Small finished and the next step to a bigger finish.

A couple of finishes and one not yet!

Some time ago,  I mentioned a use of flannel scraps. I had bits and pieces of leftovers from several baby quilts. So, I can't throw them, I made a good sized square.

Then it went back in the drawer.
Now that our great grands have moved it, and Miss B received another baby for Christmas......Gwamma needed to finish that project. I looked through my bin of larger flannel pieces and found a cute pink monkey print. It was big enough.

So I cut it to size, put right sides together, left an opening and did a flip and turn.  Then put bright pink thread on the machine, and did some decorative stitching around the edge and a serpentine stitch, in thirds.

It's being used and that is the goal, always!

And the only other "finish" was to get the label on my Bowtie quilt. Mr Busy and I took a quick road trip to South Dakota last weekend. A chance to get away for a bit and rest. So no sewing was done, but this hand work was completed yesterday at my Thursday Stitchers group!

There is a scrap of washi tape over the quilters last name and mine. Just for privacy!

Last but not least the final borders are on my 2019 Temperature Quilt. It needs to be backed and quilted. Then I will applique the year in the upper black border and add tiny buttons on the family birth dates. I am thinking about a stripe of the color range on the back. That isn't done yet, as I haven't decided on backing fabric and who will quilt this 51 x 52 quilt.

This is hanging in the hall at the bottom of our stairs. I can't get far enough to get it all in one shot. So here is the top 2/3s and:

here is the bottom 2/3s. You can see the end of the railing on the right! GEE!

None of these are necessarily post worthy, certainly not Whoop Whoop worthy, but at least they are documented.

I'll link up to Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts
and to Can I Get a Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.    (I apologize for the linky photo, the crop confused me!:(

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

A New Chapter, New Goals, New Adventure

Happy New Year to all!!

I am excited to be setting goals again this year! It really helps me stay on task! I have had to leave a local group that has been my main group of quilting friends. Maybe I’ve gotten too old? Too set in my ways? Too selfish?

Whatever the reason, I don’t look forward to the gatherings, so I “took my leave”. I am looking forward to connecting on this and other blog posts.

Some of you know Mr Busy and I have house guests for the next several months!  Our oldest granddaughter and her husband and their 2 children have moved in with us! It has been an adjustment for all!

I have only been to my sewing machine once, to stay-stitch around a large flannel crumb block, that will become Miss B’s babydoll blankie! And I have stitched up a torn sleeve seam in Jojo’s winter coat and restitched the Pom Pom on Mama’s knit hat!

My January One Monthly Goal will be to finish the December row on my temperature quilt and add it to the rest, to make it to “quilt top”, or “unquilted wall hanging” stage. That is, not quilted and bound, but ready for those steps. I think I want to try facing it, so will read up on that technique. It's not a lofty goal, but doable under the circumstances.

This is a poor photo, but I am in the basement, trying to be quiet and getting this post ready! 

                November is the long strip to the right. December is in pieces and not complete.

I'm linking up with Patty's January Goal Setting Post at Elm Street Quilts. And I'll be checking out the other goals being set and cheering you on.

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

November OMG complete

My November goal was to catch up to current, my temperature quilt.

I have October attached to the main part of the quilt , complete with dividing black sashing.

Thanks to Mr Busy for holding it outside for a photo. The temps are dropping as I write this.

November row is done up to today. Actually, yesterday, because we are expecting a lot of snow and wind, so who knows what the low will be at midnight. I wait til morning to check the previous day.

And the “filler” block,  to take the place of the 31st is cut and ready to be attached to the 30th

So my November OMG is complete. Hooray!

I'm linking up with Patty's Finish post and starting to think about an OMG for December! ?????

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

November OMG Goal Setting Link Up

Here we are!  November already! Time to set another goal! I thought about several. But I chose to work on my Temperature Quilt. I got behind in  October and now we are in a new month. So my OMG for November is to catch up with the October blocks, get the separating black strip attached to the bottom of the October strip and keep up with November. 

The year is almost done and I have enjoyed doing a little bit every day! ( except October....)

This is through September! It was unseasonably warm, see the orange rectangles. Those are 90's. Not 100's this year at all!!!!

And the first 6 days of October! Still with their chain stitching, but not sewed together. I did record the temps every day. They are on a chart on my iPad, so its only a matter of cutting the proper colors of pieces and getting them together. There are going to be lots of blues and maybe even a few purples. It has been COLD!    I can DO IT! 😁 

I'm linking up with Patty at Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal November Link-up.


Stay Busy and Stay Happy

OMG FINISH POST for MAY

My goal for May was to get caught up with my Temperature Quilt.  Including the joining of the month rows and May days from the 1st to the 21st.  In preparation for doing the "sashing" strips, I cut several lengths of the black solid. Then I sewed them together, pressed and wrapped the entire strip around a piece of lightweight cardboard. It reminds me of purchased bias tape!

I sewed daily "patches/blocks" every day or two. I record the high and low temperature every day on a spread sheet on my iPad.. I use Weather Underground and a  location that I found that is closest to my house. The only drawback to that method is the actual history. That particular station only displays history for 2 days prior. If I miss, by chance....I use the Official Reporting location, our county airport. We are only 2 miles from the airport, so the temps are close! I have only had to do that once.

This is how it looks as of today. January through April, all sewn together. May is still being constructed. May 1st thourgh the 23rd.  My goal was to get to the 21st!  You can see, we almost had Summer on the 14th, then the cool came back. It always surprises me that sometime the low for one day is the same as the high on the next day. See the blocks for May 17th and 18th.

I am really looking forward to some summer days.  Tomorrow is supposed to be in the low 70s and then back to 50s and rain!


Linking this to Elm Street Quilts, One Monthly Goal Finish Link Up. 



Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Scrappy Saturday 5-11

So far only 6 scrappy sprout blocks and one Tiny Tuesday in Orange!  Funny thing about orange. There are Halloween fabrics, pastel peach flowers, Bronco orange circles, pumpkin colored swirls, motorcycling cats, flames on a black background, oh my!  Fabric is cut for Bow tie blocks, and I may or may not have strings enough for one or two string blocks. We will see. I don't do string blocks til I have enough to at least make one block, because I change the needle and the stitch length.

Sorry for the out of focus! I'll try for a better photo later in the month. 

Road to "Tranquility"

Bow tie blocks at the ready. And my messy sewing station. PS, I haven't used orange in my temperature quilt yet!  It will be awhile


I have been using the sprout blocks as leaders and enders, but I really am anxious for Bonnie Hunter to reveal her new L and E block in July. I have 2" blocks cut and corraled in a box and I have 2 1/2" blocks, always!   I am sure some of them will be in the mix!




I'll be linking up with Angela's Scrappy Saturday post. See you there!

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

May OMG Goal Setting Post 5-1-19

I have been working on a Temperature Quilt. After watching Patty's progress with her hexie temperature quilt last year, I decided that I would definitely do one for 2019. Not hexies, cause I did not want to "copy", but something. And I wanted to use my stash, not purchase new fabric. So I started by building a temperature chart and selecting fabric. My OMG for January was to make a decision and get started.

I have been working on it pretty regularly. I finished January, February and March. My OMG for May will be to get the March, and April rows ( April is missing a few blocks, but I have the temperatures recorded on a spreadsheet on my iPad)  attached with the 1" black sashing. And to get the blocks for May 1 to May 21st  made and attached to each other in a row. May will be a busy month for me, but this I can do!

This is how my "quilt" looks today!

Lots of blues and aquas and turquoise. A few green are showing up in April. I am hoping May looks much more green and yellow!

Linking up with OMG Goal Setting Link Up for May at Elm Street Quilts .

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Final So Scrappy Saturday of April

So Scrappy Saturday hosted by Angela at So Scrappy!

I decided to put all my April Aqua blocks and projects on the design wall. I am disappointed because I am running out of Aqua strings and scraps to make more string blocks. A couple pieces are large enough to cut the length needed to go on the diagonal, but the rest are too little or they are over fat quarter size. ( I find it hard to cut into those) 😞

I have one string block and another under my needle. 6 bowtie blocks, 6 scrappy sprout blocks, and 3 Tiny Tuesday blocks. I did not get the one from last week, made yet.  And hopefully there will be one more, 5 Tuesdays in April. Also at the top of my design board are the first 25 blocks of my April row on my Temperature Quilt. It reads Aqua also.  There are a couple of green signifying warmer weather, but mostly April has been from 35 degrees to upper 60's.  There were a couple of days that we reached 71.

I think I will put out an APB ( All Points Bulletin) for aqua strings at my next guild meeting. I could be sorry!!!

Until next Saturday,
Stay Busy and Stay Happy

April OMG Linking Up

I have many goals for April!  Finish the book I am reading!  Keep up with my Temperature Quilt and get better at posting on Instagram! Do the Tiny Tuesday Block in the current color, an offering from Angela at So Scrappy!  I also signed up for APQ UFO Challenge 2019. And I want to spend at least part of one week with my sister!

But, my OMG for April is to get at least one border done on my Spool Quilt! This project was started a long time ago. I need to research to find out what year! My group exchanged strips for the spools. Then I finally got the center of the top put together. I think it is a little light and so I put it away. I started the tracing of the pieces for the applique border. But again got stopped.  Maybe there was a baby quilt that needed to be done, or a comfort quilt for my brother or something?

 This is the book from Edyta Sitar that has the pattern.  There are a lot of other blocks in this book that call to me!

 This is the graphic showing the spools and the applique border.

And this is on my cutting table this morning. I got out the tote and pulled out the contents. The borders are cut and labeled.  "check"    Some tracing is done! "check" 

Now to begin to cut out, place and fuse down and machine applique. I will be doing the borders one at a time, then connecting the corners. This method was suggested and endorsed by several members that have their version completed. It will make it easier to man handle the bulk through the machine as I machine applique all those vines and flowers.  So there it is: One Border of the Spool quilt! 


Linking up with Patty at Elm Street Quilts.  April OMG 


Stay Busy and Stay Happy

The Month is More Than Half Over!

I may have over done it!

Here it is the 17th of the month! Half way through January and I still need to at least start on my APQ UFO  #3, the quilt for my sister.
I have yet to make a RED anything for RSC 2019. I finally did cut some red scraps. I need 4.5" squares for my Bow Tie Blocks.I have 3 done. And 2.5" squares for the Scrappy Sprout Block. They are staged on my small design board.

I thought I had lots of red 2.5" squares, but I did not have much variety. Some of these will be switched with more I am cutting from 2 1/2" strips.



And my OMG, Temperature quilt was lacking!  Mr Busy did get a piece of lumber cut and he helped me install a temporary design wall in the hall just outside my sewing room. I found some light gray flannel on sale at JoAnns so it wasn't too expensive. I can leave it up all year and still have my regular design wall in my room. It's not pretty, but serviceable. The pink sticky notes are the dates.

The poor photo will just have to do. This wall is in my basement hall. The only light is the wall sconce you see in the upper right and the light from my sewing room behind the camera. I am thinking of using a portable lamp for future photos.

So now I am almost caught up. I have a reminder set to 10PM on my iPad to record the high and low temperature from the previous day. I have found that the low can change from the forecasted low in my area. I have an iNumbers chart  and then I re-record it onto a calendar I printed to keep in the Temp Quilt Folder. That probably seems like over kill..but that is my M.O.  Too much is always better than not enough!  My 13 day strip is looking pretty "blah" , lots of the same fabrics for days in a row.  One below zero day, the 1st of January!  See the lavender in the bottom left!

Mr Busy and I have been working on a small kitchen redo project. He painted while I was at my retreat last week and started to install some vinyl squares as a back splash.

 I have been promised a new stove and microwave, just waiting for them to go on sale or at least have 11% back at Menard's. Should have bought it during the holidays, but company and too many "other" projects kept that from happening!  I am patient, it will happen!

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

ps:  I'll be linking this post up to Finished or Not Friday, because they are definitely NOT FINISHED!
                                    and Can I Get A Whoop Whoop, because somethings got started!

Back on Track after a Week of Absence

On Wednesday, the 3rd of January  we left early morning to drive to Lakewood/Denver for a quick visit with our daughter and son. Our son was spending New Year's with his sister, and so it was a great reason to drive down to see him for the holidays. He lives in Phoenix and has kids and grandkids there so he rarely comes North for Christmas. We had a wonderful visit!. We ate wonderful food, walked the lovely area of Belmar and even went to see Aquaman at a great theater.

Now we are home and I must get busy working on my challenges.

1. My OMG goal is here and I need to cut some rectangles. I have been recording the highs and lows on my iPad by logging on to WeatherUndergound while we were away. I still am not sure if I will use the highs and the lows for each day or just the highs?  ps:  This photo is just the Highs for the first 6 days.

And this photo shows added 2" squares (unf) for the lows. Which do you like better? Of course the lows will be attached to the "high" row! Not much variety in January temperatures yet!

I am participating in Twiddletails Temperature Quilt Along. See this post.


2. APQ UFO Challenge selected #3.  On my list, #3 is a comfort quilt for my sister. Some of you may remember she lost her husband in late October, so it is time to get this completed and gifted to her. I have a pattern in mind and most of the fabric purchased. So cut and sew is on my agenda this week.
I am attending an "in town" retreat Wed - Friday this week. We will sew from 9am to 9pm is we are able, we can leave our machines at the library and then go home to sleep in our own beds.
 



        We had a great time:  I almost finished this table runner from a gifted kit several years ago. It needs a good pressing and the horizontal borders added. Then it will be ready to be quilted and set aside for next holiday season.

         I also got all the blocks sewn together from my 30 Blocks in 30 Days Quilt Along last year at Creatin' in the Sticks.

3. My local quilt group starts their annual UFO challenge the 3rd Sunday in January, so I picked projects for that list.

4. And, I always have my reading challenge on Goodreads. I had a goal of 30 for 2018 and only read 26 books. This year I will try to read 24 books. I should be able to do 2 per month!


Finally, I will complete the "putting away of Christmas"  The totes are packed and labeled. The quilts, table runners, coasters, pillows  etc are stacked and the tree is naked, waiting for Mr Busy to bring the box in from the garage and help me pack it away. Today for sure!!!!!



So you know what I always say:

Stay Busy and Stay Happy