2019 Finish Along: Along for the Ride Again

We are in the second week of January already.  If you can get past this week with your dieting and exercise goals for 2019 on track, you are doing better than most.  Usually the quilty goals are still on track at this point.  We'll see if that is still true at the end of the month.  Staying focused on one project seems to be my best strategy for getting quilts done, so hopefully participating the 2019 Finish Along will help me keep that focus. 

Since I'm also committed to the APQ UFO Challenge, I've already drafted a prioritized list of the UFOs to focus on this year.  But rather than following along with the number of the month, I'm going to work through my list in numerical order and work on each project till it's done rather than switching each month.  Fingers crossed that will mean more finishes this year.  So from that list what's likely to get done in the first quarter of the Finish Along? 

1.  Inverted Star

 Inverted Star by Jessica Boschem of Common Threads available from Blueprint 

It's a finished flimsy, the back is pieced, both need to be pressed and prepped for quilting, then packaged to go out for quilting.  That should happen this weekend.  So Inverted Star is a good candidate for a first quarter finish.

2.  The Christmas Mystery Quilt

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

Also a finished flimsy, though I do need to embroider some eyes, nose and mustache onto the nut cracker.  It needs a backing pieced and then it can go out for quilting.  I'll start on it as soon as Inverted Star is ready to go.  So this is another likely first quarter finish. 

3.  Christmas Angels

 Christmas Angels
Pattern by Kate

The center of the quilt is pieced, but it needs borders and backing.  I think this one is also likely to get finished this quarter if I don't dilly dally over the first two.  

4.  Vintage Dresses

 Vintage Dresses by Charise Randell

Another quilt that needs the borders added and the backing pieced.  I'm not sure this one will make it to finished by the end of the quarter.  It needs to go out for quilting early in March to make that deadline.  

5.  Red, White and Blue Stars

Red, White and Blue Stars, Setting by Kate

The blocks need to be sashed and sewn together.  This one isn't likely to get done in first quarter, but I'll add it to the list as my stretch goal for the quarter.  It would be really nice to get four quilts finished in the first quarter  That's all I finished in all of 2018.  

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.  

The 2019 Quilt Plan

The year is winding down, so it's just natural that we start to think of what's the plan for next year.  Well at least it's natural for me to do that, I'm a planner.  Plus American Patchwork & Quilting has kicked off their 2019 UFO Challenge.  

Deciding what's on the quilt plan is my first step in setting the quilty ambitions for the next year.  So here's my list UFO list for 2019

For the 2018 challenge, a new number was picked each month and that was the quilt I worked on.  My problem with this system is that it's very rare that I finish a quilt in a month.  In 2017, the finished quilt list included 7 quilts, some of which were started from scratch.  In 2018, the finished list has only 4 on it.  Looking back, in 2017 I stuck to my quilt plan, finishing the first quilt in the list before moving on to the second quilt on the list.  I'm going back to that strategy in 2019. 

In picking the quilts for the list, I started with the quilts closest to being finished, then from oldest to newest.  Here's the quilts for this year.

That takes care of the UFO part of the 2019 plan.  Now for the new project part of the plan.  I tend to do a pretty good job of finishing off my starts each year (well maybe not the Bonnie Hunter mysteries).  But what's the fun in not starting a bit of new stuff? 

1.  Rainbow Scrap Project:  Wild and Goosey blocks
2.  Meadow Mist Designs Mystery
3   Bonnie Hunter 2019 Mystery
4.  Quilter's Hideaway mystery series
      a.  Patriotic (May to July)
      b.  Autumn (Sept/Oct)
      c.  Christmas (November)

That's six new starts.  Hopefully I can finish 7 quilts so the quilt list will go down by at least one.  

Now that both those lists are drafted, it's time to decide on my other quilty ambitions for 2019.  How are you plans for 2019 coming along?

Edited 1/1/2019:  I'm also planning on participating in Quilting Gail's PHD in 2019. Not sure I can finish all my planned starts in 2019, but I'm hoping to make some significant headway on the UFOs.