Monday’s Moments

/ quiltinggail / 16 Comments

Sorry, I have not been posting much lately! I’ve had Covid and it’s been a slow recovery. However, I am recovering. I know at one point, I told a friend, “I feel like sewing today.” I sat at the machine, sewed 2 stitches and turned the machine off. I knew I was sick! But, for the last few days, I’ve been sewing for more than 1/2 hour a day – so that is good.

Overhauling the Craft Room

Before I got sick, I did work on my studio overhaul and took some pictures.

Here’s a Before and After pictures of the same spaces!

I now have a full ironing board to iron on. Yes, those dark brown spots in the upper right and lower left definitely indicate that I need to recover the board. But not for now! I’ll live with it for a little while longer!

And the area behind the machine where I quilt is now tidy. Hopefully, it will stay that way! It has so far!

Stitching Time

‘

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

I missed many days of sewing in the last few weeks … that’s OK. I’m just thankful that I only have one deadline at the moment!

  • January – April:  117 / 120
  • May 1 – 15:  5 / 15
  • Total: 122 / 135
  • Percentage = 90% 

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

It was fun to free motion these quilts … all different and using different motifs!

Finishing these baby quilts used 7.5 yards of fabric.

  • Fabric Used since the last report      7.5  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       39.75 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:   0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    6.25 yards 
  • Net Fabric used                 23.5 yards 

To Do

Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list from several weeks ago:

  1. Quilt & Bind at least 2 more Baby Quilt Panels √   DONE
  2. Work on Foodie Blog Hop project not done
  3. Clear Cutting Table and Ironing Board for Craft Room Overhaul √   DONE
  4. Work on May Island Batik challenge. √   DONE
  5. Work on Pop Star Quilt √   DONE
  6. Work on Squirrel Attack Quilt. not done
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!  √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Finish May Island Batik challenge.
  2. Work on Pop Star Quilt
  3. Sandwich Squirrel Attack Quilt (see below).
  4. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  5. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Donna, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, host a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

1. Foodie Blog Hop: These fabrics are from my stash. You’ll just have to wait until May 24th to see what is happening with this fabric!

2. A Squirrel Attack: The flimsy is done – but I forgot to take a picture …

3. I have been working on Sandra Walker’s Pop Star Quilt … Yesterday, the instructions for adding the border were posted. You can access the steps at MMM Quilts HERE.

Quilting:

Need to sandwich the May Island Batik project and get them quilted! And also need to sandwich the Pop Star Quilt.

Again, I’m counting 2 baby quilt panels as 1 UFO that is finished. That means that I only have 4 more UFOs to finish this year! Sigh … I thought I had found ALL of the UFOs before, but alas … there are likely more hidden away! I was secretly hoping that this would be the last year for me to host PHD in 202? But, if I keep discovering more – I’ll be hosting PHD for many years to come!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

PHD in 2022: April Report

/ quiltinggail / 7 Comments

Can you relate to this?

https://www.remote.tools/memes/inspirational-memes

Even making some small steps – will get you closer to your goals!

How are you doing with your PHD? Each step will take you closer to the goal!

April UFOs Completed

The baby quilts were quick to finish, so I’m counting 2 of them as 1 UFO.

My Tally Sheet

The Tally Sheet

Here is an Excel File for you to use if you want to join in

PHD Tally 2022- with formulasDownload

And here is the link where you can find the colourful Task Sheet at Ms P Designs.

The Linky Party

Show us your PHD in 2022 intentions!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=a8b40ada7693d64e5923

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Friday … the end of the week …

/ quiltinggail / 10 Comments

It has been a busy week … yesterday, I zoom quilted with several guild members … it’s always a LOT of fun and I managed to get 2 tops to flimsy stage. One is next month’s Island Batik challenge and the other is my Squirrel Attack quilt! Both are now waiting to be sandwiched.

I do have a finish to show … one of my blog followers suggested that I finish the baby panel with the kitty on it. I listened to her … and here it is! It was a LOT of fun to quilt … and miraculously the green for the binding was just the right amount! This UFO has Hobbs batting and was quilted with Glide thread.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Monday’s Manifesto

/ quiltinggail / 16 Comments

Garage Sale

I believe the guild Garage Sale was a success. I got rid of a LOT of stuff! It was great! I was very happy to only bring a small amount home!

I also was able to donate about 10 quilts to the baby quilt and comfort quilt guild charities! That also freed up a bunch of space!

As my dear hubby was helping to load the car, he gently told me that perhaps I might not want to bring home as much stuff as I took! I had to laugh, as I had absolutely NO intention of shopping at the garage sale …

However, when things are staring you in the face, you HAVE to shop! The blue fleece was at the table next to me and after an hour, I broke down and bought it. It will back 2 baby donation quilts. And the ruler handle … oh yes, the ruler handle. Whenever I’m at a retreat with Patti, she always has a long ruler with a fantastic handle on it. I gravitate to that ruler and absolutely LOVE the extra stability the handle adds. So, of course, I HAD to have it!!!

Now … to get things back in order in my sewing studio!

Overhauling the Craft Room

For awhile this past week, my studio looked WAY worse than it did when I first posted pictures … but that’s OK … sometimes, you have to make a mess to clean up, right? Anyhow … here is the progress this week:

Here’s Before and After pictures of the same spaces!

It looks a little cluttered behind the sewing machine on the right … but that’s my leader & ender project … and it’s allowed to stay there – ready for sewing! Yes, several rulers hang behind this machine.

Another area … The bags on the floor were emptied and things put away. The sandwiched quilts and various other things are in appropriate spots. Finally, there is a permanent home for my Accuquilt … with the Island Batik scraps ready for cutting … much better than putting it away all the time!

My quilting area … the SAD light stays and the laptop gets moved so I can view whatever as I’m quilting or zoom quilting or ??? Another leader and ender project ready when I piece on this machine and the area is clear for quilting. So, hopefully, I won’t quilt spare pieces of fabric into the back of whatever I quilt!

All that is left is my ironing board, cutting table and computer desk! GROAN …. but I will work on them …

Stitching Time

‘

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

I missed 3 days of sewing this week. Two because I was getting ready for the garage sale and one on the day of the garage sale …

  • January – Mar:  90 / 90
  • Apr 1 – 24: 21/24
  • Total: 111 / 114
  • Percentage =97% 

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

Finishing this baby quilt used 2.5 yards of fabric.

  • Fabric Used this week      2.5  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       32.25 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:   2 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    6.25 yards 
  • Net Fabric used                 26 yards 

To Do

Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list a week ago:

  1. Quilt & Bind at least 2 more Baby Quilt Panels only 1 done
  2. Work on Foodie Blog Hop project not done
  3. Finish going through the Fabric and Project containers. √   DONE
  4. Work on May Island Batik challenge. not done
  5. Clear at least one more surface in the sewing studio. √   DONE
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS!  not done
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

Here’s the UFO Baby Quilt I finished.

This week’s list:

  1. Quilt & Bind at least 2 more Baby Quilt Panels
  2. Work on Foodie Blog Hop project
  3. Clear Cutting Table and Ironing Board for Craft Room Overhaul
  4. Work on May Island Batik challenge.
  5. Work on Pop Star Quilt
  6. Work on Squirrel Attack Quilt (see below).
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Donna, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

1. Foodie Blog Hop: These fabrics are from my stash. You’ll just have to wait until May 24th to see what is happening with this fabric!

2. A Squirrel Attack: As I was going through my containers … I found left-over strips from a jelly roll quilt … well, they spoke very loudly to me and said, “USE ME NOW.” Well, I have learned that it’s usually worth listening to fabric when it speaks to you. This is one half of them and there will be sashing added between the rows.

3. I have started Sandra Walker’s Pop Star Quilt … Sandra is a fabulous designer and I absolutely LOVE making her quilts. This one is a sew-a-long … Each week, there are directions on what to do. I have chosen some Island Batik fabrics and they are cut out and waiting. The first sewing directions are available … so I need to work on it. You can access the steps at MMM Quilts HERE.

Quilting:

I still have several baby quilts left to quilt!

Since I have several baby panels to quilt and last week I counted 2 as 1 UFO. I’m going to continue that. It’ll be at least another week or 2 before I get another one finished! So the only change is that I’ve added my new starts.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

A Finish for Friday

/ quiltinggail / 12 Comments

Here’s a picture of the latest baby quilt panel. It was a fun quilt to quilt! Of course, I adore Winnie the Pooh – so that just made it even more fun! And yes, this is a finished UFO!

I’ve spent the last few days gathering and gathering and pricing things for our guild’s garage sale tomorrow! I even broke down and went through some of my fabric bins!!! I can’t believe I did that! But, I did find fabric that I have had for ages … and even though I know I would use them in some project in the future, I do have a a LOT more fabric that I love more. So, I figured that was the fabric to keep, right?

This is most of it … but there is a couple more boxes …

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Wonderful World of Colour: Blog Hop

/ quiltinggail / 52 Comments

Joan, from Moose Stash Quilting, is hosting this great blog hop! and she said, “The sky is the limit. Color, world, let’s face it anything fits this theme, don’t you think?”

I went to pack up some “stuff” to take to a class I was teaching and I wanted a small bag. But alas, I didn’t have one! I must have given it away. So, with this blog hop coming up, it was the perfect excuse to make one! Don’t you agree?

I don’t recall making anything with ROY-G-BIV (red/orange/yellow/green/blue/indigo/violet) before – so that made perfect sense for the challenge! I went through my Island Batik stash to see what I had … and voila! I had the perfect random sized strips/scraps for the bag!

The Retreat Bag is a free pattern from Emmaline Bags. You can access the bag pattern HERE. I decided to do a Quilt-as-you-go type of thing and cut out some Annie’s Soft & Stable and stitched the colours on it. If you do this, you don’t need to use the wires that the pattern calls for. The Soft & Stable was left-over from another project. Once the strips of random widths were sewn on, I took a strip of black and put it across – just ’cause. Then I cut the pieces to the size directed in the pattern and continued to make the bag as directed.

And here is a peak at the inside

Now I have the perfect sized bag to put all my junk stuff in!

Visit all the other bloggers that are participating: You’ll be in for a LOT of wonderful eye candy!

Monday April 18

Tuesday April 19

Wednesday April 20

Thursday April 21

Friday April 22

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Meeting a New Friend

/ quiltinggail / 12 Comments

A blog follower contacted me and said she would be in the neighbourhood, “Would I like to meet up?” Well, YES, I would!!! We met at Essem Textiles. She had ordered some sweatshirt fleece from Essem and brought in her sweatshirt jackets … they were pretty cool! Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of them. However, when she told the owners who she was and they knew where she was from! They didn’t realize that she was a quilter as well as a garment sewer.

We met and talked about quilts and quilting. She is one talented quilter! Here’s a picture of us – but look at her quilt! Isn’t it absolutely fabulous? If I remember correctly, she said it’s 110″ x 110″. HUGE!It’s a mariner’s compass with lots of other blocks. She designed the quilt. I was in awe!

Here we are taking a closer look at the quilt:

Aurifil Color Builders

Aurifil has a great page out … showcasing the Italian Cities Color Builders and all of the challenges that the Island Batik Ambassadors made. It’s well worth going and taking a look at the fabulous talent that my fellow Ambassadors have! Click HERE.

Wonderful World of Color Blog Hop

This week is this Colourful Blog Hop! Come back on Wednesday and see what I made!

You can see the complete schedule HERE.

Overhauling the Craft Room

Last week, I showed you pictures of my room. There is one surface tidied up and cleared off (well, 2, if you count the little tv tray that I use as an extra space when I’m piecing!) All of the fabric was put into appropriate bins, not just moved to another spot!

Here’s a Before and After picture of the same space!

I have ALMOST finished going through every container … a few more to go!

This will get DONE!!!

Stitching Time

‘

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

  • January – Mar:  90 / 90
  • Apr 1 – 17: 17 / 17
  • Total: 100 / 100
  • Percentage =100% 

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

The teddy bear quilt used 4.25 yards.

  • Fabric Used this week      4.25  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       29.75 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:   0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    4.25 yards 
  • Net Fabric used                 25.5 yards 

To Do

Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is hosting “To Do” every week.

I had month to work on my previous To Do list … let’s see how I did …

The To Do list 2 weeks ago:

  1. Quilt & Bind Teddy #3 √   DONE
  2. Quilt & Bind at least 2 Baby Quilt Panels √   DONE
  3. Work on Foodie Blog Hop project not done
  4. Go through the Fabric and Project containers. in progress
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

Here’s the 2 baby quilt panels that are quilted and bound. The one on the left was partially hand quilted and I machine quilted it to its finish!

This week’s list:

  1. Quilt & Bind at least 2 more Baby Quilt Panels
  2. Work on Foodie Blog Hop project
  3. Finish going through the Fabric and Project containers.
  4. Work on May Island Batik challenge.
  5. Clear at least one more surface in the sewing studio.
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Donna, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, host a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

1. Foodie Blog Hop: These fabrics are from my stash. You’ll just have to wait until May 24th to see what is happening with this fabric!

Quilting:

The following baby panels still need to be completed.

I’m counting the 2 baby quilt panels as 1 UFO that is finished. That means that I only have 6 more UFOs to finish this year! Sigh … I thought I had found ALL of the UFOs before, but alas … there are likely more hidden away! I was secretly hoping that this would be the last year for me to host PHD in 202? But, if I keep discovering more – I’ll be hosting PHD for many years to come!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Teddy Bear Class #1

/ quiltinggail / 21 Comments

A few weeks ago, I taught a Teddy Bear class at Essem Textiles. It was very popular and there was a wait list! The class will be repeated on April 21 and 28th! Contact Essem to sign up … there isn’t many spots left!

This Teddy Bear pattern is in the Book “Fat Quarter Baby.” In the class, I offer 2 sizes, along with speedier cutting and piecing directions. The pattern in the book is 33:=”x 37″ and the larger size is 41″ x 46.”

Here are pictures from the class:

Some are busy cutting their fabrics!

This is Madeline’s. She’s started to quilt it with a serpentine stitch.

Linda almost has her top completed … so cute with all the dotted fabric!

Nancy claims she’s not a quilter! I beg to differ with her! She’s done an awesome job with this teddy bear.

I love Lorraine’s with the honey bees! Perfect!

This was Anne’s first Teddy Bear and she didn’t quite have enough fabric for the back … so she learned how to do the diagonal stripe … super simple and very effective!

Anne’s 2nd Teddy Bear

And this is Simina’s first quilt! I think she’s hooked!

And here is the one I made: I used Hobbs 80/20 batting. It is quilted with a thread that is new to me “Seracycle.” It is made by Mettler out of recycled 100% PET bottles. SEW – what did I think? The thread quilted very nicely. The small spool did not contain enough thread to sew this quilt and I had to substitute a white thread to finish the quilt. It’s a great idea, but the spools need to be bigger. If you are interested in using Seracycle, Essem Textiles carries it. I think it would be great for garment sewing.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Saturday 

Monday’s Status

/ quiltinggail / 12 Comments

I’ve had a busy week! And I have gotten lots done! My Macaron Mystery is completed. This was a mystery quilt from  Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs. I love her mystery quilts! You can be sure I’ll be following and quilting when she starts the Melodic Mystery in July!

And … did you see Gracie the Gorilla? A Funky Friends pattern for Island Batik’s April challenge. She was so much fun to make! I used Island Batik fabrics, Schmetz needles, and Aurifil thread to make her!

Overhauling the Craft Room

Kim of Persimon Dreams and Kim of Gogokim have joined together and created this Overhaul. If you saw my room, you would KNOW that I NEED to do an Overhaul!!! In a couple of weeks, our quilt guild is having a garage sale … a perfect opportunity to get rid of some quilting junk useful items … I’m not totally following their direction, but I am in the process of going through EVERY container. And I’ll tackle every surface!

Here’s some pictures … as the room was before I started going through things: What a mess, eh? Every available surface cluttered with projects and fabric I need to put away, some baby quilts to be quilted, things to be unpacked from my latest class, fabric to be sorted through, papers cluttering up my computer desk, and left-over batting and fabric on my cutting table!

I’ve already gone through my books … and they’ll be on the free table at the garage sale. I don’t expect the guild library will want them … some are quite old!

Stitching Time

‘

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

  • January – Mar:  90 / 90
  • Apr 1 – 10: 10 / 10
  • Total: 100 / 100
  • Percentage =100% 

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

Macaron used 12 yards of stash. I was thrilled to pieces when I realized that I had the perfect backing! It’s nice to be using up my stash.

  • Fabric Used this week      12   yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       25.5 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:   0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    4.25 yards 
  • Net Fabric used                 21.25 yards 

To Do

Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is hosting “To Do” every week.

I had month to work on my previous To Do list … let’s see how I did …

The To Do list 2 weeks ago:

  1. Bind Macaron Mystery √   DONE
  2. Bind BBQG mystery quilt √   DONE
  3. Teddy #3 – Finish top √   DONE
  4. Complete Colour Your World Blog Hop project √   DONE
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Quilt & Bind Teddy #3
  2. Quilt & Bind at least 2 Baby Quilt Panels
  3. Work on Foodie Blog Hop project
  4. Go through the Fabric and Project containers.
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Donna, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, host a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

1. Foodie Blog Hop: These fabrics are from my stash. You’ll just have to wait until May 24th to see what is happening with this fabric!

Quilting:

I have 5 Baby Quilt panels lined up to be quilted and 2 that need binding. Boy, will I ever be glad when I no longer have cute panels in my stash! Some of these were panels that were given to me … I sandwiched them ages ago, but the quilting didn’t happen! And, I did find some of them when I went through a container – part of the Overhaul! 2 of the Baby Quilt panels are partially hand quilted … they will have machine quilting for the finish!

One UFO was finished: Macaron Mystery! That leaves me with 7 more to complete for my PHD in 2022. The New Starts are gradually getting completed! Personally, I really like how completing the New Starts does NOT add to the UFO list! And it is gradually getting smaller!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Funky Friends

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Funky Friends Factory is sponsoring this month’s Island Batik challenge. We got to choose from a TON of different animals. It was hard to choose! They are all so cute! Thank you Pauline McArthur for allowing us to pick which one we wanted to do and sending us the pattern!

I chose Gregory Gorilla. He looked so cute. I already have made a few Funky Friends and I wanted a different one and I just couldn’t resist making Gregory!

The fabrics I chose are: for the dark – Blackberry, and for the light – Begonia. These are basics and available at all times.

There are lots of parts for Gregory … and here they are, all cut out. The pattern pieces are still pinned to the fabric because many of them contain necessary markings for when you’re making the critter.

The Funky Friends patterns are very well written and easy to follow. If you don’t quite “get it,” there are on-line photos that take you step by step!

And the head is starting to take shape! Can you see his nostrils? They make me laugh! I used Aurifil Thread 2581 (Dark Dusty Grape) to sew with a Schmetz Needle.

I originally wanted to give Gregory away as a gift, but alas, I couldn’t find any safety eyes. Well, I did find some, but they were green and not what I was looking for. I found the googly eyes with eye lashes, so perhaps Gregory should be a girl and I’ll now name her Gracie the Gorilla.

I used a polyfill stuffing for the areas close to Gracie’s ‘skin.’ And the rest of Gracie was stuffed with remnants of Hobbs 80/20 batting — I pulled it apart into very small pieces and it worked great!

Gracie escaped and I found her basking in the sun by the hyacinths and daffodils.

The next time she escaped, she was hanging out in the cherry blossoms with a plethora of bees!

Then she hopped over to the magnolia tree and I could finally rescue her!

This was a fun challenge to make!

Here are the other Funky Friends I have made over the past few years: The elephant, alpaca and rhino. These also used Island Batik fabrics!

Thank you!

Disclosure: The fabrics, batting, thread and needles were generously supplied by the following companies: Thank you, Island Batik  Aurifil Thread  Hobbs Batting & Schmetz Needles !! And a special mention to Funky Friends!

Want to see More Funky Friends?

Visit all of the other Island Batik Ambassadors.

Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Megan Best ~ Bestquilter
Pamela Boatright ~ Pamelaquilts
Elizabeth DeCroos ~ Epida Studio
Jennifer Fulton ~ Inquiring Quilter

Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Jane Hauprich ~ Stitch By Stitch Custom Quilting
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs

Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris – sameliasmum.com

Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Gail Renna ~ Quilt Haven Threads
Brianna Roberts ~ Sew Cute And Quirky
Michelle Roberts ~ Creative Blonde
Andi Stanfield ~ True Blue Quilts
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Macaron Mystery is Complete

/ quiltinggail / 34 Comments

This is a mystery quilt that was offered by Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs. This is the 2nd mystery I’ve done of hers and I have LOVED doing each one. I know that some of you highly dislike doing mystery quilts, but she offers to give you a sneak peak – so you’re not totally doing a mystery. However, since I LOVE mystery quilts, I do it as a mystery! No peeking for me.

Cheryl’s directions are very clear and easy to follow! Here’s a few of the progress pictures of this mystery:

The fabric all came from my stash. As did the backing fabric. It has Hobbs 80/20 batting and I used Glide thread (Mercury) to quilt it. The binding is the medium blue print.

And the completed quilt! (And yes, I did alter some of the setting triangles to make the quilt symmetrical. The quilt insisted on it!)

And some quilting close-ups! Some free motion and some ruler work.

And … Cheryl has announced that there will be another mystery quilt starting in July! I already know that I’m going to join in! It’s called the Melodic Mystery! Are you going to join?

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

I Have MPD … do you?

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That’s right, I have MPD … I hadn’t heard of it until today. I seriously have it!! It’s actually a serious case.

My sister sent this to me … sigh! It’s from Quilt Digest’s FB page and apparently you can buy it on Amazon HERE … but it’s currently unavailable. That’s OK … I know I have MPD and really don’t need a sign in my studio to tell me about it! I’m happiest when I’m working on 2 or 3 or 4 projects at once! I love the challenge of keeping them all straight!

Eye Candy

If you want to see all of the Island Batik ambassador projects from March, Mania has them all together in one blog post with the threads that each ambassador used. Go HERE to see them all!

This was mine, made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting and Aurifil thread.

Stitching Time

‘

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

  • January – Mar:  90 / 90
  • Apr 1 – 3: 3 / 3
  • Total: 93 /
  • Percentage =100% 

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

I have NO finishes this week. But that’s OK … I have 2 quilts that are ready for binding and they both use fabric that came from my stash … so hopefully next week, I’ll have some different numbers.

I did use stash in a couple of my March finishes … The backings for the SAHRR (see HERE), the Time in a Bottle Quilt (see HERE) and the GAYG table runner (see HERE). 3 1/2 yards, 1 1/4 yards, and 1 yard respectively. That totals 5 3/4 yards!

  • Fabric Used this week      0   yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       13.50 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:   0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    4.25 yards 
  • Net Fabric used                 8.75 yards 

To Do

Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is hosting “To Do” every week.

I had month to work on my previous To Do list … let’s see how I did …

The To Do list 2 weeks ago:

  1. Finish quilting Macaron Mystery √   DONE
  2. Work on IB May challenge √   DONE
  3. Work on April’s Colour Challenge √   DONE
  4. Sandwich and possibly quilt BBQG mystery quilt √   DONE
  5. Teddy #3 – Sew for class sample Finish IB March project √   DONE in progress
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √   DONE
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Bind Macaron Mystery
  2. Bind BBQG mystery quilt
  3. Teddy #3 – Finish top
  4. Complete Colour Your World Blog Hop project
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Donna, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, host a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

1. Teddy #3: These fabrics are from my stash. This is still in progress

2. Wonderful World of Colour: In progress … you’ll see this at the blog hop later this month!

Quilting:

Nothing being quilted at the moment … but Macaron Mystery and the BBQG Mystery are both quilted and waiting for their binding!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

2022 Monthly Colour Challenge: April

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This month’s spice is Nigella Seeds. Are you wondering, “what on earth are Nigella Seeds?” I certainly was … and had to look it up.

“Nigella seed is a black, drop-shaped seed that is traditionally used as a spice in Indian, Middle Eastern and North African cuisines, where its aromatic flavor and crunch make it particularly useful in bread and pastries. It is also used in curries, soups and stews.” (source)

The picture on the right is the flower and on the left is the seeds. (Pictures from Wikipedia.)

I have no idea if I have eaten anything with Nigella seeds in it. Perhaps, when I was in India … but I really don’t know!

Here’s my block made with Island Batik solid grey and black. And yes, I had to piece 2 of the larger squares because my scraps were not big enough.

It’s an easy block to make and the pattern is free for this month! You can get the pattern at “Patterns by Jen” and she has this on her website:

Ready to get the pattern? Go to Payhip and download it now! The block is free for the month April! Each set of instructions includes a “How To” video, one for each size offered!

To have the 2022 Monthly Color Challenge blocks sent directly to your email sign up HERE.

Now, Jen has instructed us to show quilts made with the colours of the monthly spice … Alas, I have not made a black and grey quilt. I haven’t even made a black and white quilt … perhaps one day!

Here’s a picture with the January, February, March and April blocks. I’m really enjoying the variety of the blocks! I think this will be a pretty cool quilt, once it’s done!

Visit the other bloggers …

The following bloggers are also highlighting Nigella Seeds today!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

PHD in 2022: March Report

/ quiltinggail / 14 Comments

How are you feeling about all your UFOs? Is progress slow? Or is it amazing?

Many of you said you wanted to get your UFO list down – or perhaps make it so there are NO UFOs left!

We can all do this! It just takes a little determination and taking one step at a time! We can do this!!!

My March Finishes

These are 3 of my finishes … all using Island Batik Fabrics, Aurifil Thread and Hobbs batting. The first is the quilt for the Time in a Bottle Blog Hop. You can read about it HERE. The middle one is from a class that I taught, “Quilt as You Go table runner.” The details are HERE. The volcano is the March Island Batik challenge, thread painting with Aurifil thread. Read about it HERE.

March’s Favourite Finish

This is my Stay at Home Round Robin! I do love it! You can read about it HERE.

This quilt was featured last week by these 2 wonderful bloggers.

The Tally Sheets

Here is an Excel File for you to use if you want to unofficially join in the PHD in 2022.

PHD Tally 2022- with formulasDownload

And here is the link where you can find the colourful Task Sheet at Ms P Designs.

The SAHRR was a UFO … so that made my 4th finish for the year! As you can see, I have a few new starts that need to be finished! One stitch at a time … they will get done!

The Linky Party

Show us your PHD in 2022 progress!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=a8b40ada7693d64e5923

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Monday’s Mishmash

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I haven’t posted any of my regular Sunday/Monday things for almost a month. A LOT has been happening here in my studio … and then there was the retreat … and then more stuff happening! I’ve been busy!

Stitching Time

‘

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

  • January Feb:  59 / 59
  • Mar 1- 27: 27 / 27
  • Total: 86 / 86
  • Percentage =100% 

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

1 1/4 yards of fabric has been added to my stash. It’s not too exciting … just a plain beige flannel to back the fabric of another teddy bear quilt that I’m making. (It was started to use as a sample in the class!) However, the flannel is pretty cool … the picture didn’t turn out … but it is beige and has little flecks of black / dark brown in it – it almost looks like muslin! (

I did use stash in a couple of my March finishes … The backings for the SAHRR (see HERE), the Time in a Bottle Quilt (see HERE) and the GAYG table runner (see HERE). 3 1/2 yards, 1 1/4 yards, and 1 yard respectively. That totals 5 3/4 yards!

  • Fabric Used this week      5.75   yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       13.50 yards
  • Fabric Bought this month:   1.25 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    4.25 yards 
  • Net Fabric used                 8.75 yards 

To Do

Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is hosting “To Do” every week.

I had month to work on my previous To Do list … let’s see how I did …

The To Do list 2 weeks ago:

  1. Finish IB March project √   DONE see HERE
  2. Work on Macaron Mystery: Sandwich √   DONE
  3. Work on Time in a Bottle: Quilt, prepare binding √   DONE see HERE
  4. Complete April’s Colour Challenge not started
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Finish quilting Macaron Mystery
  2. Work on IB May challenge
  3. Work on April’s Colour Challenge
  4. Sandwich and possibly quilt BBQG mystery quilt
  5. Teddy #3 – Sew for class sample
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Donna, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, host a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

1. Teddy #3: These fabrics are from my stash. This Teddy will be for demo in a class.

Quilting:

  1. Working on Macaron Mystery:

2. May IB project is next in line

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Retreats are fun!

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Two weeks ago, I went to the guild’s January retreat. That’s right – January’s retreat happened in March. It was postponed due to Covid. But it was a LOT of fun!

There are a LOT of pictures …

First meal of the retreat …

Games: Secret Sister Gifts

Strip Poker: 50 shades of grey & Blue/ Green batiks

A Lots of projects being worked on

And the dresden craze: Candyce Grisham was a guild speaker earlier this year. She had a fabulous presentation and her book Dresden Reimagined is now in several guild member’s hands. (If you’re looking for a speaker – she’s great!) 2 of the ladies were working on many of the different dresden patterns in the book and soon, there were others in the room that also became addicted! And, one lady used the dresden for her sunflower for Ukraine and later used smaller petals for her leaves (sorry, no picture).

I know that I missed taking pictures of some of the projects … sorry about that!

My Finish for the Week

My SAHRR for 2022 is finished. You can read more about it HERE. (Made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting and Aurifil Thread).

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

SAHRR 2022: The Finale … the Parade

/ quiltinggail / 28 Comments

You may be new here and wondering about it … you can read more about it at the following links:

My Quilt

This quilt was made with Island Batik fabrics (Flutterfly collection & solid white), Hobbs white 80/20 batting, and Aurifil thread.

And here’s some close-ups of the quilting!

Friend’s Quilts

When she sent me the picture, she said, “This is where I’m leaving it Gail. Thanks, it was fun.” I think it looks great!

Kathleen said, “This is my finished project, it was definitely a learning experience. Because I started with such a small center block, some of the other blocks, size wise, were a bit of a challenge. Thank you for facilitating this project.” I think you did a fantastic job, Kathy!

 Here’s Mary’s. She was running low on fabrics so she got very creative. I love the final result. 

Donna also ran low on fabrics but made it! Shadowed quilted stars and diamonds and elephant footprints in negative spaces. Great fun!

Here’s Dawn’s: I love all the greens she used!

Jacomina wrote: I have no blog and I participated on a lark in the SAHRR2022. I put on a last round of borders and it is a disaster so they will have to come off again. It was fun in a way, as I like improv sewing, but it is not a very good quilt. I enjoyed the challenge even though that was not in my programming for this year. It just happened because I was in the Netherlands and all quilters were asked to make heart blocks for the victims of the flooding this summer when the rivers broke in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. I made one following the directions and later a second heart thinking that I knew the dimensions and it turned out to be much too small. So here I was with this orphan block. Well, I totally disagree with Jacomina! I think this is a beautiful quilt! I love the hearts in the outside corners … it’s Lovely!

Edited: 2 more, sent in a little late

1. Charlene

Except for the background Charlene used her scraps of batiks for this quilt. She still has the last 2 sides of sho fly blocks to make. She had to go buy more background fabric! WOW!!! This looks fantastic!

2. Chere says: Well round 6 is done . I’ve got shoofly blocks, and some spacers in between. This quilt is  far bigger than I thought it was going to get. But it’s OK. Hope to get it sandwich together next week and quilted. It will have purple binding.
Have a few scraps left, have to see what I can do with them. Overall it was fun . I ended up learning new block names and blocks ,along with new techniques. Look forward to the next one.

I’m glad you had fun, Chere! Your quilt is beautiful!! And I agree that the purple binding will be perfect!

Now, it’s your turn to show us!

Show us your completed SAHRR or the one in progress!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=a8b40ada7693d64e5923

Visit the other co-hosts to see their Quilts!

1st Round: Anja @ Anja Quilts

2nd Round: Emily @ The Darling Dogwood

3rd Round: Roseanne & Sue @ Home Sewn by Us

4th Round: Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life

5th Round ME!!! @ Quilting Gail 

6th Round: Chris @ Chrisknitssews

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

International Quilting Day

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Or … Worldwide Quilting Day!

Here’s my front yard … they’re all made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting and Aurifil thread.

As I was out taking a picture, I met a neighbour that has a quilt in her window … and she works at a quilt store in the community. So, of course, I had to walk down the road and take a picture!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

3 Little Bitty Finishes and a new quilt shop!

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Yup, I have not ONE, not TWO but 3 little finishes.

I had some signature blocks left over from my SAHRR. Here they are added to my quilt. I used the Flutterfly fabric collection for my SAHRR. You can read more about the SAHRR HERE.

I was dusting the shelf above my ironing station and realized that the spray bottles of water and Terial magic were sticking to the shelf – as was the lint brush! I NEEDED a few small coasters.

I took 6 of the extra signature blocks and 3 small squares of Hobbs 80/20 batting. I layered the signature blocks right sides together with the batting and sewed around the outside, leaving a 2″ unsewn edge on one side. The corners were clipped and the coaster was turned right-side out. A quick press, pinning the open sections in place and I sewed around the coaster with an 1/8″ and a 1/4″ seam. No hand sewing! In short order I had 3 coasters placed under my spray bottles and lint brush!

I’m not the only person to use some of their left-over blocks from the SAHRR … Check out Wendy’s super cute table runner HERE. She used left over signature and star blocks and other blocks …

Have you done anything with your leftover blocks, if you have any?

New Quilt Shop

There is a new quilt shop in Chilliwack. It is about an hours drive from my home. It’s a lovely shop with a delightful owner, Angela. It’s been open for just a few weeks. It’s called Cozy Cottons Quilting. Here’s a few pictures from the inside. She’s going to look into getting Island Batik fabrics! Whoot Whoot! And she’s got a few of my patterns to sell! YEAH!!! But in the meantime, she’s got a lot of lovely fabrics, flannels, fireside, Aurifil thread and rulers …. and so much more. Do you see the star quilt below? That’s made with Kansas Troubles … my hubby’s favourite fabric line! (He took the pictures!)

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

Time in a Bottle Blog Hop

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Carol, of Just Let Me Quilt is hosting this blog hop.

Here is the challenge:

  • Create something with an hourglass block in it. 
  • It can be one block or 100 blocks…totally up to you.
  • You can make a quilt, a bag, a potholder, or whatever.
  • Just have an hourglass block in it somewhere.

Here is my first Hourglass block:

I had a few 60 degree triangles left over from the Island Batik “gradations” project that I made in January. You can read about it HERE.

But, I needed 45 degree and 90 angles to make the hourglass block. Accuquilt to the rescue! I paired all of these triangles with Island Batik’s solid grey material. 50 blocks later, the quilt was put together, the border added and the quilt was finished.

And, for the most part, my gradations are all gone! It’s bitter sweet. I was able to have fun using them and I actually got 3 quilts out of the fat quarter bundle they sent!

This quilt was sandwiched with Hobbs 80/20 and I use Aurifil #2600 (Dove) to quilt it. I started with my walking foot and a small serpentine stitch to outline all of the triangles, then I free motioned a swirly flower “thingy” in the grey areas. The binding is a scrappy binding and it is used with the same serpentine stitch that I quilted with.

This quilt will be donated to the Boundary Bay baby quilt committee.

Here is the list of Time in A Bottle Bloggers

Visit each of them to see their interpretations of the theme!

March 14

March 15

March 16

March 17

March 18

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

So Scrappy @ Scrap Happy
Oh Scrap @  Quilting is More Fun than Housework
Frédérique  @ Quilting Patchwork Applique
Monday Making @  Love, Laugh, Quilt
Design Wall Monday @  Small Quilts and Doll Quilts