New tasks & WIP Wednesday

I got a promotion at work. 

Awesome right.
Well it's true, I'm pretty proud.

And now that it's started I've lost track of time and space.  I have no clue what day it is or when deadlines are approaching or whizzing by my head.

I am not that bad but wow...I have an appreciation for my management now.

Last week alone was a super long week for both my fella and I.  It felt like 72 hours for every 24 hours.  And there was no extra sleep! This week feels the same sadly.

~~~

So when the weekend rolled around, my little family were all on the same page.  We need to unwind.

My fella immersed himself in his new hobby .. model building



And my wonderful step-daughter is continuing on her path of baking up a storm.



Hear the complaining...



yeah us either!

Even I got to unwind and do some quilting.



Actually a lot!
The above beauty is done and has the binding on it.  Just waiting for moments to hand stitch that down.



And I sent off a package to Orchid Owl Quilts.

I'm super excited to see this one as it's MINE!  None of this going away .... stuff.
The previous quilt I sent to Vicki hasn't been blogged about yet.
I've posted a few photos in Instagram.
I'll do a real post once that's done for real ...ya know - later.

This sending a new package has been a month in the process... but it may have been promoted by Melissa at Sew BitterSweet Designs sending off her June ALYoF projects off to Vicki.  I don't have a problem with competition...{cough}...noooo!

~~~

I'm so excited to share that I'm working on my MQG Michael Miller Fabric challenge quilt.



I'm finally having fun with this FMQ stuff.

Happy quilting to you!

I'm linking up to

June: A Lovely Year of Finishes - Finishes Party

Melissa from Sew BitterSweet Designs and I love seeing ALYoF projects throughout the blogging world.  



We would love to see the shout outs of how you've done on your June goal.

I'm not done with mine but oh so much other stuff done.

Phew

~~~

So let's get down to your projects...

You have two requirements to be entered into the prizes this month.

1. Link-up {this previous post} the first 7-days of the month

and

2. Link-up below during the last 7-days of the month.

Add your blog post or flickr photo (with appropriate descriptions) to the linky party below.
Please grab a button or link back to Melissa and I so other people can join in the fun! {See stage left for the grab the button stuffs}
And if you remember to make it easy for us we'll click through the winners faster..aka put number of goal link up.

**Please note, the linky party is the same here and over at Melissa , so there is no need to enter twice **

~~~

Here what our generous sponsors have up for grabs in June!!

1.  Green Fairy Quilts – 3 pdf patterns

2.PDF Pattern from Persimon Dreams

 

3. $15 gift certificate from Fat Quarter Shop

4. One PDF Pattern from Meadow Mist Designs

5, 6. One pdf Pattern from Clover and Violet

7. Thimblepie’s Quilt Supplies - Custom fabric package, 4 yards (worth $20) plus free shipping

8. One pdf pattern from  Sew Sweetness 

9, 10. TWO winners each getting to choose one pdf pattern
from Sew BitterSweet Designs ($10 value)

11. Thread Prize from Aurifil

12. Quilting Patterns designed by Quilting Lodge

Geeze!  Fantastical amounts of goodies that you may win..and you get a finish out of it too!??  

Awesome

Can't wait to see your finishes.

June - A Lovely Year of Finishes Participant Highlight ~ Staci at The Confused Quilter

Here we are in the middle of another month.
Wanna met another ALYoF participant?  

Melissa and I are so excited to see and share all of your hard work. Along with this comes a fantastic highlight of a participant.

  Today we are introducing you to yet another amazingly talented quilter with our participant feature.

~~~

Staci from The Confused Quilter
All photos provided by Staci ~ thanks for sharing

Blog Name: The Confused Quilter
Blog Address: http://theconfusedquilter.blogspot.com/

Name you’re known by throughout quilting world: Staci aka The Confused Quilter

What's your ALYoF goal this month? (please include a picture we can share!)

My current goal is a Christmas wall hanging. It’s a 3 year old UFO. All I needed to do is repair a couple blocks, cut sashing and borders and whip it all together-- Easy, peasy, right? Nope! When I started adding the horizontal sashing I discovered nothing would fit together correctly. After a lot of time with my ruler, I’ve determined that there is actually a mistake in the paper foundation patterns so 6 of the 9 blocks are 1/2 to wide. After a lot of debate, I think the answer is to re-make the 3 blocks that are actually correct to the same size as the wider blocks. First time I’ve ever purposely made something wrong in order for it to come right in the end! This has been frustrating, but I like the little quilt enough to save it.

 My June Project

My June project on the design wall.  This is the point where I realized something was wrong.  All the single tree blocks are 1/2 inch smaller than the rest. 

How do you approach your sewing goals?

Deadline and No Deadline! LOL! Beyond that, it comes down to what captures my imagination. If I’m not excited about something it feels like a chore and who wants quilting to be a chore?? Quilting should always be a joy—even when it’s making you nuts! =)

How do you organize/prioritize your projects?

I LOVE Lists! 2014 began with 3 big lists: UFO’s - currently 15; Planned Projects with fabric purchased - currently 32; and The Someday List, which gets longer every week! I have the attention span of a gnat so I usually have about 4 things going on: a UFO, a New Project, a Long Term Project (currently City Sampler) and Bee & Swap. I’m striving to stick to my plan so I’m not creating new UFO’s, but sometimes it’s tough!

What is your current favorite project that you are working on? Will you share pictures with us?

City Sampler! This quilt is just a joy! My fabric are really bold and bright, plus the blocks are so fast & fun each one feels like a treat. My daughter is making this quilt, too, and we have so much fun working on it together. I have a group of IRL and online friends who are all making this quilt this year, so we are sharing the experience through a little flickr group. So far I’ve made 23 blocks and have another dozen cut out and ready to stitch.

Current Project: City Sampler, the first 23 blocks.

City Sampler Project Box.  Baggies with pieces ready to sew!  The beautiful solid blocks in the box belong to my lovely daughter.

What is your dream project to work on?

Right now, it’s Elizabeth Hartman’s Aviatrix quilt! I love that! I have bought the fabric the same day the pattern was released, but haven’t worked up the courage to do the cutting yet. It’s a LOT of cutting, but I know it will be worth it!

What is your favorite time of day to sew?

Anytime! Morning, afternoon or even the middle of the night! Whenever I can squeeze it in, even if it’s 15 or 20 minutes. I’m lucky enough to have a little sewing room, so it’s easy to slip in there and work a little while whenever I get the chance.

What is your favorite quilting/sewing accessory?

Rulers & templates.  I love them!  I have lots of them, and seem to always be bringing home more.  

Just for fun: Large rulers hang behind my sewing room door. Small rulers and templates have a drawer in my cutting table.

What is your number one quilting/sewing goal for 2014?

Back in January when bloggers were all choosing words for the year, I decided on a phrase: DON’T GO CRAZY!

For me that means three things: 

1. Don’t take on too many projects at once. 

2. Don’t expect 100% perfection every time. 

3. Accept that sometimes the project should just go in the rubbish bin to free up time and energy for something that is better.  

Adopting my little phrase has helped me enjoy the journey so much more!

What is one technique you really want to learn?

Curved Piecing and Needle Turn Appliqué. I’ve done a little bit of both, but would like to learn more and improve.  

~~~

Thank you so much Staci for joining Melissa and I today! We loved having you and getting to know you just a little bit better!!!

Staci was an awesome Bee Mama for one of my bee's, back in the day! I might need to pull that project out for an ALYoF goal one of these days :)

Good luck everyone on your June Goals! The end is here before we know it.

May Winners ~ A Lovely Year of Finishes

Time to reflect and celebrate.
Whoop.

Melissa from Sew BitterSweet Designs and I are always so excited to share your amazing talent.  

GO YOU

Here is a list of our generous sponsors for May!!

May prizes & winners include:

1. Fat quarter bundle from ADORNit

Cheryl - Texas Quilting Gal

2. 3. Honey, Bunny and Doll – 2 Patterns

 Caroline - Caroline's Craftiness
Becky - My Fabric Obsession

4. Sew Sweetness – 1 pdf Pattern

Allison - Flickr

5. Thread Prize from Aurifil

Jessie - Just Some Boobs

6, 7. TWO winners each getting to choose one pdf pattern

from Sew BitterSweet Designs ($10 value)

Vera - Negligent Style
Joanna - Riddle and Whimsy

8. PDF Pattern from Persimon Dreams

 

Debbe - Pieces to Love

9. Quilting Patterns designed by Quilting Lodge

Cheryl - Flickr

10. 1 Charm pack or $10.00 gift certificate to

Stitches n’ Giggles (winners choice)

Kim - Persimon Dreams

11. One PDF Pattern from Meadow Mist Designs

Sharon - Forget-Me-Not Stitches

12. Green Fairy Quilts – 3 pdf patterns

Heather - Heather's Creative Blessings

13. Thimblepie’s Quilt Supplies - Custom fabric package, 4 yards (worth $20) plus free shipping

Alexis - Cinnamon Chip

~~~

Seriously awesome work done by all!

Happy 'A Lovely Year of Finishes'

June: A Lovely Year of Finishes ~ Goal Setting Party

Okay. . stop I say.  How is it JUNE?

Well at least there is A Lovely Year of Finishes to keep me moving along.

You've heard that saying?  I don't recall where it's from now.

We underestimate what we can do in a year,
but overestimate what we can do in a week.

So I'm just trying to keep it all in perspective.

~~

Melissa from Sew BitterSweet Designs and I super thrilled that ALYoF is working for so many of you.

We love hearing about that too :)


~~~
I'm thinking about what I want to do for my June goal.

I'm going to choose to get my Sew.Happy. Quilt along quilt to finish.  I'm pretty sure a certain niece of mine would love to cuddle under it.  :)

This is only a black and white photo.  Check out the actual colors at my flickr set here.
Don't mind that these blocks were created over a year and a half ago.  Lalalalala

~~~

Do share, what's your June goal?

What one item will you choose?

You have two requirements to be entered into the prizes this month.

1. Link-up {on this post} the first 7-days of the month

and

2. Link-up in the last 7-days of the month.

Add your blog post or flickr photo (with appropriate descriptions) to the linky party below.

Please grab a button or link back to Melissa and I so other people can join in the fun!

**Please note, the linky party is the same here and over at Melissa , so there is no need to enter twice **

~~~

Here is a list of our generous sponsors for June!!

June prizes include:

1.  Green Fairy Quilts – 3 pdf patterns

2.PDF Pattern from Persimon Dreams

 

3. $15 gift certificate from Fat Quarter Shop

4. One PDF Pattern from Meadow Mist Designs

5, 6. One pdf Pattern from Clover and Violet

7. Thimblepie’s Quilt Supplies - Custom fabric package, 4 yards (worth $20) plus free shipping

8. One pdf pattern from  Sew Sweetness 

9, 10. TWO winners each getting to choose one pdf pattern
from Sew BitterSweet Designs ($10 value)

11. Thread Prize from Aurifil

12. Quilting Patterns designed by Quilting Lodge

Geeze!  Fantastical amounts of goodies that you may win..and you get a finish out of it too!??  

Awesome

Enjoy your June.