SURPRISE FINDS

 This past week I finally completely finished reorganizing the fabric and storage in my sewing room.  I notice on several blogs that January seems it is a common theme.  Enlightening for sure.  I found things that I had no idea I had stashed away in the closets.  Some really had to go, but others were real gems and over a couple days I really got in and did some fun projects.

The butterfly fabric on the table topper was a great find.  I have a gift I need to make for a lady that provides us regularly with fresh fruit and vegetables during the year.  I had no idea I had that fabric left over from some long ago project.  I actually got two table toppers out of those left overs.  The roosters again left over from another project, enough to make 3 runners with them, they will go to my guild's quilt show boutique in May.  The last runner, I was able to make two.  That fabric left over easily has to be a good 6 or more years old.  Probably will keep those for gifts.  Yes, there are a couple more surprise finds dug out that are on my plate to do something with.  

All done, just about 180 mini bolts lined up in there.  Some pieces were just not  big enough to put on a bolt so still have a couple of stacks of half yard or less piled up.  

These two shelves hold large quilt back fabrics and linen fabric on the top shelf.  Just too big to fold onto bolts.  The lower shelf is all neutrals, and some black prints.  This closet is a bit difficult to get in and out of so these were moved out of the other closet.  The neutrals I do use a good deal, and I could do some more putting some of them onto mini bolts.  I think I have learned with all this chore completed for sure is.  I do not need to buy more fabric, at least not for a while.  

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MINI BOLT FABRIC STORAGE & A START ON SWEET TWEET BLOCK 7

 I was able to start working on Sweet Tweets block 7 .  It is birthday week here so celebrations have taken up a good deal of free time.  Our youngest daughter, husband, and youngest daughter's sister in law pretty much a second daughter for us all in one week.  Lots of fun dinners and cake.  Plus I am preparing to teach three classes to beginner quilters at our local shop in February and March.  Lots of prep work to get that going.   

I am still working on better storage in my sewing room.  I have two closets and multiple wire bins of fabric stacked in all of them.  Finding anything is a real chore.  I discovered a mini bolts system on Amazon and thought try them out.  Oh my, what a difference it has made.  That top row previously took up both these shelves.  Finding anything amounted to pulling the whole stack out and causing others to fall over.  I have ordered another 2 packs and plan to continue through both closets.  

Being able to see what I want to use and not having an entire stack fall over on the floor is just short of a miracle.  Just pull out what you need and pop it back in and it is ready to go next time. 

On Saturday morning I was able to get a good start on Sweet Tweets block 7.  All the appliqué pieces are prepared but at least I have half of them fused on the background and ready to start doing the machine appliqué on them.  Progress!   

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STORAGE SOLUTIONS, & SWEET TWEETS 2/3 COMPLETE

 I almost have Christmas decorations down and put away.  Still have a couple more mug rugs/coasters to finish up with left over Christmas fabrics.  Doing some storage additions in the sewing room.  Things got really messy in there and just not enough ways to stash in progress projects.  The beginning of a new year seems like a good time to do something about that.  

First thing Sweet Tweet blocks 1 through 6 are all done and put together.  Two thirds of the way done.  Now just time to start number 7, number 8 is downloaded and waiting as well to begin and then the final block 9 will be released in February.  Beginning to look like a quilt at last.  

I have an awesome sewing room, with fairly good storage, but is it ever enough?  I need better storage.

Previously I used these plastic storage containers.  Stacks and stacks of them and it just was not enough and cumbersome as they were all stacked 5 and 6 deep under my cutting table.  

I did not want to spend a great deal of money on another system.  I searched a number of options and found these storage drawer systems on Amazon.  They are approximately 24 by 24 with pull out drawers about 12 by 12 each.   

I bought 2 of them and set them back to back under the cutting table.  Every thing that I had in the plastic containers fit into them and I still have 3 drawers left.  So much easier to get to things and the cost was just under $120 for them.  They are very study.  Yes, still have a couple current projects in plastic bins that I am working on, but this has sure improved things in the sewing room.   

It is cold here and rainy.  Zoey our little Yorkshire Terrier has decided she is not going to get out of bed this morning.  She has a. nice deep nest in a chair in the sitting room of our master bedroom and that is the plan for the day.  

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A QUILTING I WILL GO AND SWEET TWEETS SIX

 I am finally getting back to Sweet Tweets blocks again.  Number 6 on it way finished and hopefully this week getting number 7 started.  

The better part of this week I have to quilt 3 small quilts for my guild's charity group.  I do not have a long-arm machine and I do not do free motion quilting, but can do a nice job on smaller quilts.  I only volunteer to do quilts under 45 by 60 in size.  My Bernina 750 does a great job with serpentine stitching and I have a nice stash of variegated threads in 30wt and 40wt that look really nice on them.  That frees up the long-arm quilters to do the larger quilts.

  

First one almost done, have the binding on and just finishing up the handwork on the binding.  

And a start on the second one.  

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