2019 FAL - Q3 Proposed Finishes

Hello everyone! It is time for Quarter 3 of the Finish-A-Long (FAL)!

As you can see, a new quarter of the Finish-A-Long is starting today.  If you missed participating the first half of the year, you can join us now for a brand new start. Those of you who did join us for the first and second quarter, thank you and I do hope you finished some things and plan to continue on with us for Q3.

So let's get to it!

You can now link up your list of projects that you want to finish in Quarter 3 of 2019. We are hoping that the FAL community will inspire you to work on your unfinished projects this quarter, and to get them finished!

Our 2019 Finish-A-Long Hosts

The 2019 FAL is hosted by a great community of bloggers. This year our hosts are:

• Sandra - Sew of Course - Ireland
• Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA Louisiana
• Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada
• Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA Georgia
• Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA California
• Lynne - Tinking Along - USA Maryland
• Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada
• Sarah G - Sarah Goer Quilts - USA California
• Sarah Z - Cedar Fork Stitches - USA Montana
• Julie - That’s Sew Julie - USA Iowa
• Sharla - Thistle Thicket Studio - USA Kansas
• Nicole - Handwrought Quilts - Canada

For those of you who are new to the FAL, here is an explanation: The Finish-A-Long is a community aiming to motivate and encourage each other to complete those unfinished projects that are hanging around, sometimes for far too long. At the start of the quarter you post and link up a list of projects you hope to finish in the next three months. Then, at the end of the quarter, you link up each successful finish from your original list.

Each linked up finish is an entry into the draw for wonderful prizes from our sponsors. There is no penalty for not finishing a listed project, so feel free to make your list as long or as short as you wish. The 2019 Schedule and Rules for the FAL are on my permanent 2019 FAL page, let me know if you have any questions.

Our 2019 Finish-A-Long Sponsors

Here are the fantastic and generous sponsors for Q3 of the Finish-A-Long. you can see each of their prizes listed under their logo. Please think about visiting them and saying thank you for their their support of the FAL.

Winner's Choice of 1 Large 12 Spool Collection

$80 Gift Certificate

$50 Gift Certificate

$50 Gift Certificate

$25 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

1 Six Month Subscription

2 PDF Patterns

$30 Fabric Voucher

Make your Q3 List of Unfinished Projects

So now it is time to sort out the projects/UFOs/WIPs that you want to finish over the next three months. Take a photo of each one and make your list. If you like you can use our Finish-A-Long Planner to list your projects and keep track of progress. It also has all link-up dates for the year, and the hashtags that we would use. Or use any method that works for you. Please ensure that you have at least STARTED your projects - pulled fabric with a pattern is considered a project started - and remember it is only a FINISHED project that will get you an entry toward the above listed prizes. So while we love to see your bee blocks, the "finish" is when they are a completed, usable project.

Post Your Q3 List

Post your list either on your blog, on Instagram, or on Flickr if you prefer. If posting on social media (Flickr, Instagram), it will be very helpful if you tag your list with #2019FALQ3yourname (where yourname is unique to you). Using the same hashtag over the quarter when sharing project progress or finishes helps the host to make the connection to your original list quickly and easily.
IMPORTANT: Don't forget to link up your finishes at the end of the quarter! We will be posting a reminder on the blog and on Instagram, but do keep an eye out...

Link-up Your Q3 List

The 2019 Q3 link for your list of proposed finishes is now open below, on my blog and on each of the hosting blogs. You need only link your list once, on ONE host blog, and the link will show up on all the host blogs. If you are using Flickr or Instagram, post a mosaic of your projects and put your list in the description. Don't forget to include your unique hashtag.
If you need a little help, Katy of The Littlest Thistle has a great tutorial on how to link up if you need it, and Marci has a post on how to link up from Instagram.

Join the FAL Community

We also ask that you become part of the FAL community. Please check out the links of others - visit and comment on their lists. We all need encouragement to get those finishes done, so please share some of your own too.

If you want you can follow us on Facebook: Finish-A-Long and/or on Instagram: @finishalong, too. We'll post encouragement during the quarter and reminders when the finishes link up opens at the end of the quarter.

When creating your list there is one thing to remember - No deductions for not completing something so - Aim High! Nothing to lose!! Well now, get that list together and get linked up.

LET THE FUN BEGIN!

Feel free to use and share the FAL button at the top and this one too:

Remember: you only need to link up at ONE hosting blog and it will automatically show up on all hosting blogs.

An InLinkz Link-up

2019 FAL - Reminders!

Today I'm popping in for a quick reminder that the Quarter 2 link up for all your finishes closes on Tuesday, July 9, 2019 at 11 pm EST.  So you still have a few more days to finish that project or two and link them up to be eligible for prizes.  The link up can be found HERE or on any of the 2019 FAL hosts blogs.


A few reminders for linking up:

• Please only one finished project for each post that you link up, so that each finish can be an entry in the (random) prize draw. 
• Please include a link to your original list in each post of your finishes (on Instagram the link is the unique tag #2019FALQ2yourname to be used in the Q2 list post, and in any Q2 finish post).
• Please visit some of the other participants and leave a friendly comment, we all love to get those! 

I also wanted to share with you that we just wrapped up "Tutorial Week" which has been part of the Finish-A-Long since it's inception.  The tutorials are varied, interesting, and usually helpful, so take some time to investigate and visit the blogs below!

• July 2, 2019 - Marci of Marci Girl Designs - Fabric Ball Tutorial
• July 3, 2019 - Karen of Capitola Quilter - "In A Bubble" Quilt Block
• July 4, 2019 - Izzy of Dizzy Quilts - Simple and Quick Quilt Labels
• July 5, 2019 - Julie of That's Sew Julie - Crochet Self-Folding Hot Pad

And whether you had a lot of finishes, or none at all this quarter, or you missed Finish-A-Long Q2 altogether, you can always join in for Quarter 3 which is taking off on July 10th, with the link up opening for your List of Proposed Finishes. We hope you will join us!

Easy and quick quilt labels - A 2019 FAL Tutorial

Welcome to Tutorial Week brought to you by the 2019 FAL! 

If you’re anything like me, once you’re done applying the binding on your quilt, you’re ready to move on to the next project and don’t really want to spend a whole lot of time hand sewing a label. Especially if the quilt is destined to stay in your home.

But we all know how important it is to document our quilts - so here’s a way to quickly and effortlessly apply labels.

The secret is to plan ahead and be prepared. When you’re cutting your fabric for the quilt top, cut and set aside an 8” square in a solid fabric that’s not too dark - this will be your label.

When you’re ready to sew on the binding to the front of your quilt, fold your square on the diagonal and press.





Align the raw edges of your label with the raw edges of your quilt in the bottom right or left corner and pin (or clip) in place.





Sew the binding to the quilt, making sure the labels stays in place and removing your pins/clips as you get to them.

Finish sewing your binding as you normally would.

The next step is to hand stitch the folded edge of your label to the back of the quilt. You can use an invisible stitch or use decorative thread and get creative.




Finally, use a permanent marker to write the info you normally would on a quilt label. I like to include my name, the date and who the designer is (if I made the quilt from a pattern).





And voila! A quick and easy way to label your quilts!

And if you're playing along with us during the 2019 FAL, don't forget to link up your finishes! You can do so here on my blog or on the blog of any of our hosts.

2019 FAL - Q2 Finishes

We have reached the end of Quarter 2 of the 2019 Finish-A-Long already!!  Of course, that means it is now time to link up those finishes from the list you linked up in April. We hope that you have been able to complete a bunch of the UFOs on your list and if you haven't, we'll do it all over again for Quarter 3...

The 2019 FAL is hosted by a great community of bloggers. This year our hosts are:

• Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA Louisiana
• Sandra - Sew of Course - Ireland
• Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada
• Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA Georgia
• Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA California
• Lynne - Tinking Along - USA Maryland
• Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada
• Sarah G - Sarah Goer Quilts - USA California
• Sarah Z - Cedar Fork Stitches - USA Montana
• Julie - That’s Sew Julie - USA Iowa
• Sharla - Thistle Thicket Studio - USA Kansas
• Nicole - Handwrought Quilts - Canada

Each finish you link up will be in the draw for great prizes, so let's give a huge thank you to our fantastic sponsors:

Winner's Choice of 1 Large 12 Spool Collection

$80 Gift Certificate

$50 Gift Certificate

$50 Gift Certificate

$25 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

1 Six Month Subscription

2 PDF Patterns

$30 Fabric Voucher

The 2019 Quarter 2 link for your finishes is now open below on my blog and on each of the hosting blogs - you only need to link on one blog for your finish to appear on all host blogs.

Link-up "Rules":

Add one link for each finish.  If you want to link a round up post of all your finishes, use that link to enter one of your finishes and then link the rest of your finishes separately.  Please, only one link per finish, as your link is an entry into the randomly drawn prize draws. 

Please ensure that the photo (Instagram or Flickr) or blog post you link up contains a link or reference back to your original list so that we can verify your entry (make sure it is from the appropriate quarter, too). On Instagram the best way to do that is to tag your photos with #2019FALQ2yourname (where yourname is unique to you), this makes it easier for us to match your finishes with your list, which also should have this tag.

Please become part of the FAL community.  Check out the links of others and leave a comment. We all need encouragement so let's applaud each other.  The 2019 FAL Facebook page is HERE and you can follow us on Instagram @finishalong.

Our hosts will also link up their finishes to share in the community but they are not eligible for any of the prizes.

The Q2 Finishes link will stay open from now thru 11 pm, EST, Tuesday, July 9, 2019 - as we are global, you might want to check your time zone to determine your last possible time to link. You can also see how much time is left below the linked up images on the right.  It is best to link up your finishes early and if you have a last minute one, add that one later so you don't miss out.  The prizes will be awarded as soon as we can verify all the entries and do the drawings.  We will post the winners on each host's blog.

Lastly, don't forget to start making your Q3 list as the next LIST link opens on Wednesday, July 10, 2019.

2019 Q2 Finishes Link Up:

An InLinkz Link-up

2019 FAL - Q1 Winners!

 The time has come to officially wrap up Quarter 1 of the Finish-A-Long by announcing the winners and awarding some wonderful prizes from our fantastic sponsors.  We had a whopping 553 finishes for the first quarter of 2019, which is really impressive you guys, keep it up!

Without further ado, here are the winners picked by Random Number Generator for Q1 of the 2019 Finish-A-Long:

The winner's choice of One Large 12 Spool Collection from Aurifil goes to Ann who blogs at Brown Paws Quilting and she finished this gorgeous Summer Sampler quilt that she custom quilted:

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The $80 Gift Certificate from Sew Sweetness goes to Michelle who blogs at From Bolt to Beauty and she finished 11 Jane Market Bags for her children's teachers (here is just one of them):

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The $50 Gift Certificate from Mad About Patchwork goes to Sandra who blogs at Musings of a Menopausal Melon - mmm! Quilts and she finished this lovely cushion/pillow cover:

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The $50 Gift Certificate from Fat Quarter Shop goes to Melinda on IG @mamasan_gerber and she finished this large hexagon pouf:

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The $25 Gift Certificate from Sew Me A Song goes to Melinda who blogs at Quiltn in Wilton and she finished this bright and cheerful child sized quilt:

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The 3 PDF Patterns from Happy Quilting goes to Liz who blogs at Yorkshire Quilter and she finished this beautiful scrappy charity string quilt:

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The 2 PDF Patterns from Charm About You goes to Gretchen who blogs at 120 Blocks and she finished this fantastic Jelly Roll Rug:

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The 2 PDF Patterns from Blossom Heart Quilts go to Janice on IG @tangibleculture and she finished this lovely cross stitch ornament:

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The 6 Month Subscription to Make Modern Magazine goes to Anja who blogs at Anja Quilts and she finished this really fun quilt:

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The 2 PDF Patterns from Bonjour Quilts goes to Jennie who blogs at Jennie's Threads and she finished this gorgeous sampler quilt:

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The $30 Fabric Voucher from Hillstitches goes to Pippa on IG @pippaspatch and she finished this wonderful duel sided table runner:

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There you have it folks, quarter one of the year is officially wrapped up!  Congratulations to all of our winners and a big thanks to everyone that played along so far this year.