It's the time of year where it's just work-work-work... With our system of 10 weeks teaching, 2 weeks break you wouldn't think that one can get so bogged down but somehow it happens every year. Luckily I have been able to make space for a little play, too - and TG for our family holiday in the Islands, that was long overdue!
My goals from 3 June were:
... and there is not that much to show for - oops!
Scrappy Applique Quilt Along
Yes, still quilting this - or more truthfully I finally started back on it yesterday... Though I made a discovery regarding my HQ Sweet Sixteen: I though I had been oiling it regularly, but the machine started to feel rather rusty and noisy lately. Eventually I realised that not much oil had been coming out of the oil bottle at all which I have now rectified - and the machine just nicely purrs along again...
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| I'm definitely over the half-way mark for the background now, so it's just a matter of plodding along and getting it done... |
Patchwork City blocks
Early June I had 20 blocks, now there are 26, that's more progress than I had thought 😌
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| Block 18 |
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| Bonus Block 4 - I really like this one, esp. bottom left |
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| Bonus Block 5 |
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| Bonus Block 6 |
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| Bonus Block 7 - one of those 'not perfect, but done' blocks... |
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| Bonus Block 8 - River Path in mirror edge to the original design as I used fpp |
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| I did a mock up of the layout a few weeks back to see where I was at; I have made a few changes since and will post another picture when I get good light (it's winter here in New Zealand...) |
So overall this one is probably fine as far as progress goes. 4 more blocks to go, and as poor Joe Madl (@manhandledthreads) has been out of commission after an accident, they will probably all be 'bonus blocks' = blocks I choose. I brought up the idea of ghost blocks in a conversation with DH but he wasn't too thrilled 😂 so they will be pieced.
Sadly there has been no progress on Rainbow at Sea or Metro Rings but with a little luck I might get to play with the Rainbow blocks today; I laid the completed blocks out last night, and the swerving rainbow colours just make my heart sing.
Rather than IG rabbit holes, I fell into a couple of FB ones
Members of the BMQG regularly create community quilts and collaborative projects. Here are a few blocks that have been sent off to Queensland:
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| Butterfly girl in cast - the crazy things my brain makes me do when I run out of peach 😂 |
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| After Suzanne (@suzjob1) asked me why I hadn't simply given Butterfly girls socks, I had to make a Pippy Longstocking, the heroine of my childhood 😍 |
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| Crumb circles, using the scraps I have left after cutting my 'scraps' into more usable sizes |
There are so many things I would like to make and never enough time.... I just have to be realistic I suppose. I have a very cool job which takes up a lot of my time because I am adamant that I will do it extremely well (ok, some days is more like good enough really). My family are very important, and after our recent holiday the two teenagers still at home are keen to spend more quality time with us.
So next on the horizon are, for the month of August:
- Finish quilting Aotearoa from #scrappyappliquequiltalong
- Finish piecing the remaining 4 blocks for #patchworkcity2018
- Once Aotearoa is quilted, get back to quilting Metro Rings
- Plug away at blocks for Rainbow at Sea
- Baby quilt for a colleague due in November
- Sandwich and then quilt an all-over (probably stipple) over Vintage Quilt Revival
- Cut more scraps and continue piecing blocks for the Scraptherapy inspired Irish Chain top - I suppose that could be a sort of leaders & enders project? How do people do these (I might have to do some research)?
- I have also signed up to the MQG 2020 Me+You Indah Batik Fabric Challenge - no idea what is involved with this but no doubt it will be fun
Happy Sewing!
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| Two of our teenagers at the beach - yes, they did swim :) |
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| View at lunchtime... |
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| Sunset |
The three boys I travelled with (our oldest son was in Sweden at that time)
All progress is good progress... although it is hard keeping motivated at this time of year. Leader and ender projects are easy if you already have your pieces cut and organised so that it is simple to sew.
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