Celtic Wave QAL - Update

So, it's the end of March and the closure of Bag #3 for Celtic Wave QAL. Have you been keeping up with it??? I actually think it was easier to keep up when it was every week, at least from my perspective, every week meant that every Sunday night I took pics and wrote a blog post. Every other, just isn't as smooth. I think I will keep that it mind if I do another one of these....

Checkpoint 3 : March 17 -  31 : Bag 3 

Started like this..... 

Bag #3 was a quick one -- just 8 units. I got mine all finished and trimmed, and here they are....

Here's the rest of the schedule for the next couple of months...

Checkpoint 4 : March 31 - Bag 4 start

Here's the homework for the nest two weeks.....using these fabrics, cut the required templates. This is am easy one, it should literally take just an hour or so, which is convenient, given the number of things going on around here these days....

Checkpoint 5 : April 14 - Curved Piecing
Checkpoint 6 : April 28 - Border Units (if you are doing the Queen)
Checkpoint 7 : May 12 - Start Assembly
Checkpoint 8 : May 26 - All DONE!!!!

How are you coming along on getting your Celtic Wave done??? What colors are you doing???

Happy Quilting!!!

Catherine

A Trip -I so Love a Trip !!!

Well, the calendar is filling up fast!!!

I just booked two retreats....in far off and not so far off locations!

The first, will be in July on the 9th, 10th and 11th in Porterville, CA at The Calico Mermaid! If you have never been there, you should go. It is an adorable shop, owned by a lovely couple, Georgia and Richard Goode. Bonus : he makes smoked pork shoulder almost as tasty as my Dad, and that is saying a lot, since I am from the BBQ capital!!! I'm super excited about teaching in the Central Valley, since I'll get to see friends that I haven't seen in a while! So, give the shop a call and reserve your spot.

My other retreat is for me! I get to be an attendee!!! I'm heading out to Montana for the new Judy Niemeyer Certified Instructor pattern! Super excited to go and see what she has cooked up next for us!

We're starting to get all of our spring market literature. Pittsburgh is less than 2 months away at this point, so we're starting to get sneak peaks of new lines that will be released at market, and new patterns....super excited for all the new stuff now that Spring has officially sprung!

So, have a great day, and I'll see you all soon!

Catherine

Curvy Town Alert

So, we're in crazy mode this week.... Working on Osprey's Nest curved piecing....

Each block has 4 curves seams and there are 63 blocks, so, by the end of tomorrow, I will have sewed 252 curved seams. I am currently at 8. I have a long way to go!

Once that is finished, I am going to work on the curved binding on my Bali Bedrunner. The Bedrunner has been quilted for a little over a year, but it was on a road trip all over SoCal, without any binding, so while it is on vacation for a week, it is getting dressed properly! 

And after that, well, I'm not 100% sure. I have lots of things I could do, even several i should do.....but we will see....

Other things that have to be accomplished this week :

* pack for Henderson Guild Show next weekend - includes new kits, new products and new fabrics!

* prep for teaching in Thousand Oaks

* finish y seams on Amazon Star

So, the list is long this week, and I also will eventually need to do some laundry and stock the fridge, or I'll be naked and hungry! This would not be a good combo!

What are you working on this wee?

Happy Quilting....

Catherine

Finish It Friday

I only have one real finish this week, and it is a small one...a pillow!

I've looking for the perfect solid comforter for my bed, and I finally found it! It is a dove grey color, and perfect. Of course, I bought a size larger than I needed, because I like the drape to almost hit the floor, since a sleigh bed has nowhere for a bed skirt....so I bought a king, and I love it! It does make making the bed interesting for those that have never done this before, the comforter goes on sideways. But enough about that.....

On to the pillow. I made a simple block that measured 12 1/2 inches, and put a super simple border on it to make it 15 inches finished. I love it! And the block is from the March BOM, so it's a 2 for 1! I loved it so much I made April's block as well, only I gave it a larger border, so the finished pillow is 18" square. Since the April block is still under wraps, here's a quick sneak peak!

March block with 2" borders, for a finished 15" pillow.

March and April blocks stacked for size reference. 

I also got some blocks finished for various projects....

Bag 3 of Celtic Wave!

And the multi A blocks from Ospreys Nest...still the runners left to do, but hopefully those will get finished today, and assembly on Saturday.

That's pretty much all the sewing I got done, though I did finish a crocheted cowl for a friends birthday, and I pieced my new sign for the booth, I should be able to share both of those next week!

Happy Quilting!!

Catherine

WIP Wednesday

Just a quick note on the happenings on this gorgeous day!!!

These are waiting for a few friends....

These are the B units, and the main Log Cabins, all finished and ready to go....

Now working on these guys.....the A units.

Hoping to finish today so that I can assemble tomorrow and Friday!!!!

Wish me luck!

Happy Quilting,

Catherine

Celtic Wave QAL

Well, it's already mid-March, and I can't really believe how quickly the month is going. It seems like it was February 1st just last week.

It's the end of the second checkpoint and the beginning of the third. Hopefully, you are keeping up with us, and have been working steadily on Bag #2......

Here's my H units from Bag #1, and my CG units from bag #2. I'm really getting excited to see how these are going to turn out.....I'm almost ready to start the curved piecing!!!

And now we are ready to move on, to Bag #3.......

Checkpoint 3 : March 17 - Bag 3 start 

Bag #3 is a quick one -- just 8 units, so this is a good week to catch up if you are starting late or have gotten behind. Take advantage of that now, because after this section, there is LOTS of sewing each week. So, off to work to get these finished.....

Here's the rest of the schedule for the next couple of months...

Checkpoint 4 : March 31 - Bag 4 start
Checkpoint 5 : April 14 - Curved Piecing
Checkpoint 6 : April 28 - Border Units (if you are doing the Queen)
Checkpoint 7 : May 12 - Start Assembly
Checkpoint 8 : May 26 - All DONE!!!!

How are you coming along on getting your Celtic Wave done??? What colors are you doing???

Happy Quilting!!!

Catherine

Finish it Friday

I actually have finishes this week!!! Yippee!!

It was busy around here all week, mainly working on Osprey's Nest and doing the standard business work (filling orders, accounting, etc). Busy but good. I got to hang out with Shawn and Kelly on Thursday and work on some new patterns for market, and that was really fun. It had been a while since we sewed together, with crazy schedules and the Puyallap show, we just hadn't had time....but we remedied that, and had an all together great day of chatting and snacking and sewing and apron making.

Today's FIF's are just the kind I like. Totally done! Quilted, bound and ready to go to their new homes. It's a gorgeous day here in Southern California, so the pics are not great, it's super bright and in the low 70's, an absolutely perfect day, which means pics are much too contrasts, but for now, they will do.

First up....a baseball quilt for Holden. The baseball maniac. It's almost double size, big enough for a super generous picnic, or a double wrap on a cold practice night. As you know, I like my quilts to be used. Really, what's the point in show pieces? And how many walls do most people really have? So most of my quilts are bed sized, with cotton batting for washability.

The second finish this week, comes in the form of Meandering Star, which was on my goals for 2014 list. It was on a field trip to Ms. Carrie for some lovely long arm quilting. I got it back on Monday and got it bound on Tuesday, and I love it. The quilting is superb, and really let's the pattern and fabrics sing. Plus it has feathers, and you know how I feel about feathers.

So, here she is : Meandering Stars.

Hope everyone is getting some sewing time in this weekend. What are you working on?

Happy Quilting!

Catherine

Bom 2014 - Block 2 - Variable Star Variation

So, this month, the block is very similar to last month....I did that on purpose, because we are also going to work on the border units, so that when we get to November, you are ready for a full assembly. Since we are running a BOM with 12 blocks over 10 months, we are going to have to double up sometime, so we might as well start now, and do it with the simpler blocks, so that you aren't buried in the sewing room.

So, let's get started.

This is the block for this month : Variable Star Variation

1. Cutting :

• From Background (white print) cut :
• 4 - 3 1/2" x 6 1/2" rectangle
• 2 - 3 7/8" squares
• From Focus Print (center, turquoise and purple in my sample), cut :
• 1 - 6 1/2" square
• From Accent 1 (Purple print), cut :
• 8 - 3 1/2" squares
• From Accent 2 (light teal print), cut :
• 2 - 3 7/8" squares

2. Now start assembling.

• Starting with the corners, draw a line on the back of the white 3 7/8" squares. Then sew 1/4" on both sides of that drawn line. (Can you see the sewing I did below??? Maybe I should use different thread next time!!!)

• Now slice them apart on the drawn line.

• And press towards the teal (dark). You will have a total of 4 of these when you are done.

3. Now, lets do the geese. 

• Draw a line from corner to corner on each of the purple 3 1/2" accent 1 fabric pieces. Place the accent 1 piece on to the background with right sides together, and the drawn line from the bottom left corner to the upper right. Now, sew on that line that you drew. 

• Now place the piece under your ruler and trim off the corner, 1/4" outside on the line that you sewed.

• Now press it towards the dark triangle, and it will look like the one below.

• Now do the same thing thing to the other side, with the diagonal going the other way (top left to bottom right).

• Now sew on the line that you drew.

• and trim off 1/4" outside of the sewn line.

4. Now lay out your blocks, twisting and turning them until the look like this.

5. Now sew them into rows, and press away from the geese units.

6. Finally, sew the rows together and press the seams away from the center of the block.

Your block is now complete!!!!

And now, we will move onto the border.

1. Cut 7 - 3 1/2" strips of the border accent fabric. 

2. Cut 7 - 3 1/2" strips of the border background fabric.

3. Cut 5 - 6 1/2" strips of the border background fabric. Subcut into 28 - 6 1/2" squares.

4. Place all of these cut pieces into your borders bag for next month.

WIP Wednesday

Well, since it is still Wednesday.....at least on the Pacific. Coast for the next 24 minutes.....make that 23 minutes...

A quick look at the happenings in the studio....

Celtic Wave QAL progress

All of the units are done, and I am caught up.....yippee!

Osprey's Nest

I just have the final set of geese left for this one....and then it is ready for final assembly. 

All in all, a busy, crazy week around here!

In the meantime, I have also been working on these....

Sign parts....I've mapped it all out, just making it now, with a goal of having it finished in time for the Henderson Show on the first weekend of April....

And that's enough WIPs to keep me busy for the moment. What have you been working on?

Happy Quilting!

Catherine

Friday Finishes on Wednesday....

Well, I had big plans to write half a dozen posts, about various classes, and student projects (the finishes this month have been lively), and goals and dreams and all the current and future happenings around here....I even took pictures.

For now, here's a quick look at the finishes from Cotton and Chocolate in Thousand Oaks. These ladies have been busy working on various projects....and had a couple of finishes to share during show and tell this month.

Jonette's Glacier Star

Lorna's Glacier Star

Lorna's Feathered Goose

Debbie's Feathered Goose

Aren't they great? Super excited to see them during show and tell, as we build our Mariner's Compass blocks in this quarter's series.

February Check-In

I can't quite believe that February is over. As in finished a full week ago, it seems like it was just Valentine's Day. February was a little crazy here, Mom had unexpected surgery on the 12th, which put a spin on my month, and my job was eliminated at work, which made for some interesting stressful days. Thank goodness it all worked out (and quickly) and stressing about it was unnecessary. Not that it stopped me in any way shape or form, because, you know some of us love a good reason to stress out. Seriously, I want to be more type B in my next life.

I had pretty big plans for this year, somehow they have morphed a bit, but I am generally okay with that since I was apparently both more and less efficient than I imagined....

The goals as stated at the new year....

Piecing
1. Captain's Wheel complete and sent to the quilter
2. Celtic Wave (Queen) - Piece Along to start in mid-February! QAL in process, Bag #1 finished
3. Flower's for My Wedding Ring - Got all of my fabrics picked and am ready to get started.
4. Scrappy Trip (44 pairs prepped)
5. Osprey's Nest Bags #1 and #2 finished, working on #3

Quilting
1. Winter Wonderland - sent to the quilter
2. Glacier Star
3. Mariner's Compass binding is on and finished, I guess I should do a post on this....I did a lot of pics on Instagram and Facebook, but maybe I should do some here on the blog???
4. Compass Rose - sent to the quilter
5. Meandering Star - at the quilter, due back in a few weeks.
6. Captain's Wheel - at the quilter
7. Celtic Wave Queen - 
8. Flower's for My Wedding Ring
9. Scrappy Trip
10. Osprey's Nest

Pattern Writing
1. 2014 Block of the Month - starts on January 13th! - Done. started February 13th. whole year worth of patterns have been scheduled!!! Yippee!!!
2. 5 new patterns for spring market - Designs for 3 done, just need to sew them up.
3. 5 new patterns for fall market

Other projects :
1. Amazon Star finished
2. Pepperdish finished
3. Crackers finished
4. Feathered Star Queen finished
5. Project Destash

Overall, I am pretty happy with the progress this month. Could I have been a little more efficient? Of course!!! Could I have gotten more done?? Possibly. For now, I am happy with what I've gotten done and where I am for the year, now I just need to keep it up (especially because I want to add a few more items and a big move to the list for the year). Yes, I am slightly insane.


How are you doing on your quilty goals for the year???

Happy Quilting!!!

Catherine

Celtic Wave QAL Update

Well, it's March 4th, and this post is a day late, as I was feeling a bit under the weather yesterday and never actually got on the internet to do anything....thankfully, it appears that it was just an over-tired, over-stressed need a rest day signal, as I am feeling quite spry today.

It's the end of the first checkpoint and the beginning of the second. Hopefully, you are keeping up with us, and have been working steadily on Bag #1......

If you have been keeping up, you will have done the following :

• Pick fabrics (I am doing a red/white/blue/gold color scheme). Complete
• prep papers and bags (6 bags) complete
• cut fabrics -- (yes this is the boring part). I kept fabrics 12 and 13 the same for mine, so it will not have as much variation as the original. complete
• Work on bag 1 units. These are the spike units. They are really simple and a great way to get back in the groove. There a lot of them, so pace yourself. Also, make sure that you pay attention to the instructions, as you need to push some strips forward into bag 3 to make the border units, and depending upon how scrappy/controlled you want these you need to make sure you push the right ones forward....so take your time and make sure you get it right. If you have any questions, just drop me a note in the comments or on Facebook. complete
• If you want to stay up to the minute on progress, make sure that you follow me on Instagram as queenie quilts. I post almost daily various items going on in the studio......
• If you don't have the pattern yet, email me at catherine@queeniequilts.com, and I will honor the sale from a few weeks ago!!!

Here's my H units. I am pretty happy with them, they were pretty simple to piece, and fun to see how they came out. I am a little bit worried about the polka dot, but we'll see how it turns out in the end....

Have you kept up with us?? How are your H units???? What colors are you doing???


Here's the rest of the schedule for the next couple of months....

Checkpoint 2 : March 3 - Bag 2 start - started, there are 16 light accents, and 24 darks accents in this bag. I have completed the 24, not started the 16 yet.

Here are the finished ones :

And the ones left to work on : all laid out and ready to piece.

Checkpoint 3 : March 17 - Bag 3 start
Checkpoint 4 : March 31 - Bag 4 start
Checkpoint 5 : April 14 - Curved Piecing
Checkpoint 6 : April 28 - Border Units (if you are doing the Queen)
Checkpoint 7 : May 12 - Start Assembly
Checkpoint 8 : May 26 - All DONE!!!!

Happy Quilting!!!

Catherine