How is everyone this week? Hope you are all having a good November. Fall is finally really here in California. Rumor has it that we will be having significant storms this week. I forgot what they call them, but sounds crazy fun.
As usual, I will be linking up with Carol over at Quilt Schmilt in British Columbia for To Do Tuesday. I heard that they got slammed by winter storms this past week. Hopefully our northern friends are all doing well. See the link below to join us where we share our goals for the upcoming week and share what we did get done. People have some great projects. I get lots of inspiration from checking them out.
I had two Quilty Zoom days this week but was sick most of the week. If it wasn’t for the quilty days and me dragging my butt out of bed for that, I probably wouldn’t have gotten anything done. I am thrilled to be able to share with you what I did work on.
Under the Needle Last Week
It really sucked being sick this week. I haven’t been ill in almost five years so I was just thankful that it was just an asskicking bad cold and nothing worse. Just left me super tired and dehydrated despite my increased intake of liquids. I had two quilty zoom days with my quilty friends so that help to distract me from feeling miserable. Once in the sewing room, it was a lot easier to keep going. Thank you quilty friends!
Finishes
It was awesome feeling finishing these two from my Gnome is Where the Heart Is applique series. I finished December earlier in the year. Check out my 2024 finishes to see December. I was excited to get the Turkey Gnome hung up this early in November. This was a monthly club with Shabby Fabrics. They do great applique as well as normal quilt clubs. I love their applique clubs because you get everything including the backing and binding as well as all applique pieces are laser cut and ready to assemble. This Gnome series is beginner friendly.
WIPS
After finishing my two gnomes, I decided that finishing felt so good, that I looked at my list to see what else was close to being done and pulled out my Zuma Charm quilt which just needed borders. I had a year ago sewn together all the left over jelly roll strips into strip sets with the original intention to do a piano border. But, of course, Sara the 🐿️ convinced me to do something different. I spent an afternoon figuring out whaat I needed to do to make a “floating” border. (My words for putting a pieced border between two borders of the same color with that fabric being in the piecing to create sections of color that seem to be floating.). I figured out all the math and cut the white I decided on as what everything would be floating in. Got everything ready for Quilt Zoom Day.
The result of TWO Quilt Zoom Days are below:
- I have a basket of precut churn dash blocks which is now my current leaders and enders project. Finished one block this week and started a second one.
- Made some more temperature half-square triangles for my 2024 Cottage Temperature Quilt
- Two more strip sets done for my son Steven’s rail fence quilt.
- Started that Zuma Charm quilt pieced border
- Finished the November 2024 Monthly Color Challenge. Loved the teal fabrics I pulled out of my Alison Glass stash. The monthly color challenge is emailed eacch month as a free block of the month with Patterns by Jen. I started in 2020 and so I have a lot of blocks but have not made a quilt top yet.
- Got the Nov 1st – 12th done for my November Cottage
- Finished all 4 Economy blocks for my 2024 Venti AG Sunprint FPP quilt.
- Finished 2 of the 4 Courthouse blocks for the Venti FPP quilt. Once I finish the last two blocks I can assemble the last 3 rows and then the center.
Great week despite feeling yucky. Love my FPP blocks. The colors are so vibrant!
November Goals
- ✔️SAL: 2024 SJ Temperature Cottage Quilt: Finish October Cottage. Start the November Cottage.
- ✔️SAL: 2024 November Monthly Color Challenge Block
- SAL: 2024 Venti AG Sunprint FPP quilt – Make ☑️4 Courthouse blocks and 4 Economy blocks. Assemble Rows 3,4,&5. Assemble Sections 1/2, 3/4/5, 6/ 7
- SAL: 2024 TP Dragonfruit FPP QAL: ☑️ Finish Mo 1. Start Mo 2.
- ✔️EPP: Farmers Wife 1920: Start Block 48
- EPP: Pull out Lost & Found. Figure out layout of the 24 blocks and begin sashing the first row of blocks.
- EPP: Ruby’s Garden: start Block 25
- ✔️Applique: Finish November Gnome Is Where the Heart Is
- ✔️Applique: Finish January Gnome Is Where the Heart Is
- Applique: Start Blooming Snowflakes
- Small Project: Finish Patriotic tablerunner
UFO: Pull out 2020 Meadowland blocks and figure out a layout, then start assembling.Decided to put this one away as I have other UFO’s closer to being finished tops- UFO: 2019 Tula Pink Zuma Charm Quilt finish – just need to assemble the pieced border and attach – working on this past week
- UFO: 2022 Bring Home the Tree – make 1 car block
- Long Arm: 2013 Fall quilt- quilt it
- Long Arm: Halloween Quilt – quilt it
- Long Arm: 2021 Sunshine Quilt- load it
- Cross Stitch FFO: Finish Let’s Talk Autumn Pillow
- Cross Stitch FFO: Start Autumn Basket pillows x 3
This week’s To Do List
- Cut blocks from previously sewn strip sets for Rail Fence quilt
- Finish last two courthouse blocks for 2024 Venti AG Sunprint FPP quilt
- Finish making floating borders for Zuma Charm quilt
- Nov 13th – Nov 18th row added to November Cottage
- Cut blocks for the Dragonfruit Month 2 blocks
- Work on Farmers Wife blk #48
- Sew background for Blooming Snowflakes applique project
- Find a backing for the patriotic tablerunner
Afterthoughts
I received my first Alison Glass Studio Collectors box and so many goodies were inside. I loved looking through it. Obviously there were the mini charms for about 8 collections, enamel pins, enamel charms, notecards, notepads, patterns, lots of stickers, and so much more. Just a lot of happy mail! Loved looking through everything.
I have to find a good project to use all those 2 1/2 inch squres (mini charms) in. My friend Mary Elizabeth suggested Irish Chain. Someone else suggest a basic nine patch. Any other suggestions? So far Irish Chain is in the lead for possible project. I am thinking a triple irish chain would use a lot of 2.5 inch squares. Would you keep each collection together? Or would you do it by color? I guess I should decide on a background. Obviously I absolutely love dark backgrounds as I love how colors pop but I would not be opposed to a gray maybe? Plus I was thinking a solid so it didn’t compete with all those tiny little squares. Please leave thoughts on what you think might work to showcase all those gorgeous tiny squares.
Everyone have a great week and I wish you a fun sewing week!
Peggy Stockwell in San Jose, California
Hi Peggy. You are so right about the bomb cyclone (where do they get these names from? 😉) that hit us prettty hard in British Columbia. We had a power outage from 7:30 Wednesday evening until 6:00 Thursday morning, but we finally have snow! I’m amazed at all you got done with having a bad bug! Well done! For backgrounds right now I’m looking for a charcoal grey fabric. For me it would be perfect to make your mini charms just pop! I think your rail fence strip sets are going to make one stunning quilt. I was just gifted a piece of fabric; beige, brown, burgundy and purples! It sounds ugly but Oh how it makes my heart happy. I’m going to plan or design a quilt just to showcase this little piece of fabric. Thank you for joining To Do Tuesday last week. Hope you are feeling better and having lots of fabric fun time. Happy Thanksgiving
It is a bomb cyclone, meteorological term “bombogenesis” and it is an intense storm! Praying you aren’t affected by it.
Hope you are feeling better each day. I trust that your “assistants” were loving nurses. 😉
Love your rail fence fabrics, and those gnomes are adorable. Take care Peggy!