Recap of 2017

Quilting terms to know before reading this blog post:

• Stash--fabric that is leftover from other projects or fabric that is bought without any particular project in mind.
• Fabric in limbo--fabric that was bought for a particular project or quilt that has not been made yet. This fabric is  stored until the project is started.
• UFO--unfinished object. More specifically, this is a quilt or project that is only partially complete. More work has to be done for the UFO to be finished.
• Design wall--a place where quilters put fabric to arrange quilt pieces, compare colors, or organize completed quilt blocks. Design walls are usually made of felt, flannel, or other types of fabric that will allow cotton fabric to stick to it without pins or other fasteners.

Toward the end of each year, I like to look back at sewing and quilting projects that I completed during the previous twelve months. Another year of sewing and quilting projects is almost complete, so I am ready to review my 2017 projects. Before I continue with my year end review, I must say that my goal for 2017 was to use much of the fabric in my stash and/or my fabric in limbo. Let's see how successful I was in that endeavor.

The year began with a few small quilts. I made a tea themed quilt which used my favorite technique--paper piecing. View an earlier blog post here to see details about this quilt. This first quilt of the year did not use any of my stash fabric. I decided I wanted to use the tea cup paper pieced pattern, so I visited a fabric store to find tea themed fabric.

My next few quilts of the year were made from stash fabric that had been in a drawer for a year or so. I bought the fabric at a favorite quilt store of mine in a little town called Burnsville about 45 minutes from my home. Unfortunately, that special quilt shop has now closed. At the time, I could not resist the muted reds, taupes, and greens of one fabric line and the bright primary colors of the French Country fabrics. I wasn't sure at the time how I would use these fabrics, but it's part of the fun to pore over quilt pattern books to find the perfect pattern for specific fabrics. All of these fabrics ended up as table runners or as a table topper. 

 

Using additional fabric in my stash led to this more modern quilt featuring bright colors accented with black and white. I'll have to say that even though I started this quilt early in the year, I still only have the top of the quilt pieced. The batting, backing, and binding of the quilt have yet to be completed. Even though I enjoy piecing the top of quilts more than doing the actual quilting, I still enjoy the satisfaction of completing an entire quilt. Therefore, I rarely have UFO's around my house. I probably will not finish this quilt before the end of the year, so it will be my only UFO of 2017. You can see this partially completed quilt below on my design wall.

I took a break in my quilting for most of the summer as my husband had major surgery. His recuperation became my first priority. However, toward the end of the summer I began to sew items for a fall craft show in which I would be a vendor. This was a terrific way to use fabric from my stash. I made multiples of fabric bowls, wine totes, bird seed totes, inspirational throw pillows, and more. It was good to see my stash dwindle, but I found that I would rather work on individual quilts than multiples of small items. 

As I open the doors to my fabric storage chest, I notice a real difference in my fabric stash. In addition to all the projects I made using my stash, I also donated some of it to a quilt shop in a neighboring county. The shop made special pillows for hospice patients so my stash fabric was put to good use.

I reached my 2017 goal of using fabric in my stash, but what about that fabric in limbo--fabric I bought for a specific pattern or purpose? Well, using my fabric in limbo is a goal for 2018! Stay tuned to see how I reach this quilting goal for the new year.

Linked with: Freemotion by the River Linky Tuesday, Wonderful Wednesday, Thursday Favorite Things

A Holiday Aspiration

How do you capture the wind on the water?

How do you count all the stars in the sky?

How do you measure the love of a mother?

Or how can you write down a baby's first cry?

These are the opening lines of my favorite holiday song, Candlelight Carol. This carol, written by London composer and conductor, John Rutter, has been sung by choirs and individual singers. I first heard this song while listening to a holiday CD by my favorite singer, Neil Diamond. While the entire carol is beautiful, it was the first few lines that captured my attention and my heart. 

Each year now, I try to simplify throughout the holiday season. Trying to honor family traditions during this time of year while not getting so caught up in having all the preparations take over one's life can be challenging sometimes. The message of our culture's focus on the hustle and bustle of shopping, decorating, and preparing for a "perfect" holiday season surrounds us during the last two months of each year. 

The first lines of Candlelight Carol remind me that the most important parts of this season, and of life in general, are those things that cannot be measured. The words of the carol are also helpful to me on days when the turbulence of the world seems overwhelming. May each of us be able to focus on the mystery and the immeasurable parts of life throughout the holiday season and beyond.