Just 10 more days until 2020

It is still hard to believe that in just 10 more days, it will be 2020.
The 1st item I need to address is:
                   Cleaning & Organizing my Sewing Room
I am not showing a before picture but if I can accomplish the above, I will show you an after picture.

A Blog Challenge for 2020

Judy Laquidara from Patchwork Times has challenged her Blog readers to choose one project of their choice to accomplish each month in 2020.  If all goes well, by the end of 2020, we could each have 12 projects completed.

I have chosen to challenge myself to a "mix of two" projects:
Jan, Mar, May, July, Sept, and Nov. will be Color Challenges and
Feb, Apr, June, Aug, Oct. and Dec. will be Gift Giving.

Hopefully, Judy and her Blog readers can encourage each other in completing the projects they will be working on throughout the new year.  During this month, Dec. 2019, I desperately need to organize my Sewing Room.  My days are ticking by.......
I have about half of my wire baskets for my fabrics, organized by color and the other half of the wire baskets are in disarray and missing their name plates as to what "should be" in the baskets. 

Any suggestions would be appreciated.  Thank you,  Nancie  

RJ's Colorful Fabric Scraps

My friend and leader of our weekly Sewing Group gave me several panels of sewn together blocks of hundreds of colorful fabric scraps.  All the fabrics were solids.  Each square measured 2 1/2" and had been sewn together in strips.  They had a cascading stair- step look.  However, I was searching for a different look and wanted to make it my own.  So, I spent "many evenings" taking the strips apart in groups of 3 colors each, until I had stacks and stacks of these units.  Then I sewed 3 strips together to make a 9-patch block.  All these blocks were trimmed down to an even six inch block and then pieced together with several different black & gray blocks.  The most unique fabric looks like gravel.  

UFO List of Items needing to be finished

Here it is the 25th of September, 2019 and I am no further along at finishing these projects than I was at the beginning of 2019.  I do hope to complete a few forgotten projects that have been waiting... for quite some time.

Today, I have been working on a "Project Linus" blanket that our weekly Sewing Group cut.  The flannel squares are cut 8 1/2" with a Die Cutter and all the edges are fringed. We place 2 squares together (rights sides out) with a 6" piece of batting in between and then sew an X from corner to corner.  I enjoy sewing the squares together into a quilt, but I have to watch the fringed edges or they get caught in the 3/4" seam allowances.

Thankfully, a couple of ladies in our group have volunteered to take the completed flannel blankets to the Laundromat to be washed.  After reading
on-line, I discovered that washing these finished blankets at home is not a wise idea.  The fringed edges generate "massive" amounts of lint and can easily clog your home washing machine and/or dryer.  

TVQA Assembly Day 2019 in Smyrna, TN

On Saturday, July 20th, 2019, our Guild hosted the Tennessee Valley Quilters Association (TVQA) annual meeting of Guilds from all over Tennessee and northern Alabama. We met at a local high school in middle Tennessee.

Andrew Lee, was one of our speakers for the day.  

Andrew is a retired soldier who proposes quilting as a way to reduce PTSD ... Andrew Lee served in the US Army for ten years.  He hopes to one day create a sewing therapy group for veterans.

I was able to take (1) completed Quilt Of Valor to Andrew for him to award to a Veteran of his choosing.  I also took (3) other QOV tops that need additional work to finish (borders, more blocks, sashings, etc.).  It was a "Win, Win" donation.

Teresa Duryea Wong, was our second speaker for the day.  Teresa wrote the book, American Cotton:  Farm to Quilt.  Teresa had a slide show with approx. 100 slides which was very interesting.

Quilts of Valor

Tomorrow is my monthly Quilt Guild Meeting and I am finally getting some items that have been lingering in my Sewing Room for months.

I have (3) Quilts of Valor in different stages of completion.  Andrew Lee, is a retired soldier who proposes quilting as a way to reduce stress.  Andrew began making Quilts of Valor for soldiers touched by war.  Andrew, who has a passion for Quilts of Valor is willing to take fabric, blocks, partially completed quilts and completed Quilts of Valor.  Andrew has many helpers, who help him complete the quilts, which he awards to those Service men and women, who have been touched by war. 

It will be a blessing for me, to be able to give these Quilts of Valor to Andrew.    

Notions Sale last Saturday, June 29th

Weekly Sewing Group hosted a Notions Sale--

Our Sewing Group received a massive donation of Sewing notions, which we chose to sell at a local space in our area of middle TN.
We set up the sale items on Friday, the 28th of June and had our actual sale on Saturday, the 29th.  All items were priced well below market value.  Friday was rather slow but Saturday made up for it.  We had a good crowd of buyers and made a nice profit.  The funds received will help fund our future sewing projects for those in need in our community. 

Fidget Mats-Most of the items I chose, will be used for Fidget Mats.  I found that I truly enjoy making these projects.  We use place-mats as our base and then add little scraps of fabric of different textures and other details that someone in a Nursing Home may enjoy feeling.  Everything must be attached extremely well, since you can never be sure if someone may try to put it in their mouth.  Anyone that has lots of little fabric scraps can create a unique Fidget Mat.  

I will try to get some pictures posted later today.