Mask Making Frenzy

Like many quilters right now, I have devoted much of my time making masks. I know that there are doctors and nurses out there that on the front lines in this battle. Hopefully, we can get this virus slowed down before we lose too many people. 

 So far, in the limited time that I have since I am still working, I have made close to 100 masks. Those masks have been made for the hospital, for family members and friends. I don't expect payment, even for shipping. To me, it doesn't seem right that people have to pay to protect themselves and others. I have told my friends to just pay it forward. That is how we are going to get through this. We have to do it together.

Even Mr. Weasley is trying to do his part!

I started making masks with cloth ties instead of hair ties so I could make that I would have enough hair ties for the masks that the hospital were requesting. 

While I can't wait to get back to quilting, I know that this is important. While the coronavirus hasn't been too widespread here, I know that it can change quickly. I thank each and everyone in this fight. Please keep masking those masks! If you have the time and materials, please make a few. There is a need out there. I know hospitals, nursing homes, family and friends can use them. Make sure that you don't forget about yourself, especially if you have to be out in public!

Be safe out there!

Quilt Retreat Fun!

While I didn't get near as many quilts finished that I would have liked, this weekend was still fun. I finished two quilt tops and randomly climbed a rock wall after a Boy Scout group went through. I didn't think I was going to make it to the top, but I did! It was very challenging and took all of my strength to make it to the top to ring the bell. Luckily, I had my fellow quilters down below cheering me on. 

I think that is why I love quilting so much. I always have so much support from my quilting friends when I doubt myself in what I am making. They gave me the strength to keep going on that wall as well. I hope that I can pay it forward when the times like those come around. Somethimes that is all it takes, a kind word or a little encouragement to make a huge impact. 

Another lesson that I learned here is to take advantage of opportunities when they come up. I am almost 48 years old and have never climbed a rock wall before. I saw an opportunity and I took advantage of it. Life is too short not to experience all of what it offers.

Keep quilting, keep climbing and keep encouraging others!

Happy Quilting!

String & Crumb Quilt Blocks

I am a firm believer that scraps do somehow multiply when placed in bins or boxes. I have been trying to get my sewing room cleaned up and organized, so I have been working on getting scraps cut up into useable sizes such as 2 and 2.5 inch squares and strips. Anything less than 1.5 inches gets put into my string and crumb blocks. I have been working on both my string and crumb blocks and feel  like it's taking forever to make any progress. The laundry basket doesn't seem to be getting any emptier!

I have continued to stick with making 4.5 inch crumb blocks. I have sewed four of them together to make an 8.5 inch block in the past. I think anything bigger with the pieces I use would be a challenge. 

Many of the strings I am using is from trimming the backs of my quilts. I didn't realize I had so much of it in my scrap bin until I started pulling all of the pieces out. From now on, after I trim off the backing and batting on a quilt, I will be taking care of the scraps right away. I will take the time and trim everything up into useable pieces. I think part of the problem was I that I quilted a whole bunch of quilts and was getting ready for a quilt show and was in a hurry.  

So many crumbs! 

This design wall is next to my sewing machine. It is really handy because I can grab a block that I am working on and add a piece. I normally use it as a leader/ender project.

A nice stack of string blocks!

I have been making 6.5 inch string blocks since the phone books that I am using work for that size. I really prefer 8.5 inch string blocks but that's ok. It's nice to use stuff up!

Time to get back at it! More crumb and string block to make! 

Happy Quilting!

New Year, New Attitude

Happy New Year! As I write this post, I had to reflect back on 2019 and think about all of the quilting goals I had made for the year. Needless to say, I fell way short on most of them. Am I upset that I didn't make one quilt per week? No, a person has to do more than quilt day and night. There are things like spending time with friends and family that matter more than cranking out a bunch of quilts. It is all about perspective. Do what you can with what you have and where you are in life at that moment. For 2020, I am not setting any quilting goals. Looking at the year already, I realize that I will have a lot going on so why put unrealistic goals out there only to stress myself out?

This past week I have been cutting projects along with sewing some blocks together. I managed to get all of the blocks made for my White House Squares Quilt and cut everything up except for the sashing for my second Bear Paw Quilt.

On another project that I have been working on, I had a ton of four patches to make. I finally decided to see if I could learn to spin my seams. Needless to say, it is fairly easy once I got going. I used the power of google and found a ton of videos on how to do it. A fellow quilter once told me to challenge myself. I had just joined my quilt guild and I thought that was an excellent piece of advice. I hope that I will never stop learning new techniques or trying new patterns. I know it is easy to get stuck in a rut and never do anything different. That was how I was for my first twenty years in quilting.

I hope that this year will be a good one! Happy Quilting!

Longarm Frustrations

I'm not sure how long I had this quilt on my longarm, but I'm sure it had been at least six months. I am pretty confident that I will be getting a new longarm soon. I am done trying to figure the one I have out, plus the company is out of business so I have no support for it. My plan is to do some research, test some machines out, ask a lot of questions and get the right one for me. 

I was really looking forward to getting this quilt done, but now I just cringe looking at the quilting. There were many skipped stiches and no matter what I did, nothing helped. So frustrating! I just hope the individual that commissioned me to make this one and two others will understand. My goal is to finish up the quilts I have been commissioned to do and get caught up a little bit. Hopefully 2020 will be more productive for quilting! 

Five Rag Quilts in Eleven Days

I cannot believe the pile of t-shirts I received on the 20th of November have been transformed into five quilts already. In between all of the sewing and cutting, I hosted Thanksgiving as well. I do have to give credit to one of my quilting friends that did sew one of the quilts together on Thanksgiving day after all of the festivities were over. 

Memory quilts are both something I love and hate to do. The main reason why I love to do them is that I know it helps the family heal and provides them some comfort in a difficult time. The reason why I hate doing them is that I know that a family suffered a loss and I feel for them. In this case, two children lost their dad and I can't begin to fathom what they are going through. 

I just hope that when I make these quilts, I am making them the way they envision them. I make sure that I follow their instructions carefully (they didn't want one side of the shirt in the quilt) and get it right. I probably get annoying by calling and texting if I need clarification on something. I want to get it right. Once the shirts are cut, you can't undo it. 

I hope these quilts do provide some healing for the family. I am happy that they will have these quilts for years to come. 

I would love to take a break, but I have some other projects that I have been commissioned to do and I need to get those done as well. Those projects have been put off far too long and need to get done. I feel bad that I put these five ahead of them but I think they will understand. 

Time to get back to quilting!

Quilt Retreat Fun!

All I can say is wow, what a weekend! I went the Quilted Steeple up near Lone Rock, Iowa. It is a great place for a quilt retreat. There were fourteen of us and I think all of us had a great time. I ended up going up on Thursday and it was a good thing that I did. I managed to get three quilts done by the end of day one. Friday wasn't as productive since I made two different kinds of homemade soup that morning. On Saturday, I was able to get three more quilts done and started my second scrappy mountain majesties quilt. Sunday morning I was able to finish two more quilt projects for a grand total of eight quilts. That is the most I have ever finished at a quilt retreat. 

Bonnie Hunter Scrappy Mountain Majesties Quilt #1

My quilting friends often ask me how I get so much done at retreats. I try give them as many tips and suggestions as possible even though I am far from being an expert. This is what works for me, but figure out what works best for you.

1. Plan ahead. If you know that you are going to a retreat, figure out what you are going to work on well in advance. Get all of the fabric you may need. Try not to bring partial projects if you are missing fabric.
2. Make a list of the projects that you want to work on and prioritize. If you need to get a wedding quilt or graduation quilt that is coming up, get that one done first so you don't run out of time later on during the retreat.
3. Cut all of your projects up ahead of time. Make a test block if you can to make sure you have the right measurements. I have seen a lot of quilters cut their project up wrong because they were too busy socializing and not paying attention to what they were doing. I have also seen quilters cut things wrong because the rulers they are borrowing are different than what they are used to. 
4. I put all of my projects in Ziploc bags and label them. I also have the instructions in there if I need them. I sometimes have instructions saved on my phone or laptop. If so, I will indicate that on the label so I am not hunting for them later because I can't remember where they are.
5. Do research on the retreat itself if you have never been there before. Not all retreat centers are created equal. Some have limited table space, others have limited design wall space. Do research helps you know what tools to bring and what to leave behind. For example, at this one, there were plenty of irons. They also had really good chairs so I left mine behind. I also left my design walls (vinyl table cloths) behind since there is limited wall space. 
6. If the retreat center offers an extra day and you can afford it, do the extra day. It is amazing how much can be accomplished with an extra day of quilting. I know that this doesn't work for everyone if you cannot take off work or if you have health issues. Having the extra day also enables you to have all of your stuff ready for the next day when others are arriving. You are quilting away while everyone else is trying to get settled in.
7. Wind your bobbins ahead of time. I have a bunch of bobbins for my machine. This weekend I ended up going through twelve bobbins. It is nice to pop a new one in when one runs out. I hate wasting time in a middle of a project waiting for me to wind bobbins.
8. If you get stuck on a project or just get tired of it, don't be afraid to put it away and work on something else. This weekend I had to put my house quilt project away because I got tired of making houses. I went onto something else and came back to them the next day and finished the project.
9. Bring extra projects.  For this last retreat, I brought a total of twelve projects. I knew that I would never get that many done but what this does is gives me options on what to work on. Sometimes, I look at a project and I won't be in the mood to work on it at that moment. 
10. Don't forget to socialize and have fun. Walk around and see what others are working on. Take a break if you need to. Go shopping for more fabric if you have the opportunity. 

Bonnie Hunter Scrappy Mountain Majesties Quilt #2

Marmalade Squares II Quilt

Big Calico Kitty Quilt

Giant Star Quilt

House Quilt

Square Quilt 

Rocky Mountain Puzzle Quilt

Hopefully I can get to my next retreat in January. I will be cutting projects for it soon. No more quilting this weekend, but tomorrow I will get to work!

Happy Quilitng!