2015

Well, it's a new year and with this post I've already done better than last year.  2014 was not a great year.  My mother and two aunts passed away and I had knee replacement surgery which I am still having some issues with.  I did manage to get some quilts finished mostly by having someone else quilt them.  My big accomplishment was knitting two dozen dishcloths and a few scarves.  Something to do while watching TV.

So far this year I've made two baby quilts from flannel with Snuggle (Hancock brand minky) on the backs.  They went together very quickly and will probably be donation quilts for the guild.

This was a nine patch that was cut wonky.  Because there were two of every block I ended up with an orphan.





Books I've read or finished since late December:
As Far As the Eye Can See by Robert Bausch
Painted Horses by Malcolm Brooks
The House on Butterfly Way by Elizabeth Bevarly
The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann







 

This is a little (18 inches) scrappy pinwheel quilt before it was all sewn together.

Exploding star quilt.  Designed be Teajuana Mahone.  She taught a workshop at guild last summer and I finally got the top together last week.  I had the blocks done last fall but I just didn't take the time to sew it.  It is 84" square.  Now I have to quilt it.  I'm thinking just an all-over design.

Miniature exploding star.  20" square.  Sometimes I think I'm nuts to do such small stuff but I think it's worth it.  Not sure how I'm going to quilt this one.

Jennifer Bernard finished my hunter star quilt and got it back to me in September last year.  I really like what she did in the light spaces and the stars.  The quilting is way beyond what I'm capable of doing at this time.  I'd have to quilt a lot to get to this point.  Some detail shots below. 

I'm quilting a fat quarter shuffle quilt -- the bigger size.  Part way through it I realized that the thread I was using was intended for a different quilt.  So, of course, that meant a stop at Quilter's Cupboard in Ankeny for more thread.  It looks like that was a good idea since I'm almost through the second spool that I had.  Oh, well.....

I got two third place ribbons at the fair this year.  One on the butterfly quilt and the other on the crossstitch picture I entered.  

I got my stripey quilt back from Jennifer Bernard at the end of July.  I really like the feathers!

Back of the quilt.  The feathers really stand out. 

I finally got a grown-up sewing table.  This is from Tracey's Tables.  I ordered it at the Ankeny Quilt Guild show in July and it came about a month later.  Lots of storage and above all, a nice flat sewing surface.