Quilting plans for 2013

Barbara at Cat Patches is continuing her NewFO challenge next year. This is where you start a new project in the month so you can get the thrill and joy of exploring, starting and creating something new. There are no quilt police so if you don't start something new there is no guilt but also you don't need to finish your project. Of course over time everything is finished - unless I decide I really dislike it in which case I find someone to offer the project a home and love it as it deserves. 

Barbara asked us to identify a wish to do list for 2013. This isn't a list we need to stick to but helps to get us planning a few new projects. So I have spent some time trying to decide what I would like to achieve and this is what I came up with.

In July it is our 30th wedding anniversary and I would like to make a quilt for our bed to celebrate the occasion. When I visited the festival of quilts in August at the NEC, Birmingham UK  I fell in love with the double wedding ring pattern.

I would love to start making this pattern this year. I know it will take a long time to make, but it would be amazing when complete.

A little while ago I showed my friend one of Barbara's posts about her cat folk art quilt. My friend recognising the devoted cat lover in me and bought me the pattern for my birthday.

This quilt was designed by John Simpkins for the stitching post as a BOM and is now available as a kit or just the pattern. My friend loves me lots but couldn't afford to buy me the kit. I am thrilled she bought me the pattern and this is definitely on my wish to do list.

As well as our 30th wedding anniversary, our friends are celebrating their 25th. They actually got married on the same date as us and I would love to make them a quilt. I am going to talk to their daughter to find out what would suit their bedroom. This would need to be finished in time so a simpler pattern is a must - I'm still working on that little problem.

Barbara on her wish to do post showed some fabric with circuit boards on it. I showed it to my son and he said it was perfect for his quilt. I hit the internet to see if I could source the fabric and found that Spoonflower have a fabric section called Geek. Here I found an amazing array of fabric including circuit board, and star trek schematics. I am now in design mode to work how I want to make the quilt and how much fabric I need.

Last year my Guide unit made prem baby quilts for Project Linus. My Brownie unit wants to make quilts this year and so I want to try and make 3 lap quilts and knit some baby blankets to go with their efforts. These were some of the items the Guides gave to project Linus

This year I took part in two mini quilt swaps and I really enjoyed it. I particularly enjoyed the second swap which had to be 12 inches square and include the 3 layer quilt sandwich. My effort was based on a painting I did of a Clematis growing in our back garden. 

The quilt now lives in Australia and I have this beautiful swap from Scarlett in Chile which has pride of place on my coffee table.

I would love to take part in the next quilt swap which will take place in the early part of 2013 and is organised by Kate

Of course there will also be blog hops that I want to take part in and these will involve smaller quilty items. 

I've just looked back at what I have written and it seems a huge list but it seems manageable as only one of the big quilts must be finished in a set time. So my short version of my wish to do list is;

1. Wedding anniversary quilt for me and John
2. Wedding anniversary quilt Dave and Wendy for July 2013
3. Quilt for Richard
4. 3 lap quilts for Project Linus and knitted baby blankets
5. One mini quilt swap
6. Folk art cat quilt.

I expect that by January1st I will be adding something new to the list. I haven't said which month I plan to start which project in but if I can make a decision about the pattern and colours I think I will start on Wendy and Dave's quilt in January. I also have ongoing projects such as the Votes for women BOW quilt from Grandmothers Choice. This finishes in August and would then need quilting and binding.

Phew I'm worn out thinking about the projects so I'm going to make a nice cup of tea and sit and read for a while. I'm linking this post up with Barbara at Cat Patches and Connie's linky party at Freemotion by the river. If you haven't entered my give away for Quilting Gallery's birthday blog hop you need to go here, it closes at midnight GMT on the 20th December.