Showing posts with label year end. Show all posts
Showing posts with label year end. Show all posts

Thursday, December 31, 2020

things 2020 taught me

 oh boy, where do we begin with this year end round up?

it truly is a weird year to be saying farewell too...
and who would have thought that this photo that was from exactly a year ago today would have truly set the tone for the year's emotions.

and now here we are, bidding farewell to the year that was terrible for many, confusing for most and just straight up different for all.

what did 2020 teach me?

travel when you can.  and often.
i was able to go to quiltcon right before everything shut down, which also meant spending time in texas with my best friend.  i was supposed to go back over the summer, but hopefully next year...
hopefully.
i was also able (by way of work) to take a quick trip to SLC in september, which was nice to get some cousin time and shop hop a little bit.
curves aren't scary
i sewed TWO quilts with curves this year
parallel path and take heart were totally not scary at all, and have opened my eyes to new possibilities for quilting.
it was great to be able to challenge myself in a new way, in the midst of all the chaos.
plus, doing them as baby quilts really helped the new challenge seem a whole lot less daunting

take the plunge
with the shut down, playing the waiting game to go back to preschool was HARD.
happening in to the position at cali quilt co, which has clearly spiraled in to so much more than i could have imagined.  it was easily one of the HARDEST decisions i've ever had to make, and so many options were vented and tears were shed...but i don't regret it one bit.  preschool, from what i've heard from coworkers, is still in limbo anyways, so i would still be playing the waiting game.
taking the plunge in to something new and scary has pushed me in to wanting to come up with other new and challenging experiences, both in real life and virtual life.  block party has been it's own adventure with the shop, but i'm also looking to push and challenge myself in my own way via youtube.
nothing is "official" on that front yet... but given that i wanted to kick things off TOMORROW... i will probably be up late getting situated and what not.
as far as real life plunges... you'll have to wait on that until something official happens :)

breathe
one particular line from "everybody's free (to wear sunscreen)" by baz luhrmann always sticks out to me.  
"don't worry about the future. 
 or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum"
boy did 2020 bring some worries to a whole lot of people, and rightfully so.  but sometimes, you just gotta step away, take a breath and let things settle before jumping back in to it all.
sometimes it helped.  sometimes it needed an even longer breath.
and a whole lot of dr pepper.

other things from 2020
i binged a whole lot of tv...
schitt's creek
emily in paris
community
dash and lily
unorthodox
love on the spectrum
new girl

i stayed in touch with all my friends, both near and far.
i became proficient in wal mart grocery ordering. at least so i think...
i do miss sitting inside restaurants and eating... and hanging out with my friends.  and movie theaters. OH how i miss movie theaters...

but most of all
i made a lot of quilts, many of them for very important people.
can you tell it was hard for me to pick just a few favorites?
this is nearly all of them that i made from start to finish throughout the year!
but my FINAL quilt of 2020 will be revealed tomorrow!
goodbye 2020.
you were really something.  
but now i'm off to an adventurous 2021!

Sunday, December 31, 2017

year in review - 2017

where oh where has this year gone by?
this year has been a year of learning a lot of new things including long arm quilting and free motioning on my own janome.  i've begun adventures in vlogging, joined a quilt guild and also found a group that meets monthly to hang out and sew with.  i've been a certified renter on the long arm machines at meissner and also took a class from a national quilting instructor.
now, it's time to recap the projects that have been completed this year!  i've also decided to notate which ones were quilted on the long arm as well, just for kicks.  so any project link that is followed with an asterisks means it was quilted on the long arm!
finished projects
bronco diamonds baby quilt
star wars strip quilt
olaf panel quilt*
feelin' blue fancy fox quilt*
tiger lily swoon 16 baby quilt
garden snails quilt*
musical charm (and 10!) squares quilt 2.0*
musical himalayan pink quilt
blue and gray baby elephant quilt
pink, gray and white stripes quilt
old fashioned cars pow wow quilt
twin dogs in sweater quilt*
teal, burgundy & orange boardwalk quilt*
black, white and red comfy quilt
himalayan pink quilt for mom
alaskan batik quilt*
patchwork pumpkin quilt*
civil war hazel hedgehog quilt*
18 quilts done for this year, can you believe it?
9 of those quilted on the long arm!
(actually i quilted 10, since i did one at my grandma's request with a meander.  i only have the photo on my instagram though... oops!)
granted, i have two tops done waiting to be quilted that i will *hopefully* get done soon and a few more quilt plans are already bouncing around in my head ready to come to life.
all about me november was successful, finishing two quilt tops all for me!
i also had some great adventures this year:
colorado for spring break
alaska in the summer
new apartment adventure in october
fall out boy concert in november

what will 2018 have in store?
you'll have to wait to find out!
one year long project will be announced soon, and perhaps i'll figure a few more things out real soon :)
happy last day of 2017!

Saturday, December 31, 2016

2016 look back

it is currently 3am on december 31st and i have NOT prepared this blog post at all.
(why am i awake at 3am?  melissa's birthday dinner, 3 dr. peppers, dance moms... wide awake)
anywho, i spent today getting certified to rent long arm quilting machines (more on that later) and realized it was time for my year review of everything i've done!
while this year may not have been as blog filled as previous ones, it was rather eventful in many ways.  2 weddings, a handful of babies and birthdays were all valid reasons for crafting for some of my favorite people.  here's the run down of 2016's posts!
quilts: 13
science ribbon star quilt
dragons & knights on the nine patch
baseball baby quilt
peter pan mini quilt (plus a sew together bag and onsie)
blue, white & gold argyle wedding quilt
goodnight, quilt - winnie the pooh
baby a's charm (and 10!) quilt
musical charm (and 10!) quilt
musical amy butler's daisy chain 2.0
andrew's disney i-spy quilt
fandom filled amy butler's daisy chain
stripes & triangles elephant quilt
giraffe abstractions for baby a
cross stitch
bridal shower cross stitch collection
miscellaneous sewing
boba fett pillow
blush & gold rose ruffle apron
bridal/baby showers
aileen's nerdy bridal shower
erika's gender reveal
erika's baby shower decorations
big events
alaskan adventure
aileen got hitched
surprised lisa for her 30th (forgot to blog anything here.  but it totally makes the list)
this year in my personal life
i survived my first dog bite
bridesmaid for the 4th & 5th time (1st time not being a maid of honor)
took 2 major vacations
became lead teacher in a preschool classroom
turned 28
photographed 5 weddings
didn't sleep enough, but made up for it by eating lots of mexican food
stay tuned for my "plans" for 2017 post.  perhaps that won't happen at 3am.

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

the 2014 look back - completed projects list

i feel like 2014 just started, and here we are already looking at the end of the year.
pretty certain i've made more quilts this year than years prior, and i've become more and more pleased with each new venture.  i got braver with my block piecing, ventured in to paper piecing, and even auditioned for a sewing contest.  in total, 14 quilts were blogged this year, with only two of them being not done from start to finish in 2014.  maybe 2 1/2.
i quilted my first queen size quilt all by myself on my little machine.
i also made a quilt all for myself.  that is actually "me" sized.  which hasn't happened in years, if ever.
so here is a collection of every finished project posted in 2014 as lovely reminder of how much i churned out this year, and how much i can't wait to see where we are at next year :)
quilts & quilted items
joshua's t-shirt quilt
catvent 2013
amy & luke's quilt - pair of logs
the modern baby - baby natalie
mod chevron - baby everett
classic winnie the pooh daisy chain - baby jason
music themed triangle quilt
musical pinwheels
fun with flags - sewvivor sewalong
petite trellis - baby mark
pink & purple parallelograms
hexing around - sewvivor sewalong
coloradifornia camera quilt - sewvivor sewalong
where in the world? - map quilt
place mats & potholder set
quilt blocks
quilt block swap round 6
sewing projects
betsy & dillon's pillowcases
nurse themed ruffle apron
amy's keepsake garter
sweet retreat's little sister - sewvivor sewalong
andrew's olaf filled birthday
sarah & raymond's wedding pillowcases
christmas gift pillowcases
cross stitch
classic winnie the pooh - baby jason
paper crafts
amy's bridal shower invites