Show Us Your Socks–1/24/13

Judy at Patchwork Times is having another linky party – show us your socks!  Most people are showing their hand knit socks but because I only have my one and only pair and they are in the laundry today, I am showing my Knitting Girl socks.

The knitting girl is knitting with lime green yarn – my favorite.  I have to cast on another pair of socks – I want to be a sock knitter but have trouble getting started.  I took two classes to get my first pair done and I have forgotten everything I learned.  OK – probably not everything but much of it.

Check out the linky at Patchwork Times for more socks!  I am off in a few minutes to see Ricky Tims and friends for 2 1/2 days.

Melinda

Beginning Machine Piecing–Evening Class Three

Lots more progress last night.  Several friendship star blocks were made and the homework was shown off.  Next week we will start sewing rows together.

Melinda

Beginning Machine Piecing - Class Three

Fun morning. We made half-square triangles and friendship stars.

Busy Day

I went to the guild board meeting and then out to lunch - Chinese! After all that fun I headed to the shop to work on the BOM's I am running. Busy, busy.

Design Wall Monday–January 21, 2013

My mystery quilt is still on my design wall.  If I can get a few hours to dedicate to it, I can finish it.  I started putting the sashing on – all the blocks are complete.  There are only six blocks to this quilt.  Each block measures 19 inches when in the quilt.

I am really liking it so far.  You can probably see that except for the sashing, there are polka dots on all the fabrics.  There is one more border to add after the sashing.  It is a floral with a black background and bright flowers.  It has a 40’s/50’s look to it.  Hopefully I will be able to post a photo of the finished quilt next week.

For more design walls, go to Patchwork Times. 

Melinda

What I am working on!

I have been spending time working on a customer quilt.  I still have more to do but I am making progress.

Another beautiful applique quilt by Sharon.

Melinda

Mystery Quilt Update

I went to the Modern Quilt Guild sew-in Thursday night and had hoped to get more done on it yesterday but ran out of time.  I did get a couple of rows together.  Here is one of them.

I am really liking it.

Melinda

More Kaffe Fabric to Hoard

This month’s shipment from Wish Upon a Quilt is here.  More subdued colors this shipment.  They will support the brighter colors very well.

I worked on my mystery quilt at the Atlanta Modern Quilt Guild Sew-in last night and finished all the blocks.  Will work a little while on the sashing this afternoon.  Hope to have it put together soon.

Melinda

Hexie-aholics

Sarah has a monthly hexie-aholics linky party and I want to participate.  This month I am going to show my Tula Pink Hex on a Beach kit.

There are 36 baggies of hexies.  I have the papers sewn on two baggies and am almost finished with a third.  I have it all packed up in my cute little case that my sister Robin got for me last year.

It has everything I need for hours of fun!

I am linking to the Hexie-aholic post here.

Melinda

Beginning Machine Piecing–Class Two

Another wonderful class yesterday.  Here is the homework from the morning class.

Here are the nine patches from the morning class.

Can you match the nine patches with the rail fences?

Here is the evening homework.

Here are the nine patches that were made last night – great piecing and matching corners/intersections.

I am so impressed with these students.  Most of them have perfected the 1/4 inch seam which is usually the longest/hardest to master.  We will continue to work on it.

Melinda

Progress on Getting It Done List

Here is my list for getting it done in January.

1.  Complete Easy Street, including quilting and binding. Quilt top is complete – waiting for quilting.

2.  Quilt Winter Wonderland. Still untouched

3.  Finish one quilt for donation.  Located a quilt top and it needs to be quilted.

4.  Get out my scrappy bargello and complete the blocks necessary to make a quilt for my bed – not sure how much work that will be. I got this out and made one block.  Also counted the blocks and strips I have already cut and decided to use a Bali Pop for more strips.

Of course, I have done a lot of other things that are not on the list – isn’t that always the case.  Glad Judy decided to do a mid-month evaluation.  Perhaps this will keep me on track.

Melinda

Hexie Progress

There are 36 baggies of precut hexies in my Hex on a Beach kit.  I have sewn the papers on all of two baggies and well into baggie three.  I have been taking this to meetings and working on them during the meeting.  Amazing how many I can finish.

Lots more to do but at this time I think I will put papers on all of them before I start sewing them together. That should take several months.

Melinda

Design Wall Monday–January 14, 2013

Here is my design wall today.  This is the mystery quilt designed by Debbie Caffrey that we worked on at retreat.  I do sew during retreat but don’t have a lot of time.  There are only six blocks in the quilt and I have most of the pieces made for each of them but only one completely finished.  I still need to add the white triangles to the sides of the strips before I can finish putting it together.

Several people were able to finish their tops.  Here are a few.

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Here is Debbie’s sample quilt.

I can’t wait to see the finished quilts in the next few months.

For more design walls, go to Patchwork Times for lots of inspiration.

Melinda

Roaring Twenties at Retreat

I think the photos speak for themselves.

Retreat First Day

Lots of fun going on. Here are a few photos.

Retreat Ready To Go

We got to the mountains safely and got the room all set up for the retreat. More to follow after everyone gets set up,

Beginning Machine Piecing–Class One

Yesterday was a fun day – first class of Beginning Machine Piecing.  There were six students in the morning class and eight in the evening class.  After mastering the 1/4 inch seam we started making blocks.  Here are the ones from the morning class.

Here are the ones from the evening class.

Today I am driving up to the retreat.  I will pick up Debbie Caffrey at her hotel and off we go to the North Georgia Mountains!  Next post from there.

Melinda

Swoon Block

Today is Allatoona Quilt Guild day and I am taking this Swoon block to turn in.  I have Krispy Kreme bread pudding in the oven to take for the potluck lunch.

It is the first one I have made and I love it!  For our retreat in March, Swoon is going to be the featured quilt.  There will be a Swoon Quilt there (this is one of the blocks) to give everyone inspiration.  It will be given away at the end of the retreat – I hope I win.

The Tiny Stitches retreat starts on Friday so I will be heading to the mountains Thursday afternoon.  I still have to cut my mystery quilt out (we have homework to do before we go) and finalize the small projects I am teaching.  On top of that, my beginning machine piecing class starts tomorrow!  Oh my!

Melinda

Design Wall Monday–January 7, 2013

I finished Easy Street and it is actually off the design wall and ready to go on the longarm.  I was planning on putting on a border but when I put it on my bed, it was obvious that a border would make it too large, so it won’t get a border.

One of the other projects on my list of four for this month is my scrappy trips.  I got it out and put the finished blocks on the design wall.  I have several block strip sets put together and actually sewed one more block this morning.  Making progress.

For more design walls, go to Patchwork Times.  I am also linking to Bonnie’s blog.

Melinda

Why I Am Not Counting Stash Enhancements

Melinda

Still More Progress on Easy Street

I got another row done on Easy Street and started the next row.  I am more than half way done!

I started on the next row.

I have been using little pieces of fabric for leaders/enders and finally took the time to cut some bowtie kits to use.  This is what I got done while sewing yesterday.

Aren’t they cute?  I bought five yards of Kona “School Bus”.  Love that color.  I think I am going to try to use different fabrics for each of the blocks but as time goes on I will probably forget which fabrics I have already used so will probably end up with duplicates.

I have a lot of other things to do today so not sure how much progress I will make on Easy Street.

Melinda

More Progress on Easy Street

I sewed and sewed and sewed.  I have the first three rows of Easy Street put together.  It is now to big for the design wall so here it is on my bed – excuse the mess on the side table/sewing machine.

This is a big quilt.

I am thinking I will go ahead and put a border on it even though it will probably be large enough for the bed without one.  I am going to stop by the shop today and will pick up backing and borders.

Melinda

Easy Street Progress–First Two Blocks

I had to work at the quilt shop yesterday so no sewing until evening.  I finished up the setting triangles and started on the blocks.  I put one of each together and am taking a break to go out to breakfast with Bill.

Here is what I have so far!

I am really liking it.  I love how the gray squares set everything else off.  How clever of Bonnie to have us use the gray as a constant.

I hope to get more blocks done today, along with getting some sewn together. 

Melinda