2015 Finish-Along Quarter 1 List

2015 is going to be the year I get through my WIPs, there's so much I want to make and I have plenty of fabric to keep me going but I just can't start new things at the moment without finishing some of these.

I got a new machine at the weekend, a Janome Horizon Memory Craft 8200 QC. I love my Janome DXL603, bought 3 years ago when I wanted to do more sewing. It's made bags, cushions, a few items of clothing, taken up curtains, quilts, travelled all over the country with me and been a brilliant machine but quilting is hard work on it and it's also struggling. So I went into the sewing machine shop in Harrogate to ask about a service for it and came out with my new machine. I had been looking at buying one before Christmas so it wasn't completely spontaneous, they just happened to have one in the shop so I could take it away that day. I'm keeping my trusty DXL603 too, once it's had a service I'm sure it'll be just fine.

So I'm hoping I can get through all my quilts that need quilting fairly quickly now - also the living room floor is pretty clear at the moment so I can get things basted - that's half my battle normally.

My 2015 Finish-Along Quarter 1 list is as follows, obviously including the 7 carry overs from 2014 first:

1. Summer Slice

This quilt, pattern by Cluck Cluck Sew, was started last July for my sister in law's 30th. By the time I'd gathered fabric in the right colour ways I was cutting it fine for her birthday, got the top sewn together in the middle of August and then nothing. No space to baste, took it on holiday but did the smaller two quilts first and ran out of time. I did baste it on the 22nd December in some foolish hope I could quilt it before my sister in law arrived on Boxing Day, but didn't.

So this is number one quilt to quilt on my new machine. I'm going to London in a couple of weeks and hoping I can arrange to meet up with my brother who works in the City and drop it off with him - 6 months late...

2. Splitting Squares Quilt

A straight carry over from the last two lists. Anna at Quilting Along the Grain's  Splitting squares quilt, I won the pattern in a giveaway last summer (2013) and made the top last August (2013), got no further. The sashing is navy, rather than black I promise! 

This just needs basting, quilting, binding and then a home.

3. Posy Baby Quilt

Started in June 2014, borders added in July 2014, has been sat around since then. Another one that just needs basting, quilting, binding. I have a home for this one though. 

4. Disappearing 9 Patch Quilt

Disappearing 9 patch, did these in 2013, never got any further - really should make them into a quilt, I was planning it for Siblings Together so that'll be my motivation to get it done for this summer for that. 

5. Simply Solids Wonky Stars Quilt

In 2013 to compliment their new monthly solid stash club Laura produced a wonky star quilt pattern for Simply Solids one of my favourite fabric shops. I did pretty well keeping up with making the stars until the autumn, then it all went a bit wrong. I finished the rest of the stars in September (I think) 2014 and now I need to make it into a quilt top, baste, quilt, bind etc. I have a recipient for this and it really needs doing in the next few weeks.

6. HST Cushion

Finished one of these for my Brother & his wife for Christmas 2013, didn't realise I hadn't done second. It was my first play with my Sizzix machine in summer 2013. I hoped to get it done and be able to give it to them at Christmas this year but didn't get that far. 

7. Noodlehead divided baskets

I bought the Noodlehead Divided Basket pattern in May 2014. Did the fabric pull, cut most of it out, sewed a tiny bit, then it got forgotten. I didn't sewing in my sewing room again until after Christmas. I got this out once I'd finished the quilt I was working on then, ironed it all, read the instructions again and was obviously a bit optimistic that I'd get up there and be able to do some whilst my in laws were here. Less of a priority this one, it's for me, but it would be nice to finish it and see if it's something I can make for others.

8. Aragon Bag 

My first new addition to the list. I wanted to make a bag for taking bits to Leeds MQG meetings, and for taking sewing supplies on holidays. A decent sized bag with a zip was the requirement and I looked around and found the Aragon Bag by Sew Sweetness - I bought, fabric pulled, and cut out in October and then made some progress at the November Leeds MQG meeting with it. I managed a bit more after that and was then busy every evening for weeks so this got put to one side. The pattern isn't as thorough as Erin @DogUnderMyDesk ones which I'm more used to and I struggled a bit with it. It's further on than in this photo though. 

It's all carefully boxed up having spent weeks in the corner of my sewing room. The plan is to make some drawstring bags and other little sewing bits and pieces in the left over fabric (it's made with fabrics from Riley Blake Designs "Sidewalks" by October Afternoon which I had half yards of from Pink Castle Fabrics stashed away). 

9. Sew Together Bag

When I got back from my holiday in October I decided to make a Sew Together Bag, but decided I wanted it patchwork, because I never take the easy option... So I bought the pattern and got this far. Need to package this up to take with me when I'm out and about and get the hexies finished, then when I've worked through some of my other WIPs I can look at making the actual bag.

10. Star EPP cushion

I started doing this in May 2014, it then got a bit screwed up so I've started again. Most of this was done whilst sitting with family over Christmas and New Year. I'm hoping to get this finished and made into a cushion for a friend's birthday. 

So the plan for January is:

• Take the HST cushion and the Simply Solids wonky stars to Leeds MQG on Saturday

• Work on the Aragon bag and the Star EPP cushion at home/out and about

• Quilt the Summer Slice quilt once I'm happy with my new machine and then hopefully the wonky starts too

• Forget about the other 5 projects for now!

I'm linking up with Adrianne at On the Windy Side who is kindly hosting the 2015 Finish-Along: 

 

Finish Along 2014 quarter 4 - final review

Blimey 5th blog post in 2 days but I want to review my finish along list before I start on my next one.

I'm pleased to say that three quilts are now finished:

Apart from basting this quilt just before Christmas, and then deciding that I'd wait until I got a new machine to quilt it as I was a bit worried about my existing machine after having trouble quilting my sparkle punch star quilt (which took 2 1/2 weeks start to finish, with lots of late nights, proving I can do it):

I've not made any progress on my other projects:

So three finished, and 7 to carry over, whilst also making and finishing a quilt start to finish, and a big bag, and a few other bits, not too shabby quarter 4. 

Thanks to Katie at The Littlest Thistle for hosting the Finish Along in 2014 - it got me blogging and motivated to dig out some WIPs and actually finish some projects. 

I'll be back tomorrow with my Finish Along Quarter 1 list for 2015 which Adrianne on the Windy Side  is hosting- I'm hoping to really crack these stubbon WIPs in Quarter 1, get some quilts sent off and then I can move on to new projects. 

I'm a Ginger Monkey Block Quilt - Finish Along Finish number 3

This is another long term WIP that I'm really pleased to have finished.

We stayed in York this year over Christmas and our families came to us, I'm not sure it was any easier than travelling to see them (our parents live over 200 miles away and 75 miles apart so Christmas usually involves a week long 'expedition' round the sound of England) as we ended up with my family over Christmas and my in laws over New Years so looking back I feel like I spent 12 days cleaning, washing, cooking, washing up and 'entertaining' relatives. In reality we did have a couple of quiet days just us at home in the middle doing not a lot and I decided to have a go at finishing something on my finish along list.

The project I came along first in my sewing room was my pile of blocks for my I'm a ginger monkey quilt.

The quilt started life in Summer 2013, I'd bought Katy @Imagingermonkey new book and made one of the projects, a pincushion/sewing storage caddy to go over the arm of a chair which was quickly put to good use.

I then decided to make a little quilt from some of the blocks in the book. I chose 20 of the 25 and worked out that if I used each fabric twice, once in one of the blocks with the tiny squares and once in one of the other blocks, I'd need 56 fabrics so I raided my scraps bin and cut out all the bits for my 20 blocks. I also cut out all the background fabric for each block out of sketch in Charcoal. I then bagged up each block:

The idea was to be able to grab a bag and the book when I had a small amount of time to sew in an evening so I could just sew rather than have to worrying about cutting too and be able to do the blocks over a few weeks. I started well in August 2013:

But by the end of October I'd only done 8 and then it all got packed away and put in the corner of my sewing room (I see a theme here) only to be got out again when I started my finish along 2014 quarter 3 list in July 2014:

In August I made 6 more of the blocks:

And made the final 6 in September, finishing the top two at Leeds MQG:

Laid them all out, decided on polka dot sashing, and then left them again to be added to my finish along 2014 quarter 4 list:

So I grabbed these again on 28th December, found some Moda Tiny Dottie in Jet Black from Simply Solids in my stash and cut the sashing and stitched up a quilt top:

The good thing about the living room being clear from Christmas and the small size of this quilt it was easy to baste (backed with Ikea Rosalie in blue with red dots) and the next day I quilted, in Aurifil 2600 in a 2 inch diagonal hatching pattern:

I bound it in red sketch to compliment the charcoal and frame the quilt and hand finished the binding on the Monday evening and here it is, 29 by 36 inches, lots of different blocks, lots of different fabrics:

The quilt doesn't have a purpose at the moment, but for now it's sitting nicely on my newly acquired quilt stand from Ikea with our lap quilts:

Linking up with Katy @TheLittlestThistle and Finish a long 2014 quarter 4:

My list is here: http://changingthisstory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/finish-along-quarter-4.html

Baby Lattice Quilt - Finish Along finish number 2

I remember seeing Laura Jane @NeedlePins&BakingTins Baby Lattice Quilt and knowing I wanted to make one. It's a great pattern by Amy Smart @Diaryofaquilter on Moda Bake Shop

In November 2013 I wanted to make a quilt for friends who had just had a baby and thought of this one. I started cutting rainbow charms from my stash:

Then the sashing and sewed a few bits together. Then I got into Christmas panic, dumped the bits in a bag in a corner of my sewing room only to resurface when I joined the quarter 3 finish a long in July:

In August I did some unpicking, and lots more sewing & pressing & finished the quilt top:

It went back on my quarter 4 finish a long list, and was quickly basted on holiday, thanks to my husband:

Then I tried to do a bit of wiggly line quilting but it didn't look right so I went for some straight lines following the design:

More holiday quilting:

Picking the binding:

Sewing the binding on:

Hand finishing the binding on the way home:

Again stacked on the back of the sofa for a couple of months:

Finished quilt:

So this quilt, and my other finished plus one need washing, labelling and posting out to the babies of University friends I planned to send them to before the girls are far too old for them. Less procrastinating in 2015 please Helen.

Linking up with Katy @TheLittlestThistle and Finish a long 2014 quarter 4:

My list is here: http://changingthisstory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/finish-along-quarter-4.html

Plus Quilt - Finish Along Finish number 1

I actually finished 2 of the projects on my quarter 4 finish along list pretty soon after I wrote the list, but never blogged about them.

The first is this plus quilt, I started cutting the squares in September 2013, playing about with my then still pretty new Sizzix machine. I cut the rest at the April 2014 Leeds MQG meeting and the following day started playing with layout. Thanks to friends on Instagram I decided on this layout and sewed it together.

In July when I was putting together my Finish a long quarter 3 list I pulled the quilt top out, photographed it and added it to the list, and did the same with my quarter 4 list...

It then went on holiday to Southwold with me where the lovely big floor spaced enabled easy basting to happen (with help from my lovely husband).

A quilting station was set up on the dining table and I just quilted a simple 1/4 inch away from all the seam lines 36 39inch long lines of quilting. Watching Kinky Boots at this point.

More quilting - only took 2 hours to do it all.

All quilted and trimmed, again instagram helped with binding decisions.

After a couple of failed attempts with machine binding (I didn't have any suitable thread, and then had no needles so had to buy some) I hand finished the binding.

Then it came home, with the other one I finished on holiday, and sat in my living room for a couple of months.

But here it is, 39 inches square, kiss dots from a bundle I got from Pink Castle Fabrics the backing also came from their in a sale. The binding is Rain from Simply Solids.

So this quilt, and my other finished rainbow ones need washing, labelling and posting out to the babies of University friends I planned to send them to before the girls are far too old for them. Less procrastinating in 2015 please Helen.

Linking up with Katy @TheLittlestThistle and Finish a long 2014 quarter 4:

My list is here: http://changingthisstory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/finish-along-quarter-4.html