Weekend Sewing

My Girl and Queenie left Saturday afternoon to start the almost 10 hour trek back to Houston.  So the house felt really empty.  Perfect time to go hide in my sewing room for a bit. My priority for the week is to finish the February block for the guild BOM and get started on the center block for the SAHRR (Quilting Gail).  I'm almost done with the BOM block, but I can't show that till after the guild meeting.  I didn't start the SAHRR center, but did get all the fabric cut for it. 

I had to change out one of the fabrics because I didn't have enough of my first choice.  That's the problem with working with left overs, you have to make some compromises.  But it will still look good.  

The January clue for the Magnificent Mystery (Meadow Mist Designs). The only clue I have finished is September, but I'm close to finishing off the October clue. 

Just a few more of the Irish Chain blocks to make.  The reveal for this project comes out in February. I'm hoping to most of the way there with the component pieces by then.  

Linking up with Patchwork & Quilts and Sew and Tell Monday. 

Stitching Stuff: Week 1 of 2026

 

We are a few days into the new year.  I've spent some time in the sewing room, but also a lot of time looking back and then looking ahead.  My tracking spreadsheet is reset. So I'm ready for a new year on that front. Not so much on other fronts.  Personal preference has me making a clean break between last year and this year.  Here are my final stitching time metrics for 2025. 

• 15 minute days/Dec 2025 =30/31 days
• 15 minute days/2025 = 320/365 days
• Success rate = 87.67%

My goal was to stitch at least 75% of the days in 2025. So I met that goal.  In 2024, my success rate was 100%. To get that number takes dedication that I'm not sure I have.  If I can manage a success rate of more than 80% this year, I'll be happy.  Here's how 2026 is looking so far. 

• 15 minute days/week = 7/7 days (including the days last year)
• 15 minute days/Jan = 3/3 days
• 15 minute days/2026 = 3/3 days
• Success rate = 100%

So my reset has me back to 100%. We'll have to see how long I can maintain that.  

My Girl and Queenie left yesterday to head back to Houston.  The house always feels so empty once they are gone. No kitty doing her rounds in the morning.  No daughter napping on the couch with her kitty guarding her.  

We did learn something new about Queenie. It's been pretty cold here in Oklahoma and Queenie's gotten used to the balmy temps of south Texas.  She's not one for laying under things, but when I jokingly covered her up with the edge of the quilt one evening, she snuggled in and took a nap.  Something My Girl had never seen her do.  The rest of the trip she'd look for someone to come tuck her in for her evening nap on the couch. 

Are you back in the stitching groove after the holiday?

 

1. maggie f 2. Gretchen 3. Melissa G 4. Linda at Texas Quilt Gal 5. Deb in Canada

6. Julie in GA 7. DonnaleeQ 8. Karen 9. Shelina 10. Andrée at Quilting & Learning

11. Bonnie Stapleton 12. Carol @ Quilt Schmilt 13. Marsha's Spot

Powered by... Mister Linky's Magical Widgets.

2026 Quilt Making Strategies

My ambitions for 2025 have been reviewed.  My PHD performance has been rehashed.  To my surprise, there was a lot more progress on projects than expected. Plus,  I finally slayed the dragon that I'd let quilting with a walking foot become. My biggest let down was just not moving projects to finished.  Consequently, my UFO list is bigger than it's ever been.  To address that long list, it seems like a strategy would be more helpful than goals.  

A couple of years ago, I tried to keep my to do lists to no more than 4 items: a priority project, a quilt to be quilted, an older UFO and a leaders and enders.  That year six quilts made it to completed. I'm going to adopt a similar strategy for 2026.  

Quilt Strategy for 2026

First Quarter (Jan to March)

•  Guild BOM
• Wild and Goosey leaders
•  2026 SAHRR, Magnificent Mystery, Lupine and Laughter
•  Walking foot quilting: Kate's Choice, Betty
•   External quilting: Chocolate Marshmallow

First quarter is a little different because there so many of the quilt alongs I enjoy start late in the year.  I won't be focusing on a UFO, but on keeping my 2025 projects from becoming UFOs.  

Second and Third Quarters

• Guild BOM
• Wild and Goosey leaders
• UFO to finish
• Walking foot quilting: two quilts
• External quilting: one quilt

Like first quarter, 4th quarter is the same strategy as first quarter since that's when most of the quilt alongs I sew along with come out. 

Fourth Quarter

• Guild BOM (2026 and 2027?)
• Wild and Goosey leaders
• 2026 Meadow Mist Mystery,  2026 Bonnie Hunter Mystery
• Walking foot quilting: 2 quilts
• External quilting: one quilt

The only other strategy that I'll keep for 2026 is to try to maintain my 15 minutes of stitching time a day.  I'll strive to keep that above 80% for the year.

2026 Projects:

Kate's Choice, Betty, Chilhowie, Glowing Hearts, Malted Mystery, Squared Away and On Ringo Lake

Chocolate Marshmallow, Indigo Way, 2024 Guild BOM, 2025 Guild BOM

Old Town, Good Fortune, Simply Sensational Summer Scrap Quilt, Celtic Solstice

Plans set in January always seem reasonable.  We'll see how these fair.  Linking up with Plans, Dreams and Goals for 2026.  I'm hoping this list is really plan and not just a dream!  

PHD Report for 2025

Now that 2025 is over, it's time to review the progress on my PHD plan and link up with Ms. P Designs for the PHD Wrap Up report.   Looking back, my 2025 PHD report is probably my worst in the seven years I've participated.  

Lots more starts than finishes this year.  At least I finished one of those new starts this year.  One finish is better than none.  That gives me lots of incentive to get more finished in 2026.  But finishes aren't the whole story, there was a lot of progress on other projects this year. (This is a picture heavy post. I didn't realize just how many projects I had worked on in 2025).  

The Rose Throw is a counted cross stitch project started sometime in the mid to late eighties. I came across this project during a sewing room clean up and reorg.  I'd forgotten how long it takes to make progress on counted cross stitch.  I made a bit of progress this year, but not much.  This one will probably sit in time out all year while I focus my hand stitching efforts on the butterfly embroidery project.  

The blocks for Kate's Choice were finished last year.  All the blocks were quilted this year and I started assembling the quilt as a quilt as you go. The first row is finished.  I'm not a fan of this assembly method, so the project got put in time out. It will get finished in 2026.  That's my first goal for the year.  

 

Normally there's more progress on this project during November and December, but the last time I worked on the Butterfly panel was Thanksgiving.  The embroidery in the third corner is all done and I've started stitching on the 7th butterfly.  This is my travel project.  It will probably see some progress this year, but won't be finished. 

 

On Ringo Lake was the 2017 Bonnie Hunter Mystery.  After 8 years it's finally a finished quilt top.  I've been trying to finish up all my BH mystery quilts. Out of 14, 7 are uncompleted.  Which isn't awful, but still not stellar.  This is one I'm hoping to finish quilting this year.  

It's been slow going on Wild and Goosey (Bonnie Hunter).  This project started in 2019.  I've been making the blocks as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I'm almost done with the green blocks, but still need lots of blue, purple and teal.  But the quilt is over halfway now. I'd like to finish it this year, we'll see how it's looking by 4th quarter.   

The Simply Sensational Summer Scrap Quilt (Kevin the Quilter) is also a project from 2019.  It came out of time out when I was looking for something to use up a few scraps as my bins were getting full.  It was my leaders and enders project for the first half of the year.  I needed the design wall for something else, so this project got put away.  Not sure when I'll get this one out again.  Hopefully I won't wait another 5 years!   

I joined the local quilting guild in 2023, about midyear if I remember correctly.  A bit late to start the BOM that year, but I did start the 2024 one.  For once, I stayed on track and actually finished the quilt top in time to show at the January meeting.  It's still waiting to be quilted.  I haven't decided to quilt it myself or send it out.  We'll see how some of my smaller and simpler projects work out.  

The Marble Mystery was the 2024 Meadow Mist Designs Mystery.  It's been a finished quilt top for most of the year. This is another project I hope to quilt with the walking foot sometime this year.  

The 2024 Bonnie Hunter mystery was Old Town.  One of my 7 unfinished BH mystery projects. All the blocks are done, I just to need to figure out the borders.  Hopefully that happens sooner rather than later.  

Leading the guild BOM for 2025 was a learning experience.  I've seen several finished quilt tops and it's been such fun to see how everyone has made them their own.  My version still needs to be quilted. One thing about being the lead, you have to keep up!  

The 2025 SAHRR (Quilting Gail) was my only finish for 2025.  This quilt was gifted to My Girl's grad school roommate as a thank you for being such a good one.  The roommate's favorite color is green, so that was picked as the predominant color. I've finished all of the SAHRR quilts that I've started. Fingers crossed that stays true for this year!  

MMM Quilts offers a quilt along in the spring.  I've admired from afar, but decided if I could pull all my fabrics from the stash I'd participate in her Glowing Hearts quilt along.  The background fabric had been in my stash forever without finding a home till this project.  Another quilt top I'm hoping to quilt myself this year.  

I got a late start on the 2025 Meadow Mist Designs Magnificent Mystery.  The September clue is the only one completed, but I do have a good start on the next three. The January clue came out yesterday, so I need to get a start on that. Assembly happens next month.  It would be nice if I had all the component parts done by then.  

Apparently, I'm a glutton for punishment as I agreed to lead the guild's 2026 BOM.  I am finding that the sampler blocks I picked for this year are much easier to cut and assemble. Fingers crossed I can keep up better this year.  

And lastly, Lupine and Laughter was started during the local quilt shops late night sew on New Year's Eve.  I wondered if we'd get the reveal this week. I just checked this week's clue is more pieces. I'm going to make the blocks that use the hourglass pieces and hold off on any of the other clues till I see the reveal. Then I'll figure out what's next. I'm behind, but that seems to be par for the course with a BH mystery.  

One finish and progress on 14 other projects.  That's a lot for one year.  So maybe not as lame a year as I was thinking?  

2025 Quilting Ambitions: Year End Check In

Happy New Year!  Ready or not, it's 2026.  I'm definitely not ready. The first step in deciding my ambitions for 2026 is to look at how 2025 went.  Since 2018, I've played along with Quilting Jetgirl's Planning Party.  Yvonne has announced that 2025 is the last year she's going to host the party and the quarterly link ups.  Her quarterly check ups have been really helpful at making me look at my goals each year, which usually means I do something on them.  I'm not sure that worked so well for 2025.  At any rate, here's my year end ambition review. Definitely go over and check out Quilting Jetgirl's last 2025 Quilting Check In.  

Ambition 1: Make quilts. My goal was to make progress on all the projects that were on my quilt plan.  

I'm most disappointed in my lack of progress on the projects that need backings and quilting.  Looking back, having to find a new person to quilt my projects was probably my biggest road block to finishing more projects. So that's something to address early in 2026. 

But there was progress during the year. The quilting was started on Kate's choice.  A total of 5 projects became finished quilt tops this year.  Old Town is now an assembled top, just needs borders.  I added 5 new projects this year.  Consequently, my project list is bigger than it's ever been.    

Ambition 2: Learn to quilt. The walking foot isn't quite my friend yet, but I'm comfortable enough to tackle quilting a smaller quilt top.

The quilt as you go project didn't see any additional progress in 4th quarter.  It's still in time out. But I did get some additional practice on My Girl's trivets.  

The kitty face isn't perfect, but it is much better than the first set I quilted.  So I'm going to claim success on this goal. The plan is to build on this skill next year and get some of my quilts finished.  

3.  Fabric Organization: There was no progress on processing scraps or organizing my fabric closets in the 4th quarter.  

If anything, I went backwards.  My working scrap bin is overflowing and I've not done anything with my fabric closet in months. But I have done a pretty good job of pulling from my stash for new projects this year.  Charming Hearts, Magnificent Mystery, Lupine and Laughter, and the 2026 SAHRR all use fabrics from my stash. Though I did have to buy background fabric for the Magnificent Mystery, all the other fabrics came from stash. At least I reduced what was in the fabric closet the last few months!   

Not my best year ever, so I have lots of room for improvement in 2026.  My goals for 2026 aren't completely formed yet. The plan is to take some time today to decide how to define what looks like a good sewing year to me.  

Wishing you lots of fun adventures in the sewing room for 2026, with a few finishes in there to keep the UFO list in check.