February quilts finally finished.

 March has been a crazy month.  My husband had surgery so that meant pre-surgical appointments including blood tests and iron infusions along with 2 units of blood transfusion.  I feel like I have been living at the hospital.  I expected one or two days of being in the hospital post surgery - WRONG - 7 days and I lost all my time I had organized for binding quilts that I quilted in February.

OH WELL... best laid plans.... 

In the last few days I finally got the bindings done.  First is a quilt using a variety of blues with a pattern I call Carolyn's blocks because I never been able to find the original source of the cutting fat quarters.  

Running Doe quilt along  (Villa Rosa) called Lanterns.  I use strips from my batik bins.

Two quilts  made from blocks that were a Heartstrings challenge to use strips.  I made enough blocks for two quilt tops.  Now bound and ready for donation.

Second quilt using the strips from my scrap strip bins.  I managed to condense 2 bins into one.

This was a sew-a-long with GE Designs.  It used fat quarters and I pulled out a strange assortment of fabrics, and colours.  The pattern is Jolee. 

My project for the Quilts of Valour Sew Day in early February was to make a quilt using the 2025 pattern for the alternating blocks called Zig Zag. 

I am currently working on using blocks from my Rainbow scrap challenge that were all made last year. This L block is put together, waiting for quilting.
 

Material Girls has a challenge this month to make a 16 patch jelly roll quilt.  These blocks need some trimming and I literally threw them on the wall to see if I liked this setting.  The pattern has them all lined up, nice and even.  That means a LOT of seam matching and this way, only corners need to match? 

I have made an effort to tame the disaster of my sewing space being a "dumping" while I was at the hospital, all day, every day.  And, my list for the last week of the month is organized.  I have a few tops to get quilted that I did not take pictures of.  

One day at a time and eventually projects get finished.

One month later... it is March

 Once again, I admire those who blog daily and keep it simple.  I have the best of intentions but then decide to wait until the current project is finished.  That doesn't work because suddenly, there is another project in the works.  

I managed to get 7 projects finished and 6 quilted at the end of February.  The one that isn't finished is from the Advent box in Dec 2024.  The others are waiting for binding but, the Janome that I like for stitching on bindings went for a spa day on Friday and she won't be back until mid week.  So, the stack waits.

In February, I did make some Valentine's mug rugs. 

And I started making the blocks for the Running Doe sew along.  I dug out my 2 bins of 2.5" batik strips.  This is now one of the tops that has been quilted and waiting for binding.

I also decided to pull out all my row by rows that I have on hangers from a couple of years ago and also the recent ones given out at the December guild meeting and since then, some that have been completed and given to me to create some Quilt of Valour tops.  This endeavor led me to dig out all my bins of fabric and rows waiting to be done.  What a surprise, a container of kits/patterns from 2016.  I am determined to try and complete one a week? 

These are blocks that are from the Missouri Star Advent box - a set of charms and pattern for a pillow top which is supposed to have chenille added.  I decided a table topper is more useful as I have a number of small tables and this is not seasonal.  The top is now complete and waiting to be quilted.

A row by row from Vancouver Island and the fabrics are glued in place and the applique is being traced and will be fused.  I need my machine back from Spa day to do the stitching on this but, will be quick to get finished. 

I have a few completed tops, waiting to be pressed.  This is my Patterns By Jen 2024 with sashings added and top complete, ready for a hanger and then end of the month quilting. 

Top #2 is put together - Bundle and Bows by Material Girl.  I made blocks last year for the rainbow scrap challenge and didn't do the math for the size of blocks and quilt top.  This is the first one I put together and had a few blocks leftover.  So, rather than waste them, I stopped what I was doing and worked on more blocks for second top.

This is the second top in progress. 

I am participating in Material Girl's Jelly Roll 18 patch sew along and decided, once again, to use strips from my batik bins.  They are gathered and the background strips cut and my pairs are joined.  The second step is to make 3 sets of 5 rows from each pair which then get cut into strips. 

A few blocks finished so I can see how the block finishes.  The good news here is that my two bins of strips have been reduced to 1.5... so half a bin gone into quilt tops!  I am also digging out 2.5" strips of odd fabrics to start stitching binding to donate to Quilts for Survivors.  They are hoping for enough strips donated to equal the distance around the world?  Definitely a challenge. 

Of course, while working on the above projects, I also decided to pull out some fat quarters of kid's fabrics to make the monthly pattern, Transportation, by Running Doe.  This will go together quickly once I finished assembling the parts.

So, as always, too many projects but most are close to the flimsy stage and I will get the tops pressed and folded neatly on hangers waiting to be quilted.  Once I get my bindings stitched on the the February projects, I will be able to post pictures of them.  The best part for me, I think I am back on track with my weekly goals: First week binding and choosing new projects, second week stitching, third week catching up on the blocks of the month, stitch alongs that I joined into (but am using that time to sew tops made from blocks in the previous few years) and then fourth week, quilting the tops.  

It has still been a topsy turvy time with my husband having surgery this coming week on his legs and aneurysm which meant the pre-surgical appointments plus blood tests, blood transfusions, iron infusions. However,  I celebrate that radiation is finished.  

And the income tax task awaits.  It was glorious weather here last weekend and I spent time outside straightening up the raccoon party mess in our front yard from last November and also managed to weed the flower gardens, prune roses and fertilize blueberries, rhodos etc.  That all felt good because this past week has been rain... lots of cooler and wetter weather. 

In the meantime, care for the caregiver means tennis 3 mornings a week.  

It is nice to know that there are still 3 weeks left in the month and hoping I can finish up all these projects I have started.