2016 Recap & Reflection

If 2015 was the year I discovered the online quilting community, 2016 is the year I jumped all the way into the pool.  I continued to participate in the Finish Along, this year hosted by multiple people across the globe.  I also did OMG, or One Monthly Goal, every month, and I completed all but one.  (My April goal was to make all the HST for the Scrap Dance Tango Mystery Quilt.  I finally made all 1,100 needed HST in DECEMBER.)  Probably my sentimental favorite finish of the year was my February OMG, the growth chart for Munchkin:

Probably my favorite finish of 2016

In terms of online community, this year I added:

• Stash Bee. I loved it!  It was great to see how different all of our tastes are, and to make 1 block a month without a lot of commitment.  It was a great way to try new things and just dip your toe in the water, so if you didn't like a technique or a block or a color combination, you weren't stuck with it for long.  And I can't wait to dive into my pile of bookshelf blocks from my turn as queen and turn them into something fantastic!
• 2016 New Bloggers Blog Hop.  This was a stretch for me, as the blog started as a way to just log my projects, but I was really glad I did it. I love the community aspect and that was the main thing I got out of the experience.  My blog will never be something I can put a ton of time into or want to polish or be professional, but I did learn stuff and had a lot of fun.

• Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  I really like the laid back nature of this challenge.  People pretty much make it their own.  And I love the butterflies that I made.  I will end up with 2 quilts and a mini from my 16 blocks from the year.  But I had trouble keeping up with the months.  I have an idea for a block for 2017, but I haven't decided to commit yet.

Rainbow Scrap Challenge Bright Butterflies

• I occasionally linked up with Oh Scrap! hosted by Cynthia of Quilting is More Fun Than Housework. (Ain't that the truth!!!)  And I linked up with Scraptastic Tuesday hosted by Leanne at She Can Quilt and Nicky at Mrs. Sew & Sow a few times as well. 

2016 was also the year I discovered pillows.  It started with me making a penguin pillow for Muchkin's birthday, then led to throwing out the pillows from the living room couch and making more.  I've made 4 total, with plans for at least 3 more in 2017.

Last December, I created a list of 12 projects to work on for 2016.  It was never intended to be a "finish them all" list, just a place to start.  I have finished 3 from the list and made signigicant progress on 2 more.  One goal was about cleaning up, and while I didn't go through the spefici drawers written on the goal, I have done a lot of cleaning out and reorganizing in the sewing room, so I'm going to count that as 6 of 12 goals either completed or with significant progress.

Donated Quilts: I set a goal of 12 quilts made and donated to Project Linus.  I made donated 12 kids quilts to the Charlotte chapter of Project Linus in 2016, and I also made a quilt for the Pulse project.

Quilt for Pulse

Mini Quilts: I set a goal of 5 mini quilts.  If you don't count the pillows, I completed one.  However, I've been working a lot this week, and I have 2 that are at the binding stage.  And my batik hexie mini, while not finished, is a lot farther along than it was a year ago. 

Hearts Mini

Scrap Quilts: My goal was 3 scrap projects.  In going through my finishes, I count 5, plus 2 more that I've been working on but aren't finished yet.  My two favorites are the butterflies from the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and Here, Fishy Fishy, which was a baby gift for my college roommate for her baby boy.

Scrappy Fish

All in all, 2016 was a good quilting year!  I don't get a ton of free time, but what I do get, I spent a lot of it quilting.  I made some good online friends.  I continued to be involved with Charlotte's chapter of Project Linus.  And I am happy with the projects I made.  Can't ask for more than that!  Here's hoping for more of the same in 2017!