UFO Challenge for December, 2018

Although it looks like I was busy quilting all month, I actually did most of these in the last week. I pushed myself to do a quilt a day. It was tiring. I quilted 15 this month...although 6 of them were doll quilts...that i did in one day. haha

#1...Butterflies Abound

#2..Country Sights

#3..Cowboy Christmas.

#4..Flowers on 4 Patches

#5..Strip Blocks with Maroon Borders

#6..Past and Present

#7..Pink Selvage Tumblers

#8..Mrs Bobbins

#9..Flannel Squares

#10-15...6 Doll Quilts

On the embroidery side, I made two purses for twin girls...one pink and one purple.  they open up like pages in a book and have many pockets to hold glasses, money, credit cards, MP3 player, cell phone, lip balm, mirror, nail file, and other things. oh, and keys on a key ring.

And I have so far embroidered 24 I Spy crazy quilt blocks with loads of fabrics that I recently got in a truckload deal. each piece is different. here are a few samples.

I still managed quite a bit of piecing this month, too.

I've been making art type blocks with zippers. so far, I have 5...here is a sample. All the backgrounds will be the same. The blocks are 9x12". I'll make 12.

This one has curly leather laces.

This one has folded fabric.

Other things that I have finished piecing this month are...

#1..Coin Collecting

#2..Green Selvage Roundabout

#3..I Spy Flowers

#4..Drunken Christmas Trees

And, I'm working on a pattern called Spirit of the Northwoods. So far, I have done 6 of 12 blocks. They are 20" blocks. I am using flannel for the middle square in a square and the outer border. The parts are fused. Here are a few...

Moose Meadow

Chickadee Chatter

Fly Fishing

Now, I am anxious to start a new year and see what things I can create. one of my things I want to do next year is keep better stats on my projects. I'm going to make myself an Excel worksheet to keep track of things.

Happy New Year to all.

Spools Emptied in 2018

By July 19 of this year, I had emptied 50 spools of thread.

By today, I emptied 49 more. So, 99 for the year. Sounds pretty pitiful for all that I sew. Didn't even make 100.  Maybe next year will be better.

6 Doll Quilts

I decided to send the old year out with a bang. These 6 little doll quilts count as my 'quilt of the day'. haha  and it took me all day to do them, too. They are all about 18x24....give or take...depending on the blocks. These are the last of the ones that I pieced for Amy at A Doll Like Me. I have 22 to send to her now. 

#1..Just little pieces of things that I bordered and turned into a doll quilt. 

Simple lines in the borders and SID around the parts.

Back is a flannel

#2..Holly Hobbie. just little blocks cut out of a piece that i had...and more red blocks added to make it big enough.

Wavy lines along the seams and a wavy X in each block. probably took 10 minutes to quilt. haha

A red back

#3...Some house blocks found in the stash

Quilted with swirlies. I really wish I were better at this.

The back has tiny houses.

#4...Chevrolet...in bright colors. I used the last of this. One block was pieced and the final block had to be pieces of the other fabrics.

simply Xs across the blocks and a wavy line in the top and bottom border. 

Back pieced with same fabrics

#5 Mice in a maze. this is the last of this fabric. I really loved these mice and I rationed it out for a long time. haha

The last of the mice was used for the binding. I quilted lines to make boxes randomly across.

The back is a flannel with cats. 

#6...Mice again

Same thing, just different binding.

Back is a flannel.

Now I might have to rest the longarm for a bit. that quilting a quilt a day for a week is exhausting. i'm going to organize the tops in the to-be-quilted cabinet tomorrow to see how I want to tackle them in the new year.

But first, I have new embroidery designs to make.....just wait till you see. haha

String Blocks with Maroon Borders

Since I just finished piecing this a couple of months ago, I'm sure you remember it. It's my 'quilt of the day'...and it was a challenge. I made myself stay at the studio all day to get it finished.

It is 77 x 85". As you can probably tell, I used leftover binding pieces...reds and browns.

I was picking threads off this thing the whole time i was quilting it. It had more threads than i have ever seen on a quilt top.

I used a panto called Blooming Feathers by Anne Bright. by now, you know where the back came from...right? in the pic it looks white, but it is a tan.

Top thread was Glide Ruby and bobbin was So Fine brown. The bobbin runs out on this pattern before you finish a row. I used 9+ bobbins. I hate to run out in the middle of a row, so, usually I use a new, full bobbin for each pass, but couldn't do it here.

I have decided tomorrow's 'quilt of the day' will be the 6 doll quilts that I have to quilt and send to Amy at A Doll Like Me.  I should have finished those last spring and they kept getting put down the list....but tomorrow they WILL be finished. The backs and binding are all together with the tops, so it should go quickly.