I Just Love Retreat!

I do! I do! I truly do!!!! I love retreat! Surrounded by like-minded friends & whirring sewing machines = BLISS!

Remember my Farmer's Wife little packets from last week?

I managed to turn four of them into this: 

Lucy

Lady

Malvina

Magnolia

I'm also still plodding along with Bonnie Hunter's Leaders & Enders Challenge from last year. It was a Rail Fence that she used checkerboards on her top rail. I'm using HSTs and I needed to make more. 

40 trimmed up HSTs

When I laid out the blocks I have made so far, my husband declared it looked like shark teeth. I believe I'll name this quilt "Shark Bite". This is just a few of my blocks laid out to give you an idea of what it will eventually look like. These are 8" blocks and I think I have just shy of 64 done. That makes for an 8x8 layout which sizes up to 64"x64". Need more!

!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!

This week I also made good progress on June's clue of Kyoto, Jinny Beyer's Mystery QAL. The little triangles turned into six of these: 

July's clue was six of these. They aren't too difficult to sew. I think I did a pretty good job of matching up the designs. 

Unfortunately I mis-cut my narrow stripe fabric and will be on the horn this afternoon to Jinny Beyer Studio. Surely they have extra Kyoto fabric set aside for dopes like me!!!

While I wait for the extra fabric to arrive for July's clue mistake, I'll be able to start on August's clue. It'll take me forever again because it is June's clue only the triangles need to spin in the opposite direction. Time to go cut, cut, cut and sew, sew, sew again!

Update: I have finished the quilting on My Big Gold Star. Will be getting the binding on this week .... probably. Until then, I've got a phone call to make ...

Will be linking up with my friends at Em's Scrap Bag. Check out all the other talented people linking up too. Amazing!

Current Updates & I'm a Winner!

My, it's been a while since I've posted. Can't say it's because I've gotten so much done though. Rats!

Let's start with the APQ 2018 UFO Challenge. It seems I might not be following the directions! Ha! At the end of the month, no matter how far you got, you're supposed to start making progress on the new month's project. In my first June's Post, I decided to continue working on May's project. Well, guess what? I'm still working on it! Argh! I will say that it consumes a lot of my time, including in the middle of the night. I'll wake up around 3am, toss & turn for awhile thinking about My Gold Star quilt. Then by about 3:30, I creep out of bed, down to the basement, and start quilting again until 4:30 when hubby gets up for work. I may or may not go back down after he leaves to give it another hour or so. Here's my progress so far:

Quilting in progress on My Gold Star

I'm getting really close but it takes more time than I care to admit. Such is life!

In case you're wondering, project #8 has been selected for August, which corresponds to my Colorado Shop Hop quilt. That ought to be great incentive for me to get my rear in gear to finish My Gold Star because #8 is a quilt I'd absolutely love to get finished! To refresh your memory and mine, here's all I've got so far -- blocks! There had been a plan for the finish. Sure hope I took notes, saved them somewhere, and (most importantly) can remember where I put them!

I didn't get any sewing accomplished on the Farmer's Wife 1930's Sampler Quilt. However, I did spend a couple of hours cutting up the fabric for six blocks, labeling the paper-piecing pieces, and bagging them up. I'll be ready to start sewing these up ... maybe at retreat next weekend. 

Baggies readied for sewing Farmer's Wife blocks

Mosaics laid out; Polly-approved!

I'm VERY HAPPY to say that all borders & cornerstones are complete on Mosaics. I'll need to measure the center, measure the borders, and then trim & sew accordingly. SO EXCITING! I've heard from a couple of the gals that are ahead of me that there could be some adjustments to be made. Blech! I'll probably put this last step off now because that's how I roll ...

The Jinny Beyer BOM Kyoto is coming along nicely. Unfortunately, I'm still working on June! There was a lot to sew that month but I'm almost done. I think sometime today will be the posting for August. That's good since I've also got to get July's step done! Yoi! How do I get myself into this position so often!!! Lol! 

Two blocks done, one in progress, & three to get the final two triangles sewn on.

On the knitting front, my socks have progressed from this ...

Cuffs started; Colors matching up so far

to this ...

Down the leg and around the heel; Colors still matching up!

and this ...

Front side of the sock; Colors looking good!

There's one more thing I'd love to tell you about. One day not too long ago, the talented Sherri McConnell from A Quilting Life had a giveaway coordinated with Fat Quarter Shop. All you had to do was tell Sherri what you're currently working on and she'd give away a Moda Jolly Bar of her Creekside Fabric. Guess what? I was one of three winners! This fabric is beautiful. 

It arrived in the mail yesterday. One of the things I LOVE about Sherri's fabrics is that all of her fabric lines play together nicely. If you're wondering what is a Jolly Bar, it is half a Layer Cake! Ha! There are forty 5" x 10" pieces of fabric. Obviously there will be some duplicates but there is at least one of every fabric in the Creekside line. Gorgeous!

I'll leave you now with a picture from my garden this week. Happy sewing! 

Linking up with Em on Move It Up Monday. Check out what all the others are up too also. Amazing stuff!

Nearing the End

Last night was FNSI. If you're unfamiliar with Friday Night Sew-In, just pop over to Sugarlane Designs, scroll to the bottom, and see what all the quilters have been up to Friday night. There is so much talent & friendship, you'll want to link up next month! Wendy is so sweet to hostess the event and all of us are so grateful that she gets us together every month.

As for me, I got an early start due to bathroom remodeling. We needed to convert a bathtub/shower combo into a walk-in shower since my 85-year-old mother visits every weekend. Ridiculous that we waited this long to get this project done. While the guys were here working all day yesterday, I took the opportunity to pull out the final segment of the 2nd border of Mosaic. Are you getting tired of seeing posts on this one? Don't worry ... the end is actually in sight!!!

This picture shows you how yesterday I only had the outside edges of the last four diamonds in the right-hand row. I finished that row off and also managed to sew an entire side of the left-hand row PLUS two diamonds on the final side. I didn't take a current picture. Waiting for the finale!

I've also been missing having a little knitting going on the side so I decided another pair of socks would tide me over until September, the start of the next semester of Loopy Academy. I never did my Jr. year 2nd semester and I want to "graduate", although I'm a semester late. I pulled out my newest skein of yarn and wrapped it into two almost-even balls. I like knitting socks two-at-a-time.

There's a story behind the yarn I'm using: When I was in New Jersey for my cousin Bobby's daughter's wedding last month, the bride's aunt, my cousin June Ellen and Bobby's sister, pulled me aside. She said that after the bride's mother passed away over Memorial Day weekend, they found a bunch of gift cards that she had amassed and never used. There was one to Moore Yarn at Airport Plaza, a local yarn shop, and could I use it? Well, of course I could! This is a cute shop with a lot to look at plus has the nicest owner! If you ever find yourself in NJ, this would make a very nice stop. Besides knitting & crocheting yarn, there's a guinea pig there too! Anyway here's a picture of my start on a pair of socks.

Usually when I knit a pair of socks, I don't care about color placement. I just dig in! However, my friend Millie showed me how she had knitted a pair of socks with color-changing yarn and made them match up. I'm attempting that and so far, so good! These will be fairly plain socks, letting the color be the star attraction and I am loving the colors!

In case you're curious about the guest bath, here are a couple of pics of the progress being made.

The bathroom will be completed by the end of Monday. Polly, Gracie, & I will be happy to have the house back to ourselves again without all the noise and traffic! Lol!

Linking up with Wendy @ Sugarlane Designs and Em's Scrapbag: Moving It Forward Monday

Forward Progress

Wow! July 8th. Missed posting last week since I was out of town and didn't take my laptop. I was in NJ to see my cousin's daughter get married.

NYC Skyline as Seen from the  Newark NJ Runway

It was a beautiful wedding ...

My handsome cousin walking the
beautiful bride down the aisle

and possibly the BEST reception I've ever attended.

First Dance as Mr. & Mrs.

I traveled with my mother. We usually drive when we vacation but this was a quick trip so we flew and rented a car on arrival. Here's Mom & me on the plane, ready for takeoff.

See my glasses? They broke the next day. The frame was broken when I pulled it out of the case. How did this happen? Who knows but Clarkson Eye Care is graciously replacing them for me. While in NJ I used a band-aid cut in half lengthwise to hold the arm on. It wasn't too terribly noticeable. Thankfully I had a spare pair at home that I'm wearing now. So much travel fun!

So what have I been up to lately? Got the third border of Mosaics 100% appliqued down. What a great sew-in-the-hotel project! 

It is Polly approved! Or what the heck? .... Bad kitty! Lol!

I'm still working on the quilting of Miss Millie's Mystery quilt. The ditch-quilting is done and I'm ready to start the fun of FMQ. I've got a pretty good idea of what I'm going to do and that's half the battle.

I hope you had a good 4th of July week. I've been pretty much planted in front of the TV watching Wimbledon. Love a good tennis match! Bye for now!

Will be linking up with Hibiscus Stitches @ Piece Yourself Together and Em's Scrapbag @ Moving It Forward Monday.

How'd Your Week Go?

I feel like I made pretty good progress on several fronts this week. Much satisfaction here.

First up Farmer's Wife. Got another three blocks posted. Here they are:

#39 - Grandma (Paper-Pieced)

#38 - Golda (Paper-Pieced)

#40 - Grandmother (Paper-Pieced)

I also included a picture of Polly supervising my 1/4" seam. What a sweet kitty!

As for Mosaics, got another 36 diamonds prepped, sewn together in three rows, and papers removed and Best Pressed. Now I'm ready to glue it to the background and get to appliqueing it down. That's the part I look forward to doing most. No picture, too boring.

Kyoto is coming along as well. Two rounds sewn around the six triangles and I'm busily getting the third round ready. Kitty jumped in my lap for nap so there has been a bit of a pause in the project.

I also decided that I really, really wanted to get my APQ 2018 UFO Challenge project for May done. I listed #6 as My Gold Star. I later located the steps to this mystery and it was actually called Miss Millie's Mystery. So I pieced together a back from some of the leftover units, got it sandwiched, pin-basted, and have gotten a good start on the ditch quilting. I also spent a morning looking through quilt patterns on-line and in some of my books so I have a pretty good idea of how I'm going to quilt it. Anxious to get back to that machine and get it done! Here's a little progress photo:

Fair warning: We finally got a bunch of rain and my flowers are blooming and looking pretty. Here's an overload of garden pictures (only six really) so, if you prefer not to look at them, I grant you permission *wink* to scroll to the end to leave a comment or leave now.

Looking down at the oakleaf hydrangea from the deck

Pot o' Petunias

Pot o' Zinnias

Shasta Daisies &  Coneflowers

Clematis

Dogwood Tree with Railroad Lilies

And a few days ago on my walk, I saw this spider web glistening with dew in the sunlight. Pretty!

 And here's Gracie waiting patiently for me to take the picture. See the web just to the right? No, Gracie, hop on down here to the bike trail. We're not going through the woods today.

I'll be linking up with Em's Scrapbag on Monday with Movin' It Forward.

Have a great week!

A Monday Post

I like the idea of sitting down on Mondays and checking out what I've done, what I've bought, and what I'm thinking about doing. Got the idea from Em's Scrapbag blog -- she calls it Moving It Forward Monday. Check out what she's been up to this week and all the others that have linked up HERE. I'll be adding my link when I'm done here. And thank you, Em, for doing this and inspiring us to keep on Moving It Forward!

So what have I done this week? I finished second panel for Border #2 (diamonds) of the pattern Mosaics by Irene Blanc. This picture shows it in progress but I can assure it's now done. The picture at the top of my blog is the first panel done. Two more of these panels to go and then on to the four cornerstones. They are gigantic hexie motifs which I've completed. Only need to remove the papers and applique to the backgrounds. I've already finished the four panels for Border #1 (hexies) and the center medallion. Looking forward to getting this project completed.

Hexie Motif

Four Completed Hexi Borders

Center Medallion

 I also joined up with Jinny Beyer's Mystery QAL called Miyoto. I'm hand-piecing this. The first two clues have been completed and here's my progress on Clue #3. There are four more rounds to go on these six triangles.

I also managed to sew three blocks in the Farmers Wife 1930s Sampler Blocks this week, which makes me happy!!! In order to keep up we're pacing it at 2/week. This means I caught up half a week! Goodness -- what was I thinking when I thought I could accomplish all this! Hahaha! Anyway, here's a peek at my latest three 6" blocks for Farmers Wife.

I hope to sew 3 or more of these blocks this week and make more progress on the other two projects. I also took advantage of Fat Quarters Shop's birthday bonanza and purchased a load of 1/2 yard pieces. I hope to also get this fabric starched (yes, I'm a starcher!) and ready to go for a quilt for my son and daughter-in-law.

Have a great week!