Beginning my Baltimore

I finally started a "true" Baltimore Album quilt. I have been doing a lot of reading since attending Baltimore on the Prairie. Although I have always loved the album quilts, listening to Jan Carlson's presentation really got me hooked. The more I learned, the more excited I became! So I was particularly excited when Katie and I decided to revive the TAS group with a Baltimore slant...which leads me to starting my first Baltimore Album quilt. The process of getting started was a slow one - prepping the background (Moda's Bella Solid in bleached white), choosing the pattern to start with, tracing the overlay, and selecting fabrics for the first flowers. I originally had planned to do 12" blocks, but after learning that true BA blocks were much larger, I decided to go big. The background fabric looks ridiculously huge at 22" square. I think the finished block will be around 18". I didn't get as far as actually sewing anything today. That will have to wait until tomorrow.

I have managed to keep up with My Garden Album yet again. I finished block four yesterday. I had stopped by Homestead Hearth on my way home from the lake on Monday and was told that the next one had shipped, so I was very anxious to get it done before the mail arrived!

I'm also continuing to work on my baskets. I have six completed, I believe. Only 285 left to go! They are fun to work on and are pretty simple, so they make a good "on-the-go" project.

It's back to the rug for the rest of the night - I'd really rather applique, but I'll never make my self-imposed deadline if I don't get on it!

Need a vacation...

I'm sorry to say that I don't have anything to show for the last couple of weeks... I've been busy dabbling in lots of things, but haven't had time to finish a single one. I recieved block four of My Garden Album shortly after posting block three. I've got a pretty good start on it, but will really have to buckle down over the next week or so if I hope to finish before the next package arrives in the mail.

I did have a bit of a break-through yesterday. I decided how I would do the bottom of the "Basketful" rug and found a "close enough" match to the wool I ran short on, so everything is now in place for me to finish that one off. I just need to wash the new wool, pull a few strips from the completed leaves, and mix things up so it looks like I planned it that way. I'll be SOOOO glad to have this rug finished! I'm dying to get back to some of the other projects I started this year.

I'm really looking forward to our upcoming Baltimore album TAS group and can't wait to get going on my first block. I think we are going to go with a wreath to get started, and I have found a wonderful wreath in a pattern I recently received from the Maryland Historical Society. Now I just need to decide whether to go with the Moda Bleached White or Kona Snow for background. I'm leaning toward the Moda. Perhaps I should order another bolt...

I'm also very excited about Nola's plans for next year's wool club. It sounds like she has lots of ideas to really get our creative juices flowing. I am already thinking about a couple of things I would like to do. Oh no - more projects!

I'm very much looking forward to being off work next week. The stress of not knowing what the future holds is starting to get to me. It's tough to stay motivated. I'm really itching to fly the coop! I'd love to head down to the lake for a quiet, no errands required mini-retreat. Perhaps I can get away for a day or two next week before the holiday madness begins...

Keeping Up!

I managed to finish block three of My Garden Album before receiving block four...so far I am keeping up with this one! Who knows how long it can last...I have so many new projects I am aching to start that I am bound to get distracted and lose the race.

I need to choose a 2010 project for my Primitives Yahoo group. I am really interested in beginning an album quilt, and I would also dearly love to reproduce an antique applique project. I also have a burning desire to start at least one of the Nancy Page quilts - I just can't decide whether to start with the leaves, the birds, or the laurel wreath. Of course, none of those are very primitive (although the "rules" don't specify that the project has to be prim), so I am considering a few others that fit the bill a little better. I'd love to get started on Wedding March, and also would like to do the taupe quilt from Homestead Hearth. I also purchased all the fabric to make a log cabin with applique - again, not very primitive, but I'd like to get it done. Decisions, decisions! Thankfully I have a few more weeks to mull it over...