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Sunday, December 29, 2013

Last Slow Sunday Stitching for 2013

Welcome to Slow Sunday Stitching - a celebration of all kinds of hand stitching! 2013 was a great year for slow stitching - 52 weeks have passed in which we could enjoy our own hand stitching, and be inspired by the projects of quilty friends. Thank you to each of you that linked up your blog posts on Sundays and shared your stitching with us. Last year, we had a total of 641 blog posts that were linked up to Slow Sunday Stitching! That's a lot of s l o w stitches!
At last week's link up, there was a draw for an applique pattern, and the winner was comment #12 which is Deb in Florida. Congratulations to Deb and thanks for being such a regular contributor to the Slow Sunday Stitching party!
Over the past year I have shared my progress on various projects including binding quilts, hand quilting two projects (Journey of a Quilter and The Accidental Quilt), making a scrap rug, stitching some tiny hexagons, hand piecing some blocks, improving my applique stitch,  and I did a bit of hand embroidery. And I enjoyed every single stitch - the perfect, consistent stitches, and the crazy, messy ones too! 
This week I am so proud to tell you that put the final stitches in my "Up, Up and Away" quilt! This quilt was impulsively started at quilt retreat in February, hence it became named The Accidental Quilt. Amazingly, it was pieced and hand quilted, and finished in the same calendar year!
My quilt model Max was totally uncooperative... this puppy needs some training since he has a Grandma who is a quilter!

I was able to get a nice photo of my finished quilt hanging outside before the sun went down. Can I say again that I just love everything about this quilt!?!
The pattern is from the book called Sunday Morning Quilts by Cheryl Arkison and Amanda Jean Nyberg.  
And then I had an amazing synchronistic experience. Just as I was finishing the stitches in this quilt, a gift arrived in the mail for me - 
 "A Month of Sundays". It is hot off the press, and I can't believe that I won a copy in a draw on Cheryl's blog called Dining Room Empire. I love this blog (go read her wonderful post about the reality of Christmas, which reminds me to say "Thank You" to my Mom for years of fun and memorable Christmases past!)
And just look at the card Cheryl put inside the book! She even autographed the book for me! 

What a wonderful Christmas gift - thank you Cheryl!  And what a great book this is, full of patterns and tips, and amazing photography. 
So now that this quilt is finished ("out with the old") I am I wondering which of the projects in the new book I will be tempted to start next ("in with the new")?!?
For today, I'm back to hand quilting my Journey of a Quilter. I am really close to finishing that one too, so will start to think about which hand quilting project is going to be next in my hoop. 
And I have a new hand embroidery project to start in the new year that I can't wait to show you!
2014 holds 52 more weeks of hand stitching link ups at Kathy's Quilts. Grab my button (code is on the right sidebar) to put on your blog, and make a commitment to yourself to enjoy some relaxing hand stitching with us on Sundays throughout next year.  What are you proud of accomplishing with your hand work last year?  Link up your blog post below and share your current project or ideas for what you plan to work on next year. 




23 comments:

  1. I have enjoyed watching everyone with their slow stitching and I think I need to dedicate myself to this next year. I have two quilts I want to handquilt and also get back into my cross stitching, so great opportunity. This is a gorgeous quilt and the quilting just lends to the beauty of it.

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  2. Wonderful finish, Kathy! Slow Stitching Sundays is a great motivator and so inspirational. I love the diversity and creativity of all the projects. I haven't done any stitching since Christmas day with family visiting but look forward to putting in some stitches later today. Thanks so much for hosting Slow Stitching Sundays!

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  3. I am hoping to finish binding my Seven Sisters quilt this morning. I love how it looks!

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  4. Thanks so much for a great year of inspiration to slow down and enjoy the process. Congratulations o. Your finish and your win. Waiting to see what comes next is always the fun part.

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  5. That WAS a great post about Christmas at her blog :)

    Happy last Sunday of the year, Kathy! I enjoy your blog very much! :) Have a Happy New Year!

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  6. I've loved reading your slow Sunday posts. I think 2014 may be the year I join you!

    ritaferber_5@hotmail.com

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  7. I've sew enjoyed this link-up each week Kathy! It has actually helped me do so much more on my hand-stitching projects than I would have gotten done otherwise - thanks!!! And I'm delighted that you've made your button so that it can be added to our blogs - of course we want to share the love :*) And speaking of "love", I'm totally in love with your Accidental Quilt!!! I want to make one like that someday; I'm saving hst's from the Rainbow Scrap projects until I have enough. Looking forward to some fun slow-stitching with all our friends here in 2014!!!

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  8. I love your quilt! Congratulations on a fabulous finish.
    Slow Stitching Sunday is so inspiring for me. I love each and every project I see and look forward to each Sunday to see more. Thank you for hosting. HAPPY 2014

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  9. Love your new blog header :) Thanks for hosting a place for slow stitchers to share more than a snapshot :) Have a wonderful 2014! Kathi

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  10. I know my blocks aren't hand sewing, but they take me so long to do....well today I'm counting them....:)

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  11. Just love your Accidental Quilt... accidental and lovely all stitched into one! I enjoy your Slow Sunday Stitching posts. I'm not always able to participate, but I do when I can. More importantly, I enjoy seeing the handiwork of others! Thanks for a great blog!

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  12. I love Accidental! Can't believe it all happened in one year.

    It might make a nice RSC quilt project...hmmmm...

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  13. Gorgeous quilt, Kathy! And I'm totally impressed that you started and finished it in the same year!!

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  14. Congrats on the finish and the win! A beautiful quilt - I can't believe you started, pieced and hand quilted it all in the same year with everything else you have gotten done. Thank you for picking me for the pattern.It was just the thing to cheer me up today.Had a bit of an eventful weekend with most of it spent in the ER and hospital. Home now and resting so maybe I'll be up to some slow stitching on my Easy Street binding tomorrow.

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  15. Thanks so much for hosting this! I'm a relative new comer but am looking forward to 52 link-ups in 2014!!

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  16. Your Accidental Quilt is gorgeous! So neat to get the book like that too. Thanks for a great link-up party--really love the thinking behind the slow stitching emphasis. I finally grabbed your button and put it on my blog. Will definitely try to keep linking up with you in the new year whenever I can fit it into my Sunday!

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  17. Wonderful quilt, Kathy.
    Very cool win!
    I have enjoyed seeing your hand stitching posts, and I look forward to another year.

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  18. i can see why you like this quilt so much. it is so full of sweetness and love . . . and the hand stitches are lovely~!

    thank you for hosting these past 52 weeks of slow sunday stitching. i hope to be a more regular participant in 2014. i'll be attempting to make myself a 50th birthday quilt (Jubilee Quilt) as i've yet to make myself a full sized (i can sleep under it) quilt. it seems that all of my quilting efforts have gone on to someone else but this year i'll be working on a string tulip quilt for me, me, ME~!!

    thank you for your slow stitching encouragement, Kathy.

    :-)
    libbyQ

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  19. I've just discovered your Slow Sunday Stitching group and am thrilled to see that it exists - I'll be checking in regularly because hand stitching is the bees knees. And your Accidental Quilt is gorgeous - might need one of those.... Happy New Year!

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  20. Your quilt turned out great! Now that I have joined a local hand quilting group I should have a lot more to share for your linky party!

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  21. Congrats on finishing the Accidental Quilt. It's gorgeous!

    One of my 2014 goals is to do more hand stitching each week, so hopefully I'll be linking up more next year.

    Have a very Happy New Year.

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