Stash Busting 2010 - Week 4

Still no pictures this week.  We're still trying to load all the software that needs to get loaded after the computer "puked" last week.  I did finish up the quilt top that I was working on and I even pieced the backing...so stash USED! :-)  I was going to quilt it on my frame, but since I haven't fully set it up yet and haven't done a quilt on it, I don't want the first one to be one that I'm giving away....so it will be quilted on my little sewing machine versus the frame.  Eventually I'll put something on the frame.

So here are my numbers:

Used this Week:   2.30 yards
Used Year to Date: 7.35 yards

Added this Week: 0.0 yards
Added Year to Date: 0.0 yards

Net Used for 2010: 7.35 yards

Stash Busting 2010 - Week 3

My stash busting post is a little late this week, but its here none the less.  Nothing bought...nothing used....so I'm still holding steading on the positive side.

Use this Week: 0 yards
Used Year to Date: 5.05 yards

Added this Week: 0 yards
Added Year to date: 0 yards

Net Used for 2010: 5.05 yards



So why was my post late?.....  lots of reasons unfortunately.

1.  Around the middle of last week, a little bump on my side decided to "explode" and become an infected gland.  I took antibiotics for two days, then had to go to a surgeon to have it drained.  Ouchy!  I'm on antibiotics for the next two weeks and go back to see the surgeon on the 25th to see if they need to take the gland out or if it will just fix itself.  My guess is that it will have to come out as its still oozing right now. (I know...yucky!)

2.  On Thursday, since I wasn't feeling well, I just hung out on the couch watching TV after work.  Since DH wasn't interested in vegging, he went on the computer.  Even though he wasn't downloading anything, we managed to pick up a virus on the computer....and a nasty one at that.  None of the anti-virus software knows about it yet because its so new, so we couldn't get it off.  Finally, one of the softwares "saw" it, but proceeded to delete a file that was necessary for logging into the computer.  Thankfully my brother-in-law is a GOD with computers and was able to replace the file.  We were able to retrieve all our data off the computer, but couldn't save the rest of the computer.  While it didn't trash the hardware for the computer, we had to completely re-format the machine and are slowly putting stuff back onto it now.  The camera software isn't loaded yet, so I don't have any pictures to share of the sewing that I have gotten done.

So that's why my stash report is late.  The good news is that I almost finished another quilt top.  I have one set of borders to put on and then its ready for quilting.  Oddly enough, I made the quilt using Jacob's ladder blocks and the quilt is for a baby who was just born and his name is Jacob (just found out about the name yesterday).  Somewhat ironic that I chose those blocks for the quilt.

Now I just have to get my courage up to actually finish putting leaders onto the quilting frame I bought this past fall and actually put a quilt on it.  Its sad that its been sitting there unused since late September, but what can I say...I've been busy.  Hopefully the machine will behave and I'll get the quilts quilted quickly. :-)

Stash Busting 2010 - Week 2

I'm still in the positive this week.  Nothing used this week, but more importantly....nothing bought!  :-)

I've been working steadily on the new baby quilt.  As of last Sunday evening, I had all the HSTs sewn and cut apart.  I pressed them last night and today will probably be spent trimming them down to size.  I also made all the 4-patches this week....all 96 of them!  They also got pressed last night, so I'll make sure they're all square today.  Since I counted this fabric last week when I cut them all out, there's nothing else new cut this week so my numbers stay the same.

Since I haven't posted pictures in a while, here's a picture of the last baby quilt that I made.  Its quilted at this point, but I haven't sewn the binding on yet (but the binding is already made and ready to put on).

Used this Week: 0 yards
Used year to Date: 0 yards

Added this Week: 0 yards
Added Year to Date: 0 yards

Net Used for 2010: 5.05 yards

How did everyone else do this week??

Another Day...Another Dollar....

Such is the way life seems to go forward.  While I would much rather be spending my time quilting, I am currently training for Root Cause Analysis at work.  I've done RCA's before, but now I'm being "officially" trained, which just means that everyone will come to me to try to solve their problems.  It might be a good thing and I enjoy doing RCAs...so hopefully it will be good.

We've decided to list our house again.  We got no luck over the summer, but after talking with a new real estate agent that was recommended to us, we've realized that our other agent was completely incompetent.  She marketed our house such that it wasn't marketed to its full potential (marketing to the 80% of the population that wouldn't want to buy our house makes it pretty good that you won't sell the house).  So we're feeling much more excited about our new agent and the fact that we may actually be able to sell the house.

I've also made some progress in the quilting front.  The latest baby quilt (no pics yet) is quilted and is waiting for the binding to be sewn on by machine.  I also cut the fabric for the next quilt and started sewing together the 96 HSTs needed for the quilt.  I have a total of 96 4-patches that need to be made that I'm hoping to get started on tonight.  I also finally put the velcro onto the leaders for the quilting frame that I bought this past fall (about time!).  It only took 15 minutes, but it was one of those things that I had been putting off doing and I should have just done it long ago. ;-)

Stash Busting 2010 - Week 1

A new year and the first stash report is upon us! Last year I didn't really set any goals, it was more of a year to figure out my buying habits and quilting habits. I ended up buying almost 100 yards more than I used. I still have at least 4 quilts that I bought fabric for last year and I haven't done anything but wash that fabric. This year my goal is to use at least as much fabric as I buy.

No pictures yet of the projects that I've been working on, but I do have some good numbers. I spent most of today cutting out material for a baby quilt that I will be making. The blocks in the quilt are a variation on Jacob's Ladder blocks. Its all in pastel blues with some yellow mixed in.

The "rule" I'm following this year for counting stash used is when I cut it...its considered used. Once I cut the fabric, I won't be using it for something else, and I've found that once its cut I'm actually very good about sewing it up into a quilt top and getting it quilted fairly quickly (at least for me).

So my numbers for the first week are.....

Used this Week: 5.05 yards
Used year to Date: 5.05 yards

Added this Week: 0 yards
Added Year to Date: 0 yards

Net Used for 2010: 5.05 yards

Stash Busting - 12/27/2009

Last stash busting post of 2009! I don't have any current pictures, but I did use 2 yards of fabric this week for the backing of a quilt. Unfortunately, I also received fabric for Christmas along with purchasing some fabric for another baby quilt so I have to add fabric again this week. Getting the fabric was definitely good though. ;-)

Here are my numbers:

Fabric Added this Week: 12.50 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 143.50 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 2.00 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 47.12 yards

Net Fabric: <96.38> yards

Almost 100 yards in the hole...I guess I need to start buying less and quilting more! :-) I'm hoping in 2010 I'll at least break even with my purchases.

How did everyone else do this week?

Stash Busting - 12/21/2009

I'm a day late with the stash report, but I wanted to get my fabric counted for this year since I probably won't be able to post anything on the last Sunday. :-)

Here's Rainbow Skies that I finished up a few weeks ago for my husband's Grandmother. I hope she'll really like it. We were going to hand deliver it, but she lives in Boston and we're definitely glad we didn't drive out there this past weekend....if we did, we'd still be there due to the snow! The fabric for this quilt was already counted, but its another finish for the year.

I love having the Christmas tree up this time of year. The little lights just make it look happy and I love turning off all the other lights in the house and just seeing the tree lit. It just makes me happy for some unknown reason.

So...onto more quilty stuff...

I finished up the quilt top for another baby quilt this past week, but after seeing it all together I didn't really care for my fabric choices for a baby quilt. The fabrics are pretty bright instead of pastels. So that quilt will get finished up and then sold on Etsy or something like that. I did have to purchase fabric for the baby quilt that we plan to give to some friends who are due in January. Thankfully, that fabric hasn't arrived yet...so I'm not counting it yet. :-)

I did cut everything for a quilt that I'm calling Sixties Charm. It uses charm squares in the middle portion that have a sixties feel with greens and browns and the sashing between the squares is a nice chocolate brown. Since that fabric is cut, which means it WILL get used... all 2-1/4 yards gets counted.

So with all said and done, here are my numbers at this point.....

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 131 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 3.38 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 45.12 yards

Net Fabric: <85.88> yards

While I didn't really have a goal for this year, its interesting to see how much fabric I actually bought versus used. I didn't think that I would actually use 45 yards of fabric this year! I think in 2010 I'll have to up the stakes a bit and try to break even with my purchases and the fabric used....maybe I'll even be able to make a dent is the stash I have.

Happy quilting and Merry Christmas.

Another Month Down....One To Go

Its very hard to believe that its December already. This past year has flown by, but it seems like that is happening more often these days. Where has the year gone???

November was a productive month...finished up a baby quilt, made a lot of progress on my needlepoint, almost finished a large quilt (Rainbow Skies...it has 1 side left to sew for binding) and did a lot of things around the house.

We're still looking for our next house even though our current house is off the market. If we see something we love, we'll put it back on in an instant and price it to sell, but at this point we haven't found that good house. It seems like builders increase the size of the house according to lot size. Just because we want more than an acre of land (preferrably 2-5 acres) doesn't mean that we want a house that 4000+ square feet! Its hard to find that combination around here. We can get a gorgeous 3000 sq ft house on 0.5 acre of land and have neighbors RIGHT there, but we don't want neighbors RIGHT there. We'll keep looking and we'll eventually find the house want...hopefully.

So in the next few weeks, along with the copious amount of Christmas shopping and preparing food for various get togethers, I have to finish up the binding on Rainbow Skies and wash it and I have to finish up the baby quilt that I just started. The baby is due in mid-January, but I'm hoping to get the majority of the quilt done this year so that after Christmas I can start making new quilts with the fabric I hope to get! :-) I also have fabric for four other quilts that I had planned to do this year, but never got a chance to start...so maybe if I make really good progress over the next few weeks I'll be able to delve into those piles too.

We did get the Christmas tree up this past weekend and once I dig the camera out from its hiding place, you'll get a nice picture of it. :-)

Before we know it...it will be 2010!

Stash Busting - 11/22/2009

Surprisingly, this was a pretty productive week on the sewing front. I was able to completely finish sewing the binding down on Stars & Hearts that I started last Sunday evening. I was also able to get the binding made and machine sewn to the Rainbow Skies quilt. Here's some pictures of the Stars & Hearts quilt now that its finished:

I also started cutting out the material for the next baby quilt I'm making. So I've been a decent dent in the stash this week. Here's the numbers:

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 131 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 2.1 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 41.75 yards

Net Fabric: <89.25> yards

Stash Busting - 11/15/2009

Wow its been a long time since I did a stash busting post. Heck....its been a while since I posted at all. Its been pretty hectic here and with spending my entire day at work on the computer, I haven't wanted to be on it much when I get home. I have however been doing some quilting.

I was able to get the quilting done on Rainbow Skies. I don't have the pictures of it quilted yet since I had to put marks on the top and haven't taken them off yet. I did however give this baby quilt to a co-worker after his son was born.

This past week, we had Veteran's Day off from work...so I spent most of the day sewing. I hemmed some new leaders for the quilting frame that I bought (I'm waiting for the velcro to arrive from Amazon) and I got a new quilt top about 90% done. I finished it up on Thursday evening. This one is from a kit called Purple Squared from Keepsake Quilting.

The photo makes it look a little washed out, but the colors in person are amazing. This picture shows the colors a little better:

I also have another baby quilt that I quilted and put binding onto it. I just started the hand sewing last night, so no pictures of that one yet. Once the binding's done, I'll have some pictures. All in all, I've had a pretty good stash busting session lately. ;-) The only bad part is that I did have to buy some more fabric for a baby due in January, to test out sewing on my quilting frame and to make a new quilt that I designed. The new quilt is going to use some charm squares that I bought last year and here's the yardage to go along with it:

(sorry about the picture being a little fuzzy)

So all in all I bought 15.5 yards of fabric (yikes) and only used 4 yards in the past few weeks. Here's the full stash report:

Fabric Added this Week: 15.50 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 131 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 4.00 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 39 yards

Net Fabric: <92> yards

Quilting Book

I've been a very poor blogger lately. Things have been so hectic and busy here lately. Plus with work being CRAZY busy, I spend all day staring at the computer and the last thing I want to do when I come home is to look at the computer more. However, I thought I'd post about a good book I just finished reading. Its called "A Thread of Truth" by Marie Bostwick.

The story is about a young woman who runs away with her two children from her abusive husband. She was content to live with the lies she told herself that the father was good man until he started beating her young daughter, then she knew she had to leave with the kids. She ended up in a woman's shelter and befriended a group of quilters that helped her back on her feet. The quilt shop she starts working at was fortunate to have a quilting tv show filmed at the shop and unfortunately her husband sees a glimpse of her on the TV and of course comes to get her. I don't want to spoil the story...but its truly a good book about a young woman who went through a lot of bad stuff to find confidence in herself with the help of others and to overcome the abuse she's endured.

Anyway - I have been doing quilting stuff, but as usual, I don't have any photos. Eventually I'll get some more photos on here!

Quilty Things

It always seems like the more stressful work gets, the less I seem to post blogs....so as you can tell work has been very stressful. I'm hoping things will slow down a bit, but we'll just have to wait and see. I've been pretty stressed out the past few weeks and a little more than a week ago, a cold started to take hold. By Thursday of last week, I just had enough and went home early. Slept all evening Thursday, went to bed at 9pm and slept until 10am the next morning. Then slept off and on all Friday afternoon. I felt much better Saturday morning, so I think the rest was what my body needed to recharge itself and get back to "normal".

So quilty stuff....

There's a local quilt shop near me that will teach a one-on-one 3 hour class for using their Husqvarna MegaQuilter. I signed up for the class a few weeks ago, so I was able to go up there today and play on their MegaQuilter. I learned all the ins and outs of the machine and how to load the quilt on the frame. So hopefully I'll remember how to do it on my own frame. ;-) By the end of the 3 hours, my motion on the machine was much better and I was able to write out my name very well along with forming stars, hearts, and loops. I tried some feathers, and while they need some work, its getting better.

I'm hoping that I'll be able to order some velcro for the new leaders I got for my frame. The woman who had it before me cut the leaders down the middle so she could setup the frame for a 5' length. The problem is...she didn't hem any of the cut edges and they're raveling pretty good. So I picked up some leaders at Joann's the other weekend, but they didn't come with any velcro. So I'll have to get some off eBay and then hem the leaders and get the velcro attached...THEN I can try out my own quilting machine! ;-)

Anyway - I didn't mean for this post to be long since its already 9:30pm and almost bedtime. Have a good week!

Stash Busting - 9/27/2009

We've had a lot of things happening lately. Still trying to sell the house....

Earlier this year we joked that we didn't want to be selling the house, buying another house and buying a new car at the same time. A few weeks ago, R's car started really acting up. We took it to the mechanic and the clutch along with the transmission were bad. So we ended up getting a new car. R really wanted a blue car (he's always had a blue car) but since we wanted a 2009 model and they're hard to come by now, we ended up with a dark grey metallic. The paint has little flecks of metal in it that reflects the light around it. Its also fun to drive! ;-)

I also got a finish done this past week. The Sweet Dreams quilt for a co-worker was finished and its even washed already.

I've been also making progress on the Rainbow Skies quilt. Its about 1/3 to 1/2 quilted. Its been taking a while to mark it and then actually do the sewing. Plus, my cat, Ellie, has insisted on helping. ;-)

So onto the report.... Just a little bit bought this week so that I can test out my new toy. Nothing used as I've already counted binding for Sweet Dreams and the backing for Rainbow Skies.

Fabric Added this Week: 6.0 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 115.5 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 35 yards

Net Fabric: <80.5> yards

New Quilting Toy

I'm so excited...I'm getting a new toy this weekend. :-) I've been toying with the idea of getting a frame for my Bernina sewing machine so that I could do machine quilting a bit easier. I researched the frames a bunch and found a frame I liked, but then after reading some other things about machine quilting realized that at most I'd only be able to quilt a maximum path of 4" using my Bernina. :-( Sigh.

So I happened to go onto Craig's List for my area and found someone selling a lightly used Husqvarna MegaQuilter. This other quilter was upgrading her machine quilting system and decided to sell her old one. While the MegaQuilter doesn't have a HUGE amount of throat space, it is 9"x6" so its almost double what mine is on the Bernina. It also comes with the Inspira frame that can be setup in either a 5' length or a 10' length. Here's some pictures from the Craig's list posting....

So on Saturday morning, the woman is coming over to drop it off. She was very kind in driving over to our place as she has a van to transport the frame and machine in while I only have a small car. We were pretty confident that it would fit in the car, but just in case it was easier for her to drive over since its not too far (about 10 miles). I know what I'll be doing over the next few weeks...Playing!! ;-)

I also signed up for a class at a local quilt shop that teaches you how to use their MegaQuilter. I think its the same frame even. So for $25 I get a 3 hour class up there on how to use the machine, set it up and actually use the machine. It will definitely be good to use their machine to learn the really basic stuff and then use mine to get better at my quilting and to get some quilts quitlted.

Stash Busting - 9/13/2009

Once again...its been a while since I posted. I really am getting some sewing done though! ;-) I just haven't posted about it since everything else in life has been super busy.

I don't have pictures right now, but I did get the binding put onto the Sweet Dreams quilt that I posted about here. I also finished all the quilting on the Stars & Hearts quilt that I posted here. Finally, I started quilting the Rainbow Skies quilt. Its only about 1/16th quilted at this point as it takes me a while to mark the pattern and then take it over to my little sewing machine and start sewing. I have my eye on a used Viking MegaQuilter on Craig's list that I might purchase. It might make the quilting go a little faster, but I'm not convinced I want to spend the money on it yet or if its worth it.

Anyway...for the report!! Nothing bought...lots used (at least lots for me)!

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 109.5 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 6.5 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 35 yards

Net Fabric: <74.5> yards

Sweet Dreams Quilt

It seems odd to be posting twice in a few days when it had been a month since my previous post. Maybe things are settling down a little so that I feel like I have the time to post stuff. At least that's what I'm hoping. :-)

I finished the quilting on the center part of the Sweet Dreams quilt last night and tonight I just finished the quilting on the border. I had originally sketched some "swoops" in the border, but then decided I hated it. So I ended up using Power Point to create some stars and moons in the size I wanted, cut them out and traced them onto the quilt border at semi-equal intervals and just free-handed some loops between them. I'm completely surprised how appropriate it looks on the quilt...and how good (at least to me).

Here's some pictures of the quilting on the borders and a little bit on the edges of the center. Sorry about the colors being off a little...since its 9:45pm right now, there's absolutely no natural light so the flash was all I had. Once I get the binding made and onto the quilt, I'll be able to wash it so all the chalk marks come off. I ended up using a combination of Fons & Porters chalk pencils and some tailors chalk. I like the tailors chalk, but it doesn't keep a crisp line very long...and it doesn't show up on white. I'm going to have to experiment with some marking methods. Enjoy the pictures!

Stash Busting - 8/24/2009

It has been a few weeks since I last posted. Things have been EXTREMELY busy between work, vacation and personal stuff. Work was insanely busy with not one, but two design reviews in late July. They were both within a week of each other which meant a lot of long hours at work to prepare for the reviews. Once those reviews were done, I was finally able to take a vacation. It was about a month overdue at that point! Vacation was good, but we didn't go anywhere special. I went to visit my Grandmother who's health was in very poor condition, and we went to visit my husband's Grandmother. We also spent a few days at my husband's parents as they have a cabin on a lake in the Adirondack Park and its very peaceful and quiet there...especially during the work week.

However, vacation ended on a bit of a sad note. My Grandmother whom I had just visited passed away on Friday, July 31st. While it wasn't unexpected has her health had been declining and she was 93, it was still sad to lose her. It was a very difficult few days and even now I run across photos of her and it makes me sad. She was a wonderful woman though and she spent the last 75 years of her life putting her family first. She was always there for all of us (4 kids, 15 grandchildren, 9 great grandchildren and 2 great-great grandchildren and too many neices and nephews to count). I do have very fond memories of her and she will always be an example for me to follow.

So back to the present....

I've finished up two quilt tops in the past few weeks. The first quilt top is for a co-worker who is expecting boy this fall. I've called this one Sweet Dreams. While I don't have any pictures of it while I was piecing it, I do have a few pictures of it about 75% quilted. I still have to outline stitch the yellow stars and put something into the center of the white blocks. The border also needs to be finished up, too. The best thing is....this quilt is 100% stash!! :-)

The second quilt top I've put together is from a pattern. The pattern is by Tammy Tadd and I posted about it here. I don't have any of it quilted yet, but here's the completed top along with a close-up of the appliques. This was my first time doing appliques and I think they came out really well for the first time of doing them.

So here's my stash report for the past few weeks(since I've been pretty delinquent):
Fabric Added this Week: 0.5 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 109.5 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 5.38 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 28.4 yards

Net Fabric: <81.1> yards

Stash Busting - 7/19/2009

Surprisingly, I was able to get a fair amount accomplished this week despite work being insanely busy. Here's a picture of the quilt that I finished last weekend and never got a picture of:

This is a closeup of the quilting...sorry its a little fuzzy.

Here's the quilting on the back of the quilt.

This week, I was able to finish up the quilt top for Rainbow Skies. At this point, I'll have to put it on the shelf for a little while because I have 3 baby quilts to make (babies due in October, November and January). So I'll be making little quilts for a while, which may be nice after the last few being larger. Here's the Rainbow Skies with borders on it....the colors aren't as good in the picture as they are in real life. I'm not sure why the colors are off a bit in the picture. The variation in colors comes across really well in person.

Some of my stash used this week was for the borders on Rainbow Skies. They're 3.5" wide borders (finished) so it used a fair amount of fabric with very little sewing! ;-) The rest of my stash that I used this week was for one of the three baby quilts. Here's a picture from the book that I'm making it from. Its called "A Star is Born" by Tammy Tadd. Its a very cute quilt and it will be my first foray into applique.

Here are my numbers this week:

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 109 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 2.50 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 20.54 yards

Net Fabric: <85.96> yards

I'm slowly whittling down the stash. One of the baby quilts already has fabric bought and it was added to the stash back in May. Another of the baby quilts will be completely made from stash (not buying a stitch of fabric), but the third one will most likely involve some fabric purchases. I'm also hoping I can get a few other stash busting quilts done, but it will highly depend upon work and how busy it gets over the next few months.

So how did everyone else do with their reports??

Almost......

.....Done!

I'm so close to being done with making the quilt top for my Rainbow Skies quilt. I finished putting the entire quilt top together tonight with the exception of adding the borders. The material is pressed, but I need to cut it and piece some strips together to make the pieces long enough for the quilt top.

My handy quilt holder, Rich, was kind enough to hold this up for me...with a little bit of convincing from me. :-) High maintenance is not having to hold a quilt top for someone! The flash made the colors a little washed out in the first picture. The colors are very vibrant and the darker colors are in the "jewel tone" family.

Here the colors come out a little bit better since the flash isn't directly facing the quilt. You can see Ellie, my cat, thinking about walking across the quilt. She's learned that if a quilt is on the floor and she walks on it, she gets yelled at. Once its folded up sitting on the back of the couch, or the sewing table, or the ironing board...its fair game! :-)

Enjoy!

Stash Busting - 7/12/2009

No pictures to show for the progress I've made, but I was able to get some things done this week. All of my applique pieces for a baby quilt are cut along with 288 squares for the main pattern of the quilt. I still have to press and cut the main colored squares for the middle of the quilt along with the white background pieces for the appliques.

I also got some pictures from my sister. I had shipped a quilt to her just before July 4th and she received it earlier this week. It looks really nice in her condo.

Its absolutely gorgeous here today so I'm not sure how much quilting I will get done. :-) Here are my numbers so far this year....

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added YTD: 109 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 1.25 yards
Fabric Used YTD: 20.54 yards

Net Fabric: <88.46> yards