Retreat Goals

We had quilt retreat this week, and I was motivated to make quilting magic on two big-time goals: Winnemucca Quilt and Aurora. I have been putting these two quilts on my yearly goals repeatedly, and at long last, they are being accomplished! Last month, I posted a 'check-up' on my progress toward completing these goals. Now, I can actually say that one more is done and another is started.

Two lofty goals: 1. Use the fabric bought on our Western US vacation in June 2022 in Winnemucca, NV, and 2. Begin working on Aurora, a quilt with beautiful little stars all in blue.

 First, I worked on Winnemucca. I'd made a test block which satisfied me. The pieces are big; the blocks are big; making the quilt would be fast. It took just over a day to produce my finished quilt top, and I am so pleased with it. Love the look; the fabrics all shine in the simplicity of the blocks without being lost in a more complicated design.

The floral fabric used in the sashing strips and borders is a pleasing mix of the block colors on a gray background. Let's have a closer look.

 

And now that I'm home, I can show even better pictures with the completed quilt top.

Not only am I thrilled to have finally made a quilt with this fabric, I am equally thrilled that I have a good bit of fabric remaining. Now I get the fun of dreaming up a pattern for creating something else from the leftovers. I have plenty - maybe a full yard! - of the stripe, the salmon, and the blue. And sadly, the print is very limited. I used a lot of it on the sashing strips and the borders. Nothing to cry about! I love that this print worked so well in this quilt. I will find another equally attractive (simple!) quilt for using up my remnants.

The other goal for retreat was beginning Aurora. I've had my eye on this quilt for a good while, and had the blues from my stash auditioned and selected. The pattern is by Edyta Sitar in one of her books.

 Those stars! Oh, gosh, they absolutely sing and dance across this quilt! The first time I saw a picture of it, I knew I wanted to make it. I cut most of the quilt out ahead of time and pretty much had everything ready for tackling the daunting task of making 127 stars. And those are 127 4.5" stars! yikes...

Above is my retreat accomplishment on the task: 28 stars. I wanted to at least get the total number of stars down into double digits! I only have 99 more to make!

Yes, it's going to take awhile, but I will make them in batches of 10 or 20 at a time. Breaking down the task seems to make it go faster, and if I've got a good audio book plugged into my ears, I will have them done lickity-split.

In between finishing Winnemucca and beginning Aurora, I made 20 little card wallets. I haven't made any in several months, so I wanted to replenish my supply. This batch contains a few for Christmas.

 One last thing I worked on in the final hours of retreat before packing up was to make a Mini-TATW block from the remnants of my big TATW quilt.

 I've got a great quilt in mind that requires (at minimum) 12 of these mini-trip blocks. Because I had plenty of leftover 2" squares and strips, it made good sense to use them in this fashion. If I still have a lot after making 12 blocks, I might decide to make a few more for a larger quilt.

So that is what I accomplished at our August Quilt Retreat. Fun with friends makes the retreats even more special. We had 8 quilting friends attending this year, and we are already booked for two next year - April and September. 

Hope you are having a productive week! Today, I will put stuff away and tackle a few chores around the house. 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne 

I Cut The Fabric!

After four years of making a goal of using this fabric, I have finally cut it and have begun construction. This is a big deal. 

 If you've followed me here for very long, you may recall that I've had years worth of plans to make a quilt with this group of fabrics I bought in Winnemucca, Nevada. Here on the blog, I've referred to it often as the Winnemucca fabrics.

I sifted through years of photos on my computer to find the date I bought this fabric and LOOK!! I found the picture (above) I took in the shop on the day I bought it - June 3, 2022. Wow. I thought I'd had it longer; sure feels longer. Maybe that's what happens when year after year I fail to achieve the goal of using this little collection. Using this fabric has appeared on the goals lists for '23, '24, '25, and '26. This year it finally will be realized!

Moving in the right direction, at last! I made two significant decisions several months ago. This made the most difference in eliminating all my dithering. One was deciding on a pattern, the other was deciding to make it one of my August retreat projects. 

The pattern is a weathervane block from a book I've had for years - Mulberry Lane by Teri Christophersen. I actually made this same quilt several years ago as a wedding gift, so I know it's going to go together easy-peasy. The sample block pleases me, and the floral fabric will be used for the sashing strips. It's gonna look great.

 How is it possible that I will have so much fabric left over?? Sure, I didn't have any pattern in mind when I bought the fabric, and I selected a pattern with big blocks. The quilt is not overly huge at 60" x 76". I will have plenty to "play with" after I finish this one!

My remaining fabric! More fun sewing to do!

Here's a link to the first quilt I made with this pattern. It was gifted to a friend's son for his marriage. Both that quilt and this one will look drastically different from the quilt pictured in the book, called Lavender Fields, but that's the beauty of quilt-making. Every quilt takes on the look from the fabrics the quilt maker selects. So many patterns and so many fabrics makes for vast, almost infinite "looks" for any given pattern.

Next up, I will share the other quilt I've cut out for retreat sewing. This one will go first, for sure.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne 

Planning and Prepping

It seems doggone near impossible lately for me to maintain an interest in regular posting to this blog. I think it's because I have slowed down so very much in my productivity. There's a direct correlation between the amount of sewing and the amount of blogging. Consequently, if I'm not producing as much, I am not writing as much.

So, what have I been doing in the quilting room?

Preparing for a quilt retreat!

A week from today, I will join most of the Frankfort Girls (and a couple of extras) for a 4-day/3-night retreat at Needles n' Pines over in Nelsonville. It's the same retreat center we go to several times a year, and we always have such a wonderful time together.

Being productive is the name of the game at a retreat, so I should have a few things coming up for future blog posts.

 

I have cut one layer cake into 3" squares for a fun and fast quilt. I bought this layer cake last year while at retreat, and have had as a 2023 goal to make it into something. Wait till you see what I've come up with!

I will be tackling another 2023 goal while there - making a Falling Leaves quilt. I mentioned recently that I've always wanted to make a maple leaf quilt using fall colors, and now I am about to make it a reality. The parts are all cut - I've used only stash fabrics and scraps for this quilt. I have no idea how many individual blocks I will get out of what I've cut, but it will surely give me a whopping start. 

Yet another goal on the '23 list is using my stash of Effie's Woods fabrics in a quilt for my granddaughter. No, she doesn't need another quilt, as my daughter will tell me, but I can't help making 'just one more' for her. I seem to have accumulated quite a bit of this line thanks to my friend Jan who gave me all her remnants after she finished a quilt using Effie's Woods. I have picked up additional pieces along the way, so I will peruse my options for easy, scrappy-style quilts.

Lastly, I'd really like to continue tackling that '23 goals list by using my Winnemucca fabric. Click here to go back to read about the fabric I purchased last summer while vacationing out west. I have no firm plans as yet, but I do see either star blocks or churn dash blocks using this little collection. Or pinwheels blocks. Or 9-patch blocks. Or chains across a quilt with any of the above blocks. Lots of options still under consideration!

So, if asked what I've been up to lately instead of blogging, I guess I'd have to say I've been planning and prepping. Activity like that does not really translate well to blogging content.

Have a great week! It promises to be a hot, busy week here at my house.

Happy Quilting, Friends!