Stitching for August

 I’m a bit late with this, but let’s have a look at what crafting I got up to during the month of August.

The Chookshed Challenge ended up being yet another failure.  All I managed to do was restitch the little wording panel for the pincushion in finer thread.

This year has been rather unsuccessful when it comes to this challenge.  It is what it is.

I didn’t make my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks, as I was not to be dragging out tubs to get fabric.  It won’t take much to catch up.

Enough of the failures, what did I manage to actually do?

Mum’s little dog bookmark was a bit of fun to make.  A quick, colourful project.  It was nice to actually finish something.

I continued to plug away at the slow stitching panel at my stitching mornings and finished the panel up at Baradine on the weekend.  (More on that in a separate post.) It was fun to have a little play with some stitches other than straight running stitch on some sections. 

I now have to have a think about how I will construct the pouch that it is destined to become.

My corner to corner crochet rug has been slowly growing.  I don’t have a photo at the end of the month, but this is where it was up to mid August.  That would have been the start of the third 200g ball of yarn.  I was working on the fourth ball at the end of the month.  I worked on this in the evenings at Baradine.

The final project I have worked on is the Anni Downs pouch that was the project we were given at Scrub Stitchin’ in 2024.  I don’t seem to be able to get too enthused with the process of making this, but I know I will love it once it is finished.  I had a false start with this back in January, and took it to Baradine to work on.  Once again, not a lot of progress, but at least it was a start and I hope to plug away at it over the next little while.

How did I go with working on something for at least 15 minutes a day?

Surprisingly, I worked on something on 24 days.  Often that may have only been a row or two of crochet, as it takes about 15 minutes to work each row.

August = 24/31

Year to Date = 181/243, which is 74.49%, being a slight improvement over last month.

So, there wasn’t a real lot to show for the month, but I’m OK with that.  The projects will all get done in their own good time.  Now to look forward to September.

Stitching in December

I just had a look at my goals for this month and think I did rather well.

I’ve already posted about the Three Yard Dog quilt that was my goal for the Chookshed Stitchers and One Monthly Goal, and the Christmas decorations.  

In addition, I completed a long term UFO, being a little quilt to donate to the neo natal unit at the hospital.  I made its matching one a couple of years ago.  Can you spot the boo boo?  I couldn’t until I was in the process of quilting the cross hatch.  I had cut the second row from the right half an inch too wide.  Oh well, it will stay as it is.

I also added the final two borders to the Dr Seuss Quilt.  It is now waiting in the wings to be quilted.

Remember how I sorted out my sewing threads.

Well, at the same time I actually got my overflowing little scrap tub that lives on my cutting table and took it out into the kitchen and sorted the scraps by colour.

The scraps were then put in their designated coloured box.  That looks better.

While on a roll, I went through Mum’s embroidery threads that now live here and pulled out all her DMC threads.  Any that were on cards are now in the containers with mine and any duplicate skeins are put aside, so that, like my sewing threads, when I run out of a colour I can shop the duplicates first.  Add to this, all the odds and sods that Mum has and I think I have a lifetime’s supply.

My final project start for the year is a kit that I purchased at Baradine at Spring in the Scrub.  I made a promise to myself that I would make it between Christmas and New Year.  I’m pleased to report that I succeeded.

My one comment on this make is “What a Cow”.

I had my first go a spray basting.  It went well, but made the machine needle sticky, so had to keep wiping it down.

The bag stiffening is really stiff, like a hard felt.  It was incredibly difficult to manoeuvre under my machine.   Even to quilt it was rather difficult. Maybe, foam such as Soft and Stable would be easier.

Also, when stitching the sides to the base, there were three layers of batting and eight layers of fabric.  My machine really struggled with it.  However, we got there in the end.  It is definitely not my finest work, but finished is better than perfect.  

After all the trials and tribulations of this project, I like it very much.  It is really pretty and will be good for taking my projects to my stitching days.

Lastly, my hexies.  Yes, I did manage to get all the remaining hexy flowers stitched.  A long session on Zoom one day certainly helped.  I then proceeded to get them all glue basted and have already appliquéd lots of the one inch hexies onto their background.  Tomorrow will be a Zoom day for the Chookshed Stitchers, and I plan to have a very long sewing session, so should get quite a few more done.  Getting the quilt top made before Scrub Stitchin’ is looking very promising.

It’s Finally Done

After heaps of delays and loads of frustration, the Three Yard Quilt using the novelty dog fabric is finished.  What a relief.

It is definitely not perfect, but it is a donation quilt and will still keep some kid warm.  I’m just pleased that it wasn’t a special quilt or I would have been really disappointed.  

The quilting has lots of imperfections, but it was the best I could do under the circumstances.  Monique is playing better, but still not quite right. After more googling, we have one more thing to try, but that will wait until after Christmas.

In the meantime, I am just happy to have this one over the line.  I will just be quilting donation quilts for the next little while until everything is running nicely again.

I had started this quilt at Baradine in September and it was my Chookshed Challenge project for that month.  This was the final goal to be met from the ten that I chose for the challenge and I’m stoked to have ticked all the boxes in the calendar year. The only projects that weren’t completed were the Laundry Basket Quilt, but the goal was only to progress the quilt, so that was fine, and to work on any EPP.  I worked on my hexies, so that was fine too.

This was my One Monthly Goal for December as well, so happy to also tick that box.

Now, I can concentrate on Christmas.  There’s two days left.  Plenty of time.

Spring in the Scrub - Part 2

 SATURDAY

I forgot to mention in the previous post that most of us stayed in one of the local pubs this time, as the cabins at Camp Cypress are undergoing renovations, which should be completed before we return for Scrub Stitchin’.   

However, other than Friday dinner, all meals were at Camp Cypress.  This time the catering was by Chooky, Deb and Deb’s daughter.  We enjoyed a continental style breakfast, with some tasty treats included.  Lunches were make your own sandwich/roll/wrap, with lovely fresh breads.  There were plenty of fresh salad items and cold meats.  Dinner on Saturday night was pumpkin soup, butter chicken and Thai green chicken curry, followed by sticky date muffins with caramel sauce and cream.  

Of course there were also several slices to nibble on throughout the day and our usual scones for morning tea on Saturday.  There was definitely no excuse to go home hungry.

We were all industrious again during the day.  Once I finished my little quilt tops I decided to make the braided quilt we learnt at Scrub Stitchin’. I was going to use a junior jelly roll I purchased at Spotlight about 15 years ago.  However, when I opened it up, several of the strips were cut very roughly and in parts only measured 2 1/4 inches, so no good for this project, as it uses every last skerrick of the strips.  Not happy.  Oh well, you get what you pay for, I suppose.  I’ll find something else to make with them.

What now?  Time to have a play.

I pulled out the tub of pink scraps that I brought along.

After a little while I had an additional six crumb blocks to add to my collection.  I’ve still no idea what I will do with them all.  I’m just having fun making them with my tiny scraps.

Meanwhile Linda had been working on her version of the braided quilt using batiks.  It is going to be so effective.  I hope she has it completed for Scrub Stitchin’.

For the rest of my time, I just worked on my hexy flowers.  Maybe I chatted a bit too.  Who’d have thought.

On Saturday evening we had our Make It, Bake It or Fake It swap.  I was lucky to receive a small heat wheat pillow and a cute little embroidered sign or mug rug.  These were from Diane.

I have already found a home for it on my minis wall in my sewing room.

This is what I made for the swap.  It went to Mary.  They are a really handy little sewing kit.  I use the one I made ages ago all the time.

After dinner it was time for show and tell.  I’ll start with my three little quilts that I stitched while there.

I can’t say that I love the three yard quilt with the  dogs, but it will be fine for a donation quilt.  The other two are rather sweet.  They will all be donated.

Lianne shared her quilt and bag that won prizes at local shows, as well as her row by row quilt and the pretty quilt that she worked on during the weekend. 

Jenny shared her Foxley Village by Natalie Bird.  The back was nearly as pretty as the front.

Kylie showed her quilt that she had been working on at Scrub Stitchin’.  It is a Missouri Star pattern. Just gorgeous colours.

Natasha had two beauties.  First a blue and white and then Green Tea and Sweet Beans by Jen Kingwell.  She did all the quilting and the back was also beautiful.  It has taken seven years to complete.

Chooky shared the two quilts she was working on during the weekend to use up her flannel stash.  They will be nice and snuggly.  I’m not sure how she found time to do any sewing with everything she was organising.

Miranda shared her Elmo quilt that she was working on during the weekend.  She made the centre patch a couple of years ago at Scrub Stitchin’.  We hope to see it completed at Scrub Stitchin’ next year.

Diane had her king sized quilt that she was working on at Scrub Stitchin’.  It travels with her in her caravan.

Mary shared a quilt that she had made for her Mum that has now come back to her after her Mum’s recent passing.  She also shared her Liberty hexy quilt, which is an ongoing project as well as her Field Journal stitcheries, also framed in Liberty. This is about two thirds of the blocks.  Some of us had to have a closer look at her exquisite embroidery.

Karen was our super achiever, as she worked on many quilts.

Heidi worked on her first ever quilt.

Annette shared her Bonnie Lass by Jen Kingwell and her current hand pieced quilt.  She was nearly finished the binding.  It was nice to see it progress since Scrub Stitchin’.  The mitres border really make it.

A few of us then shared some of our earliest work.  It is interesting to see how we have progressed and styles have changed.

Mary brought this little beauty along.

Annette went and got this one of her bed in cabin.  I love the secondary pattern.

Maree shared a quilt she made for her Dad many years ago with a farming theme.

This is one of a pair of quilts that were the first ones made by Linda.  The other one has been completed, but this one still needs quilting and binding.

This is Miss Jules’ first quilt, from the time when her fabric stash was kept in a small paper bag.

This is my first quilt, made following a pattern in a magazine, back in 2003.  I had no idea how to quilt or bind it, so took my first class.  The backing and some of the front pieces are Liberty, found at an op shop by my mother in law.  The rest was dressmaking scraps and fabric left over from covering photo frames and photo albums, back in the day.  The intersections are terrible, but I still love it.

And this is the quilt I made in my first class in 2003, when Anni Downs first opened her shop in Bathurst.  The centre medallion is hand quilted.  The rest was quilted on my tiny Elna Stella.  As a result, we went shopping for my Janome.

I also took along my Trail Mix quilt that I made during Covid, as it is my favourite winter quilt.

Brenda had a beautiful quilt hanging on the wall made from vintage linens.  Zoom in to have a closer look.

She also brought in some non quilt show and tell.

The top teddy is made from men’s ties and the bottom teddy, which stands about six inches high, is entirely covered with embroidery.  Such a clever duck.

Jenny also completed two fabric baskets on the weekend.  Both in Tula Pink Giraffe prints.

And that concludes show and tell.  I hope I didn’t bore you too much.

SUNDAY

Sunday was a short day for me.  Some more EPP and then hitting the road mid morning, getting home mid afternoon.

It was a thoroughly enjoyable weekend, catching up with several other “Scrubbers” as well as meeting some new ladies.  Thanks to Chooky and Deb for all their efforts in putting the weekend together.  Now it is only a bit over six months until we all gather again for Scrub Stitchin’.  I can’t wait.