Finishing Mum’s UFO

This is a bit of a strange one, as my Mum didn’t have UFOs, she was a finisher.  She would work away on a project, finish it and then move onto the next.  Her daughter did not inherit that trait, and it always surprises me that Mum didn’t encourage me more to finish things off.  

Anyway, I digress.  Back to the UFO.

A couple of years after Mum moved into residential aged care she was looking for a little something to make and we found a cute cross stitch bookmark kit in Big W.  This wasn’t long after she had had a mini stroke and I don’t think any of us realised at the time just how much it was affecting her cognitive functioning.

It never did get finished, and when I started going through her craft tubs I found how far she had got with it.  She had marked the centre line on the pattern and tacked those centre lines on the Aida, although not needed on a project this size.  Then she had threaded a needle with the six strands, rather than the two and progressed no further.  Dear Mum…..  So, is this actually an unfinished object, or an unstarted object?  Who knows.

Well, this serial starter, and often not finisher, of a daughter thought she had better finish off Mum’s bookmark. In the process I tried a few new things.  We recently bought a couple of stable tables at a garage sale and I finally had a brainwave to use it when stitching.  It works really well. Who’d have thought??  I then decided to actually use an embroidery hoop.  I know the centre ring is supposed to be wrapped, but this is just one that will be used for a Christmas decoration.  That worked well too.  Fancy that!!  Then finally, I used my new little magnetic needle minder.  I’m a sucker for green sewing machines.

I started it on Friday at my stitching morning, did a bit more on Saturday and finished it off yesterday.  The weather was even warm enough to sit outside in the sun, down to a t-shirt yesterday, which was rather lovely.

Now, being just a cheapy kit, the Aida band wasn’t as nice as most and the threads, although six stranded, the strands were really thin.  Not as nice as DMC or other well known brands, and there was not felt to back it.  However, I just worked with what there was and found a bit of felt that matched in my stash.  Having said that, the design was super cute.

It’s not the greatest of finish on the back, but I’m going with finished is better than perfect.  The crease in the felt will come out in time.

I’m really pleased to have finished this off for Mum.  Are there any other UFOs?  Yes, just a couple. The only reason these are in existence is that she forgot how to crochet and knit.

While in the nursing home, she crocheted the tops of kitchen towels, while she remembered how to crochet.  There are a couple that have had the row of blanket stitch worked, ready to do the crochet, and a few tea towels, that haven’t been started to be worked on.  There are several tubs of coloured crochet cotton to use on them, so I would like to work them up.  

The other is some knitted squares.  Mum used to knit knee rugs using two strands of wool, one a constant colour and the other all sorts of coloured scraps.  Her last knitted rug ended up rather messy on the second half.  She then tried to just knit ten inch squares using the same colour style.  There are a few squares completed.  I’d like to make some more to make a small knee rug, to honour her last ever knitting.

At Long Last - I Finally Have a Flimsy

Whenever I have started a more detailed quilt I have given myself a two year time frame to complete it.  This has worked fairly well in the past, as once the quilt top was completed I would send it off to my long arm quilter to work her magic and then bind it.

However, my most recent more detailed quilt has been in the works for nearly three years and today, finally, it is a quilt top, so still not completed.

I bought the book shortly after it was released.  There is no date on it, but it was definitely prior to 2019, as I made a wall hanging from the book that year.  I knew I wanted to make the featured quilt and started “quarantining” blue fabrics in my stash for future use.  Natalie Bird was selling the complete set of EPP papers at the Sydney Craft Show one year, so I bought them and added them to the “kit” as well.  I bought a final few fabrics in early 2022.

I made an actual start in June 2022, in readiness to take with me on our three month caravan trip.  While travelling, I worked on the EPP hexies and the next EPP section and did some stitcheries on the appliqué blocks, even though the appliqué had not been stitched down at that stage.

Gradually, I made progress over the next little while.  The hand stitching was great to take along to the two stitching groups I had joined.  The last of the Dresden appliqué on the final border was completed in March last year.  What!  I didn’t realise it had been sitting, waiting patiently, for that long.

It was then that I hit a road block and it has taken me until now to finally get going again.  The problem was that the checkerboard and appliqué round was too long.  I had thought I could ease it and the next border, but it didn’t work.  I wondered why it was out so much, but I now realise it is because I had pressed many of the seams open, rather than to one side.

Finally, last month I removed the offending rounds and this week reduced the length of the checkerboard round. The process wasn’t as bad as I had feared. 

Yesterday, I reattached the checkerboard round with no flaring and today added the final two borders.  To say I am happy to finally get to this stage is an understatement.  It will now sit patiently again, until I work out how I am going to quilt it.

Oh, and it will suit our bed rather nicely, once it is finally completed.

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.

Finally, a Finish

 On Saturday, Lou put out a challenge that we both “dust off our quilting frames” and get quilting.  My first reaction, while having breakfast, was “Oh Loo-ou!”. Then once I did a couple of other things I was brave and headed into the sewing room to start to have a tidy up.

A few hours later, Monique had been excavated.  Now, this photo was strategically angled.  We won’t look at the other side of the room.  LOL. However, quite a bit of tidying up and putting away did take place.

The quilt I was going to play with was the little half square baby quilt that I finished piecing up at Scrub Stitchin’.  This was to be my Chookshed Stitchers’ Challenge for May, after I was unable to find my NZ fabrics.  Our impromptu trip to the UK put paid to that, so now was its time to shine.

This little quilt has transpired to be something created from not much.  The feature fabrics are a partial charm pack that I purchased quite some years back at a market stall for $3.  The white is from stash.  I always have a supply of white.

I stitched the HST blocks as a leader and ender while at Scrub Stitchin’ in 2022.  They were trimmed down shortly thereafter, and then languished in the “To Do” pile, getting carried over month after month……until Scrub Stitchin’ this year.

In some respects, it was a good thing the quilting was delayed, as I found the ideal backing fabric on our recent trip north in an op shop.   To my delight, it was wide enough that I didn’t have to piece the backing.  I also found I had a batting off cut that was just the right size.  Everything was falling into place.

Once loaded on the frame I was using up the last little bits of bobbin for the basting and first partial pattern row.  All was going swimmingly, until the last little curvy bit.  At least it ran out beside the quilt top, and not in the middle of the stitching.  Other than that, it all went rather well.

By late Saturday afternoon the quilting was completed.  What a bonus.  I definitely didn’t expect to have a quilted quilt and a somewhat tidier sewing room when I hopped out of bed that morning.

Sunday morning, after baking a cake, saw me back in the sewing room to finish it off.  Keeping on the “it was meant to be” theme, I just happened to have four 2 1/2 inch by width of fabric white strips cut out.  Just the right amount for the binding, which I attached by machine.  I’m feeling quite comfortable with this method on donation quilts now.

And showing the cute backing fabric, which was just the right colours.

This turned out to be a very cute little baby quilt.  I really like the way the twisty lines worked out.  It will be donated, once I get a few more quilts made.

Another one to tick off the list.

It’s Done.

Once again I have left my One Monthly Goal until the last moment.  This was also my Chookshed Challenge Number 9, so doubly important to get it achieved.

You may recall that my goal was to complete the Harry Potter donation quilt that had been sitting, cut out, for over twelve months.  I had the flimsy pieced at Scrub Stitchin’.

I’m happy to report today I have found some backing and batting pieces that will work, joined the backing, quilted and bound it.

I used the stars pantograph, as I did in the first version of this quilt that I made last year.

What made me very happy was that I won the bobbin lottery, not once, but twice during the quilting process.  Firstly, I used the last little bit on a bobbin to bast the top of the quilt and ended up with a couple of inches of thread left over.  Then, I was watching my first bobbin, and it ended up stitching right to the end of a row, to the very last stitch, so there was nothing on the bobbin when I ended off.  Phew!

While I’m going, let’s do a round up of this month’s stitching.

My Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks were completed.

The Split nine patch while at Scrub Stitchin’.

The fish after I returned home.

Now to wait for a week or so until the next pattern is released.  I believe the colour is pink, so some pretty fish next time.

My spiked granny rug has the squares joined together, awaiting the ends to be woven in and the border to be added.

I have stitched some of the appliqué on the batik fish.  Five done, except for the eyes.  They will gradually be caught up when I want something simple to sew.

My Sashiko panels have once again seen the light of day.  The first and second panels are now complete and the third half done.

I progressed my Laundry Basket Spring Mystery Quilt.

The Half Square Triangle Baby Quilt also reached the flimsy stage.

Add to this the swap gift I made for Scrub Stitchin’.

There weren’t many finishes for the month, but several projects have been moved along.

I’ll link up with Deana for the Chookshed Stitchers Challenge, So Scrappy for Rainbow Scrap Challenge and Stories From the Sewing Room for One Monthly Goal.

I know I’m jumping the gun by a day, but I am confident that I will have achieved  my 15 minutes each day.  Some days that was all I did. I’ll be linking at Life in Pieces.

April = 30/30

Year to date = 121/121

Success Rate - 100%

All in all, I'm happy with the month.

Final March Wrap Up of Goals

 I enjoy looking back over the last month and seeing what I managed to do.

My One Monthly Goal was to complete the Moda Love quilt from Scrub Stitchin’ last year, which was done at the last minute.

The Rainbow Scrap Challenge colour was purple, so I made my split nine patch blocks.

Then it was time for the purple fish.

At the same time I prepped my first blocks for the batik fish quilt I am making as well.

The Chookshed Challenge was number 4 and for me a panel quilt.

My knitting or crochet project continued to be the Spiked Granny Square rug.  I completed the coloured section of the 30 squares and then added the final cream round.  That was as far as I thought I would get, but in the end, on the final day of the month I wove in all the loose cream ends.  The squares are now ready to join together, which I am looking forward to doing.

Now to my other stitching goals:

WORK ON A DONATION PROJECT - That is the Teddy Bear Panel Quilt.

USE MONIQUE - Yep, three quilts, which I am pretty happy about.

WORK ON A WIP - Yes, the appliqué on the final border of my blue quilt is done.

WORK ON A UFO - Yes, Moda Love and the Twister Quilt were both completed.

DO SOME HAND STITCHING - There was lots - the appliqué border, hand stitching down two quilt bindings and making this cute little EPP pincushion.

FINISH SOMETHING - There were four finishes, three quilts and the pincushion.

I'm not participating in PHD, but am pleased to report that I have now completed five UFOs for the year and that other than the ongoing fish quilts, everything I have started this year has been finished.  Fingers crossed I can keep on this trajectory.

15 MINUTES A DAY - Yes, I managed to work on something for at least 15 minutes every day of the month.

March = 31/31

Year to date = 91/91

Success rate = 100%

I’m going to link up over at Life in Pieces.

Now to the other goals for the month:

READ A BOOK - I have already told you about three books I read, but at the last minute I listened to an audio book. This is the fourth book in the Thursday Murder Club series and I really enjoy them, especially as an audio book.  I do hope there continues to me more in this series. Not only do I binge read, I also binge listen.  I started it half way through the binding of the Moda Love quilt and wish I had started it earlier, as it really makes the binding go much quicker.  It is while listening to the book that I ended up weaving in the ends of the crochet squares.  

TRY A NEW RECIPE - Yes, the zucchini chips.

GO AWAY WITH THE CARAVAN - No.  Our new little truck has not arrived yet, but I’m crossing everything that it will be here this week, so we can take it to Baradine for its maiden voyage.

HAVE A FUN DAY OUT - Yes, there were a few of these, which we always enjoy.

I have removed a motorcycle ride from my monthly goals, as they just weren’t happening, but that was a bonus for the month, despite our little incident.

It has been a good month and now I am looking forward to the next one.