Design Wall Monday - January 30, 2012

I woke up before 4am today & was unable to sleep (the story of the past 5 days...), so I finally got up and got to work on my new quilt top! I found the fabrics at Fabric Depot last week, with exception of the black that I found at Fiddlesticks. The center's are 6.5" finished and will all be the same fabric. Then, each block will be framed in either pink, orange, or green "dots," and they'll all have a black frame, too. The blocks will alternate whether the black frame is next to the white square, or on the outside edge. So, with the 3 colors and the alternating black, there will be 6 different blocks total. Was that clear as mud? :)

I went to work today and was asked if I can put in "a lot" of hours this week (up to 40). So, that's definitely going to crunch into my sewing time. But I feel needed, so I'm going to help out. This quilt isn't going anywhere & I should be able to spend short bits of time in the sewing room - enough to keep my heart happy! :)

I hope next weeks design wall photo is FULL of blocks!

Manic Monday Linky Party with Sew Happy Geek

Ok, so I'm "linking up," for Sew Happy Geek's Manic Monday Linky Party but I can't post a photo of my newest finish on my blog until it's delivered to its' recipient in about 3 weeks... The photo is on my "link" though!

So, the quilt top shown is one made for a friend who was injured in an accident. Scrappy "Jake's Heart" blocks were collected, and I designed and pieced the quilt top from those blocks, adding a few of my own blocks as well. I just LOVE the way it turned out, and so far have received good reviews from a few others who have seen the photo. PHEW! I've been SUPER worried about whether people involved in this quilt would like it or not!

This post is going to be SO boring without a photo!! Please be patient ~ I already have a blog written that includes the photo, but it won't post for about 3 weeks... :)

Oh, and by the way... please feel free to follow me! I'm HOPING to do some more tutorials and possibly a few giveaways this year!! :)

Stash Report - Week 5, 2012

Ok, this is SO lame! I've only posted once and I'm totally behind. In addition, I'm really not sure how to do this. I got a bunch of fabric for a gift from my Mom, as well as used gift cards... Not sure if that is all supposed to be counted, but I'm going to - just for safe measure. However, that is going to make this look pretty bad...

Used this Week: 4.25 yards (because I can't count all of the mis-cuts... otherwise, this # would be MUCH larger!)
Used year to Date: 4.25 yards
Added this Week: 19.875 yards
Added Year to Date: 51.639 yards
Net Used for 2012: - 47.389 yards

So, here is the lowdown:

~ I won 2 yards of Circa 52 in a blog giveaway and received it this past week.
~ Purchased a panel to make a "bunting" from Riley Blake's gorgeous collection. Can't wait to make it!
~ I received money for batiks from my Mom for my birthday, which was 2 weeks ago. I picked out the fabric this past week.
~ Earlier in the year, I bought a selection of orange fabrics from the Craft Warehouse STEAL (Super-Clearance). I have a decent stash, and had tall piles of every color - EXCEPT orange... Now I have a few more to equal a decent selection.
~ I just finished a quilt today and had to re-buy fabric TWICE because of my... "screw-ups." Very bummed, but can't change it!
~ Found an amazing "bee" fabric and got 2 yards. I grew up with the nickname "Bea," but associate it with "Bee," so I'm a sucker for a gorgeous bee fabric! This one is a light (grey?) bee outlined on a creamy beige background. It'll look great on.. SOMEthing!
~ Bought fabrics for a quilt I plan to start tomorrow.
~ Earlier this year, we went to Cannon Beach for the weekend. These trips always end up with a visit to "Center Diamond." I bought 2 fq's and 2.5 yards of holiday fabric
~ I was notified that solids were on sale at JoAnns. I have NO solids, except black & white, and I don't like shopping at JoAnn's. But, since they were such a great deal, and I needed solids, I sucked it up & bought the rainbow. Oh - there were a bunch of bolts with hardly anything on them, so I picked all of those up knowing I would get them for "remnant" price - 70% off regular price!


So, some of that probably shouldn't be included (gifts & winnings), but i'm not sure? The GREAT thing is that I shouldn't be needing any more fabric for quite awhile, and I'm starting a new quilt tomorrow. So, my "used" number should go up, and my "net" will be going down!

Daily Tutorials at Sew Can She!

Caroline, at Sew Can She, does daily tutorials, and todays just happens to be the cutest "Little Wallet" ever!
She also has other tutorials - from the "Owl School Bag" (I'm recently a total sucker for all things crafty-owl!), to a Kindle cover, to a Nursing cover-up, to holiday ornaments and decorations. You can easily sign-up for her newsletter - so go check it out, 'cause I know you love a great crafty tutorial, too! :)

I'm a WINNER!

Donna at the "This Year's Dozen" blog did a giveaway for "learning something new." She made up prize packages for her "New Hobby Giveaway" that included the following hobbies: beading, macrame, sewing/quilting, and crocheting. Since I've done all of those except macrame, and I fondly remember my Mom making macrame stuff when I was a youngster, I responded with that as my choice of hobbies I'd like to try. YAY - I WON! I can't wait to try macrame. Let's see if I'm any good at it! :)

If you check out Donna's blog, click on the "purses" category at top. She's made some super cute purses!

I'll post a photo of the goodies when the package arrives. Thank you, Donna!! :)

Design Wall Monday

My gosh, where did the week GO?

I did stuff - Just can't remember what? I started "planning" my year out a little by making up my UFO list, starting to plan my job hunt, and whatever else. Craft-wise, I made a "crayon art" piece, and cut circles for a "fall wreath." This is what is highlighted on my design wall for the week. I plan to add some orange fabrics to the group. So, either the wreath will be larger, or some of the current circles will be removed. My bet is on the latter of the two. OR, maybe I'll make TWO, but try to make the colors pretty different... Hmmmm...

Unfortunately, I made these circles before January 1st, so I didn't get to add them to my Stash Report, posted on Sunday. Boo!
Oh, and for anyone interested, I made the circles using my GO! cutter. I LOVE that thing - it's the best creation since sliced bread... Ok, I admit I only said that so I could use the cliche'.

Ok, so the photo to the right is what is on a small section of my design wall (the other parts haven't changed from last week...). I hope to work on it more in the next day or so. :)

Stash Report ~ Week #1, January 1, 2012

Judy Laquidara is up to it again, and I'm going to give this a try (which may suck because my husband reads my blog... LOL)!!!

Ok, so I only learned about the "Stash Report" within the past few months. You report how much of your stash you've used, how much stash you've purchased, then accumulated totals. You do NOT have to count what you started with. Phew! My stash is nothing compared to most long-time quilters, but still. having to count what I have would still take forever!

So, I will add up the fabric used as I go along on a project and report totals here. Sounds like fun! Maybe this will encourage me to actually get in there and SEW! If I don't sew, my Stash Report #'s won't change.

Oh, and per the words of Judy, "Reminder – this is not a “no buy” commitment. If you want it, can’t live without it, need it or whatever . . get it! Report it and move on. No guilt and no one should make anyone feel bad or inadequate for adding to their stash. This is all in fun and we don’t stress over fun things, right?" Ok, Phew! Because most of my stash is "old" fabric (except for batiks), and there isn't much "modern" about it, I had a goal of adding modern fabrics to my stash. THAT won't happen until I get another job, though, so I guess I'm safe for the time being...

Here is the report for week #1.



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 2012: 0 yards