July PHD in 2024

Hi Quilting Friends,

Whew! We’ve made it to the end of July. This month brought several fun events, including a day at the lake with friends, a weekend of grand-dogger-sitting while the kids were away, and an evening performance of the Houston Symphony at Miller Outdoor Theater.

July also brought Hurricane Beryl and a bit more than three days without electricity at our home. Temperatures were in the 90’s during much of the power outage, but our little gas generator chugged away and kept the discomfort somewhat at bay by running a couple of window AC units and our refrigerator. I count myself fortunate, since our home didn’t sustain any damage and Mr. Fix-It was able to find fuel for the generator.

Other folks in our neighborhood lost tree limbs and whole trees, with some property damage (mostly fences) as well. This photo shows a big oak tree that was uprooted across the walking path near my home. The tree took out sections of two fences on both sides of the walkway. It’s still there, awaiting cleanup.

I’ve made more progress toward my 2024 goals this month, mostly because of a self-imposed deadline. I usually choose a task or project from the PHD list as my “One Monthly Goal” or to share on a blog hop, so I’m building in accountability and a specific deadline.

Here’s my July update-

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Project #6 – “Something Smells Fishy” Challenge

Ta-done!  Read about it here. This finish was also my “One Monthly Goal” for June.

Project #8- Mint & Chocolate Batik Quilt

I’ve finished stitching a total of 64 blocks at 6″ x 6″ each! I played around with the layout until I decided that “enough is enough”.

The quilt top center measured 48″ x 48″, so that’s not quite as large as I would prefer for a throw quilt. I decided to add borders, and I was happy to find fabric that coordinates with the pieces that I’ve used in the blocks at a local quilt shop.

I spent this past Saturday afternoon in Susan’s studio, where Rosie (Susan’s Gammill Statler longarm) and I did the quilting for Mint Chocolate. We used pale gray thread with a leaf and curl pattern. I’m learning how to work with Rosie, with support from Susan when needed. I should have the binding stitched down by the end of the weekend. No photo of this step; I’ll share it in August. This design will join the rest of our patterns in Ms P’s Pattern Shop, to be released very soon.

Project #13 – Holidays at Home Kit

I’ve finished piecing the quilt top, and now it’s time to quilt. First step is to find fabric to use for the backing, so away to the quilt shop! (I know.  Such a hardship, but it’s a sacrifice that I’m willing to make.)  Here’s a picture of the finished top-

Sometimes I press the “Pause”  button as I consider the options for quilting, but I won’t stay on “Pause” for long this time . My “One Monthly Goal” for August is to get started with quilting! (Note that “get started” isn’t “finish”, although it could happen. School won’t be starting for me this year, and that makes me happy!) Ready, Set, SEW!

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NEW Projects

The Rainbow Scrap Challenge color for July was AQUA. Read about it HERE and HERE . This is what I created from my AQUA scraps-

This is a little foundation pieced tea kettle block that I designed in May and finally stitched this month. The pattern is available HERE.

I spent some time last week on a bit of “secret blog hop sewing”. I’ll share a photo later on when it’s time to share my projects (in September)!

I also stitched up a “French Braid” table runner, using scraps from the “Holidays at Home” quilt. It’s ready for quilting & binding. No photo today; will share it later after I’ve finished.

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PHD Progress

Here’s my updated PHD task list for July-

Here’s my updated 2024 PHD tracker-

Time to link up and share your progress!

https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=c0efdbe6b4add43dd7ef

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Happy quilting,

Sharon