I have been working all week to try to finish up the last commission quilt, Improv Christmas tree by Amy Smart. I added two borders to make it a bit bigger and use up most of the fabrics left from the other five quilts. This one will finish at 84″ x 102″. Good queen size with a pillow tuck, or not. I had wanted to make the Merry Christmas Darling quilt, but the client didn’t want it, they wanted the Improv one. I had originally planned on doing it, but after making the first block, I disliked the technique as it was a little too improv for me. The blocks were a not uniform, and I wasn’t feeling like I could make a 100 of them with out trying my patience. I made the Plaid trees quilt instead, my fault I didn’t contact the client, but I figured it was similar and with the tree theme. They do like it, just wanted the Improv tree one too. I came up with an assembly line way of making the blocks and the unfinished size was 7 1/4″ by 9 1/4 inch. I made thirty or so a day for three days and then spent another day making the 2 ½ inch scrappy squares outer borders. The quilting was going to be an all over panto, but when I got it on the frame, it was calling out for a bit of custom work. I am doing cross hatching in the outer border and circles in the red inner one. The snow flake panto fills the center nicely, I like that it is relatively quick to stitch (45mins a row) and no back tracking. My goal today is to finish the quilting and get the binding on. Tomorrow is picture day for all three quilts and I am hoping to get them shipped by Wednesday. Ready to be finished with that project, started in late October 2024.

This week I am sort of participating in the DeClutter Challenge 2025 by Just Get It Done Quilts If you want to join up, there is still time to catch up. I like her approach to de-cluttering, 15 minute increments and breaks in between. Plus some rational talk and help with “letting go” and not getting side tracked or overwhelmed. Yesterday I tackled days one and two, today I may get to three (subscriptions), four (books) and five (patterns). I would like to get the subscription mags whittled down, the two I have left are Knits and Quilt Maker. I did some culling a few years ago, ripping out patterns and ideas and putting them in a binder, but it’s time consuming. These two magazines are on-line now, so if I ever want to revisit them I can. I may just keep the current years and recycle the others, hard decisions, but I would like the shelf space back. I did my books last year, and got rid of a lot of them in a donation. Patterns too, but I would like to sell some of the bigger ones. I was pleased with my work after yesterday, just getting the garbage and “out of place things” out of the room was almost “cathartic”. I think with the finishing of the customer quilts, it’ll be like a new year/leaf turning for me. I am looking forward to starting new things after I get back from my vacation.

I did decide to do another BOM, I have no business starting another Elefantz one, but I am. The new one is The Sewing Room and it is simple embroideries and patchwork. It did make me pull out the Simple Days blocks, and while the long arm was doing its thing, I finished block 8 and started block 9. Last summer I had sewn them together and had them all ready to finish, but didn’t. It’d be good to check this of the UFO white board. I am going to take the Tilda quilt with me on vacation, so that leaves the Message in a Bottle quilt to languish.

My Fabulous Houses cross stitch is still waiting for more stitches too. I started the Haunted house on New Years Eve day, while I was on the phone with family. A little start, but it’ll be back in the rotation for February too. Cottage garden Samplings has a new BOM starting in June, Forest Animals themed. I really like the first collection they did, A year in the Woods, in 2022. I can’t start/do any more giant projects until I finish my Consider the Lillies piece. I really need to look through my cross stitch patterns and kitted up things. Spark some interest in doing the ones that I have, not the shiny new ones on the screen and Floss Tube.

Be Kind.