New job... new me!

 It's been a bit of an exhausting few weeks, as i have recently left my old job (where I started working some 17 years ago - OMG leaving your job is hard) and have moved to a new full time job.  For those of you who know me, you'll remember that my personal sewing time has always been in the afternoons between school finishing and meal prep time.  Swapping to a 40 hour week and longer travel time means I don't have this time free... and it's going to take a while to figure out my new normal.  My new routine.  However, I am loving my new job and look forward to each day... so I am sure that the sewing will fall into place also.  These things take time.

My Aviatrix medallion is slowly growing.  From the amended border three...

To the start of border four...

And I suppose this is the situation that has always put me off about this quilt... the bigger borders need a lot of piecing.  A lot of piecing!  There are 20 star blocks in this round and it's taken me a whole week to get these 5 pinky/purple ones sewn.  I'm hopeful to get a bit more momentum on this as the week progresses.

Missing in action

 February disappeared in a whoosh of activity and not too many ticks on the monthly goal setting to do list.

I filled in some empty space with some FMQ designs...

Just to recap, I got month 2 of Orbiter done, the Stitch Pink top together, the Hop Skip baby quilt quilted and binding machined on, 9 more Scrappy Lines blocks and I pretty much kept up to date with the Aviatrix and Flea market flowers sew alongs.  Finally, I got the Transire quilt basted probably on the very last day!  Plenty didn't get a look in and I need to remember next year that February is a short month.

My March goals included finishing off the Hop Skip binding... DONE and before I can do my final check off marks on my huge list of everything... it needs to be officially blogged!

Are these giraffes on the back not the cutest?

A wiggly quilting design on the blue sections and a square design  on the squares.  It's simple and just works.

All folded up ready for its trip to Australia for a special new grand daughter called Shelby.

The other main project for March has been the beginning of The Aviatrix Medallion, pattern by Elizabeth Hartman and was a popular quiltalong a few years ago.

Part of the reason why I never started this pattern was this centre block and all those little diamonds.  Not my thing!  I combined the solids from the kit with some complementary prints and I'm really happy with the interest and depth it adds.

I managed to get the first section sewn relatively successfully... so it was just a matter of moving onto the next section...

And the next...

Then add the background sections and *hold your breath and cross your fingers* while the sections got pieced into one unit.  DONE!

This may be the most successful centre I have ever done!  

Then the next week was a much simpler construction with a half square triangle border.  Again, I strayed from the pattern instructions and made a much more orderly combination of black and white prints matched with a soft Essex Linen background.