March Finishing Goal

On this last day of February, I thought I'd get a jump on making my March finishing goals. I have a few projects that I want to start this month to prep for upcoming finish months, but the main thing that I want to finish this month is my daughter's broken dishes quilt. I have the lovely top completed it has just been waiting for sandwiching and quilting.
I'm going to start making some QAYG blocks - I'm thinking Granny Squares. I also want to make an exploded star quilt for a friend. I started this the other day, but when I don't draw a line on my squares, I end up not getting a very straight block. I tried to sew together some blocks the other day and they were all off. So frustrating. I don't know why I can't learn from my mistakes and just do the work that I need to make a crisp block.
Here's to making it work.

Get your sew on today!
Green

February Finish

Okay, so it wasn't everything I wanted to finish for February, but I did start a few things and I will have a more extraordinary finish for March.

This month, I started and finished these wonderful, felt, hot cup holders for my daughter's teachers for Valentine's Day. Here they are:

I had a lot of fun making these. They are so cute and simple. I think the teachers really liked them, too. I did make one for myself to keep on my single cup french press that I keep at work.

I made a few other felted goodies but I can't blog about them because they are presents that haven't been delivered yet.

I really hope to finish something better next month. I have a few projects up my sleeve that I need to start and work on for better finishes in the months to come.

Happy Tuesday!!

Green

February is almost over

The month is coming to an end and, luckily, I finished a small project for the year of fabulous finishes. I'm looking forward to next month where is is my month to be Queen Bee of the Simply Modern Bee and I'll be receiving a bunch of quilt blocks in the mail - so excited!!

I just purchased a bunch of fabrics for some upcoming projects that I want to make. Here's what I ordered:

I want to use the Comma and the Opulent Cosmopolitan to make a stretched star for a friend of mine that is a master crafter. She really likes the color green.
I want to make another chevron quilt with the flirt and the simply color but I might just make some smallish things with those.
The Comma and Flirt are mini charms so they are pretty small squares - the Simply Color and Opulent Cosmopolitan are charms.

I wish I had more time to sew and sew and knit and sew and buy fabric... Just dreaming...

February Finish It!!!

I'm going to be participating in "A Lovely Year of Finishes." I missed January, but I'll start now and can, at least, finish 11 projects this year.
Here's how it works:
Each month pick one project, anything you like (it can even be an entirely new project, so long as you can finish it in the current month) and tell yourself, "I will finish it." Then write a blog post about the project and link it up to our Goal Setting linky party. Spend the rest of the month working on your finish. We will have a mid-month check, and though you are not required to link up to that post, it would be fun to see your progress! Finally, after you have finished your project, write a second (or third) post showing us your Lovely Finish and link it up to our "Finishes Party."
Goal setting - required link up (link starts 1st of the month and is open for seven days)
Mid-Month check in - optional (link starts on the 15th and is open for seven days)
Finishes Party - required link-up (link is open seven days before the last day of the month)

This month I will be working on:

• Valentine's Day runners/wall hangings
• a felt crown for a friend
• Penelope's broken dishes quilt (sandwich and fmq)
• starting a new pieced top
• asterisk bee block for February Simply Solids Bee

I know I'll finish more than one of these things, but let's concentrate on the Valentine's Day thingys. I really need to get these started and finished in a timely manner so they are relevant. That means this weekend, I think.

Be kind!
Green

You like me...

Ramona at ThreadTime has nominated me for the Liebster Award! I love awards. In daily life, when you're an adult, there is rarely a time when you receive any acknowledgement for anything you do. So, this award. This silly little thing is super important to me. Thanks, Ramona. I feel honored today.
 
To participate:
1. Thank and link back up to the one that nominated you (Me).
2. Answer 11 questions asked to you by me.
3. Tell us 11 things about yourself.
4. Nominate 11 of your favorite blogs that have less than 200 followers
5. Ask them 11 questions.

Here are Ramona's  11 questions to me:
1.  What’s your favorite book? or movie? My favorite book is The Great Gatsby. I have an English degree and I've read it about 20 times for school. I love it! I love everything about it. It is so American and so beautiful. If you've never read it - please do. It's short and wonderful.
2.  Cake or pie? Cake
3.  What sewing project was your all time favorite? I recently purchased some felt and I love sewing with felt. It's like butter in my machine and doesn't fray and the colors are gorgeous and rich and saturated - there's nothing that I don't love about sewing with felt.
4.  Do you have a favorite fabric manufacturer?  (Moda, Free Spirit, etc) I really like Moda, but I'm not that saavy about fabric manufacturers. I tend to pick fabrics for the color and print and don't always look at the manufacturer.
5.  Who is your favorite fabric designer? I didn't really care about this until recently. I like Jay McCarroll, Michael Miller, Riley Blake and Kaffe Fassett.
6.  Name a song that you never get sick of hearing. Distant Sun by Crowded House
7.  Where is your favorite vacation spot? here
8.  What brings you peace? Knowledge
9.  What makes you laugh? Everything
10.  Have you tried hand quilting, paper piecing, or embroidery? No. No. No.
11.  How many bees, guilds, or other sewing groups do you belong? I'm involved in two bees and I am a member of the Albuquerque Modern Quilt Guild in spite of only attending one meeting.

Eleven random things about me:

1. I love magic. I juggle. I want to make a superhero mask to wear to work.
2. I love Tori Spelling. I know we would be the best of friends.
3. I would love to have crafting be my job. How can I do this? If you know, please tell me.
4. I had my daughter at age 36. 
5. I want to have another baby.
6. I only started sewing two and a half years ago. I had taken Home Ec in seventh and eighth grades, but didn't continue until I  thought I wanted to quilt. I'm self taught. I just went out and bought a sewing machine and some fabric and "made it work."
7. I love Tim Gunn from Project Runway fame. I want to keep a little, tiny Tim Gunn in my pocket to ask questions of and to give me encouragement during my stressful days.
8.  I started a business where I ran a baby fair. I would love to have another baby fair.
9. I have insomnia and get five hours of sleep a night on average. Despite the lack of sleep, I am only tired in the morning.
10. I love to cook but I do not like to make salad-even when it only involves washing, drying and tearing lettuce. It is the most tedious task imaginable to me.
11. When I taught myself to knit I learned from a book. I learned the knit stitch and kept knitting rows and rows of a scarf and kept wondering why it didn't look like knitting. Why didn't it make the little "v"s? I finally figured it out - when I  TURNED THE PAGE. I needed to learn to purl to make the little "v"s. UGH!

My 11 Awardees:

1. http://craftyturtle1.blogspot.com 
2. http://SquawkThat.com  
3. lizmakesstuff.blogspot.com
4. fairlymerry.blogspot.com/ 
5. http://www.wafflekisses.blogspot.ca/
6. http://www.citricsugar.blogspot.com/ 
7.  http://wipgirl.wordpress.com/
8.  http://www.l3designs.blogspot.com/
9. http://lixiemakesit.blogspot.com/ 
10. http://www.lethargiclass.blogspot.com/ 
11. http://www.rachelboothhappilyeverafter.blogspot.com/

 My 11 questions to you:

1. Chocolate or Vanilla (or other?)
2. Do you work outside the home doing something you like?
3. Okay, seriously, how much fabric do you have on hand?
4. Do you belong to any bees or guilds?
5. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
6. What is your favorite movie?
7. What is your favorite color?
8. Can you define Leibster and use it in a sentence?
9. Precuts or yardage?
10.  What is your favorite food?
11. Do you like to cook?

Be kind to each other and explore the blogosphere.

Green

Sew much to do...

I joined the Simply Solids Bee for 2013 and I just purchased  quarter cuts of nine colors of Kona. I love the beautiful solid colors, but I'm so used to using prints in my quilts and using solids sparingly to punch up the prints and have them read better, bolder. Working in exclusively solids is a challenge in itself and the first block is a bit of a challenging pattern for a beginner like me. But... I joined this bee so that I could  beef up my sewing skills and get some new techniques under my belt so... I will carry on with the duck creek puzzle block of which that is a great example.

In other sewing news, I'm participating in a pay it forward event this year where I have promised to make items for five friends. I tried this before and only made two things. There are so many more skills that I have this year so I know I can make five things. One of my friends wants a felt crown like the one I made for my daughter's birthday (see above). I don't think she wants me to put her age on the front, but I can put her initial or name.
Another friend studies the brain and I'm thinking about making an anatomical brain chart into a felted pillow.
There is also a sixth friend that is going to swap with me because we are both quite crafty and it's super fun to make something for her.

This weekend should be filled with sewing and creating and designing. I'm really excited to get started.

Sew on!
Green

So sew sick

Hi all! I'm so sew sick today. I would love to be working on my Go Boldly quilt or some of the fabulous dolls from this tutorial: http://sewnstudio.com/archives/1984, but I can't. I have to heal. I have to rest. Oooh, just a little bit of fabric shopping from bed? No. I mustn't. I must rest. Must sleep. I do need to post some photos of all the things that I made for the holidays and Penn's birthday. I will do it later. I will spend the morning sleeping in my nice cozy bed and hopefully I'll feel better later today.

Be kind. And well.

Green