2011 UFO Challenge Progress

I was able to complete my December challenge quilt and then had company here for Christmas to help with a photo.

This quilt was a two month challenge -- I completed the top in September and this month I met my challenge of getting it quilted and bound.  It was quite a challenge for me to quilt one this large on my sewing machine, so I kept it simple and did some "in the ditch" quilting.  I found the free pattern for this at Judy's site.

The back is a combination of homespun and flannel.  The quilt is for my nephew Dan, so he can decide if he wants to keep his toes warm with the flannel end or flip it to the top when his head is feeling cold.

 It's fun for me to see how much I accomplished in 2011 -- thanks to the challenge from Judy of Patchwork Times.  In addition to the twelve monthly challenges, I managed to squeeze in a few baby quilts along with two lap quilts.

Two of the quilts still need to be quilted -- on those my challenge was only to complete the top.  The quilting and binding has gone onto my 2012 challenge list.

Now if only I can resist the urge to buy more fabric and continue stitching at this pace, I may be able to substantially reduce my fabric stash in this lifetime.  If I live at least as long as my parents.

All Caught Up!

On the monthly UFO Challenges that is. 

The challenge for September was a bin of pink and brown fabrics that were intended to be made into a quilt top.  After digging through the bin and realizing that I had snitched too many of the pink fabrics for other projects, I decided to go with the brown.  I was motivated by the fact that I had committed to make a quilt for my nephew Dan -- pink and brown wouldn't do; it turned out to be a good reason to make a dent in my brown stash.

I used Judy's free pattern "Brown Quilt".  It went together perfectly and I completed the top just minutes before the deadline!

It still needs to be quilted and bound -- all in due time.

This morning, I also managed to finish the last stitches on binding the July UFO Challenge.

This one belongs to Sharyn ---

 but, I do love it and think that, instead of putting it in the mail, I'll hang onto it and enjoy it until she comes to pick it up.

I'm so glad that I joined Judy's challenge this year.  I've completed six quilts, and three quilt tops are ready to be quilted.  Amazing!

Judy picked #5 for October -- just what I was hoping for. It's this bin of 30's fabrics -- a nice change from the darker colors (and larger sizes) of my July and August challenges. 

I'll have fun putting together a baby quilt with these -- I think there's a few log cabin blocks in the bin to get me started!

May UFO Challenge

I pushed pretty hard, but didn't manage to finish my May UFO Challenge in time. Give me another week and I should have it done.

The pattern I used for this quilt is called Yellow Brick Road -- not really appropriate for a pink and green quilt. I'm not one to name my quilts, but if I did, maybe Peppermint Pathway would be better.

I might have reached my goal if I had placed the crosshatching a little further apart, but this was something I've been wanting to try and this quilt needed a little extra effort to make me love it -- it's working!

Just a dozen more rows of quilting and it'll be ready for binding. I hope to finish the job before I head downstate next Thursday.

In other news -- I bought myself an early retirement gift. Still five months to go, but I didn't want to car shop in November, and this one looked like a pretty good deal.

The quilt that I'll be working on in June is this Ice Cream Quilt. My goal is simple for this one -- get it basted and begin the quilting process. I want to combine some hand quilting with machine quilting on this one so I'm not even hoping to have it complete by the end of the month. June looks to be a busy month and I want to sit back and enjoy with no pressure.

I do have a backing all ready for this one, but I'll have to order a batting and plan to get it basted after I return from downstate.

Check with Judy over at Patchwork Times for links to other May finishes.

April UFO Challenge

I was hoping for a nicer day and greener grass to get a photo of my completed April challenge quilt. I had to be content that the snow has finally disappeared from under my clothes lines.

This quilt is the largest that I've machine quilted -- 84" x 84". I kept the quilting to a minimum -- straight lines 3" apart only one way. It feels great to have this one completed -- and again I'm thankful to Judy for this challenge!






I backed the quilt with several pieces of brushed homespun and bound it with a heavier red flannel -- all pieces found in my stash.



I was worried it would end up being heavier than I wanted, but I was pleased with the weight of it -- it's quite soft and snuggly!


The May challenge will be to work on this quilt which was made using The Yellow Brick Road pattern. It needs to be quilted and bound. I'll have to browse around on Flikr and see if I can get some inspiration for quilting it. I may have to finally force myself to try some free motion quilting -- I've been avoiding learning how to do that!

January UFO Quilt challenge

The snow has been a bit of a challenge too!


I managed to finish my string quilt for the January UFO Challenge on Judy's blog. I had actually challenged myself to get the blocks made and put together into a quilt top, but once that was done I decided I better not quit and still have a UFO. I'm glad I stuck to it. It finished at 48" x 60". It was fun working with these summery colors in the thick of winter. I look forward to planting myself on the beach with this one while I watch the grandkids having fun in Lake Superior.

I found some gingham check cotton dobby in my stash that worked perfectly for the back -- it really feels cozy.

I originally picked only six UFO's for Judy's challenge, but this finish motivated me to dig deeper and pick 6 more so I'll have one to work on every month this year. I don't expect to end the year with 12 finishes, but I will devote time each month to work on whichever number she chooses and hopefully January won't be the only one I finish.

#7 - I've been working on these blocks for a few years -- I still have a few blocks to finish before I can start assembling the quilt top.

#8 This quilt needs to be made just a bit larger before I can sandwich and quilt it.

#9 This quilt was made using The Yellow Brick Road pattern. It just needs to be quilted and bound.

#10 - I started quilting my blue and yellow basket quilt a few years ago, but it's been rolled up waiting for some attention for quite awhile.

#11 - I have this bin of pink and brown fabrics, but can't actually remember what I planned to do with them. I guess I'll start from scratch with them with #11 is called . My current hope is that they'll end up being made into a snails trail pattern, but that may change.

12. I can't remember when I started making these 6" churn dash blocks, but I sure need to get back at them and make some more. At 6", I'll need a ton of them to make a full size quilt -- a month devoted to them should be a good start.

Can't wait to see what number Judy picks for the February challenge!