Finally down to the bottom :)

I have been quickly slow stitching since my last post on the Byrum Family Quilt… I am now on the bottom of the quilt working on this block…

I was just getting started on this block when I snapped this shot.  My friend Wendy embroidered this piece in 2004 and mailed it to me to go into this quilt… it now holds the bottom center place of honour!

So the top border and sides are all done… just have 3 B’s left on this quilt and the clock is ticking for the finish too!  I have:

Bottom stitching ~ Started now 🙂

Border stitching ~ Have a quick n easy idea there!

Binding ~ Have the fabric 😉

So if I am not too chatty coming up please stick with me… just trying to make headway on this quilt… the deadline is Thanksgiving weekend to have it done, washed, and photographed 🙂

My honey is pondering ideas for great photos of this queen sized wonder!

Speaking of photos… Last Sunday we posted this pic on a few facebook groups…

These machines in their cases are now all sold!  Yippee 🙂

Now my honey is working on painting one RED!  It is gonna be AWESOME!

Don’t forget my upcoming Linky Party!  There is a special giveaway for Black Friday linkers!!!

I am linking my quilty progress to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching HERE!  Check out her blog post while too as she makes important points about focusing on your slow stitching amidst the chaos of life 🙂

Until I post again… Happy Stitching &…

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Happy Hump Day & a WINNER!

Each month I so look forward to seeing progress posted for those that link up to my LINKY PARTY!  It is so inspiring for me to see what everyone is up to but the progress THEY make inspires me just by reading the posts 🙂  And I did finish my block!

Another fun part is picking out LINKY LOOT! for a lucky linker at my LINKY PARTY… this months winner was Michele in Maryland with her post.  I am hoping to hear back from her winning email to fill her stash with some linky loot 🙂

Novembers Linky Party is slated for Thanksgiving weekend.. and I am planning something extra fun for early linkers!!!  So plan ahead and spend some of Black Friday planning a blog post good for linking up with me & see what happens 🙂

In the meantime I am stitching on this cute school house block…

Which signifies I have quilted all the sides and only have the top, bottom, corners, and outer border left to quilt on this baby.

I had a really nice chat with my brother this morning … we rarely get to chat these days… and as this quilt if for him and his beautiful family…

I am now motivated more than ever to meet my Thanksgiving deadline for being done with this project 🙂

I am quilting outside that red square now 🙂

Please keep my quilting in your prayers as this deadline is only a month away.. Hopefully I will have a finished quilt to share with you by the next LINKY PARTY! lol

Have a Quilty Hump Day!

October Laundry List Post!

Hello all…

I decided to break up my post this month and just have a post for the linky party and explain how I didn’t meet any main goals this month! lol

And yet I am still happy about my progress!  Because there has been progress on each goal… and I can see how THIS month will now bring my first two goals to a FINISH!

First let me share about the Vintage Star Wall Hanging I am working on… 

I had hoped to finish all 12 stars for the quilt… but at present I have these 3 to go along with the 3 I showed last month…

I am using black calico fabrics from my stash for the large diamonds and fun vintage fabrics for the triangles at the center… These have been fussy cut to the right and left… but the one below is some precious fabric my friend Wendy sent me… it was just a fat quarters worth so I am using it sparingly… but I thought a little new with the older fabrics might be fun… what do you think???

Next is how well I am doing on READING!

I have spent several days we needed for traveling to different places this past month to get in some reading time… this month I have been reading Judy Martin’s book on making Log Cabin quilts 🙂

This month I focused on color value and how to sort and store your strips once cut… This is a GREAT book if you want to make a log cabin that isn’t rumpley 😉

Still working on…

My quilt history as a blog page addition to my blog… I have 4 of the 14 I have done/am doing documented… hopefully once I finish the Byrum Family Quilt more will get done on this project 🙂

Byrum Family Quilt progress…

Here is most of the whole quilt…

I decided to start on the side blocks … the star blocks .. each one has a name and special fabrics picked for it… I am quilting each a little differently based on their design… instead of an overall design.  So far this is what I have…

And I saved the funnest block for last…

 Here is a close up of the center of this block…

And once I finish these blocks it is off to the top then the bottom.. finally I will make it to the tulip corners then the border!  Yippee 🙂

So then my goals for the upcoming month may now make a bit more sense…

If I can stay on track this month… by Thanksgiving I will have a full finish and a flimsy finish too!

Stay tuned to my quilty progress… 🙂

Linking this progress for the month to My Laundry List Linky Party HERE!
also
Whooping with Sarah on my accomplishments this month a Confessions of a Fabric Addict Here!

Hand Quilting the Weekend Away :)

If you are Canadian I wish you a Blessed Thanksgiving weekend… I am linking up with my Canadian friend Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching today HERE!
 
Friday was a busy day but I did pick up my needle and thread again on the Byrum Family Quilt and haven’t looked back… Okay a little house work… sheets washed.. taxi service for my dd who is now on a little vaca with friends btw 🙂  So all that stuff… but mainly I have been HAND QUILTING!!!

This is the start of the outer sections of this quilt… so I had to figure out where to start… and this cute patriotic cow with adjoining patriotic blocks just asked to go first 🙂

So first I focused on stitching in the ditch on the patriotic square in a squares… soon I was working on the in the ditch and decorative stitching on the bear claw block too!

Then it was done by evening last night!  Wow 🙂

 

So where do I go next???

The mirror image of course… you see I made 2 of each star block… one on each side of the quilt… the pics of the one above shows the cow facing right as it is on the LEFT side of the quilt… here is the mirror image block on the RIGHT side of the quilt and my focus today are these 2 blocks 🙂

This is really helping me reach my goals set for this month.

Do you set goals to chart progress on your crafting?  Come and join us in just 2 weeks for a Linky Party just for goal setting… all areas of your life or just your crafty side.. with gentle monthly goals you will see your UFO pile shrink and you will feel more accomplished by sharing your successes .. and misses too!  So if you blog come on over .. also a chance to win LINKY LOOT just for linking! 🙂

Have a wonderful Sunday is my prayer for each of you!

Happy Dancin’ :P

Yep, I am definitely Happy Dancin’!  The linky party was a success and I quilted all weekend long on the Byrum Family Quilt and made great progress… first our LUCKY LINKER!!

Carla submitted this concise blog post and because she took the time to do that Linky Loot is now in route to her home 🙂

Don’t miss Octobers Laundry List LINKY PARTY…

 As I enjoyed reading each post I hand quilted a good bit this weekend and this is the midpoint of this border now…

The pink lines are chalk I have used with a stencil and the right side is done and cleaned off… Once I finish this side of the middle border completely I will also spray water on the remaining bits of chalk to make sure none stays around to stain the quilt 😉

I should finish this section by the weekend I am thinking… but we shall see as life does Happen! lol

Sew Excited!!!

Just 2 more days before I can take a look in black and white at my progress this month!!!

Hope you ready to List your goals… reviewing your previous months goals if you have been playing along… link up with me and Party !!!!  Yep, LINKY LOOT is on the loose this weekend!!! lol

What do you post about?  anything you recently accomplished in your crafty life with pics is awesome… and projects you are planning to tackle over the next month or it may be progress on an existing project… so enlighten us.. it is a great time to get new readers for your blogs and show off your artistry in any craft at all!  So come on and join in 🙂

I know this may seem hokey to you but since I started keeping a monthly list instead of brow beating myself over unmet goals on a weekly list things have gotten so much more exciting and I get more done!  A friend recently posted this graph on facebook and I want to share my take on it…

I feel like a month looks like the graph on the left  but my actual daily life looks just like the one on the right!  So I may not get all I want to get accomplished… but over time I rock it!!! lol

Speaking of progress… I am ahead of my expectations on the Byrum Family Quilt.  I am also making stars now that I have Gloria back in a cabinet no less so a nice flat surface to sew on… I am so in love too!

I just love to share pics with you… please if you link up take time to include some pics of your work… we all love the eye candy and it makes posting more fun!

See ya this weekend!  Great LINKY LOOT is available!!!

Linky Loot WinnerS!

Wow!  Thanks to all of ya’ll for making 

August’s LINKY PARTY a total HIT!!!

And because ya’ll know how much I like eye candy… check out the eye candy this months winner also happened to post…

meet Katniss… checking her list 🙂

So if you all recall.. I have 2 prizes this month… first I would like to award the Linky Loot Bonus prize…

And that Lucky Linker is Jill!!!  Check out Jill’s post right HERE!

Jill is an accomplished quilter and blogs as Happy to Sew at http://www.happy2stitch.com… She not only quilts but also knits and is about to sew this cute costume… so who knows.. maybe she can measure for proper length for hemming using her new tape measure… or maybe it will go right in her purse for quick on the go measurements 🙂  

Now for our big LINKY LOOT…. 

Meet a new bloggy friend to me but not to crafting world… Remember her imaginative pic above of Katniss is what drew me in to wanting to get to know her better! lol

Pat who’s post I found a very fun read was delighted as well when I notified her that my honey drew her number!!!  Pat is a veteran quilter.. check out her blog header and all her tabs rich with cool info and projects she is doing currently…

LINK TO HER BLOG POST

 I have already chatted with Pat and now have chosen her Linky Loot from my stash!!!   Follow along with Pat at Scrapatches.blogspot.com and maybe she will share when she gets it 🙂  But for now it is a SURPRISE for her!

Yiippppeee!  I loved reading each of your posts and leaving bloggy love for every participant… I truly appreciate each one of you LUCKY LINKERS taking time to link.

Now if you didn’t win something this month stay tuned for next months party… Didn’t get to play in August???  THEN PLAY THIS MONTH… Mark me on your calendar and take a few shots of what you are up to when you see something you did that makes you smile snapshot it and share on your blog post… Link up here… I love eye candy from you!  Link up lots of photos if you have them 🙂  

Until our next party happy stitches and …

Progress on my slow stitching is AWESOME :)

I am so happy today to be able to link up with Kathy and Slow Sunday Stitching… check out her lovely blog here and leave her some happy thoughts today as she is needing them 🙂

 I have a few “it was dark so I took pics with a light on” pics of my current hand quilting progress on the Byrum Family Quilt (BFQ)… lol!!!

This quilt is for my brother and his family (4 kids too!) so this quilt will see lots of action and needs to be durable… I am using YLI 40/3 thread that is glazed and very strong in a natural color.

So far I have finished the very center panel quilting!  Yippee 🙂  I am so stoked to get this part finished and get to the patchwork areas… do ya think I am crazy as panels are pretty fun too… but I love the feel of patchwork under my fingers as I quilt! LOL 🙂

And I took this pic just to cheer Kathy up… a bucket full of hearts 🙂

And here is a nicer view of the top of the tree… although you can’t see much quilting here… I promise it is there… the outline of the tree and a pretend outline I quilted for the leaves of the tree… I may come back and add more definition to this but it is quilted moderately and the rest of the quilt will be similar.  Less than my normal amount of stitching for sure 🙂

 

Now on to the innermost border…

where I am stitching just inside the line ( and through my seam allowances) to stabilize this border then I will add various sizes of circles using medicine bottles, bottle caps, and a spool of thread as well!  Yep, I love finding objects to trace onto my quilts then bring to life… this quilt will have lots of fun quilting to come…

I am surely happy to be making great progress on this quilt… what are you up to on this Slow Sunday ??? Do you stitch or relax??  Any plans for Labor Day??

My Laundry List Linky Party is in FULL SWING!!!  

Not sure what I am talking about… win prizes just for linking your goals in a blog post to my blog… entry ends tonite… but not to fear next month I will be back again during the last weekend of the month offering you a place to stay more focused and organized with your crafting and other goals too!  Check out THIS post for more details on entering 🙂

Also linking this post to Karen at Sew Many Ways here 🙂

Progress on Projects :)

Yep, I am busy making progress on my progress as time to share nears 🙂

Yep, time to List, Link & Party is just a day away … what do you need to do???

Get a blog post ready to link Friday, Saturday or Sunday listing out what you have been up to lately and where you plan to focus next month.. I feel it helps me be accountable to others to get goals met over a months time.. How about you??

Also it is time to PARTY because I have special extra LINKY LOOT this month!

So be ready to link up…

Progress this month has been fabulous overall .. I am excited to review my list and see where I am really for the month… and now that I have my wonderful hand quilting project going… it will be my main focus for next month..

<<< Everything is coming up hearts… like this cute pic I got of the basket of hearts here on the left 🙂

Or the initials of the family this quilt is going on right down the middle of the quilt 🙂 Here >>>

I still have a bit to go on the center panel here but I am making great progress to finish on time I am thinking 🙂  Just keep on quilting every morning! lol

I did find some antique white fabric this week too… more on that on Friday’s post!  It was a great deal… do you ever look at your local thrift shops for FABRIC in bolt/yardage?  That is where I found this and soooo blessed to find it! lol

Invite your friends to join in on the fun this weekend!

Happy Weekend!

I am so excited to share with you my 2 flimsy finish FINALLY on the Byrum Family quilt!  You see this has a scrappy front and a pieced back… so I figure that will now have 2 quilts in 1 🙂  Check out the inspired backing I did…

104″ square backing.. pieced on Gloria

after I got warmed up piecing the front! lol

94″ square front… pieced on Fiona

Hope you don’t mind that I made this flimsy shot so big but I wanted you to notice all the details in this top… made especially for the family that will be receiving it!  My brother!!!

The Byrum Family!

I will be hand quilting this finish over the next 3 months or so… they are coming to Florida for a visit on Thanksgiving… so I can hopefully gift it to them as an early Christmas present then!

Here is a better pic of the backing… before I turned it over or sandwiching…

 My brother and his family live on very strong Christian values… and try to incorporate their faith into every aspect of their life… so as I shopped for fabrics or this quilt over the last year I prayed over each one before buying… above are the 10 commandments… on the front are the beatitudes… each fabric has a special meaning for them in this quilt!  Isn’t that neat 🙂

It all started out in a container of randomly collected fabrics and donations from dear friends like this!

Connie is holding artwork made by my friend Wendy in Australia and in front of that is neatly folded all the fabrics for this quilt… plus I did pull some from my stash as well!!!

The label I like to make using special fabric treated for ink jet printers to hold the ink wash after wash…  I put it at the top of the cross on the back of the quilt… here is a closer look at it!

What are your plans for this weekend?  Any quilty ones?

Pics of my stitches coming tomorrow for Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching… I have missed my Sunday posts! lol

Don’t forget next weekend we check out where we have been and where we are going with our goals!!!

Just write a blog post with goals you have met recently and goals you want to meet over the next month… link it up with my linky party.. and PARTY!!!!  Also a chance to win Linky Loot!!!  One lucky linker will get something from my quilty stash just for them based on their post and their goals!  Cool deal I think!  So link up NEXT WEEKEND!

Until next time 🙂 …

Linking this 2 flimsy finish to…
Sew May Ways >>> Sew Darn Crafty Linky Party here 🙂
and
Tanya & Richard Quilts >> Link A Finish Friday here 🙂