April 2016 Quilting and Stitching Accomplishments

I knew for most of the month of April that it would likely be my last month to work part time for a while, so I was bound and determined to get a few things moved along or finished before I headed back to work and into the summer, when I know I don't usually do as much quilting given busier schedules and more time outside. 

I started the month with a great day - the kids were on spring break one more day and came to my bee workday with me. Jenna brought along her stitching and some books and kept herself busy all day. Jack brought along some legos and books, but by late morning, he was looking for something else to do. I'd put in my bag of scraps from the Crayon quilt and thought I'd just spend a little time playing to see what I could come up with. It turned out this was right up Jack's alley and he jumped right in. While I sewed triangles together, he worked on a layout. Then, he got into the game and did some sewing, decided on how to put together the borders, and learned how to press a seam open. He did a great job with all of it and we wound up with a very cute mini-quilt, which we decided will be his teacher's end-of-year thank you gift. 


I also wanted to finish up one of my UFOs this month, and as luck would have it, the one I loaded on my frame in late March was the one that was selected to work on in April! I finished the quilting, got the binding attached, and then worked on sewing it down during tv watching and bee meetings during the month. I am really glad to have this one finished and ready to put out this Christmas season. I think I bought the kit at the 2009 quilt show, and I finished the top ages ago, so it was high time I got it finished! 

Next up was the Trip around the World top that my bee made for Diana's Golden Needle (you can find her on facebook). The top was finished a while ago, so I finally got it on the frame, using some white muslin for the backing. I got it quilted and trimmed, made the binding, and then passed it off to another bee-mate for doing the binding. Once it is back, it will be on its way to North Carolina to be given to a child who has aged out of the foster care system. 

Finally, I got my Quilting in Layers top put together. I already told you a little about this one in my stash report, but I really had a good time making this and I think there will be another one in my future. I really liked the process of putting it together and I'd like to see how it turns out if I used the same technique across the whole quilt or if I only used two colors. 

Last up are my stitching finishes for April - I spend the majority of the month working on the plastic canvas reindeer which is part 1 of a four-part kit. I won't be moving on to parts 2-4 for a while because I really don't like working on plastic canvas, but I do like how cute this guy turned out! 

After the reindeer was finished, I had just enough time to get in the ornament for the month from Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornaments - this one is called Very Merry Christmas by Medina Originals. It was a quick stitch and I like how it turned out! I used leftover fabric that I had on hand and most of the called for colors. 

So, that's the recap for the month - I spent 13 3/4 hours quilting during the month, not including binding or stitching time. I am pretty pleased with all that I got done! 

Comments

Unknown said…
Everything turned out so nice. Proud of Jack and his teacher will love it! We will miss you at Bee!
loralei
Marlene said…
Lovely finishes and the proud smile on Jack's face is priceless. His mini is great and I'm sure the teacher will love it.
Carol said…
Aww... how cute is Jack with his first mini-quilt finish!! His teacher will love that gift so much. And your finishes are wonderful, Jennifer--the quilt for the older child in NC is so special. I've read what a hard time that period of life is for them when they are too old for foster care--this will give him something special to keep forever and let him know that there are kind people out there who care...

Hope you have a lovely weekend with your family!