I completed this 3-yard quilt called chain reaction using some charity fabric I got from Quilts for Kids. They seem to have lots of fabrics with fish prints so I thought I would grab some to help get rid of it. It's quality fabric but it's been around for so long I'm pretty sure everyone is sick of working with it. I added some prints from my stash to give the fish some extra pop of color.
Monday
Chain Reaction Quilt
Thursday
Sweet Sundays Quilters
My church quilt group met this week for our annual Christmas luncheon. We celebrated this year's work and enjoyed a nice lunch together. Our leader, Judy gave us each a gift bag with a homemade ornament and a few other little goodies. It was so very kind of her. I always find it amazing that we always make more than 100 quilts for our charities. This year was no different.
Monday
Hillside Coffee House Holiday Bazaar
I set up my space at the coffee shop first thing the morning of the bazaar. I usually like to do these things a day ahead of time but there was a snow storm on Friday. It was just enough snow to make it miserable while trying to unload stuff from the truck. I was surprised how easy it was to do everything just a few hours before opening. Usually I would panic at the possibility of not being ready on time but I guess over the years I've learned to relax.
The bazaar is a wonderful event and I've had the most success there. I sell aprons, wine gift bags, bowl cozies, pot holders, table runners, table toppers, gnomes, quilts, bags, zipper pouches, and other homemade items. It's a great way for me to make some money to help support my quilting habit. Sort of a self-supporting hobby. So the bazaar is worth my efforts.
Tuesday
Girl Scout Quilt & Minecraft Quilt
I finished these two quilts just in time for the holiday market. I've been hanging on to so much cute fabric that I really needed to start using it up. Sometimes I let my charity projects get in the way. At the last two events where I had a booth I sold more lap sized children's quilts than bigger ones so it makes sense to make some more.
I took a Girl Scout panel and just put some borders around it. It is so cute that it didn't need much embellishment or fancy blocks around it.
If it doesn't sell at the market I will probably find a reason to give it to a Girl Scout.
I got Minecraft themed fabric from our local Ben Franklin Store. It was going out of business and I spent two hours just loading my cart with lots of cute fabrics. I hate that it's not there anymore. I chose an easy pattern called Favorite Things that had large blocks to show off the focus print.
Thursday
Old Projects
I have a few small projects that were quilted over a year ago and I just never took the time to put the binding on. Well I finally got them completed. I don't know why I procrastinated for so long, it's not like putting binding on is difficult.
So here's a table topper using some whimsical fabrics and a Lori Holt block pattern. I can't remember which one of her books I got the block from, that's what happens when you wait so long to finish something. Ha!
This is one of my favorite wall hanging projects. It's made from more Sweetwater fabrics. I love how it turned out. I remember that the pattern was free from a fabric designer but of course, I can't remember who the designer was. I sure hope I run across the pattern again sometime.
It really feels good to get all these UFOs done. It's like a weight lifted off my shoulders.
And now I look forward to making a new stack of UFOs (tee-hee).
Wednesday
Gnome Ornaments and Table Runners
Friday
Client Quilts
I longarm quilted a black and white quilt for a friend who will donate it to a PKD charity event. I'm always happy to help her complete her projects for this annual event.
Now that we've come to the end of the harvest season here in Wisconsin, I thought I would try my hand at making a batch of chicken stock. I read an article from America's Test Kitchen about how homemade stock is healthy, easy and more economical than buying it in a carton from the grocery store. So using ATK's recipe I made a batch. It was definitely easy but not so cheap. I buy organic chicken stock by the case from Sam's Club for under $10. Just the chicken parts for this recipe cost me $18 at our local meat market.
With this project, the backing wasn't big enough. It was a wide-back piece that wasn't long enough. It was so wide that I could have cut some of the width down and stitched it to the bottom but the fabric was directional so it would look really dumb. So she asked me to buy a bigger piece from the shop where I work. I had a co-worker help me choose something we both liked. It turned out nice when it was done.
Wednesday
A T-shirt Quilt
Saturday
The Glam Bag
Monday
Exploding Heart Quilt
Lemon Drop Martini Table Runner
Saturday
Bunny Bag & Other Little Things
A while back I made a cute little bunny bag for Easter. It required a hand embroidered nose, mouth and eyes. I did not want to do that. I don't what it is about hand embroidery but it's just not my thing. So I searched the internet for a .jef (machine embroidery) file of a nose, mouth and eyes. Lo and behold, I found the perfect fit. The pattern for the bag was a free pattern that can be found here. I really like how it turned out and I had planned on making more of them but life just got in the way.
Friday
My Other Projects
Last year my neighbor asked for advice on fixing some cushion covers for their camper. I gave them some advice on what to do however, I think they figured out that it was a bigger project than they could handle. I know he sews but I can't say I blame him for not wanting to tackle this project. So he brought me some canvas yardage and the cushions. I decided to reuse the zippers because they were the only part of the cushion covers that were in great shape. Plus they would be very expensive to replace and I am all about repurposing things. It wasn't a tough job, it only took one afternoon to complete. I hope they get years of enjoyment out of them.