Goodby 2020

The year is nearly over and as someone recently said - good riddance. Only part of me feels that way. In this post I want to focus on the good things in my life that happened in 2020.

In January I discovered the world of quilt blogging and it has had a huge impact on me. I have learned so much from other quilt bloggers over the past year it's significantly improved my quilting life. I made the discovery through The Quilt Show, specifically their show which featured Barbara Black. I visited her blog, and then checked out the blogs she follows, and then the blogs they follow, etc. I was blown away and so excited to discover that there was a whole world of quilting bloggers out there. 

In February I started my own blog. I had been thinking about doing a quilting blog for several years and once I found that expansive world of quilting bloggers out there I just had to join in. I love sharing what I'm doing in the sewing room with others who are also quilting and want to share what's going on in their sewing rooms. By the end of the month I had chosen to stay home except for going out for necessary things, mostly groceries, because of the pandemic. My choice to do so came before any official lock down in our area of California and was due to the fact that I was still recovering from cancer treatment that I went through in 2019. I had retired because of the cancer and with the necessity of staying home I had far more time to sew than I'd had in a very long time.  I think having a sewing room and plenty of projects to work on kept me sane through this challenging year.

I've never been the sort of person to make New Year's resolutions, mostly because I simply can't keep them. I'm too easily distracted to stay the course with any one plan for a whole day, let alone a whole year. So there was no plan for what I wanted to accomplish in the sewing room in 2020. I found Patty of Elm Street Quilts and her One Monthly Goal linky party early on in the year and joined in for several months. But I lost track of that and just didn't keep up, though I kept on sewing. The months I did join in however, and actually reached my goal were very satisfying. 

Whatever I come up with for a plan, or a list of goals to accomplish in 2021, I know they will include lots of time in the sewing room. I have ongoing projects, projects that have been ripening on the shelf, fabrics pulled for projects I have planned but not started, and ideas for quilts I'd like to make someday. I'd like to get to a place where my blog posts are more consistent. I want to learn more sewing techniques, improve my machine quilting, and spend more time hand quilting. A whole year will not be long enough. 

Joining in with several linky parties and seeing what other quilters are doing brought new ideas, new tips and techniques for me to try, and new patterns - lots of new patterns, some with tutorials. I found Moda's Block Heads 3 and though I've not participated in their sew along I've saved the patterns and have used a couple of them in little projects of my own. I also came across the notion of "Squirrel" a project that grabs your attention away from things you would be doing otherwise. This little gem was a very insistent and fun squirrel to chase for a few days this year. It is made from Moda's Block Heads 3 pattern Taos by Vanessa Goertzen. I made it entirely from scraps and love the way it turned out. 

It was Angela at So Scrappy who introduced me to the world of scrap quilters and the fantastically beautiful quilts that have been made just from scraps, something I simply could not have imagined possible. Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge motivated me to get my scraps organized so they would be usefully available and it's been a huge improvement in my sewing room and in my ability to actually use my scraps. I've worked with fabric scraps for years without having any kind of plan to use up my scraps. I was just using what I had. This year I actually planned and have nearly completed a small quilt made entirely from scraps - my little string quilt. This quilt has a fun story that I will tell in a later post. I have a little more planned for this quilt but it's a surprise so will say no more now and will share the story when it's no longer a surprise. 

I've enjoyed very much being able to share my blog posts through numerous linky parties. I've been thinking for a while that I'd like to start one of my own. So I've been kicking around various ideas for what might make a good linky party that's not already out there, and I think I've finally arrived at one that would work. So part of what I would like to accomplish in 2021 is to figure out how to set up and maintain a linky party of my own. I will write more about that if and when I manage to figure out how to get one launched. The photo has something to do with my idea, more about that if I get it launched. 

One of the patterns that caught my attention this year was posted with a tutorial by Joy of The Joyful Quilter - the Magic Stars pattern. It's taken up a big portion of my time in the sewing room this year because I chose to make a queen size quilt and then a lap size quilt with the fabric left over from the queen size. I got to add both of those quilts to my 2020 finished projects list. I finished the the queen size quilt on my birthday in November and the small one last week. 

The small one was especially satisfying because it was the first leader/ender project I'd ever tried. When I started blogging I'd never heard of such a thing but read so many blog posts that mentioned it I finally went looking and found Bonnie Hunter and her tutorial explaining what it was and how to do it. What a gift. In a way it felt like my small Magic Stars quilt did come about by magic - because it got pieced so quickly while I was focused on getting other things done. 

I also made a pillow for my niece Abigail from one of the Magic Stars blocks that just didn't fit into the original quilt. The colors were off, but the fabrics were perfect to go with the quilt I gave Abby for her birthday. It is the first time I've made a pillow with a zipper instead of an overlap backing. It was a good learning experience. 

I finished the Stars bed pillow cover to go with the Magic Stars quilt. Different stars than those in the quilt but they look good together. The cats love it and sleep on it often. I made it to keep them off the pillows. 

One of the other things I did this year was join in my very first sew along. It was Pat Sloan's "Cozy".  I joined because it was just one block a week for only 9 weeks and I thought maybe I could actually accomplish that. And I did - all 9 blocks are made. There are still setting blocks to do and then getting it all put together. Just this week I found the fabric at our lqs to use for those setting blocks and to tie it all together. I have so many other projects in progress and ideas for quilts I want to do that I probably won't be doing another sew-a-long this year. 

The funny exception to that is the Jelly Snowflake quilt that I'm currently working on. The sew-a-long from the Fat Quarter Shop is long over but I've seen so many pretty photos of the completed quilts that I decided to make one too. I hope to have the top completed by Monday. It's all in blue and white, just two fabrics, and I'd like to have it as a tablecloth for January, but we'll see if that is a realistic goal. Snow still works for February right? I don't have a valentines quilt so snowflakes should work. 

If you would like to check out the pattern, you can find it along with a YouTube tutorial from Fat Quarter Shop here.

Another 2020 finish is a Christmas runner for my kitchen china cabinet from fabrics left over from the Christmas table cloth I made last January. I quilted the tablecloth for the Christmas in July Blog Hop hosted by Carol of Just Let Me Quilt. My first Blog Hop, and I hope to join in to the same again this year. I have a couple of quilts in mind I would like to have ready for next Christmas. Having the two completed Christmas quilts has helped make my home a little more festive this year, which was good for me since we did stay home and have Christmas alone this year.

That brings me down to the year's end. I've been thinking about what I would like to accomplish in the quilting room in 2021. Though I mentioned previously that I am no good at following plans - especially plans that extend for a year - I think it is a good idea to have some goals in mind. Launching a linky party as I mentioned above would be one big goal for the year, for the rest I think it would be finishing the many works in progress I've got hanging around waiting for my attention. They include the Charm Square Heart quilt, the pink string quilt, the Boot quilt, not a full list. I would like to get the quilt tops I've finished this year quilted in 2021. They include the Ladybug quilt, a stars tablerunner in Fall Colors, and the Afternoon Delight tablecloth for spring. I would also like to get started on another Afternoon Delight tablecloth quilt, start the Stepping Stars tablecloth, make a Christmas tree skirt and a small quilted topper for the drop leaf table in my entry way. And more, I want to do so much more.  I will begin with One Monthly Goal for January, to complete the top for the String Quilt and possibly to get it layered and ready to quilt. 

I'm linking up with: 

Kelly at Needle and Thread Thursday

Alycia at Alycia Quilts for Finished or Not Friday

Patty at Elm Street Quilts for One Monthly Goal

Angela at So Scrappy for RSC2021

Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap!

Judy of Small Quilts and Doll Quilts for Design Wall Monday

Beth at Love, Laugh, Quilt for Monday Making

Susan at Quilt Fabrication for Midweek Makers

Jennifer at Inquiring Quilter for Wednesday Wait Loss