Weekend at the Retreat

NOT! Due to my financial situation, I didn't go to the retreat with the girls. We still sew together via FB. The saddest part is that I'm not the only one missing out on the fun. 😟

So, what am I working on during my In-Home Retreat? 

Shoreline, of course. I said that I would attempt to double the number of blocks already done. I changed my mind when I counted the blocks: 38 blocks done so far. I'll just do my best to do as many as possible all the while keeping in mind that I need 128 of each block. 😵 It's a good thing that February has one more day this year. 😄

Shoreline Assembly Line 

Sixteen blocks were added to the pile this week. It takes about half an hour to sew two block-A. And lots of cutting time. But this weekend is sewing time! 

After reading Joy's post regarding the 100 Days 100 Things Decluttered, I looked around my sewing room with a different eye. So much fabric, so little time. 

DH said: Stop accepting bags of scraps.  

WHHHAAT?? 

Nope!Me: "Fine, but no more Pepsi for you! Fabric is MY addiction!" 

Him: "I understand but I don't keep the empty cans." 

Me: 😒 Okay, point taken. 

So, decluttering started. A few piles got smaller as I purged some fabric I didn't like. Why keep the skimpy one when I have some real, nice quilting cotton? Changing things around made me realise all that I have. Wow! 

This little drawer holding all my 2.5" was overflowing like most of the drawers around here. (Please, don't mind the cat food and the quilt waiting for some attention.)

One-third of the drawer is done. It will need more than one tub to empty it.

The squares will reside in these tubs. The drawers will hold my books, magazines, etc. The tubs will go on the shelf. It will be easier (I hope) to get to the pieces I need than from the drawer. At least, I can bring the tub to the sewing machine. 💡 This cleaning will take a while. 

Today, I am joining Joy in another challenge: The Table Scrap Challenge. The theme was heart, the same as my group, the Artisanat. Talk about nailing two challenges with one project! Yay! 

I used the backing fabric for the binding, just turn it to the front and sew. I had some problems with the corner because it is the first time I've used this technic and I didn't YouTube it beforehand. Some learning occurred. 

Leaving you with some 9 Patch blocks. Not many, but some got done with whatever little 1.5" pieces were found during the decluttering. 

Enjoy! ;^)

Will be joining these talented ladies. See you there.  

Cynthia for Oh Scrap 

Angela at So Scrappy

Frédérique at Patchwork and Quilts 

Alycia for Finished or NOT Finished Friday

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

NinaMarie at Creations - Quilts, Art, Whatever

Working with Red

I finished the Moda block in red and guess what?

I didn't run out of white but ran out of the red. Life is funny sometimes. So, one of these quarts doesn't have the same red as the others. Can you spot which one? 

I'll have to study how to properly press all those seams. At the moment, it is a hot mess. 

My personal Rainbow-UFO Challenge for February is Shoreline (see this post for a picture of the blocks together). I counted the blocks made so far and the total is way more than I thought; 38 blocks. I don't think I will be able to double that (my initial intention), but I sure will give it a try. 

Have you ever thought you had more fabric of one colour than what's in your stash and when you pull out a UFO project you realize where all that colour went? I have! When I pulled out Shoreline, I found a lot of my reds hiding in there. 

This quilt demands a lot of cutting. A. LOT. Of. Cutting! I keep running out of varieties. (Thank you to all who sent me black scraps.)

You have to keep the different sizes separated. I use Mr. Christie's plastic cookie trays. Some use baking muffin trays. Whatever works for you. 

I started by making one black (left) and one red block (right). I didn't like it. I remembered that it is easier to do two of the same blocks at once. The black has 16 pieces and the red has 22 pieces so they aren't compatible with the leader-ender technique that I love so much.  

Two by two, they are slowly getting done. 

The next one is prepped and waiting patiently. 

I managed to squeeze in a Stained Glass red block. 

And now, a picture of my big fluffy cat, since he hasn't been on a post in a while.

He was sleeping on my bed but heard me walk into the room. He doesn't like the camera's lens so it is hard to have him looking up at it. He turned 3 years old last month. 

Miracle! As I was taking pictures of the blocks on the kitchen floor, Raven came by to check things out, flopped himself down and ... fantastique! ... he looked up at me. 

It looks like he has another cat's sleeveless fur coat on, but all that is his. He's winter-proof, lol. 

That's all for now. Have fun stitching! 

;^) 

Will be joining these talented ladies. See you there.  

Cynthia for Oh Scrap 

Angela at So Scrappy

Frédérique at Patchwork and Quilts 

Alycia for Finished or NOT Finished Friday

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

NinaMarie at Creations - Quilts, Art, Whatever

Up To No Good ... Again

What have I done this week? 

I'm almost ashamed to say not much once again. I did play with fabric but it didn't amount to much. Let's see. 

I got more bags of scrap. 

I opened the box first and was having fun when I thought: "Oh! Photos!" so I just threw everything back into the box. 

Then I sorted the scraps by colour. 

This is my living room floor every single day this week, and I am still not done. That's a lot of scraps. 

On Wednesday, I went to see the girls quilting. I used to belong to this group but I was working and had to use a vacation day every time I participated. So I quit. Now that I am not working, I could join but I don't have money to pay for it. Vicious cycle! 

Would you like to see what the girls are working on? I didn't take a picture of everyone's work because some were still just blocks. 

This is Carole's top. She sewed the last seam while I was there. 

Anne-Marie did some koala bears in grey and brown. Aren't they cute? 

He's cuter in person. 

Back home, I got some of my smallest scraps out to make the last border on the Hole in the Barn Door quilt. 

I probably have enough for another Hole in the Barn Door quilt with two borders. (Thanks, Joy for your generous offer but I think I'm good for now, lol.) Yellow and black are underneath the bags. Green is still on my cutting table. Not done playing with green ... 

... but I did work with red ... a little bit. 

Yes, I started another block. 😔 Sigh! I am hopeless! 

I saw this on the Moda free pattern page and I just had to try it out. 

Don't worry about the points, it isn't sewn yet. I'm just having fun on the computer. 

And then, I added more, of course. 

Ugh! Nope! Sashing? 

I love this! In every colour! 

It's not exactly a good contender for RSC though. It demands some very big scrap pieces. I know I will run out of the white fabric before the block is done.

How about yellow? Pouf! Like magic, it is now yellow! 

Do not adjust your monitors. I used a different white for the yellow HSTs. 

Here's a "behind the scenes" photo.  This is how I can make a 12" block in 3 minutes. 

Not so magical, right? With pieces finishing at 1.5", the entire block will measure 12". I will tweak my way of cutting to shorten the cutting time. You might see this block (whatever its name is) again. 

I forgot to mention in my last post that my personal Rainbow-UFO Challenge is Shoreline. These blocks are made with really small pieces. Oh, the fun I will have!  

Picture from 2021

My intention is not to finish this big quilt but to move it forward. I'll count how many blocks are made and I'll try to double it. 

That's all for now. 

Have a great weekend. ;^)

Joining these talented ladies. See you there.  

Cynthia for Oh Scrap 

Angela at So Scrappy

Frédérique at Patchwork and Quilts 

Alycia for Finished or NOT Finished Friday

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

NinaMarie at Creations - Quilts, Art, Whatever

Catch 22?

I work and work, but I'm getting nowhere. Ever got that feeling? 


There were, in the past two weeks, a good number of job postings up my alley. Out of all the applications I sent, only one turned into an interview. None of the applications came to fruition. I have another interview on Monday morning. I know I will get this job just because it isn't a job I want. It will help to pay the bills while I keep searching though. The quilting group and I are going up to the cottage at the end of February for a weekend of quilting. I don't want hubby to pay for MY vacation. Hence, the (desperate) need to find a job. Fingers crossed. 

Anywho! What happened this week besides the boring stuff? 

The Hole in the Barn Door had its white border sewn. That poor quilt's been lingering on the rocking chair for so long. The last I worked on this quilt was in October 2021. I've worked on the last border on and off, but the quilt itself became my Sleeping Beauty. (My cat must love this one because there's cat hair all over it, lol.) 

Now, here's the Catch 22! I would like to add another scrappy border to it. 

Something like this. 

What do you think? 

Too much? 

One last picture. I definitely need to fix that wavy white border. 

Now if I add the scrappy border, it will mean that this quilt is still NOT ready for quilting. Sigh! 

On another note: green! 

Between the house cleaning, the job searching and the blue Snowflake, the greens were neglected somewhat. I managed to do a few 9 Patch. What else is new? 

Umh! 

These blocks?

It is inspired by Frog Quilter.  The quilt was in her header for a long time and I promised I would make one every time I visited her blog. Now that she has removed it from her header, I'm missing it. It's time to make my own. It's called Stained Glass String blocks. 

I know, I know. 

I said I wouldn't start an RSC block this year and concentrate on finishing UFOs but ... I lied. 

This one appeared on my design wall. It came to me through another blogger's post. Could you, please, stop making beautiful quilts? I'm trying to finish a few of my own, you know. 😂😂😂😂

Then, Angela did an awesome Antique Tile block! Oh! No! Not temptation again! Did I mention Catch 22? 

Yesterday, Friday, I remembered that the Artisanat's challenge for our next meeting is hearts. (Again? It was heart last February!) I only have one heart quilt so I had to make something else, right?

My heart quilt in Log Cabin blocks was presented last year at the Artisanat meeting.

 Our next meeting is this coming Tuesday. I better get a-moving! 

I quickly put this one together. A dark pink thread in the heart and white for the background. Today, I will deal with the end threads and binding. It's only 8 inches.

A cute pink paisley piece for the back. I guess this is my official switch to red. 

Have a great week, everyone! 

;^)

And now, it's time to show what you were up to this week. Come and join us. 

Cynthia for Oh Scrap 

Angela at So Scrappy

Frédérique at Patchwork and Quilts 

Alycia for Finished or NOT Finished Friday

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

NinaMarie at Creations - Quilts, Art, Whatever