2019: The Year in Stitches

Just a few more hours left in 2019, in some parts of the world it's already 2020.  I've already posted about my stitchy goals for 2020 to go along with Quilting JetGirl's Planning Party post.  But I didn't include my 2019 accomplishments in that post.  So before the calendar turns over to 2020, here's a summary of this year's accomplishments. 

1.  Quilt Plan Progress.  The plan included 12 quilts to be finished and six new projects to be started.  

Four quilts from the plan were finished:  Inverted Star, 2018 Christmas Mystery, Christmas Angels and Vintage Dresses.  

Twinkle Stars went from a set of finished blocks to an almost finished flimsy.  

Eight new quilt projects were started:  Wild and Goosey (2019 Rainbow Scrap Challenge Quilt), Daisy Chain Mystery, Storm at Sea, Simply Sensational Summer Scrap Quilt, Mosaic Mystery, 2019 Christmas Mystery Quilt, Winter Quilt Along, 2019 Bonnie Hunter Mystery Frolic.  There were six new quilts listed on the original quilt plan. Two from that list ended up not happening, so actually there's only two new projects that weren't planned for in 2019. 

2.  Stitch for 15 Minutes Every Day in 2019 and host a Sunday Linky Party.  

Ended the year with 332 days of stitching time out of 365 days, for a success rate of 90.96%.  My target for the year was >90%, so just met that goal.  

Posted 52 weekly 15 Minute to Stitch linky parties.  

3. Sew from the Stash.   

Wild and  Goosey used up a lot of triangle scraps, while the Sensational Summer Scrappy quilt used up a number of 2.5 strips.  Daisy Chain and the Winter Quilt Along projects used up left over fabrics from other quilting projects.  Storm at Sea, Mosaic Mystery, and Frolic used stash fabrics.  The only quilt that used new fabrics was the 2019 Christmas Mystery.  So not bad performance on this particular goal for 2019. 

The only major fail for 2019 was finishing off projects. I would have liked to had a few more finishes, but four finishes are better than none at all. So I'll be happy with that success.  Finding time to stitch went well most of the year and using stash fabrics went pretty well too.  So I'll call 2019 a success and work harder on getting more finishes in 2020.  

2019 Quilting Ambitions - Midyear Check In

So the first half of the year is over (wow that was fast).  I just finished performance reviews at work, basically a check in meeting with the supervisor to say what's on track, what's not and how do you get back on track. I don't have a quilty supervisor (thank goodness!), but it does help my accountability to post on the blog how well the quilty year is going.  Back in December 2018, I participated in Quilting Jetgirl's 2019 Planning Party by posting a list of my 2019 Quilting Ambitions.  So what's working and what's not from my ambitions list?     

Quilty Ambition #1:  Use a quilt plan

The last two years I've played along with the American Patchwork and Quilting's UFO Challenge on Facebook. You select 12 UFOs, they pick a number each month and you work on that UFO. I did that in 2018.  And though I made progress on all the projects, I didn't do so well on finishing projects.  So this year the plan was to focus on one project till it was finished, then move on to the next project.  I've used the approach in the years where there's been a lot of sewing to deadlines (graduation quilts) and it seems to result in more finishes.  Here's this year's project list.

Quilts #1, #2 and #3 are all finished.  Quilt #4 just needs two border strips added before it's a finished flimsy.  Looking back at 2018, only one quilt was finished by midyear.  That would suggest that focusing on one quilt from the list till it's done works better, at least for me.  So even though I've not finished six quilts in six months, I'm doing better than last year, so in my book that counts as on track for this ambition. 

Quilty Ambition #2:  Stitch 15 minutes every day

As of June 30th, I'd manage to fit in 15 minutes of stitching 157 out of 180 days for a success rate of 87.22%.  My goal is 90%, so I'm a little off track on that goal.

Quilty Ambition #3:  Sew from the stash

I didn't set any goals for fabric in or out this year.  Out of the 9 years I've been tracking fabric usage there's only been two where I used more than I bought.  The focus here is on using what's in the fabric closet on new projects.  Wild and Goosey is this year's Rainbow Scrap Challenge project and it uses up lots of those small cut off triangles. 

Storm at Sea uses a teal that's been in the stash forever. 

  

While Daisy Chain used up left overs from a couple of other projects.

I've added to the stash a bit this year, but not on the scale I have some years.  As of the end of June, there's more in than out, but I'm close to break even there. With six months left in the year, as long as I continue to ignore all those fabric shop emails, there should be more going out than coming in. That would be a success.  

Motivators

These are those blog based quilt programs the can provide some structure and accountability to fulfilling your ambitions if you choose them wisely and play along faithfully.  

I talked about the America Patchwork and Quilting Facebook group that was the inspiration for my quilt plan.  I'm also working on my quilting PhD with Quilting Gail.  

I'm not doing so hot on that front.  I've done a bit on the finishing UFO part, but you also have to finish all the quilts you start in a given year.  I'm pretty sure Daisy Chain and Storm at Sea will get completed, but Wild N Goosey is going to be a longer term project. I'd say getting my quilty PHD in 2019 is probably a long shot. 

Participating in the One Monthly Goal this year has been going well. 

I've been more careful this year to match up my monthly goal with the time I've got available each month. Work has impacted my schedule more this year than last, so I have to be realistic about what is really achievable each month.  Last year was a pretty crappy year on this front (5 out of 12 OMGs met) and it was demotivating.  It feels much better to have met six out of the six goals so far this year.  

The last motivator is the 15 Minutes to Stitch linky party that I host each Sunday.  

For some reason it's always been a big motivator if I have to post progress on the blog.  Knowing that I'll have to report out my progress on Sunday is sometimes the only thing that convinces me I really do need to get in those 15 minutes. There's been 26 posts so far in 2019 and they've all gone up on Sunday.  Sometimes not as early as I would have liked, but they all got up.  There are 9 to 10 bloggers that link up most every week.  It's motivating when someone else is doing well and making progress.  It's also comforting when someone has a not so successful week of finding time to stitch. We all have those weeks where life just gets in the way. It's good to remember for most of us quilting is a hobby and it's OK to have an off week or a week we just want to go do something else.  So thank you to the 15 Minute to Stitch  regulars, you really do make my week.

So the year hasn't been perfect, but it's shaping up to be a better than average year on the stitching front. That works for me. 

Weekend Stitching: How's it Going?

Weekend's are definitely too short.  March was too short. April marks the start of the second quarter of 2019.  One fourth of the year is already over.  There's still three quarters of the year left. Seems like a good time to check on how well I'm doing with those lofty quilty goals outlined in this post for the 2019 Planning Party.  

First goal was UFO reduction.  The strategy for 2019 was to pick and prioritize 12 quilts.  I'd start with #1 on the list and work on it till it was done and then move on to #2.  So how's that working?  

Inverted Star was a finished flimsy at the beginning of the year, it needed a backing made and prepping for quilting.  

The binding was finished in March.  

Inverted Star (Second Star to the Right)
 Inverted Star block by Jessica Boschem of Common Threads available from Blueprint 

Setting by Kate, Started January 1, 2014, Finished March 11, 2019

The Christmas Mystery Quilt (HO HO HO) was the second quilt on the list.  It also needed a backing made and prepping for quilting.  My Guy also insisted that the nutcracker was too creepy, it needed a face stitched in.  

Christmas Mystery
designed by Carrie Randall (Quilter's Hideaway)

Those things got done.  The quilting is done, the binding and labels made.  The label's been pinned in place, I hope to start stitching on the binding tonight. This one should be finished by the end of April

Number three on my list was another Christmas quilt.  

This project needed borders added before it was ready for backing and prepping. 

 Christmas Angels
Pattern by Kate

The borders are done, the backing made and prepping for quilting happened was finished last night.  It's ready to go out for quilting.  

So projects are moving along, slowly, but they are moving.  All three of these projects were on my list for the 2019 Finish Along.  

My last two ambitions were on finding time to stitch and to sew from the stash.  I've managed to find stitching time 86 out of the 90 days so far this year.  That's not shabby at all.  Both new projects started this year, the Daisy Chain Mystery.

Daisy Chain Mystery
2019 Little Bunny Quilts Mystery
by Alison of Honey, Bunny & Doll Designs

and the Storm at Sea quilt

Storm at Sea
Paper Piecing Class by Carrie Randell (Quilter's Hideaway)

were made with stash fabrics.  I've added a bit of new fabric, but first quarter ended with more out of the stash then into the stash. 

So first quarter's been pretty good.  I'd probably do better at finishing projects if I'd quit starting new projects, but what's the fun in that?  

Hope your year has been productive. Linking up with the normal Monday linky parties and the 2019 First Quarter Finish Along when it's posted.  


Design Wall Monday
2019 First Quarter Finish Along

2019 Quilting Ambitions

It's that time of year to assess how 2018 went on the quilty front and what quilty aspirations should there be for 2019.  Yvonne of Quilting Jet Girl is hosting her annual Planning Party to encourage some goal setting for the upcoming year.  

For 2019 I've decide not so much on a set of goals as on a set of strategies to help me manage my sewing time.  

1.  Use a quilt plan.  My sewing time can be pretty limited so it's helpful if I've made decisions about what projects are my focus for the year.  Last year I played along with the American Patchwork and Quilting's UFO Challenge.  I'm going to do that again this year, but rather than follow the numbers drawn each month, I have a prioritized list.  I'm starting with number one and working on each project till it hits completion.  That strategy worked well for me in 2017 when I finished 7 quilts.  We'll see if that pans out for 2019. This year's complete quilt plan is posted here, but here's the condensed version.

2.  Work in 15 minutes of stitching time each day.  My definition of stitching time is anything that moves a project towards completion.  So that means working in EQ on layout options, designing labels, and selecting fabrics. The weekly stitching report and linky party that goes live each Sunday will continue in 2019.  

3.  Sew from the stash.  I'm not setting expectations for fabric usage or for fabric purchases for 2019.  There are three mystery quilt programs scheduled by the local quilt shop.  Those are great projects to use up existing stash, plus Bonnie Hunter's 2019 mystery and hopefully a new mystery from Meadow Mist Designs will round out new projects that use stash fabrics.  I've decided on Bonnie Hunter's Wild and Goosey blocks as this year's Rainbow Scrap Challenge Project.  I have lots of scraps that need to find their way into blocks.  

So that's my approach to 2019. Defined goals with metrics have not been working for me, I'm hoping the strategic approach will give me a good basis to make progress with.  Good luck with your ambitions for 2019.