Done at Last

Frolic mystery quilt by Bonnie Hunter

The Frolic mystery is done!!! WOOHOO!! I even added a small white border on the outside although you can't see it on the snow. Fresh snow is clean and the best backdrop for picture taking. It is a completed top now but I think it will go into time out for a little while. I was a bit consumed with getting this one completed and so now onto other things.
Other things could be figuring out what to do with the leftover pieces. But do I really want to continue to play with these colours when there are so many other colours and projects I could be working on!

This is the next thing on my to do list. I have all the blocks made already and just have the applique to do. So I will start with the center, sew up the quilt and then add the outside border of applique later. I think this is what I will be working on tomorrow at our sewing day with friends. The quilt is only 73 x 86 so I might consider making more blocks and surrounding the outside applique with a row or two of blocks. Just a thought and I am no where near that yet!!

Happy sewing Tuesday!!

Been "Frolic"king!!!

one star's missing a couple points

Frolicking is to play or move energetically,cheerfully and excitedly. I have been sewing three days now on this Frolic mystery and I am running out of energy, excited to be finished and cheerfully looking forward to putting the binding on this one and the top is quite done yet,just 3 borders left to do. I am determined to get it done before this Wednesday so I can sew on something different at my sewing/quilting group!This pic was from yesterday, good thing I noticed my mistake before I went any further. This pic is for my friend Pearl....see I make crazy mistakes too!!Today I finished the sewing to the border point. I have a couple days till Wednesday.

Our little oak tree

With January almost over, my friend Carla at Quilting by the River reminded me to pick a word for the year. After pondering it and a suggestion or two from Natalie and Bernadette, I have decided "flourish"is my word. It has flair, movement, I can see the stash moving into quilts and finished quilts flying out the door to new owners!! It also has a personal meaning for me. To flourish, to grow in a healthy way, to developing in a successful way. All the things I hope for in the coming year!
We have had more snow and rain over the weekend. I took a walk today in the winter wonderland and took pics for everyone to see(since winter pics from my last post were appreciated).

Today I have also checked in with Kathy and what everyone might be working on. I really want the borders on my mystery so slow stitching will be this evening in front of the TV. Enjoy whatever frolicking or flourishing you get
to do!!!

Let it snow....

newest bag &inside pic below

As predicted the snow storm came yesterday and stayed all day and into the evening. That meant I could sew as much and for as long as I wanted. I had no plans to do anything or go anywhere in that weather!!

I was going to start by working on Frolic mystery, but decided if I started there that would be all I would do all day. So instead I finished machine quilting a quilt of valor quilt that was made by someone else. I am using my new machine and giving it its first workout(well on a quilt). I even got the binding on it. That is where the progress ended yesterday on that project. It will be ready for some slow stitching time later today.

quilt of valor

I was already sewing with the machine earlier this week, when I took the small flimsy from my last post and made it into a bag this week. I watched Bonnie Hunter put binding on a pillow and decided why not try it on a bag. It is a little tricky but it worked and looks great too. I even used up some orphaned binding that I had laying in my sewing room. It was the perfect colour.

front yard,deck is 2 feet off the ground

                                                                                                          Yesterday turned out to be a very productive day working in the sewing room. After supper last night I was playing catch up,working on the Frolic mystery. I am on the last clue as the reveal was on Friday, but there is still lots of sewing to do before this is a finished top. So after the job of snow removal is done today, I will start back at this and see how far I get. I have to save some afternoon time for slow stitching with Kathy. We were having the same snow storm as she did although I think we got a little more snow(8-10 inches) and it was blowing quite hard.I love the snow and watching it fall.Today the sun is shining and I think it looks so pretty!! Winter wonderland!!

tried to get birds but they flew away

pattern is dancing nine patch by Bonnie Hunter

 This little fellow and the quilt he is on were gifted yesterday to a volunteer firewoman(should be a word)who is on the same crew as my DH. It will be perfect for her little fellow!

Snow day!

looks better on the snow then last week's purple sheet

It has been a messy couple of days. Rain, pouring at time to sleet and finally snow. We got snow yesterday and then again overnight...almost 12" altogether. So today started with cleaning driveways. I look after my mother's and aunt's and hubby does our's. Thank goodness the snowblowers started and ran so I could get the job done quickly and get home to do what I really want to do.

I have finally finished this quilt top. Although it looks simple, looks are deceiving! The initial center circles were put in place and the rest of the quilt bloomed from there. Each piece having its place like putting a puzzle together. This will be my #2 sample for a class I am teaching in March.

I have set aside Bonnie's mystery for now. I am in a design dilemma. I am using single fabrics (not scrappy) and the placement of the light blue and dark blue I don't want to be random. I have an idea of what the layout might be so instead of doing a whole lot of sewing and not liking it, I have chosen to wait it out...besides I think it won't be long before the final reveal!!! maybe even this week!!!

small quilt for the front of a bag

So with the mystery set aside...I needed a leader and ender for the sewing I was doing. I started making little 5 1/2" finished log cabin blocks for a bag to go with these applique hearts. That got me thinking that I could use up some scraps and make more of these blocks for a small quilt. They are the perfect size for leader and enders too. Only problem is I have to cut the individual pieces from my string bucket and it is a mess and although I have made 30+ blocks...I haven't even put a dent in the bushel basket!!

small 51/2" finished log cabins. so cute

Some may wonder why I am not making shoo fly blocks. I just finished a quilt with small churn dash blocks  and the shoo fly is similar so wasn't going there. Besides I am making  wonky star blocks and they are somewhere in this sewing room!! hmmm!!
I will take a peek at Kathy's blog and see what she and the others are up to today. I will be trying to put the log cabin bag together and cut more pieces for the log cabin blocks to sew on my Wednesday sewing day. Who knows, I might even have time to start a new quilt or more likely to work on a UFO!!!

Happy sewing !!

Sunday Sewing

So I have been doing the Bonnie Hunter mystery and this week  the clue was sew together a gazillion hst. So I thought to myself, let's use them as leaders and enders for some other sewing. So yesterday I spent the afternoon finding something to sew. No kidding it took the whole afternoon Not to find one but to figure where I was on it and what was next. I took out a project that I have been working on at retreat in October. I thought I was closer to being finished and then realized I had to lay out the block pieces and arrange them as other pieces had to be added afterwards, depending on where certain colours were in the blocks. After supper I got to sew a couple blocks together. So today I got back to it, sewing up the blocks. I am slowly getting them together and sewing up hst from the mystery at the same time. I always feel like I am accomplishing more that way. These patches and pieces are on a purplely/grey sheet which dulls their colour. This is going to be a very bright quilt. A finished block is in the upper right of the photo with a pinwheel in it.It is a simple block but see how each block flows into the next one. That is why the finishing of this quilt stalled where it did!


I peeked in on Kathy and slow stitching Sunday. Sad to read that she is not feeling well but happily she received my Christmas package and the new knitted socks are making her feel better. I spent some time this afternoon looking at what others are working on which meant a slow start to my sewing...oh dang!!! It is always interesting to see what other are up to. Thank you to Kathy for bringing us altogether each Sunday.

Hope you all have a great week, I know I will cause it is my birthday tomorrow!! I have taken a page from my daughter's book and am celebrating a birthday month...can't hold such a special day to one day!!!

It's a mystery

the box is filling up!

That is what I have been doing for two days...catching up on the mystery clues! I got a little behind because of the holidays but that was to be expected. Luckily I have had two days of sewing and I am caught up and even got my BOM for guild done too!!

Tomorrow it will be onto something different.Wonder what it will be....long forgotten UFO, finishing a project I just set aside(last year's Bonnie mystery) or should I start something new?!?!

It is late evening so I am off to put my feet up and do some knitting with a movie on Netflix!