Oldest UFO Saw Some Love

I am caught up on the quilts for the church outreach, so I went back to my "to do" list from weeks ago.  I started this as a leaders and enders project a while back and then it got waylaid by the church quilts.  Before I had time to reconsider, I joined the blocks.  I got the blocks all joined, gave it a nice pressing, and hung it in the "to be finished" closet.  Unfortunately I did not get a new picture of it.

I kept this layout and it looks just fine.

Then I considered a new project and actually pulled some scraps for it.  It ended up being my leaders and enders project.

But I had a reality check and realized I needed to work on some UFOs.  The one closest to the machine and maybe easiest to do was this one.   It started as a commissioned project for a friend when we lived in Guatemala.  They changed their mind.  I folded it up and set it aside.   

I went with the darker maroon for the first border.

I remember working on it when we lived in the "yellow house on the corner."  That would have been when Teacher E was between 1-4 years old, so about 23-26 years ago.  Wow!! At the time I thought I was doing precise careful work with small pieces!  Hmmmpf.  Adding the first round of borders on it showed me that that was not the case.  I also noticed that the quality of fabric was definitely a factor, but those were the times I used what I had.  The design was from a magazine, but looking at it now I see all kinds of easier ways to make it - mainly not having bias edged triangles. 

Making progress.

I got a first border on it and have a similar fabric that will make the next border.  

All of this plus some long overdue mending kept me sewing all week.

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days last weeks = 7/7

15 minute days/Oct = 17/18

15 minute days/2025 = 258/311

Success Rate = 83%

 

Progress was made, but no stash movement yet.

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 0 yds

Used year to date: 97.77 yards

Acquired recently: 0 yards  

Acquired year to date: 42 yards

Net used in 2025: 55.77 more yards used

Linking up to:

Kate at Life in Pieces

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quiltingpatch

Got it Done!!

I had a tight deadline to get the pink quilt done by Saturday and then it got even tighter.  I ended up not being able to go to the baby shower, so I had to finish it sooner to drop it off to the organizer.

Groovy pink baby quilt

Pedal to the metal.  Got it done on Wednesday evening and still got my report cards done by Friday.  What a week!

Perfect backing!

I used up nearly all the groovy pink strips from the Greenville trip, lots of random pink, and some purple. For the backing/binding I used nearly all the magenta that has been in the stash forever because it bleeds so badly.  It was perfect for this project, so I washed it three times until the wash water ran clean.

Long, long week and then came Friday.  It was rainy so we had rainy day recess on a Friday that was also the last day of the quarter and the start of a 3-day weekend for the students and the end of a full moon week.  I left school as quickly as I could and made a stop at my favorite thrift store as a consolation prize!

Who knew a small bag could hold 600 squares?

Didn't find what I was looking for, but I did find a bag of precut 2" squares.  I am trying so hard to use up what I have, so I hesitated.  Then I realized that was a lot of neutrals that I could combine with the overflowing 2" strip drawer which is low on neutrals and get things used up faster.  I counted when I got home.  $2 for approximately 600 squares/1.67 yards.  It's worth it just for the labor of not cutting that many squares!

 15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days last weeks = 6/7

15 minute days/Oct = 10/11

15 minute days/2025 = 251/304

Success Rate = 83%

 

Fabric moving in both directions this week.

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 4.2 yds groovy pink quilt

Used year to date: 97.77 yards

Acquired recently: 1.67 yards bag of 2" squares

Acquired year to date: 42 yards

Net used in 2025: 55.77 more yards used

Linking up to:

Kate at Life in Pieces

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quiltingpatch

Back on Track

The last three weeks flew by in a blur with not much sewing.  I had done so well on the yellow flower garden and already had the red flower garden under the needle and ready to go.  Didn't happen, didn't happen, and still didn't happen.  

Some of it was a bad case of the blahs. Then there was the day trip with my sisters to visit our brother and his family.  Then my birthday evening.  Then another day trip to see Grown Up E and Little S.  Then parent conferences.  All of that really got me off of my regular routine of school, lesson planning, and some sewing.  So here it is three weeks later and I may be back on track!

red flower back quilt front

The good news is that the red flower garden baby quilt done at last.  

red backing 

The church outreach needs another girl quilt, but my husband just took the last one that I had to give to friends in Spain.  So the pressure is on to get one ready by next Saturday.  

I had this somewhat started a while back, so I figured it was the closest to the finish line and just plowed forward. The groovy pink fabric was a $1 bag of precut strips from our trip to Recraft in Greenville, SC.  I didn't have enough of a single pink, so I just kept adding shades as I went.  The determining factor for size was the groovy pink.  I wanted to use it all up and I came pretty close.

Perfect? No.  Cute? Yes!  Having an urgent deadline will get this one moving along and keep me back on track for sewing. 

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last 3 weeks = 9/21

15 minute days/Oct = 4/4

15 minute days/2025 = 243/298

Success Rate = 82%

 

I can now count out the red backing and binding.  

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 1.92 yards red backing & binding

Used year to date: 93.57 yards

Acquired recently: 0 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 53.27 more yards used

Linking up to:

Kate at Life in Pieces

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quiltingpatch

What I'm Working On

 How did I do on the list for SEPTEMBER 7 - 13?

• quilt the yellow backed flower garden DONE
• bind the yellow backed flower garden DONE
• quilt the red backed flower garden STARTED
• bind the red backed flower garden NO
• join baby bricks into a top NO
• prepare a backing for the scrappy baby bricks NO
• start thinking about what project will be next after the baby bricks NO
• clean sewing room PROGRESS

Off to a good start.

TO DO LIST FOR SEPTEMBER 14 - 20:

• finish quilting the red backed quilt
• bind the red backed quilt
• join the scrappy baby bricks
• prepare a backing for the scrappy baby bricks 
• start thinking about what project will be next after the baby bricks 
• clean sewing room
• get the scrapbook project off the sewing table

• 

  Try again next week?

Yellow Flower Garden is All Finished

My plan had been to quilt both tops, then bind both, but once I started on the yellow-backed quilt I just kept working on that one.  By Friday evening, I was finishing up the yellow binding!

This backing started as a strange 2-sided triangular piece that was given to me a while back.  I liked the fabric, but what to do with it the piece?  When I was looking for floral backings for these quilts I thought I'd give it a try.  

An odd start, but a perfect finish.

When I started to unsew it, what I thought was two triangles sewn together was really square-ish folded in half with a decorative strip covering the raw edges.  Parts of it were glued, but in the end I had enough for the backing and just needed a bit of supplemental fabric.  I am glad to have that odd piece out of the stash.  I think it was perfect for this project.

Since I didn't touch the red-based quilt at all, I already have my plan for the coming week.  If I just keep doing a little bit every day, I think I'll have the twin flower gardens done next weekend.

Red-backed flower garden under the needle!

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last week = 6/7

15 minute days/Sept = 10/13

15 minute days/2025 = 235/277

Success Rate = 85%

 

I can now count out the yellow backing and binding.  Still moving in the right direction.

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 1.92 yards yellow backing & binding

Used year to date: 91.65 yards

Acquired recently: 0 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 51.35 more yards used

Linking up to:

Kate at Life in Pieces

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quiltingpatch

What I'm Working On

How did I do on the list for AUGUST 31 - SEPTEMBER 6?

• join baby bricks into a top NOPE
• prepare a backing for the scrappy baby bricks NADA
• cut more blocks for twin baby girl quilts for church DONE
• determine layout for blocks for twin baby girl quilts DONE
• join baby girl blocks DONE
• decide on borders for baby girl quilts DONE
• prepare backings for baby girl quilts DONE
• start thinking about what project will be next NO 
• clean sewing room NO - JUST ADDED TO THE MESS!

  

  red backing ready for its flower garden top

My B Project became the A Project! I made great progress and got both baby girl flower garden quilts all the way ready to be quilted.

red-backed flower garden ready for quilting

TO DO LIST FOR SEPTEMBER 7 - 13:

• quilt the yellow backed flower garden
• bind the yellow backed flower garden
• quilt the red backed flower garden
• bind the red backed flower garden
• join baby bricks into a top 
• prepare a backing for the scrappy baby bricks
• start thinking about what project will be next after the baby bricks
• clean sewing room

  

  Maybe I'll get back to the baby bricks next week.

Baby Flower Gardens for the Twin Girls

My week did not go how I imagined since I sewed what I had thought was my secondary project instead of the primary project.  My idea for the twin baby girls was to use the remnants of a flowered charm park.  There were enough duplicates to have a good start on a plan.  

Matching stacks of 5" blocks + a few extras.

I would use those as a starting point and then add from the stash.  I was on a roll, so I just kept rolling.  I ended up getting the remaining squares cut, tested layouts, 

I used a B&W filter for the first time!!

even added flowered borders.  I had some ideas for backings and got those ready as well. 

The red-based backing from part of a tablecloth

Since I was doing so well, I just kept going and got them both pin basted! 

Ready for quilting.

Considering there were two days I just didn't feel up to sewing, I got a lot done!  Well ahead of schedule for the baby girl quilts. I've got myself set up well to quilt in spurts after school this week.  We'll see how that goes.

 15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last week = 5/7

15 minute days/August = 1/1

15 minute days/Sept = 4/6

15 minute days/2025 = 229/270

Success Rate = 85%

 

I got the tops done so will count that fabric as out this week.  I'll wait to count the backings out until they are quilted.  

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 3.7 yards

Used year to date: 89.73 yards

Acquired recently: 0 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 49.43 more yards used

Linking up to: 

Donna @ quiltpaintcreate

Frederique @ quilting patch

What I'm Working On

 How did I do on the list for AUGUST 24-30?

• continue to cut pieces for baby bricks in colors to fill gaps - DONE
• sew baby bricks - PROGRESS - individual blocks are sewn 
• clean sewing room - PROGRESS
• make a plan for the twin girl quilts for church outreach - PROGRESS

I was going to make another short list this week since I feel like I am still working on getting back into the back to school groove.  Little bits of projects have been working so far, so I will stick with it.  But then I remembered that it is a three-day weekend!  So I'll stretch myself and see what I can get done.  Worst case - I add it back to next week's list!

Final Layout ????

TO DO LIST FOR AUGUST 31 - SEPTEMBER 6:

• join baby bricks into a top
• prepare a backing for the scrappy baby bricks
• cut more blocks for twin baby girl quilts for church
• determine layout for blocks for twin baby girl quilts
• join baby girl blocks
• decide on borders for baby girl quilts
• prepare backings for baby girl quilts
• start thinking about what project will be next
• clean sewing room

Scrappy Baby Bricks

I worked steadily on the baby bricks this week.  Since I used scraps only, the color placement turned out not quite right in some color paths.  I am convincing myself that it is fine and done is good and a baby won't care.

I will let this sit while I clean up the mess of the sewing room and think on what my next project will be.  If it still doesn't bother me enough to remake blocks, then I'll start joining them next week.

UPDATE: I rearranged some of the purples and oranges and I think that helps.  I still will not sew them all together yet though. 

Better? Maybe?

Open House was Thursday evening.  I was at school for 12 hours and did not have any oompf left for sewing when I finally got home.  Some days are like that and that's okay.  Still good forward progress.

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last week = 6/7

15 minute days/August = 25/30

15 minute days/2025 = 224/263

Success Rate = 85%

 

Still no stash movement, but I am hopeful that I'll get the baby bricks joined this week and have better numbers next week.

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 0 yards

Used year to date: 86.03 yards

Acquired recently: 15.83 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 45.73 more yards used

Linking up to: 

Kate at Life in Pieces

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quilting patchwork applique

Baby Bricks for a Friday Finish

I worked away at it little by little all week and got all the block units done.  

Sunday ...

Color placement may not be perfect, but a baby will never notice, right?

Friday!

I'm happy I got this far.  I will think on it over the weekend before starting to join the blocks.

What I'm Working On

 How did I do last week AUG 17-23:

• cut pieces for leader & enders in colors to fill gaps PROGRESS
• clean sewing room PROGRESS
• move leader & ender project from floor to design wall  DONE
• confirm number of baby quilts need to church outreach  PROGRESS

In rereading the list from last week, I realized I am still calling the baby brick project a leader & ender project.  I has definitely moved on to primary focus project.

The number of baby quilts needed for the church outreach is still a moving target, but has gone down from twelve to possibly four quilts. I think her group is in flux, so it's hard to make firm plans for both of us.  Kind of frustrating, but I have some ready to go and it will be fine.  In the previous list there were twin girls for the fall, so I am going to work on those just in case.  The good thing about quilts is that they don't go bad if they are not used right away.

TO DO LIST FOR AUGUST 24-30:

• continue to cut pieces for baby bricks in colors to fill gaps
• sew baby bricks
• clean sewing room
• make a plan for the twin girl quilts for church outreach

Another short list since I am still working on getting back into the back to school groove.  Forward progress of any kind is welcome.

Forward Progress on the Baby Brick Quilt

I am getting settled into the school routine and I had a plan for the week, so I was productive this week.  I got the brick units up off the floor and onto the design wall.  

I tried to think better about placement this time.  Currently I have darks on the top and right leading towards lights on the left and bottom.  

Some colors look very different in the photo than in real life.

I am going through my scraps filling in color gaps for bricks that I already made with the hope that I will not have bricks made that don't fit in the final plan.  We'll see.

Thinking through the color placement.

It took everything I had not to just keep sewing as I cut pieces, but I had a LOT of grading and lesson planning that had to get done on Saturday.  And I knew that if I sewed them all up I would not have anything to do when I needed something simple after school this coming week.

Waiting to be sewn on a school day!

I prepped and/or sewed every day except Friday.  I thought about it, but realized I was so tired I should not be making any decisions and certainly not using sharp instruments!  So, I sat in front of the TV and sorted school papers, which was also a much needed task, but no thought required.

No sewing, just sorting.

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last week = 6/7

15 minute days/August = 13/23

15 minute days/2025 = 218/253

Success Rate = 86%

 

No stash movement at all this week! 

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 0 yards

Used year to date: 86.03 yards

Acquired recently: 15.83 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 45.73 more yards used

Linking up to: 

Kate at Life in Pieces.

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quilting patchwork applique

What I'm Working On

 How did I do on the list for AUG 10 - 16 ?

• clean the sewing room cleaned, but then covered up with work stuff
• wash fabric from Greenville DONE
• cut leaders & enders didn't cut, but did plan a layout and sew some pairs together
• decide on the next big project, which needs to be simple as I get back in the groove DONE 
• confirm number of baby quilts needed for church outreach NO

A weird week but I had expected that since it was the first week back to school with students.  I have a plan for my next project and that is the most important thing.  

A starting point!

I'm going to work forward more intentionally on my leader & enders project.  I had just randomly cut pieces to sew since I didn't have a better idea at the time, but now I will work to fill the gaps.  I think I have about 3/4 of what I need for a baby quilt.  So that is manageable.

TO DO LIST FOR AUG 17-23:

• cut pieces for leader & enders in colors to fill gaps
• clean sewing room
• move leader & ender project from floor to design wall
• confirm number of baby quilts need to church outreach

First Week of School is in the Books

First week of school - DONE!!  I'm off to a good start at school, but definitely need to work on my stamina so that I can work and sew everyday.   I also need a better plan so that when I come home tired I have something ready to go.  I had a few ideas for this past week, but most of them didn't happen.  

I did, however, take advantage of being home alone for a few evenings to lay out the leader & ender units I had completed.  A while back I had cut random pieces for leader enders with no real plan, but now I had a few ideas and tried this to start.  I think it has potential.  Since I don't have anymore pieces cut for leader enders, I think that's a good place to start to keep me sewing and keep this moving along.

I like where this is going!

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last week = 5/7

15 minute days/August = 7/16

15 minute days/2025 = 212/246

Success Rate = 86%

 

No movement at all this week! 

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 0 yards

Used year to date: 86.03 yards

Acquired recently: 15.83 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 45.73 more yards used

Linking up to: 

Kate at Life in Pieces.

Donna at quiltpaintcreate

Frederique at quilting patchwork applique

What I Am Working On

After two weeks of extreme activity that did not involve sewing, I am ready to get back into the sewing room.  However, I need to get it back into working order after being a dumping ground.  I was all caught up on active projects before the end of summer travels, so I have to figure out what to do next. 

Only needs binding, so is a good candidate for this week!

School starts Monday, so I have to figure out the new normal and how sewing is going to fit into that as I build my stamina back up for doing both school and sewing.

Needs borders of some sort to enlarge it.  Also has potential.

It was fun to see my last productive week!!  Seems like ages ago.

How did I do July 21-27

• finish quilting the pink brick quilt  DONE
• attach binding  DONE
• clean sewing work space  DONE
• make liner for Little S's bike basket DONE
• wash Little S's baby cross-stitch DONE
• research framing Little S's baby cross-stitch  PROGRESS.  Now that she has finished her summer class, we can devote more energy to this.

This week's list is realistically short:

TO DO LIST FOR AUG 10 - 16

• clean the sewing room
• wash fabric from Greenville
• cut leaders & enders
• decide on the next big project, which needs to be simple as I get back in the groove
• confirm number of baby quilts needed for church outreach

Summer Ends in a Whirlwind

Wow!  The end of summer sure snuck up on me.  I knew it was going to be busy but I didn't anticipate how busy.  

Tile floor in the Library of Congress - lots of potential!

The hectic started when our return flight from DC was postponed to 24 hours later.  Arrgh.  We were able to get a flight that night to Savannah instead, so we crashed at Grown Up E's house and then she drove us home in the morning.  Instead of starting work in my classroom we were hanging out with her, which was infinitely more fun.  Bonus was that she was able to take load of college stuff back to store at her house for Little S!

Another tile section in the Library of Congress.

Then more activities - Grown Up E came back to Jax with her 1 yo godson for a trip to the zoo.  Triple digits temps cut that short so we hung out in the AC at home.  Then a trip to Greenville, SC where I had all three girls together for the afternoon.  That was a real treat.  I highly recommend Recraft Creative Reuse Center if you are anywhere nearby.  They sell donated craft items in every possible genre and very reasonable prices.  We all do different crafts and were all able to find supplies to stock up on.  This was my second visit, so I was very excited, but less overwhelmed!

My haul from Recraft!!

After all the fun was over it was back to school.  I got my room set up in record time with the help of Little S.  She knows just what to do and having her with me makes a huge difference.  Once I was down to the sorting papers stage, she stayed home to finish packing to head back to college.

Yesterday we took Little S back for her second year.  After the freshman year, the dorms are more apartment style.  So even with 4 in the apartment, she needed a lot of kitchen things this year.  She has been very invested in cooking and food shopping this summer, so I think she will be fine.  Having her sister in the same town is a huge plus since she doesn't drive.  There is a walmart and aldi within walking distance, so she has that as well.

Indigo Way in Pink, Purple, and Aqua is her College Quilt

With the traveling and changes to the schedule and getting Little S ready to go back to college and getting me ready to go back to school, there was not much sewing going on at all.  I prepped a little bit of handwork for the Greenville trip and did that but otherwise the sewing room has just been drop off zone!

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last two weeks = 3/14

15 minute days/July = 24/31

15 minute days/August = 2/9

15 minute days/2025 = 207/239

Success Rate = 87%

 

The trip to Greenville added to my stash, but most of it is destined for the 12 baby quilts the church outreach requested.  Bundled yardage was $2/yd and loose pieces were 25c each.  All of my loose pieces were at least 1/2 yard!! When I crunched the numbers I ended up paying 68c/yard.  I call that a win!!  Now to use it up!

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 0 yards

Used year to date: 86.03 yards

Acquired recently: 15.83 yards 

Acquired year to date: 40.33 yards

Net used in 2025: 45.73 more yards used

Linking up to: 

Frederique at quilting patchwork applique

Twin Quilts

I knew I would not be able to do anything sewing related during our trip, so this was a light week.  I worked on finishing things and cleaning the sewing room.

The pink brick quilt is completely finished and I think it is a good twin match for the jungle brick quilt.  I wish I had been able to randomize the pinks better, but ...

I can't say enough how much I love this pattern.  This is my third quilt with this pattern.  I rarely repeat a quilt (except for D9P), so that is saying something!  Bricks and Stepping Stones by Bonnie Hunter.

I also finished the bike basket liner, which was a huge relief.

Since I was caught up with the big projects, I went for an old project.  I will see all three girls together next week, so I figured it was about time to finish these potholders to take.  I finished the second one that was started and I'm calling this project done.  Little S gets a bike basket liner instead.  When I saw the tutorial I thought it was cute, and it is, but it just isn't my thing.  At nearly 11" across they are also more like a trivet than a pot holder.

15 Minutes to Stitch

15 minute days/last two weeks = 5/7

15 minute days/July = 23/26

15 minute days/2025 = 204/225

Success Rate = 90%

 

The pink brick quilt is completely finished and I realized I never recorded the jungle brick quilt, so I have some good stash movement this week!

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 7.2 yards for pink brick & jungle brick quilts; 0.93 yds for basket liner; 0.5 yds for hot pads

Used year to date: 86.03 yards

Acquired recently: 0 yards 

Acquired year to date: 24.5 yards

Net used in 2025: 61.44 more yards used

I did not set a goal for yards used this year, but looking at this I think I will have an unofficial goal of 100 yards out for 2025!

Bike Basket Liner - Finish Friday

I was really dreading making a bike basket liner for Little S to take back to college with her.  But I was caught up on everything else and time is running out, so I just did it.  No pattern.  I measured carefully and thought through each step carefully.

I started with the heavy apron scraps from this project for the first try on one day.  That worked out well, so the next day I did the same thing with leftovers from an old sheet from the mask making days.  The third day I made the flap and attached it all.  It went together right on the first try.  It pays to do more thinking and less improvising! What a relief!

I included a pocket on the pink inside and also elastic bands to hold her water bottle.  She is happy.  I am happy.  That is a big check off the back to school list!!

What I'm Working On

How did I do for July 14-20

• match up the strips and subcut the turquoise 4-patches  DONE
• sew the 4-patches  DONE
• attach 4-patches to bricks  DONE
• figure out the layout  DONE
• web the top  DONE
• find a backing  DONE
• sandwich the quilt  DONE
• brainstorm ideas for the twin girls due in November  NO PROGRESS

Surprisingly, I also got the binding made and the quilting started.

I didn't really think on the twin girl quilts, but I do think this is a good pattern for a quick quilt.  I will have to look at my fabric and see what I have that might work again for 2 similar quilts.  The pattern is Bricks and Stepping Stones by Bonnie Hunter.  I highly recommend this pattern.

My commitments I thought I had last week are for this week, plus a short trip with Little S to see some pieces on her "Art AP 250 Bucket List".  So I think I will keep the list short.  When we get back from that trip it will be time to head back to school for preplanning.  

To Do List for July 21-27

• finish quilting the pink brick quilt
• attach binding
• clean sewing work space
• make liner for Little S's bike basket
• wash Little S's baby cross-stitch 
• research framing Little S's baby cross-stitch

Progress on the Twin Quilt

I made good progress on the pink twin quilt this week.  You can see the details in THIS POST.  I got it sandwiched yesterday afternoon and started quilting today.  I planned better for this quilt and prepared the binding before I put the walking foot on the machine for quilting.  This way I should be able to go straight from quilting to binding without needing an extra foot change in between.

Last week was the Craft activity at the library that I cut the squares for a few weeks ago.  In all honesty I did not pay much attention until the end.  I had taken my cutting tools and large mat and was cutting 2 yards sections of fleece for an upcoming program during this program.  

I think it was "felting" and Little S did participate.  It was fun to see all the ladies with their different colors of fabric squares and poking away at their design. 

One lady called this a "Barbie Butterfly"

Speaking of butterflies.  Earlier this summer, I rescued 15 black swallowtail caterpillars from my sister's parsley and kept them away from the lizards with sprigs of parsley in a jar in the mesh enclosure.  I have been trying to raise swallowtails for a year or so and have not been successful.  Either she gets rids of the caterpillars without telling me or my parsley doesn't grow or the parsley grew like crazy in the school garden, but no butterflies laid eggs there.  

Seven have already emerged.  I am hoping it isn't too hot for the later ones since we have been in the triple digits the last week.  I raise monarchs at school and home, so it was very interesting to see the similarities and differences with the swallowtails.  

15 Minute Report

15 minute days/last two weeks = 7/7

15 minute days/July = 18/19

15 minute days/2025 = 197/218

Success Rate = 90%

 

Not quite finished with the pink brick quilt, so the stash remains steady.

2025 Stash Totals

Used last week: 0 yards

Used year to date: 77.4 yards

Acquired recently: 0 yards 

Acquired year to date: 24.5 yards

Net used in 2025: 52.9 more yards used

Linking up with: 

• Kate at Life in Pieces 
• Frederique at Quilting Patchwork Applique 
• Donna at quiltpaintcreate