March PhD Update

Hi Quilting Friends,

March is such a cruel month in Houston. The glorious Spring weather tempts me to go outside, and I begin to visualize the beauty that I will create in my backyard oasis. I start to tackle the post-winter restorations, and then the evil tree pollen attacks with a vengeance until my eyes are red and miserable. Here’s a photo of my nemesis, not quite vanquished-

Yes, it appears to be innocuous but my immune system treats it as if it’s a horrible invader. I’ve banished myself to the indoors, again, but that’s somewhat OK because Princess Nina is ready and willing to play in the studio. My extended outdoor adventures must wait until mid-April when the trees have ceased spewing pollen into the air. Short walks must suffice for me until it is safe to return to the great outdoors.

PHD in 2023 Projects

Project #1 – Lemons Casserole Carrier

I’ve cut out the pieces for the project and I’ve quilted straight lines along the white stripes; easy peasy! My “One Monthly Goal” for April is to finish making the casserole carrier by adding a pocket, binding, hook & loop closures, and a carrying strap. Ready, Set, SEW!

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal April Link-up

Project #3 – “Bonus” HST Squares from RSC2021 and RSC2022

I’ve prepared the quilt sandwich and I am considering options for quilting it.

Project #4 – Sawtooth Star Quilt

My “One Monthly Goal” for March was to get the Sawtooth Star quilt ready for quilting. Ta-done! And, since I was home (indoors, avoiding tree pollen) for nearly all week during Spring Break, I quilted it and finished it off with a solid black binding. I would have preferred to spend my time doing other things, but that’s how it goes sometimes. Finished quilt photo op-

I’ve written up the pattern for this cuddly quilt, with yardage for the scrappy version or a limited color palette version (not shown).

• Finished size = 55.5″ x 66″
• $11 USD

Project #7 – Little Green Apples Challenge

I finished this “Frankenbag” in January and wrote about it then, but I didn’t share photos at the time. I shared it recently for the “Little Green Apples” challenge. Here are some pictures of my bag, in case you missed them-

Project #8 – Dust Off a Quilt Book Blog Hop

Here’s my project from the “Dust Off a Quilt Book” blog hop, all finished now-

It was fun to play with the quilting for this project, and I feel quite accomplished for learning how to create FMQ feathers. 😊 I plan to continue adding FMQ feathers on future projects, to keep my skills in top form.

Project #9 – Coffee, Tea, or Me: Part 4

I’ve finalized the design for this project and have finished stitching it up, but I won’t share a photo yet because it will be my project for the “Say What” challenge on April 19.

Project #12 – Christmas Place Mats

Have I mentioned that I REALLY LOVE paper piecing? I couldn’t stand waiting any longer, so I stitched up one of the smaller ornament blocks for my new place mat set, just to see how it goes together.

It was SEW much fun, and now I’m even more excited about continuing with this project!

New Projects

The March project for the “One Gift a Month” challenge was a round quilted hot pad. I made a pair of them in fabric to match the casserole carrier (See Project #1).

I’ve also started playing with a new pieced design that Susan dreamed up, featuring pieced tulips. No photo yet, since I haven’t sewn a stitch so far.

Ongoing Projects

The “Rainbow Scrap Challenge” color for March was GREEN. Here’s what I made-

Carolina Chains

I made 14 GREEN Carolina Chain blocks, bringing my total to 269 of the 310 that I’ll need for the quilt.

Rolling Stones

I added a GREEN Rolling Stone block to the stack of finished blocks.

Progress Update

Here’s my updated task list for March –

And here’s my updated PHD tally for March-

Happy quilting,

Sharon

March Update with Quilting Gail