Two More Flimsies and January's Monthly Recap

Belatedly, here is a full photo of Hanabi's quilt top (Macnas series no. 10).  

(earlier not-yet-pressed reveal post is HERE)

Hanabi has a wide back waiting in the closet with its binding already made.

Rastro, one of the four Macnas series bonus quilts, is now a flimsy.  

52" x 72"

I need to seam the backing for Rastro and choose binding fabric.

Motley, another of the four Macnas series bonus quilts, is also now a flimsy (corners to be squared after quilting).

48" x 64"

I need to seam the backing fabric but the binding is already made.

* * *

We're still essentially housebound although DH has ventured out twice.  Our driveway is still only partially uncovered and after Thursday's high in the low 40s, we're back in the below-freezing zone until sometime next week.   

(local schools and  most city offices/services ended up closing for this whole week)

* * *

For my own 2026 record keeping, these were my January "finishes"

Quilt tops

• Enchanted, Macnas series no. 9 
• Hanabi, Macnas series no. 10
• Githerments, Macnas series bonus quilt
• Githerments scrappy pieced backing 
• Rastro, Macnas series bonus quilt (above)
• Motley, Macnas series bonus quilt (above)

Finishes

• Trouvaille
• Esperance long runner no. 2

Other

• Bindings made for six waiting quilt tops
• Fandango, Macnas series no. 7 pin basted
• Prepped fabric/batting for set of 6 reversible placemats

My goals for February

• Quilt and finish Fandango
• Pin baste, quilt, and finish Incandescent (to be gifted in April)
• Pin baste Grandiose, Macnas series no. 8
• Camp Sefton - Young Man to lay out top for their new autumn ottoman quilt RUSKA (noun-the time of fall foliage). This will be an after school/weekend project which will likely end up including some sewing.

We shall see how things go . . . 

Quiltdivajulie

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"The most effective way to do it is to do it."

Amelia Earhart

Looking Ahead

Christmas is packed away for another year and since then we have been deep cleaning the house.  I hadn't done any dusting since before my foot surgery in mid-October.  Amazing how much dust accumulated in 10 weeks!  

Frequent rest breaks gave me a chance to think about how I want to proceed with my quilts and paper in 2025 and I think I've figured out a general "game plan" (subject to redirection, as always).

(above - my new tea break set up in the design studio)

I am participating in the Create 365 Somethings in 2025 challenge. 

You can read iHanna's introductory post HERE.

You can read Tammy Garcia's (Daisy Yellow's) introductory post to her 365 Somethings with a Twist is HERE.  

As you may have guessed, I'll be using Tammy's Fractional Approach!

(above - the second blooming Christmas Cactus)

On my list of projects that will "count" . . . 

• Placemats (6 birthday and maybe others)
• Completed quilt tops (who knows how many)
• Finished quilts (there are 14 currently in the queue)
• A new wall quilt for February (awesome panel on order)
• Two themed journals - "Bookish" and "Squirrely" 
• Greeting cards for birthdays and anniversaries
• Slow stitching projects to reduce doom scrolling (things like inserts for those cards)
• and the Full Deck Challenge 3 hosted by ShanoukiArt on You Tube (I plan to use Kraft paper shipping tags instead of playing cards and my goal is to make one shipping tag using "paper" and a second shipping tag with "fabric" each week)

If I don't make 365, that's okay so long as I PLAY more and PLAN less.

(above - the heavily flowering amaryllis)

This month, I'm also very loosely following along with Karen Brown's 5th annual decluttering challenge.

Many of her prompts really don't apply to me (i.e., magazines).  But others like deep cleaning the studio and seriously looking at fabric pulls, UFOs, and the like in order to decide which ones are WANT TO MAKE absolutely apply.  

* * *

Bottom line - the studio squirrels are hard at work suggesting new ideas and while I plan to listen and explore their thoughts, exactly how my creative year unfolds is going to be an adventure.

Quiltdivajulie

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"You owe it to all of us and yourself to get on with what you're good at."

W.H. Auden

Looking Ahead after Looking Around

January is a time when I pretty much stop what I'm doing in order to take time to clear my head, clean up, reorganize my priorities,  and re-evaluate my work in progress projects.

This blog post from Elizabeth of OP Quilts landed in my email inbox a few days ago and its timing couldn't have been more perfect.

I adore the idea of a "chuck it" list (click here for the full article).

She also linked off to this article on why you should swap your "bucket" list for a "chuck it" list.

So . . . much . . . food . . . for . . . thought!

After already having done considerable pondering on my own and then taking time to digest those articles, I've been busy in the studio.

Four waiting projects have been scuttled in order to focus on the others that mean more to me.  

Plans for several fabric pulls have been updated to reflect the way I want to work now - more about color stories with less pfaffing about over design.  

Two other projects are being donated to Linda's comfort quilt effort (seventy 2.5" already-cut strips plus several yards of backing fabrics).

I've gone through the bloated paper stash/supplies now that I'm much more comfortable with what I want to make vs. what I see others making online.

I used the money earned from last night's Zoom presentation to improve the filing/storage system for my newly-culled paper stash.

And I'm deleting the oh-so-alluring QAL and online course offerings and meant-to-be-enticing sale notices from my Inbox.

* * *

I've also decided my overarching goal for 2024 is to focus on my four words - colorful, scrappy, eclectic, and liberated.   I'm hoping they will help me do a better job of being ME.

Quiltdivajulie

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"Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up."

A. A. Milne

One Year Ends and A New One Begins

This year was different than previous years in that I branched out from quilt making only into the making of scrappy, eclectic, and sometimes themed journals.  

On the quilt making front, with Little Man’s help, I also made four new stuffie quilts for Pikachu, Meri, Tygee, and Penguin while two previously finished table topper size quilts became stuffie quilts for BearBear and Foxy.

I completed a total of twelve quilt tops (several started in previous years), not counting the stuffie quilts (Smaragdine, Gnomeville, Brumous, Coddiwomple, Awesome Colors, the Ottoman quilt, Razzle Dazzle, Spoondrift, Caim, B.O.B., Macnas, and Pretty in Pink).

I quilted and finished thirteen quilts, again not counting the stuffie quilts (Gone Dotty, Awesome Colors, the Ottoman quilt, Bon Mot, a wall quilt for May/June, Rident, Ohana, Spots and Dots, Pretty in Pink, Concatenation, and three Happy Birthday wall quilts).  

There are two work-in-progress quilt tops right now – Dumpster Diving 12-Confetti, and my Bramble Blooms QAL project.

There are also fifteen project boxes in the closet with a mix of partially cut or fully cut quilt top fabrics and fabric pulls with plans for future cutting.  Time will tell how many of these make it to the finish line (I make no promises on any of them).

On the journal making front, I finished a surprising eighteen projects.

There are four work-in-progress projects right now and two journals that need binding (one involves a Coptic binding and I’m procrastinating since that is a new-to-me more complicated technique).

There are also three pending project boxes for a textile/sewing/quilting journal, a tea-themed journal, and a series of eclectic ROYGBIV glue books.  No rush on any of them since the box contents will sit and wait until I’m ready to tackle them. 

All in all, it has been a creatively satisfying year.

* * *

Looking ahead to 2024, I’ll let the following poem speak:

"Why do we start a new year, with promises to improve?

Who began this tradition of never-ending pressure?

I say, the end of a year, should be filled with congratulation, for all we survived. 

And I say a new year should start with promises to be kinder to ourselves, to understand better just how much we bear, as humans on this exhausting treadmill of life.

And if we are to promise more, let’s pledge to rest, before our bodies force us. 

Let’s pledge to stop, and drink in life as it happens.

Let’s pledge to strip away a layer of perfection to reveal the flawed and wondrous humanity we truly are inside.

Why start another year, gifted to us on this earth, with demands on our already over-strained humanity. 

When we could be learning to accept, that we were always supposed to be imperfect.

And actually, that is where the beauty lives.

And if we can only find that beauty, we would also find peace.

Everything else is all just a part of it.

Let it be so."

Donna Ashworth

Quiltdivajulie

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p.s.  you can read more about any of the listed quilt tops or finishes by clicking on the two "finish" labels at the end of this post and scrolling through the tagged posts.

Wrap Up and New Goals

Now that all eleven quilts in the

Dumpster Diving series are finished,

I put together a video so I had photos all in one place.

CLICK HERE and enjoy.

(just fyi - this is on DH's YouTube account)

* * *

Now about those goals . . . 

Fourth of July is ready to pin baste for some FMQ action.

So is Hello July.

Fruit Smoothie is also waiting for FMQ 

so it will be ready for use on July 1.

* * *

I'm not sure why but I've been more in the mood

to quilt/finish some of these waiting tops/backs 

than I have been to sit and sew at my Bernina.

I'm still working on my RSC red projects

(lined drawstring gift bags and Hoppipolla)

and here it is almost June when Angela

will announce the next color of the month.

Oh well, it's all good because

every stitch moves something forward.

Quiltdivajulie

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“I never met a color I didn’t like.”

Dale Chihuly

Contemplating and Looking Ahead

After a period of soul searching,

I have chosen my guiding word for 2020.

Previous guiding words have included 

ENJOY, SMILE, MINDFUL, 

and most recently SHOSHIN / WONDER.

I could write all sorts of words to explain why I chose LISTEN

but the short version is that I want to do a better job of it -

listening to myself AND listening to others.

I've already started gathering quotations to share

at the end of posts next year - those will serve as

ongoing reminders to stay the course

and keep me focused on the challenge.

(for the record, FOCUS was my runner up word)

Looking ahead  . . . 

I want to spend less time stirring/planning

and more time actually stitching - 

piecing AND quilting.

I want to stop obsessing about my paper trail

and spend that time making and doing.

I want to use the fabrics in my stash

instead of impulsively acquiring more.

I want to savor the process instead of 

fretting so much about whether or not

my chosen outcome is the "perfect" one.

I intend to keep sharing what I make

here on the blog and spend less time

watching what others do on Instagram.

I want to spend more time reading the books I've purchased.

(hard copies have returned to favored status

over digital books - simply because of screen time

and the easy access to online distractions)

I want to meet my own personal challenge

of making monthly quilts for our kitchen table -

resisting the urge to get too fancy and

focusing instead on colorful and functional.

I've set a personal goal of making five 

24" x 24" quilts for the GREEN challenge 

to be shared during the annual November

Davies Manor Quilt and Fiber Arts Show -

each of the five showcasing a different aspect

of my process / style.

And yes, I'm also planning to 

share their making here on the blog, 

unlike some of the participants 

who choose to work in secret.

Most of all, 

when I assemble a fabric pull like the ones 

shared in this post, I want to honor my 

scrappy, colorful, liberated, eclectic nature,

staying open to new ideas and changes of direction.

. . . including being influenced by my studio squirrels!

(in their honor, 

I have a 2020 studio calendar

with silly photos of squirrels 

ready to hang up come January 1st)

* * *

With all of the above shared for the record,

these wise words from Calvin and Hobbes

 will now be my focus for the rest of the year.

Wishing each of you comfort and joy.

See you again in the new year.

Quiltdivajulie

Short Term Goals

These three placemats are first on my list

of projects to complete sooner instead of later.

(younger son has been waiting patiently

for quite a while . . . )

I haven't quilted much of anything since 

early October due to the painful left knee

(which is doing better - 

not like new, but definitely improved)

so these were my first sit down with Max since the injection.

Given the way things felt that night and the day after,

I need to quilt in short sessions 

with plenty of stretching and time in between.

(I use my left foot for Max's foot pedal -

I've tried working him right-footed 

but my finesse and control aren't as good -

I think I need to work on that)

Dumpster Diving 7 - Respite is ready for 

the purple width-of-quilt sections to be sewn together 

and attached to the green/turquoise bands.

(I'm doing my piecing sewing using my right foot)

And then there are borders to add

and a scrappy squares back to be

laid out and sewn together.

There's no big rush to quilt this one,

thankfully.

Feliz Navidad is rolled onto the pool noodles

ready for batting and pin basting.

I really want to quilt it before 

the end of the month or sooner

if at all possible.

Eira is now ready to be rolled onto pool noodles

and pin basted - another one I would love

to finish by the end of December.

Bemused is the table topper planned for January.

These clipped strips are ready to be sewn into

sixteen patches for a 64" square postage stamp top.

I'm pretty sure I can get it pieced by the end of the month

but I don't know if I'll get it quilted before January 1st.

If Bemused is finished by mid-January, I'll be happy.

For the Birds is still ready for 

the blocks to be sewn together.

The pieces and parts are ready to assemble the borders.

I'd like to move this one along 

so I can empty the design wall

before it is time to lay out Bemused's blocks.

Maybe Santa will bring me 

a few extra hours this month?

Quiltdivajulie

Redefining my Focus . . .

As typically  happens after a week away at JCCFS

(and a long weekend away with family)

I need/want to re-visit my project list

and waiting fabric pulls.

The biggest decision is that I'm going to take

several projects already underway and

re-design them to become 60" x 60" table toppers.

That way we'll have a different one to use each month

AND 

I have a year-long-date-oriented project list 

to help  keep me on task.

 (see list at the end of this post)

* * *

This revised approach meant that

I needed to change my plan for Halcyon 

(my Granny Cabin qal project)

 from a 48" x 60" lap quilt to

the designer's 58" x 58" throw design.

A new coloring sheet was completed and 

a few more squares of certain colors were cut.

Now I'm ready to sit and sew.

I also pulled a scrappy assortment from the stash 

that suits Halcyon's color palette.

I'll go with the 10.5" square approach

so I can mix these colors around.

* * *

Shifting gears for a moment --

Some of you may have seen this photo on IG.

When we met up with my sister and her husband,

I delivered these four bags filled with 17 quilts.

(and four recently-turned walnut bowls)

One bag for each of the nephews and their family

and one for my sister and her husband.

They all love quilts and live where it is cold.

(except one family that now lives in FL)

It makes me so happy to know these

 will be appreciated and enjoyed.

After all, isn't that the real reason we make quilts?

Back to my revised game plan --

I came up with a way to incorporate

all three of the JCCFS strata leftovers into

ONE quilt instead of three smaller projects

Meet FAUVE (adj:  Vivid in color)

The former wall quilt will became the center 

and I'll use the long columns as borders.

I need to play with the inner stop border

and the outer border fabrics - I like 

this BOB but these strips are too narrow.

And in the Squirrel Club department,

I've been cutting 1.5" squares 

for several weeks now --

Wanda and Lynn D. and so many others

are making 1" postage stamp blocks

using solids as the alternate squares --

and we already know I have a thing

for scrappy 1.5" strips.

When I found this 2012 tutorial online 

I knew I would go this route instead. 

I will need to make 48 of these 12" blocks

with 144 1.5" squares in each one

for a lap quilt that measures 48" x 60"

At this point I have cut about 1/4 

of the tiny squares that will be needed.

But since I am delighted to have found

 a plan that works for me,

I've named this one BONHEUR 

which means "happy."

* * *

There's a lot of other pondering 

and planning going on in the background;.

In between cutting out pieces and parts

for a number of waiting projects

and stitching the blocks for Halcyon,

I want (need) to spend some time quilting with Max.

* * *

One stitch at a time.

* * *

Recap of My Table Topper Game Plan for 2020

January - Squares Aplenty

(minimal redesign needed for sewn top - 

back pieced - ready to quilt)

February - TBD

(waiting project not yet shared)

March -  Bemused

(2" scrappy postage stamp ala Red Pepper Quilts - 

sewing started - not yet shared)

April - Reciprocity (side one)

(top sewn - ready to quilt this two-sided project - 

formerly known as the Double-Sided Four Patch)

May - Reciprocity (side two)

(back sewn - ready to quilt this two-sided project -

formerly known as the Double-Sided Four Patch)

June - Halcyon

(Granny Cabin QAL project - work in progress)

July - Frabjous

(fabrics pulled for coins style design - not yet shared )

August - Farmland

(another waiting project - 

Crazy Quilt design from CFQ book - 

not yet shared here on the blog)

September - Shift Happens

(top and back sewn - ready to quilt)

October - Sweater Weather (side one)

(waiting project not yet shared)

November - Sweater Weather (side two)

(waiting project not yet shared)

December - Merry and Bright

(waiting project not yet shared - 

Christmas fabrics cut and ready to sew)

Quiltdivajulie

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“There is something in every one of you that waits and listens for the sound of the genuine in yourself.  It is the only true guide you will ever have.  And if you cannot hear it, you will all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that somebody else pulls.”  

Howard Thurman