Best of 2025

Hello, quilting friends!!  If you are new to The Joyful Quilter, welcome.  If you have visited before, welcome back!  Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs is continuing her Best of... link party tradition.  Follow THIS LINK to see all of the wonderful bloggers who have joined in the fun.  Here is her new button for the 11th anniversary edition of the Link Party:

To take part in the link party, participants were asked to write a blog post highlighting our "best" 5 posts from 2025 and join the linkup.  Cheryl suggested the following examples of posts to be included:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

The link party will open the day after Christmas on Friday, December 26th and will be open for one week ending on Friday, January 2nd.

This will be my 7th (consecutive) year of participation.  Those of you who have been following me for a while know that this year has been one of work, art, and even more health issues than last year.  Even so, I managed to fit some quilting time in, as well!  I was able to enjoy one Quilt Retreat and several Sew Days during the year.  It made some progress possible and resulted in a fair number of completed projects.

Here is an overview of my productivity for the year:

I completed 12 mini quilts/quilted mug rugs, 6 wall hangings, and 3 large(ish) quilts, plus 6 other quilted items (including 1 quilted thread catcher, 1 quilted chair cover, 1 quilted yarn bowl, 1 quilted pillow, and 2 quilted art pieces on a canvas.)  I also finished 5 donation quilts.

Items made per month...

January - 4

February - 4

March - 5

April - 3

May - 1

June - 1

July - 2

August - 2

September - 1

October - 3

November - 4

December - 2

That adds up to the fact that I finished a total of 32 quilted items in 2025.  (26 of those were made as a result of Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge, because of her Color of the Month and/or in conjunction with my TABLE SCRAPS Challenge.)  I'm quite pleased by the number of projects I was able to complete.  My productivity was fairly good considering the ongoing health issues I've dealt with during the year.

How does one decide on her BEST posts for the year??

I took a long and hard look at the posts written in 2025, but as per usual, choosing the BEST was quite a challenge.

Mine include the following...

Most modern finish - DENIM Quilt Art on Canvas

Favorite mixed media finish - Sing Circa 1973:

Favorite UFO finish - Inherited Iris

Favorite three dimensional finish - PQ16.3 - Common Blocks:

Favorite QAL finish - Kristen's Scrappy Bargello:

AND as a bonus...

After five years, my final TABLE SCRAPS Challenge finish - PEACE(out):

Thank you for joining me in this review.  Special thanks to Cheryl for organizing a Link Party dedicated to reminding us to take another look at the blog posts we've written during the year.  If not for this venture, I might never have finished updating this year's project list which was woefully behind.  

Until next time...

Quilt the year away!!!

Best of 2024

Hello, quilting friends!!  If you are new to The Joyful Quilter, welcome.  If you have visited before, welcome back!  Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs is continuing her Best of... link party tradition.  Follow THIS LINK to see all of the wonderful bloggers who have joined in the fun.  Here is her new button for the 10th anniversary edition of the Link Party:

To take part in the link party, participants were asked to write a blog post highlighting our "best" 5 posts from 2024 and join the linkup.  Cheryl suggested the following examples of posts to be included:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

She said that this post is not only a great way to find new readers, it is also wonderful to be able to highlight some of your best posts for those readers who have joined your blog throughout the year."

The link party will open the day after Christmas on Thursday, December 26th and will be open for one week ending on Thursday, January 2nd.

This will be my 6th (consecutive) year of participation.  Those of you who have been following me for a while know that this year has been one of work, art, and health issues.  Not a lot of quilting as been accomplished!  I was able to enjoy two Quilt Retreat during the year.  It made some progress possible, but didn't result in many completed projects.

Here is an overview of my productivity for the year:

I completed 9 mini quilts/quilted mug rugs, 2 quilted pin cushions, 2 table mat/runners and 3 wall hanging, plus 5 other quilted items (including 1 pillow cover, 3 placemats, and 1 quilted jacket.)  I also finished 1 large commission quilt, and 1 donation quilt.

Items made per month...

January - 4

February - 3

March - 5

April - 1

May - 1

June - 1

July - 1

August - 2

September - 2

October - 2

November - 1

December - 0

I made a total of 23 quilted items in 2024.  (13 of those were made as a result of Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge and/or in conjunction with my TABLE SCRAPS Challenge.)  I'm shocked by the low number of finishes I was able to complete.  My productivity hasn't been this low in years!  No worries!!!  Another chance is coming in the new year.

How does one decide on her BEST posts for the year??

I took a long and hard look at the posts written in 2024, but choosing the BEST was quite a challenge...


Mine include the following...

Most modern finish - PQ 15.2 - Sky Color

Favorite TABLE SCRAPS Challenge finish - June 2024 - A Trio of Watermelons

Resulted in THREE donations for our Guild's Meals on Wheels Placemat Drive!

Quirkiest quilt finish - PQ15.1 Bird House

Favorite Rainbow Scrap Challenge finish - January 2024 - Snowflake at Midnight

Shrunken version of the Snowflake Quilt pattern.

AND...

Most amazing outcome from a finish - PQ 15.4 Hourglass

More on that in the next week or so.

Thank you for joining me in this review.  I'm happy that Cheryl organized a Link Party dedicated to reminding us to take another look at the blog posts we've written during the year.  If not for this venture, I would have left THREE projects off this year's list.  Whoops!

Also, please remember to check out my NEW 2025 TABLE SCRAPS Challenge!  You can find the full details HERE.

Until next time...
Quilt the year away!!!

Thanks to the reader who noticed that I posted the year as 2025 instead of 2024.

Apparently, I had already moved on or I got this one confused with my planning post.

Whoops!  I've fixed that now.

January 7, 2025

Best of 2023!!

Hello, quilting friends!!  If you are new to The Joyful Quilter, welcome.  If you have visited before, welcome back!  Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs is continuing her Best of... link party tradition.  Follow THIS LINK to see all of the wonderful bloggers who have joined in the fun.  Here is her sweet new button:

To take part in the link party, participants were asked to write a blog post highlighting our "best" 5 posts from 2023 and join the linkup.  Cheryl suggested the following examples of posts to be included:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

She said that this post is not only a great way to find new readers, it is also wonderful to be able to highlight some of your best posts for those readers who have joined your blog throughout the year."

The link party will open the day after Christmas, Tuesday December 26th and will be open for one week ending on Monday, January 1st.

This will be my 5th (consecutive) year of participation.  Those of you who have been following me for a while know that this year has been one of work, work, and more work.  Not necessarily on my quilting!  I did enjoy two Quilt Retreats during the year.  They made it possible to make some real progress on a number of projects.

Here is an overview of my productivity:

I completed 20 mini quilts/quilted mug rugs, 4 quilted pin cushions, 2  table mat/runners and 2 wall hanging, plus 5 other quilted items.  I also finished 1 large commission quilt, 2 large gift quilts,  2 large UFO quilts for me, 2 donation quilts from tops pieced by others and quilted 1 quilt for my quilting friends on my APQS longarm quilting machine which has, once again, limped its way through the year.  I'm thinking that I need to watch a TON of maintenance videos in 2024 so that I might become more confident when things go awry.

Items made per month...

January - 3

February - 6

March - 8

April - 4

May - 3

June - 1

July - 1

August - 7

September - 3

October - 3

November - 1

December - 1

I made a total of 41 quilted items in 2023.  (17 of those were made as a result of Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge and/or in conjunction with my TABLE SCRAPS Challenge)  I'm pleased with the number of finishes I was able to complete.  Especially since my "seasonal" job continued throughout the year (again) and the state of my studio has remained a bit of a disaster area. If not for those factors, I might have finished more!  No worries!!!  Another chance is coming in the new year.

How does one decide on her BEST posts for the year??

I took a long and hard look at the posts written in 2023, but choosing the BEST was quite a challenge...


Mine include the following...

Most modern finish - (2017) Lordy, Lordy! Look Who's 40!:

From Sunday Morning Quilts. Pieced and quilted by me.

Most views (544) - February 2023 - ABC (Table) SCRAPS Challenge - Link Party

Most comments (40) - Sew It, Show It - Little Green Apples Challenge - My Hop STOP

Favorite finish - Design Floor Friday - The Emergency Quilt

Started to delivered in less than 2 weeks!

AND...

Favorite post - Wonderful Wednesday - Check One Off the Bucket List

Thanks for joining me in this review.  I'm glad that Cheryl organized a Link Party dedicated to reminding us to take another look at the blog posts we've written during the year.  Oh! Don't forget to check out my NEW 2024 TABLE SCRAPS Challenge!  You can find the full details HERE.

Until next time...
Quilt the year away!!!

Best of 2022!!

Hello, quilting friends!!  If you are new to The Joyful Quilter, welcome.  If you have visited before, welcome back!  Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs is continuing her Best of... link party tradition.  Follow THIS LINK to see all of the wonderful bloggers who have joined in the fun.  Here is her lovely button:

To take part in the link party, participants were asked to write a blog post highlighting our "best" 5 posts from 2022 and join the linkup.  Cheryl suggested the following examples of posts to be included:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

She said that this post is not only a great way to find new readers, it is also wonderful to be able to highlight some of your best posts for those readers who have joined your blog throughout the year."

The link party will open the day after Christmas, Monday December 26th and will be open for one week ending on Sunday, January 1st.

This will be my 4th (consecutive) year of participation.  Those of you who have been following me for a while know that this year has been one of attempting to get the studio up and running (and only partially succeeding.)  I still managed to make a few things and write quite a number of posts.  (Not as many as usual, but I'm trying!)

Here is an overview of my productivity:

I completed 5 table toppers, 7 mini quilts, 2 quilted pin cushions, 1 table runners, 3 lap quilts of varying sizes, 1 quilted placemat, 9 quilted mug rugs, and 2 wall hangings, plus 2 other quilted items.  I also finished 2 large commission quilts, 4 donation quilts from tops pieced by others and quilted 4 quilts for my quilting friends on my APQS longarm quilting machine, which has limped along this year.  Unfortunately, it had a series of mysterious ailments throughout the year and it had made me skittish about "getting back on the horse."  (That being said, I am hoping for 1 more "friendly" quilting finish before the end of the year.)

Items made per month...

January - 3

February - 4

March - 4

April - 2

May - 5

June - 2

July - 1

August - 2

September - 2

October - 7

November - 4

December - 3

I made a total of 39 quilted items in 2022.  (15 of those were made as a result of Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge and/or in conjunction with my TABLE SCRAPS Challenge)  Not my most productive year (that was 2020), but still a respectable number of finishes.  If not for continuing my "seasonal" job throughout the year and the disaster area that my "new" studio has remained, I might have been finished more!  No worries!!!  I get another chance in 2023.  :o))

But my BEST posts??

I took a long and hard at the posts written in 2022, but choosing the BEST was quite a challenge...


Mine include...

Most modern finish - (2021) Positivity QAL Block Drive - The 1st Finish

Blocks by quilting friends. Pieced by MASQuilts, Quilted by Britt_Quilts. Bound by me.

Most comments (23) - January TABLE SCRAPS Challenge Link Party

Some Assembly Required

Favorite finish - Wonderful Wednesday - The Beast Comes Alive

Rainbow, Baby!

Most views (417) - June TABLE SCRAPS Challenge Link Party

Bright/Dark BLUE Topper

AND...

Then we come to the 3-way tie for Favorite post - 

1. April 2022 - TABLE SCRAPS Challenge - Link Party

Famished Flamingo Quilted Placemat

2. Wonderful Wednesday - In the Studio

3. H2H 2022 - Final Link Party

Sunshine Cabin

(In no particular order.)

Thanks for joining me in this review.  I'm glad that Cheryl organized a Link Party dedicated to reminding us to take another look at the blog posts we've written during the year.  Oh! Don't forget to check out my NEW 2023 ABC (Table) SCRAPS Challenge!  You can find the full details HERE.  (Link coming soon. Spoiler Alert! Check back tomorrow.)

Until next time...
Quilt the year away!!!

Best of 2021!!!

 Hello, quilting friends!!  If you are new to The Joyful Quilter, welcome.  If you have visited before, welcome back!  Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs is continuing her Best of... link party tradition.  Follow THIS LINK to see all of the wonderful bloggers who have joined in the fun.  Here is her lovely button:

To take part in the link party, participants were asked to write a blog post highlighting our "best" 5 posts from 2021 and join the linkup.  Cheryl suggested the following examples of posts to be included:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

She said that this post is not only a great way to find new readers, it is also wonderful to be able to highlight some of your best posts for those readers who have joined your blog throughout the year."

The link party will open the day after Christmas, Sunday December 26th and will be open for one week ending on Sunday, January 2nd.

This will be my 3rd (consecutive) year of participation.  Those of you who have been following me for a while know that this year has been a doozy for our family.  Buying a new home and selling our old one has been the main focus in Joyful Quilterland  during the last half of 2021.  It made the first half of the year pale in comparison.  That being said, I have still managed to make a few things and write quite a number of posts.  (I'm a wordy girl. What can I say? LOL!)

Here is an overview of my productivity:

I completed 4 table toppers, 5 mini quilts, 7 quilted pin cushions, 3 table runners, 5 larger quilts of varying sizes, 1 quilted hot pad, 5 quilted mug rugs, 4 wall hangings, 1 quilted thread catcher, and finished 4 donation quilts from tops pieced by others .  All of these were made from my ever-growing stash of fabric scraps!  I also quilted 21 quilts on my APQS longarm quilting machine for my quilting friends, which screeched to a halt not long before the move and STILL has not resumed, as The Beast is in need of attention.  Unfortunately, I missed my window of opportunity for getting it repaired over the summer, but have an appointment the first week of the new year.

Items made per month...1 

January - 5

February - 5

March - 5

April - 6

May - 10

June - 2

July - 0

August - 0

September - 2

October - 2

November - 1

December - 1

I made a total of 39 quilted items in 2021.  (16 of those were made as a result of Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge.)  Not my most productive year (that was last year), but still a respectable number of finishes.  If not for packing, the move and the disaster area that my studio has remained, I might have been on target to tie 2020's totals.  No worries!!!  2022 is on the way and it's filled with the promise of more opportunities for quilting.  :o))

But my BEST posts??

I took a long and hard at the posts written in 2021, but choosing the BEST was quite a challenge...


... Mine include...

Most modern make - Mini Monday - DrEAMI Moment - Small Seascape Series

Not technically done yet, as I couldn't decide on a finishing technique.

Favorite (and first) finish in the new house - The Birthday Quilt

LOVE that I can now do porch swing photos!

Most comments (52) - Salt and Sand Blog Hop - Day 4 - My STOP!!!

Most artistic finish, too.

Favorite post - Mini Monday - The Happy Dance

It was a pleasure to see how excited one friend could be over such a small quilted gift.

Most views (1116) - January 2021 TABLE SCRAPS Challenge/LINK PARTY

The longarm used to earn its keep... SEW hoping that it will soon be back in working order!

Thanks for joining me in this review.  I'm glad that Cheryl organized a Link Party dedicated to reminding us to take another look at the blog posts we've written during the year.  Oh! Don't forget to check out my new 2022 TABLE SCRAPS Challenge!  You can find the condensed version of that information HERE.

Sharing with Alycia

for

Finished (Or Not) Friday

Until next time...
Quilt the year away!!!

Best of 2020!!!

 Cheryl at Meadow Mist Designs is having a Best of 2020 Linky Party.

She encouraged us to include out "best" posts from the year.  If you are new to The Joyful Quilter, welcome!  If you've visited before, welcome back!

To take part in the link party, bloggers were asked to 'simply write a new blog post highlighting your "best" 5 posts from 2020 and linkup.'  There were no rules for what to include.  She provided the following examples:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite 2020 finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites 

Thanks to the global pandemic, I've been practicing for retirement since March of this year.  With more free time on my hands, my creativity was through the roof!  As 2020 comes to a close, I am pleased by what I've accomplished. I completed 13(4) mini quilts, 3 quilted pillows, 3 quilted pin cushions, 1 quilted post card, 24 quilts of varying sizes, 9 quilted scrap baskets, 1 quilted thread catcher, and 10 quilted mug rugs.  All of these were made from my ever-growing stash of fabric scraps!  I also quilted 18 quilts on my APQS longarm quilting machine for my quilting friends, along with making a variety of other small projects for my family.

Items made per month...

January - 5

February - 3

March - 6

April - 6

May - 15

June - 9

July - 3

August - 1

September - 7

October - 5

November - 3

December - 3

2020 total of 66 quilted items made this year!!  My most productive year EVER!!!  

But my BEST posts??

Considering what constitutes or quantifies best is a tall order.  After thinking long and hard...


... Mine include...

Most artistic make - Improv Barn Quilt

10th UFO Club anniversary post - Wonderful Wednesday - Where Did the Time Go??

Milestone post (1000?!) - Design Floor Friday - (1000th post) And A Bigger Boat

Favorite modern finish - Mini Monday - Modern Plus Mini (CTJ)

Most views (Nearly 2500!!) - Magic Stars with Tiffany

Thanks for coming along on my trip down memory lane.  I'm glad that Cheryl organized this Linky Party to remind us to review the blog posts we've written during the year.  Oh! Don't forget to check out my new 2021 TABLE SCRAPS Challenge!  You can find the condensed version of that information HERE.

Until next time...
Quilt the year away!!!