PHD in 2024: End of the Year Wrap Up

It's always an adjustment to move from the previous year to the new year.  Mostly it's a mind reset, but it did take me the better part of the morning to reset my quilting tracking spreadsheet for the new year.  That first meant making sure all of the quilty stuff that went on in 2024 was captured. With that all done, it made pulling all the information for my end of the year PHD report easier. 

The year ended with six finishes, six projects moved to finished quilt tops, progress on the rest of the UFOs on the list and six new starts.  So I broke even in terms of finishes and starts for the year, there was no net change in my UFO numbers. But I finished double the number of quilts in 2024 than I did in 2023.  So I'll take that as successful year even though I didn't earn my PHD for the year.

The finishes this year ranged from some of the oldest on my UFO list to one of the new starts. 

First row: A Flutter (self designed), Blue Birds (self designed), Shadow Demon (self designed)

Second row: Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter), Diatom (Quilting Jetgirl), String Lights (Meadow Mist Designs) 

The projects that became finished quilt tops also range from some of my oldest UFOs to one of this year's new starts.  

First row:  Chocolate Marshmallow (Seabreeze Quilts), Squared Away (So Scrappy), Chilhowie (Bonnie Hunter)

Second row: Malted Mystery (Meadow Mist Designs), Indigo Way (Bonnie Hunter), Betty (Meadow Mist Designs)

There was good progress on a few other projects this year as well.  

Grandmother's Choice (renamed Kate's Choice) was supposed to be my quilt as you go project. It hadn't been touched in twelve years. I finished all the blocks, but didn't do much on the learning to quilt part of the project. There's always 2025 right?   

I didn't do as much on the Butterfly panel this year.  One butterfly and some of the fill in foliage got finished.  This is my travel project. It went on a few trips, but this year I was able to take quilts that needed to be bound on a number of trips away from home. So I still got a lot of hand work done, just not on this project.

Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter) has been on the active list for the last couple of years. I make a few blocks each week.  This year all the orange blocks got finished. I only need to finish 3 more of the red blocks to be done with that color.  That should happen this month, then I'm left with all the cool colors to finish. 

The Simply Sensational Summer Scrap quilt (Kevin the Quilter) wasn't on my PHD list for 2024, but it became an active project when I needed something that would empty out my scrap bins a bit and be a good leaders and enders project.  I need over 200 of the blue 4 patches and over 100 of the yellow. There's ten 4 patches in each stack, so I'm a long way off from that.  So this will probably be my leaders and enders the rest of the year.  

Of the six new starts for 2024, one is a finished quilt (Shadow Demon), one is a finished quilt top (Betty), the remaining 4 are in various stages of completion.  

I hadn't planned on doing the guild BOM, but it was such a different design that I decided to go for it. I mostly kept up, except for December.  All the blocks are made, all that's left is assembly and cutting all the sashing and border strips.  This should make it to finished quilt top before the end of the first quarter this year.  

Marble Mystery (Meadow Mist Designs) was going along pretty well until December. I've made some progress on the last clue but, didn't get it done before the January clue came out this morning. This morning's clue includes the instructions for final assembly and I'm excited to see how my version comes together.  

Old Town kicked off in late November.  A month and a half later, I've finished clue 1. Made decent progress on clue 2, but am way behind on all the other clues. There is some of each clue finished, but not enough for more than one block I'm guessing.  We'll see what I can get done before Friday's clue comes out.  

The last new project wasn't planned for at all.  But when I agreed to take on the guild BOM this year, it meant I had to have the January block ready to show at the December guild meeting.  I've made this quilt before, but with the same background for all the blocks. This time I'm going scrappy on the background as well.  

That pretty much wraps up my 2024 in the sewing room. I'm hoping for a successful 2025.  Linking up with Miss P Designs USA for the 2024 PHD Wrap Up.  

Finish Five

My Guy had lots of vacation time, so he took off last week and we headed to Eureka Springs, AR.  We had much bigger plans for vacation this year, but then a family wedding and a potential refinery project hijacked the dates we had planned to go.  We've been to Eureka Springs several times. We did a lot of shopping, hiking, and eating out.  I took two quilts to bind and finished one of them. 

My version of Rhododendron, the Bonnie Hunter 2021 mystery quilt, is finished.  I've named my version Azaleas since I used purple rather than the suggested pink.  

I used the dark purple, along with a floral print for the backing.

Trudy did a fun floral design for the quilting. 

The binding is the same purple Batik used for the border.  I'm happy with my version. No immediate plans for this quilt, it will probably be given as a gift at some point.   

Five finishes so far for this year, four of which were UFOs.  My list still shows 20 UFOs that need to be finished.  I'm hoping for at least one more finish this year.  There are 5 quilt tops waiting for quilting, hopefully I'll get off to a good start with finishes next year.  

Linking up with Design Wall Monday and Patchwork & Quilts. 

September 2024 PHD Report

September was just a weird month for some reason.  I guess because, though it has cooled off some, it was still pretty warm. Didn't feel like autumn at all.  At any rate, the higher temps made the sewing room the place to be so I got a lot of stitching done this month. So there is plenty to report for the September PHD Report linky party over at P Designs USA. Here's my PHD report for the last month.  

The report shows a new start.  But that start was planned at the beginning of the year.  At least that one won't count against my PHD for this year, the clues won't end till next year.  There is a finish to balance out the new start.  Rhododendron Trails (Azaleas) was the 2021 Bonnie Hunter Mystery.  

I just barely finished the quilt before the end of the month and managed to get this photo of the quilt laid out on a bed. This is my sixth finish out of 12 Bonnie Hunter mystery starts.  So I still have lots of BH quilts on my UFO list to finish.  I'm sure some of those will make next year's PHD list. It does feel good to have one off the list.  

In addition to the one finish, there was lots of progress on other projects this month.  

There was good progress on the orange blocks needed for my version of Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter)

  

Seven sets of 4 blocks have been completed. Just need one more set of 4 to have what's needed for my version of the quilt.  

It's been slow progress on the Simply Sensational Summer Scrap quilt (Kevin the Quilter).

One set each of 10 yellow and blue blocks were finished in September. It is my leader and enders project, so progress is slow, but it's been steady. I finished a set of 10 of each last month.  Slow progress is better than no progress. 

Another Bonnie Hunter mystery finally reached the finished quilt top stage.  

Chilhowie is the 2022 Bonnie Hunter Mystery quilt.  I'm pretty happy with how it came out, that final teal border really helps calm down all that orange.  It joins Indigo Way in the to be quilted closet.  This one probably won't be quilted till next year. I'm hoping by next year I'll have enough skills to quilt the smaller quilts like this.  

Trudy finished the quilting on Diatom (Quilting Jetgirl) and sent it back. 

I started hand stitching down the binding on the last day of the month. The PHD report should have one more finish added next month.  

The September block for the Guild BOM was finished.  

I've stayed caught up with this block of the month.  The instructions for the October block have already been published.  It's another 12" block, so it should go together quickly. The finishing instructions in November are going to require a lot more effort. 

The new start is the 2024 Meadow Mist Designs Mystery quilt along, Marble Mystery. 

The September clue was the 9-patches and the flying geese.  Those are done, plus I have all the fabrics cut ready to piece the rest of the clues.  The October clue comes out tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing what's next.  

September was a productive month.  One finish, one being bound, and one finished quilt top.  So definitely not a bad month. I'm hopeful to have another quilt ready to go out for quilting before the middle of the month so there will be finishes for both October and November.  We'll see if that happens.  It's doubtful I'll achieve a PHD this year. That's OK, I'm really happy with all the progress on so many projects this year.  I can try again next year.  

Computer Time and a Bit of Hand Stitching

Last week's maladies definitely hampered my progress on all things quilty. Some days, 15 minutes was really all I managed to accomplish.  But there was still progress.  Both design walls are completely empty at the moment. Chocolate Marshmallow goes up next. I did work out the final setting in EQ on one of the days I didn't make it to the sewing room. 

  

This may or may not be the final block layout. I need to get the blocks up on the design wall and play a bit before that's a done deal.  Chocolate Marshmallows was started in 2014. It was a BOM quilt along over at Sea Breeze Quilts.  I've not been able to find the block patterns, I need to check with Amanda to see if they are still available.  At any rate, the plan is to get moving on this project next.  

There's been good progress on getting the binding stitched down on Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter).

I turned the third corner last night.  Another 40 to 50 inches of stitching left and this will be a finished quilt. That should be doable today.  I'd like to be able to count it as a finish on my PHD report for September.  

The planned finish for October is just waiting for me to start on the the hand stitching. 

Diatom (Quilting Jetgirl) is a wedding gift for one of Grad Girl's friends. I'm hoping to have it finished before I go visit her later in October.  

I have lots to keep me busy this week.  Linking up with Design Wall Monday and Patchwork & Quilts.  

To Do Tuesday on Thursday for the Week of 9/24/2024

Getting a to do list posted for this week hasn't been the easiest.  I was very sick Tuesday and then yesterday had an appointment to get the car in for service. By the time I got home, the ragweed had given me one of those "light hurts your eyes" headaches.  I still have the dregs of the headache, I'm hoping it clears up as the day goes on.  But it's backed off enough I can at least sit in front of the computer this morning.  

Last week's to do list was an easy one.  

To Do List for 09/17/24

1.  Rhododendron: Trim quilt, attach binding to front ✔

2.  Marble Mystery: Finish the September clue ✔

3.  Wild and Goosey: Continue making orange blocks ✔

4.  SSSS Mystery: Continue as leaders and enders project ✔

5.  Learn to quilt:  Read books, watch videos ✔

I didn't do as much on the learn to quilt front as I had hoped, but I did a bit.  I'll take some progress over none.  

The list for this week is pretty long, but hopefully I'll feel up to a bit of catch up on the sewing front today.  

To Do List for 09/24/2024

1.   Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter): Finish binding

I didn't make as much progress on this as I wanted, but I'm just about to turn corner 2.  It should still be a finished quilt by the end of the month. 

2. Diatom (Quilting Jetgirl): Make label and binding, trim and start binding

Diatom is back from the quilter.  This quilt is for one of Grad Girl's chemistry buddies who got married earlier this year, it's a late wedding present.  Grad Girl came up with the name and I've gotten a good start on the label.  This one won't be finished in September, but should be completed before my next trip to Texas. 

3. Guild BOM: Finish the September block

I've let myself get behind on this one.  But it's a small block and I have the fabrics cut, it should go together pretty quickly.  

4.  Chocolate Marshmallows: Decide on a setting

This project was started in 2014 and the blocks all finished in 2015. It's been sitting waiting for me to come up with a setting that I like.  When I looked this morning, there are 22 versions of a final quilt in my EQ files.  Either I use one of those or come up with something completely new.  We'll see how that goes.  

5.  Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter): Continue making orange blocks

Just four more orange blocks to finish and I'll be done with that color for this project.  Not sure I can finish them all this month, but I'll definitely give that a go.  

6.  Simply Sensational Summer Scrap Mystery (Kevin the Quilter): Continue as leader and enders project. 

Another set of the yellow 4-patches have been finished. So it's back to blue 4-patches this week. 

That's my list this week. It's an ambitious one, so it's OK if I don't check off all the items for this week.  Linking up with The Quilt Schmilt for To Do Tuesday.  

A Bit of This and That

We had a family wedding to attend last weekend.  We hit the road Thursday afternoon, so there wasn't a lot of time in the sewing room last week.  I did get the binding made and attached to Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter).  That was my only sewing time over the weekend. With all the activities, I didn't get very far, just one corner turned at this point. 

I should make better progress with this now that we are home. You can really see the quilting Trudy did in the dark purple part of the backing.  It's lovely.  

The wedding we attended was for My Guy's older sister.  She's been a widow for about seven years, so it was good to see that she's found someone so she's not alone anymore. The wedding was in Kansas City, KS.  Since My Guy has some vacation to burn, I asked to go up a day earlier than necessary so we could make a side trip. 

Hamilton, Mo was only about an hour from where we were staying.  So we made a day trip to the Missouri Star Quilt Company.  My Guy thought this was just a quilt shop, he was surprised to see a whole quilt town!  I wasn't really paying any attention to the company schedule, but we arrived during the Sweet 16 birthday celebration.  The town was pretty packed, but you could still shop.  You can see my haul above.  The Christmas and Batik fat quarter bundles are gifts, only the white on white fat quarters are mine.  Those will go into a scrap quilt I have on my to be made list.  My Guy did some of his own Christmas shopping for various family members.  Once he finished that, he begged off to the Tap Room so I could finish visiting all the shops. He'd had enough of all things quilty at that point.  

He texted me this photo about 15 minutes after he left me, with the message "You may have to drive".  He was almost done with the flight when I showed up.  He'd made friends with several other enabler husbands and was having a pretty good time on his own. Yes, I did drive back to where we were staying.  

It was a fun weekend with our extra excursion and seeing My Guy's twin sisters along with a few nephew's and nieces, plus one great nephew. It was fun to just hang out and catch up. Linking up with Design Wall Monday and Patchwork & Quilts.

To Do List for the Week of 9/17/2024

Hard to believe we are already more than halfway through with September.  The end of the year always seems to pass so much quicker than the beginning of the year.  There is still so much left on my goals for this year, I guess that's why last week's to do list was so long. 

To Do List for 9/10/2024

1.  Diatom: Finish top prep, send out for quilting ✔

2.  Chilhowie: Add last border ✔

3.  Jewel Box Blocks: Finish blocks ✔

4.  Marble Mystery: Cut fabrics, start September clue ✔

5.  Rhododendron: Make label and binding ✔

6.  Wild and Goosey:  Continue making orange blocks ✔

7.  Sensational Summer Scrap Mystery: Leaders and enders ✔

It was a good week on the progress front.  Several projects hit milestones and will drop off the active list for a bit.  That opens up the in progress list a bit and I had to think what should go on the to do list to take up those spaces.

To Do List for 9/17/2024

1.  Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter):  Trim quilt, start attaching binding.

The binding is made and the label is printed. I need to soak the label, then let it dry, but that won't take long. I'm changing the name of my version to Azaleas.  Azaleas are rhododendrons and I've seen purple ones, so that works for me.  I should be hand stitching the binding to the back before the end of the week. We have some family stuff this weekend, so I'm not sure that I'll finish all the hand stitching, but it should be close. 

2. Marble Mystery (Meadow Mist Designs): Finish the flying geese.

Finishing the geese completes the September clue.  I'm happy with my fabric choices so far. We'll have to see if the October clue changes that.  

3. Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter): Continue making orange blocks

I'm almost finished with orange, I only need 2 more sets of 4 blocks.  My plan is to keep making the orange blocks until they are finished.  I'm betting that doesn't happen till sometime in October.  

4.  Simply Sensational Summery Mystery (Kevin the Quilter): Continue as leader and ender project. 

I finished a set of blue 4-patches this week and have switched back to my yellow scraps for the next set of 10.  

5.  Learn to Quilt: Read books, watch videos

One of my goals for this year was to learn to quilt by completing a quilt as you go project.  I've got the blocks done so now I need to figure out the quilting part. I'm going to do some reading and video watching, then start some practice sessions in October.  I've had these books for years, but hopefully not much has changed with the basics. 

That's the plan for this week. We have some family stuff this weekend, so I backed off on adding anything new to my in progress list. Linking up with The Quilt Schmilt for To Do Tuesday.

To Do List for the Week of 9/10/2024

Just one week into September and it already feels like the month is just flying by.  The weeks do seem to be getting busier and I have more things on my other stuff to do list, my sewing room to do list has suffered a bit as a result. 

To Do List for 09/03/2024

1. Diatom: Prep top for quilting - progress

2. Chilhowie: Finish 1st pieced border, start on second border ✔

3.  Jewel Box Blocks: Finish blocks - progress

4.  Marble Mystery: Cut background fabric, start assembly - progress

5.  Wild and Goosey: Continue making orange blocks ✔

6.  Sensational Summer Quilt: Continue as leaders and enders ✔

Three check marks with progress on the remaining three items.  Not a stellar week, but not a bad week either.  I'm sure to have more of those over the next few weeks as we've got other stuff going on.  I have some technical work that needs to get done, plus as the weather has cooled, there's some stuff around the house that really has to get done.  

Having said all that, this week's list is going to be ambitious.  I'm close to finishing off a couple of the to do's from last week, so adding a couple of new items to take their place.  It's a long list this week.  

To Do List for 09/10/2024

1.  Diatom (Quilting Jetgirl): Finish top prep, send out for quilting.  

I finished pressing and de-threading 3 of the 4 rows of blocks. It shouldn't take long to finish the last row of blocks. The plan is to do that this morning before I head out to lunch with My Guy. Hopefully I can also find a box and get it packaged so it can go out today as well. 

2.  Chilhowie (Bonnie Hunter): Add last border

The strips are all sewn together, I just need to measure the top and cut the strips, then sew them on.  Shouldn't take to long to finish off this top once Diatom is off the cutting table.  

3.  Jewel Box Blocks (Cynthia Brunz Designs): Finish blocks

I finished six blocks, but ended up cutting enough fabric for 16 blocks.  These are pretty easy to assemble so they should be done by the end of this week.  I raided my 4.5 and 5 inch scrap bins for the HSTs. Making these blocks did empty both scrap bins enough that there is room for more scraps (yeah!).

4. Marble Mystery (Meadow Mist Designs): Continue to cut fabrics and work on September clue.

Not the best picture, but I wasn't going to take all the pieces out of the baggies.  The background is all cut and I have plenty left over. I was concerned I wouldn't as I'm a 1/4 yard short based on the yardage charts for the project.  I still need to cut one more fabric before I can start any of the assembly.  That should happen this week sometime.  

5.  Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter): Make label and binding

Rhododendron came back from being quilted last week.  Trudy did a great job with it.  If I can get the label and binding made, then there is a good chance this quilt can be finished next week.  

6.  Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter): Continue making orange blocks

The RSC color for September is darks. Since all my blocks use black, I'm just going to keep making the orange blocks.  I don't need many more before I'll have all that's needed for this color.  It would be nice to have another color finished off. I finished off yellow last year.  

7. Simply Sensational Summer Scrap Mystery (Kevin the Quilter): Continue as leaders and enders project.

This has been one of the easiest leaders and enders projects I've done.  Progress is slow, but there is progress.  I had to cut a bunch more blue scraps, but completely forgot to take a photo.  

That's my list this week. It's a bit ambitious, but hopefully that will encourage me to spend more time in the sewing room this week. Linking up with The Quilt Schmilt for To Do Tuesday. 

To Do List for the Week of 08/06/2024

My Guy is off on a business trip, so I have the house to myself for a few days.  I lived alone for many years before we were married, but it feels so weird now.  A lot of stitching got done yesterday, but I have other chores to get done today.  But there will probably be some later night stitching again tonight.  

Having more stitching time yesterday helped me finish off the last couple of items on last week's to do list. It was a long one. 

To Do List for 07/30/2024

1. Rhododendron: Prep quilt for quilting ✔

2. Kate's Choice: Make last two blocks ✔

3. Indigo Way: Make blocks for pieced border ✔

4. 2024 SAHRR: Make label, make binding, trim quilt ✔

5. Wild and Goosey: Finish teal blocks, start orange blocks✔

6. Diatom: Determine layout, start assembly ✔

7. Simply Sensational Summer Scrap Quilt: Leaders and enders ✔

I didn't expect to check off all seven items. So definitely one of my more productive weeks.  

This week's list isn't quite as long, so hopefully I can do as well on it.  

To Do List for 08/06/2024

1.  Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter): Finish packing and send out for quilting. 

The backing and the quilt top are pressed and de-threaded. I found a box that works. I just need to make a label and take it to the post office.  That should happen today. 

2.  2024 SAHRR (Quilting Gail): Finish the binding

The binding is sewn to the front. All that's left is the hand stitching it to the back.  It's not a large quilt, so I should be able to finish that this week. I'm really excited to finish this one, so is Grad Girl.   

3.  Indigo Way (Bonnie Hunter): Continue to work on borders.

Two of the pieced borders are finished. The third is mostly assembled at the sewing machine. I need to take a few measurements before I cut the light blue spacer pieces for the last two pieced borders.  Indigo Way should be a finished quilt top before the end of the month.  

4. Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter): Continue making orange blocks.

Orange is one of the minor colors in the quilt, so it would probably be wise to count how many are done so I don't make more than needed.  I'm probably not that close, but I should check.  

5. Diatom (Quilting Jetgirl): Finish sashing, start borders

The top row is sewn together and the sashing strips have been added to the second row.  Finishing up the sashing should be very doable this week.  

6. Simply Sensational Summer Scrap quilt (Kevin the Quilter): Continue as leaders and enders. 

I had to dig out a few of my yellow fat quarters, but I cut enough squares to make a few 2 patches. Next step is to sew these into 4 patches.  

So this week's list isn't much shorter than last week's list, but some of the to do's are a bit easier than last week's.  Even if I don't check off all of them, it will have been a good week if I get most of them.  

Linking up with The Quilt Schmilt for To Do Tuesday. 

Project Milestones

The weekend was way too short.  I'm retired, but My Guy isn't. We seem to run out of Sunday before we run out of things we planned to do together. The big one this weekend was to get vacation planned.  Oh well, I'll work on it this week and we'll finish it off next weekend. 

One sewing room chore I tackled this weekend was getting Rhododendron (Bonnie Hunter) prepped for quilting. 

 

There are lots of seams to press. Thankfully there weren't too many loose threads. 

So now it's all pressed, de-threaded and ready to package to ship out to Trudy. 

So one more bar got longer on my quilt plan graph.  

The other project reaching a major milestone was Kate's Choice. 

The last block was finished on Saturday. So that's another bar that's longer on my quilt plan graph.  I'll play with the block layout when I'm ready to start quilting the blocks. First I need to practice quilting a bit before I start on that.  

No finish yet for August, but the binding and label are ready for the 2024 SAHRR.  So there should be a finish to post about next Monday. 

Linking up with the Monday Design Wall and Patchwork & Quilts.