Since this is my last post for 2025, I have interspersed the quilts that I completed during the year with commentary of how the year went and what I plan to accomplish in 2026! The links to more information about each finish can be found on my Finishes 2025 tab.
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| Rita's Temperature Quilt --Finished in January |
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| 2021 Temperature Quilt--Finished in April |
✒1. Have a net loss of 100 yards of fabric from my stash.
✒2. Finish six UFOs
✔ a. Temperature 2021--pin basted and ditched quilted started in January; progress made in February. Almost finished the quilting in March. Completed the project in April. Hooray!!!!
✒b. Temperature 2022-2023--pin basted in September, started quilting in October, continued quilting in November and December.
✔c. Martha's House blocks--purchased backing in May; determined a quilting design in August; backing pieced and project to the longarmer in November; bound in December, to be gifted in January.
✔d. Positively Grows--pin basted in February; started ditch quilting in July, finished in August, documented in September.
✔e. Maze top--purchased backing in May; longarmer quilted it and I added the binding, sleeve and label in June!
✖f. Butterfly number four--made no progress
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| Old Town--Finished in May |
Fabric Summary:
Fabric in: 64.75 yards
Fabric used from stash year to date: -127.75 yards
Net loss: -63 yards
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| As Noted (Group project)--Finished in May |
This was also the first year that I documented how many yards of fabric I purchased. Had I not purchased 64 and three quarter yards of fabric, I would have smashed my goal of having a net loss of 100 yards from my stash. No wonder I wasn't seeing a reduction of space of stash in the studio, I'm replacing as I go! I also realized that I need to do more garment sewing. I have a stack of wool like and wool fabrics as well as some polyesters that could work for a dress or shirt or skirt.
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| Love Makes A Family--Finished in May |
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| Ring of Santas #6--Finished in June |
It took me much longer to quilt the projects than I thought it would. Even with having a longarmer quilting two of the projects, I still wasn't able to quilt all six. Am I disappointed? I am a little disappointed! BUT. . . .had I not put these projects on the list, they likely would still be languishing in the studio. . .abandoned! I'm counting progress as a win! The other projects will be finished in 2026! Isn't it nice that there is always another year to meet goals?
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| Rita's Rhododendron Trail --Top Finished in June |
1. Have a net loss of 100 yards of fabric from my stash.
History has proven IF I can purchase less fabric during the year, I will be able to meet this goal.
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| aMAZEd--Finished in June |
Six finishes were too many last year. Perhaps, five is an achievable number! If I'm able to finish more than five, that will be a wonderful bonus. I have many more UFOs in my studio than I noted below. Listing them all and ACTUALLY knowing how many projects I have is not a number I want to know!
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| Grow--Finished in September |
I made a list of projects that are a mix of older and newer. Whatever I do finish will be awesome and writing the list means I have options!
a. Temperature 2022-2023 quilt. I worked on this project the last quarter of 2025 so this is the year for the finish!
b. Butterfly number four. It also was on the list from last year. (Butterfly number three did not make it on the list!)
c. Grassy Creek-Bonnie Hunter's 2020 mystery. (Will be longarm quilted.)
d. Good Fortune--Bonnie Hunter's 2018 mystery. (Will be longarm quilted.)
e. Color Wheel--A book club quilt started in 2022.
f. Martha's BOM. (Will be longarm quilted.)
g. Rita's Heart quilt.
h. Rita's rust quilt.
i. Rita's panel quilt.
j. Sashiko project.
k. Sweet Tooth Sweet Additions scrap project. (Will be longarm quilted.)
l. Beyond the Surface.
m. Temperature quilt 2024. (Will be longarm quilted.)
n. Temperature quilt 2025. (Will be longarm quilted.)
o. RSC 2023. (Likely will be longarm quilted.)
p. Rita's Christmas table runner.
q. Make a modern mini quilt with Nancy T's aqua and teal scraps.
r. Small group challenge using three Kaffe prints.
s. Bonus blocks made while constructing Grow.
t. Lupine and Laughter--Bonnie Hunter's 2025 Mystery. (Will be longarm quilted).
u. RSC 2024. It needs a binding!
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| Sweet Tooth--Finished in September |
3. If I start a project, finish it in the same year that I started it or within three months for those projects started late in the year!
Last year, I didn't finish Sweet Additions, Beyond the Surface or Temperature quilt 2024. Although, I did get Beyond the Surface ready for quilting. My 2024 Temperature quilt is waiting for a legend and borders. Sweet Additions is at the block stage. I did start and finish Old Town Mystery, Love Makes A Family--original design, Santa Tree skirt, Sweet Tooth Mystery and Stitch By Stitch--original design.
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| Stitch by Stitch--Finished in October |
I finished 11 quilts and one flimsy this year which is four more quilt projects than I finished the previous year. I donated Rita's Rhododendron Trail top to the Gresham Senior Center. It was quilted through that organization and will be used to raise money for quilting related activities. Rita would have appreciated the gesture.
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| The Village of Artists--Finished in December |
I emptied eight spools of thread during 2025. I forgot to take a photo at the end of 2024; but, I do try to remember to save the spools so I can count them at the end of year!
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| Used eight spools of thread during the year |
I'm looking forward to a creative 2026. May there be many finishes ahead! Linking to Best of 2025, Finished or Not Friday and Patchwork and Quilts.
7 comments:
This year 2025 was a very productive year regardless of the numbers. I mean you accomplished so much and had to deal with a serious knee operation. No small task. I'm amazed at the amount of quilts you worked on (finished or not). Bravo! Here's to another productive year! ;^)
I love seeing your beautiful finishes of 2025, Terry! I, too, replace fabric as I go - so even though I finish quilts, I add fabric when I start new ones. I think it's just part of being a quilter! Happy New Year, and Cheers to more fun with fabric in 2026!
Happy New Year, Terry. I've told you before, I admire your organizational skills. You made some amazing progress in 2025...so many pretty quilts. I look forward to following your progress in 2026.
I am a believer that if we move projects forward that is a big win. Meeting a goal is always a great feeling, but if I don't I am not going to stress about it if I have just enjoyed the process and moved it along. Good luck with your 2026 goals.
Good luck in 2026! Just being able to sew is an accomplishment! Enjoy the process and don't worry about meeting or not meeting goals!
Terry, I have been reading your blog for years. I admire you for your creativity, your productivity, and your positive attitude through thick and thin. So I am saying this to you with nothing but love in my heart: When I read this blog post about goals met and not met, something felt upside down to me, like Terry is a servant working for her stash and for her WIP projects, instead of the fabric stash and projects existing solely to serve the creative fulfillment of Terry. If setting the goals and tracking the fabric yards in and out is serving you well, making you feel good about your quilting (rather than guilty) and motivating you in a healthy way, then that is awesome and I apologize for misunderstanding. But guilt and shame have no place in your creative space, so I'll just throw these radical ideas into the mix: There is more than one way for yardage to leave your studio. If there are fabrics in your stash that don't excite you anymore, they're outdated or no longer your style, you can donate them to any one of the many groups that quilt for charity or to a worthy group like Days For Girls instead of forcing yourself to sew with them when you'd rather be sewing with different fabrics that feel fun and pretty to you today. If you see a new, pretty fabric in the quilt shop that you can afford but you still feel guilty buying it because you "already have so much fabric at home," why not buy the pretty fabric, but then pick out an equal quantity of the ugliest fabric in your stash that you must have felt sorry for when you bought it, and donate THAT fabric? As for those WIPs and new projects you want to start, it just is not true that there will always be another New Year for a new list of goals. I know that for certain, having just completed the painful process of going through my mom's sewing things after she passed away in June. No more New Year's Resolutions with sewing goals for Mom. Truth is, we will never know when we are starting the very last project we will ever make. We will never finish everything we started, and we will not live long enough, in good enough health, to make everything on our bucket lists of projects we wanted to make "someday." If a piece of fabric or an abandoned project no longer inspires you/challenges you/brings you joy, I encourage you to let it go and get rid of it WITHOUT "finishing what you started" or "using up what you bought." Spend your precious sewing time and energy with the fabrics and projects that delight you. I promise you, YOU DESERVE IT. Sending you a big hug and wishing you a happy New Year!
I think you did amazing! Bringing these projects to the front of your mind sure helped a lot - and I love the quilts you did make - oh Wowzers!!! They are beautiful!!!
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