OMG finished

Hooking up to One Monthly goal over at Elm Street Quilts to show my results of sewing in the month of January.  Here's what I said I would do.  http://quiltinglikeamaniac.blogspot.com/2020/01/american-patchwork-quilting-2020-ufo.html.  Now I have to say (and this is no excuse) I lost my machine for close to two weeks so there was no sewing.  I went through withdrawal and now I KNOW I need to get an extra machine for situations like this because truthfully there is never a loaner with all the work they do at the repair shop.  And it always takes a week or two to get the work done.  So I need something portable, small, and does just the basics to make me happy when I have to send mine in for repairs.  So many people were giving me that advice and after that experience they're right.  But for now, I got my baby back and I've been busy to catch up.  Here's what I did along with my promise to get my goal done.

I've been trying hard to finish one of the BOM's that I joined last year.  There were 5 of them, and out of all of them two that I had worked hard at.  Now one of them was part of the goal and I've promised not to join another one (a promise that I broke within a week - Is that a record?????).  This one is Sew Incredible's Seasonal BOM which had two to three blocks every month.  I had to complete 6 of them to catch up and to have 24 blocks for my quilt which is a two panel door for my barn door between my sewing room and the dining room.  Here is what I completed:

 The doors

I shadow boxed each one, and used quilt as you go to get it done.  I did angle lines that were and inch apart.  

I'm so happy with the results!!!  With that little side quilt (you'll see about that one) it looks lovely this room.

And because I have so many UFOs I wanted to complete two a month, so the 2nd one (and one I could do with out my sewing machine because it was applique that I button stitched) is a tea set table cloth for my table.  That was my husband's idea and a darn good one.  It gives color to the room at this time of hear.  Take a look.

On the floor, all laid out.

One of the blocks.  They're so cute all with batik.

Each one designed so differently on that pure white background that just pops the colors.

One of my favorite ones, with the greens.

I backed it with black because of the side panels were black and white.  I love this one as well because of the flower.

And the end results, super.....

So I may not have completed both panels but completing one panel then the table top makes me feel really good.  I'm pleased with the results.

So next month's goal, another one of my UFOs to complete.  Probably one of those BOMs that I never got done or even started on.  OMG!!!!  I better start a couple of them now!!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! My machine is broken!!!

OMG I have a modern quilt that needs finishing (quilting) by the end of the month!  And then there's my OMG quilt for the month goal, as well as my APQ challenge to finish #2 on my list of quilts I want done this year!!!  Let alone the starting of two BOMs which I had no intention of starting any BOMs so I can clear all the UFO's (my goodness all these acronyms) I have to do....

I put a rush on my machine but this really tells me I need a standby machine or rather a smaller machine then my baby (Janome 6060) so I can take it to some of the classes I go to or the other quilt group that I'm part of.  Lesson learned, but talk about withdrawal.

 I told the facebook group of APQ that my machine broke, and all the girls started to give me the best advice:

• Get one, two, or three extras,
• buy used machines from friends
• buy a new one.
• Get one at Walmart or Joanne's
• do hand work (been doing this one)
• cut your other projects
• organize your sewing room

Lots of great ideas and I followed their advice.  So far I've cut one of my projects, all of it - finish cutting.  I've done all the applique on 7 blocks then cut all the border material and binding material and it's ready for sewing now.  I've also cleaned up my room a bit and organized two of my projects.  YES my room is getting cleaner and it was one of my goals this year, so it's working for me.

So was this a bad thing?  No, not really, it's a good thing.  I'm still working, just not sewing.

American Patchwork Quilting 2020 UFO Challenge with the PHD Challenge

Quilting Gail is helping to teach us quilters how to get through our UFOs, with an analysis of why the UFOs are unfinished, and how to get through them.  This is help that I really need.  I continue to buy kits, or new patterns that I really want to do, to join all these Blocks of the Months online, that are free and so beautiful, and although I do make a lot of quilts (21 in 2019 - see this link to see them all) and finish a lot of the BOMs I need to organize my hobby room, because it's just getting too much to handle.  And organize means getting some of the UFOs completed (or that's at least part of what needs to be done) that are in containers.  There everywhere.  

So there's questions to completed, or rather questions to consider and answer truthfully.  But before I do that I need to list all my UFOs.  Now that's a very long list, so don't be surprised because like most quilters I'm a fabricaholic.  So here's the list of only the UFOs that have fabric and the pattern.

My list is on the page OMG Quilts to Complete - Updated.  I just went through them and it's totally up to date for this year.  I took off all the ones that say completed.  All are listed as to what size and what I have (like pattern or material). which are BOMs, some even have the date listed on them.  It's long, but now I need to pick one off this list and I need to answer the following questions:

1.  Why did this become a UFO?  

• bored with the project
• too repetitive
• didn't like the technique.
• too hard of a technique.
• got too busy to even make it.

2.  Is there something that will make the finishing of this project easier?

• do some small parts while working on another project.
• work on it for a limited time each time I have an opportunity to sew a bit.
• Give myself a reward at the end of it.

3.  Just do it...

Love the thinking behind the pile up of UFOs that's happening to me.  These questions will definitely help me to get them down.  But the other thing that I join every year is the UFO 2020 Challenge from the American Patchwork and Quilting group.  Every year they ask for a list of 12 UFOs and then they randomly draw a number for you to start that quilt.  It's easy and I can still analyse each one but lets the APQ do the choosing.  So here's my list:

PROJECT	STATUS BEFORE	STATUS AFTER
1  Conversation Quilt	All material gathered, and two cut, but none sewn.  Suppose to look like this:
2.  Sew Incredible Seasons BOM 2019 JANUARY
3  Flamingo Barn Door for our Dining room using the SewKindofWonderful ruler.	Have all the fabric, and some of it cut.  Need to start sewing.
4  Zen Chic Sky.	Have the pattern, have the geese all made, need to quilt it.  Started in 2019 in September.
5  Quilt Doodle BOM 2019	Have 6 out of twelve blocks completed.
6  Black & White Paper Piece, 2018	No before picture, I'm just doing the quilt.  Have 4 blocks completed.
7  HST BOM by Freshly Pieced.	Have all material and now all the pattern.  But haven't started.  It's suppose to look like this
8 Dwight the Deer Quilt by Elizabeth Hartman	All the material and the pattern.  2016 - from Craftsy Online Course.
9  Hand applique 2 sisters of Buggy Barn quilts patterns.	Joined as a BOM, have all the material and it's all by hand so great for travel.  Haven't even started it.
10  Modern quilt	Have all the material.  Need to cut.
11  Row by Rows to complete a queen size quilt.	Have 18 rows completed.  Need to do 16 more.
12  There's so many more, this one I'm not going to list.  Just choose one.

So the UFO I'm going to work on is....

Time for all Seasons......  by SewIncredible.  It became a UFO because I didn't have the time to complete it with all the things I had to do with work. I got behind by two or three months, each month giving two or three blocks to do.  So I got behind and then I just gave up. Also the quilting on this quilt is very extensive, most are applique, and that means when quilting you have to sew them down.  That's a lot of sewing and quilting in the end. 
So how to get it done this time?  Well, the term is soon ending and one of my New Year's resolutions is to start to say NO to volunteering, so I'm hoping this will give me that extra time.  Also I decided to do Quilt as You Go to get the quilting is smaller chunks so I don't get bored with just sewing and not creating new blocks.  Also I'm very high ADHD which means I like to jump from pattern to pattern, so I don't get bored.  So along with that I'm going to start my teacup pattern which I have all the material, and the pattern.  It will be a surprise on what it looks like in the end.
Lets see if this works.
This is what it looks like now:

Hope to get it done.  It's also my OMG project.