Thursday, December 27, 2012

The 100 Day Hustle - Final Review

I hope you're having a wonderful holiday season!  Ours has been very busy but very enjoyable!  Now it's time to play sewing catch-up.

It's time for us to recap how we've done on our Hustle Lists!


Here are my final results (you can find my original list here):

1. Leaf Quilt - Done!


2. Finish the T-Shirt Quilt - Done!


3. Quilt for The Hubs - Started working on it and have a few blocks done!


4) On a Whim Quilt - Blocks are all done now I just need to put the together

5) Sew.Happy.Quilt QAL Quilt - It's quilted!!!  Binding is on the schedule or this weekend.

6) Baby Quilts - Done!  Full post to come but here's a few pictures.





7) Swoon - I didn't get anything done on mine but I did start a second one! That one is a gift and I have it all cut and 1/3 of the way pieced.

8) Double Wedding Ring - I finished all of my arcs!

9) Christmas Quilt - I bought/received lots of Christmas fabric but didn't make any quilts!  Next Year!

10) Small Gifts - We did a small swap in my do.Good Stitches circle and I made these for Marta!

Needlebook & Pincushion for my partner!

Four finished quilts and some other small projects - not too shabby!!  How did you do?  Be sure to write up your post and link it up here by 10:00ET Monday the 31st!  Don't forget about the prizes from our awesome sponsors!!  You can see the list here - and I'll post winners on the 1st or 2nd of January.


Wednesday, December 5, 2012

WIP Wednesday 12-5-12

How is it Wednesday again?!?!  This time of year goes by so fast - slow down please!  Although I've been checking more things off of my to-do list which is a great feeling!

The big finish for the week is two baby quilts that are getting mailed out to two lovely families.  I'll post the pictures once I know they've reached their new homes but I'm smitten with both of them!

We also went out for my favorite tradition of the holiday season - cutting down our Christmas tree!  I have only three requirements when it comes to the tree.  1) It must be real 2) It must be a Blue Spruce 3) It must be gigantically round - Think Christmas ball.  This year's tree meets all the requirements :)

Christmas Tree!

I also put together a little holiday swap amongst my do.Good stitches circle.  For my partner I made a pincushion and a little needlebook!

Needlebook & Pincushion for my partner!

For the pincushion I made a small Ohio Star block from some Chicopee.

Pincushion for Heal @ do.Good Stitches Swap

For the needlebook I used this tutorial from nanaCompany.  The tutorial is very well written and it comes together in a snap!  I highly recommend making one for yourself - I know I'm going to!

Needlebook for Heal @ do.Good Stitches Swap

Needlebook Inside

I have one more big project, a Swoon Quilt, to finish before Christmas.  My overly ambitious (read totally crazy and not going to happen) goal is to finish the top this weekend - I have one block done and nothing else cut yet.  What are you working on this week?

Linking up at Freshly Pieced!

Friday, November 30, 2012

Stash Bee Blocks

 First up - the winner of the Charming Travelers packet is Mina from Kinda Quilty!


I just have to share the November Stash Bee blocks that I made for Jess of SewCraftyJess.  I LOVED making these blocks!!  I definitely see one of these quilts in my future :)

Stash Bee Nov Block #2 Hive #4


Stash Bee Nov Block #1 Hive #4

I have 3 quilts to bind, a few more bee blocks and a new quilt to cut out this weekend!  What are your stitchy plans?

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

W.I.P Wednesday 11-28-12

I've been working a lot on prioritizing my sewing lately.  It's not always fun.  Some (most) days I want to just sew whatever I want but I have things I need to do so those come first.  I knocked a big one out last week - all of my 4x5 Bee blocks were finished and mailed!!!


I used the Supernova pattern from Craftsy and I highly recommend it!  

I've also been quilting away and have three (!!) quilts that just need binding - hopefully tonight.  Here's a peek at one of them.

Lalalove!

Those quilts, a few more bee blocks and one more quilt to start and finish and I'll be done with everything I have to do this year!

What do you have to finish by the end of the year?!

Linking up at Freshly Pieced.

 

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

The 100 Day Hustle - Feature

How are you doing with your list?  I'm making progress on mine!!

We've made it 2/3 of the way through The 100 Day Hustle and today we have our second feature!!  Please head over and visit Marit at Sew, love, live (Sy, elsk, lev) and check out the awesome mixer cover she's sharing!

Monday, November 26, 2012

Charming Travelers

Long time no blog!  I've been busy sewing and have lots to share soon!

A few weeks ago (I'm behind!) I won the Charming Travelers packet from Dana at Old Red Barn Co.  The Charming Travelers is a traveling charm swap that Diane @ From Blank Pages started.  It's a packet of charm squares that is traveling it's way across the country (or the world).  When it stops at your house you pull out the charms you want to add to your stash and then replace them with some new ones!  You can read all about it and see where the packets have been so far here.

I sorted through for the low volume charms.  I'm lacking those in my stash and they'll be fun to add to the charms I'm getting from a low volume swap I'm in.  Here's what I took!

 
 
Here's what I added in!
 
 


And here's a sampling of what is in the packet!

 
 
Want to play along?!  I have the US Packet so only US participants please.  There is an international packet so watch the Charming Travelers page to see how to win that packet.
 
One entry per person - just leave me a comment sharing your favorite holiday movie, song or tradition!  Mine are White Christmas (movie), Carol of the Bells (song) and going to cut down our Christmas Tree :)  I'll pick a winner Friday afternoon at 3:00ET.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Weekend Update

First things first - The 100 Day Hustle link-up winner of the $25 Fat Quarter Shop gift certificate is Marla!

2-59 since #1 was my test link!

I did a bit of sewing this weekend and managed to finish my blocks for Jennifer's Hurricane Sandy Relief quilts.  She isn't collecting any more quilt blocks but is accepting other supplies like binding in order to finish all of the quilts.  Check out the Flickr group to see what is needed.  I made two of each color scheme and sent them out today. 




I also had time to finish putting together my quilt top for the Tula Pink Sew Along that Sara organized.  I really wanted to use bigger cuts to showcase some of the larger prints.  This pattern is adapted from a tutorial video from Missouri Star Quilt Company.  The finished top measures 70"x70".  Now I need to decide how to quilt it - I'm stumped on what thread color to use!

Completed Quilt Top!
Close up of the center
You can check out all of the Sew Along entries by heading over to the Flickr group.

Linking up at {Sew} Modern Monday as well!

Friday, November 9, 2012

The 100 Day Hustle - Half Way Point!

Wow! I cannot believe that there are only 50 days left in 2012!  Where has this year gone?

50 Days left means that it's time to check-in for The 100 Day Hustle.


Here's my progress so far (you can find my original list here):

1. Leaf Quilt - Done!


2. Finish the T-Shirt Quilt - Done!


3. Quilt for The Hubs - Started working on it and have a few blocks done!


4) On a Whim Quilt - I put all of the blocks together now it just needs to be made into a top!

5) Sew.Happy.Quilt QAL Quilt - No, but it's the first quilt I'm quilting when the longarm comes next week!

6) Baby Quilt - I actually need to make two now.  I have one planned and the top for the other almost done!

7) Swoon - Nothing yet - I really want to get this one done though!

8) Double Wedding Ring - I finished all of my arcs!

9) Christmas Quilt - I bought a Dear Mr. Claus FQ Bundle so now I just need to make something!

10) Small Gifts - I have a few ideas but nothing yet


How are you doing with your list?!  Write up a check-in post and link up here.



Now onto the prize!  I will randomly draw one winner from all of the links and they will win a $25 Gift Certificate from The Fat Quarter Shop!  Check back on Monday to see if you won!

Please visit some of the other bloggers who are linking up - that's half of the fun - and keep hustling!

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Let's Help!

**First, I had a reminder for The 100 Day Hustle Link-Up last week and said that it would start today.  I should have re-read my original schedule first - the halfway point is on the 9th and the linky will go up that morning.  I'm so sorry!!  If you already posted or wrote your post no problem just remember to stop and link-up on Friday.  Thanks! **


Do you know Jennifer from Knotted-Thread?  She's a fellow blogger who has family & friends that live in New Jersey and were impacted by Hurricane Sandy.  She is working to put quilts together for those in need and is looking for block donations.  Please consider heading over to the Flickr group and signing up!  I signed up for a batch of each color.  They are very quick to put together and won't take much time or fabric and you'll feel great about helping others!



Saturday, November 3, 2012

Sew Seasonal Blog Hop

Welcome to my stop on the Sew Seasonal Blog Hop!  Kristy & Alyce have done a great job of putting the hop together and wrote two awesome patterns as well! 

I worked with ornament #3 from Alyce's Ornamental pattern.  The pattern gives you directions to make either a 5" or 10" block of each ornament.  I chose to use the 5" directions and made some holiday coasters!




The 5" blocks  work perfectly with charm squares.  I only used 3 charm squares plus some white per coaster!  Once you make your block just layer it together with batting and backing, baste, quilt and bind.  They come together quickly and are cute too :)  I will definitely make some more to share with others this Christmas.

From now until the end of November both Kristy's and Alyce's patterns are FREE for you on Craftsy and you can head over to their blogs for a great giveaway! 

Be sure to stop and visit Susan from Patchwork N Play who is also sharing today, as well as everyone else in the hop!


1st November: Kristy from Quiet Play & Alyce from Blossom Heart Quilts
2nd November: Marieka from Bespoke Bites & Jane from Where Jane Creates
3rd November: Susan from Patchwork N Play & Kelsey from Kelsey Sews
4th November: Janice from Better Off Thread & Erin from Missy Mac Creations
5th November: Lucy from Charm About You & Rebecca from Making Rebecca Lynn
6th November: Charlotte from Lawson and Lotti & Amy from Amy's Crafty Shenanigans
7th November: Jess from the Elven Garden & Cindy from Live a Colorful Life
8th November: Elaine from Dashasel Sews & Kelly from Jeliquilts
9th November: Beth from Plum and June & Fiona from Finding Fifth
10th November: Juliet from Tartan Kiwi & Fiona from Celtic Thistle Stitches
11th November: Taryn from Pixels to Patchwork & Anorina from Samelia's Mum
12th November: Megan from Jaffa Quilts & Jane from QuiltJane
13th November: Gemma from Pretty Bobbins
 
Merry Christmas!!

Thursday, November 1, 2012

October in Review


October was quite the stitchy month!!  I'm really trying to work on projects off of my Hustle List.

I finished two quilts - Maple Sugar and The Mary Kate Experience.  I did my do.Good Stitches and Stash Bee blocks, started on my 4x5 bee blocks and joined the 3x6 bee!  Plus I started a Sparkling Cider quilt for my husband, started my my quilt top for the Tula Pink Sew Along and finished all of the On a Whim blocks I started ages ago!

November is looking to be a fun month as well!  My mom and I went in on a used longarm together and it should be getting delivered in the next couple of weeks!!!!

The Sew Seasonal Blog Hop starts today!  Head here for the details and here is the schedule!  I'll be sharing on Saturday.

1st November: Kristy from Quiet Play & Alyce from Blossom Heart Quilts
2nd November: Marieka from Bespoke Bites & Jane from Where Jane Creates
3rd November: Susan from Patchwork N Play & Kelsey from Kelsey Sews
4th November: Janice from Better Off Thread & Erin from Missy Mac Creations
5th November: Lucy from Charm About You & Rebecca from Making Rebecca Lynn
6th November: Charlotte from Lawson and Lotti & Amy from Amy's Crafty Shenanigans
7th November: Jess from the Elven Garden & Cindy from Live a Colorful Life
8th November: Elaine from Dashasel Sews & Kelly from Jeliquilts
9th November: Beth from Plum and June & Fiona from Finding Fifth
10th November: Juliet from Tartan Kiwi & Fiona from Celtic Thistle Stitches
11th November: Taryn from Pixels to Patchwork & Anorina from Samelia's Mum
12th November: Megan from Jaffa Quilts & Jane from QuiltJane
13th November: Gemma from Pretty Bobbins
And don't forget that The 100 Day Hustle half-way point linky opens on 11/6!
Lily's Quilts
Linking up at Lynn's Fresh Sewing Day 

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

The 100 Day Hustle - Prizes!!

How is your hustling going?!  We hit the half way point one week from today!  Where have the past 50 days gone?

I am so excited to share the prizes with you!  We have some great shops that kindly donated prizes!



Quilting Fabric at the Fat Quarter Shop 

Fat Quarter shop has donated two $25 gift certificates!  One for the linky next week and one for the final link-up





Westwood Acres has donated a Madrona Road Fabric Roll!





Fresh-Squeezed Fabrics has donated a bundle of 8 fat quarters to the winner!





Jessica of Plum Patchwork donated a $20 gift certificate!



Sew Lux Fabrics

Sew Lux has donated a $20 gift certificate!


First off, a big thank you to all the shops who are donating prizes!!  It is greatly appreciated!!

Secondly, I contacted these shops in particular and asked if they'd like to sponsor a prize because I have shopped with them in the past, have had a wonderful experience and happily recommend them to others.  Please take a few minutes to pop over to their shops, take a look at what they have and get a few goodies for yourself!






Monday, October 29, 2012

Winner!

And the winner of the Traveling Stash is Rachel!!  I'll be sending you an email today :)

I hope you all had a great weekend!  Ours was busy  with Halloween festivities and lots of basement organizing to prep for some excitement  that is *hopefully* coming soon!  

Friday, October 26, 2012

Maple Sugar

Without further adieu, my new favorite quilt, Maple Sugar!!


After seeing Maple leaf quilts popping up all over Instagram and Flickr I decided that I  had to have one!!  I found this set of directions on Quilters Cache, tweaked them a bit, and then made 36 blocks for my quilt.

I used 18 different fat quarters and made 2 leaves of each print and and paired them with a cream background.

At the last minute I decided to make two blocks that were opposite with cream for the leaf and brown for the background.  When I laid out the top I decided to make them a focal point in the center.


I backed it in the perfect Fall print from the Bella line by Lotta Jansdotter.






I quilted it myself on my machine in my usual all over loopies and then bound it with a fun leaf print from Connecting Threads.


As I said, this is my new favorite quilt, and it's my husband's favorite as well!  It has been shuffling around from our bed to the couch and is in use quite often.

This is also my entry for the Blogger's Quilt Festival over at Amy's Creative Side!  There are so many awesome quilts that are entered so make sure that you stop over and get inspired!


Quilt Stats:
  • Size - 72" x 72"
  • Pieced by Me
  • Quilted by Me on my home machine
  • Best Category - Throw Quilt 
Also linking up with Finish it Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

The 100 Day Hustle - Feature!

How are you doing with your list?  Hustling through?  Mine seems to be growing instead of shrinking!!

We've made it 1/3 of the way through The 100 Day Hustle and today we have our first feature!!  Please head over and visit Heidi at Fabric Mutt and check out what she has to share today!



I have been working with some shops to set up sponsored prizes for the link-ups and have some great things lined up!  Once everything is finalized I'll post all the details to get you excited :)

Don't forget that the half-way link-up runs from November 9th to November 11th!

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

WIP Wednesday 10-24-12

 Busy busy busy!!  I've been working away on lots of projects!  Plus I got a job helping at my favorite quilt shop and I started on Saturday!  It's like a dream :)

Finished - 
  • Leaf Quilt - I finished my leaf quilt!!!  If you follow me on Instagram I shared a pic but here's a sneak peek from when I was binding.  I'm going to do a whole post on it on Friday for Blogger's Quilt Festival.


  • 4x5 Bee Block - Finished another one of my blocks!  Only three more to go!
 
4x5 Bee - Hive #6 - For mollyjolly


In-Progress - None of those projects got any love.  I've been on a starting new projects kick!!


New - 
  •  Mystery Quilt - This one won't be revealed until after Christmas!  But I'm using Marmalade so it's wonderful :)  Except for all the trimming! So much trimming!
 
New project! #marmalade

  • Birds & Bees Quilt - I started this quilt last night!  I don't need more projects but I had just worked out all the math for a pattern for my mom and I wanted to make a quilt for the Tula Pink Sew Along so I decided to get to work!
 
new quilt project

  • Weekender Bag - I'm going for it! I'm going to join in for The Long Weekend make a weekender bag.  I am going the scrappy quilted patchwork route using Chicopee and Ohio Star blocks.  I'm having terrible luck getting the pattern - the last two I've ordered have both been out of stock but not marked on their website!
  • A Walk in the Woods Baby Quilt - I took two charm packs and started working on a pinwheel baby quilt.  I made all the HSTs and trimmed them, now I just need to put the top together!


Announcements - Here are a few tidbits for you!
  •  Be sure to stop here (or at Heidi's) tomorrow since it's our first feature post for The 100 Day Hustle!
  • Have you ever wanted to win a traveling stash box?  I'm giving one away here.
  • Kristy & Alyce have put together a great Christmas Blog Hop and I'm one of stops!  It'll start on November 1st and go for 13 days.  There are 25 bloggers sharing projects made with some Christmas themed patterns Kristy & Alyce designed.

What have you been working on?  As always, linking up with Lee @ Freshly Pieced.