Gifts

I realized I've been really bad about blogging this month. That's mostly due to the fact that most of the sewing I've been doing is for gifts. I can't post about a gift I'm making, and expect it to be a surprise.

That said, I have also been sick with a chest cold. I got sick last week, and the daughter I caught it from assures me it lasts three weeks, so two more weeks of coughing like this? I sure hope not.

In the last couple of days, I cut out two quilts. One will mostly be from some of those 2" strips I cut while dealing with scraps in January/February. The other was from some other fabrics I had on hand.

I started sewing on one of those quilts today, and here are some units going into it.

 

I'm not going to be able to show much more of this quilt for a while, because it is also a gift, but at this point, I don't think anyone can figure out where I'm going with it, or whose it will be. I didn't fussy cut these squares obviously. I was just working with cutting down some larger squares I already had, and since they were going on point I had to fudge a bit on where the prints are. I think it will be fine in the final project though. I used my Go cutter to cut the on point squares and corners, and boy was that fast! I needed 40 on point squares, so 160 corners, and there is no way I could have cut them anywhere near as fast with a rotary cutter.

DH and I are going away for a couple days soon, and perhaps I'll have some fun photos from that, and I also have projects going on that aren't gifts, so perhaps I'll have more to blog about soon.

Grand Illusion Is Finished!!!

Second finish of the year, in the third month, that's not too bad I guess. I am very happy with how Grand Illusion came out. No puckers in the quilting anywhere, no drama while quilting it on my Bernina 440, and I think the black binding was a perfect finish for it.

I finished the blocks for a Pineapple Blossom quilt too.

I'm a little torn on what to work on next. I have three quilts that need to be cut out, one that needs borders, and one that needs a LOT more blocks made. I also have the three projects that I need to finish that are someone else's UFO's. The Pineapple Blossom quilt I don't need this year, so it can stay as blocks. The three I need to cut out, all need to be finished this year, as does the one that needs more blocks, and the one that needs borders. The three UFO's that aren't mine I'd like to finish this year, and get them off my to do list. I also have some non-quilting projects to finish: superhero capes for the grandkids that haven't gotten theirs yet, and more scrub tops for DH. Just a short list, right???

Of course, I also have UFO's of my own. Plenty of choices of what to work on, that's for sure!

Here it is, March, and I already feel like the year is flying by. I went a month not sewing because I was dealing with all my scraps, and I am going to miss another month this year with travel. In a way, instead of having twelve months to get my yearly goals done, I only have ten.

My purse has a tear in it, and I've been looking for a new one. One that's big enough to work while traveling, but not huge, and I have to have a zippered main compartment. I've never been into making purses, but it has occurred to me to make one. I haven't found one I like, even though I've looked in several stores. It seems like black, brown, and white are the colors of choice. I found several blue purses, but I hate blue, and the green that's out right now is an odd shade. I've seen little pink or orange, no red, purple or yellow. I'm thinking a print would be fun for summer. Do any of you have a favorite purse pattern you use? Are they a nightmare to make? I made my girls a few purses over the years, but they were all pretty simple, and I like to have at least a couple pockets.

Tomorrow I should have some sewing time, so I need to decide tonight what to work on!