February Quilt Update

Welcome to the Monthly Update.  What does that mean?  Well, it's just little ol me trying to recap what took place during the month so that I can keep track.  I kind of use it like a journal.  Please sit back and enjoy a peek into a month of my life.

Any links that you click in this post will open in a DIFFERENT window, allowing you to continue reading this without losing the page.

The previous 2017 monthly update links are located at the end of this entry.  I hope that you make it that far.

Goals:  It was a GOOD month.

Easy Street (ES) - quilted, bound -  half quilted - in time out still
Old Tobacco Road (OTR)  - quilted and bound - YES

Roll Roll Cotton Boll - quilted and bound - YES
Mad City Mama (MCM) - quilted and bound - YES
Weed Whacker (WW) backing/binding made, quilted and bound - YES
En Provence (EP) - Clue 7, binding/label made, quilted and bound - YES
Garden Party (GP) - Clues 1, 2, 3, 4 YES
Sewing Mats - 12 bound - 7 finished, 3 gifted - 5 to go
BOM (pink) backing/label made, quilted and bound - Backing/label made

1st -  Apparently 2017 is going to fly by as quick as last year did.  We are already starting the second month and when I look at the calendar in front of me this month, I know I am going to just blink and I will be typing the last entry on this post.  Today is catch-up day.  Blogging, finishing prepping the woolies for retreat, packing, laundry,etc.  Those mundane, everyday chores in life that keep us away from sewing machines but just HAVE to be done now and then.  No worries though -- today leads to tomorrow and TEN days of fun.

With it being the beginning of a new month, I need to remember the mantra for this year.  Gotta take care of myself in order to take care of others.  Just gotta.  If you don't believe me, well try taking on something when you're a mess.  It doesn't work well.

Those Paper Plates!!

I have invited Allison to do a guest post on the paper plate method that so many of you have asked me about.  Please welcome her and I have a note at the end for you to check out -

Okay, here goes . . . Allison Bayer here, guest poster at Deb's urging.  Those paper plates you see pop up in her posts?  That's me happily slogging through a mega-tiny-many-pieces-block that I need a bunch of to make a fantastically scrappy quilt.  This is the Tri-Rec unit from En Provence. I did two units per plate (because that is what fit -- no spill over or you can have a disaster).

Rockin R Retreat with Bonnie Hunter

A year ago I heard about an opportunity to attend a Bonnie Hunter retreat being sponsored by Minding My P's and Q's Quilt Shop.  I watched and watched for the newsletter to come out so that I could register immediately and I was successful.  Finally, the weekend has arrived.  It's been a year since I was able to spend time with Bonnie as she modified her calendar and wasn't available over holidays anymore.  Boohoo for us, but super good that she is with her family for those times.  For four New Years, I was fortunate to spend time sewing with her.  Perhaps something like that will come along again and I will latch onto it as well.  For now, I have this weekend.

Mister has graciously given me the car for the trip and I am out of the house before 6 a.m.  The retreat instructions said we could arrive anytime.  Well, alrighty then.  Let's get this party started.  There are a couple of ladies already there when I arrive, but they haven't gotten into the center yet.  It only takes us a few minutes and I have unlocked the door.  Let's go.

Rockin' R is a new retreat center to me so I walk around a bit and take some pictures before the barrage of women and "stuff" take over.  The main room is huge.  Seriously.  It appears to be designed to accommodate scrapbookers, but will work nicely for us quilters too.

Bonnie Hunter Class - Midnight Flight

Oh my goodness!  It has been over a year since I had the chance to hang with Bonnie and take one of her classes.  A year is definitely too long.  Period.

This time I am fortunate to be able to be at a retreat where she is teaching and hanging with us part of the time.  Super fun.  Today's class is Midnight Flight from her book More Adventures With Leaders and Enders.  It's a big one and took me two entire DAYS to get it cut out.  My fingers are crossed that I cut it right.  Let's get this class started.

First things first -- cutting lessons.  She stops by my table looking for a fat quarter to use and Garden Party happens to have a few extras laying around.  Here ya go, my friend.

Garden Party Clue 4 - Bonnie Hunter - Plano Mystery Quilt

The weeks just fly by when you are doing mystery clues, don't they?  I can't believe it is Thursday again already.  This week I am in Temple, TX at a Bonnie Hunter retreat so it's a perfect place to work on this clue.

In my preparation for the retreat, I did cut all the remaining parts for this week so I do have a bit of a boost going into finishing these blocks.  The question will remain, "Did I cut correctly?"

We are finishing the Garden Chain (Z) blocks this week.  I have to tell you that I have laughed a lot over the fact that they are Y and Z blocks.  The units and sections are numbered starting with one, but the blocks are Y and Z.  Way too funny to me.

With nine-patches at the ready, the first step is to attach sides to them.  I can do this.

Garden Party Clue 3 - Bonnie Hunter - Plano Mystery Quilt

Oh my goodness.  This week is simply nine-patches.  Anyone who knows me knows that I adore nine-patches.  Seriously.  I think it is my favorite thing to do.  If I can turn a block into a nine-patch, I do.  Witness Ribbons of Love, lol.  At any rate.  This week is simply 81 of these lovely little buggers.  Guess what?  For some reason, I managed to work on these last fall at the beach and upon checking my project box, I discovered that I have this weeks clue already complete.  Chock one up for me.
I can't tell you how excited this makes me.  Bring on week 4.

Brazos House Hearts and Hands Retreat #2 - February 2017

Round two is ready to begin.  I think I've done everything I need to but I'll admit, I'm in a bit of a drug induced fog.  This dang cold is really taking hold.  My brain is in survival mode with my body following along behind.  It's so hard for me not to be on top of my game.  Ugh.  Anyway, moving on.

Val and Ana are chatting about Ana's tumbler leader/ender quilt and Allison has set up quite a comfy home for herself.  We are ready for people to arrive.

A quick look around the room and you can see just how hard the four of us are working.

Garden Party Clue 2 - Bonnie Hunter - Plano Mystery Quilt

I'm still in the "tween" time at retreat and since these little units are still on my table, I might as well keep going and clear the table before starting another project.  My strips are still handy and within an hour I have all the little bits and pieces cut to finish the block.  Yep, that's right.  We are completing blocks this week.  The Garden Posey block - all 100 of them as a matter of fact.

As soon as all my parts are cut out, I just start randomly putting parts together and work my way through the stacks, webbing two blocks at a time.

Tween Time at Brazos -- Feb 2017

6th -  Three times a year I do back to back retreats and am able to stay during the "tween" time.  Two of these are at Brazos House and one is at the beach.  This week is the first of the Brazos doubles and I am fortunate to have Val staying with me.  We said good-bye to the first group yesterday and are having a quiet day today.  It's been a busy day, but one of few pictures.  I decide to take a walk and get some air.

Even Fatsy Cline wants to say hello.

Garden Party Clue 1 - Bonnie Hunter - Plano Mystery Quilt

Well, well, well.  We've got another Quilt-A-Long going in the Facebook group.  This time I pulled out a UFO from January 3rd of 2015 and you can find the original, rather vague, post HERE.  I am trying very hard to stay on the UFO track again this year and feel that this is a good way to start.

Since I originally took this class as a mystery, we are able to do the QAL as a mystery too.  Woohoo.  Clue one is out and it's time for me to get going.  Yes, I do have quite a few blocks finished but am a long way from being done.  That means I have to prep as well.  I'm at retreat with all my beautiful jewel tone batiks already in strips.  So what do I do?  Well, dang --- I cut all the little squares and bricks I will need.  For some reason, the entire STRIP process went right out of my head.  I actually think about it AFTER all the parts are cut.  Oh well.  It will work this way too.  Time to sew.

Brazos House Hearts and Hands Retreat #1 - Feb 2017

It feels as though it has been forever since retreat.  In reality, it has been less than three months.  That IS a long time right?  At any rate, today is the day.  I start a 10 day stretch and am super stoked to be doing so.  Am I prepared?  Well not as much as I could be, but I'll make it happen.  Let's get this party started.

With this being a longer time away from home for me, Mister drops me at around 7:30, helps unload and then is off to work.  I have 2 1/2 hours to get set up.  Woohoo.  I love this time alone here.  I can work at my own pace and slowly move from spot to spot, preparing as best I can to make it comfortable for all those who will attend.

Once I have the main room set up, the bedrooms under control, and a little something eaten, it's time to make my own little corner of the world as amazing as I can.

Garden Party Summary

I am gathering all of my Garden Party (Bonnie Hunter January 3, 2015 Plano Mystery) posts and placing them here so that you can link up and find what you want easily.  They will each open in a new page, leaving you access to this post.  Please become a follower and you will always know when the new post is up.  Welcome to you all and comments are always appreciated.

We are doing this as a Quilt-A-Long in the Our Quilt World Facebook group.  You have to own the book (and/or magazine) in order to participate.  The pattern can be found in Bonnie Hunter's Addicted to Scraps book or the May/June 2015 issue of Quiltmaker magazine.

I hope to see what you have finished as well.  You can always email me at mystery@dhayter.com.

Post 1:  Unit B (book) or Section 2 (magazine)
Post 2:  Garden Posey Block
Post 3:  Nine-Patches
Post 4:  Garden Chain Block
Post 5:  Setting and Corner Triangles
Post 6:  Setting and the final REVEAL