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No change in the numbers.

I spent some time on the paint chip challenge this week.  I added embroidery to block 4 and stamped with the larger bubble wrap in block 5.  The bubble wrap was older and the bubbles had deflated a bit.  That resulted in great texture. 

I created a freezer paper stencil for block 7.  I wanted thicker stripes and a stencil big enough to cover the whole square.

In addition to having fun, I’m learning a lot revisiting so many surface design techniques.  I’d forgotten how much I enjoy it.

Fabric Added: 13.125 ...

I’ve been plugging away on the Paint Chip Challenge. 

In a prior post I showed the gridded fabric.  I decided to add boro-like stitching to the first block.  My thread of choice for that is pearl cotton. 

All the surface design will be black, grey, and possible white.  I didn’t have any black or gray pearl cotton, but I did have white.

I decided to paint it.  I didn’t have any black fabric paint, using acrylic instead.  It came out a little stiff for my taste.  I combined it with gray fabric paint, and lightened some of ...

No change in the numbers.

I finally started the paint chip challenge project.  I found fabric that comes as close to the paint chip as I’m going to get.  I masked the outside border with painter’s tape and gridded the center.  The paint chip is in the upper right corner.

My first love in quilting is surface design.  That’s the place where I lose myself, where time passes unnoticed.  If you are a regular reader, you’d be hard pressed to know that based on recent projects.  It’s time to fix that.

I have a sketch ...

I apologize for combining everything in one post.  An internet outage prevented a separate OMG/PhD post.

No fabric in this week.  I had another finish for one yard out.

My May goal was to finish K’s quilt and possibly finish the beach runner.  I’m pleased to have finished both.  K’s quilt has been gifted.

The background fabric is one of my hand dyes.  When I cut the pieces, I made a huge effort to have the pink areas flow into one another.

The beach runner will go in the dining room until Fall.

I’m also ...

Happy Mother’s Day!  Do something nice for yourself today.

No change in the numbers.

I finally came up with a quilting plan for K’s quilt.  I’m about half way through the quilting.  I’d love to get the quilt finished this week.  I don’t like that I have to keep it a secret. 

I’m also looking forward to working on other projects and starting the paint chip challenge.  As a reminder, this is my paint chip.

In addition to the beach runner, I also started working on this UFO from a class several years ago ...

Another month done and dusted.  I didn’t post an April OMG update, but I did finish K’s top.  It’s a group challenge with the reveal at the end of May, so no pictures.

My May goal will include finishing K’s quilt, but I also want to finish the beach runner.

I’m about 20% through the quilting.  I haven’t free motion quilted in a long time.  The runner gives me some practice before I start quilting on K’s quilt.  I’d hate to make a mess of the quilting on her project, although I ...

No change in the numbers.

Work continues on K’s quilt.  All the components are made, and I am sewing the top together.

I also basted the beach runner and REALLY want to start quilting it.  I pulled some coordinating threads.

I hesitate to start quilting because I won’t want to stop until it’s done.  The other quilt has a deadline.  I sometimes struggle with finishing projects on time and don’t want to get in a crunch situation.  My work days don’t always go as planned and evenings can be a bad time for sewing.

We ...

No change in the numbers.

I have no idea where the week went, but I don’t think I spent much time in the sewing room.

When I did, I worked on K’s quilt.  A few people in the group look at the blog, and I don’t want to spoil the reveal with pictures.  I admit using some of those tiny HSTs.  That surprised even me.

I also pulled backing and binding for the beach runner.  The backing is a nice pale blue floral.  It’s rainy and overcast outside, making the fabric look gray.

Fabric Added: 1 ...

It’s that time to pick a new goal for the new month.  Time passes so quickly….not sure where the days go.

I’m moving on to a new project for April.  I pulled out all the pieces for my Art Quilt Group challenge, which I refer to as K’s quilt.  The challenge is to complete a small project out of another group member’s UFO.  As a reminder, I’m starting with this.

And this.

I haven’t quite figured out what I’m making.  Regardless, my April OMG will be to put the top together, whatever ...

At Art Quilt Group this week we started a new challenge.  Everyone brought a small unfinished item in a paper bag, which we traded.  We have two months to turn the contents into a finished project.

This is what I put in my bag for someone else to finish.  I made it in a class many years ago with no real plans for it. The fabric is painted with leaves stamped on it. The circles are Shiva paintstik over rubbing plates.

This is what I received.

There are three blocks, some random fabric pieces, and 2/3 of a gift ...

No change in the numbers.  There was opportunity to buy but no motivation.

I had a Guild meeting yesterday with Jane Sassaman as the guest speaker.  She gave an interesting talk on her journey as an artist.  I enjoyed the opportunity to study her quilts up close.

I also turned in my charity quilt and the red, white and blue blocks.  With that challenge finished, the guild announced a “paint chip” challenge.  It’s something I did years ago in a different group, and many other quilt groups/Guilds have done it since.  Here is the paint chip from my ...

January went mostly as planned.

My OMG was to finish the challenge quilt, Winter Tree.  I posted details about it here and here.

That project was also on my PhD list.

I’ve now moved on to another project on that list, although I don’t expect to finish it in February.

I’m linking to Stories from the Sewing Room, where you can see what everyone else is creating.

No fabric in this week.

I finished Winter Tree, my art quilt group’s January challenge.

I talked about the idea and the construction in the last two posts.  From there, I added beads to suggest snowflakes and used a dark binding as a frame.  I also added a fence made from railroad yarn that I painted white and then gray.  The original yarn was too bright and didn’t fit the color scheme.  The yarn is so delicate I hand stitched it down.  The quilt is about 11″ x 13”.

This quilt was my January OMG and the first ...

In my last post, I shared the AI generated Art Prompt that was the basis for my challenge quilt.  I used some suggestions and ignored others, and put my own spin on what I used.

I kept the suggested color palette, but didn’t use solid fabric.  No surprise there- I never use solids.  Instead of a pine tree, I took a picture of a tree in the backyard and used the photo as a reference.

The suggestion of texture surprised me.  I wouldn’t have thought to go there.  I limited the texture to the ground.  I tried using ...

No change in the numbers.

Work continues on the Challenge Quilt, which I ended up naming Winter Tree.

This is a challenge for my Art Quilt Group.  Throughout last year, members took turns presenting short programs on different techniques.  We covered a variety of topics, including trading cards, junk journals, using AI for idea generation, dimensional fabric sculpture, creating portrait quilts from photos, free motion applique, and others.  The challenge for January is to make a small quilt using one of the program techniques.

I chose AI for idea generation.  I started with a prompt that generated a picture, but ...

After reading my January OMG post, a reader suggested I join the PhD Challenge at Mrs. P’s Designs.  My focus for 2026 basically mirrors the challenge.  After reading the details here, I have to agree.

I’m not one to pick a list of projects for the entire year and stick to it.  I have eclectic interests.  Some creative methods appeal more than others, depending on my mood and how much life is happening.  That said, everything after #7 is questionable.  If I get six things on the list done this year, it’s a good year.

1. Fairy Tales ...

Welcome to the first Stash Report of 2026!

Everyone gets to start over with nice shiny zero balances.  Did you hit your usage goal last year?  Do you have stash goals for this year?

My goal for 2026 is to use more than I buy.  I expect to add fabric this year as I am out of light yardage in multiple colors.  Scraps will get me by on smaller projects but less so on larger ones.  We’ll see how the year plays out.

I’m still working on the challenge project.  There was a lot of trial and error ...

Happy New Year!  Wishing you health and happiness in the new year.

I’m not one to recap the prior year, but I did finish more projects than I expected.  Now I’m ready to look forward. 

For my own benefit, I’m taking stock of what is in process and what has been neglected.  If you don’t know where you’ve been, how do you know where you’re going?  That, and a year from now I won’t remember where I started.

In have two stitch pieces in progress, Fairy Tales Live on Roofs (RTO kit)

and ...

We’re fast approaching the end of 2025, and it’s time to think about 2026.

The past two years I’ve focused on completing a few projects in several categories.  This worked well for me, but the one category that hasn’t seen any finishes is UFOs.  No way am I making that my focus for 2026.  That, for me, would be an inspiration killer.

Instead, I decided to focus on kits, and I use that term loosely.  A pattern with all or some of the supplies fits my definition of a kit.

These are your standard kits.

This ...

No fabric in this week.

I finished the April Challenge quilt, named Freeze Frame, for .75 yards out and more went out from the declutter progress.

The next task on the quilt list is labelling a quilt I entered in a show. I believe a label is required, although I did write the quilt info on the back in permanent marker.

Once that’s done, it’s back to quilting Remember Me.

Fabric In: .33 yards

Fabric out: 13.125 yards

Net Fabric Used: 12.795 yards

How did you do this week?