January 2019 – Artfully Quilted Design

Posted on January 21, 2019February 15, 2019 by ArtfullyQuilted — Leave a comment

Snowed In! And the Snow Hood Free Pattern

Oh, how I love a snow day! Especially if I am truly snowed in and do not have to venture out. Oh, and the electric stays on! And all of the above applied yesterday, when for the first time in a couple of years we had our first official “snowed in” day. Our sheriff had issued the proclamation: No one on the roads except for emergency vehicles. What better reason is there than that to stay home in comfy clothes and do something that you didn’t have time for before?

The snow started Saturday, so I spent a large part of the day quilting. I have the blocks all sewn together for Bonnie Hunter’s “Good Fortune” Mystery and have the first border added. Piecing the second sawtooth border is tedious, but is going to look great.

We literally had church at home on Sunday, and attendance was high… Our Pastor did a message from his home on Facebook Live. He and his lovely wife were both in their PJs, as were the kids that stayed quiet and off screen most of the time. And the message was very good. And my husband and I watched on our computer, both in our PJs as well! This was a first, I must say!

I started off the day mostly quilting and thinking about an upcoming sewing project that our pastor’s wife is organizing for missions. It is utilizing the “Days for Girls” guidelines, although we are sending our packs to Haiti with a group going from our church. This is a small drawstring bag that contains reusable fabric menstrual supplies. Oh the things we take for granted!!! Imagine not having anything like this at your disposal! The ones we are making are wonderful and full of the potential for changing the recipient’s life! If you are interested, visit DaysforGirls.org to learn more.

In the process of all this thinking (can you smell the smoke? LOL), I made a call to a friend I have not talked to for awhile, but who had contacted me wanting to help with this project. Of course, we had to catch up and discuss other things as well, and one of those things was the fact that my husband was outside with the snow blower. One thing lead to another, and I started telling her about some fleece Snow Hoods that I had made a pattern for a few years ago, and have made for the men in our family since, and that he was wearing one now so I knew his face was protected. She asked about getting a copy of the pattern. At the time of the conversation, my pattern was hand drawn on interfacing.

So guess what I have been doing today? I have now made the pattern official and made a snow hood (I have a thing about fleece remnants, so I did not have to leave the house. Besides, they are simple to make.) so that I could take photos of the process, and the instructions are done and have been proofread and approved by my teacher daughter. So here is my free gift to you… the Snow Hood pattern! ArtfullyQuilted.com Snow Hood

My new design is ready for the prototype cut, which should happen Wednesday, when I have laser time scheduled. The fabric is ordered, and it is supposed to be delivered tomorrow if delivery can get through. I can not tell you how excited I am about this kit! There should be another good one close behind it as well. Progress!

If you are snowed in, be wise and safe! If you are not, take time to do something you don’t have time for, and be thankful! And always find some time to be creative!

Posted on January 17, 2019January 18, 2019 by ArtfullyQuilted — Leave a comment

Comparing Ourselves to Others

As I am assembling my “Good Fortune” blocks into rows and ultimately a quilt top, I am learning many things about quilting. I listed some of those in my last post. However, I have to admit that I am learning even more about myself. In the posting of these blogs, and in the viewing the progress of others, I am reminded of what comparing myself to others can bring out of me.

You see, at the time I am writing this, I am seeing many photos online of totally finished quilt tops, complete with the beautiful borders that have been designed for them. They are carefully laid out and photographed, with not a flaw to be seen. Then I think of all the time I have spent with my seam ripper over the past couple of weeks, because in my haste to keep up with all the progress I am hearing about others making, I have made mistakes. And I have been so busy trying to keep up, I haven’t even noticed my mistakes until I had to put it all together. And it would not fit.

So rip out I did, because in order to make this beautiful quilt, it all has to fit. Does that mean I am inferior? Why can’t I be fast like the others? Should I just pack it up and quit?

What I am forgetting, is that I only see what is happening in my life. I only know the thoughts that go through my mind. (And now you do too! ) I don’t see what others had to do to make theirs fit. I don’t see what else they were doing in their lives when they were working on theirs. I don’t see the flaws hidden in a fold of the top. I only see what they are allowing me to see.

And so it is with all of life. Life is a process, a journey. You and I have to pursue that journey, learning as we go, ripping out the mistakes and starting over when needed. Moving forward when we have no idea what all these pieces are going to look like when it is completed. And most of all, relaxing and enjoying the journey, taking time to relish the learning, pass it along to others, and enjoy their company. We have to remember that only we know what is in our minds. And we can not judge others, because we do not see their fears, their thoughts, their insecurities. We only see our own.

Thank you for joining in the journey of “Good Fortune” with me. I hope you have been inspired to try something new, taking it one step at a time and trusting the process.

There is still time to download the instructions for this quilt from the “Good Fortune” website. And by the way, I have assembled this one row. I have many other bits and pieces together, but I am not sharing what they are. And that is okay with me! It is beautiful and I am enjoying the process.

Posted on January 7, 2019January 8, 2019 by ArtfullyQuilted — 1 Comment

“Good Fortune” is Revealed!

I hope 2019 is getting off to a good start for you and your loved ones! It is so hard to believe that time is marching by this quickly! I remember when 2007 sounded so far off. 2019!!!

This week not only was the beginning of the New Year, but the reveal of Bonnie Hunter’s Mystery Quilt “Good Fortune”. This is the first of her mysteries I have participated in. I have thought about participating. I have even downloaded the PDFs, but I have never actually done one. Part of the reason why I have not is because of the time of the year. Another big part was the fact that I was going to put that time into making a quilt that I had no idea whether or not I would like. I admire Bonnie’s quilts. I look through her website, and like 95% of them, but who knows about this one? But. hey, scraps are accumulating and they have to go somewhere, right?

Well, I am super glad I did! This quilt is going to be gorgeous! And I have learned so much from her hints that I had not heard before, even though I have quilted for many years.

What have I learned?

Next time I will be more adventurous (yes, I said next time!) and stray a bit from Bonnie’s color palette. If the color values remain the same, and the colors look good together, it should work. I love what she picked, in spite of all the orange, but I would make it mine next time, and change the colors up, keeping in mind what color scraps I have in excess.
I had never heard about keeping the ruler line on the fabric and not on the cutting mat. Just that extra “scant” when cutting makes a really big difference.
I learned that there IS a use for the strips of Christmas paper that you have left after wrapping gifts! I used these for the foundation paper for the neutral rectangles.
I am still in amazement at all the planning that Bonnie Hunter has put into these. I am not a pattern follower. I love to put my own blocks together, and design them myself. But I cannot fathom putting all of this together, right down to the direction to press every piece and have it all come out properly. I have never done anything this intricate with this many pieces.
I learned to trust the authority, and blindly follow. GULP! I had no choice if I was going to do this. I had no idea what the final goal was, other than a quilt. (I like plans, and l like to work the plan!) It was obvious I was working a plan, but I had no idea where that plan was going to lead. Lots of good life lessons in that one!
Last but not least, I learned to slow down and enjoy the process. I am a get it done person, who has trouble sitting still. But when you know that you won’t know for a few days what the next step is, it takes some of the fire out of the “get it done”. Why rush when you are going to be able to move on anyway?

My Helper, Lucy, supervised while I removed the paper foundations.

Now I can’t wait to get the blocks together so that I can play with the beautiful borders! If you haven’t gone to the website and looked at this beauty, or better yet, downloaded the free instructions, I would encourage you to click here! The free instructions disappear the beginning of February. After that, they will be incorporated into a pattern or book.

I saw this quip Willowlane Designs posted on Facebook, and thought I would share. It pretty much sums up my hopes for this year! (She has the prints for sale, as well as other goodies, so check her out!)