where does the time go?  

Tomorrow we are supposed to go to a Hunger Games movie party with some fun friends.  Is it awful that I almost just want to stay home and sew?  I think it just recharges my batteries in a way nothing else does.  Kind of crazy, but right now I live to quilt!