Goals for this year

I got two things finished -- a small wallhanging with four hearts and a row-by-row quilt that's 54" x 64". This week I'll start hand-stitching the binding for a 60" x 60" quilt.

My goals have been altered since I will be starting a new school year on July 9 rather than August 27. Actually, I had to start working last Friday. Must attend lunch meetings for 3 days this week. Two full days of training next week. Moving from high school math to 5th grade everything.

Well, I didn't actually write out a list. It's much easier to lose when you keep it in your head, you know :-)

However, I did finish and give away two baby quilts, then I marathoned another one, start to finish in three weeks, and gave it away. I need to stitch down the binding and sleeve on my "Flopsy" wall hanging and then it will be done. Hmmm...I'm suddenly feeling pretty good about myself.

Now I have to get moving on a project that I took on for a friend. She did the piecing. All I have to do is quilt it :-) When that is done, I will REALLY feel good about myself.

Thanks for this thread, Pat. It is a nice boost for me.

Rita L. - who will try to do a better job of organiz> Back in January, several of us posted our quilt making goals for 2007. I

Well, I am feeling proud of myself. I finished a baby quilt I started for a friend last year. It is about 45" x 50" and is in Northern Ireland now, being enjoyed by the 1-year-old girl. Then I tackled a block that I was supposed to have finished last summer. Not only was I nursing my poor sick cat, but the fabric stumped me. That block is done and is in the post to the Netherlands! I am not usually someone who misses deadlines, so that one really haunted me. In addition, I have 6 secret surprises (can't tell or they won't be surprises) in the post to various quilty friends around the world. It sure was nice to not only shop for them, but to pop them in the post on Thursday! The batting I need to finish another baby quilt started last year just arrived today, and since the top is finished, I'll be layering it all after dinner tonight. It will be good to get this project finished too! I am also working on a set of clothes for a very unique doll. The trouble with unique dolls is, it is very hard to shop for clothes for them! You have to make the pattern and the clothes yourself. So that project was derailed until recently as well... Lots of finishes, very few starts.... finished is a good feeling!

-- Jo in Scotland

I'm not doing great -- been sick (yes, too sick to quilt)

I have done exactly zip on the tee shirt quilt. Didn't even buy the stuff to iron onto the shirts before cutting. I did was them, and put them in a suitcase. Still sitting in hallway to take up to the attic.

Haven't worked on my quilt (the one from baby clothes) for nearly two weeks. Usually work on it (quilting in the ditch, adding buttons) at the oncology office, but they gave me a week off. Then a second week off. Maybe I'll restart on Wednesday but don't know that I have the energy yet. Still feel lousy.

Having a pity party today... am waiting for a check in the mail (already two weeks late) and that's worrying me as well. I miss stitching though, when I don't... probably can work on the bag (make them to haul stuff in the car -- smaller 12x15" -- not fancy but handy for beach gear, karate clothes -- that sort of thing.

Good thread :-) my goal is to finish 2 projects before starting a new one. I'm still not at the point where I've got only one project to finish But I'm finishing and that feels great ! Finished 2 small projects ( ok, I started them this year ) and this evening I will start quilting a long time UFO. Yesterday I finished the top of my European block swap quilt, but as I haven't got the fabric for the back yet, it will have to wait. So, I'm in a good quilting mood ;-)) Heidi from Germany P.S. but I still have that d#%&§$ thing to handquilt and I'm seriously contemplating to abandon it. Pat in Virginia schrieb:

please remove quilt from address

Wellll I don't think I actually made a list. Or if I did it is somewhere very safe. BUT, I am accomplishing things.

1. Finally got some pics up. And got some taken to be able to put them up.
2. Am working on finishing some in-progress projects. At least to finished top stage.
3. When the "inheritance" finally gets here I will be ordering a Tin Lizzie 18 and need tops to practice on.
4. I have been working on the pattern instructions I want to have ready to go when I get the $$ for the rest of the business start up.
5. Have a quilt that needs to be finished for the Hoffman Challenge (And I decided that I really need one more piece of fabric, so I had best get a move on so I can go get a quarter yard to get it finished.)
6. I am progressing in my search to sort out and find things, fabrics, notions and so forth.

I have changed my goals, and will c> Back in January, several of us posted our quilt making goals for 2007. I

Although I wasn't a part of this group in January, I did make a mental list of UFO's I wanted to complete before I start on anything new. I have finished two more snowflake blocks (made three) for a table runner for my mom for Christmas and now I have to find a backing for it. I finished a "new" project kit for my sister, Susie. I had purchased it for my daughter to do (after much prodding from her) for my mom almost four/five years ago. She started tracing around the appliqued pieces and never did anything more with it. She has since started college and has no interest in sewing. :-( I just finished sewing on the binding last night. YEAH!!! I'll have to take pictures soon and post them. I have a table topper that I am needing to finish up for my other sister, Lori for Christmas. Funny, but both ended up with the same backing material and binding. Anyway, I just have to sew the binding on the backside and it will be done! I have a row by row that I need to work on that I started last year...only completed the first row. This is from Carol Doak's group. I started and finished a rainproof bag for my daughter a few weeks ago. It wasn't on the list, but seemed to be a very much needed item by her. It was a fun project...but also a pain in the @!%, because of the plastic/vinyl I used to line it. I have a couple of placemats that I'm hand quilting that need to get finished for my DSIL...started on that about two years ago. I didn't have a light to work on them in the evening... do now...no excuses! lol My "baby" Hunter who will be eight next month has helped me design a quilt in EQ6 that I would like to get started on and finished by Christmas. I asked him if he would like to help me sew it too and he said sure. He is such a great kid! We are truly blessed! Launie, in Oregon

List? Did I make a list? LOL! I don't remember, but I am happy that I've finished a quilt I started in January and was stalled on for a time. No pics yet, but they're coming, as soon as I hogtie DH long enough for him to hold it up for me; I don't think I have a place big enough to hang it.

I've also gotten back to my temporarily-neglected hand pieced quilted diamonds, and that's good. Now I'd like to dig out a top I made last summer and quilt it. I don't like the top, mainly because I don't like the technique, but it will probably be pretty when it's done.

Lately I've been busier with guild business than with actual quilting, and that's likely to continue for another year before I get back to "normal".

I've done 1 3/4 out of 3 goals. Debra in VA See my quilts at

I made a list. It continues to be a very nice list.

Actually, I have two lists: one of UFOs (and, since I am a 'topper,' these are mostly completed tops that need quilting) and one of projects-for-the-year (the quilts I make for organizations). Oftentimes a project goes from the UFO list to the projects-for-the-year list.

Nann

Hi Pat, My guild requires us to write down our "resolution" in January, and then we either produce the finished product at our July picnic, or we have to pay the price...a yard of good-quality fabric. The people who complete their projects have a chance to win the fabric!

My resolution was to finish a red & white "Candy Cane" quilt which I started in Virginia before I moved. I packed the top, the extra fabric, and the instructions away in a box, and there they've stayed for almost 2 years! The good news is...it's almost all quilted now. I just have to finish quilting the borders, trim the edges and make and sew on the binding. I have almost a month to do it. So I should be all set. (I hate having unfinished projects anyway...I know, I'm weird)

The first things on my list were two graduation quilts, one for charity and one for the church. One grad. quilt top is done, the other just needs one more border. I made two quickie variable nine patch quilt tops for the kids with cancer and have one halfway quilted. The church quilt is still only in my mind and in gathered photos for ideas. Then yesterday when I went to the quilt store to get the Quilter's Home magazine I saw another quilt I love. It is a free pattern from moda called poetry. I printed it in case I get to do it another year with similar fabrics. I have another few projects on the list for the end of this year. Debra in Idaho

I made a list in January because my wearable art group provided a nice half-page size sheet of paper with pretty blue sky/clouds background, and room for 5 creative goals for the year. This meant I limited myself to 6 goals (I could squeeze one in the bottom). And, I actually posted it in my sewing room because it was purty.

Because I wanted to keep it fun, AND be successful, some of them were pretty open ended.

Here they are again with results:

1) learn to machine quilt, including free motion. - I got brave enough to lower those feeddogs and practice more. I also took 2 classes from a LQS on machine quilting, one on the basics, and one on free-motion. Then applied it on goal 2.

Lots of practicing still required before I can truly say I 'learned' it but making progress.

2) finish a quilt for the LQG show. - DONE!! I pulled out a few UFOs, decided my kites quilt was the closest to being done, as it was a finished top that 'only' needed the quilting. I applied my class techniques to SID the top, then added a few free-motion quilt motifs - a celtic-knot type design I drew. At first, I was scared to drop those feeddogs and 'ruin' the top - then I looked again at the piecing. Figured the piecing wasn't perfect, either, so it wouldn't be a perfect quilt anyway. Neither was the SID quilting perfect.

I finished it, although I thought the stitching looked pretty uneven, until I washed it. I wasn't going to wash it before the show, until I had a disaster with dyes running - but that softened it up enough and I think the quilting 'wobbles' are not as obvious. I'm very pleased with the results. Looks good from a galloping horse, at any rate!

pics to come soon when I get the DVD from the quilt show.

3) finish a garment for the fashion show in October. - I haven't done this yet. I thought my finished garment would be a wool skirt with the pattern that I started fitting in a class last year. Once the fitting is finished, the skirt shouldn't be too hard.... October's far away still....

I've gotten side-tracked into the summer wardrobe contest over at PatternReview.com (I blame Larisa for that!) and making some other pieces. If any of those turn out well enough, I could use one of those for the fashion show.

4) learn and play with new techniques, including beading. - I bought a kit on 'beadlings' which are little beaded critters. I made a bumble bee and a dragonfly which are both very cute. As far as other techniques, I love taking classes and doing sample pieces but actually haven't done much this year so far.

5) finish a 'wearable art' garment and wear it to a meeting. - the wearable art group has a phenomenal show and tell each meeting. I never have anything to wear or to bring to show and tell! I now have 3 WIP that would be appropriate instead of finishing the one I had started when I set the goal!

6) start a handwork project to bring to stitch-n-b**** sessions. - I cut out a Hawaiian applique block, and immediately after a friend did have a s-n-b day. I brought it, and spent all afternoon sewing about 6 inches of the applique. That was in late-January or early February. Haven't sewed a stitch on it since. But it's still there, ready to bring.

I'm also thinking about making the beadwork project portable, that might work too.

The problem with both projects is just that I never do handwork. I can't do it in front of the t.v. because - my SO likes to watch t.v. in a dark room - I have 2 pairs of glasses rather than bifocals so looking up now and again just makes me dizzy - I can't multi-task worth a darn - either lose track of my work or miss part of the story.

Actually, these reasons also apply to s-n-b days too, since not everyone's room is set up with bright project lighting, conversing with people requires both multi-tasking, and being able to see them when I look up.

Maybe I should retire this goal and just admit that handwork isn't for me.

All in all though, I've made a lot of progress - finishing a UFO and making progress on the machine quilting were BIGGIES. I started that Kites quilt about 10 years ago, and really it was the quilting holding me back from completing it. (I don't do much hand-quilting either, for same reasons, but I have hand-quilted some wall-hangings. I machine-quilted a couple wall-hangings,too, for that matter.)

Looking at this again makes me notice where I am.... I made a lot of progress at the beginning of the year but not so much lately.

I do keep starting other projects instead of finishing things.... 3 of the

6 goals involve finishing something and I've only done 1 of those. Instead of finishing the skirt or the pieced sweatshirt jacket (wearable art piece I have designed and partially sewn), I have started another patchwork jacket, and also a tunic top. Plus all the garments I'm planning for the wardrobe contest.

Although, to be fair, I also have made progress on my Christmas wallhanging, which was another UFO I was considering entering in the LQS. Didn't get made in time for that, but maybe by THIS Christmas! And, I bought some black fabric for borders for the Trip around the world (which I think I made around the same time as the Kites quilt).

And, I worked on a BOM.

Last year, I was going to do the BOM here, but decided I wanted to try one at a LQS because I wanted the in-person interactions. I started a BOM, but ended up almost every time changing the block or fabrics from what I was given. I was going to finish 9 blocks and quit, but then last month I just forgot the date and didn't finish that block. I'll have to count up how many I have if I finish that last one - it may be 8 already. I should have done the BOM here, then I can pick my own fabrics! Although, the deadline isn't enforced here the way it is for the LQS, so I don't know if I'll finish!

Whew, sorry this got to be so long. Interesting to read other people's successes (or lack thereof) too, and be reminded that it's OK to change the goals....

Lynnette