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No change in the numbers.

My local library had a book sale this week, and I picked up this book.

I doubt I’ll ever make a quilt from it.  I bought it because it belonged to a woman I knew from a Guild I was in many years ago.  Her name and contact info were written in the front.  She was such a nice person and an amazing quilter.  Inside there were pages of hand written notes describing a quilt she designed.  It had to go home with me.

In the sewing room, I added borders to the striped ...

No change in the numbers.

The center of the striped top is together. 

Next comes the borders, which I’ll keep simple.  There’s a lot going on in the blocks.  I auditioned several striped fabrics, and it was chaos.  I’ll save those fabrics for another project.

I also picked the backing fabric, although I may be a little short.

Fabric Added: 0

Fabric Used:  .75 yards

Net Fabric Used:  .75 yards

How did you do this week?

It’s time for a new monthly goal. 

My focus quilt has been the striped orphan project.  I’m sewing the top together now.  I have one more column to add and borders.  I think I can get it basted for quilting too.

I’d love to finish the quilt this month but don’t think that’s doable.  There are several appointments and commitments in March which will limit my weekend sewing.  If I manage to start the quilting, it will be a good month.

To see all the other goals, visit Stories from the Sewing Room.

No fabric in this week.  Some of the striped fabric in the orphan box went into the fabric recycling bag.  There were pieces of questionable quality upholstery fabric I was never going to use.

I sewed the first column of the striped quilt together.

I made no effort to match seams.   I’m happy that the blocks were all about the same size.  I went into it thinking that might not be the case.  With two more columns to go, there is potential for a renegade.  I’m hoping to get the top done soon.

Fabric Added: 0

Fabric Used ...

That felt like a fast month.

My February OMG was to make some blocks and move the striped quilt project forward.  I made 24 blocks total.

At 20 blocks, I laid them out to finalize the setting.  This was my original plan.

This is the setting I thought I would end up using.

After looking at both I realized I didn’t have near enough blocks to make either setting work.  I couldn’t muster enough enthusiasm to make many more blocks and didn’t have fabric for them either. 

I settled on making four more blocks and will use ...

No change in the numbers.  There was opportunity, but no need or desire to add to the stash.

I now have 20 striped blocks made, and today is decision time.  I need to choose a setting to determine if I need more blocks.  I also need to decide if I’m going to donate the quilt, which will have a bearing on size.  I have no idea which way it will go.  It depends on what the quilt has to say about it.

I have plenty of fabric left to make more blocks if needed.

Fabric Added: 0

Fabric Used ...

No change in the numbers.

I sewed and trimmed more striped blocks this week.

I’m not sure if the setting I planned still works for me.  No worries though, as there are many other ways to set them.

I’m not sure about the lone yellow block either.  I need to add more yellow and green, or it will have to go.  So many decisions when you don’t follow a pattern.

Fabric Added: 0

Fabric Used:  .375 yards

Net Fabric Used:  .375 yards

How did you do this week?

No change in the numbers.

I sewed more stripe blocks this week and trimmed a few to check that the pattern will work out.

Squaring these up was a bit of a puzzle.  My ruler that was long enough wasn’t wide enough, and the one that was wide enough wasn’t long enough.  It took a couple tries with a two-ruler set up to work it out.

I really hope this quilt is worth the effort that’s going into it.

Fabric Added: 0

Fabric Used:  .375 yards

Net Fabric Used:  .375 yards

How did you do this week ...

It’s time to pick a goal for the second month of the year. 

I admit I’m struggling with this one.  I want my goal to relate to the Stripes project, but haven’t come up with something both quantifiable and doable.

 I started sewing blocks together, and it hasn’t gone smoothly.  The cutting issues created more challenges than I expected, and I’m not sure how that will impact the overall project.

It’s like trying to pin down an expected arrival time when you don’t know where you’re going.

The best goal I came ...

No change in the numbers.

I started playing around with settings for the larger pieces of Stripes Squared.   I liked this one but had concerns about construction.  The irregular pieces might be hard to fit together.

After a few more tries, I came up with this setting that creates a secondary star pattern. 

I figure this one will be pretty forgiving with the way the stars are skewed.  I’ll sew a few together and see how it goes.

I still have two stacks of triangles, which may or may not end up as a border.  One step at a ...

I plan, the Universe laughs.

With Winter Tree done, I pulled out Stripes Squared and Striped Bits.  The fabric and blocks were a hot mess, all scrunched and wrinkled.  I spent a bit of time pressing everything.

Handling all the pieces was a learning opportunity.  Some things became clear.

The fabric unravels like crazy.

The pieces are not cut accurately.  They are different sizes.  Some points are cut off.

Only one of the blocks is usable as sewn.  The others are not flat for various reasons. 

I will not be making the Stripes Squared quilt with those fabrics or those ...

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 ...

My February OMG was to finish a table runner. I bought a couple boxes of fabric at an estate sale which contained some strip sets. I added the red vertical strips (from the box) and quilted it with the serpentine stitch on my machine. It’s a perfect fit for its new home.

I’m linking to Elm Street Quilts, where you can see all the other February OMG finishes.

The pinwheel quilt is now complete.

There is no pattern for this quilt. I picked up the HST pieces off the charity table at Guild more years ago than I care to admit. Once I sewed them together, I figured out a pattern that would use close to that number. The quilt will be donated to Safehouse, a battered women’s shelter in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

I’m glad to have finally finished it and hope it brings joy to someone who needs it.

Now I’m on to the next project.

Welcome to February! I didn’t finish anything in January but made a lot of progress. That set me up for finishes in February.

I started The Short List many years ago to give myself goals to work toward and a way to focus. I continually change the categories as my goals and interests change.

Project 1 (stitching): The Tiny Modernist Holiday 2022 SAL. I finished the second release and went back to stitching part one.

Project 2 (charity): The pinwheel quilt. I’m turning the binding.

Project 3 (orphan): The table runner made from 30s reproduction fabrics. The top ...

For my December OMG, I decided to finish the two halves of the pinwheel charity quilt. I plan to quilt it in sections, which is why I didn’t sew the two halves together.

I picked this project up off the charity table at Guild. The bag contained partially sewn HST pieces, very few cut apart, and a picture of a quilt top. I ditched the picture, sewed the pinwheels and designed the quilt from there. I added a few of my own pinwheel blocks, the colored fabrics in the borders and all the black and white fabrics.

All things ...