Sampler Quilt

Last year, I started several projects at the beginning of the year.  One was a combination of the Craftsy BOM from 2012, and Amy Gibson's Sugar Block Club.  It was my intention to make a queen sized sampler quilt.  I finally caught up with some new projects, and so decided to get back to my Sampler quilt.  I had 21 blocks, and decided I needed 30, so these are the other 9.  Some are from the original project, and a few are blocks that I liked and decided to do rather than paper piece, or other things that I haven't enjoyed that much.  I plan to do sashing and cornerstones and borders, so I'm not sure how fare I'll get before Bonnie's 2014 mystery.  My house is needing attention, and I MUST make that a priority.

July Craftsy BOM 2012

Just one more BOM and July will be finished.  Still have the Sugar Block Club block to do. 

Another version of the Dresden.  Looks like I'm circle challenged.

Good thing I'm almost done, I have a baby quilt that hasn't been started yet, and the shower is the middle of August. 

It's Picking Up

The sewing front has picked up a little.  This is the July Craftsy 2013 BOM.  It's a big block, 17 1/2 by 18 1/2 inches.  I think that this may be the center pattern for a baby quilt for my newest great-grandbaby due in October.  It would be cute in little girly baby fabrics, I think.  Maybe some bow ties around it as a start. 

The year is over half finished, and projects are starting to come together.  Hope this one turns out well, some of my color choices are a bit odd, but I wanted quilts that looked different from each other colorwise, too. 

I have the initial cutting done for 5 or 6 blocks, and then July BOM's will be pretty much finished.   I'd like to do a dresser top cover for the other dresser in our room as part of the RSC for July, but don't know if I'll get time.  We have out of state company due and even though at this point they aren't staying with us, I hope to get to be included in some of the festivities.  It's my niece and her 8 children.  They range from almost 2 to going into the second year of college.  Quite a family. 

BOM's Caught up for Now, Yay!

It's coming along.

The June Craftsy BOM 2013 is wrinkly but done.  I don't think that y seams will ever be my favorite.  I don't worry a whole lot about a few wrinkles, as I aspire to the crinkly look in my quilts, and I figure that after washing they'll blend right in.  I do need to improve my pressing though.  Now, I'm a little ahead of the game, I can relax tomorrow and go with my daughter and grandson to see my brothers and my nephew, I'm looking forward to a nice day.  Monday will be for the Deck-ade the Halls block and the rest of the month I can finally start on the barns and table topper for my husbands dresser.  Can't believe I'm finally caught up for now.  I have no self control, I also bought the pattern for another project.  The Flower Patch Quilt Along, the pattern is Flower Patch from Green Fairy Quilts.   There's a Flickr group, too.  It's here.

June Block A, thank goodness these were easy ones.  Craftsy BOM June 2012

Block B, blurry, sorry.

I have 18 blocks now toward my Queen sized quilt from the Sugar Block Club and Craftsy BOM 2012.  These are the latest 3.

Sugar Block Club for June - Done.

The OKCMQG block of the month for June.  I live in Florida, not Oklahome, but they've been kind enough to share. 

A Little Progress and Plans

I pretty much wasted 2 days watching quilting videos (they're like potato chips) and playing on the computer, but this morning I got some cutting done.  I'm ready now to start sewing on the Craftsy Re-piecing the Past, the Craftsy 2012 BOM, the OKCMQG BOM, the Sugar Block Club BOM and the Craftsy 2013 BOM.   It would be really nice if I were to have them finished by Monday and then I could concentrate on the Deck-ade the Halls step 2 and maybe have the rest of the month to concentrate on the Quilty Barn Along and making a topper for my husband's dresser. 

Craftsy BOM 2013 April and May

Not perfect, but it's done and it's huge.  4 fan blocks and together they make one 18 1/2 inch block.  I told you it was huge.  This was Aprils.

May's block is Strippy Spools and we make 8, but only use 7 in the quilt.   Less challenging than Aprils, thank goodness. 

My Mock up is getting more filled in, which is logical.   Still a ways to go though.  Again, logical.   My brother in law's friend says older people are staters of the obvious, I guess I need to watch it.  Only a third of the month left and to catch up I still need to do May's Civil War block, and April and May's Craftsy  BOM 2012 and also April and May's Sugar Block Club.  I'm hoping to finish, but the baby my brother and I have been waiting for arrived yesterday, so now I need to do the label, baste it and quilt it.    The baby quilt goes to the top of the list, oh well, eventually I'll get to the other two projects I want to start.  I may just start the Fat Quarter Shop Deck-ade the Halls and hold off on the Barn quiltalong.  I'm starting to feel stressed and bogged down and that takes away from the fun of it all. 

 

March Craftsy 2013 BOM - It's Huge

I was going to say that it's giant, but I'm not even sure that it's the biggest one, so I decided that huge would do.  It's a 17 inch block.

March Sugar Block Club and March Craftsy BOM 2012

OOps, I didn't look at the instructions and I turned a diamond into an X. 

March Sugar Block Club was more fancy making than it is fancy looking. 

This one is wrong too, but it was on purpose.  It was supposed to be a star, but I turned it into a cross or X to be consistent.

The March Craftsy BOM 2012 and the March Sugar Block club.

For fun and because 9 is a nice even quilting number, I thought I'd see what January, February and March would look like.  Sugar Block club blocks are up and down the middle.  I'm hoping that my light pink background and the gray will keep the red and blue from making it into a patriotic quilt and make it more unisex on the feminine side for DH and my bedroom. 

February Sugar Block Club and Craftsy BOM 2012

Not perfect, but done.  I'm not crazy about paper piecing.

Only one more block to do and then I'm working on a lap quilt for a nurse who was particularly helpful to DH in the hospital.  Guess my Easy Street and Scrap Vomit can wait a little while. 

BOM's and DH

I didn't sew at all for almost a month, as DH went in the hospital for an ablation and ended up with open heart surgery.  After two weeks he was sent home and went back in after about three days, long story, but he spent a few more days in ICU and then a few in the regular room and this time released to rehab for an approximate one to four week stay.  I stayed with him almost 24 hours a day when he was in the hospital, but now that he is in rehab I stay with him about 12 hours a day, over night actually.  In the hospital he had a private room and there was a recliner and a love seat, in the rehab, only a straight chair and a roommate.  I stay over night, but can't sleep well there, so go home to rest.  Since I can't always rest, I have sewn.  I tried to catch up on the Rainbow Scrap Challenge first and here were my first blocks. 

Next, I did the 16 patches.

Then on to what will be either a Rainbow Scrap Bargello or a Rainbow Scrappy Trip Around the World from Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville. 

The leftover 2 1/2 inch strips will become a Rainbow Strippie Jelly Roll Race style quilt at the end.

Here's a wrap up of February's purple RSC.   Top left, possible bargello, top right, 16 patches, bottom left possible trip around the world, middle right strippie, and bottom right snowballs and nine patches.  If you want to enjoy lots of purples and maybe some pinks, go to Angela's blog, Soscrappy here.

Here is the lesson four block from the Craftsy Re-piecing the past, Civil War Blocks Then and Now class.  I didn't read the directions very well and had to do this one twice.   My blocks aren't as crooked as they seem, my design flannel is over a louvered door, and it is wavy.   My colors for this one are blue, gold, green and red.   I'm a bit color challenged, so each quilt is a big ? mark.

Another Craftsy class, this is the February lesson from the Craftsy BOM 2013.   Brown, cheddar, green and purple for this one.   I can only hope.

These two are the February blocks from the Craftsy BOM 2012.  I've made them before, but this time I'm adding them to the Sugar Block Club blocks for a queen sized quilt.  Again, they are square, but don't look it due to the wavy flannel.  Pink, gray, red and blue for this one.  I still have the Sugar Block Club and my OKC Modern Quilter's Guild block to do and then I'll be caught up on my BOM's.   Hope next month is better, but when DH comes home I guess I could be busier as it's hard to know how independent he will be.   Good news for my little town in Central Florida.  We had a Hobby Lobby open this week so now I'll have my local quilt shop, Walmart and Hobby Lobby within 15 minutes.  I know how fortunate that I am. 

Craftsy BOM Finished

It's wild and crazy and it's finished.  Definitely not a quilt for the bashful.   I've decided that I'm going to try and do these blocks all again and add the 12 that Amy Gibson is offering for next year, and then I'll have 30 blocks plus a couple of extras to do a quilt for my bed.  It won't be quite as 'happy', but hopefully a fun quilt at the end.  If you like the idea of the sampler quilt, you can go on the Craftsy website and this years was free.  Next years is only $7.95. 

Here is the flannel back that picked up a few threads and fluffs off the floor.  If I spread it around a little I probably won't need to vacuum. 

Filling in the Time and Catching Up

I got up early this morning, as usual, and started off by getting my daughter's Kindle Fire bag up to this point.  It's pretty close to finished probably only another hour or so, but I needed the D rings to go further and my daughter has those.  She's coming after work and hopefully, she will be using it tomorrow.   Hope the picture doesn't make anyone dizzy, I flipped it.

Yesterday, I basted the bottom quilt, my RRSR (RRCB) and the top quilt, Maddox's baby quilt, and after I got as far as I could on the bag this morning I started basting the middle one, my Craftsy BOM.  Now, to clean, oil and change the needle in my Juki, and wind about 100 bobbins (a slight exaggeration) and I'll be set to do some meandering.  When I was almost done I had to stop and take DH to the heart doctor.  He didn't seem to have any real answers, I hate when Dr's ask me what is wrong, but his loop recorder showed that he had had several episodes of atrial fibrillation in the past 2 weeks, so within a month he should be having his ablation.  Meanwhile, on Dec. 10th he'll have surgery for a skin cancer on top of his head.  I know it could be worse, but he doesn't seem to catch too many breaks these days.   I sure hope this helps and he gets some verve back in his life.
When I refrerred to filling in the time, I mean until Friday when clue no. 2 of East Street is out.  I think I'll be ready.