Mary's Forward Progress: January end

My oldest UFO. still in progress

I completed quilting all the checker-board squares in my January project which was the goal. There were about a dozen unquilted squares. There are a ton of rectangles to be outline quilted next, a few are done but many are not. I did find that I made good progress on this while watching TV, so keeping the project handy where the TV is might be the key to making more progress on this.

2017 Forward Progress Wrap-up

I had a fairly productive 2017 all things considered. My forward progress each month on the designated project was a bit uneven (as was my posting about it), but at this point substantial forward progress was made on many of these projects.  Here are the projects from my list on which additional progress was made since I last posted about them.

March 2017 - North Woods Quilt
At the end of March I had begun quilting this. It is now completely quilted and the binding was sewn on. It is in my bee bag to work on hand-sewing the binding to the back and then it will be done. 

April 2017 - Butterfly Quilt
This project was started for my Mom who passed away last May. It hadn't gotten done because I didn't really like it and now it just made me sad. I gave it (still unfinished) to a woman in my quilt guild who loves butterflies to finish for herself. It now counts as done from my list. 

November 2017 - Vegetable Quilt
Almost nothing got done on this in November. It has most of the blocks quilted now. 

December 2017 - Batik Jelly Roll Quilt
This quilt top was finished in December and since then I have bought the backing fabric for it. 

I also listed some ALTERNATES -in case I have finished the project listed for a particular number by the time it is drawn (why not be optimistic?). One of those, the Convergence Quilt is finished except for hand work on the binding. 

Mary's Forward Progress: January Start

Project #11 on my Making Forward Progress list is the Irish Chain quilt. This quilt top was pieced by my great-great grandmother (probably in the 1930s) and when my grandmother died (1987) I inherited it along with several finished quilts and some other tops. At that point I had never quilted, but decided to give it a try and began hand-quilting this top. I quite liked quilting and have made lots of my own quilts since then. The hand quilting of this huge quilt has never gotten finished though. The very next step to move this project forward is to quilt the next square. Most of the checker-board blocks in the quilt are quilted, I haven't counted how many remain but I think it is only a few. The big obstacle to completing this quilt is figuring out what to quilt in all the large open blocks. My goal for the month is to complete as many of checkered blocks as possible, maybe even all of them.

Irish Chain Quilt in progress, January 2017

Mary's December Progress

During December 2017 my Forward Progress project was a second version of a quilt pattern I created for a jelly roll. I completed the quilt top by the end of the month.

Batik and white jelly roll quilt top December 2017

The first version I made of this pattern had multiple colors of fabric in it and was set in such a way that the squares dominate the design. This one has a white "background" fabric in all the squares and the square is fractured. I'm not sure which one I like better, but it is cool that that exact same pattern generated such different looking quilts. 

Christmas Jelly Roll Quilt

Mary's December Start

Blocks at start of December 2017

The twelfth project on my Making Forward Progress list is my Batik Jelly Roll Quilt. When I made the list I had the strips collected and the pattern I had created for a Christmas Quilt. Since then I have made all the component blocks so that is where I started from at the beginning of December. Each block of the quilt is made of 4 smaller blocks which could be set in matching groups (the way the purple one is laid out in the picture) or mixed and matched. The very next step to move this project forward is to lay the whole thing out and decide how I want to arrange it. Once I figure that out the blocks go together super quick.

Forward Progress: October Wrap up

My goal for October was to get backing fabric for my Christmas Sunny Lanes quilt top which I did. The next step is to see if my friend and I can find a time for her to show me how to quilt it on her longarm machine.

Backing fabric for Christmas Sunny Lanes

Forward Progress: October Start

The number for October is 4which makes my forward progress project for the month my Christmas Sunny Lanes quilt. This was intended to be a lap quilt, but like most of the quilts in the Nickel Quilts books it is huge. When I made my list I had cut the 5" squares. During the year I have been chipping away at this project and at the start of October I had a finished quilt top.

Sunny Lanes Christmas Quilt Top, 2017

The next step is to choose and purchase backing fabric for this. I am hoping to quilt this 72" square quilt on a friend's long arm machine, so additional progress beyond getting the backing ready will depend on her schedule.

Mary's Progress - August and September

Light/Bright Stars quilt, center section, 2017

I completed the center section of the quilt that was my September Forward Progress project. That was my goal for the month so I'm pleased. I am quite happy with how it turned out. I think the border may be the dark fabric that was used for the star points with squares set on-point out of the various colors used in the quilt running around the edge. I haven't decided for sure yet though.
My August project, which I neglected to post about at the end of last month, went reasonably well. My goals were to  (1) to write a new draft of the flag wall quilt pattern ready for testing (2) to kit up the pieces I have cut into quilt-sized groups and (3) to make 1 quilt top. 
I wrote a revised version of the part of the pattern that needed changing which I think counts as a revised draft. I have 3 kits ready to go for flag quilts from the assorted pieces in my box and I have all the rows and blocks done for a top (not one of the 3) ready to sew together. Definitely forward progress.

Mary's September Start

The pieces of the Light/Bright Stars Quilt on 9/9/2017

The number for September is 1 which makes my forward progress project for the month my Light/Bright Stars quilt. This is a lap-size quilt that was inspired by a wall hanging-sized quilt I made several years ago. This one is an alternating pattern of the same star in light colored fabrics and bright versions of (mostly) the same colors. The backgrounds are charcoal and white so the colors should pop nicely. 

I have all the units for the main part of the quilt made and now I need to assemble the rows. I will also have to figure out if the design needs a border and if so what it is going to be. The very next step to move this project forward is to lay out the rows/units in the proper order to sew them together. My goal for the month is to complete the main part of the quilt top. If I figure out the border that will be a bonus.

Mary's August Start

My box of flag quilt bits as of today

The Number for August was 3 which on my forward progress list is flag quilts. I have made a bunch of these over the years both as gifts and to sell and they have proved popular. I have a box with lots of squares cut for this and half-squares sewn. I need to assemble the units into rows and make the star block for the corners. I probably have enough pieces cut to make more than one flag quilt.  I was also working on writing up the pattern for this. There are 2 very next steps this month (1) Re-read the pattern draft to figure out what needs revising and (2) count out enough units/squares from the bags of cut pieces to make the quilt. My goals for the month are (1) to write a new draft of the pattern ready for testing (2) to kit up the pieces I have cut into quilt-sized groups and (3) to make 1 quilt top. 

Mary's July Finish

My Making Forward Progress project for this month was a bathrobe. When the month started it was cut out. Now it is finished and ready to wear.

My new bathrobe

Mary's July Start

The Number for July was 6 which on my forward progress list is a bathrobe. I cut out the pieces to make a new bathrobe. The very next step I need to take to move this project forward is to get out the pattern instructions and start sewing the pieces together. 

A pattern and cut out pieces for a bathrobe

Mary's June Progress Wrap up

My June project was book purses. I sorted out the pile of fabrics and came up with fabric combinations for 2 purses and 1 humbug bag. The pieces are all cut out and the straps are made. The next thing to do is to assemble the pieces into bags.

purse pieces cut and ready to assemble

Mary's Forward Progress May/June

Completed Tardis Skirt

My project for May was my tardis skirt which I did finish. I even finished it in May (just barely). I have worn it twice since then and am very pleased with how it turned out.
The Number for June was 8 which on my forward progress list is book purses. I have an assortment of book-themed fabric which I want to turn into small purses and perhaps some humbug bags for my Etsy shop. The very next step I need to take to move this project forward is to decide which fabrics go together best into purses and cut the appropriate pieces to make purses/humbug bags.

Book purses project at start of June 2017

Mary's Forward Progress Start: May

The fabric I will be using for my skirt

Number 2 on my forward progress list is the tardis skirt. I found awesome tardis fabric last year and am going to make a skirt out of it using the same pattern I used for the yellow skirt I made last year. At this point the fabric and the pattern are in a bag together. The very next step is to cut out the pattern.
I made absolutely zero progress on the butterfly quilt during April. Hopefully May will go better.

Mary's Forward Progress Start: April

Section of the butterfly that has been stitched

Project #9 on my list is the butterfly stain glass quilt that I started last May. It is pin basted and I began filling in the spaces between the "glass" with black zig-zag stitching which serves as both "leading" and quilting. The very next step is to put black thread in my machine and resume the zig-zagging. The background area will need to be quilted as well once the butterfly is done. My goal for the month is to finish the quilting on this.

Mary's March Progress Wrap-up

The Center is quilted, March 2017

My project for March was the North Woods Quilt and my goal was to get the quilt basted and start on the quilting in the center section. I accomplished that as the entire center is quilted and I am now filling in the background around the trees in the corners. I need to finish up the corners, quilt the border (probably a leaf motif in dark green thread) and then do the binding. 

Northwoods Quilt detail - a rainbow trout!

Mary's Forward Progress Start: March

T with his Northwoods Quilt (May, 2000)

Number 7 on my list is the North Woods Quilt I made as a wedding present for my husband T. It was tied (in time for the wedding!), and 15+ years later he would like it quilted. I took it apart at the end of last year and got new batting for it.
The very next step (VNS) to move this project forward is to schedule a time with Lisa when we can get together and pin baste. My goal for this month is to get the quilt basted and start on the quilting in the center section.
The plan is to quilt the green parts (in green) to accentuate the diamond pattern of the piecing; to custom quilt the individual applique images; and to fill in the neutral background with neutral colored meandering. The background would be less contrast-y if I was making this quilt today, but I was told by the quilt's owner that I couldn't take it apart and change out the fabric I'm not happy with.

Mary's February Progress Wrap-up

Arkansas Star Tote Bag

I made a ton of progress on this month's project which started out as a lot of little pieces and is now a finished tote bag!

The paper pieced block went together fairly easily, except that I neglected to check that all 9 of my units were the same size and when assembled the block I discovered that the center unit was smaller than all the others. At least it was the simplest one. 
I took the block apart and made a new (correctly sized) center unit and reassembled it. For the record, this was not the fault of the Carol Doak pattern, it was me. I scanned the foundations from the book and printed them and apparently I wasn't careful enough about the size of my printed images. 

Detail: pocket on the back

I found a home for the too-small block as the center of a patch pocket on the back of the bag. The inside of the bag is lined with the gold fabric used in the feathered star points and has pockets from the green fabric used in the blocks. I haven't decided for sure what I am doing with this bag, but it will probably go into my Etsy shop once I have a chance to take better pictures of it. 

Mary's Forward Progress Start: February

My Forward Progress Project for this month is my Arkansas Star Totebag. The plan is to sew the Arkansas Star from Carol Doak's Simply Sensational Nine Patch Stars and then use the block in a tote bag. I came up with this plan when I first got the book (5+ years ago). I cut out all the pieces for the block and have them all grouped in bundles for the paper piecing. I also have additional yardage to use in making the bag. To move this project forward the very next step (VNS) is to print the paper piecing foundations. My goal for this month is to piece the Arkansas star block. If I can also work out the design for the tote bag to go with it that would be great.

Tbe block and the bundles of cut pieces to make it