Stash Report 062115

At last a stash report and a good one at that.  Lots of finishes this week.  More finished quilts than finished photos but that is fine.

1) Quilt top, backing and binding for nephew to be : 5.12 yards   

2) Scrap box quilt border & backing to donate to a young cancer patient: 2.06 

3) around the world borders, backing and binding: 4.44 yards 

I had to buy fabric for the baby quilt since I was working within a theme but the damage wasn't too bad.  And found the end of a bolt of solid pink on clearance for just $1/yard that I could not leave behind.  Solids are always good. 

Fabric Used This Week:  11.62 yards 

Fabric In This Week:  4.62 yards

Total In 2015: 6.12 yards
Net Used 2015:  33.55 yards

Linking up to Patchwork Times  to show how others are doing on busting their stash!

Lots of Finishes

The girls were gone (and we ate leftovers all week) and I was super productive even though I either went in to work or worked at home most days!!  I had a short mental list of 3 major things I wanted to finish in that time and I got that done!!  I also got a bonus project done!!

#1 was a non-sewing project   A few years ago I finished hand quilting a family heirloom quilt for my team teacher.  As a thank you she offered to make me a photo album but I had to pick the photos. I thought if I just got out the box of photos from the time we first moved to Russia until College R was born that would be a nice finite amount to work with.  Took me more than 3 years to actually get out the box and then I realized she would never be able to sort and cull and crop the photos.  That took me over 6 months in bits of time usually when Señor G was out of town and I could make a big mess.  I was so close to the end and I did it!!  That project is out of my hands and I am very thankful. 

The initial sort.  When I realized I might be in over my head!

#2 finish quilting an unexpected quilt  that was halfway quilted.  Done.  Once the photos were off the floor I could get to the sewing machine.  Binding is cut, pressed and ready to go

#3 get a baby quilt for the new nephew to be at least to the flimsy stage. Once the inspiration hit it didn't take any time at all.  I also got a backing pieced and ready - all from stash. 

Bear Paws Flimsy

I had to do a lot of piecing to get enough claws.

Can you spot the pieced claws?

BONUS   -  get the borders on the project I pulled out of my MILs scrap bag last summer.  The fabric had already been set aside and there was enough for the backing as well.  This quilt is very pretty but really has no special meaning.  It was a few odd pieces found in a bag that was given to my MIL and I was curious to see how far I could take it.  Señor G is a free lance interpreter and recently has been working with the family of a little girl undergoing cancer treatment.  Her name is the same and her birthday very very close to our Little S.  I really felt like I needed to give her this quilt.  As soon as I get the thread tails worked in it will go to the other Little S. 

I tried to quilt some little flowers in among the stipple.

Linking up with  Crazy Mom Quilts   and Confessions of a fabric addict  to show off finishes.

Bears Climbing the Wall

I have given up and taken the Spinning Octagons off the wall.  The girls are all away so I am using a bedroom floor to work on a layout and plan for finishing them - maybe.

But first I have to make a baby quilt for our soon-to-be born nephew   I had a super cute transportation themed quilt top done and then I learned the theme is woodland animals.   

The purchased inspiration fabric.

Of course I had nothing to work with so I had to break down and buy something.   But all inspiration had been used up on the transportation quilt and it didn't transfer to the new fabric. No problem. Life got in the way and I couldn't do anything anyways.

Recently acquired in a bag of scraps - but not much of it.

Fast forward 2 months:  I am a teacher.  School is out!  The first of 3 camps I am helping plan is ready to go. The second is in good shape.  So I have cleaned off the sewing table and rediscovered the machine.  Got the mending done.  Looked at some quilting books and was inspired at last.  

Bear Paws seems fitting for a woodland animal theme.

I still have the scraps from the big brother of the new baby's quilt and they actually coordinate pretty well, so I am trying to use them up work them in.  The center of the bear's paw will be the green of the previous baby quilt.  There is enough.  Trying to figure out where to use this:

There is about a 12" x 18" piece.  Thinking 4 large border cornerstones if nothing else.

I usually make things up as I go along, so I am not too worried.  It will happen.  I am just happy to be sewing and making progress on something that does need to be made soon.

Head on over to Patchwork Times  to see what others are working on.

Stash Report 061415

At last - activity on the sewing machine and fabric out.

I made a tablecloth for the girls to take to my MIL on their trip down to Guatemala this week.  She uses tablecloths for every single meal, so I know it will be well used.  That is a lot better than having the fabric linger in the closet.  The story is here.

Unfortunately no picture.  Maybe I can get the girls to take a picture of it in use!

Fabric Used This Week:  2.5 yards tablecloth for Dona Cristy

Fabric In This Week:  0 yards

Total In 2015: 1.5 yards
Net Used 2015:  26.55 yards

Linking up to Patchwork Times  to show how others are doing on busting their stash!

A Finish for my Mother-in-Law

The girls are spending the week with their grandparents and other family in Guatemala.  I usually gift my MIL with fabric but to be quite honest I think she just hoards it - a woman after my own heart!!!

So I made her a tablecloth with the remains of a bolt of fabric I had been gifted and had hoarded thinking I would recover the dining room chairs but knowing full well that I wouldn't.  I almost sent it as is and she could hem it since my sewing machine has not seen the light of day in many months, but at the last minute I cleared a space and hemmed all four sides.  

It went right into the suitcase and I did not get a picture.  But here is a glimpse from the little bit that got squared off the end.  

She uses tableclothes for every meal and I think she will like it.

Linking up with  Crazy Mom Quilts   and Confessions of a fabric addict  to show off finishes.

Does this count as a layout?

I have not been working in fabric, but in paper.  School is out, but instead of having more time I have less.  It is not supposed to work that way.  Part of the problem is that my team teacher and I do the planning for the summer camps.  It is fun to come up with themes we don't do during the regular school year and really make them "over the top" fun.

This year we are doing Around the World, Fantastic Florida and Super Heroes.  Super Heroes we always do the last week of school to finish the year with a BANG!! but for camp we can do even more.  This past school year we worked last summer's camp activities into some of our regular themes and that was super fun.  Cowboys during the 5 senses week.  Mother is a Queen used the Castle Camp activities, but focused them on mom for Mother's Day.  Pirates we just threw in there for fun and the kids LOVED it.

Anyways, I am making the travel posters for the Around the World camp to decorate the doors.  I have been collecting great photos from calendars and travel magazines.  I mounted them on poster board, added simple sayings and done.  Thinking about it took longer than doing it.  But that is often the case.

I needed posters for 4 classrooms and wanted each room to have one of each background color and make sure each of our focus countries was represented.  So each class got a vertical column on the floor. My "design floor" worked great.  I didn't actually make a patterned layout until I was all done.  Something about it make me think of a quilt.

It's a finish and it's Friday, but it's not fabric.  Next week hopefully.

Is this worth fixing?

My dad is in assisted living   It's an apartment situation with lots of oversight and an emergency button, etc.  My sisters and I have divided up the various responsibilities that he needs in order to keep his as independent and mobile as possible.

One if my jobs is the sewing and mending.  Summer has come to Florida so he got out his shortie pjs and they don't stay up because the elastic is shot. 

These have been fixed at least twice.  Looks like new elastic once and tucks another time.  I know my mother was biting her tongue by the second fix. 

This one looks worse but is actually the easier repair.  These were my grandfather's and he has been gone probably 20 years.  So I'm going to guess a good 30-40 years of wear   I found the cut off sleeves in my mothers stash and I worked that fabric into my scrappy mountains majesties quilt.

When I suggested we get new pajamas he started to cry.  As soon as I said it I knew it was the wrong thing, since the anniversary of my mother's passing was this past month. 

Earlier in the visit we had been talking about employees who cry in front of their employers to try to change an outcome.  So I told him that since he cried I would make the repairs.  Then he laughed.  

So I will be mending this weekend!!