If you want to see a recap of Week 1, click HERE. Week 2, click HERE. If you haven’t seen the fabulous Log Cabin quilts, it will be well worth your time to visit the 2 Island Batik blog posts … beautiful eye candy!!! Here’s who’s in line for this week! I can’t wait to see what they create! Continue reading
You can read about this quilt HERE. And, if you haven’t entered a comment, there is also a chance to win a give-away from me.
I fell in love with this fabric the minute I saw it in my Island Batik box. “Faded Blue Jeans” by Kathy Engle. Those that know me, know that I practicly live in blue jeans. I LOVE blue jeans. And to know that I HAD to make a log cabin, well, the love fest began!!! This beautiful fabric collection should be in fabric stores by the end of the month.
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That’s right, you can cut your borders to the perfect lengths without using a tape measure: Watch the video to see how!
Edit: I have linked this blog post to Kathleen McMusing’s blog where she is compiling quilting tips and tutorials. Go HERE to check out last month and this months tips & tutorials.
Island Batik “Log Cabin Blog Hop” Starts Today! Be sure to visit Island Batik Blog each week to enter to win a pre-cut of one of the fabric collections highlighted that week. These fabric collections are from the Fall 2019 line-up and should be available in quilt stores shortly.
I have seen a few of the quilts finished and a few in progress … oh my!!! Fantastic eye candy for sure!!! Be sure to visit each of the blogs!
Here is the schedule for this week: Continue reading
Meet Randy the Rhino!!! He is one of the wonderful patterns available at Funky Friends Factory! If you sign up for the Funky Friends newsletter, you can get a free pattern for a bear! And Funky Friends provide fantastic directions as well as pictorial tutorials. Continue reading
Oh my! The retreat was a great time. They always are! So many different projects, so many ideas, so much help … so much food … and 2 people brought halloween jellies and candy corn … groan! … too much sugar … click HERE to see the slide show of other people’s projects.
Yes, the retreat is over. It is done for another year! It was a wonderful time of sharing, quilting, laughing and laughing!
We played games! Instead of strip poker (See HERE) we used the LRC die and played with loonies (Canadian $1 coins). It was fun to the end. Then there was a scavenger hunt … looking for all sorts of things sewing and non-sewing related. One thing that we needed was a selfie of the team, taken in a car. Neither my partner or I had our own cars at the retreat. Much to the surprize of the owner, we hopped into the back of another car as she and her partner were getting out! We have a gift exchange at the retreat and played a game with each of us ending up with a gift we didn’t make.
One of my secret projects in the recent weeks was a snappy bag and a roll of toilet paper.
Oh YEAH!! A retreat!!!
I love retreats!!!
There are a group of 18 17 of us going to Edenvale in Abbotsford. 17 because one lady is too ill to attend! 😦
What am I taking? A zillion things … WAY more than I’ll get done!
I have another finish!! I cut into my Island Batik rayon and finished a top! It’s the same pattern as the one I showed last week (see HERE) – except I altered the neckline a bit. It fits perfectly! My hubby is not home at the moment, so no photos with it on me! Just one of it pinned onto the design wall!
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Do you remember, WAY back in August, when I was a participant in Island Batik’s “Beat the Heat” Blog hop? I featured this quilt and fabric:
Soil & Seeds
Nothing like sitting by or in the pool to “Beat the Heat!” This is the finished quilt, just chillin’ by the pool! Continue reading
I’ve been trying out the arrangement of my sewing room. So far, just a few minor things have been moved around. And I’m loving it! If you missed the tour – check out this Blog Post.
It’s not quilt related. I’m working on some travelling neck pillows. I made them before, but didn’t have a loop/button at the front and it was a real pain in the neck to not have it. (did you get the pun?) As well, I’m making them a little bit longer. I put zippers in the top and we stuff them loosely with clothes. It gives us a little bit more room as we try to only travel with carry-on. These are being made out of flannel.
I am mostly moved into my sewing room!!! YEAH!!! It’s a big room, but I still don’t have everything in it! All of my batting will eventually find a spot. But at least I have all my machines (except a treadle, named Stella) and my tools in one room! My treadle is named “Stella” after the lady that gifted it to me!
In the video, you will see the serger on a table behind my Janome 8900 – the machine I do all my quilting on. When I move the serger, it gives me a bigger table space for my quilt! Which is perfect for quilting those large queen sized quilts!
As I move into my new sewing room, my hubby knew I wanted a design wall against one wall at the end of the room.
I’m sure you’ve noticed a thinning of blog posts lately! I’ve been away – not sewing (very much) and have not had internet connection for most of the past 2 weeks.
However, I do want to let you know about the fabulous blog hop that is happening NOW. This blog hop is featuring the Spring 2019 fabrics. And there are give-aways! Be sure to enter each week for your chance to win some of the wonderful fabric!
Click on BEAT THE HEAT BLOG HOP to go to the Island Batik site to see the schedule of events. My day to post is August 22 and this is the wonderful fabric I’m making a quilt with:
It is a fun line of fabric! And my quilt will showcase each and every fabric!
This challenge scared me! I’m not an artsy-fartsy quilter. I don’t do “art.” The challenge directions were: Use any fabric art/non-traditional quilting/sewing/thread painting technique using 3 Aurifil thread weights. Oh me, oh my … what to do? I literally had NO idea. None at all. I was wondering if I could skip this challenge? Perhaps pay someone to do it for me? no … that’s not my style … I couldn’t live with the guilt!
Then, I was looking at a crazy quilt hanging in a sewing machine store and it hit me!!!
YEAH!!! Suddenly, I knew what to do. I would do a crazy quilt block, embroider it with at least 3 weights of Auriful thread, make it into a little bag and call it done! What a relief to have a plan!
And, thankfully, I had the perfect fabric left-over from my Christmas RAPPing table runner. (see HERE). Along with pieces from the Island Batik Stash Builder bundles.
In April, we travelled across the country, which meant a few LONG plane rides. I quickly made my crazy quilt blocks, sewing them onto Hobbs 80/20 batting. One was partially embroidered on our trip.
Is Canada Day! And the start of:
Earlier this spring, Jennifer Strauser. an Island Batik ambassador, reached out and asked if any of us would like to do a Quilt of Valor. I said, “yes,” provided I could do a Canadian one. The answer was “yes!” SEW, I knew I would be using only the white and red fabrics. We were all sent a stack (like a layer cake) of red, white, and blue fabric. Along with yardage: a solid white, 2 reds and 3 blues. It was a bit of a challenge to use just the red and white in the package. I did end up using one navy with red poppies on it. Also, I needed to use a red fabric from a stash builder bundle and some white=ish fabric left over from my “Stars on Ice” quilt.
Here is a picture of the stack from the Freedom line:
This quilt is my own pattern “Ivan’s Diamonds” and I’ve made it several times. You can check them out HERE, HERE, and HERE. Although, this is the first time I’ve put a maple leaf in the middle. I used the Artistic Cutter to cut out the Maple Leaf.
The quilt will hang in the Quilt of Valour display at the Ladner Car and Quilt Show in August. After that, Lynn, our guild’s Quilts of Valour volunteer, will deliver it to a representative from Quilts of Valour and it will eventually be presented to a past or present member of the Canadian Armed Forces who is ill or injured as a result of their service to Canada.
Here is a close-up of the centre of the quilt. This picture shows the true colours better than the above picture. It is grafitti quilted with a light grey, Aurifil #2600 and Hobbs 80/20 batting. I did bind it with a dark navy as there was not enough red fabric left for binding.
Visit the other blogs in the hop.
Today it’s
Becca Fenstermaker — Pretty Piney
Denise Looney — For the Love of Geese
Gail Sheppard — Quilting Gail You are already HERE! 🙂
Tomorrow, July 2
Pamela Boatright — Pamela Quilts
Anne Wiens —Seams Like a Plan
Wednesday, July 3
Bea Lee —Bea Quilter
Carla Henton — Creatin’ In the Sticks
Thursday, July 4
Emily Leachman — The Darling Dogwood
Joan Kawano — MooseStash Quilting
Jen Strauser – Dizzy Quilter
Friday, July 5
Steph Jacobson — Steph Jacobsen Designshttp://Dizzyquilter.com
Leah Malasky — Quilted Delights
Anja Clyke — Anja Quilts
Maryellen McAuliffe — Mary Mack Made Mine
I have no finishes for Friday, but I’ll show you this picture again … just because I like it!
What’s this? Christmas in May? Well, yes and no. The blog hop from Christmas RAPPING is in progress … and just because the book is titled “Christmas,” it doesn’t mean that you have to make the projects in Christmas colours. I was tired of winter and wanted to do a quilt in spring/ summer colours! Island Batik generously sent me the fabric I requested. I also used Hobbs 80/20 batting and Aurifil thread #5008 (blue) for the quilting.
If you know me, I know you’re surprised and saying “look at all those appliquéd stars.” Well … read on … (and the centre block is paper pieced, not appliquéd!
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Quilting Gail 