Wow! What a year that was!
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| My 2020 finishes |
At the end of each year I like to look back on the goals I set myself at the start of the year. This year my goals were:
1. to move away from English Paper Piecing to hand piecing with a running stitch
2. to find a method of applique that suits me.
I've done well on my first goal of improving my hand piecing. I even made some videos about hand piecing and put them on YouTube. You can find them here.
And as for my second goal, I've found a method of applique that suits me, but I just don't enjoy applique as much as I enjoy piecing at the moment. Maybe I'll enjoy applique more as I spend more time on it in 2021.
Now it's time to check progress on each of the quilts I said I'd work on in 2020.
1. Ballet with Kaffe Fassett by Willyne Hammerstein from Millefiori Quilts 2.
See the tab at the top of my blog for all the details on this quilt (or click here).
See the tab at the top of my blog for all the details on this quilt (or click here).
It's still not finished, but it's basted and ready to be hand quilted. It's high on the priority list.
2. Glitter by Jen Kingwell
It's finished! And I won Best Hand Piecing for it at Capital Quilters Exhibition. You can read more here.
3. Cartwheel by Liza Prior Lucy for Kaffe Fassett Collective Quilt Grandeur book.
Also finished, and now called "You Spin Me Round".
This is my own way to use up some of the diamonds I cut at the Kaffe Fassett class in January 2018. I'm experiment with lots of different hand quilting designs, so this little quilt is still a work in progress. It's nice to have something easy to take with me when I go to stitching days.
This was so much fun to make (click here to read more). I've hand quilted about half of it.
6. Cross Country by Anna Maria Horner
I started this quilt in a class with Anna Maria Horner in November 2019 (click here to read more). I now have the fabrics to finish it, but I need to decide if I want to add applique in the big triangles. (That's carpet you're seeing in this photo.)
7. Don't Leaf Me by Wendy Williams
I've made a little start, but there's still a long way to go with this one. I haven't had much experience with needle turn applique, so I'm going to use this quilt to improve my skills. You can read more here.
8. Endless Summer by Anna Maria Horner
Started and finished during the COVID-19 lockdown. I've now called my quilt Endless Lockdown, because it felt like it at the time.
9. Stars Upon Stars by Edyta Sitar
I'm still admiring this pattern, and I will start it one day.
10. Something new from Millefiori Quilts 4
There are so many beautiful quilts in this book, and can you believe Willyne is currently working on quilts for book 5!
11. We Built This City (was Marshal by Jen Kingwell - the Quiltmania mystery quilt).
I took a wild departure and made something new with half of the blocks from the Marshal Mystery quilt. You can read more about it here. I entered this quilt into Capital Quilters exhibition in October 2020 and I won two prizes for it.
And, I've finished the wedding quilt for some friends who got married in October. You can read more about this quilt here.
So that's 5 out of 12 quilts finished in 2020. I'm happy with that. Most of my quilts take more than a year to make, so I think finishing 5 of my WIPS is quite good.
Did I start anything new? Of course I did. How could I resist the #sayyestokaffecollective challenge. I started, and finished, Turkish Coffee from Quilts in Burano.
13. Turkish Coffee
So, I finished 6 quilts in 2020 and I'm very happy with that.
Be sure to check back in early January when I'll list my quilting priorities for 2021.
Your quilts are all so beautiful! You've done an excellent job. My favorite applique method is back basting. Have a Happy New Year and a year of happy stitching!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your lovely quilts. I always admire your colour combinations and my goal for 2021 is to try hand piecing - with the help of your videos
ReplyDeleteBeautiful finishes and wonderful starts. I think the fact that you take the time necessary with each quilt rather than rush through the process makes them very special. I like that you set a goal for yourself, like practicing applique, and then work on it even though it can be so difficult at the beginning. You are surely an example for me.
ReplyDeleteWow just beautiful!
ReplyDeleteYour quilts are so gorgeous. I learned needle turn from 2 national award winning friends. They are really good...am much slower than them, but enjoy it. I was lucky to take a class from Kim Diehl several years ago. She taught the starch method. Really quick....have been using that mostly. Another friend gave me a tip of getting all of the blocks prepared and put in baggies....you always have a project ready at hand. But, for me it was a matter of being much more organized. I had to actually gather the fabrics I needed...I used to run out as I was obviously not prepared. Love your blog.
ReplyDeletedebby
All your quilts are amazing and stunning. This year I am trying hand appliqué for the first time on a large scale and have signed up for the BOM with Sarah Fielke. I also hope to develop my skills in hand piecing and you have definitely been my inspiration to improve my hand sewing skills. Thank you for sharing your wonderful creations and giving me the push to try something new. Happy New Year and let’s hope it is somewhat better for us all! 😁
ReplyDeleteWendy your quilts are absolutely gorgeous! It’s always a pleasure for me to stop by and see what you’re up to.
ReplyDeleteMichelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com
So much gloriously color - eye candy for the soul. Here's to what lies ahead!!
ReplyDeleteStunning colourful quilts! Cross Country is one quilt on my list for 2021 but I certainly won't be using applique i the triangles, there are so many fabrics around which I think would fit in well. I'm waiting for the new Kaffe Collective release in February there are a few I'd like to add to my fabric stash, then again AMH has an amazing range released I think around May, decisions to be made!
ReplyDeleteEvery one of your makes is lovely, Wendy, and so thoughtfully stitched and finished with care. Your Glitter quilt is still a favorite of mine. I've had that Jen Kingwell book for several years, but after attempting to cut my own template and piece on the sewing machine, the first block was a failure. So, just yesterday I ordered the templates, and will look forward to accurately cutting the pieces for HAND piecing. I have only to determine a color scheme. Thank you for always being inspirational, especially with the colors you choose. Have a better-than-ever 2021.
ReplyDelete