Back again....

Geez, the last post I wrote mentioned coming out of hibernation... and that was in 2009. I just haven't been quilting or sewing much at all, so my blog would have been VERY boring. Here's hoping that I get a little sewing time and will be able to share some of my progress here! I just finished a quilt top that was many years in the making... Back in 2003 when I went to the Thimbleberries retreat in Minnesota for the first time, I spotted a quilt in Lynette Jensen's home that I absolutely fell in love with. Here's my photo from that retreat: It's a scrappy log cabin with vintage TB fabrics - from lines like Winter Cottage, My Best, Harvest Time and the original Paint Box Prints. Year after year I would see the quilt displayed in Lynette's home and, I hate to admit it, but I coveted that quilt. In 2006 she had it neatly folded and displayed on an ottoman. I asked her if she would mind if I opened the quilt up to take pictures of all the different fabrics used in it. Lynette was kind enough to bring it to class the next day and allowed me to take several pictures - enough so that I captured every single block. I knew I had most of the fabrics in my stash and began actively hunting down the rest. I also drew the quilt on my computer in CorelDraw and figured out which fabrics were used in each block, and mapped them all out. I wrote my own cutting directions for each fabric and, once cut, labeled each piece by block number and position. The final lost fabric was found a little more than a week ago with help from www.missingfabrics.com. (Thanks Lynsey!) Ever since it arrived I've been a busy bee and finally finished it this past weekend - whoo hoo!! The top is 76.5" x 95.5" and uses 41 different fabrics. During my last retreat trip I found the exact matching backing fabric in Wisconsin - so I just need to sew that up and mail it off to the quilter. Want to see it? As you can tell, my son Logan is definitely NOT thrilled to be helping hold up the top. LOL I'm so happy with this project that I can't wait to finish up some of my WIPs (Works In Progress).

My Stash....

What can make me come out of blog hibernation? A Judy L. challenge, of course! Good thing it doesn't involve any actual sewing! LOL

While I do not have a dedicated sewing room, my stash HAS taken over my bedroom closet - causing my dresser drawers to be overstuffed and my shoes to be shoved under the bed. Some blouses are hung on a rung but can easily be pushed aside to access my fabric treasures. Here are some pics:

Left Side of Closet

Right Side of Closet

Detail: Top Shelf on Left

Detail: Top of Dresser

Detail: On Floor in Front of Dresser

Detail: Top Shelf on Right

Detail: Right Storage Containers

Detail: Floor on Right

ALL of those fabrics are Thimbleberries. Inside the dresser are some kits, and the plastic containers hold previous TB Club kits, fat quarters and other fabrics. The laundry basket holds all of my tops, just waiting to be finished and snuggled under. I'll get to that step one of these days...

I haven't done much sewing at all... so I haven't posted anything. I've been working on a little embroidery project I saw on another blog, so hopefully I'll have something new to show in a few days. Please don't give up on me yet!!

Stashbusting - Week 2/52

Ok... I missed my report last week - mainly because there was nothing to report :) Since my Fat Quarter 5 Stripe top is now finished, it can finally be removed from my kit stash! Whoo hoo!

Nothing added this week!

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards

Fabric Added Year to Date: 0 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 7.25 yards

Fabric Used Year to Date: 7.25 yards

Friday Finish!

FINALLY had time to finish my Fat Quarter 5 Stripe. Yippee!! It is made with one of my favorite Christmas lines from Thimbleberries called Snow Country. I changed it up a little by using the border fabric in the sashings also. (The original pattern has very scrappy sashings, made using the same 17 different fabrics used in the 15" blocks.)

I don't know what took me so long (Sept. 2003 until now) but I'm so happy that it's done! When I traveled to my first retreat out in Minnesota, this was a class on the final day. I didn't get much of chance to work on it then because I was worried about missing my flight back to NJ. Even though I LOVE this pattern/kit, it just sat in a box for YEARS, with strips pieced together but not yet cut. Now to just get it quilted ;) LOL

Now I need to get working on some old BOMs. I should be posting some pics of those blocks in progress soon...

Looking Ahead to 2009...

Let's just say that 2008 will NOT go down in the record books as a good year for us. The national economic situation has directly affected our own finances as (very) small business owners and spending has REALLY been cut short. That has been especially true for my quilt budget - which is most depressing to me. But....

I've decided to look at it positively and, taking Judy's cue, make this year a true stashbusting year! I have so many kits that I've collected in the past that are just collecting dust that, honestly, could keep me busy for a while. So, I vow to make a dent in my kit stash, doing my best to purchase only the fabrics NEEDED to complete specific projects. Since I like to match fabrics exactly to the ones shown on a pattern, I'm always on the lookout for those one or two fabrics that I'm still missing for each homemade 'kit'.

One other goal is to advance with my Thimbleberries Club projects from previous years. So, I plan to dedicate the first week of each month towards this end, working on blocks for the 2002-2007 projects, plus the original BOM, Month by Month. Some parts have already been completed for each of these quilts, but I haven't yet finished a club quilt. Sad, right?

My list of projects for this year is in my sidebar. I plan to post at least once a week to report my progress, especially amounts of yardage busted. Hoping to have some good news to share next week!