To-Do Tuesday #12 (May 9 - 15)

I posted last week's To-Do Tuesday list on Thursday, and I knew I was heading into a busy weekend of volunteering, so I only gave myself one sewing goal this past week.

• Sew an ironing board cover for local theatre. Finally done! 
  

When I went to check the size of their ironing board, it turned out to be the same size as mine. It's wider than a standard board, and impossible to find a replacement cover for it anymore, it seems. 

They no longer had an ironing pad, so I bought thick towelling and double-layered it. I stitched through the layers every six inches or so, and zig-zagged around the outside edge. I couldn't find any fun or cute canvas at the fabric store. I could have bought navy blue or red, but I was afraid the colours might run when they used a steam iron. So I settled on boring gray and cream. I didn't expect there would be any problem with colour running, but when I washed the grey and cream together, a few spots showed up on the cream, so I had to make their cover using the gray. 😒 

Since they use this wider ironing board for pressing tablecloths, I know it will get used a lot. I want the cover to last them for a long time, so instead of making a single layer, I made the cover double-sided/reversible. When one side wears out, they can just turn it over and have a new ironing board cover again! I found this striped cream/tan fabric I bought last year to make some pillow covers, so I used that for the second side. They won't have to use the gray until this side wears out. 

My To-Do List #12 (May 9 - 15) 

• Make myself a new ironing board cover. I made the original cover way back in 2012 (blogged here)! She was so pretty then. Sigh. Well used and well loved.

• Gather up the material, outdoor thread, and piping for the outdoor cushions to be ready to start next week
• Make and sew hanging sleeves on two quilts for our local fair office
• Finish sewing the Bricks and Stepping Stones quilt top together

Linking up to: 

Quilt Schmilt To-Do Tuesday

April 350 Blocks Report

I didn’t get a lot of blocks sewn in April even though I attended a retreat at the beginning of April (I sewed a bunch of blocks on March 31st).

I made some good progress on the Bricks and Stepping Stones quilt, but the block consists of having two sets of bricks/stepping stones sewn together, so even though the top is up on the design wall, ready to sew, they don’t count as blocks until they’re sewn into pairs. They will be counted in May’s tally 😊.

I signed up for a Zoom workshop, Geometricks, taught by Brenda Gael Smith of Serendipity Patchwork & Quilts from Australia. I really enjoyed the workshop and had fun exploring improv geometric shapes during the practice exercises. I made 22 improv blocks during the workshop. They’re actually quite fast to make and I can’t wait to continue playing/working on these (when I finish my cushions, stay focused!).

This cute block was for my guild’s Block Lotto. Darn, not a winner. 

I made one more large block but I can’t show that right now. So my total count for April is 24 blocks. The April goal was 28 blocks so I came pretty close. My year-to-date total is 358 blocks. Yay!

May’s goal is 31 blocks, and I’m off to a good start. Have a wonderful day!

Linking up to:

Prairie Moon Quilts - The 350 Blocks Project

May's One Monthly Goal and MIA To-Do Tuesday on a Thursday

To describe the last two weeks, I can only say, I bit off more than I could chew. This is a catchup post. 

I signed up to volunteer at two different organizations over a year ago, and finally was contacted and started the training for both. Well, I'm a gung ho person when it comes to starting something new, and in the last two weeks, I had 8 shifts. Even though some shifts are only two hours long, there's still 'getting ready' time beforehand, so it takes more time than I realized. I've also had 'guild stuff' to do, so no wonder I haven't felt like I've had time (I have had the time, I just haven't felt like it. 😉) or done much in the way of sewing.

My April One Monthly Goal was to finish the outdoor furniture cushions. Well, these did not even get dug out from under the pile. So I am carrying this forward for May's One Monthly Goal. I need to make sure I scheduled this To-Do into my calendar and commit the time. 

I know it's Thursday, but I started writing this on Tuesday, so bear with me. Ha! 

My last To-Do Tuesday post was # 10 for me (April 11 - 17th), I only made progress on one thing. 😣

• Sew two embroideries into pillows for a lady who contacted our guild for help. These are done and delivered!

I'll admit, I took way longer than I should have to get around to doing these. The lady was growing a bit concerned that her embroideries were missing in action. However, once I got down to tackling it, they weren't difficult. It was a bit terrifying to make that first cut into someone's embroidery canvas to resize it for the pillow. I zigzagged the edges to ensure it would not unravel. When I opened up the package of white fabric she had bought at Michael's for the embroidered pillow, the fabric turned out to be quite loosely woven, and fairly see-through, so I made the pillow using a double layer. I made a simple envelope pillow case, as I wanted to provide the option of removing it to wash if needed. 

The wool pansy embroidery was more of a challenge, as it was very distorted and needed to be coaxed back to square. I had never done this before, so with some advice from a few guild members, and a google/YouTube search, I managed to get it as close to square as best I could. 

When I unpinned it, it still wanted to return to its original stretched shape, but with a little coaxing, and careful pinning, I got it done. Whew! 

When I delivered the pillows, the owner was pleased with the results, and sent me home with a small donation to our guild's community quilts program, and a bag of freshly baked cookies, which were delicious!

• Sew ironing board cover for local theatre. Fabric is washed and ready to go. Not done.
• Make and sew hanging sleeves on two quilts for our local fair office. Not done.
• Keep sewing the pink/grey blocks (I am up to 60, I need a total of 80 blocks) Not done.

So...now that it is Thursday, and I have other commitments today through Sunday, I am only going to put one sewing related item on my To-Do Tuesday #11 on a Thursday: 

• Sew ironing board cover for local theatre. Fabric is washed and ready to go.
  

And off I go!

Linking up to: 

Quilt Schmilt To-Do Tuesday

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal

Hands 2 Help Challenge Progress

 This post is short and sweet as its after midnight and I am going to a quilt show tomorrow, so I need to get off to bed. 😊

I'm making good progress on the quilt top I am making using Bonnie Hunter's free Bricks and Stepping Stones pattern.  Doesn't it look so different when you use all the same coloured bricks in the rows? I am really loving it!

The top will be donated to Victoria's Quilts Canada through one of their local Friends Groups. Victoria's Quilts Canada provides these quilts to people living with cancer in Canada. 

Happy Friday!

Linking up to: Confessions of a Fabric Addict Hands2Help Challenge Check in

To-Do Tuesday #10 (April 11 - 17)

 Just a quick check-in today as the week seems half-gone already, Easter weekend busy with a family dinner, and a surprise visit/overnight stay last night (ok, she called me on Friday, LOL)  from my sister and brother-in-law returning from a trip to Vancouver Island.

Last week, I attended a two-day workshop called Branching Out – Nature’s Threadwork with Susan J. Jensen. It was a lot of fun and Sue showed us examples and we tried many new techniques. My samples do not do her teaching justice. She is wonderfully patient, encouraging, and inspiring. Her art quilts are just stunning and so realistic. I look forward to playing and practicing what we learned. What was especially wonderful about the class, is that she provided all the materials needed for each technique she taught, so you didn’t have to go out and buy packages of this and that, or discover that the fabric you brought wasn’t going to work. And she provides wonderful handouts with pictures included for reference. So worth the price of admission. 😊 These were just a few of the techniques. Go check out her page to see her beautiful art quilts,

I’m getting ready/gathering up stuff for tonight’s guild meeting, so here’s my progress on last week’s To-Do list:

• #1 Priority - Finish making quilt top and complete tutorial for upcoming guest blog post for Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge 2023 at Confessions of a Fabric Addict  (my first ever guest blog post!) Done! Whew! It was so fun to put this post together, and I’ve received some lovely comments. I’m looking forward to getting the bright quilt top sewn together so I can bring it out to the Coordinator for the Victoria’s Quilts Canada’s Friends Group whom I met at the March retreat.
• Make and sew hanging sleeves on two quilts for our local fair (Thursday) Not done.
• Sew two embroideries into pillows for a lady who contacted our guild for help. Not done.
• Sew ironing board cover for local theatre. Not done.

Such a busy week, with not a lot of time for stitching.😓

My calendar is pretty full this week, with ‘stuff’ going on every day, but I am going to a guild sew day on Thursday, so I hope to accomplish some sewing there. 

To-Do list #10 (April 11 - 18) sounds awfully familiar, ha! 

• Sew two embroideries into pillows for a lady who contacted our guild for help. 
  
• Sew ironing board cover for local theatre. Fabric is washed and ready to go.
  
• Make and sew hanging sleeves on two quilts for our local fair office.
• Keep sewing the pink/grey blocks (I am up to 60, I need a total of 80 blocks)
  

Now off to the races!

Linking up to Quilt Schmilt To-Do Tuesday

Hands 2 Help - Speed-piecing 4-Patches Tutorial

I am so excited to be participating with Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge 2023 hosted by Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict and my very first guest post! 

I love to make scrap quilts, making something from the leftovers and castoffs. (Ok, I love making scrap blocks. Finishing the quilts is another story, ha!) Sometimes though, I want to use a speedier piecing method rather than sewing individual scraps together. 

Bonnie K. Hunter of Quiltville.com makes the most wonderful scrap quilts and generously shares many free patterns. One that I especially like and have made before is her Bricks & Stepping Stones pattern.  Here's the flannel quilt I made using this pattern. You need a lot of  4-patches.

I’m going to show you how to make a bunch of 4-patches (quilting term for 60!) with less measuring / cutting steps, and fewer seams. If you have ever made a Trip Around the World quilt, this is a similar method.

Please read through all steps before starting. Piecing accuracy is really important! Use a scant ¼” seam allowance.

These instructions will make 60 (yes!) 4-patches that finish at 3 inches (3 1/2" unfinished). I’ve also included cutting measurements to make other sized 4-patches at the end of the post. 

You can use just two colours of fabric, or go scrappy, and use a variety of lights and darks.

From yardage, cut:

•  3 strips – 4” x WOF* (dark)

•  3 strips – 4” x WOF (light)

*width of fabric minimum 41" 

1. Sew the strips together in pairs, alternating light and dark. Measure your strip set. It should be 7 1/2" wide. If it is too narrow, fix your seams now, otherwise your 4-patches will be too small. If it is wider than 7 1/2", you can leave it if you don't mind doing a bit of trimming to square up your 4-patches, or fix it now if you don’t want the extra work. Personally, I don’t mind the little extra. 

2. Sew the pairs together. Press seams toward dark fabric.

3. Square up one edge. Cross-cut the strips into 4” segments (pieces will measure 4” by 21 1/2”). You should end up with 10 segments. 

4. Flip every second segment and pin the segments together to make a checkerboard. Sew and press seam to one side.

5. Align the 1 3/4" line on your ruler with the first seam to the right on the short side of the checkerboard . (If you are left-handed, you can measure and cut from the left side). Make sure the ruler line is lined up from top to bottom, adjust if necessary (a little tug here and there may help). Cut. 

The segment will measure 2".

6. Flip the 2" segment around and sew it to the opposite side of your checkerboard. Press the seam to one side.

7. Turn your checkerboard on your mat so the long side is on the right (left if left-handed).
Align the 1 3/4” line on your ruler with the first seam in from the right edge. Make sure the ruler line is lined up from top to bottom, adjust if necessary. Cut.

8. Flip the 2" segment around and sew it to the opposite side of your checkerboard. (You may need to press seams so they nest together). Press the seam to one side.

Your checkerboards will now look like this. Now comes the fun part!

9. Make sure your checkerboard is laying straight on your cutting mat. Align the 1 3/4” line on your ruler with the first seam in from the left edge this time. Make sure the line is lined up from top to bottom, adjust if necessary. The 3 1/2" line should be lined up along the left edge of the checkerboard.  Cross-cut into 3 1/2” segments.

10. Continue aligning the 1 3/4" line with the seam line, and check that the 3 1/2” lines up to the left edge (right edge if left-handed). Cut into segments.

11. If you can move around your table, keep the pieces lined up on the cutting mat, or cut each segment individually. Repeat the steps above. Align the 1 3/4" line to the seam and cut into 3 1/2" unfinished 4-patches. 

Congratulations! You just made 60 4-patches!! Were you counting seams? If my count is correct, there were only 26 seams sewn! How cool is that?

If you make another set, you will have enough to make your own Bricks and Stepping Stones quilt (with a few 4-patches left over)! 

4-Patch Finished Size	Cut Strips
2”	3”
4”	5”
6”	7”
8”	9”

Remember the sneak peek I mentioned in my To-Do Tuesday post? This is what I am doing with it. 

1. I followed steps 1 - 10 above. I then sewed a 6 1/2" wide strip of bright fabric to the segment. Press seams to bright fabric. 

2. I straightened the edge, and then cut 3 1/2" segments, aligning the 1 3/4" line with the 4-patch seams. 

And here are some of the blocks up on the design wall. 

I hope you will give this method a try.  Please let me know if you find anything confusing. I will be making my quilt top for Victoria's Quilts Canada. At the retreat I attended in early March, I met a local representative so I'll arrange to drop off the quilt top to her when it's done. 

I hope you consider joining the Hands 2 Help Challenge, too!

Sharing with Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Quilting is more Fun Than Housework Oh Scrap!

To-Do Tuesday #9 (April 4 - 10)

This week is going to be another busy week leading up to the Easter long weekend so I am being realistic with my goal setting. 

I’ll start off with a review of last week’s To-Do List:

• Keep sewing the pink/grey blocks (I am up to 60, I need a total of 80 blocks). No progress this week.
• Sandwich Scrap Snap Quilt and start quilting. My OMG, I need to do this!!! Done! Happy dance! Blogged here.
  
• Pack up machine, supplies and quilting projects for retreat this weekend! Done. I had a great time at retreat. I even made blocks and sewed a community quilt flimsy together, and made some progress on another project. So much fun!

To-Do Tuesday #9 (April 4 – 10)

Today and Wednesday, I am signed up for a workshop called Branching Out – Nature’s Threadwork, taught by art quilter Susan J. Jensen and I have guild Exec meeting tonight so it'll be a busy few days.

I’m also be helping a friend sort and organize her sewing room for a few hours over two days this week. I have a volunteer shift on Thursday evening, and we’ll be having the family for Easter dinner this weekend, so there's lots going on.

• #1 Priority - Finish making quilt top and complete tutorial for upcoming guest blog post for Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge 2023 at Confessions of a Fabric Addict  (my first ever guest blog post!) Here’s a sneak peek:
  
• Make and sew hanging sleeves on two quilts for our local fair (Thursday)
• Sew two embroideries into pillows for a lady who contacted our guild for help
  
• Sew ironing board cover for local theatre
  

Linking up to: Quilt Schmilt To-Do Tuesday

April One Monthly Goal

I am participating in Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal challenge, and so far I have succeeded in competing January's OMG (blogged here) and March's OMG (blogged here) so the motivation is really helping me to work towards the goal (most of the time 😉), and get it done!

My April OMG is not a quilting project, but a sewing project I have been putting off since last summer. I really, really, really need to finish making the cushion covers for our outdoor furniture. 

I cursed and complained my way through the frustration of making the first cushion and then I was sooo done I told my husband that was it. I wasn't making any more. It actually turned out pretty good in the end. 

I have all the pieces cut out for the rest of the cushions (7), and I made the gazillion feet of piping, so it's just a matter of committing and pushing myself to get them done so we can enjoy them when the weather gets warmer.

I will have to dig the fabric out from under the pile first, 😅.

Linking up to Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal