A fast paced start to 2015.....

Yikes! I have neglected this blog and see this is the first post of the new year while January is already 3 weeks past. But I have not been sitting around....well once in a while with a good book....as I have many goals set for 2015. 

First I decided to set two goals for this year with one being in our home and another with my hobbies. I am striving to finish 15 UFOs this year. I need to make a dent in the quilt tops I have laying around! There is an entire closet with them (I kid you not!) hanging there crying out for some love and attention. This month I want to finish a doll quilt (right photo) from Humble Quilts quiltalong called Faithful. I had to sew on the already made up last two sawtooth borders and then add a last border. It took no time at all and I could sandwich it ready to start quilting this weekend. Why did I put it aside??? I love how it came out! 

I am also putting the border on my 50 Hearts Jubilee quilt. I want to be ready to sew a quilt label on it on the last day of my 50th year. I am sewing the quilt binding on by hand and then need to make the tunnel before I start to design a label. 

Our quilt group theme starts each year in January. This year we are making crazy quilts. I bought each person a cute Dutch gabled house (from Action) and they used them to practice drawing out their crazy quilt design on muslin and then sewing the block with ribbons or laces of their choice. Here is the sample block. Next month we practice stitches and then they can get started on their quilts. 

Jannie (no blog) and I have started a new project for our monthly lacemaking afternoons. We are working on Kantje Per Maand (Lace per month) which is a 40 month project to celebrate the upcoming 40th anniversary of the LOKK which is the Dutch lace organization. We are on the second lace piece now. When completed, we are sewing the laces onto a piece of linen and then to a wooden bobbin as a lace sampler. 

I am using my roll lace pillow for this project which is very dear to me. I bought this pillow at a lace market second hand. It was unique in that it had the roll pillow and a small square to use for most kinds of lace. However, it was looking very much the worse for wear. But I recovered the tatty fabric and then put a pretty old Dutch band around the edges. It looks like new again and is pretty just sitting in the living room.

Last but not least, my friend Mieke (no blog) and I are still working on the Scheepjes CAL 2014. We decided to give it our own twist. We are making two of each of the blocks posted then adding various other blocks to give us a sampler afghan when it is done. We get together once a week to work in it and enjoy a long lunch together. 

Heidi