September One Monthly Goal

Hi Quilting Friends,

My “One Monthly Goal” for September was to piece bells (4 large and 12 small) for the new Christmas place mat set.  The bells are almost, but not completely Ta-done. There were complications beyond my control.

First complication- Princess Nina is still at the spa, and my back up machine (Nina) wasn’t willing to stitch appliques. Nina is old (around 30 years), and her stitch selection ball works only occasionally. I’m thinking that it may be time to consider an update for my backup machine, considering her limitations. I’ve completed as much as I can with the straight stitch. The appliques won’t take long to finish later.

Second complication- My bruised right metatarsal #4 is still sore after my fall from a footbridge during a hike in Montana, and that’s my “driving” foot.  I can sew for a short time wearing the post-op shoe instead of the orthopedic boot, but I need frequent breaks to rest and elevate. This too shall pass, and I’m happy to be able to sew even a little bit while healing happens.

Here’s what I was able to finish-

Stories from the Sewing Room September One Monthly Goal Finish Link Up

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You might recall that I found the bell drawings while organizing some files in July. I digitized my drawings and then pulled Christmas fabric from my stash and scrap bins. Here’s the fabric pull for the background, pieced frames, and binding.

The bells are foundation paper pieced with applique details, made with my scraps and stash fabrics.  We have large bells-

And small bells-

As you can see, I’ve already added the borders around the bell blocks, mostly so I could remove the foundation papers prior to finishing the appliques.  The filmstrip frames have been prepared, and it won’t take long to put the place mats together once the appliques are stitched out. I’ll be quilting these myself, with lots of help from Princess Nina.

I don’t have enough of the red stripe (shown above in the fabric pull) to make the binding, so I will need to purchase a different fabric for that purpose.  I haven’t been out of the house to go shopping yet, since I’m still not able to drive the car, so I will have a look in the quilt shop when I pick up Princess Nina.

Thanks for visiting! I appreciate that you’ve taken the time to read about my project, and I enjoy your comments. See the links that follow for more quilting “eye candy” from others.

Happy quilting,

Sharon