UFOs

In anticipation of Judy's UFO day, I checked my lists and found that I have a total of 29 partly done quilt tops. This is NOT including ones that I've already sewn into tops that are waiting (patiently) to be quilted. Seeing the list - especially the ones that just need borders - is making me kick myself in the butt and vow to get cracking on these projects. Here they are in alphabetical order, with a little note about the progress:

A Patch of Pumpkins - This quilt is from the TB Guide to Weekend Quilters. I could not find the original cream fabric for the fence nor the gold inner border fabric, but sewed it together anyway. Of course, I found the gold later on - which reinforced my commitment to wait to make a quilt until I've acquired all the correct fabrics. The top is pieced with those two substitutions, and still needs the applique pumpkins and leaves.

Autumn Memories - I originally saw this quilt in Lynette Jensen's home during a retreat tour and found all of the correct fabrics for the outside border (Daisy Days olive green plaid - RJR 4077-02). I thought that this Sugar House fabric was the right one and sewed it on, but I won't quilt it until I find the Daisy Days fabric...

Buttermint Patches - I saw this quilt at a TB Retreat. It had appliqued prints from the Autumn Fare line all over it. I have the center all sewn, but I think I'll just add the borders and be done with it.

Christmas Goose - My son Logan requested this pattern for his own TV watching quilt. I'm making it out of my stash. The strips of flying geese are all assembled. I just need to add rows of sashing between each geese strip, borders, and then it's ready to go.

Christmas Patches Table Cloth - Here is another one that I first saw at a retreat in 2003. I already had most of the fabrics in my stash, but some of them were smaller quantities. I shrunk the pattern a bit, began assembly and ran out of steam.

Fall Folk Art - This quilt was a class project at a retreat. I didn't do much sewing on it at the retreat, and it has stayed in that condition since I brought it home.

Garden Fare - Another TB Club project. This one is the summer one from 2003. It just needs five plain borders... What am I waiting for???

Holiday Stars - I started this one when I first started quilting in the late 90s. My 1/4" piecing skills were atrocious, so I bagged up this project and tucked it far in the back of my dresser drawer.

Hometown Christmas - I absolutely LOVE this quilt. I have all of the block sections completed and have pieced and cut the strips for the border. I still need to assemble the sashing and borders and applique all of the stars, holly, and berries. I could leave them off, but I like the look of the quilt better with them.

House and Garden - This was the big quilt for TB Club 2007. I've pieced a few of the blocks but have not made much progress otherwise. The colors aren't my typical TB colors and I've lost interest in this one.

Lodge Quilt - On the other hand, I still want to complete this big quilt from TB Club 2008 - but modify it just a bit. I have already pieced the tree blocks and want to repeat one block in each of the points of the center, instead of the original pattern's sampler style.

Log Cabin - I won the blocks to this quilt on eBay, along with a bunch of other fabrics. I assembled them in a barn raising style and purchased matching border fabric but haven't gone any farther.

March Quilt from Club 2004 - I cut this one out and have sewn the HSTs, but that's it.

My Friend's House - My online Thimbleberries group held a swap many years ago using this house block. Each member signed their name in the window section of the house. To finish this quilt, I need to make some sawtooth stars and add borders.

Party Mix - I worked on this one in the past year, and assembled all the blocks. It just needs two skinny borders and one thicker one. I could finish this one in an afternoon...

Pine Star Runners - I saw these in the TB Classic Country book on Lynette's table and wanted to make a set for mine. One is mostly done (just needs a border) and the other needs a bit more piecing.

Pint Size Goose Chase Tree Skirt - A few years back, my online TB group had a swap of mini tree skirts. I made one for my friend Kairle and blogged about it here. I worked on one for me at the same time, but never put on the final borders. It would take just an hour or so to finish. So why haven't I???

Pint Size Reindeer Trail - All the piecing is finished on this one. I'm trying out my machine buttonholing on the appliques, and have some stars and part of a reindeer done. Still need to finish the rest of the applique.

Pint Size Thimbleberries Village - This top WAS done - until I was unsatisfied with the waviness of the borders, so I ripped them off. Need to redo them...

Quilter's Garden Collection - A quilt shop nearby had a discounted kit for this pattern that uses the Quilter's Garden faux applique blocks. I assembled the blocks, sashing and cornerstones and just need to add a border or two.

Shades Apart - This quilt is made with 63 9" courthouse steps blocks. All of the blocks were assembled at a quilt retreat I attended in Kansas City a few years back. The top is done - just needs two borders. Do you see a recurring theme here?

Snowflake Blocks - My online TB group did a swap with these blocks as well. The pattern is in the Cottage Comfort book by Landauer. I still haven't decided how to arrange and set them...

Star Swag Runner - Again, I needed to make a swap item for my online group so I made two of the same pattern: one for my secret sister Eileen and one for me. My secret sister received hers, but mine still needs all of the applique.

Sunrise - This is the TB Club 2005 quilt for the first half of the year. I worked on the first block while my daughter was spending her 10th birthday at home with the chicken pox. Eight years later and it just needs two borders.

Sunset - Here's the TB Club 2005 quilt for the second half of the year. I have most of the blocks sewn but still need to piece a few and add borders.

Thimbleberries Month by Month - this is Lynette's first Block of the Month that I've committed to finishing this year. All of the blocks are already cut for both a regular size and pint size version. The first three blocks are completed and are shown in the previous post. Here are the rest of them.

Thimbleberries Sampler - This is a project that took a while to find all of the exact fabrics. They are all cut and labeled by block.

Timberline - I won an eBay auction of quilt scraps and this partially done top was included. The triangle geese around the outside will be the roofs of houses, and there will be a tree between each house. I already found more of the background fabric, and the rest will come out of my stash.

Vintage Stitches - Another TB Club Quilt. This one is from 2006. I have a few blocks done but that's as far as I've gotten.

Then there are the ones I can't find to photograph, like Autumn Night, the February Runner from Quilt Club 2004, Snow Dazzle, and Split Oak Leaf Pillows. This list also does not include kits that I've cut out but haven't begun sewing (Picnic Stars Runner, PS Pumpkin House, and Sugar Bear Pumpkins).

Okay, Judy: now that I've listed them all, will you send some elves to finish them up for me overnight? LOL

Progress

My online Thimbleberries group began a challenge back in January. Anyone who wanted to participate had to post the name of an unfinished block-of-the month quilt and commit to completing three blocks each quarter of the year. For once, I met a deadline - with 10 days to spare!

Out of the Thimbleberries BOMs that are still in my stash waiting to be sewn, I chose to work on Lynette's very first one: Month By Month, copyright 1998. It took me several years, but I found ALL of the original fabrics - and enough of them to make two quilts: one according to the pattern's dimension, and the other one 'pint-sized'. The latter quilt will wind up being 1/4 the size of the former one. I became enamored with Lynette's smaller quilts based on larger patterns, featured in five of her books and booklets. She shared the pint sizing method at a retreat I attended a few years back, and I've used it a few times - especially when I have not been able to find enough fabric to make the original quilt.

Here are my first three blocks:

My friend Kim is also doing this BOM, but using fabrics from her stash. She is always creative and puts her own spin on the Thimbleberries designs.Me - I'm perfectly content doing everything 'by the book'!

Deja vu

Once again, more than a year has passed between blog posts. 'Life' has gotten in the way of my quilting more times than I can mention. Here are a few highlights since my last post:

The economy hasn't gotten much better for our little business. We still struggle to make ends meet, so...

My husband and I are in the beginning stages of changing our business focus from IT to concert promoting. We have made many contacts through work over the years, and have a partner who will provide the funding for the startup costs involved. We hope to have our first concert in April!

The kids remain heavily involved in extracurricular activities. Our daughter Mackenzie was selected as Drum Major of our high school's marching band and our son Logan is the trumpet section leader. I remain active in the Band Parents Association on the executive board, and support the kids through every single game, competition and fundraiser.

After Mackenzie attended Drum Major Academy at West Chester University in Pennsylvania this summer, we took the opportunity to travel to Lancaster and Hershey to have a short family vacation. It was during this trip that...

I bought a Bernina Aurora 440QE with the embroidery module! I have been wanting this machine for YEARS. I received a small inheritance from my grandmother's estate and hoped to use the money to buy something special in her memory. We made a quick trip to Hinkletown Sewing in Ephrata and got a great deal compared to the stores near home.

Logan made the varsity soccer team, so that meant running him to practices and attending as many home and away games as I could. That was cut short in September because...

He was hit by a car while riding his bike without a helmet. I was out grocery shopping when I received a call from a bystander. He was riding down a hill (after he visited his girlfriend without permission) when a woman driving up the hill made a sharp turn as he was about to finish crossing an intersection. He hit her windshield and was thrown a good distance. We met the ambulance at the accident scene and it was decided that he needed to be taken to the nearest trauma unit. Logan spent about three hours in surgery with a plastic surgeon who sewed "hundreds of stitches" in his face. Amazingly, he never lost consciousness, had no broken bones and no concussion. Logan had deep cuts on his forehead, across the bridge of his nose, under his eye, on his cheeks, on his ear, and inside his mouth (which is NOT very good for a trumpet player). Shards of glass were making their way to the skin surface weeks after accident. We've had many followup visits with the plastic surgeon and his scars are healing very well. The plastic surgeon wants to wait a year before proceeding with laser treatments to minimize the scars, depending on how much they fade in that time. After all of this, we NEEDED a vacation. So...

We went to DisneyWorld!! I got a great deal in late November, staying for 7 days and 6 nights with FREE dining at the resort restaurants and cafes. We had been talking about going there for YEARS (about 12 of them - since the kids were little) and we finally booked it. It was WONDERFUL!! The Christmas decorations were already up and we were able to do 'most' of the things we wanted, including attending the Candlelight Processional. I'm convinced that we NEED to go again ;)

Sound busy? I hope so, because I don't have much stitching to show for that past 16 months that I've been away. Any pictures that I take will be with my cell phone, since I dropped my camera at WDW and it's been taking awful photos ever since... I'm going to check back on my previous posts and take some pictures of tops that I completed during the time away. Hopefully the new Bernina will help me turn some of my tops into actual quilts!