Hope for the new year

My Rays of Hope quilt is on auction at the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative website, beginning Jan. 1. Check it out here. This was my first attempt at a priority quilt, and I'm thrilled that it is up for auction. Thanks Tonya, for a great challenge. Carol from Giraffe Dreams also has her quilt from the same challenge in the January auction.
(And just so you know, my quilt is more square in real than in the photo. Obviously I need to work on my photography skills.)

Hope and scraps

I've made another quilt for the Priority Hope Challenge.
I used some of my word fabric and a purple hand dye scrap from a previous project. Because these quilts are supposed to be 9 by 12 inches or smaller, I decided to be on the safe side and drew out the design on a piece of copy paper.

Meanwhile, my sewing room has undergone a 10-hour transformation. I spent much of my weekend sorting through scraps, refolding yardage, and cutting pieces according to Bonnie's Scrap User System. It was a bit of effort, but well worth it, and now my sewing room is so unnaturally tidy I'm scared to mess it up. But I had boxes of strings, strips and scraps before, and now they're sorted by size. It was cathartic to cut them into squares and bricks, and now I have the makings of several future projects (as if I need more). Plus I sorted out some scraps for the exchange Quilt Pixie is running and some for a future giveaway when I hit 100 posts in the next month. So watch for that.

In the top left, you can see my drawer of UFOs and flimsies. I'm making progress on Finn's New Year's Eve challenge, but there's still a way to go. And in case you're wondering, I used wooden drawers from my former kitchen cabinets for storage, along with assorted boxes, and plastic shoeboxes. I tried to find some more Rubbermaid ones, but had to buy another brand. Anyone know why?