Hello friends!

I started this hashtag, #quiltersgoals2022, as a way to document and make myself accountable for what I make each month of 2022.  I have been sharing a recap each month on Instagram and Facebook, but I found that the format of those platforms didn't allow me to REALLY share the highs and lows of each month and each project.  Some of my finishes feel forced and some feel fun.... So if you are into hearing the details of each project/goal, this blog is for you!

I often feel like I don't get enough accomplished every day. The list of things that I want to make and things I must do extends beyond my mere human capability, so it's easy to get discouraged when the list doesn't seem to shorten.  But! By reflecting on finishes each month, I get to see what has actually been accomplished in a tangible way, and it makes me realize that there is something to show for my time and effort!

Quilters' Goals started out as a way to document not only my quilt finishes but also other categories that bring value and purpose to my life. I picked three categories - Business, Quilting, and Personal - each category is broad enough to celebrate wins, finishes, and accomplishments; and each month I reflect and find the growth.  

So, here is the roundup, the list, the details of the finishes and accomplishments for April 2022.

Business:

Lucky me, my business and quilting often overlap! In other months, my business goal has always been very "businessy" - things like planning ahead, better delegation, organization, etc. But this month, the goal was creativity.  All of the other things are super important, and have been achieved to some degree (and will absolutely be revisited throughout the year), but because of the focus on them, I had started to feel less connected to the fabric and fun of my shop.  In April, I have been purposeful about carving out time for creative business goals; fun projects to use for marketing purposes, maybe a quilt design or collection... I don't have this completely fleshed out yet, and that's okay.  

Products Shown:
Kendra's Spring 2022 Bundle
Kona Natural

Quilting:

This is another area where I'm taking a bit of creative license to assign what qualifies.  At the start of the year, my goal had been to share at least one finish a month.  The finish could be a completed quilt or a completed portion of a quilt (listen, once I finally add sashing to my Nova Star Quilt, there will be a celebration of a finish like you haven't heard in years. Years. Even though that still means I'll need to sandwich it, quilt it, and bind it... just completing the top of that one is going to count as one huge finish).

This month... the finishes aren't quilts at all.  Oops.  This category may need to switch to a more generalized "Sewing" title.

That's right! I SEWED instead of quilted! First, I made these three items of clothing in April - two rompers and one jacket ( I was calling it a quilt coat as I was making it... but then ended up not quilting it, so now it's just a jacket).

The rompers are a pattern that I self-drafted from an existing piece of clothing that I had purchased.  They are light and flowy and perfect for the summer that I expect to arrive someday. The blue romper was made from Brussels Washer Linen/Rayon in Chambray. The addition of rayon to this fabric gives a lighter, drapier fabric. It is soft, and although it has beautiful texture, the fabric isn't rough, so it works really well for apparel sewing.

The red romper was made with Essex yarn-dyed Homespun linen-cotton in Flame. I love this bright, happy colour and have a few more bright versions planned! Essex Linen is the fabric that I recommend to every quilter who wants to start experimenting with linen quilts.  It has many of the same tendencies as quilting cotton, making it very suitable to quilts. Good news - it also works for apparel! It has more body than the Brussels, leading to a romper with a bit more stiffness and structure (still not stiff, just more than the Brussels). This fabric also has a more pronounced texture to it, which IS a little rougher than the Brussels.  It doesn't bother me, but if you have sensory issues with clothing being rough, I'd steer you towards the Brussels over the Essex.  I do expect that tendency will soften up with use and time.

I know just enough about sewing to give myself some misplaced confidence and get myself into trouble.  Self-drafting a pattern? No problem. Sewing instructions? Simple. Pockets? Cue the drama. Lol!

I'm very pleased with how they turned out in the final end, but my seam ripper and brain got a significant workout while I worked through again and again how to get those pockets in there correctly AND have them look good when finished.  Was it easy? No. Did I write down the final instructions to make it easier for myself next time? Also no. Sigh. You can see on the jacket on the left that I decided a patch pocket was the way to save myself.

Since buttons scare me (or more precisely, buttonholes), I repurposed hardware that I had kicking around for bags and keychains for the closure straps for the rompers.

Products Shown:
Essex Yarn-Dyed Homespun Linen in Flame
Brussels Washer Yarn-Dyed Linen in Chambray

And next, the jacket (the unquilted quilt coat).

I started out with a linen chambray and a Nani Iro Tencel fabric, planning to make a quilt coat. I was going to sew it all together and then add hand quilting accents to it... but by the time I got it that far, I decided that I liked the simplicity of the linen chambray and that was good enough! There is no batting in this coat, making it the perfect lightweight layer to throw on in late spring and summer. The Tencel lining is luxuriously smooth without being slippery, I don't think I want to line clothing with anything but it ever again!

Products Shown:
Linen Indigo Chambray
Nani Iro Wild Flower Blue

And one final finish for the month of April:

You may remember, some weeks ago in a newsletter, I shared a bathroom renovation in our home.  It is now complete - but that's not the finish for April that I want to show you! I made a linen shower curtain to be the simple finish this bathroom needed, with a purchased liner to protect it. Is it a bit long? It looks a bit long. Perhaps it's not finished yet and one more fold of the hem is needed.....

Product Shown:
Antwerp Linen in White

Personal:

My personal goal for the year was to "get back into running". I run for fun, but the competitive side of my personality often sets goals that test the "fun" of any activity (I tend to get a little intense...). So far this year, I've slowly built back up my distance and time spent running, and I am now comfortable at a 5k distance (that's far for some, and not far for others, but it was my goal by April so yay me!). I've worked with a hip and knee that like to complain (hello 40's) and they are both much happier now.

This month, I added in more strength work so that my endurance will increase as well as help with injury prevention. Graydon (my son, who also works at Piece Fabric Co.) is pretty smart about this kind of thing, so he's helped me figure out what I should be doing.  I hate gym pics, so it's hard for me to know what to post to bring interest to this section... but here's a blurry photo I took while running on the treadmill with Graydon working out (hopefully he doesn't read this blog, I'm not sure he'll appreciate this, lol).

 Also, our shorts matched.

And there you go! That's the roundup for April, thanks for reading - it gives me a reason to type this out and feel like something has been accomplished.  

What are your accomplishments in April? Your wins, finishes, things that you did that were hard? I'd love to know! Share them on Instagram with the hashtag #quiltersgoals2022 and tag me so that I'll see it! Your categories may be different than mine, but let's celebrate the wins in our real life together.

Bye for now!

-Kendra