Challenges and Lists

A few days ago Dawn at Relaxing Robin shared her Moda Blockheads book she purchased.  Then a couple of days later, because she wanted to stray from her goals and use the book, she came up with a challenge. Turn to page 24 and make that block.  Lucky for me she couldn't hear me scream from Michigan, "Get Thee Behind Me Satan!" toward her.  Dawn then later changed up the challenge that you could make 2 blocks, 4 blocks, just do something.  Works for me!

After my recent blog about making lists, I decided to make up a simple spreadsheet and list my UFOs.  OK maybe it isn't quite as simple as I think. These are quilts that are in process.  Fabric has been cut, blocks made, borders needed, quilting needed, maybe squaring up, applique stitched down, you get the picture.  I am sure I am missing some but I was aghast at the number!



Last count I was at 83!  I also made a tab for those that need to be quilted, and a tab for what I do with them when I am done.   I also started a tab for kits.  Either kits purchased or kits I have made up with fabric, and a pattern. 

I will say that I have stayed on track this week and not started anything new. 

The donation quilt for the church auction was a kit is called Covered in Truth.  I had cut it a couple of weeks ago.  I mentioned that it would be easy peasy.  Famous last words.  I double checked the measurements and discovered that while my cutting was on, their measurements were wrong.  I took the borders off and measured once more.  I had to figure out a way to make it work. Without adding tiny 2 inch sections. 

The final border with the pinwheel blocks were the worst. You can see from the above pictures that not only was the border with the houses too wide, but it was short by about 2 inches. 

I took it all apart and measured again.  I tried to match up the houses and created one long border, then measured them and sewed them on.  I tried piecing it again and sewed it together. 

The corners were a wee bit off.  Have you ever fought putting something together and get to a point where you are just "done" with it, but feel like it is horrendous?  At first I thought it was terrible, but looking at it a couple of days later, I decided it wasn't too terrible.  Now it just needs a backing, quilting and bound. 

 I finished binding my tiny tree wall hanging.  I decided to just use the background fabric as the binding.  I lost a corner of my Christmas Tree, but it is done, and even labeled.

I also finally finished the binding on the guild charity quilt that I have been working on for 3 months now.

I worked on my January Quiet Play blocks of the month. 

I still have some background to finish, then the next half of the rainbow.

I never shared the panel that I won from Dawn at Relaxing Robin....I will be making a quilt similar to Dawn's deer quilt with the group I sew with on Tuesdays.  Does a project with a group count as starting something new?

I also continued to work on cutting scraps.  I found another shoe box full of batik scraps.  I used them for cutting parts for the spool quilt.  Anything that wouldn't work in the spools quilt, was cut into the 3 patch chain quilt, then into the 1 1/2 inch strips and squares, anything smaller went into the string box, or the dog bed filler. 

As to Dawn's challenge?  Well I met her challenge I sewed 24, well actually 27 squares for a charity quilt for guild.  So moved it along a bit. 

Challenge met.  I will now officially dub Dawn "The Squirrel Queen."