Saturday, September 22, 2018

UFO Busting #31



What a week over here!  It always amazes me that even in the midst of the busiest week I can sneak in some sewing time.  Last weekend's move of the aunt got kicked up several notches, when the movers didn't show up on Friday to pack/move the last of the big items.  She had to be out by Saturday...yikes!  But a huge shout out to my family and friends for coming to the rescue.  We got her moved all in one evening and we managed to break nothing.  Hooray!!!  But the busy week didn't end there, nope.  Saturday I played runner/printer for my daughter's photo booth at our local Children's Festival.  Her booth was a huge success and I think I sweated off an additional 10lbs from all that running back and forth.  All I could think was thank goodness I'm down 25lbs!


I was continually running from the booth to the building in the back to print pictures.
Then we were facing homecoming week.  A time for football and celebrating community.  We had a small parade, a pep rally, the big game and of course a dance.  Miss Jen decided to skip out on the dance.  Like her momma, that isn't really her sort of thing.

So what did I manage to sneak in?  Not a quilt finish, but so close.  I just need to decided on the binding and I can celebrate this finish with you next week.


My flying geese challenge project had the last long seam sewn  as well.  It is based on a free tutorial from Sizzix called This Way That Way Flying Geese.  I say based on because I didn't use a dye cutter for my geese so my sizing is a bit different.


I also managed to sneak in finishing the third block for the Fireburst Mystery Quilt.  They are safely buried in that stack of blocks so you can't see them.  I hope to start piecing the finished tops together this weekend.


Next let's talk tackling UFOs and strategy.


If you are going to take over the quilting room, you have to have a plan.  Just ask Caroline Kitty Cat, Princess of the Fuzzy Butts.  She always has a clear plan for her goal and can manage to execute it within minutes seconds of me leaving my quilting chair.  Have I mentioned she rules with a clawed paw.


I realize if I'm going to take over the UFO's in my sewing room, I need to have a plan as well.  So I set down to analyze my list of quilts I'd like to finish before the end of the year.  Nine of the quilts already have backings purchased.  Of those, four are already basted and have the quilting started, leaving me with eight to still purchase backings for.


Next I moved all of the quilts on the list (with backings) to a more convenient place so that when their time comes to be quilted (and it will) I will have everything I need without having to waste time looking for it.

Hands down, the number one creator of UFO's is the "how do I quilt this question".  I want to make sure I don't allow this road block to stump me further, so I've started planning my quilting now.  I keep these print outs handy and work on them if I'm on the phone or trying to unwind for the night.


I haven't come up with full plans,  just little jump starters to get my creative juices flowing.  Not all of these quilts will receive custom quilting.  I hope to take advantage of some edge to edge work as well.  I will be talking about this process at an upcoming quilting event I will be attending in October.  I've thrown out an invitation to other quilters attending to bring tops that have them stumped so we can come up with a plan together.

Do you have any great tips for tackling your UFOs or ways to come up with quilting plans?  I'd love to hear about it.

Now let's take a look at last week's party.  One of the things I wanted when I started this linky was a place for us to ask for help.  For me confusion and indecision has allowed way to may UFOs to pile up.  Chris from Chris Knits Sews put out a call for advice last week on picking fabrics for some up coming projects.


What better way to get that advice than to ask quilting friends??  If you haven't had a change to read her post make sure to check it out here and help her get these projects headed toward finished!

And celebrating a quilting finish last week we had Gail from Quilting Gail.


She shared with us her recent Flying Arrows baby quilt using an adorable Dr. Seuss layer cake!  Make sure you visit Gail and help her celebrate her finish.


So now let's see what you've been up to this week.  Link up below and tell us!  I hope you were more productive than battling tweedle beetles in a bottle on a noodle eating poodle.




So..."Go forth and stitch
and stitch up a storm.
There are many quilts to make
to keep the good peoples warm."
--Tish (on quilting)

"And will you succeed?
Yes you will indeed!
98 and 3/4 percent 
guaranteed!"
--Dr Seuss (on quilting he just didn't know it)


12 comments:

Kate @ Smiles From Kate said...

Now that’s a good tip, getting all the UFO’s not just listed but completely sorted with all the requirements to finish them, I wouldn’t have any excuses not to reduce my list then.

Vicki in MN said...

I think you are jumping hurdles nicely, having backing on hand and with your project is great...tip- measure them now if you haven't. I hate when I have to take time to measure and square it up. As for a quilting plan I often turn to my books or pinterest(such inspiration there). Have a great and productive weekend Tish!

Chrisknits said...

I am always stumped by the quilting! Whichbis whybI plan to buy some quilting motif books! Maybe they will spark some ideas.

Sandra Walker said...

Ooh, I'm liking the feathers possibility between the rows in the one we both did for Roseanne's SAL! Love the photo of your feline kids. :-)

Quilting Gail said...

Hi Tish!
I too, make a list of my UFOs. WAY TOO many!!!
Last year, I issued a challenge "PHD in 2018". The idea was to finish half of your UFOs (Projects Half Done) AND finish every project that was started in 2018. (The idea being to NOT add to the UFO list!)

A few people took me up on the challenge and most are doing quite well. I still have quite a few to finish, but I'm getting there).
Fire burst is one of the ones that I will have to finish before the end of the year ... SEW, I'm impatiently waiting for the next set of instructions! :-) (That's a heavy hint to the fact that an early posting of them would be met with glee!! :-)

When planning quilting, I often use a large plastic sheet (with painter's tape on the edge) and use a dry erase pen to try out my planned quilting. Just be sure to take pictures before you erase it.

Happy Quilting! :-) quiltinggail

piecefulwendy said...

Well, no UFO to post this week, but I have been sewing on secret projects. I have my UFOs listed in my Quilter's Planner, and when I'm finished with them, I mark them "Done" with a marker or "Donated" if I've given the unfinished project away (it's happened to a few of them). Then I put a sticker next to them, because it's fun. It's a great way to see my progress and to keep m list in one place. Enjoy your weekend, Tish!

Stitchin At Home said...

I too doodle on a printout. I like your furry quilting help. I'm sure they make your quilting time more interesting.

Home Sewn By Us said...

Hi Tish! I have doodled a quilting plan on paper a few times. It helps me to visualize my plan and where to go to accomplish it. Not that I have that many different techniques in my arsenal. Yet! I was thinking of doing feathers on the little arrow blocks, and I don't know what on the background for Up From Here. We'll see. I thought you were already finished with your Up From Here quilt in WV colors? Are you making another?? I did finish a UFO this week and I'm playing along with Gail to get them all finished by the end of the year - just three more to go. Enjoy the weekend, friend! ~smile~ Roseanne

Louise said...

One of the things I do to help with moving UFO's forward is to mark them with their sizes and intended recipients. I use blue painter's tape for those labels. Since I do a lot of charity quilting and each charity has different size requirements, it helps me keep track of what goes where. Sometimes I have a smaller UFO that could end up in several places if I add the right borders, so it's good to know that I kinda thought it would go to charity X instead of Y :)

Then when I am choosing which pieces to quilt next, I tend to batch them according to recipient so I can fill a box with 2, 3, 4 quilts to ship off!

Of course, there are always squirrels that jump in, gumming up the works...

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl said...

Great plan to have all the tops and backings grouped together along with some quilting ideas, too. :)

KaHolly said...

What a fun post to read with my morning coffee! Plan? Heck no, I just fly by the seat of my pants!

helenjean@midgetgemquilts said...

well done with your list. Sometimes a list helps me to focus, and stops me panicking. Sometimes a list sends me into a tailspin of panic!

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