First 12 in 2014 UFO Parade

Wow, 52 Quilts readers are off to a great start in 2014! Look at these great finishes!

If you're new to the "12 UFOs" Challenge, here is a link to the post explaining how it all works.


Because I know you're eager to see what you'll be working on in February, here is the number for this month:

I'll be putting together my "Amish With a Twist" BOM quilt this month. I have an exciting color for the background, in place of the black called for in the pattern. Just wait and see!

And now, on with the parade!

The first finish submitted this month is from a first-time challenger, Joy in Nashville, Tennessee. The story behind this quilt is inspiring:

The quilt is not actually mine.  It belongs to a friend that started it for his son about 12 years ago.  It was really before t-shirt quilts were popular, and the man didn't know much about quilting.  He was unhappy with the results, so he just wadded it up and threw it in an old trunk.  When he moved last year, his new wife found it and decided that it needed to be fixed and finished to give to his son.  I had to rip out all of the seams, which were of varying widths, press, press onto a stablizer, and trim each "block".  Unfortunately, none of them were even close to being the same size.  Some of them also had holes or missing bits, so I had to patch them. After extensive quilting math and remeasuring, I trimmed each to its final size and began sewing them together.  After adding borders to both the front and back, I quilted it using a neverending square design.  Both challenging to mark, and move around my regular sewing machine. (I am not a longarm quilter.)  There were a total of 12 of these squares.

Here's a close-up of the back so you can see the quilting Joy did:

Joy, this is truly a work of love! I have refused many requests to make t-shirt quilts, and re-making one is a credit to you. I hope you'll be back next month with another finish.

Sue finished her Star Surround for a baby who might be here by now (due February 1st)! Be sure to stop by her blog, Sue's Quilty Bits and Bobs, to read the whole story.

Sue, the quilting on this is gorgeous!

This is Donna's first submission for the UFO Challenge. She made SIX of these cardinal wall hanging for her quilty friends (lucky friends!):

Donna reports this quilt was made for the Vermont Quilt Festival Block Exchange. She had five of the six blocks hand quilted and now it's finished!

We'll see Donna again this year, she says she has a "dauntingly large" number of UFOs to finish!

Carol Anne made this darling Noah's Ark quilt for a little boy whose Daddy is a recently-commissioned Navy Chaplain.  She says she doesn't usually use panels, but who could resist this one?

A new Aussie blog friend! ChristieLeigh made this yummy strip quilt for her Auntie's 60th birthday (it was last year, oops!). I love the quilt holders in this first photo:

But ChristieLeigh is right, this one shows the colors better:

Happy (belated) Birthday, ChristieLeigh's Auntie -- I bet she loves this quilt! I'm going to show it to my Jelly Roll Party group and suggest we add it to our list!

The next quilt is testament to the power of social media. Katie's younger sister was a good friend of mine who also played flute in the school band. Peggy saw one of my quilts on Facebook and encouraged her sister to follow 52 Quilts. With a little urging, Katie submitted this quilt for our parade. 

Katie used the Missouri Star Quilt Co.'s "Periwinkle" tutorial -- I love what she say about it:

I bought the fabric in April 2012. It is 4 charm packs and about 8 yards of background fabric. My husband did the cutting for me as I had wrist surgery in December and couldn't put any pressure on my wrist. He just asked me two days ago if I needed any more fabric cut. Cute, huh.

I need to borrow Katie's DH!

I love this next quilt, from another first-time challenger. Elisa calls it "Zombie Lipstick," although her DH prefers "Zombie Apocalypse." She named it because it has "every shade of red under the sun, just like a Revlon display."

Revlon Red is my all-time favorite lipstick color!

Isn't it great? Go here to read Elisa's blog post about this quilt.

Another first-timer, I'm pretty sure Becky wins the "Oldest UFO" Award. Here is her "Patch In Time" from the 1998 Jo-Anns quilt block of the month series:

She even used Susie's Magic Binding to bind it!

I want to share Gill's comment with everyone:

I didn't have 12 true UFOs (as in actually started) this year so I included projects that I wanted to do or I had got as far as bundling up a pile of fabric for.

I consider "kits" of quilt fabric and patterns to be a "UFO." Remember, in the 52 Quilts UFO Challenge, YOU decide what is a UFO, as well as what is "done!"

That being said, here is Gill's January finish:

Number 7 was a pile of scraps, sale remnants and fat quarters with a vague idea of a Bonnie Hunter Scrappy Trip. I started cutting on New Years Day and finished last night!
This is the first time I have ever done so much in one month - thank you for the motivation, it really focuses the mind - plus I didn't want to fail in Month 1! I really don't know how you manage one quilt per week.

Wow, Gill, good on you!

I have to say, I always look forward to Sandi's kwilts -- because the names always begin with "K!" 

This month's kwilt is called "Konquerer", and here is what Sandi tells us about it:

My Konqueror, the #7 UFO for this month, is a design by Joyce Weeks of Geoff's Mom Pattern Company (www.geoffsmompatterns.com).  I took a class from her at the San Diego Quilt Show last year in September.  I decided to make mine a bit smaller than the pattern, opting for a 50" x 70" finish rather than 70" x 90".  Now you might say I was trying to cut corners to finish in time for the month...but no...I really didn't want to make yet another large quilt.  I really enjoy the experience of the many designs I come across, smaller sizes when it can be done are perfect.  I have a paisley print to use for the back in all the right colors along with the dark gray for the binding.

Go to her blog post from yesterday to read all the details, at KwiltnKats.

Sandi also sent in her "extra credit" finish from 2013, Keltic Krest:

Here is the link to her blog post about it. 

I rearranged things in this post so you can compare Sandi's Keltic Krest with Kerry's Celtic Solstice.

Kerry is a long-time UFO Finisher. I love what she did with the colors in Bonnie Hunter's newest mystery, Celtic Solstice:

The red and purple in place of orange and blue is gorgeous! Go to her blog, Kerry's Quilting, to read the details. Be sure to click on the tab that reads "2013 Finishes" to see all the quilts she completed last year!

I think this quilt by Irene is so appropriate. She says she was very busy in January because of a trip to the American Farm Bureau annual convention. I am a big fan of the Farm Bureau because a close friend in my high school class won the Farm Bureau scholarship!

Aren't the "farm scenes" perfect? Irene posted details on her blog, A Serendipitous Retirement.

Another first-time finisher, Betsy, completed not one, but three pillowcases this month.

From bottom to top: a breast cancer case from a kit, a pieced and appliqued case from a kit I bought at the Houston Quilt show years ago, and a companion case for the middle one. It doesn't match exactly, but close enough. We'll use those two in my fiance's RV. 

Betsy, I think custom-made pillowcases will be lovely in the RV! I hope we'll see another finish by you next month.

Returning finisher, Noela, submits this lovely Christmas project. She says she is planning to do some hand-quilting on it and will use it for a table topper. If you click on the photo so that it "biggies," you can see the hand-embroidered "Merry Christmas" around the central border.

Notice the green grass and filled swimming pool in the background? Yep, Noela is from "Down Under," where they are "enjoying" a very hot summer while I am looking out at 5" of snow. Care to trade places, Noela?

Debra B. sent in this photo of another Bonnie Hunter mystery (YES, they ARE addictive!). "Lazy Sunday" was featured in Quiltmaker magazine last year. I really like Deb's versions!

Look closely at the photo -- can you see the little visitor in the upper left?  It's Lola! So cute!

I can't believe she is working on a second Bonnie Hunter scrappy quilt -- Orca Bay:

Bonnie B. is another first-timer and apologies for the "phone photo." But really, the quilt still looks adorable, Bonnie! I love that focus fabric (and the quilt holder, too!)

Bonnie finished two of these disappearing 9-patches this month, in two colorways. Ahead of the game, Bonnie! She says this is the first time she has shown her quilts outside the family, so I hope for lots of encouraging comments.

Eighteen entries this month! 52 Quilts followers completed 157 UFOs in 2013 -- it looks as though 2014 will be even more successful.

I haven't picked out a prize for this month, but Mr. Random Number Generator has chosen a winner:

And  the 9th entry is newcomer Becky! Congratulations, Becky -- I'll be sending you an email asking for your postal address so I can send you something fun!

I hope you will consider sending a photo of a finished UFO next month. Email me at AuntMarti at 52 Quilts dot com and attach a photo and a link to your blog if you like.

From the desk of your

About Those UFOs

Before I moan about updating the blog design, let me share two more 13 in 2013 UFO finishes.

Both of these lovelies are from Kerry of Kerry's Quilting. Somehow they got lost in the ether-net when she emailed them to me. And that's a shame, because they are something to see! (Not to mention, it brings the total number of UFO finishes by 52 Quilts followers in 2013 up to 159!)

The first is one of those I-can't-believe-you-finished-the-whole-thing designs from Temecula Quilt Company, "Jamestown Landing." I love this quilt! Go here to see Kerry's kick-off of this project.

Kerry's second submission for the UFO Parade is one I really want to add to my quilting bucket list!  It's "Seven Sisters" by Marti Michell. Kerry reports that she started this one at the Road to California in January 2013 and brought it out of hibernation on Veteran's Day 2013. The perfect Veteran's Day project!

Kerry, I can't wait to see what you do for 12 Finishes in 2014!

I'm trying to add the code so all of you who blog can add the "12 in 2014" button to your own blog. And it's not working! I'm going to publish this post and go back to tearing out my hair -- I hope to publish the new button tomorrow, please come back to see if it works!


From the desk of your

A New Year, A New Challenge!

Happy New Year! In case you are a continuing "challenger" and want to get started on your first UFO for 2014, the number is:

OK, now back to our regularly scheduled broadcast! Like the new look? Thank you, Younger Son, for updating the 52 Quilts in 52 Weeks header. And for the "12 in 2014" button -- for which I will write code so any followers who have a blog, and wish to, can add it to their own blogs! (I'm pretty sure that isn't a complete sentence, but you know what I mean!)

12 Finishes in 2014

Before the "last parade of 2013," let me list the guidelines for the 2014 Challenge. It will run just like the 13 in 2013 challenge, but we'll only attempt 12 UFO finishes this year.

Are you ready to challenge yourself to complete some UFOs during 2014?  I know I am!

Here's how it works:

1.  Pull out 12 of your UFOs.  (Notice I didn't say all your UFOs.  I know you have at least 12!)   These can be half-done projects, barely begun projects, or even quilt "kits." 

2.  I put each project in its own 2-gallon size plastic bag.  Saves time I would have spent looking for the pattern or the special template required!

3.  Number each bag 1 - 12.

4.  Come to 52 Quilts the first day of each month in 2014 and I will have posted the number for that month's project.

5.  As you complete your UFO, email a photo to Aunt Marti at 52 quilts dot com. The first of the month, I'll host a "UFO Parade" with photos of your finished projects.

Most importantly, YOU decide what is finished! It can be "bound and ready to give away" or "pieced and ready to quilt." And hey, these are UFOs, so it's not cheating (Jacob!) if you started your UFO before 2014!

January UFO Parade

By my count, 52 Quilts followers finished 140 projects in 2013! Wow! 

Our most productive month was June, when 19 finishes entered the parade. Surprisingly, November was the least productive, with only 4 finishes. The group came back strong in December, finishing 9 projects despite the looming holidays!

I must confess that I didn't finish my own December UFO. And it was a simple, four-block table runner, too! I did complete my tenure with Quiltmaker Magazine's "Scrap Squad," though. And all the blocks and bags I was test-sewing.

Carol, however! Carol completed not one, but two projects this month! Her first was a Thimbleberries quilt from 2005 (see, they don't go bad!).

Carol writes:

I use our driving time to sew on bindings and this Thimbleberries 2005 queen sized quilt was my project for the trip in November.  Hope you do this again in 2014.  Have a good New Year. Carol

She also finished this gorgeous wall hanging. It was a project taught at the Granny's Attic retreat last spring. Carol's granddaughter and talented artist, Jessie, taught the class. It's hard to see in the photo, but there are all kinds of embellishments on this little quilt. Such as beads, glitter paint, ribbons, etc. I know this because my own butterfly wall hanging is in the UFO bin at my house!

Carol finished it for Jessie's birthday -- Happy Belated Birthday from 52 Quilts, Jessie!

Look at Irene's first attempt at machine quilting!  Isn't it cute? She writes:

. . . my first attempt at machine quilting. I decided I needed something to fit on our front door and found this hanging in an old Debbie Mumm book.
Thanks again for all you did for me in 2013. I know I have said it before, but your challenge this year reactivated my quilting desires and I give you full credit for all I accomplished.

Sandi completed all of her 2013 UFOs, including the 13th extra credit one! I love that her quilt names all begin with "k" -- this one is Kingsford Kove:

Sandi writes:

Kingsford Kove was named by my hair stylist.  He thought of the coals for the black and because the name of the design is Rustic Meadows...Kove came to mind.  This project has been on my bucket list for several years now.  It is nice to finally have it complete.  I need to get a back for it, but plan to use scraps of all the blacks in the top for a scrappy binding.I've had such a great time in 2013 with the Thirteen in '13! UFO Challenge.  Looking forward to seeing the logo your little sailor comes up with 2014.

Be sure to go to Sandi's blog, KwiltnKats, and see all her 2013 finishes!

Martha-in-Boise left off making baby quilts long enough to finish this beautiful blue number for her son-in-law:

She reports it's been on her to-do list "for several years."  Doesn't it feel good to get these UFOs out of the closet and onto beds?

Oh, look, here's a second finish from Martha!

This came out much nicer than I thought!  These are disappearing four-squares and solid squares. It is going to my sil's sister who is having a hip replacement in England.

She modified the disappearing four-patch pattern. I'm hoping for a tutorial next time I visit Idaho! Isn't it lovely?

Looking at Gill's email, I think I need to "up" the finish count for December!  There are two quilts and four pillows in this photo!

I have to share what she wrote about these, in case others want to make something similar:

Hello and Happy Christmas from London!
These are my December finishes - I actually drew the numbers (two months worth) for these earlier in the year but didn't finish them due to Summer holidays! Then December came around and they are all presents that needed to be made! I finished up the two ninja quilts on December 23rd - very very late, but there was no way I wanted to be sewing on Christmas Eve!
At the bottom of the picture are two ninja quilts, single bed size for our two boys - Jacob 7 and Luke 5, who are both into martial arts. The fabrics are Robert Kaufman: I am Ninja, and Riley Blake: Chevrons, with Kona Solids and another blue martial art remnant I bought. The Union Jack cushions were meant to be made in the Jubilee Year couple of years back but now are finally made and have now been given to family members as gifts. There's a good tutorial for making them at Dandelion Daydreams - but I altered the widths of the middle cross fabric to make the flags more accurate.
We have had a lovely Christmas - full of Lego and Nerf guns! I hope you and your family are all well.

Well done, Gill!

Now I know I have to up the December count! Karen sent four (!) finishes in for this month!

First is her Asian Sampler:

On her blog, she writes:

. . . my Asian Sampler quilt. While I didn’t complete the quilt, the real challenge for me was to get these 12 blocks into a top. And, that is complete!

Yes, Karen, by the 52 Quilts "13 in 2013" rules, that is certainly complete! 

I think I recognize one of my favorite Anthology fabric collections in Karen's second finish. She reports:

Sloane’s Happy Quilt. This is my granddaughter’s Christmas present. 

Here is her third finish:

December was an easy one. Number 10 is a preemie quilt that I finished to use up some pastel fabrics that weren’t playing well with my stash. Finished.

And here is her "extra credit" finish:

And, I’ve finished my bonus, number 13. My 2012 Keyhole quilt. Finished in August and given to my niece who is undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.

 

Good on you, Karen!

Debra apologizes that she didn't quite get her last UFO completed. But since it's a Bonnie Hunter scrap "monster," I want to share it anyway!

Be sure to click on the photo so you can see that all the "setting blocks" are string-pieced. That string piecing takes some time, let me tell you!

Here's what Debra says about this project, and about the "13 in 2013" challenge:

I must say this has been an awesome challenge. I will definitely be participating in 2014 and I already have most of the items I want to complete going round-and-round in my brain. I really appreciate all of your efforts and also the efforts of the younger and elder sons. They have done an excellent job.
Now for my number 8 - I have most of my parts ready but the quilt is not assembled into a "quilt top". I have a good reason (actually, a good excuse - hehehhehehehe). I had 12 quilts to bind the beginning of December for Christmas gifts and I thought I could handle it just fine and I was approximately 1/2 through with my Orca Bay (#8 in Aunt Marti's challenge) so I thought - no problem - I can handle this. I finished the bindings on the quilts (after working on them every evening after work) on 12/22/2013. Whew!!! - everyone is going to get their Christmas quilt. Now onto Orca Bay. I had all of the string portions left to do and then I could assemble the quilt. I didn't know strings could take that much time.  Needless to say - Orca Bay is not done. I have only a few of the blue string parts left and I have arranged the quilt so that you can see what it is going to look like in its finished state. I did mine in neutral, gold, purple, and blue. I didn't know what the mystery would look like so I wanted to change up the colors. Well once I saw Bonnie's quilt in red, black, blue, and neutral - I had to have one of those as well. I do have everything cut for my second Orca Bay - which is one that will be included in my UFO challenge for 2014.
I have included my pictures and I think everyone has done a wonderful job and you are all an inspiration to me. Thank you for all of your sharing - I love the parades.  I'll be watching on 1/1/14 to see all of the newly made items.

Wow. Just. Wow! Thank you for playing along with my little challenge. I hope to see you all, along with new challengers, for Twelve Finishes in Twenty Fourteen!


From the desk of your

November UFO Parade

December 1st! This is how people get to be old and wonder where their lives went!

The last "13 in 2013" UFO is number:

November, being the start of the busy holiday season, often is not the best for quilters. But we have three finishes this month, plus my own.

Here is my finish for November.

 It's from Brenda Henning's "Strip Therapy 7" and is called "Full Moon." This is quilt #48 pieced by me this year, I'm thinking I will make it to 52!

Irene was the first to submit her finish for November.  She made this Christmas-sy lap quilt with leftovers from a Christmas stocking. Irene blogged about the quilt here.

Be sure to go to Sandi's blog to see all her 2013 UFO Finishes here. including her "extra credit" finish. November's is called "Kookaburra." She tells us:

Another pattern I purchased this year in January at the Road to California Quilt Show.  Design is called Licorice Allsorts by Lydia Quigley.  I’ve been on the lookout for black 30s fabrics all year.  Kookaburra if you don't know is a bird native to Australia.  It also happens to be the name of a candy manufacture there famous for it's black licorice.

Deb's November finish is from one of my favorite "scrap quilt" books, Quilts from the Heart by Karen Renaud.  I often make one of Karen's quilts for a baby quilt, they're fast and easy but don't look it!

Look at this lovely "Arkansas Crossing" made by Deb and blogged here:

Ohmygosh, looking in my little book of "who won what," I see that all three of these quilters have won the UFO Parade giveaway -- and in the last three months. How funny! I think I should send some fat quarters to each of them, don't you? 

I don't save your addresses, so if each of you will email your postal address to me, I'll go stash-diving for you. Tell me if there's a color or designer you particularly like, and if I have some fabric that fits the bill, that's what I'll send!

Yes! There will be a UFO Challenge for 2014. My Little Sailor, and blog co-author, has agreed to make us a new cover design for "Twelve Finishes in 2014."  I just thought 14 might be a little too many!

PS Because of the UFO Parade, I will share Sunday Scraps on Design Wall Monday instead!

From the desk of your