2022 Challenges, 1 - 5

I made a list last December of challenges for the year 2022. Now at the end of 2022, I'm reviewing how many of those challenges I met. I had no idea when I made those challenges last December that we would be moving into a new home this year!

This first post is about challenges 1 - 5. Click on the title of each number to read about the quilt.

1. Writer's Block - Didn't happen. I've had strips cut for this quilt for several years but I did buy the background fabric. Maybe in 2023.

2. Double Delight - I started piecing Double Delight March 1 and finished sewing the binding May 4.

3. Blue Ridge Beauty - This is not a finished quilt. I donated the flimsy to the school fundraiser my Pennsylvania grandchildren attend. It will be hand quilted then auctioned in the 2023 quilt auction.

4. Wildflower Woods - The flimsy has been pieced. I still want to applique some broderie perse on the triangles in the center section.

5. Reduce 2" strips box - When I was in Utah in September, I took all the colored 2" squares along and sewed them into foursies. They're still in the bag they came home from Utah in. Maybe more progress will happen in 2023.

Linking to Needle & Thread Thursday, Put Your Foot Down, TGIFF!, Peacock Party, Whoop Whoop Party, Finished or Not  Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauties Pageant, Patchwork & Quilts

Slow Sunday Unsewing

I'm very embarrassed, I wrote last weeks Sunday post in a hurry on Saturday and didn't even think about Sunday being Easter! I hope you all blessed Resurrection Sunday whether you celebrated with friends, family or by yourself.

Earlier this week I posted about the Blue Ridge Beauty quilt I'm working on. The individual blocks had been pieced and the display floor arranging was ready to begin.

I started with the 2 first blocks, 2 of the center blocks. I had planned to work my way out towards the outside edge.

They don't line up, something is wrong!

I had the instructions right beside my sewing machine as I sewed these blocks together, I checked the book several times. Yes, they were laying correctly, NOT!

Today for Slow Stitching Sunday, I'm removing the stitching for the bottom HST block then turning it to it's correct position and pinning it in place so I won't make the same mistake twice. There are several hundred blocks in this quilt, I think I'll be slow unstitching for several days.

Oh well, I have several movies to watch to entertain me while I correct my mistake. Even after all these years of making quilts, I can still find ways to make silly mistakes. 

Linking to Kathys Slow Stitching Sunday,  Oh Scrap, Show & Tell Monday, Monday Making, Handmade Monday, Design Wall Monday

Blue Ridge Beauty

I'm starting a new quilt, it's another Bonnie Hunter pattern and it is in blues, Blue Ridge Beauty. Blue Ridge Beauty is from Bonnie's book, Adventures With Leaders & Enders. I've been wanting to make this quilt for sometime and this is the year.

This is a good sized quilt, it's queen sized. The quilt flimsy will be donated to the school auction my Pennsylvania grandchildren attend. It's so nice I don't need to be responsible to have it quilted.

As usual there are two different blocks to be made. First are the 4 patch blocks. I already had plenty of strips cut in the sized needed. It only took me a couple days to run the strips through the sewing machine, cut them apart and sew into foursies. 

The HST's are also pieced. I didn't use the directions Bonnie gave for making the HST's. I placed blue and light strips together and cut them with my HST ruler. That's a lot faster than cutting squares and marking them diagonally with a line. 

I'm checking all the HST's for size and trimming off the dog ears. It's time consuming and boring but blocks go together so much nicer when you take the time to do this.

If you read Bonnie's blog, you've seen the lovely quilt display the retreaters show on the front porch railing. Last winter two quilters showed Blue Ridge Beauty quilts at the same retreat. They were both lovely quilts but the one quilt was made with darker blues. I was drawn to that quilt so my BRB is being made with darker blues. 

Linking to Put Your Foot Down, Needle & Thread Thursday, Peacock Party, TGIFF!, Finished Or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Patchwork & Quilts, Oh Scrap

2022 Challenges

I don't make New Year's resolutions, I make New Year challenges. Here are my quilty challenges for 2022. These are in random order and won't necessarily be pieced consecutively.

1. Writer's Block from Red, White, and Sometimes Blue.  I cut strips for this quilt three years ago but never found the time to actually sew anything. Of course my quilt is going to be blue & white, or maybe blue & cream or maybe even blue & gray. I haven't decided on the background fabric.

I don't know why it's named Writer's Block, it reminds me of a variation on the Burgoyne Surrounded quilt. I plan to add an applique border.

2. Double Delight - This is a free quilt pattern by  Bonnie Hunter. Double Delight was her 2008 mystery quilt and is found at the bottom of the free pattern page with the rest of the older mysteries that never made it into books.

I prepped the fabrics for the quilt and took all the bits and pieces along to the Jane Stickle retreat in November. Sewing on this quilt didn't happen but it's ready to go! The little 9 patches have been sewn for several years.

3. Blue Ridge Beauty - Another Bonnie Hunter pattern from her book Adventures with Leaders & Enders. This quilt will be made with blues and creams/beige.

4. Wildflower Woods - This was a BOM kit I purchased several couple years ago at Caroline's Cotton Cottage. The fabrics are civil war colors. I'm not enthused by civil war fabrics anymore but I will make this quilt anyway, it will be a nice change from all the blue quilts. The fabrics are more brighter and colorful than the photo on the website.

5. Reduce the amount of strips in the 2" box. Quilting Twin has lots of free patterns for 2" strips. I want to make at least 1 queen sized quilt top from the box and I've printed off the Snowflake and Circling the 9's patterns. 

I sorted through the box and divided the strips into two groups, white based and cream based. I had forgotten a year ago I pulled most of the autumn fabrics and made two quilts. There isn't much of those fabrics in the box anymore.

6. Every year I piece a quilt flimsy which I donate to be quilted and sold in a school quilt auction. This auction provides funds for the school my Pennsylvania grandchildren attend.

Maybe one of the quilts I piece from the 2" strip box can be used as a donation quilt for this auction.

7. RSC projects - I had decided on several different quilt blocks but changed my mind and decided to finish projects instead.

In 2018 I finished a smaller quilt called Star Dance. I want to make this flimsy larger so I'll be making sawtooth stars each month.

Dancing stars and scrappy sprouts need finishing also. Sewing blocks for a new quilt is fun but the sense of accomplishment when finishing one is so awesome!

8. Hand quilting, I would like to have Welsh Beauty halfway quilted by the end of May, more would be great but I'll settle for halfway.

9. Applique - Of course I'm continuing Hearts & Wreaths. This is a wonderful project to pick and take with me.

10. UFQ's - I have several unfinished scrappy quilts started several years ago that need to be finished. I want to finish at least one of them.

11. Fire Island Hosta Queen - Years ago I bought the pattern, last fall I bought fabric, it's time to make the quilt! This quilt is going to be a long term piecing project, it's a Quiltworx design.

12. Goose Garden - I bought this pattern years ago and pulled some fabrics. There is an alternate way to set the blocks on the backside of the pattern which I like better than the front design. This isn't a huge quilt and will be good practice for the Fire Island Hosta quilt.

13. Charity quilts - I made at least 15 charity quilts in 2021. I'm not sure how many I will piece this year but I do have 6 crib quilts to be quilted and donated.

14. Flower Patch SAL continues through the spring.

15. Get Together - This quilt is on the cover of the April 2020 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting. The magazine actually had a sew along for people to participate. Of course I didn't sew along at that time, I work at my own pace several years behind everyone else. I have made some of the 9 patch blocks and purchased blue and red fabric for borders.

There are other quilts I'd like to make but these are the main challenges for 2022. I'll try to remember to have a post at the end of December 2022 and update you on my accomplishments or lack of accomplishment.

Linking to Peacock Party, TGIFF!, Finished Or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Scrap Happy Saturday, Whoop Whoop Party, Patchwork & Quilts, Oh Scrap