According to my handy-dandy quilty records, I finished 18 quilty projects this year. Yahoo! This seems like a lot to me because of the move and everything that came with it, which derailed many of my plans for the year. The most popular project this year was this little topper:
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| Wildflowers topper |
Started at the old house, finished at the new one! It surprises me that this was so popular, but it is super cute and now lives on a small table in my living room, where it can be a bright spot in my day. And look-- it's quilted and bound! Kind of different for this year.
I made some other small quilts this year, too, including these two for my daughter's cats:
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| Pets need quilts too |
Hey, our furry friends need love, too! I also did two small ones for charity:
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| Jack and Jill |
And this one from a quilt along from Sandra:
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| Beothuk Stars |
You know I do a bunch of scrappy projects every year (because I'm swimming in scraps), and I finished a few tops for those, too. This was an RSC project that got put together into a top:
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| Twelve hundred and more |
And so was this one (still not quilted!):
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| Dancing Stars |
My RSC Squared Away top from 2018 got quilted up and is in my living room:
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| Squared Away |
And I pieced two tops for the RSC so far this year, this little beauty:
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| Hollow 9-patches |
And this one too:
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| Tiny Tuesday top |
I did a lot of other things, too. I made a baby book:
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| Soft signs of love |
And some bigger tops:
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| Okay, the one on the upper left is a finished quilt that now lives in my office, which is either boiling or freezing, depending on the day (or sometimes on the hour.) |
And a lot of blocks:
And I even requilted a quilt I had previously finished:
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| Ripped and restitched |
That was quite a lot of stitching! And a lot of fun, too, for the most part. Now that we've looked back some, let's take a look ahead, shall we?
2020 plans
Before I wrote this post, I felt like I had had a "rebuilding" year, one where you fail a lot but set yourself up for future success. Somehow moving 90 miles was harder than moving 900 miles, and a lot of my plans got derailed. I accomplished *none* of my 2019 goals-- not one!-- because life kept getting in the way, but I think now that it turned out okay anyway. Some of it certainly turned out pretty!
For our next quilty year, I think I'll stick with some smaller goals. I'll keep working on getting those tops quilted up into cozy, comforting pieces, get back on some kind of posting schedule, and (finally) launch Academic Quilts, the small quilt pattern company I've been planning and working on sporadically. I'm hung up on the illustrations, but much of it is ready to go, so it's past time to get that going. I was also thinking of starting a Wednesday "work in progress" link up, but I've done no planning for that at all, and I don't know how it would be received. Wouldn't want to give a party and have no one show! I do like link parties, though, especially ones where you can get to be a regular, so let me know if that's something you'd be interested in, too.
My main goal, though, is to leave more comments, visit more often, and keep on building this wonderful, supportive, and fun community. This year especially, your comments and suggestions have really buoyed my spirits and your projects have provided so much inspiration. I am grateful for all of you and for this community. It's good to be among friends!
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| Hope and kindness |
And with that, it's on to 2020! Wishing you nothing but peace, joy, and happiness in the new year. May this be our best year yet! Let's pledge to fill it with hope, kindness, gratitude, and joy-- and lots of fabric, thread, color, and quilty goodness, too, of course!
Happy new year, all!
Sharing at Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Finished or Not Friday, Cheryl's Best of 2019 at Meadow Mist Designs, and Yvonne's 2020 Planning Party at Quilting Jetgirl.
24 comments:
Mari, it's been great following and reading your blog. I will look forward to following in 2020. I need some pushing so a link up would be good. Hopefully I can stick to it. I start the year out good but then slacken off. You have had a great year with your quilt making. Love your work.
Certainly enjoyed seeing a recap of your beautiful creations! Happy New Year!
love all those RSC projects. Moving can take a bit of time away from the quilting! takes awhile to get back on track
I have loved getting acquainted through Tiny Tuesday posts! I sometimes feel like a giant failure because I don’t have a finish on Friday! I’d love to have a way to connect about “progress made”! Because slow and steady progress can bring a positive outcome!
It's so fun to see these pieces again, like visiting old friends! You certainly have a bright, happyscrappy signature style. I wish a peaceful and productive 2020 for you :)
My goodness Mari - for all that you had going on this year with moving, your teaching, your kids and grand children and just life in general - you did SOOOO much sewing! It is amazing to review it like this. Congrats and well done!
I haven't yet written an end of year post but I intend to. I like your goals. If you need a pattern tester, let me know. As for a WIP link up, I am interested. I really posted a lot less in 2019 than usual. I need to get back in the habit again.
Happy New Year my friend.
Finishing 18 quilts in a year is amazing. Moving takes a lot of time and energy and I am glad you are giving yourself some grace due to the move. I hope you have a great 2020 and best wishes for starting your pattern company!
It was a very good year! And yes, every project is the practice for the next. Sometimes our goals are meant to just point us in a direction but as Lao Tzu says, we end up in the direction we are headed. Looks like you reached all the destinations that you were inspired to continue towards! Nothing at all wrong with that.
I especially like the way you set the scrappy star blocks (Dancing Stars). GREAT idea! Happy New Year to you and I agree that smaller goals are more likely to be completed. But whatever you work on, HAVE FUN!!
It looks to me like you have accomplished a lot this year, especially considering that you moved in the middle of it! I love all your projects, and want to say thanks for your scrappy inspiration throughout the year!
I like the idea of a weekly link...makes me more accountable and may get me to my sewing machine more often!! Some of the new link platforms - Linksy is the name, I believe - isn't user friendly and I can never seem to link to it nor can I follow the links provided by others! Really frustrating!! Looking forward to 2020 and lots of sewing!
Considering the upheaval of your move, your body of work, both finished and in progress, is amazing. I always love your RSC work and have enjoyed following along for a few years now. And yes, I would be interested in a mid-week WIP linky party. I need to work harder at getting and staying involved with the great women of our online quilting community. Have a wonderful New Year’s Eve, and all the best to you in 2020.
I've been waiting (patiently) for you to finish Twelve Hundred and More. Love, love, LOVE that quilt top!!! Lots of other wonderful projects to keep you busy in the coming year. Best of luck on meeting your goals for 2020, Mari!
Wow Mari, what a group of gorgeous quilts and quilt tops! Your rd and white "ripped and restitched" quilt is a favorite for sure. Happy blessings for the New Year and all of your goals.
Beautiful finishes! You've given me lots of ideas for the next RSC :)
18 finishes is amazing! I love them all!
you still got an amazing amount done!! and had some fun a long the way - can't wait to see your pattern line - how fun!! Happy New YEar!
Thank you so much for sharing your quilts - they are quite an inspiration! I fell in love with your red and white heart quilt - did you design this one or was it a pattern I might be able to find? Wishing you a new year of joyous sewing, good health and happiness!
I am amazed at how much you accomplished in a year when you moved. My own upheaval was closer to 9 miles than to 90 and it seemed to use up all my bandwidth for the year. Work in progress Wednesday seems like a lovely way to celebrate hump day.
Did you say party? I am in :-) But you already knew that :-D
Kudos to you on accomplishing so much, especially in a topsy turvy year full of moves, anxieties and a grandbaby too. I love Soft Signs of Love. I bought the book, inspired by you. Speaking of inspiration, well, it is more like I am in awe of you and your accomplishments. So keep doing the magic that you do and my best wishes on getting that Academic Quilting company started!!!
I enjoyed your posts, miss you when you don't. I love seeing what you do with scraps and your finished quilts.
Yes, I'm interested in a party and I'm still interested in being a pattern tester.
Life does have a way of disrupting even the best laid plans. You managed lots of pretty finishes even with the move. Wishing you a successful 2020!
Give yourself a huge pat on the back, Mari, for getting so much done in a year of big changes for you. I have a feeling that quilting was your island of sanity in the midst of transition. As always, a great bunch of quilts and projects—I’m always especially drawn to your rainbow quilts! I hope the new year will feel settled to you as you create in that fabulous new studio. When life gets crazy, just focus on that wonderful design wall.
What an amazing productive year you have had! I love the way you finished those brilliant RSC projects. All so colourful! All the best with getting your company started. Hope you do that, also I like the idea of a Wednesday party. So nice to have ideas and plans. A very happy New Year to you from me!
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