It's that time of year, when everyone (or almost everyone) posts a summary of their completed projects for the year so I'm doing it too.  I don't feel at all that I accomplished much this year and I'm not happy about that but the time commitment for Girl Scouts really made a major dent in my sewing time.  All in all, 11 projects is better than 1.

I completed only a couple of quilts and this is really unusual for me but I have 3 more that are in the final stages and will be completed early in January so the new year will be off to a good start.  My plan for 2016, in part, is to get a lot more of my UFOs quilted and bound and I'm working on my list of goals for the year.  

So it is goodbye to my 2015 quilting year.  I sincerely hope 2016 is much better.

Whoo hoo! I have another recent finish to show you.

This is Cherries & Chocolate and it is a baby quilt for my niece's new little girl Emalee.

It started with this pile of fabrics from my stash that I got who knows where quite a while ago.

It's a new experience for me to have an inspector present while I work.

Juno even checked to make sure the thread was pulling of the cone nicely. Thanks buddy!

The pattern was Nap Time by Caroline Reardon and was published in Quiltmaker's Favorites Winter 2008. It is a fast and easy pattern and whipped up quick.  It is a one block pattern made from strip sets.

Once the strip sets were sewn together, they were cut into the proper length and then some fast chain piecing was next.

Here are the blocks all laid out.  The white strip was just added to the top or bottom of each block, with every other block row the strip set flipped around so that the right most print in the first row was the first print in the next row.  And so on and so on. Such a simple design but great results.

Then with the addition of a couple of borders, the top was complete.  This is another great pattern that I will definitely use again when I need a quick finish.

This is the final result after quilting and binding.  It finished at 50" x 72", a bit bigger than a typical baby quilt but I wanted it to be something she'd be able to use for quite a bit longer.

When I quilted this one, I decided not to use a panto but instead took my cue from the loops surrounding the round motif in the Brown print and free handed simple loops and added in lots of hearts too.  The thread was a very pale Cocoa.

The backing was pieced from the last print I had that coordinated and some of the leftovers from the front.  I'm really happy that 100% of this quilt came from my stash so no cash outlay for this and it turned out adorable.

I just need to add the label and it will be ready to deliver to my new great niece.

Because of the fact that they live a distance from me, I have yet to actually meet the cute little one in person but I can't wait to hold her and to enjoy some snuggle time together.  I'll get to do that at our extended family Christmas celebration in a few weeks. From the pictures I've seen she sure is a cutie pie.

So another satisfying finish has been recorded.  Now onto the next one!

Tina's Blue and Tan string quilt is finally on it's way back to her.

This is the quilt that was on my frame and that she was working on 2 weeks ago when the belt broke on Penelope.  The replacement belt finally arrived late Saturday in the mail and I was then able to finish up the last bit of quilting on this for her.

This is the entire quilt.  It will be a Christmas gift for her father in law.

Tina picked out the panto Popcorn and together we decided that Glide #24525 Khaki (though it looks Gold) looked best on the top.
Other than me lining up and getting her started on each new row, she did all of the quilting herself.  This was only her 2nd time using my machine and she did pretty well.  

She brought a mid Blue wide backing fabric that works well with the quilt top and we picked a blending So Fine thread for the bobbin.

Now she just has to get the binding done and it will be all ready to gift on Christmas day.

I think her father in law will love it.

It has been so long since I've had a finish of my own to share but it sure feels good to be able to do so now.  In April I learned that a friend was expecting her 2nd child but it wasn't until early September when I learned whether it was going to be a little girl or a little boy.  Since this isn't Pink I'm betting you can guess.

This is the 2nd Where's the Lorax quilt that I've made.  Since it is such a cute line and perfect for new babies, when I originally purchased the fabric, I made sure I bought enough for two quilts.

I literally duplicated the 1st one that I made a few years ago as I liked how that one turned out so much.

 There is one big difference though between the two.  At that time, my Penelope wasn't working so well so the 1st one was quilted with a bunch of straight lines (I can't find the pictures on my hard drive at the moment to show you) but this one I quilted with the Happy Times and I love the way it looks on this quilt.  The curves and points of the design mimic the Truffala trees to me.

For the backing I used the exact same fabric also.  I think this print is great as it has lots of visual interest for babies.

For the thread I used a light Sage Green that blended well on the back and only showed every so slightly on the front.

This finish was so satisfying that I'm going to work hard to get more of them done, as soon as my sister Tina's quilt gets off the frame that is.  I'm still waiting for the new belt to arrive but the post office tracking says that it will be here today. 

Along with all of your holiday prep and events, I hope that you get to enjoy a little sewing time.  I know that I will.