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.
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.
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.
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.
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
Blocks 6 and 7 of the Flower Patch Mystery were pieced before I went to Phoenix.
Block 6 was a repeated of block 3, the flower block. I changed block 6 so it would look different than block 3. I had planned to make the flower red, like block 3, but I forgot and didn't remember until I had cut the blue fabrics. So this flower is in blues.
Here are blocks 6 and 3.
Block 7 - I made my tulips red, just to add a touch of color to this quilt.
Linking to Flower Patch Sew Along, To Do Tuesday, Midweek Makers, Wednesday Wait Loss, Needle & Thread Thursday
I've returned home from my wonderful vacation in sunny (most of the time) Phoenix. I'll write an in depth post sometime but not for today.
The hearts in this block had already been appliqued so only the leaves were appliqued in Arizona.
Here is a link to the original post about Hearts & Wreaths if you would like some background information. These blocks will finish at 16".
Linking to Kathys Slow Stitching Sunday, Stitching Stuff, Oh Scrap, Show & Tell Monday, Design Wall Monday
Earlier this fall I pieced several more rows for patchwork squares with yellow. They have been sewn to the small body. The width of the top measures approximately 36" - 37". There is a long way to go yet before this flimsy is ready to be quilted.
Ignore those two blocks on the right side, those are squirrels that are running around in my sewing room.
When I cut the background squares for my Hearts & Wreaths applique blocks, I had a section of soft yellow that wasn't large enough for an applique block. That fabric has been cut into squares and added to this quilt.
Here is a former post about patchwork squares.
Do you ever have a morning when things are going well then disaster hits? When I have a morning like that, I don't feel like doing anything the rest of the day. That happened to me one morning in November.
I made myself sew anyway but I didn't work on any of my projects in progress. After viewing all the lovely projects on the Making a Lather blog, I looked up the pattern for Checkered Past and made a block.
I don't know if I'll set this and future blocks together like Becky's pattern, I have plenty of time to think about it this coming winter.
I love my block! This will definitely be a great pattern for reducing all the squares and strips in the 2" boxes.
All the free patterns on the Quilted Twin website are wonderful. My only complaint is I really wish they were in alphabetical order instead of random.
While I was at retreat in November, I chain stitched the embroidered circles on 4 background blocks of Hearts & Wreaths.
The hearts have been appliqued on the centers of these blocks, ready for leaves when I return home.
Some of the fabrics look similar but they are all different.
The background fabric is a soft yellow but it's not as washed out as it looks in these pictures. Here is a link to the more true color. You'll need to scroll down to where I show the bolt of fabric.
I mark for the leaves differently than a lot of people. I don't trace the whole leave on the background, I draw a V where it will be covered by the leaf. I know the top point of the leaf touches the chain stitching. The bottom V shows the angle of the bottom point. This works for me, I never have to worry about covering up markings and I don't have to spend as much time marking.
