Goals for October

This month is the beginning of the fourth quarter Finish-A-Long. It is a great on line group with few rules. Since joining in on the fun, I've finished projects that have languished about in the studio for years AND I've been inspired by so many others. Yes, I've spent way too much time reviewing their posts; but, it was worth the internet time! Soon it will be time to post intentions for this quarter. if you are interested, check the link above. You can join any quarter.

I appreciate the moderators and I've even won a cool prize a couple of times. Finishing projects, being inspired and being a winner. . .well, one can't go wrong!

Quilt the center of this project

I've many projects on my fourth quarter list to finish. To maximize the number of finishes for the quarter, I decided I would set myself some goals for the month. I've found a list is a good start and having a written plan to refer to helps me stay on track!

In no particular order I've outlined my goals. I want to quilt the center of the mystery BOM. I'm thinking about curves; I'm thinking about using rulers. I've drawn some shapes. I've selected some threads. . . well, let's see what happens! I'm actually getting excited about returning to this project!

Makings for four stockings

The holiday season is approaching. There were four pairs of mini stockings cut out in a bag of scraps of Martha's treasures. These might make cute package tags or ornaments for gifts. I'll try to stitch them.

Earlier this week, I started working on the Cheryl Lynch kit of the bicycle. I would like to finish that project this month. I did enjoy the process. I have to say that there were plenty of fabrics in the kit as I had enough fabrics left for a good start on a second wall hanging!!

Finish the Cheryl Lynch Bicycle

I chose the fabric for the inner and outer border. The directions say to start the quilt sandwich. Place some tulle over the top and stitch the border to the quilt in the sandwich stage. I'm not sure how that will work; but, I'm game to try. Also, I want to audition different tulle over the flowers; but, will need to purchase some.

#5. Stitch this hot pad

Get this project to the layered stage

I plan to print a portion of my machine reference guide from my embroidery software. I plan to stitch the reference files for the alphabets. I so want to learn the ins and outs of lettering. If I had a better handle on how to stitch lettering and was confident with the outcome, I would use this feature more often in my quilts. At this point, I'm disappointed in my results; but, I'm too much of a novice to understand where to make changes so I am happy with the results!

I know machine embroidery takes practice to make improvements. Getting my machine set up for embroidery takes some doing. Consequently, I don't do it often enough to get comfortable with the basics of machine embroidery. Moving forward, my goal is to stitch something weekly. . .even if it is a sample of a motif available in the software.

Part box for baby sandals 

I also plan to get the Karen Kay Buckley project to the layered stage. I learned so many hints from her class. I had purchased her templates; but, wasn't so enamored with the results of my circles. Turns out I didn't use heavy enough thread!

Martha had made the cutest fabric sandals for a baby. She had a box of "parts." I plan to make four pair this month. There is plenty of fabric in the box for many more pairs, but, this is going to be the start for now. She also had a few pairs in process. These pairs I will use as samples as I work through the steps. At some point, I will stitch the box into useable little shoes which will be gifted to an organization. . .although I will probably keep a pair or two for future baby gifts!

Finally, I've had a hot pad on my list for a couple of years. It is time to actually make it! It is a doable outline. Nothing is hard and fast so if I find myself playing in another project, that is okay too. Quilting is supposed to be fun!