@MistressJennie beautiful and fun pile of quilts. And I like the way your BOM quilt is looking. It has a wonderful u ique feel to it with those yummy fabrics.
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Since I am new and just starting my quilt journey, I was excited that after cutting out a purse, I cut the odd shaped scraps into 5" squares for my quilt scrap bin.
Then I went on here and saw @MistressJennie and realized I am super slow. Hahahaha! 
Your quilts look amazing Jennie! You are a quilting MACHINE!
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We do have some incredibly speedy quilting queens here! They are inspirational and amazing!
I am also super slow…but I do enjoy it and feel spurred on by the Queens of Quilts!
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I’m really not that fast. @Edel is much faster. I’m just trying to sneak in all the quilting I can during Ada’s naps. I actually had all these little quilt tops put together before Christmas. When I was going through my stash, I found the already cut Balloon squares, and the stack of rainbow 9-Patches, which were (mostly) leftover from a project I did 15-16 years ago! When I found them, I was in the mood for a palette cleanser project (right after finishing and sending off the Memory Quilts), and decided to turn them into something for Quilts for Kids. I made the tops, and then put them aside as the holidays got closer. And it is MUCH faster to sandwich, quilt, and bind these tiny little things. The smallest took just over an hour of quilting, and the larger took about 2 hours each.
And honestly, quilting was the first craft I learned. Back when I was about 8-10 years old. We lived wayyyy up in the mountains, in a mostly tourist area. My mom had a daycare for some of the local kids, and we were pretty isolated. (30 minutes to the nearest grocery store.) Mom started taking quilt classes to get out and see other adults from time to time, and even started her own quilt making business. Meanwhile she wasn’t a fan of toys or clutter, or any kind of kid messes. So she would do things like give me her scraps, and her old sewing machine, and tell me to go make something. So I’ve literally been quilting (off and on) for at least 30 years. I didn’t do much in high school or college, but when friends started getting married, I picked it back up because I couldn’t afford gifts from their registry, and by then I was known as the friend who makes handmade gifts, so people started expecting/requesting them. I remember one broke summer when I had to make 8 quilts!
So long story longer, don’t judge yourself by anyone else’s seeming speed or ease. You’re already amazing. And while you think I’m fast, I think Edel’s fast, and Edel is in awe of Karen.
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There are also lots of tricks you pick up along the way the more you quilt - chain piecing, cutting stacks instead of single fabrics, pressing points in specific directions, the best way to get blocks from a piece of fabric, and lots more I don’t know which help the more experienced quilters go faster.
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Beautiful sampler!
I didn’t finish any quilting projects last year, so hopefully I can do better this year! (I did start a quilt!)
First quarter goals:
- finish t-shirt quilt WIPs
- finish ‘picnic’ quilt
Year goals:
- work on quilting projects that I bought fabric for & never started (or repurpose the fabric for something else)
T-shirt quilt WIP, one of the small tops I have done:
I have more t-shirts to cut up & the remaining t-shirt fabric to use.
‘Picnic’ quilt WIP:
For this one, I just wanted something I didn’t mind getting grass-stained, so it’s kind of a wonky mess. It’s made from 99% stash (I had to buy more thread).
For the top, I used a bag of fabric from the thrift store filled with random pieces of fabric and a bunch of circles. I’m not sure why I bought it, because I don’t know how to sew curves in a quilt. Especially not when I bought it several years ago. 
I cut all of the circles down into squares, sewed them into 3x3 squares, and then sewed those squares together. It was still a little small, so I sewed more fabric onto the edges.
I used a fleece blanket for the batting & the back is made from some jeans I bought for a project a while ago & never used.
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I really wanna join this! I feel like I have a sewing year ahead of me, with some knitting and crocheting in between. Last year was all about knitting and crocheting.
But I dont have a cutting knife (roler cutter?), and I dont have the fabrics. So. Im thinking of raiding my mums fabric stash! She have been a quilter her whole life, and have a nice stash now. 
So actually, Im gonna talk to her and see if I can, with her help, sew all of the BOM and make a quilt for my bestie.
So these are my goals:
Complete 2024 BOM quilt
Make a mugrug for myself 
Make a mugrug for bestie
Make a mugrug for brother 1
Make a mugrug for brother 2
Make a tree-skirt for my xmas tree
Make a craft-themed wall-hanging for myself
Finish my “tiny houses” quilt
And I hope I will be able to take part in the challenges too! It would be fun!
Im not a total noob when it comes to quilting, but its been a couple of years since I last made something, and I have only made smaller things. Baby blankets and such. I have a wall-hanging that I made in the wrong size, so it got a bit bigger than what the pattern said, but I love it!
So this will be fun! Its not my usual craft (its plushies!), but I think it will be fun doing something else and evolve my sewing skills!
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Wild andnwonderful. I love the bright fresh feel of this.
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Rotary cutter. 
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Hahaha, yeah, thats the word! Thank you! 
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I love it! I am a newb, so I love that I will not be alone in the world of discovery! We can encourage each other!!
I have a rotary cutter (two, actually) and fabric, but I also have analysis paralysis. I can’t decide what to do, what pattern is best, etc. I get so in my head. But I finally picked one, and I am doing it.
Before I start, I will take a little time to rearrange my craft room and purge some items to make room. It’s so cramped that I can’t comfortably work in there anymore. I need a clear head and clutter-free room so I don’t get overwhelmed even more than I already am.
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It sounds good with your plan for the room. Please show us before and after, and we will cheer on you! 
Well, I will cheer on you!
Im sitting here thinking if I should re-arrange at home. I live in a flat with kitchen, 1 bedroom and a living room (and bathroom). Maybe I should move my sleeping area into the living room so I can have a craft room, instead of having a living room/craft room. Not sure if its really a good idea, but who knows!
And yes, now we are two and can encourage each other! That sound good!
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There’s a ton of rotary cutters etc on AliExpress Just found this amazing item on AliExpress. Check it out! €7.79 60%OFF | Rotary Cutter 45mm Card Paper Sewing Quilting Roller Fabric Cutting Tailor Scissors Tool Dress Clothes Making DIY Tool
You need a cutting mat with them.
You will also run into an issue, most of the patterns online are in inches, particularly the older free ones. Most of the self healing cutting mats at this side of the world are metric. I have found ones that are in inches on one side and metric on the other. Because I’ve found that is just easier to work in inches, converting is a pita-because you don’t end up with even numbers.
Ditto rulers-you can get a lot of this stuff on AliExpress, just beware of the metric/Imperial issues. And be sure of what you’re ordering.
You can of course manage without a rotary cutter, but it’s about a million times easier with one.
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You’ll also find them handy beyond quilting. I’ve used mine (when they have an older dull blade) to slice up paper, or a ton of ribbon to the same size. And don’t forget, you do need to change out the blades on a regular basis. You’ll notice your formerly fantastic cutter isn’t working great anymore. Just pop on a new blade, and it will work like a dream again. Blades come pretty cheap in packs of 5 or 10, in little plastic cases designed to keep you from cutting your unwary fingers.
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