2014 Finishes

My quilting year of 2014 was filled with NewFOs, but not as many finishes as I had hoped. I also have discovered in building this page that I had more finishes that had never been blogged about, so I hope to do better with that in the coming year as well. I was busy with moving, again; taking classes towards my Master's in Gerontology; traveling to quilting retreats and to visit family; and with life in general. I guess I need to turn 2015 into a year of finishes and get rid of that whole pile of UFOs sitting in the corner of my sewing room! What I did get accomplished felt good on several levels, making quilts for donation, a new granddaughter, my first commissions, and more.

Two Western themed kids' quilts donated to the Sew It Forward Facebook group that makes quilts for families who have lost their homes to fire.

Race to Spring, a jelly roll race on which I played more with my free motion quilting. This quilt won a 2nd place red ribbon at the 2014 Kansas State Fair.

Bee-zy Quilter was made from row patterns collected in eight different shops participating in the 2014 Row by Row Experience, a nation-wide shop hop offering free row patterns, optional kits for purchase, and fabric license plates to incorporate in the quilts or to be used in other projects. Each shop offered a prize to the first person whose completed quilt was brought in. Mine was the first Row by Row quilt turned in at Quilters' Paradise in Baldwin City, Kansas, winning me a bundle of 25 fat quarters and, because I had included their row, also a bonus gift of the 2014-2016 Quilter's Travel Companion directory to quilt shops in the US. This quilt also won a third place white ribbon at the Kansas State Fair in the mixed techniques category.

Cindy's Irish Chain was made from a set of blocks that my sister-in-law Cindy had cut out before she died of cancer in 2013, one of over 40 UFOs she left behind that I have inherited. Being her favorite pattern, she had planned to make several of these Irish Chain miniatures to sell on her Etsy.com shop. I found in a plastic shoe box, six snack size cellophane bags with already cut pieces and a sticky-note that read "complete quilt, needs borders and back" and, indeed, that small bag made an entire quilt! Cindy also loved free motion feathers, but was never able to learn to do them herself. In her memory I quilted this miniature with a feathered border.

Opal's Owl, Remember Whooo Loves You, made for my great-great-niece Opal. Started in 2013 before Opal was born, it wasn't finished until several months after she was born, but in time to go into the Kansas State Fair in 2014 where it won a blue ribbon in the crib quilt category. It was then sent to her in California in time for Christmas, just a few days after her first birthday. Opal was blessed with several quilts made by her great-gramma to keep her warm during her first winter. I hope she grows to love this one as she grows.

Ribbons and Bows is another quilt that got its start in 2013, but finished in 2014. After it was bound, I used a Clover bow-maker and made several grosgrain ribbons that were sewn onto random packages as an added touch. This quilt won a 2nd place red ribbon at the 2014 Kansas State Fair.

Springtime in the Garden, made from the Cat's Cradle pattern, for my newest granddaughter. This was another UFO that was several years old and partially quilted that got pulled out of the pile when my daughter and son-in-law decided to adopt a new baby girl!

Grand Slam, baseball theme quilt, donated to the Grand Chapter of Kansas, Order of the Eastern Star, to raise money for scholarships at their spring charity auction

Star within the Star wall hangings (20), a commission by the Worthy Grand Matron of the Grand Chapter of Kansas, Order of the Eastern Star, as gifts to her officers and escort

Star within the Star signature quilts (2) were made as gifts from the grand officers to the Worthy Grand Matron and Worthy Grand Patron of the Grand Chapter of Kansas, Order of the Eastern Star [no blog post written on this project]