April To-Do

 Here's what my design wall looks like at the beginning of the month. That’s one of my accomplishments from last month’s retreat, the pieced backing for my Bohemian Wife quilt. The sour grass piece I started in the Jane Sassaman class is still up, waiting to be made into a quilt top.

I'm continuing to use the new configuration of my to-do list below, as it more closely follows the database categories that I use to keep track of all my work-in-progress. Note: the use of 🥏👽  by a project name indicates that it's nearly classified as a UFO at this point by age so work on it!

QUILTS

Continue Assembly

Spring Talking to Summer- Finish and turn in for the BAMQ challenge 

Keep working on Sour Grass Grace from Jane Sassaman class.

Old Town Mystery Quilt - finish the last of the clues and assemble blocks.

AG Stamp Quilt - continue to make more blocks using the cut-out stamp block borders and centers from Tula Pink fabrics.

🥏👽 Trim to size and then sew the 12 columns of the 2023 Temperature Quilt together.

🥏👽 Bohemian Wife - sandwich and make the binding. Decide on whether I'm quilting this myself or not.

Pantone Project - work on a overall design, either in EQ8 or up on the design wall.

🥏👽City Sampler- finish putting together a backing, make the binding, take to a long-armer to be quilted.

Quilting

🥏👽 Trinket

🥏👽 Metro Twist - sandwich and quilt.

🥏👽 Slopes - quilt and finish.

Final Steps

 Running Out of Raincloud -  hand sew down the facings, add the sleeve and label.

HANDWORK/BAG/CLOTHING PROJECTS 

Make a Cotton Candy pouch for myself.

Oxbow Tote - cut out and begin the assembly.

Toned-Down Circle Sampler - arrange and appliqué the circles, start embroidering.

Y.E.S. Coat - continue making pieces/blocks. assemble on foundation, cut out lining pieces from the fabric that I dyed.

Snake In The Garden - Finish hand stitching

Kawandii - Finish hand stitching/assembly

Lots of progress in March, hoping to continue the momentum into April.

Aloha April

 Well, aloha to you April, coming in with the traditional "April Showers" and a little hail this morning.  

As I was walking down the Main Street in San Juan Bautista I noticed this wonderful tile work on a building across the street. Of course I had to cross and take this picture.

I then used KaleidaCam to make this image. Wouldn't it make a wonderful quilt design? I definitely don't have those skills at the moment.

Here's the 31 second video of my March from the 1SE app (one second every day).

Monthly I-Did List for March

1. I worked on my Kawandii at Sew Day and am finally nearing the center (and completion)
2. I worked on Sour Grass Grace started in the Jane Sassaman class in February.
3. I made the binding and added it and label to a Community Giving quilt.
4. I mastered a new to me technique of chain pressing.
5. I worked on the Old Town Mystery quilt and got most of the units completed.
6. I bragged about the 3-d printed pin container my DH made for me.
7. I prepared and packed up for the BAMQ retreat.
8. I made and sewed on the facings for Running Out of Raincloud.

Amazing how much I got done last month, as I traveled to Canada with my mom and went to San Juan Bautista for the BAMQ retreat, so I was literally out of the house quite a lot. I went to the Sew Day for BAMQ and posted on Blue Sky 26 times, Flashes 2 timesInstagram 7 times.

March Cornucopia

 

Here's the March Cornucopia, brimming to overflowing with links to all of the interesting, beautiful, challenging or useful things I consumed online this past month.

💚🐸🍏🐉🐠🐲💹📗📟🔋🎾✅❎

Even though we don't have PIQF happening in Santa Clara next year, I'm still considering entering a quilt for the exhibit, Celebrating Women- A Quilter's Perspective, that will be shown at three of the Mancuso Brother's shows on the East Coast.

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I'm trying out a new word puzzle game called Eight Tile, it's possible I tried this earlier, but I'm at it again. 

💚🐸🍏🐉🐠🐲💹📗📟🔋🎾✅❎

If you sign up by April 6, you might win some Spring goodies from Hey Quilter. There's also free patterns on offer as well.

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Good tips here for taking better pictures of your textile art with your phone camera.

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From Craft Industry Alliance, an article about the shuttering of Jo-Ann's Fabrics and the effect on independent shops.

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A thought-provoking essay on The Real Work of Mid-Life.

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Another interesting fiber related podcast Haptic & Hue - Tales of Textiles, here's an episode on the 5,000 year old use of Pleats.

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On Loving Your Country - Sherilyn Ifill, a powerful and beautiful essay about Selma, Civil Rights and now.

💚🐸🍏🐉🐠🐲💹📗📟🔋🎾✅❎

My current favorite comedian I'm enjoying online is Josh Johnson and this set where he talks about the importance of creating community is a real treasure.

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Retreat Report-Day 2

 

Back to work on day two of the retreat. Hourglass blocks for the Old Town Mystery quilt.

I thought I was finally done with all the hourglass blocks, but I was missing one.

Ahh, that’s better.

So many HSTs for another mystery Quilt clue. But I stuck with it and got them ✅ 

Stacks and stacks of HSTs.

There is a nice big design wall for us to use but it’s not solid, so stuff falls off without pins.

That’s why no official final group picture of all the HST goodness.

Happy view out the window next to me.

View of the design wall and part of the workroom.

 And some of the retreat goodies

First Retreat Day Report

 It was a beautiful drive down to the BAMGG retreat in San Juan Bautista. 

Shopping as a group at Family Threads quilt shop was very fun.

I helped set up and our fabulous organizer, Bonnie handed out detailed very clear lists of steps for each thing we needed to do before everyone arrived. A great innovation that really worked out well!

My first project was trimming the edges of Running Out of Raincloud, and then sewing on the facings. I also made a hanging sleeve, so all done except for the hand sewing.0"”1

Retreat to The Retreat

 I'm off to the BAMQ retreat, with a whole bunch of projects to work on. And some cans of mixed mojitos to share.

Don't worry, LeeLoo, I'll be back pretty soon, you hold down the scrap basket for me.

Another Clue Done

 

I cut out and sewed together the rest of the sets of matching HSTs for the Old Town mystery quilt. Here they are hanging up before I ironed them open and cut the chain stitching. Just thought it looked cool and I wanted to keep them safe from the "helpful" paws of my studio assistants.

They look like little swags of flag pennants. They are actually pretty enticing to the studio assistants when the heater goes on and the air starts blowing them around.

So, I got them down almost immediately

and ironed them open 

and put them back up on the design wall. 

That's one more clue completed!