WIP Wednesday

 I am happy to say that I have completed another UFO top....

Hopefully on Thursday you will see a quilted top.  I am going to Loopy D's  to quilt it on her long arm machine. 

linking up to The Needle and Thread Network WIP Wednesday
&

A UFO finish .......Silly Lily

as I climb the stairs to the patio....Lily "Stay" 

or not!

Little stinker

Yes a UFO is finished!

There is a whale in my back yard

An Orca to be specific.........got your attention?

After 1year and 1 month I finally completed Bonnie K Hunter's Mystery quilt from 2011 called Orca Bay.  The pattern and colour was inspired from her trip to Alaska and seeing the Orca whales. You can now get the pattern in her newest book "String Fling" 

top completed

corner 

Lily standing guard!

Snowy feet

This is the most piecing I have ever done on a quilt.  As per usual I didn't follow every step of the mystery.  parts of my blocks are different and my border is different.  I just got too tired of piecing.  I made the binding tonight too.  Will I ever due it again.....not sure.  I am so relieved this top is finished.

Monday I went to a local long arm quilter for lessons on her APQS machine.  Now that I have taken the class I can rent her machine.  This is all part of the plan to get these UFO's completed.  I just know in the coming months I will be too busy.  I need to seize the opportunity now to get them finished!

How goes your UFO's?  Have you finished any lately?

Happy stitching! 

Seeing black and white!

  I had great inspiration and encouragement from my fellow guild members at our UFO retreat. .  It was fun to look at their projects, share ideas, stories and lunch!  

Let's just say that at retreat I was seeing a lot of black and white.  I made 148 flying geese to go on the border of Orca Bay. I used the Lazy Girl Flying Geese ruler.  I loved that there is now waste in the making of these geese. I really was hoping to get them on the top as well, but I will do that on Wed. So if all goes well the top will be finished tomorrow night.   Yeah me!

I can see hearts

strung together so they don't fly away

my set up in the hall

a flock of geese

flying north or south?

What is your favourite method of making flying geese?  

RETREAT.....

I am heading to our guilds retreat in the country this weekend. 

 Guess what?  It is a UFO Retreat.  

Perfect timing for me. see post here about mine. 

On my list to work on:

* border for Orca Bay

* sew binding on Christmas quilt

* outline stitch on Safari

* sandwich and quilt Mimi's table runner

My friend Kim from Chatterbox Quilts is coming along and will keep me in line! 

 I am still on the path of not starting anything new until my UFO's are completed.  It is so hard.  There is so many projects that I want to start. Afterall piecing the top is the most fun, don't you agree?

I have even signed up for a course on how to use a long arm machine.  Then I can rent the machine and hopefully clear up the UFo's quickly.   

all packed up and ready to go (no, I am not excited)

Here's to productivity this weekend!

Happy Stitiching!

WIP Wednesday..early or late

(I am very happy to report that this quilt is officially finished as of Jan 20th!!!)

Working hard to get this UFO finished.  One more side border to finish FMQ on and then binding.   Depending on how one thinks I am either really early for next Christmas or late for last Christmas.  Either way it will be enjoyed for many years.  

Linking up to Needle and Threads WIP WEdnesday. 

How go your UFO finishes?

Happy Stitching

Lee

Will Power

I need will power to NOT start any new projects.  I really want to get these UFO's done. See my list of UFO's here

Who is cheering me one to get them done?

Do you have any UFO's your itching to get finished?  Let's do this together and get them done. 

Happy Stitching!

Lee

UFO Confessions

you know you have them. Lurking in closets, hiding in bins, under tables, in cupboards...come on bring them out and lets get them done.

I am confessing about my UFO's and I really want to get them done.

  I actually started last night making progress last night .
It is was probably my oldest UFO. I made this tree skirts years ago, probably 10, can't remember exactly.  I put it together, did a bit our outline stitching and then that is it.  It was used under my tree for many years unfinished.  Last year it wasn't even put away with the Christmas decorations but sat in my UFO bin.  How sad is that.  

Last night I tackled quilting it, closing up the seams, and tidying it up.  first finish of 2013!!!!

Tree Skirt

 FINISHED
January 2013

Here are links or pictures to some other UFO's I want to get finished. 

 From oldest to newest:

Diamonds - scrappy quilt using up all the fabric I had from the 90's and early 2000's before I got back into quilting with a vengeance. Top completed, just needs quilting.
FINISHED August 2013

FINISHED 

JUNE 2013

VV- fabric was all bought at Value Village for $40.   Top completed, backing picked out, binding made, just needs quilting.  

My Own - part of Crazy Mom Quilts 9 patch challenge a few years back.  Its suppose to go on my bed. Needs a border, backing chosen,  quilted.
FINISHED 
February 4, 2013

Tumbler- picked out the fabrics, started cutting and got side tracked, so lots needs to be done on this one, cutting, piecing etc.  Didn't even blog about this one!
PIECED Sept. 2013

FINISHED 

MARCH 6 2013

Orca Bay - Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt 2011. Backing chosen. Needs border, assembled and to be quilted.

Safari - wall hanging put together summer 2011,  needs finishing stitching and assembled. again no blog post

FINISHED

 APRIL 2ND, 2013 (and sold)

Postage Stamp Quilt - it's basted, binding made, just needs quilting....I am hearing a trend her  "needs quilting"

Christmas Fun -it's basted, binding made, just needs quilting. no blog post, gee another trend.
FINISHED
January 2013

Mimi's table runner -  binding made, just waiting for me to finish quilting one of the above quilts as I don't have any more pins left to baste it ! Again no blog post because I just made it last week.
FINISHED
March 8, 2013

Hexies - well I always said this would be a life time quilt.  I have lots of hexie flowers completed, but ran into a wall when I went to put it together.

I actually don't feel to bad about my list.  I just need to do many hours of quilting in the coming months.  I want to break out of stippling and work on other types of FMQ. I guess that is  one of my quilting goals this year. 

If you have made a list of UFO's, link up and see what we all have to tackle this year. 

What was your first...

At this time of year many people are reflecting on the year or contemplating the year to come.
I chose to think back on my projects of the past, way back to 1991-92.

 I thought it would be neat to have a look back at my very first quilting project. 

I took a class at a local community centre.  I was pregnant at the time and had a very old, 'new to me', sewing machine to use.  It was so heavy I had to get my husband to carry it in for me. 

 I made this quilt for my son to be.  The instructor had us using templates. (hate those things).  We did a bit of strip piecing but mostly pieces.   

Looking at it now there is so much wrong with this quilt.  Seams are starting to come apart, there is hardly any quilting on it, plaid isn't matched well in border (still don't like using stripes or plaids in a quilt), and there is no label.

What's good about this quilt: I made it with love, I still like the colours, I hand quilted, timeless pattern, I learned a lot. 

oh that plaid!

Teddy Bear outline quilting

Let's share our first projects.  I am sure, like me, you have come a long way with your quilting skills.
Link up below and show us your first.   

Winter White Block Exchange update

At last I have my head around what I am going to make for my block exchange.

But first, I think a snow storm hit my sewing table.  

where are my scissors?

I can't find anything with all this wonderful white snowy fabric piling up on my sewing table. 

I better get sewing some together into these

love me some string blocks

Some of the other participants are updating their progress. 

1. Sue @ Collectin Texas Gal   

2. Deb at Patchwork Sanity 

3. Debi at Sew Rip and Sew Again

4.Julianne @ Quilting with Calicos

5. Laurie @ Charmed Creations

6. Peg @ Pieceful Peg (you got to read her short story)

7. Suzanne @ Colorado Lady

8. Corina @ CWquilts..sometimes

9. Natasha @ And This Would Be

10. Linnea @ Neabear Sewing and Craft Mess

11. Mary  she doesn't have a blog, but I know she bought her fabric to get started. 

Happy New Year everyone.

now back to the sewing table. 

Lee