An Older UFO Finish

 Back in early January, I had shared that a friend and I have challenged each other to paring down our UFO lists this year.  We picked 12 projects and then I drew a number for January.

Here is the project that came up for me.  I was gifted all these fabrics from a friend years ago - She had fallen out of love with them.  Part of the fabric was already cut into strips.  And there was already a backing piece, so I didn't want to break it up and put all the fabric in my stash.  Looks like January was the month I was going to finally do something with it.

I am proud to say I finished the quilt on the last day of January!

I decided to keep it really simple and make a stacked coin quilt with the fabrics.  I didn't want to be too fussy about the strip width so I didn't have to match seams.

I cut everything into 8.5" strips and sewed them together like the blocks above.  Then I just sewed them together into columns.

I think it looks pretty go!

I really like the quilting I did.  I quilted in horizontal lines about 1.5" apart.  Then I went back over some of the lines with a soft curve.

It measures about 60 x 70" so it is a nice sized lap quilt.  I will most likely list it in my Etsy shop.  I really like the quilt but I have just too many quilts around my hose right now.

Here is a photo of the lovely purple backing.  There was even a fun striped fabric in the pile for the binding.  I still have a lot of the fabric leftover but I ended up putting it all into fabric stash.

The UFO number for February has been drawn but my friend and I each have to spend time finding the projects drawn!  Mine is an ancient one...I will be sharing it soon. As soon as I find it!!

Enjoy your weekend.

Follow Me on Bloglovin'                   Follow Me on Feedly

Linking Up:

My Quilt Infatuation (Needle & Thread)

Confessions of a Fabric Addict (Can I get a Whoop! Whoop!)

From Bolt to Beauty (Brag about your Beauties)

Alycia Quilts (Finished or not Friday)

This Year's Focus

 For the past decade or so, I have taken the last few weeks of each year to ready my business for the new year, clean/organize my house and give thought to what I really want to accomplish over the next 12 months.  I also update all my work spreadsheets - including my list of all of my UFOs.

I ended up with 19 in case you were wondering!

A quilty friend and I always have a competition to see who ends the year with the least UFOs.  We tied for the second year in a row.  But what we both discovered is that we both do great at finishing the new starts but continue to carryover the older UFOs.

So we came up with a plan...

We made a list of 12 old projects and every month we will take turns choosing a number and we will at least try and make progress on that UFO.

So this month, I will be working with this pile of fabric I adopted from another friend.  A lot of the fabric is already cut into strips and the larger pieces look like about 1/8 yard cuts.  Not sure what the original plan was but I will figure something to make from it all.  There is even a backing fabric and a fun stripe I think I will use for the binding.

I am happy that the first UFO drawn looks like it will be something I can finish up.  It will start the year off with a success.  We shall see how long I can keep it up!

Follow Me on Bloglovin'                  Follow Me on Feedly

Another Colorful Finish

 I am definitely starting this year out with a bunch of colorful finishes.  This week I have another scrappy quilt made with my Kaffe Fassett fabrics.

For this quilt I used mostly warm colored scraps.  I chopped them all into 4.5" wide strips and just started sewing.  

I pulled a cantaloupe colored background piece I bought at Connectng Threads last year.  I looked to see if they still have it but couldn't find it.  They always have lots of Blenders to choose from and rotate the patterns often. 

This design is one of my Scrap-A-Pallooza designs.  I have made it quite a few times over the year. 

 

With all the floral prints, I decided to quilt it with some daisy chain quilting.  It is whimsical and makes me smile.  It is actually the same way I quilted my personal quilt in this design - I use it almost every day!

I dug through my Kaffe Fassett Collective stash and found a few bigger pieces that I could use as a backing.  This jungle print has always been a favorite of mine.

If you are a Kaffe Fassett fan, you might want to check out the prints currently on sale at Connecting Threads. Or if you don't have a lot of scraps but love this quilt, you can get a Jelly Roll here on sale and make something similar. His fabrics are always so rich in color!

I still have lots of Kaffe Fassett scraps and more pieces of his in my stash so I have been thinking a lot about the next quilt.  I have an idea forming but I am making myself finish a few other projects before I can start anything.  I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the projects going on right now!

Enjoy your weekend Eveyone.  

I think we are supposed to get some snow soon (blech) so I will be busy protecting some plants in my yard.  I live in Oregon because we don't get snow....😡

Follow Me on Bloglovin'          Follow Me thru Email          Follow Me on Feedly

Linking Up:

My Quilt Infatuation (Needle & Thread)

Confessions of a Fabric Addict (Can I get a Whoop! Whoop!)

From Bolt to Beauty (Brag about your Beauties)
Alycia Quilts (Finished or not Friday)

Oh Scrap! : Something New

 I decided to try and squeak out one more scrap quilt before the end of the year.  I can start and finish a lap quilt in under two weeks...Right?

So with hands on hips, I looked around my sewing room for inspiration.  I saw my bin of Kaffe Fassett scraps hiding under my cutting table and decided to start there.  My first task was to sort my scraps into warm and cool colors.  

Oh boy...there are probably at least three quilts here!

I decided to start with the warm colors.  Most of the scraps were narrow strips so I decided to chop them up into 4.5" widths.  I didn't worry too much about the height.  I just made sure it was straight.

Then I started sewing them into strips.  I also tracked down a background fabric.  I think I am going to use this soft orange I ordered from Connecting Threads. I have a two yard cut so that should be more than enough.

Now I just need to find some time to sew....

*********************************************

It is now your turn to share what you are making with scraps.  Here are the details for linking up: 

• This linky party is for any scrappy project - It can be in-process or a finished piece.
• You can link up your blog post (not your homepage please) or Instagram photo from the past week that features your use of scraps.
• If you are linking to a blog post, I ask that you link back to my blog somewhere in your post. So if you are writing about scraps, just get into the habit of including a link as there will be a linky party available every week!
• If you are using Instagram, please use the hashtag #ohscrap.
• This is a party so remember to socialize and comment on the posts of others.
• Following my blog is not necessary but it sure would be great if you do! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Follow Me on Bloglovin'          Follow Me thru Email          Follow Me on Feedly

Oh Scrap! : Something New

I have been putting a lot of thought on how I want to use my scraps this year.  As I was perusing my Scrap-A-Palooza gallery to come up with a new quilt design, I became side-tracked by my vertical pieced strip quilt.  Hmmm...I have a pile of leftover Kaffe scraps I would love to use up.  

This quilt will be perfect!

I quickly dug through the bin and pulled all the larger chunks in golds, oranges, browns, green, reds and purples.  I cut them up into 2.5 x 4.5" rectangles and 4.5" squares.  (I have still have lots of smaller scraps but I will have to come up with a different plan for those.)

I started sewing them up as a leader/ender project - creating pretty columns of color.  I have no particular plan on what gets sewn, I just try and space the colors and the two sizes apart as I go so it looks good.

I am sure I have something that will work for the background.  But I will cross that bridge once I get all the strips sewn.

I don't think this quilt will take me any time at all!

*********************************************

It is now your turn to share what you are making with scraps.  Here are the details for linking up: 

• This linky party is for any scrappy project - It can be in-process or a finished piece.
• You can link up your blog post (not your homepage please) or Instagram photo from the past week that features your use of scraps.
• If you are linking to a blog post, I ask that you link back to my blog somewhere in your post. So if you are writing about scraps, just get into the habit of including a link as there will be a linky party available every week!
• If you are using Instagram, please use the hashtag #ohscrap.
• This is a party so remember to socialize and comment on the posts of others.
• Following my blog is not necessary but it sure would be great if you do! 

An InLinkz Link-up



Follow Me on Bloglovin'          Follow me thru Email          Follow me on Feedly

Linking Up:

Love Laugh Quilt (Monday Making)

Cooking Up Quilts (Main Crush Mondays)

Em's ScrapBag (Moving it Forward)

Freemotion by the River (Linky Tuesday)

Scrap-A-Palooza To The Rescue

 My scraps seem to be getting out of control!  In a desire to sew a bunch of them up quickly, I decided to remake some of my previous Scrap-A-Palooza quilts.  Today, I am ready to share a finish using the same process I used for my Vertical Strip Quilt back in October of 2014.

 

 This time I used strips that were 4.5" wide and kept to a very narrow color range.  I also added in some orphan HSTs here and there to use them up.  To make my quilt just a little bit wider (without having to sew another scrappy strip), I added some long strips I had to the edge.

(It is always good when you can squeeze in a few more scraps into a quilt!)

I had saved out some larger chunks which I pieced and used in the backing.  Many of these strips are made from a bunch of smaller pieces of the same fabric.

 For the quilting I went with some giant messy flowers.  I really like how it turned out.

Here is a picture of the original quilt I made. It is still a favorite of mine!

A few of my quilting clients have also made this same quilt.

This one was made from all green, yellow and purple scraps.  

 As you can see, her scrap strips went all the way to the edge.  

I really like how she used a print for her background fabric!

 And another client used up a bunch of her AMH scraps and made this lovely quilt.

 ...and she wanted me to quilt my favorite daisy chain quilting on it.  Woo Hoo!

I started the Scrap-A-Palooza series to provide some quick ideas for sewing up scraps.  Most of them can be adapted to fit the colors and sizes of scraps you have on hand.  

And many are super quick and easy to sew!

 Stay tuned...I will be grabbing another bag of scraps out my grandmothers basket and choosing another pattern soon.  I certainly have a lot to pick from!

Linking Up:

My Quilt Infatuation (Needle & Thread)
Free Motion Mavericks (Free Motion Mavericks)

Confessions of a Fabric Addict (Can I get a Whoop! Whoop!)

TGIFF (Thank Goodness it is Friday Finish)

Fabric Frenzy Friday

Crazy Mom Quilts (Finish it up Friday)
A Quilted Passion 
So Scrappy for RSC16

Oh Scrap! : Scrappy Coins

Take a look at what is loaded up on my longarm!  Yep, it is my Scrap-A-Palooza quilt.  I hope to get it quilted and the binding finished so I can share it this Friday.  I will have a few more quilts made by others to include in the post so be prepared for some fun eye candy!

Perfect timing too.  Did you see the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color for March is purple?
 

***************************

Now it is time to link up and share what scrappy projects you have worked on this week.  Here are the details for linking up:

• This linky party is for any scrappy project - It can be in-process or a finished piece.
• You can link up your blog post (not your homepage please) or Instagram photo from the past week that features your use of scraps.
• If you are linking to a blog post, I ask that you link back to my blog somewhere in your post. So if you are writing about scraps, just get into the habit of including a link as there will be a linky party available every week!
• If you are using Instagram, please use the hashtag #ohscrap.
• This is a party so remember to socialize and comment on the posts of others.
• Following my blog is not necessary but it sure would be great if you do!

<a href="http://quiltingismorefunthanhousework.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54Z8EyMCoCg0j1sBoz_APBotiRQveh32vQoL2dCSO4nQFAi8du60IuUCQp3Hb18vGD8IrM0W6_vmuufImGcr4Pf2Ve2dNIWd5LbQJfyDTRjtcekT6coT7c2nSCOG_9dvjiKGVAnuTN70/s1600/Oh+Scrap+Button.jpg" alt="Quilting is more fun than Housework" width="125" height="125" /></a>

So if you love scrappy projects, feel free to grab my button for your sidebar or posts and get ready to share all your wonderful projects from scraps.  And if you have a great idea for using scraps and would like to be featured, feel free to contact me!

An InLinkz Link-up

Linking Up:

Love Laugh Quilt (Monday Making)
Patchwork Times (Design Wall Monday)
Cooking Up Quilts (Main Crush Mondays)
Em's ScrapBag (Moving it Forward)
So Scrappy for RSC16

Scrap-A-Palooza! Quilt #12 Part Four Finish

With all the excitement of 2014 coming to a close, I almost forgot to share December's Scrap-A-Palooza finished quilt!  I admit it has been finished for a while now but a flu bug has zapped my energy and I am lucky if I can get a couple items a day accomplished on my ever growing to-do list!

  Hopefully I am over the worst of it!

We started this quilt with Part One, where we narrowed our colorways and pulled our scraps.

I chose a purple floral scrap from a previous quilt back to use as my color inspiration.










In Part Two, I shared the process for determining how to get the best yield from my fabric for the vertical bars.  I also shared how I determined how wide my coins needed to be to get the size quilt I was hoping for.

Once the scraps for the coins were cut to size, in Part Three, we simply sewed everything together and assembled up the quilt top.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Well, here is the finished quilt in all of its scrappy goodness.

 

 

The colors in this quilt are some I would have not considered putting together in a project but I do find them pleasing to the eye.  I always learn so much using my scraps!

 

And I was able to make a backing from my fabric stash.  I had to use two different solids but I like how it turned out.

 

 

And now for a few statistics:

Lap Quilt

Size: 55 x 65"

Fabric: All fabric for the quilt top came from the scrap bin.  Many of the larger pieces were backing trimmings from previous quilts.

 And some older photos to share using this same concept:

 

 

 

 For this quilt, I used a Jane Sassaman border print for the color inspiration and vertical bars.

And this one was also made from the back trimmings of a previous quilt.  The orange and gray pieces were what was left over when sub-cutting for a pattern.  They were already cut to width so I just sewed them together.

As I stated in an earlier post, Scrap-A-Palooza will continue into 2015.  Woo Hoo!  I am not going to commit to a quilt a month but I will continue sewing up my scraps and sharing the process with you!  Feel free to sew along any time!






And don't forget that starting January 4th, I will be hosting Oh Scrap!, a weekly linky party where you can link up your scrappy projects.  So don't be bashful, share your ideas for sewing those scraps!

If you are interested in more ways to follow me, you can find me on Craftsy, Facebook, Pinterest, Bloglovin', Feedly, Instagram, Google +, or get my blog sent right to your email inbox by entering your email address on the right sidebar! 

 

 

Linking up:

Sew Fresh Quilts

My Quilt Infatuation

She Can Quilt (Scraptastic Tuesday) 

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Fabric Frenzy Friday

Richard and Tanya Quilts

Crazy Mom Quilts