Winter Scenes

 

Doesn't Orion look cute all bundled up for winter?  Dakin Humane was looking for photos of our foster guinea pig, so we pulled together a quick photo shoot on the one day all week that had sunshine.

I swear he's smiling in that photo. 

Evolution

 

I'm working on my Small Works submission.  What could I do in a six inch square?  I started with a NYB block, but then moved to a wonky NYB circles.  I'm nuts.  I've picked fabrics and cut out my paper pieces.  We'll see how it goes!

 

 

The full-on creative process gets messy.  Stuff everywhere!  Two sewing machines out and in use.  I am free motion quilting some small stuff I had sandwiched a couple of months ago as well as piecing the Small Works project.

Project Quilting 17.1 - Window Runner

This year's Project Quilting has begun.  The first challenge is called "A Clean Slate" - in which we pick a project that aligns to whatever a clean slate means to us.  As I was thinking chalkboards, Rob reminded me that I was going to make a runner for our kitchen window and suggested a whole-cloth quilt.  Oddly enough, a whole-cloth quilt was one of the suggestions in the challenge post.  Then, as I was considering how quickly off-white fabric might stain, Rob said to use a solid color with white thread... and I immediately snapped back to my thoughts on chalkboards.  Black and white it is!

Our kitchen window is a great place to put plants in the winter but I found some of the planters left marks on the paint.  I've added a variety of coasters under them, then we thought a single runner might be a good solution.   

Bursting at the Seams

 

Oh, boy!  A quick post before a busy weekend.  First up - I have a flimsy for the lone star quilt.  I pushed through the last few seams so I could start working on my Project Quilting quilt (due on Sunday!).  I did pretty well with the points, but the middle does not lay flat - obviously something is wonky.  I'm not confident it will hang straight on the wall.  I'll have to take a better look at it next week.

Orion

Meet Orion, our latest foster guinea pig from Dakin Humane.  Isn't he a handsome little guy?

Finishes for 2025

My finished quilts for 2025 are few and far between.  That will change for 2026 for I am currently working on seven quilts, including mug rugs and a few wall hangings.  Next year is shaping up to be a banner year.  

But what I didn't accomplish in volume, I did in SIZE. 

My first set of finishes were all part of this year's Project Quilting:  three post cards, a pair of bowl cozies, an apron (that I love), and a wall hanging.  I worked on these a week at a time between my big, king-sized project...

Points All Over

It was fun using up my grey and black pieces.  Then the lone star quilt took on a life of its own and I had to curtail my designs lest it get too big to hang on the wall!  I'm now trying to figure out how to finish the corners without introducing yet another fabric.  How many diamonds or partial diamonds do I need?  And how to square it?  This is the drawback of designing a scrappy quilt as you stitch it together.   

Blogiversary #15

Another year of blogging my adventures.  Fifteen!?!  

It was a quiet year - I had one big quilting project, not a lot of foster guinea pigs and some of health issues.  All those things slowed down my writing topics.  

Regardless... I managed to have plenty of good times with family and friends (I love you all), got out dancing (whee!), snorgled a few piggies (when can I foster baby piggies again?), and finished Winter Stars (huzzah!).    I even worked on the Drapes of Doom!   I am so lucky to get to do the things I do.  

Thanks for reading (I'm always surprised when someone comes up to me and says "I saw that on your blog").  I appreciate the comments!  I look forward to another year of sharing stories.