2018 Quilting Goals

I know. It's a few hours away from February, and I am finally posting my 2018 goals. They've been pretty well formed in my mind for awhile now, but I hadn't had a chance to jot them down here.

1. Quilt more. This is always a goal. I've got a lot going on and sometimes there aren't enough hands to keep all the balls in the air. While sometimes it seems like quilting is just another one of these things, it is also so very therapeutic and helps me process everything else. I'm not really an extravert nor an introvert rather somewhere in between and situational, to some extent. Quilting fulfills both of these needs. Four guilds - yes, four - cover my extraverted self. The actual quilting, for me, is an excellent introverted activity.
2. Document my quilting. I jump on and off the blogging bandwagon pretty readily. Life happens. However, this is one of few places I document my quilty work. Instagram is pretty complete, but the short format doesn't always allow for detail pics or the full quilt story.
3. Quilt for us. Last year quilting for others was a goal, and I was successful in donating three quilts plus gifting a couple. This year, I still have a couple of important donation quilts planned plus a few gifts, but we really need a couple of quilts that live here. The quilt I started over ten years ago for our bed is still in pieces in a Ziplock bag. We could use a couple of throws to live on the couch for cool nights - our house lives between 58-60 degrees all winter long. I've started the National Quilter's Circle Quilt Block Challenge and pulled fabric for the Bernina/We All Sew QAL. I've also been gathering supplies for Stephanie Jacobsen's Plus Block QAL, #plusblockqal. One of these (or two) may end up a donation quilt, but at least one is going to live on my couch.
4. Publish a pattern. I've been designing quilts for awhile now, but I have yet to actually publish a pattern. It's about time.
5. Finish. Finish. Finish. Last year's commitment to the APQ UFO Challenge was successful. I finished about half of the projects and made progress on all but two. I again have a list and am 1-0 as January's project was a finish (and it's already been gifted.)

MQG Mini Swap

As a recovering swap addict, I was eager to sign up for the Modern Quilt Guild's inaugural mini quilt swap. I was paired with a quilter in British Columbia, Canada. She is a prolific quilter with broad quilting interests and styles. She is not on Instagram and did not post a mosaic on her blog so I felt like I could go pretty much anywhere with my mini. (I'll add a link to her blog as soon as she receives her quilt.)

I've been in love with Allison Glass' work for quite some time and have made a couple of small pieces using her Feathers pattern. I'm testing the waters to see if I think making a whole quilt is really something I can stick with or not. In general, making a hundred of the same blocks holds zero interest to me, compounded, in this case, by the fact that this is a foundation paper-pieced pattern. So, I chose to make another excerpt from her pattern. The last one that I did, grew quite a bit bigger than I'd planned so this time, I scaled the blocks to 80%.

Selected Feathers is about 14" square and features batiks and a dark Kona cotton gray. I opted to play with the text function on my new sewing machine instead of a traditional label. The strips of text fit well with my attempt to use the remainder pieces of the layer cake used in the top.

This week I received my package from my partner in Oklahoma. SQUEAL! I LOVE this quilt and am so excited it gets to live with me! Thank you, Becky Gore of Birch Lake Designs, for a beautiful quilt and the unexpected extra stitched coaster, Swedish star and pillow case.