Finishes for 2021

I did lots of work this year, mostly in the first few months.  I currently have four unfinished quilts, so January of next year is going to look amazing for finishes.

Fussy Spots, Mini Nauset Light
Kitty Corners, Crazy Postcard, From the Sunroom

I participated in the Project Quilting this year, which was fun!  These were my entries for fussy cutting, mini quilt, snail trail quilt, crazy quilt and Ab Intra (from within).  The crazy quilt is a post card.  The others are mug rugs and table toppers or little wall hangings.  I learned something new with each one.

I Like Thursday: Winding Down the Year

One last set of things I like for 2021 to share with I Like Thursday with Lee Anna and company.  I cannot believe that 2021 will be over and done.

The family celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve, which was wonderful because the roads turned icy on Christmas Day.  (And did you see the ornament I made this year?)  On our walk after dinner we came across this rather unique Christmas tree.  What do you think?  An interesting use for lobster traps and buoys.

Combative Neutrals

I really like the colors on this quilt, but I'm having the darndest time arranging them to my satisfaction.  I've done several arrangements - but they're all missing something.  Sunday afternoon I moved the quilt off the design floor and onto the design wall.  Turns out, that was an improvement.  The lighting isn't the best for photographing quilts, but it's been easier to see the arrangement.

I think I'm close.  I need to cut a bunch of pieces, swap around some of the colors.  I'm a column of darker squares.  Ugh - that will require a trip to the fabric shop and hope I can find matches.  The little squares in the bigger squares will be a darker color of the outer square.  So once I figure out the layout, it will go together quickly, including the backing.  I even have a couple of fabrics that should work nicely for the binding.  Oh!  I want to be sewing.  Maybe by the new year?  That would be a wonderful way to start the year.

Blogiversary #11

Eleven years of blogging.  Time flies!

What started as a way to share guinea pigs and sewing projects has grown a bit beyond that (although that's still the heart of the matter).

Chinese Dragon

 

I've had good years and okay years with ornaments.  This year was a very good year.  Be prepared for a lot of photos.

When I made the Chinese man last year I was inspired to make a dragon, too.  I had a picture of what I wanted to make; creating it was a bit more complicated. 

I love how Chinese dragons are so long and sinewy, all twisty.  I wanted to capture that.  I've seen some holding a ball, so I wanted to do that, too. 

I Like Thursday: Almost Christmas

Thursday!  Time to join LeeAnna for I Like Thursday.  There was lots of good stuff happening around here.

Our family cookie party was canceled.  Bummer.  But it meant I had more time to myself than I anticipated.  So I played.

On Friday we traded Cupcake for Twix and Brownie.  Oh, it's fun to have a pair of pigs - they're so much more dynamic than a single one.  Brownie and Twix like the cuddle cup - but half they time they're under it than it it.  Strange piggies.

We rounded them up for photos on Monday.  Now they're settling in and starting to get demanding!  Feed us now!

Plethora of Pastels

I spent the weekend cutting fabric.  I like the colors in this, but they're hard to differentiate in low light.  I can't work on the arrangement in the evening or in the morning when the sunroom window tints the sunlight.  It's an unexpected difficulty.  

Even though the basic block is the same as Squares and Pinwheels, these blocks are mirrored.  This changes the cutting; the squares continue to require all half-kites in the same direction, but the diamonds need both left and right half-kites.  Some squares need right-sided kites, the others need left.  It's also going to be a challenge to sew together - all the points line up together.

This is the first throw-down on the floor.  I need to play around and see what sticks.  I'm also deciding what to do with the center squares:  all one color, or a mix of the colors on the quilt?

Brownie and Twix

For some reason I thought our latest fosters, Brownie and Twix, were going to be girls.  Rob brought them home on Friday and I quickly realized how wrong I was.  These two are good, solid adult boars.  Brownie and Twix settled in fairly quickly - other than a screaming humpfest on Saturday morning as they re-established themselves.  (I really wish I had videoed that - it was impressive.)  After that, they turned down the volume to the normal rumblestrutting and grousing over who got the hammock or the paper bag.

On Monday I did a short session of pig torture:  a photo shoot.  I'll have next year's cards all set to go!  They were really good boys.  We started off with pandemonium as they scrambled all over the set trying to get away.  But then they found the bits of carrot and lettuce and decided this might not be so bad.  They didn't mind getting dressed up, although we got more photos of the hats falling off their heads than with them on.

Sunrise Backing and Fabric Pull

Backing done and the quilt is sandwiched.  December goal accomplished!  Plenty of time to go.  Huzzah.

So far I've sandwiched this and the Icy Colors quilt.  I have the Sunny Lanes and the next baby quilt to sandwich next.  I'm happy with the king sized batting I purchased - I'll get all four of these quilts out of the one piece of batting.

I Like Thursday: Errands

 

Thursday already?  Time to join in with Not Afraid of Color's I Like Thursday.

I just finished three days off.  They flew by, which is a bummer.  On the other hand, I got a lot done, which makes me happy.  Some shopping done, cards sent, made some calls and ran errands.  Not so much sewing as I'd like, but maybe this means I'll have time this weekend.

The lady up the street decided the furry coat wasn't warm enough, and has added pants, boots, a scarf and hat.  And rocking a new pair of glasses.

Backing Choices

My one monthly goal is to get this backing done.  So far I've pieced together all the leftover half-kite pieces that didn't work on the front.  These are just the square portion of the square and pinwheels block.  These mini-blocks were harder to square than the full-size block, which surprised me.  I assembled them pretty quickly - I bet it took longer to lay them out than sew them together.  Piecing together the crumb block convinced me I do not want to make this pattern with crumbs.  There were way too many seams and bulk.

There were more pieces than I thought I had.  I sewed together three whole columns.  They just about reach to the top and bottom of the quilt.  Now I just want to add a couple of big pieces.  I have cream, gold and a very dark grey.  The cream seemed washed out.  I thought I'd like the dark grey the best, but I'm now considering the gold.   

What do you think?

I Like Thursday: Visits, Sunlight and Shadows

Mom came over for the weekend.  She brought some of my dollhouse stuff and a newspaper clipping Boston Globe from 1959.  Five industrial arts classes in the Boston Public Schools volunteered to make dollhouses to donate to local hospitals.  This photo features my grandfather and the dollhouse is nearly identical to the one he built my mother years before.  How cool is that?

That dollhouse will be a new project next year - it needs some work and updating.  I'm looking forward to sprucing it up.

I Like Thursday: It's Cold Out

It's December and it feels like it.  Even the sculpture down the street was feeling it!

December OMG

I want to do so many things:  there's three quilts to sandwich and a fourth quilt create.  But it's December.  Therefore, I need to keep my goal simple:  to make a backing for the Squares and Pinwheels quilt I finished in November.  If I manage to find time to sandwich or make bindings or a label?  That's all bonus.  One can dream, right?  

Sharing with:
Elm Street Quilts - December OMG