Thursday, April 14, 2011

Three projects for 2011

I have had this post saved since January. It has taken me this long to pull together the photos. Sad, very, very sad. But I think getting my dissertation done is a good excuse!!

Finishing three quilting projects this past year has demonstrated to me that three is a reasonable amount of output to expect from me in a year quilting-wise. So I am putting my mind to finishing three more projects this year:

1) Penguin baby quilt. I picked out the pattern last fall when I found out I was pregnant. The main penguin fabric I bought years ago, probably before I started graduate school, so it is great to finally put it to use! This has a deadline of May 23, 2011 : )
I have started cutting the pieces but no assembly has happened yet.


2) Log cabin quilt for my husband. I started this quilt when we were living in Mexico in 2002-3. It is pretty far along, but I keep debating what the finished size should be and whether or not I need to make more blocks. I will make a firm decision on that this year, and get it done! Seeing as this year marks 15 years together, I think he should get a quilt, especially if the baby is getting one : ) [Forgot to take photos - I'll make a separate post once I pull everything out to work on it.]

3) This is a first for me, as I plan to START and FINISH this quilt in 2011! Whoa, getting a little bold here : ) This will be my first "kit" quilt - I bought the fabric as a bundle and the pattern from the same booth at the Houston quilt show this past fall. I think the colors are gorgeous and I have wanted to do a fat quarter quilt for a long time, so here goes!


Bonus) In pulling out the fabrics to take a picture of #3, I also found the pattern and fabric for a fourth project that I have been inspired to do. This project is actually speaking to me more right now than #3 is, so I thought I would add it as a bonus project. Who knows, maybe I'll start and finish two quilts this year for a total of 4 finished projects! (A girl can dream, right?)

Friday, April 1, 2011

One Little Word Blog Hop for April

I got a lot done on my One Little Word project this month!
Xnomads' Blog

I added the "beginnings" frame to my January 5x7 photo and got it printed. It looks great in my album!


I fixed my January layout - I wasn't happy with how I had originally made my card with "embrace" on it. But now I think it's just right!


I got my February photos printed and added captions to them so that I would remember why I took them:

You can click on any of the images to see them larger.

And I made my March layout!! Our task this month was to choose an action related to our word and do it. My action was to submit a COMPLETE draft of my dissertation to my committee by March 20. I came close - I did send something to my chair on March 20, but it wasn't complete. I sent her a complete draft a week later - hey, it's before the end of the month, right?





I never put butterflies on anything (it's a scrapbook trend I have generally avoided), but I decided to go for it this time since they kind of represent change. And part of my goal with choosing "embrace" was to try new things in my creative process. So the butterflies represent the change that comes with finishing a dissertation and the flowers represent the growth that I have undergone in this whole process.

Also, I didn't go into this with a fixed color palette in mind, but it looks like turquoise, orange, and brown are emerging as themes.

Next up, Cheri A! Make sure you scroll down and check out how she decluttered her scrap space -- it looks AMAZING! And definitely check out Margie's blog to thank her for organizing such a great blog hop!

Here's the complete list of participants in case you want to hop around:
1. Margie http://xnomads.typepad.com/blog
2. Amanda http://scrappnbee.blogspot.com
3. Donna http://donnabryantdurand.blogspot.com
4. Joy www.undiscoveredjoy.blogspot.com
5. Jan http://mysimplelittlelife.typepad.com
6. Jamie http://jmpgirl.blogspot.com/
7. Nikki http://www.inkyart.com.au
8. Monica B2 www.questtoperfectimperfection.blogspot.com
9. Cindy http://seriousplay.typepad.com
10. Stacey http://www.TheAcornGarden.com/blog
11. Katrina http://k84mansramblings.blogspot.com/
12. Rebekah http://istampscrapcraft.blogspot.com/
13. Monica http://scraplifters.blogspot.com/
14. Chrissy http://getcraftywithchrissy.blogspot.com/
15. Jill http://jillconyers.typepad.com/
16. Lisa http://makeyourownescape.blogspot.com
17. Kathryn www.katlodesigns.com
18. Jennifer www.studiojenn.blogspot.com
19. Jen www.byjen.com
20. Sam http://learncreatedo.wordpress.com/
21. Miranda http://mirandasscrapsite.blogspot.com
22. Lynn www.crafty-creativity.blogspot.com
23. Cynthia http://paperpapereverywhere.blogspot.com/ --- you are here
24. Cheri A http://cheriandrews.blogspot.com --- go here next
25. Deb http://blakleyhomeplace.blogspot.com
26. Nicky www.seejanebake.blogspot.com
27. Karen D http://womenontractors.blogspot.com/
28. Tina http://ryzmomplus2.typepad.com/my_weblog/
29. Kimberly http://foreverdaisies.blogspot.com/
30. Abbey http://athomewiththerichardsfamily.blogspot.com/
31. Julie Ann http://julieannshahin2.blogspot.com
32. Lisa A http://backtoallen.com/writers_blog