Month: December 2022

Announcing SAHRR 2023

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Earlier this year, as we had a parade for the SAHRR (pronounced Stay At Home Round Robin), we announced that we would be doing it again in 2023.

For the past 3 years, I have done a SAHRR and have made different quilts. The first year I did it on my own and then for the next 2 years, I had some fantastic blogging/quilting friends join in the fun!

Here’s the quilts from previous SAHRRs. The two on the are from 2022 & 2021 and the two on the right are ones I did on my own. It’s so much MORE fun with others! Here’s the LINK where you can see all the quilts made last year.

What’s a Round Robin?

This is a common activity in many quilt guilds. A round robin (in quilting terms) is where each person makes a centre block. This block is put in a bag or container, maybe with extra fabric, perhaps with a notebook, and the bag is passed onto another quilter in the group. They are given instructions as to what kind of border (or round) they are to add on to the quilt. Sometimes the next person will make a border for each side, or one side or two sides of the block. It’s then passed on to another quilter and it continues on … when the quilt centre and all the borders are completed, it is returned to the original maker of the centre block.

So, I stay at home?

That’s correct! You and your centre block and the borders all stay home. You have to make the decisions as to what to add when given directions. How big, how many … it’s up to you.

How do I join?

There’s nothing to join, no sign up. All you need to do is follow our blogs.

How often does this happen?

On January 16, we will show you our centre blocks … I haven’t seen any of my friends blocks – so it’s going to be a surprise for each of us. This will give you some ideas of what you can make or use (do you have orphan blocks?)

Then on January 23 (and each Monday following) we will give you instructions as to what the next border/round is to be. Again, we will all show you our centre blocks with the first border to give you some ideas.

Here are my blogging co-leaders in the order of what we will be doing and the linky parties we will be holding each week. (There will only be one linky party each week … and we’ll direct you to it …)

  • January 16: I will host the first linky party … for you to show each of your centre blocks … but you’ll have to visit each of the SAHRR co-host bloggers to see their centre blocks
  • January 23: 1st Round: Roseanne & Sue @ Home Sewn by Us
  • January 30 :  2nd Round: Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life
  • February 6: 3rd Round: Chris @ Chrisknitssews
  • February 13: 4th Round: Anja @ Anja Quilts
  • February 20: 5th Round: Emily @ The Darling Dogwood
  • February 27: 6th Round: ME!!! @ Quilting Gail 
  • March 13: Parade – showing all of your finished SAHRRs!

This Year we have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2023!!! We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, it you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win!

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I don’t want to make that round? It’s your quilt – you can leave it out

What size do I make it? That’s up to you … you are sort-of the designer here.

Are the rounds hard? No … each round is pretty simple … squares, rectangles, half-square triangles with perhaps a surprise.

What colours do I use? That’s up to you … you can follow what one of the SAHRR leader uses or have your own colour scheme.

What if I miss a round? You can leave it out, or go back to the blog where the directions are given.

Will you cut my fabric for me? No

How often will the quilt police check on me and my progress? There are NO quilt police!! None!!

What do I do now?

Make sure that you follow each of the SAHRR leaders so that you don’t miss their posts.

Start thinking about what you might do for a centre block.

Relax … this is easy … and it’s only one round each week!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

2022 Island Batik projects

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I’ve made and posted all of these during the past year! Enjoy!

January

This was a UFO from the “Any Which Way” mystery that was hosted on the blog in ’21. See HERE for the finishing details!

The first Island Batik challenge of the year was to use a Fat 1/4 bundle of Tantalizing Teals. You can see details on this challenge HERE.

February

I used Kelly Young’s book “Scrappy Improve Quilting.” You can see details of it here.

This was a quilt I made for Island Batik’s catalogue featuring the “Evergreen and Pine” fabric collection. See the link HERE.

This quilt was made for Island Batik’s catalogue featuring the “Contempo” fabric collection.

The February Island Batik challenge was to create a quilt with the Row by Row theme. I used the “Vintage Lace” collection, designed by Kathy Engle. You can read more about it HERE.

I made this cute little basket using Deco Revival fabrics. You can read about it HERE.

March

Here is the Stay at Home Round Robin that I made using the Flutterfly collection and Island Batik’s solid white. You can read more details HERE.

We were challenged to create a piece based on the Italian thread that we received from Aurifil. I received “Pompeii Red” colour builder set. See HERE for more details.

This was a table runner that I made for the Quilt as You Go class that I taught. See HERE.

I made these little coasters with left-over fabric blocks from my SAHRR. See HERE for details.

This quilt was made for the Time in a Bottle Blog Hop. I used fabrics that were left-over from my gradation quilts (January). See HERE for more details.

April

April’s challenge was to make a Funky Friend. I chose Gregory Gorilla. He was a lot of fun to make!! See all the details HERE.

This little zipper pouch was made for the “World of Colour” Blog Hop. Details can be found HERE.

May

The following 3 projects were made for Island Batik’s challenge called “Triangle Tricks. I found the first one very difficult to make, but the last 2 were quite easy! See HERE for details.

June

June’s Challenge was to make a New York beauty and I was given the Harvest Night fabric collection. See HERE for details.

These 2 quilts were made with the “Jewel Carvings” fabric collection (designed by Kathy Engle) for the Island Batik catalogue. My friend, Amy, made the one with the light background and I made the one with the dark. See more details HERE.

This quilt was my very first magazine publication. It was in the Fons & Porter Love of Quilting July/August issue. See HERE for more pictures and details.

This quilt was designed by Sandra Walker at MMM Quilts. You can see more details of it HERE. If you want the pattern you can find it HERE

I made this window hanging in an on-line class with Epida Studio. Elizabeth is a great teacher! More details of my window hanging can be found HERE.

July

Island Batik’s challenge for July was “Christmas in July with Accuquilt.” We were all given the Tree of Life die. This was a super fun quilt to make and it was super fun to give it to a dear friend on mine! See more pictures HERE.

I had left-over HST from the Tree of life, so I made this little zipper pouch!

August

August’s challenge was to make a Marvelous Mini Quilt. I was inspired by a speaker we had at the guild, as well as many different Dresdens made with friends. This was my mini. Details HERE.

September

I received the “Corner Pop” tool from Studio 180 and was challenged to use it, along with a 1/2 yard bundle of “Flourish” by Kathy Engle It was a lot of fun to make this quilt using the tool, along with other Studio 180 tools! See HERE for details.

These were made using “Left-overs” from the above quilt. See HERE for details.

This was made for the Queen of Gadgets Blog Hop. You can read about all the gadgets I used to make this quilt HERE I used a 10″ stack of Pumpkin Spice and the background is “Celery”.

October

October’s challenge was a ByAnnie bag. I chose to make the “A Place for Everything 2.0” bag and paired it with fabrics from the “Bee Kind” collection. The pattern was easy to follow and with supplemental videos – it came together easily! See details HERE.

This tree skirt was made for Island Batik’s catalogue using the Winter Sky collection. I just LOVE the blues!

This quilt was made for Pinktober. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. My heart is all a flutter when I think of the story behind the gifting of this quilt. You can read about it HERE.

And little bags made from the left-overs from the Pinktober quilt.

November

Island Batik’s November challenge was to make a Christmas stocking. These were fun to make! You can read about how I made them and used an Accuquilt die for the snowflackes … HERE.

This quilt was made with a 2 1/2″ strip pack of “Citified.” It was fun to make and I had a blast quilting it! You can read about it HERE.

This was made for the class I was teaching called “Travel Posts.” You can see class participants’ quilts HERE.

These little baskets were made with left-over fabric from making the Winter Sky tree skirt (see above). You can read more about them HERE.

I did a trunk show for Boundary Bay Quilter’s Guild – with ONLY Island Batik quilts and projects that I have made in the past 4 years as an Island Batik ambassador. You can see a glimpse of some of the trunk show HERE.

December

Island Batik’s challenge for December was to make a Lone Star! It was SEW rewarding to have this quilt turn out so nice! You can read about it HERE.

Left-overs from the Lone Star quilt turned into this cute quilt! Read about it HERE.

Little Pencil cases made with the left-overs from the Lone Star and the Baby Quilt:

The Scrappy Fall Mystery Quilt, background is “Linen,” all scraps from my Island Batik scrap bin:

This was my Spicy BOM Colour challenge Quilt. You can read more about it HERE.

A Winter Branches Table Runner … made a bit bigger to fit on the top of my piano.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Tuesday’s Thoughts

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I hope that everyone had a pleasant Christmas – if you celebrate! I know there were lots of changes in travel plans because of the weather across Canada and the USA. So, hopefully, you were able to celebrate with your loved ones!

A Dog Quilt

My daughter has been complaining that her beloved dog did not have a quilt of her own … so I decided I’d make one for Christmas for her. I went to my “dog” fabric bin and found this panel! Viola! A simple dog quilt. I quilted it with Silly Moon’s Cupid ruler. So fun to have hearts all over it! I think she loves her quilt!

Stitching Stuff

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!

Lots of stitching in the past week!

  • January – November: 288 / 333
  • Dec:  24 / 25
  • Total:  324 / 358
  • Percentage = 87% 

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 dog’s quilt used 2.5 yards of fabric for the front, back and binding!

My goal each year is to have a net fabric of 100 yards used. I didn’t make it this year! But at least I used more than I bought!

  • Fabric Used since the last report   2.5  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       112 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:  0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    33 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:                79 yards 

To Do

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

The To Do list from last week:

  1. Finish Clue #4 Chilhowie. √   DONE,
  2. Start Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Jan / Feb. √   DONE,
  3. Start colouring the Nutcracker not done
  4. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!  √   DONE
  5. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Start Clue #5 Chilhowie
  2. Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Mar / Apr
  3. Re-do Nutcracker. … when I went to start colouring the Nutcracker, I realized that many of the black lines had run … well, duh, Helen said to use UNWASHED calico … and Batik has been washed a zillion times … so I need to re-trace it on some unwashed fabric!
  4. Work on Naturescape Lone Star
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

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

  1. Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM
  2. Chilhowie – Clue #5 When I went to start the block assembly, I realized that I had missed part of Clue #1 … so I’m currently catching up and finishing Clue #1!
  3. Naturescape Lone Star …. after making the Lone Star for the December Island Batik challenge, I fell in LOVE with Lone Stars!!! I just happened to have an Island Batik 2 1/2” strip pack of Naturescape with coordinating green and so I started sewing and cutting! Yes, there is a LOT of matching of seams … every. single. one. But the end result is great – even if I can’t sew at 100 miles an hour!

Quilting:

Nothing … I need to re-trace the Nutcracker before I can start colouring and then quilting!

Upcoming Blog Hops

Creatin’ in the Sticks: Sew It – Show It: Shades of Blue (January)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Sweet on You (February)

Shades of Blue

Plans for 2023

There are a few things I’m planning for 2023. More details in the coming weeks.

  • PHD in 2023
  • 2023 SAHRR
  • 2023 Appliqué  BOM (I bet this surprises a LOT of people!)
  • Winter 2023 Mystery Quilt

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Do you have too many UFOs?

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UFOs are all those UnFinished Objects – usually quilts and small projects that are hanging around your sewing area, or under the beds, or tucked into closets, or stuffed behind the couch or … well, you get the picture!

Join me in 2023 for PHD in 2023. To join in, you must have at least 12 UFOs you want to complete AND … here’s the clincher, because we don’t want to increase our UFO list, you need to complete EVERY. SINGLE. PROJECT. you start in 2023!

By the way: PHD is quilt-speak for “Projects Half Done.” My definition for the purpose of the PHD in 2023 is every project that was started before January 1, 2023 counts as an UFO and therefore fits into the PHD!

As for EVERY. SINGLE. PROJECT. ???? Well, there are a couple of exclusions … like a BOM that starts in September and won’t finish until the next year or something that it’s impossible to finish before the end of the year.

At the end of each month, there will be a linky party where you can share your PHD in 2023 progress.

Here’s what you have to do:

  • Select 12 UFOs (or more) that you want to finish in 2023
  • Join, with the linky party (below) and tell us about your UFOs
  • Grab a Template (or make your own) to keep track of your UFOs
  • Plan to FINISH every single quilty project that you start in 2023. And keep track of them. This keeps your UFO list from increasing!
  • You have until January 15, 2023 to officially join in!

You’ll notice that my PHD list has 13 UFOs on it. And I forgot to include the Appliqué BOM that I’m doing for 2023 … that’s OK … I just need to finish 12 UFOs … and it doesn’t matter which 12. Who knows, I might unearth another UFO that is hiding in some obscure place and finish it instead of one on the list …

Here’s a Template

You can Download the Template below and use it to keep track of your UFOs and New Starts.

template-2023Download

Linky Party

Here’s the Linky Party for you to show us your UFOs as you begin your PHD in 2023!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=c0efdbe6b4add43dd7ef

My UFOs

Shades of Blue

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Merry Christmas!

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I wish all my family and friends a very Merry Christmas!

This mini quilt was made for an Island Batik challenge in July 2021. It was fun to make! You can read more about it HERE.

  • 22 1/2” x 22 1/2“
  • Hobbs 80/20 batting
  • Bow – trapunto with Hobbs batting
  • Aurifil Thread for piecing and Quilting (#2600 & #2840)
  • Silly Moon “Twinkle” ruler for the stars

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Friday Finish featuring Winter Sky

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I made this beautiful tree skirt for Island Batik’s Fall/Winter ’21 catalogue. You can see the catalogue HERE. And, it’s now under my Christmas tree! There is Hobbs 80/20 in the middle and it was quilted with Aurifil #2600, Dove Grey.

And, in a previous post, I showed you a couple of little baskets that I’ve made with this same line of fabric.

“Goodness Bowl” by Jean Paccagnan.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

Monday Moments: Dec 19 ’22

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The Mystery Quilt is done!!!

If you missed the parade, it’s worth taking a look! See THIS POST.

Lone Star Blog Hop: Week 3

This blog hop is pretty fantastic!!!! Lots and lots of eye candy !!!! Make sure you visit each of the bloggers to see their wonderful creations!

December 19:

Mania Hatziioannidi

Michelle Roberts

December 20:

Pamela Boatright

Connie Kauffman

Sandra Stanfield

December 21:

Jane Hauprich

Lisa Pickering

December 22:

Brianna Roberts

Elizabeth DeCroos

Anorina Morris

December 23:

Visit Island Batik’s Blog for your opportunity to win!

Another Finished Branches Table Runner

I decided that I needed another table runner for the top of my piano. I chose a beautiful dark blue Island Batik fabric called “Ravine” and paired it with “Rice. This was also a DREMI: DRop Everything And Make It. This is the result:

Another DREAMI

I received a lovely charm pack and pattern from Missouri Star Quilting … and I just had to make it! Yup, it was a DRop Everything And Make It project! Such a fun project.

Another UFO Finish

The Spicy Colour Challenge quilt was started last December and I finally got it finished this month! You can read about it HERE. That makes 12 UFOs that I’ve finished this year. SEW … I will be getting my PHD in 2022. However, I still have a list of UFOs that need to be finished, so I will be having PHD in 2023!

  • Island Batik Fabric
  • Hobbs 80/20 on the inside
  • Aurifil thread (to piece and quilt)

Stitching Stuff

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!

Lots of stitching in the past week!

  • January – November: 288 / 333
  • Dec:  18 / 18
  • Total:  306 / 351
  • Percentage = 87% 

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!

However, this week, I went out to Chilliwack to Cozy Cotton Quilting to pick up some quilts, deliver patterns and give her another quilt for display. Angela had recently received a lot of Island Batik bolts (mostly from the Pumpkin Spice collection) and I just couldn’t resist … so I had 3 fabrics cut for me! Aren’t they beautiful ???? I will definitely be making the trip out to Cozy Cotton just to buy Island Batik fabric!!!

The Spicy BOM used 4.5 yards of fabric. The newest branches table runner used 1 yard. And the mugs / snowflake used 1.5 yards

  • Fabric Used since the last report   7  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       109.5 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:  3.5 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    33 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:                76.5 yards 

To Do

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

The To Do list from last week:

  1. Finish my Winter Branches Table runner. √   DONE,
  2. Work on and Finish a UFO (a wallet). √   DONE,
  3. Finish Clue #3 Chilhowie. √   DONE,
  4. Write blog post : Spicy BOM. √   DONE,
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!  √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Finish Clue #4 Chilhowie
  2. Start Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Jan / Feb
  3. Start colouring the Nutcracker
  4. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  5. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes

Design Wall

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. I must apologize, I’ve been calling Judy by the wrong name !!! I’m so glad that she let me know and now I’m calling her by the correct name!

Piecing:

  1. Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM
  2. Chilhowie – Clue #4 in progress

Quilting:

Once I do some colouring with Inktense pencils, I’ll start quilting the Nutcracker. Here he is on my window for tracing.

Upcoming & Current Blog Hops

Island Batik‘s December’s Lone Star Blog Hop. Week #3 is started! LOTS and LOTS of fabulous quilts!

Creatin’ in the Sticks: Sew It – Show It: Shades of Blue (January)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Sweet on You (February)

Shades of Blue

Plans for 2023

There are a few things I’m planning for 2023. More details in the coming weeks.

  • PHD in 2023
  • 2023 SAHRR (with some wonderful sponsors this year!)
  • 2023 Appliqué  BOM (I bet this surprises a LOT of people!)
  • Winter 2023 Mystery Quilt

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Spicy Block of the Month!

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This year, I participated in the Spicy Block of the Month, hosted by Patterns by Jen.

I used scraps of Island Batik fabrics to make the blocks.

Each month, Jen provides free directions for a 6″ and a 12″ block. When the month is over, you need to purchase the block for a minimal price.

Here is my December block: And yes, I goofed up and had to make adjustments, so it’s not exactly like Jen’s directions …

Here are the blocks in order …

And here is my finished quilt … I used Island Batik’s solid black for the sashing, 2 1/2″ squares of fabric left-over from the blocks for the corner stones.

And … with the quilt being a bit busy, I used wild quilting and thoroughly enjoyed quilting it!

2023 Colour Challenge

The 2023 Monthly Colour Challenge will be based on Classic Cars! Will you join me with the different monthly blocks? Make sure you follow Patterns by Jen and myself so you don’t miss a month! Jen will be posting the new blocks at the beginning of the month – me? I’ll be posting later in the month except for December, when I will post on the 1st!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Fall 2022 Scrappy Mystery Quilt: The Parade!

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The Quilts

This is Patti’s. I love the scrappiness and the dark background!

Here’s Dawn’s. She used 2 fabrics and the background. Doesn’t it look great?

Susan has the top together. It was a sunny day, so she was able to get a picture with true colours! And yes, you can see her shadow! She’s used ‘plane’ fabric! Very cute!

Jill has pulled fabric for her quilt … with those blues and greens against the grey – it’ll be lovely!

Isabelle says she still needs to add the border – and that will happen after Christmas.

Lynn K has the blocks laid out for one row. She says that she loves the scraps, but has very few left! That is amazing! And the background it totally scrappy – awesome!

Heather also did a scrappy background. And why not? Here it is with the rows ready to put together!

Irene ‘s inspector (Miss Hamish) obviously likes the blues in this quilt!!!

And here’s mine. The one with the dark background was the inspiration and the one with the light background was the one that I made while writing the pattern! Both are made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting on the inside and Aurifil thread for the quilting.

The Linky Party

Show us your quilts, or quilts in progress!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=c0efdbe6b4add43dd7ef

You can access all the clues HERE

  • Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
  • Oct 25: Clue #2: HERE
  • Nov 1: Clue #3 HERE
  • Nov 8: Clue #4 HERE
  • Nov 15: Clue #5 This Post
  • Nov 22: Clue #6 HERE
  • Nov 29: Clue #7 this post
  • Dec 6: Clue #8. – HERE

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Sunday Summation: December 11 ’23

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My Finished Branches Table Runner

I taught the “Winter Branches” Table runner at Essem and I worked on my own table runner, but didn’t get it finished in class. But, it’s finished now!  I used an Island Batik fabric from the Napa Valley collection along with Custard. There is Hobbs 80/20 on the inside and I quilted the straight lines with a walking foot and Aurifil #2311 (Muslin).

A UFO Finish

I finally finished this wallet! The outside is Cork and the inside is Island Batik fabric from the Napa Valley collection. The pattern is “The Necessary Clutch” by Emmaline Bags. For the twist clasp, the pattern said to follow manufacture’s directions. HUH!!! There were none!!! A friend of mine, Irene, told me to look at Spenser Ogg’s tutorial, How to Apply a Twist Lock. Spenser is brilliant. Her tutorial is great! This wallet would have been thrown in the trash if I hadn’t been able to do the twist lock. Thanks, Irene!!!

Now I can finally use this wallet! The cork on my current Necessary Clutch is falling apart. I’ve sprayed the new wallet’s cork with leather conditioner, so hopefully it will last longer than the first one. But really, 5 years isn’t too bad!

This is the wallet I made in 2018 … almost 5 years ago! And how it looks today. You can see how the cork is wearing at the edges and some of it is peeling off.

The Mystery Quilt is done!!!

This is a super simple mystery quilt! It is my own design. I designed it for the Boundary Bay Quilt Guild, but I’ve shared it with YOU as well!

The Parade is on Tuesday, Dec. 13, so be sure to come and see the wonderful quilts!

Here are 8 clues.

  • Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
  • Oct 25: Clue #2: HERE
  • Nov 1: Clue #3 HERE
  • Nov 8: Clue #4 HERE
  • Nov 15: Clue #5 This Post
  • Nov 22: Clue #6 HERE
  • Nov 29: Clue #7 this post
  • Dec 6: Clue #8. – HERE
  • Dec 13: Mystery Quilt Parade

Stitching Stuff

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!

Lots of stitching in the past week!

  • January – November: 288 / 333
  • Dec:  11 / 11
  • Total:  299 / 344
  • Percentage = 86% 

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!

  • Back of Lone Star Quilt – 4 yards
  • Back of Fall Mystery Quilt – 3.5 yards
  • Back of Left-over from Lone Star 3.5 yards
  • Back of Branches Table Runner – 1 yard
  • Fabric Used since the last report   12  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       102.5 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:  0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    29.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:                73 yards 

To Do

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

The To Do list from last week:

  1. Finish my Winter Branches Table runner. √   DONE,
  2. Work on and Finish a UFO (a wallet). √   DONE,
  3. Work on Melodic Mystery Quilt finish fixing all the mistakes! √   DONE,
  4. Finish Clue #2 Chilhowie  √   DONE
  5. Write blog post : Spicy BOM in progress
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!  √   DONE
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Start colouring the Nutcracker
  2. Finish Clue #3 Chilhowie
  3. Write blog post : Spicy BOM
  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, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

  1. Chilhowie – Clue #3 in progress … and they are on my Prairie Spirit Alpaca/wool pressing mat!!! LOVE the mat!

Quilting:

Once I do some colouring with Inktense pencils, I’ll start quilting the Nutcracker. Here he is on my window for tracing.

Upcoming & Current Blog Hops

Island Batik‘s December’s Lone Star Blog Hop. Week #1 is done! What a fabulous collection of Lone Stars. Week #2’s schedule is below.

Creatin’ in the Sticks: Sew It – Show It: Shades of Blue (January)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Sweet on You (February)

Shades of Blue

December 12:

Reed Johnson

Suzy Webster

December 13:

Jennifer Fulton

Gail Renna

December 14:

Denise Looney

Claudia Porter

December 15:

Leah Malasky

Andi Stanfield

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

December Left-overs

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When I made the Lone Star quilt with Island Batik’s Baby Bloomers collection (see HERE) … I had left-overs. The tutorial suggested using them for a border, top and bottom, but I didn’t want to do that on my lone star. And, since I’m on a mission to use up left-overs asap, I HAD to do something!

So, I paired up the left-overs, sewed them into squares, put them on-point with Lime Green (Island Batik solid basic) and voila! A baby quilt is born!

It was sandwiched with Hobbs 80/20 and quilted with Aurifil 2520 (violet).

The binding is Small Check-Multi Pink (part of the Baby Bloomers collection).

Here is the quilt – all quilted and bound! I LOVE how bright and cheery it is!

There were still some scraps left-over … so I made these 4 pencil cases, following a tutorial byAnnie. The “A Pencil Case for Lola” pattern is free HERE and the Youtube tutorial is HERE. If you’ve never made a byAnnie bag, this is a fantastic way to start!

On one of the pencil cases, I used Soft and Stable, on 3 of them I used Hobbs 80/20 batting. Each of them is fine, but the one with Soft and Stable holds it’s shape better.

Lone Star Blog Hop

Have you been following the Lone Star Blog Hop? There have been some wonderful quilts!!! Tons of eye candy!!! Visit Island Batik’s blog to see a re-cap of Week 1! Plus an opportunity to win fabric!

Coming in 2023!

For the past several years, I’ve hosted PHD in ???? (year). The idea is to decrease the number of UFOs that you have and to NOT increase the number! This is accomplished by finishing ALL of your new starts. There are a few exceptions, but I’ll be posting about it in the near future!

Several blogging friends and I will be hosting the Stay at Home Round Robin (SAHRR). Typically, groups of quilters do round robins where the quilt is passed on to other quilters to add the next round. With the SAHRR YOU are in control of the fabrics that are used and how big the quilt is. We’ll be starting this in mid-January! It’s a lot of fun, with quilters joining from around the world. There will be a post with more details in the coming weeks.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Fall 2022 Scrappy Mystery Quilt: Clue #8

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This is a super simple mystery quilt! It is my own design. I designed it for the Boundary Bay Quilt Guild, but I’ve shared it with YOU as well!

Here is my finished quilt! This week’s clue will explain the quilting to you. I used scraps of Island Batik fabrics for this quilt – along with “Linen” for the background. Hobbs 80/20 batting and Aurifil thread were also used.

Clue #8

Clue 8 – Fall 2022 Mystery QuiltDownload

Send me a Picture!

Send me a Picture of your finished quilt … or what you’ve got done so far and I’ll post it next week in the Parade! quiltinggail@yahoo.ca

The Schedule and Previous Clues

  • Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
  • Oct 25: Clue #2: HERE
  • Nov 1: Clue #3 HERE
  • Nov 8: Clue #4 HERE
  • Nov 15: Clue #5 This Post
  • Nov 22: Clue #6. HERE
  • Nov 29: Clue #7. This post
  • Dec 6: Clue #8
  • Dec 13: Mystery Quilt Parade

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Island Batik’s December Lone Star Challenge

/ quiltinggail / 46 Comments

In July, I received an awesome Surprise package in my Island Batik,  box and this is what I got: 20 half yard cuts of fabric from the Baby Bloomers collection, a signature collection for Karen Overton. Also included was 2 yard of Dots-Pink Carnation and 2 yards of Cow Moon Clouds – purple.

The only Lone Star I’ve made was a Judy Niemeyer pattern and I didn’t really want to purchase one of her patterns. I knew that there must be other options!

So, what to do??? EQ8 to the rescue … I downloaded the Baby Bloomers fabric collection and started to play! I’m not sure when, but I must have followed a tutorial at one point, because I found a folder called “Lone Star Practice.” Bingo! I found exactly what I wanted to make. I substituted the original fabric with the Baby Bloomers fabric and came up with this:

When I searched the Internet for “How to make a Lone Star Quilt,” I came across a few tutorials by Donna at Jordan Fabrics. WONDERFUL!!! Here’s the tutorial I mostly followed: One Jelly Roll, Lone Star. However, in order to make the quilt I wanted to make, I needed to make some adjustments. Mainly with the purple going up each point of the star.

I needed to make a strip set of my fabrics, I used my 2 1/2” Accuquilt die and made perfect strips very quickly!

I laid out the strips and pinned them onto my design wall.

I sewed the strips together (picture above) and cut according to the directions. And forgot to take a picture of the cut pieces!

Then, I made sure to mark Every. Single. Intersection. to ensure almost perfect points … (hmmm, that didn’t always work according to plan!)

Yes, I used “Dude” from Silly Moon Rulers and a pencil to mark the intersections. Then I used the forked pins to hold the intersections in place. I’m usually not a pinner – but it was a MUST in this case!

My Prairie Spirit Alpaca/Wool pressing mat made for perfect points!

When I put the light pink from the collection up on the design wall with the star pieces I had assembled, my immediate thought was “what in the world were you thinking?” It did NOT look good. It looked washed out. I started digging through my stash! Many different fabrics were auditioned. I found this slightly darker and brighter pink tied up with one of my Island Batik precuts and BINGO, it was perfect for the quilt. It is called “Floral Carnation” and is from the Blenders collection (available at all times).

Hobbs Batting 80/20 was used as well as an assortment of Schmetz Needles for piecing and quilting.

I quilted it with Aurifil Thread,  #2515 (Light Orchid) on the top and Aurifil #2423 (Baby Pink) in the bobbin. When auditioning the threads, I felt that the Baby Pink was too light for the top but the Light Orchid was perfect. However, I didn’t know if I had enough Light Orchid to use for both the top and bobbin. I used Aurifil #4225 (Eggplant) to attach the binding.

Quilting Close-ups

The Finished Lone Star

Be sure to visit Maryellen at MaryMackMadeMine! She had the same fabric collection. I haven’t seen her quilt, but I just KNOW that it will be a totally different Lone Star!

Lone Star Blog Hop Schedule

Week 1:

December 5:

Maryellen McAuliffe

Gail Sheppard YOU ARE HERE!

December 6:

Megan Best

Brenda Alburl

December 7:

Preeti Harris

Emily Leachman

December 8:

Jennifer Thomas

December 9:

Visit Island Batik’s Blog for your opportunity to win!

Week 2:

December 12:

Reed Johnson

Suzy Webster

December 13:

Jennifer Fulton

Gail Renna

December 14:

Denise Looney

Claudia Porter

December 15:

Leah Malasky

Andi Stanfield

December 16:

Visit Island Batik’s Blog for your opportunity to win!

Week 3:

December 19:

Mania Hatziioannidi

Michelle Roberts

December 20:

Pamela Boatright

Connie Kauffman

Sandra Stanfield

December 21:

Jane Hauprich

Lisa Pickering

December 22:

Brianna Roberts

Elizabeth DeCroos

Anorina Morris

December 23:

Visit Island Batik’s Blog for your opportunity to win!

Hashtags for industry (only if you are actually using the products): #hobbsbatting #accuquilt #accuquiltgo #schmetzneedles #doyoueq #janome #bernina #juki #dritz #olfacreates #junetailor #brothersews #cloverusa #oliso #studio180design #omnigrid

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,  Accuquilt & Prairie Spirit Alpacas!!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Sunday Summation: Dec. 4 ’22

/ quiltinggail / 14 Comments

The Mystery Quilt is almost done!!!

This is a super simple mystery quilt! It is my own design. I designed it for the Boundary Bay Quilt Guild, but I’be been sharing it with YOU as well!

This quilt will finish at 43″ x 53″

There are 8 clues. They will all come out on Tuesdays, starting October 18.

  • Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
  • Oct 25: Clue #2: HERE
  • Nov 1: Clue #3 HERE
  • Nov 8: Clue #4 HERE
  • Nov 15: Clue #5 This Post
  • Nov 22: Clue #6 HERE
  • Nov 29: Clue #7 this post
  • Dec 6: Clue #8. – will come out on Tuesday!
  • Dec 13: Mystery Quilt Parade

Using Left-overs

I’m on a bit of a mission to use up left-over bits and pieces from quilts I’ve made. You know – the extra blocks that I made “just in case” or because I miscounted.

The items below are the things made from the fabric left-over from the “Citified” quilt that I made: The little zippy pouch and a placemat. The placemat will go to the guild for “Meals on Wheels” Christmas.

There might be one or 2 (2.5″) squares left that have gone into the Island Batik scrap bucket.

Last week’s class

I taught the “Winter Branches” Table runner at Essem last week. I think it was a great class! Everyone had their table runner top completed and some had even started quilting by the end of the class!!

Anne finished her’s and sent me a picture later that evening!!!

Here’s mine: In progress: I used Island Batik “Custard” for the background and “Grapes-Beaujolais” from the Napa Valley collection.

Stitching Stuff

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!

Lots of stitching in the past week!

  • January – November: 288 / 333
  • Dec:  4 / 4
  • Total:  292 / 337
  • Percentage = 86% 

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!

No shopping … the placemat to the right used 1/2 yard of fabric.

  • Fabric Used since the last report   0.5  yards
  • Fabric Used this year:       90.5 yards
  • Fabric Bought this week:  0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    29.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:                61 yards 

To Do

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

The To Do list from last week:

  1. Work on and Finish a UFO (a wallet) Not done
  2. Work on Melodic Mystery Quilt – and fix all the mistakes! Dec. √   DONE, mistake fixes in progress
  3. Finish Clue #1 Chilhowie √   DONE
  4. Quilt Spicy BOM. √   DONE
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!  √   DONE
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Finish my Winter Branches Table runner
  2. Work on and Finish a UFO (a wallet)
  3. Work on Melodic Mystery Quilt finish fixing all the mistakes!
  4. Finish Clue #2 Chilhowie
  5. Write blog post : Spicy BOM
  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, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing:

  1. Melodic Mystery Quilt: December clue is done … but I haven’t finished fixed my previous mistakes. The pattern is from Meadow Mist Designs.
  2. Chilhowie – Clue #2 in progress

Quilting:

Once it’s sandwiched, I’ll quilt the Winter Branches table runner.

Once I do some colouring with Inktense pencils, I’ll start quilting the Nutcracker. Here he is on my window for tracing.

Upcoming Blog Hops

Island Batik‘s December’s Lone Star Blog Hop. – It starts tomorrow!!!! And Maryellen and I start it off!

Creatin’ in the Sticks: Sew It – Show It: Shades of Blue (January)

Shades of Blue

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to: