I started these Mickey Mouse pillow covers last year. There were four. I only finished one. These three were left. Sitting. Waiting. They were nagging at me so I decided to work on them. Actually I kept thinking about the first one and how it turned out. I loved it. And so did the little girl whose parents bought it for her at my 2011 December winter craft show.

This is how the one sold looked.

Kind of made me think I should have finished the others. Maybe they all would have sold.

Which brings me to today’s Finish Friday. I finished one pillow two days ago. It didn’t take long since the front was already quilted.

Just needed to decide on a closure. I decided to add a zipper. Along the bottom. The 1st one I made had a fold-over envelope back but took longer to make. I thought putting in a zipper would be easier. Quicker. Not!! It took about the same amount of time. And I was only able to round the two top corners. Without it looking all funny.

I finished another pillow cover last night. This one… back to an envelope back and four rounded corners.

There is one more pillow cover ready to be quilted. I will do an envelope back for that one too. Though the zipper looks nice and all, the fold-over back just looks more polished, huggable.

The pillow forms were recycled. Made from batting scraps. I save all batting scraps, large and small in a plastic bag.

When the bag starts to overflow, I make pillow forms in different sizes. They work great for my photo ops.

Feels great to finish up something that was just sitting. Yay!!

I am going to work on the third one today and try to finish it up too. If I do, I’ll update this post.

Linking to Crazymomquilts for Finish Friday. Go check them all out. Lots of pretties.

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2012/01/finish-it-up-friday-week-12.html

Deadlines.. I guess I have sign-up-itis. I have so many “make it, finish it” deadlines coming up in the next few weeks, that I had to make a list.

In my quilt group there are two. Block Lotto, Win The Pot. This month’s blocks were easy. Spool blocks. I already made hundreds of the scrap blocks you start off with. Just needed to add the sides and tops. Mail out date is Jan 30.

All of these aren’t going. I am keeping the orange ones. I have an idea for them.

And second is something I have been thinking about making for sometime now. Even purchased a book. Fabric Postcards. I just need to make one with a Valentine-theme for my exchange partner. I went around the house (crafts supplies in every room ) collecting up red stuff.

There are lots of on-line sites with great instructions. I read quite a few but basically they all told me what my book did. What to do. What not to do. I have an idea. Several ideas. I will get started and see where it takes me. Postcard needs to be mailed by Feb 1st.

Here is the book I purchased a couple years ago. It has great templates!!

BEADS… Yay!! I get to fondle my beads. I have two beady challenges coming up.

The first is over at Bead Happily Ever After. Crystal’s 2nd bead challenge.

Valentine’s Day Design Challenge.

http://beadhappilyeverafter.com/blog/?p=18244
http://beadhappilyeverafter.com/blog/?page_id=17770

For this one, in my head is a necklace. Once I have all my supplies gathered, I will get started. For sure red and white. But I might toss in a little pink and/or purple. Just to be different. Deadline is Feb 10. Go check it out. Still time if you would like to enter.

And then there is Bead Soup Blog Party where I send off a package of beads and in return my assigned partner sends me a package of beads. A bead kit to make something. No seed beads so I will be dusting off my stringing and wireworking skills. Going to be interesting. Mail out date is January 31. Reveal date is March 3. I will post what I made here on that date. My partner does the same on her blog. You can see the list of all the participants here.

http://lorianderson-beadsoupblogparty.blogspot.com/

And lastly… I have a few of my own personal deadlines. Things to challenge myself. New (to me) quilting techniques and never-tried-before blocks. All before the end of first quarter. So as you can see, I am going to be busy, busy…

Hope you will return to see them all. Thanks for stopping by.

Was news to me… had never heard of it until Monday… when I went to watch the latest episode of 2 Broke Girls and CBS only had CLIPS posted!! I try to watch it every Monday since Carol over at Beads and Birds mentioned it was a funny show. I watched. I liked. Watched again. Now I love it!!

Which brings me back to the CLIPS. I was dining out with hubby on Monday during the time 2 Broke Girls was being broadcast. No worries. I could watch it on-line when I got home. Or so I thought. I was kind of disappointed when I only saw clips posted and thought, hey, somebody else might be ticked off as well. Maybe they posted a comment on the site. Sure enough. About six others had looked for the full episode. I read all the comments. One lady kept repeating..”go to Channel 131.” Huh??? What is Channel 131? Never heard of it.

Googled it. Found it. Clicked on the link.

And guess what happened.

It was there!! The latest 2 Broke Girls was there. I watched. Now HAPPY. Had my fill of the craziness that is called Max and Caroline. Those two ladies are so perfectly paired. Kudos to the casting director. And the three guys are pretty funny too.

If you haven’t seen this show and don’t mind sex innuendos and sometimes IN YOUR FACE sex talk, go check it out. It isn’t really X rated though. Just clean fun. After all, it comes on at 8:30 PM EST. When the kids are still sitting in front of the TV.

I didn’t pay anything. Didn’t download anything. Just clicked to start the video and watched. Lots of other TV shows there AND I saw a ton of movies. I haven’t clicked on any movies… yet.

You learn something new everyday.

http://ch131.com/

See the words “Close to play”. Click on it. Then click the > symbol.

Whew!! Finished!!

Took a week of..

• planning

• cutting

• designing

• taking photos

• changing

• sewing

• pressing

• taking photos

But finally, the quilt top is completed and now hangs on my design wall.

It measures approximately 66″ by 76″. In case your monitor displays my “pop” color as red, it is orange. Tangerine.

In the above photo I have the quilt turned on its side just to get it all in for the photo.

This is what it looked like before adding the borders.

After adding the borders. The bottom is the top. Sorry you have to twist your head a bit.

I love this corner. The top right side. (Yes, I know. Another head twister. )

Some areas could have been arranged differently. Even could have used full blocks instead of half ones in a few spaces. But hindsight just helps me on the next one. I am satisfied with how it looks.

Now I have to decide the best way to quilt it.

I could outline each square. Would take forever!! I could do straight lines inside each vertical column. One to the right of the seam and one to the left of the seam. Or I could outline each zig-zag section. Following up, down, all around. Or even diagonal lines, corner to corner?

After spending a week making the quilt top, I don’t really want to spend another week quilting it. I am so itching to get started on my next project.

Question to all you quilters out there….

How would you quilt my quilt top?

You can read my other posts about this quilt here.

http://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2012/01/09/starting-the-new-year-with-black-and-white-and-stripes/

http://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2012/01/10/sneak-peek-striped-zig-zag-quilt/

And another…

http://thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/ok-i-approve-ready-to-sew/

I am linking this post to “Finish It Up Friday” over at CrazyMomQuilts. Go check them all out.

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2012/01/finish-it-up-friday-week-11.html

No need to create my own page… YOU have done it for me!!

THANK YOU!!

http://pinterest.com/source/thisyearsdozen.wordpress.com/

Organized Chaos.

This arrangement is more to my liking. Tamed somewhat. It is still “busy” but I knew it would be before I started.

The look I am going for is white/black zig zag, black/white zig zag, white/black zig zag, and so forth.

I already started sewing the half blocks together. You can see some of them up on my design wall. Tomorrow I start sewing the long strips together. And then I have to decide on the border fabric and how many. I am thinking two.

While working on this layout, several others popped up. They are now in my Idea Journal for future consideration.

Can you believe after two days this is all I have to show you?

I spent 1 1/2 days thinking, pondering, changing my mind (twice) and slowly cutting. My original plan was to do HST’s. Half Square Triangles. But cutting the strips on the diagonal would give me wonky bias pieces. And I was so not wanting to deal with misshaped half triangles.

So… I decided to cut the striped blocks in half horizontally. Then I added a black and white half block. I added one half block of tangerine in the oddball spaces on the left side.

It is really going slow. For now. I think once I am comfortable with my decision, I will go faster.

I have decided this will be my first quilted item for 2012. Something old combined with something new. The strips were sewn around June last year. My plan was to make pillow covers. But couldn’t decide on two large, four small or one large/two small.

So, rather than cut into it until I made up my mind, I just enjoyed folding it different ways and taking photos.

So now it has been rescued from the Round-To-It Pile. And guess what? It won’t be pillow covers after all!! It is going to be a quilt. I “think” I want to make Half Square Triangles. Half stripes. Half black and white. And since I have been accumulating black and white fabric for a year, I should have more than enough to get started.

And I think I will work in the new color for 2012. Tangerine. (Read all about it below.)

So… that’s what I am working on. What are you working on? Have you made your first 2012 crafty item yet?

2012 Color of the Year

http://www.burdastyle.com/blog/new-year-new-color-pantones-2012-pick-tangerine-tango

http://www.pantone.com/pages/fcr.aspx?pg=20910&ca=4

OK, I have now heard from all of the New Hobby giveaway winners. And I have their prize boxes packed and ready to ship off on Monday. Hope they like what I am sending. Can’t wait until they see their goodies. I am probably more excited than they are.

And guess who won my “Count” giveaway?

DeeDee. She wins the prize for coming the closest.

DeeDee said: January 3, 2012 at 2:35 pm
I guess that you made 175 sewing/quilting items in 2011.

She was very close. The actual number of items I sewed/quilted in 2011 was 184. Congrats, DeeDee. Go check your e-mail. Send me your name and address so I can mail off one of my crafty items to you. Thanks!!

And thank you to all participants. Truly appreciate your comments!!

Early this morning I used Random Generator to pick two numbers.  AND THEN I couldn’t help myself.  I picked TWO MORE!!  Yep.. 4 winners.  Yay!!

Here are the winners in the order picked.

Comment 47

Margaret says:  January 5, 2012 at 4:54 am

I would like to learn more stitches other than sc, dc, hdc, and tc.

There are so many really pretty patterns with more involved stitches so I would really like to win the crocheting package. This contest is great! I hope I win! LOL

Comment 13

Holly Schilling says: December 30, 2011 at 11:56 pm

I think I am going to try and do sewing/quilting this coming year.

My oldest is really into making things and she was given a ton of crafting items for Christmas (friendship bracelet making kits, weaving loom, an art kit). She would love having a sewing kit we could use together.

Comment 6

Brandy MIrly says: December 30, 2011 at 8:14 pm

I would LOVE to try macrame!

I remember my Mom doing macrame as a child and making the coolest potted plant hangers. At least I thought they were neat at the time – because MY MOM made them! LOL. I love the owl on the cover of that book (magazine) – I’d make that! Happy New Year!

Comment 35

Molly says: January 2, 2012 at 2:25 pm

I would love to try beading!
I made a plant holder out of one of your macrame tutorials and I love it!

Congrats to all the winners.  Go check your e-mail. You have 48 hours to reply with name and address, or sadly, a new comment will be selected.

And to all the other participants… THANK YOU!!  Do come back. Maybe you will win my next giveaway.