Free Motion Quilting

Falling for Accuquilt

/ quiltinggail / 24 Comments

I LOVE ❤️ using Accuquilt dies and this month is no exception. We received the “North Carolina Star” and were told to use it “to showcase our quilting skills and creativity.” It was suggested to use fall colours and to make any project that we wanted!

The North Carolina Star die is a “block on board.” This means that each of the pattern pieces are included on the die.

We were also told that we didn’t have to make the North Carolina Star, but could make anything using pieces from this die. I briefly thought that I could use the square (in the middle) and make a simple 9 patch quilt. But, that would also be called ‘cheating,’ in my opinion.

I have many different collections of fall fabric, thus it was easy to choose one. Autumn Wings looked promising!

I made a trial block:

The trial block will be made into a tote bag sometime in the near future.

I went to EQ8 and got a North Carolina Star block, but it wasn’t the same … it didn’t have the quarter square triangle sections and a few other details. In my attempt to draw the block, EQ8 and I had a disagreement, with EQ8 saying that it couldn’t convert my block to something or other. And, I admit, that my EQ8 skills are lacking. So I had to use the block in the library.

I came up with the middle quilt, but felt it was too busy … the quilt on the right was more to my liking.

I forgot to take pictures as I made the blocks! But I will tell you that I had the instructions right beside me. There are so many pieces and my seam ripper was occasionally friendly with me! 😁

Table Topper Stats:

  • Size: 27″ x 27″
  • Fabric: Island Batik “Autumn Wings” collection and Ghost (available anytime)
  • Piecing: Aurifil Thread 50 wt: 2600 (Dove Grey)
  • Quilting: Stitch in the Ditch with Aurifil Thread 50 wt: 2370 (Sandstone)
  • Batting: Hobbs Batting: Thermore (I like the lightness for table toppers!)
  • Needles: Schmetz Needles

It was a beautiful fall day when I took the pictures in my yard! I really like the pictures on the burning bush and ornamental maple!

There are many places you can find Autumn Wings, but the few that caught my eye are:

  • Quilt in a Day – California
  • Castles – Langley BC. 🇨🇦 This is about a 15 minute drive from my house!!!

I would like to thank Island Batik,  Aurifil Thread,  Hobbs Batting,  Schmetz Needles,  and Accuquilt for providing me with the fabric and supplies I used to complete this project!

Island Batik Ambassadors

Visit the other Island Batik Ambassadors as they show their beautiful creations using the North Carolina Star die.

Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany

Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost

Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – 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
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia 
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts

Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail You’re HERE!!!
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 

Linking to:

PHD in 2023: September Report

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Did you decide to join us with PHD in 2023???

Are you determined to finish a bunch of UFOs and to NOT increase the number of quilts or projects on your UFO list???

Congratulations on making that choice!!!

Something New to Try

Leanne, of Devoted Quilter is hosting a WIPS-B-Gone ’23 challenge. This runs from October 1 to November 30th. WIPS is Works in Progress. And, for my PHD in 2023, I want them Gone. Do you?

I thought I’d give this a try … Leanne has several different trackers to choose from and they each have 61 icons for you to colour for each day that you work on a Work in Progress. It’s free!! It sounds like fun and if it motivates me further to get projects done, done, done – I’m IN!!! We’ll see how it goes! And, I have already downloaded the sewing machine tracker. But there are other trackers for you to choose from … the choice is yours! Are you going to try it as well?

My Tally Sheets

This month, I finished the “Pieced to Perfection” quilts (see HERE), the Dog pouches (see HERE) and the Shweshwe pouch (see HERE).

And again, no UFOs finished this month! Maybe next month!

Here’s my tally sheet:

If you want to keep track of your own progress, please feel free to download the 2023 Template.

template-2023Download

Here’s my Task Sheet of my UFOs. This helps me keep track of what I’ve accomplished with my UFOs and what I need to do. I made a little progress on the wallet this month.

You can download your own Task list from Ms P Designs HERE.

Linky Party

Show us your progress with your PHD in 2023! Or show us what YOU are celebrating in the quilting realm!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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

Favourite Finish of the Month

Cheryl, from Meadow Mist Designs hosts a monthly linky party where you post your favourite quilt of the month.

These quilts were my favourite this month!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

A Couple of Finishes to show you

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Did you see my post earlier this week? The one with the Island Batik “Pieced to Perfection” quilts?

These were made with the fabric collection “Copper Patina.” These collections should be shipping to your local stores in October. To read more about these quilts and If you want an opportunity to win fabric from this collection make sure you comment on the original POST, HERE.

Coming Soon!

I will be hosting a Mystery Quilt here on my blog starting Wednesday, September 27. The clues will be posted every Wednesday for 8 or 9 weeks.

When I originally made this quilt, I used a Kansas Troubles layer cake. I will be making this quilt along with you using a 10″ stack of Island Batik fabric.

The quilt will finish at 59″ x 59″

Fabric Requirements:

  • A 10″ stack (or layer cake) that has at least 39 squares. (Yes, you can use fabric from your stash if you wish) The pattern tester used 20 squares from a layer cake and 20 squares from a coordinating fabric that she cut herself. Both quilts look great!
  • Background: Fabric 1 ¼  yard   or 1.1 m
  • Binding: ¾ yard or 0.8 m

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Tuesday’s Talkin’

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Week 2 Blog Hop

This is Week 2 of Island Batik’s “Pieced to Perfection” Blog Hop.

Lots and lots of beautiful quilts are being shown!

September 11 was my day to show my quilt using the “Copper Patina” fabric collection. I absolutely LOVED the teals in this grouping! Hobbs Batting, Aurifil thread and Silly Moon Rulers were used to create these quilts!

Here are pictures of my quilts and you can read more about them HERE.

If you want an opportunity to win fabric from this collection make sure you comment on the original POST, HERE.

Are you ready for a Mystery Quilt?

I will be hosting a Mystery Quilt here on my blog starting Wednesday, September 27. The clues will be posted every Wednesday for 8 or 9 weeks.

When I originally made this quilt, I used a Kansas Troubles layer cake. I will be making this quilt along with you using a 10″ stack of Island Batik fabric.

The quilt will finish at 59″ x 59″

Fabric Requirements:

  • A 10″ stack (or layer cake) that has at least 39 squares. (Yes, you can use fabric from your stash if you wish) The pattern tester used 20 squares from a layer cake and 20 squares from a coordinating fabric that she cut herself. Both quilts look great!
  • Background: Fabric 1 ¼  yard   or 1.1 m
  • Binding: ¾ yard or 0.8 m

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!

  • January – August:  225 / 242
  • September:  10 / 10
  • Total: 235 / 252
  • Percentage: 93%

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! But not when I’m on holidays!

The 2 quilts for the Island Batik challenge used a total of 16 yards of fabric.

Yearly Tally:

  • Fabric Used the last week: 16 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2023:    156 yards  from non-IB: 66.5
  • Fabric Bought this week:  0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    17.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             144.5 yards 

Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.

To Do Tuesday

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list from last week: 

  1. Get “Splendor” Quilt to flimsy stage: FIX those mistakes !!!!! Not done
  2. Work on September’s IB challenge. √   DONE , blog post written and posted
  3. Work on Pin Dot Floral Quilt. progress, but not finished
  4. Cut out Malted Mystery Fabrics. Not done
  5. Work on “It’s a Dog’s Life” project progress, but not finished
  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. Get “Splendor” Quilt to flimsy stage: FIX those mistakes !!!!!
  2. Work on Pin Dot Floral Quilt
  3. Cut out Malted Mystery Fabrics
  4. Finish “It’s a Dog’s Life” project
  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 projects:

  1. “Splendor” Quilt: Fix mistakes and adding borders
  2. Work on Pin-Dot Floral #3 quilt
  3. Finish “It’s a Dog’s Life” project

This picture shows “Splendor” blocks and a part of the Pin Dot Floral quilt.

Quilting:

  • Nothing at the moment

Upcoming Blog Hops

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: It’s a Dog’s Life (September 18 is my day)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Monster Mash (My day is Oct 26)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Turkey Trot (November 13 is my day)

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Pieced to Perfection

/ quiltinggail / 47 Comments

Here was our instructions:

Paper piecing, also known as foundation piecing, is a quilting technique that involves sewing fabric pieces to a paper foundation. Precision, relative ease of use and design flexibility of paper pieced patterns make them a very popular choice among quilters. Show off the fabric from your assigned Spring’ 23 0.5 yard bundle and make an eye-catching paper pieced showstopper!

My assigned bundle is Coper Patina shown here:

Years and years ago, Carol Doak had a yahoo group with lots of paper piecing blocks. She recently started a Facebook group with lots of new patterns. This inspired me to make a Block of the Month pattern from years ago for this month’s paper piecing challenge.

I printed out the patterns and started making the blocks.

Chain piecing and paper piecing without sewing on the paper! I’ve never tried the freezer paper technique, but using paper straight from the printer works for me.

I paired a lot of the fabrics together and made the blocks on the left, with the centre star. The centre star used “Egg White” (a basic that is always available) and “Swirl Teal Jade” from the collection.

But I wasn’t happy (picture on the left). It seemed like a mish-mash of the fabrics and did nothing for the centre star.

So I started making more blocks using one fabric from the collection and Egg White. The picture on the right shows these blocks in progress. Yes, I’m much happier.

Here is the finished quilt with lots of custom ruler quilting.

Quilt Stats:

  • Fabric: 9 select fabrics from Copper Patina, paired with Egg White
  • Size: 60″ x 60″
  • Pattern: BOM by Carol Doak
  • Batting: Heirloom Hobbs Batting 80/20
  • Thread: Pieced with Aurifil Thread 2600 (Dove Grey), Quilted with Aurifil 5007 (Light Blue Grey)
  • Quilting: Rulers and Free Motion
  • Rulers used for quilting: Silly Moon Rocket, Drop 1, 2 & 3, and Charming
  • Needles: Schmetz Needles Microtex
  • Binding: Scrappy with select fabrics from Copper Patina

And there is More!

There was the ‘left-over’ blocks from my first attempt. I added the solid Black sashing and border, with Swirl Teal Jade for the cornerstones. I must admit, I like this way better than my first attempt with the Swirl Teal Jade star. Perhaps if I had used solid black for the star, I might have been happier. However, it’s too late now and I’m not going to do it over again! I’m happy with this one!

However, before I went with the black, I attempted to use some of the gold fabric in the collection for the sashing:

No! No! No!

Sew, out came my trusty seam ripper, I auditioned other fabrics and settled on the black.

Much better!

Quilt Stats:

  • Fabric: 17 select fabrics from Copper Patina, with solid Black
  • Size: 46″ x 46″
  • Pattern: BOM by Carol Doak plus “Tennessee” from 50 Fabulous Paper Pieced Stars (it’s the middle star on the left)
  • Batting: Heirloom Hobbs Batting 80/20
  • Thread: Pieced with Aurifil Thread 2600 (Dove Grey), Quilted with Aurifil 5007 (Light Blue Grey)
  • Quilting: Rulers and Free Motion
  • Rulers used for quilting: Silly Moon Rocket, Drop 3, and Kite
  • Needles: Schmetz Needles Microtex
  • Binding: Scrappy with select fabrics from Copper Patina

I had wanted to take a picture of the 2 quilts together on the lawn, but with our drought conditions and brown scrubby grass, I went across to the neighbours rock garden and took the picture there.

*** Be sure to visit Britany at Bobbin with Brittany to see what she made with Copper Patina! ***

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,   

Week 2 Blog Hop

September 11

Brittany Fisher, Bobbin with Brittany

Gail Sheppard, Quilting Gail

September 12

Susan Deshensky, Lady Blue Quilts

Maryellen McAuliffe, Mary Mack Made Mine

September 13

Emily Leachman, The Darling Dogwood

Anorina Morris, Samelia’s Mum

Jennifer Thomas, Curlicue Creations

September 14

Claudia Porter, Create with Claudia

Victoria Johnson, Forever Quilting for You

2 Opportunities to Win Fabric!

#1

Visit Island Batik’s blog to win one of 2 Fat Quarter Bundles from Week 2. HERE Follow the Rafflecopter directions.

#2

Leave a comment at the end of this post and I will send you some pieces of Copper Patina! (You must be in Canada or the USA).

Island Batik Ambassadors

Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany

Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost

Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine

Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt

Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Sew It – Show It: Call Me Crazy

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August 21-24 –   Call Me Crazy  (Joan – calicojoan@aol.com)

Joan of Moose Stash Quilting is the organizer of this blog hop. Here’s what she had to say about this Blog Hop:

We all know that crazy and scary feeling of wondering what we were thinking, when we started or were in the middle of sewing something out of our comfort zone.
Now’s the time to share them with us all!
It always make me feel better, knowing I’m not truly the only crazy person out there!
The rules are simple, make your project, write a post and have it scheduled to publish by midnight EST, the day your scheduled.

Well, I OBVIOUSLY did not read the instructions. I took it to mean that we had to do some Crazy Quilting. Probably since I’ve made a few projects in recent months … You can read about these projects HERE and HERE.

I used a pattern by Karen Overton, The Quilt Rambler. You can access the pattern HERE and the Youtube video HERE.

I was inspired by a fellow Island Batik ambassador who made a crazy quilted book cover for the “Crazy Quilt” challenge. You can see Emily’s (Darling Dogwood) book cover HERE.

I used an Island Batik fabric collection called Wild Blooms. There is Hobbs 80/20 batting in the middle and Aurifil thread was used for the piecing and quilting. The button came from my button box and I think it might have been one of my mom’s buttons! That translates to “It’s likely OLD!”

I’m always asked about my quilting. I quilt on a domestic sewing machine, a Janome M7. I LOVE my M7!!!!

Here is mine:

The following pictures show the Back insert, the button applied, the zipper and vinyl pocket and the bookmark in the composition notebook!

Here are the rest of the Crazy Blog Hoppers

Be sure to visit each of them! I promise you’ll be inspired!

Monday August 21

Tuesday August 22

Wednesday August 23

Thursday August 24

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Sunday Summary: August 13

/ quiltinggail / 10 Comments

This Made Me Smile!

I couldn’t resist taking a picture of the animals reading amongst mushrooms and beautiful flowers!

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!

  • January – July:  209 / 212
  • August:  13 / 13
  • Total: 222 / 225
  • Percentage: 98%

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!

My Housecoat / Robe took about 6 yards of fabric. I used Hobbs silk batting, Accuquilt dies and Aurifil thread, along with a multitude of Island Batik fabrics. For more details, see this BLOG POST.

Yearly Tally:

  • Fabric Used the last week: 6 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2023:    146 yards  from non-IB: 59.5
  • Fabric Bought this week:  0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    15.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             130.5 yards 

Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.

To Do Tuesday

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list from last week: 

  1. Finish August IB challenge √   DONE and posted HERE.
  2. Get “Splendor” Quilt to flimsy stage Not done
  3. Work on September’s IB challenge √   DONE but still In Progress
  4. Work on Pin Dot Floral Quilt √   DONE but still In Progress
  5. Cut out Malted Mystery Fabrics Not done
  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. Get “Splendor” Quilt to flimsy stage: FIX those mistakes !!!!!
  2. Work on September’s IB challenge
  3. Work on Pin Dot Floral Quilt
  4. Cut out Malted Mystery Fabrics
  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 projects:

  1. “Splendor” Quilt: Fix mistakes and adding borders
  2. Island Batik September challenge … lots of Paper Piecing blocks
  3. Work on another Pin-Dot Floral quilt

This picture shows “Splendor” blocks and part of the August Island Batik challenge and part of September’s Island Batik challenge.

Quilting:

  • Nothing at the moment

Upcoming Blog Hops

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Call Me Crazy (My day is August 21)

Island Batik: Pieced to Perfection (My day is September 11)

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: It’s a Dog’s Life (September 18 is my day)

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

August: It’s All Up to You

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So, this month, Island Batik has given us freedom to make whatever our heart desires. My heart has many desires, but unfortunately not enough time to make everything!

When I was at a retreat at Over the Rainbow at the beginning of April, one of the retreaters, Dana, was wearing her quilted housecoat / robe and it looked great. It is super scrappy and very beautiful!! I’ve been meaning to make my own for some time. I’m always cold these days, so a quilted house coat will be perfect for me. Pamela, from Pamela Quilts made a quilted jacket for the Island Batik Fly Away challenge and I fell in LOVE. You can see her jacket HERE.

Now blue and teal are my favourite colours, so that was an easy decision to make. I went through my old garment patterns and found a few housecoat patterns. I pulled them out and none of them would be good for what I wanted to do. BUT I had a silk robe (that was bought in China eons ago) that was perfect. Boxy sleeves, a rectangle front and back. So, with seam ripper in hand, deconstruction began. I made my pattern pieces from the deconstructed robe.

I started out with cutting Hobbs silk batting larger than my pattern pieces; wanting to leave extra room in case the quilting shrunk the pieces too much. I drew the 45o lines on the batting and then using, a Brilliant Blues gradations strip pack that I received in January, I did a quilt as you go and got the sleeve bases done.

My plan was to do the quilt as you go on the batting and then later line the housecoat/robe with rayon.

The housecoat/robe was basically designed as I went along …. After I had fun making the sleeves, I pulled out my AccuQuilt Tree of Life block and made it. It was quilted onto the back.

This picture is making sure the dark blue border around the Tree of Life is the correct width! I was turning the edge under 1/4” so that the other pieces could be added.

I was zoom sewing with my sister and she said that with having a Tree of Life, I needed something “earthy” below. These Prairie Dreams strips were left-over from a Bargello quilt that I made for our March “It’s All Up to You” Challenge. You can read about it HERE. I did it as a quilt as you go under the Tree of Life and slipped each piece under the dark blue border around the Tree of Life.

Then I made 10 Glorified 9 patches, made with the Accuquilt die. These squares use “Rice,” a lovely neutral, a variety of dark teals along with “Nautilus teal” from Claudia Pfeil’s Mystery collection that I received a few years ago. These are intended for the front of the housecoat.

And here are the pieces laid out on my design wall. Once I had them on the wall, I realized that the sleeves made with the Brilliant Blue strips was a “NO.” They are beautiful and I’ll use them in another project – they won’t be wasted.

I dug through my Island Batik stash and found the teal/gold print with turtles on it. It’s a piece I’ve been hoarding keeping for something special. So why not use it for my cozy housecoat? A much better fit, right?

The edge of the robe, the tie, and the back lining is made with an Island Batik rayon “Night Moves” that I received a few years ago in one of my boxes. The half stars above the tree of life were made with Studio 180 Wedge Tool using a blue fabric that was in a stash builder’s roll.

Housecoat / Robe Stats:

  • Fabrics: Variety of Island Batik cotton and rayon
  • Needles: Schmetz Microtex
  • Thread: Aurifil:
    • #2785: 50 (very dark navy) wide binding and hem
    • #4661: 40 wt (variegated mint julep) sleeve quilting
    • #4655: 50 wt (variegated storm at sea) Tree of Life quilting
    • #4182: 50 wt (dark turquoise) Glorified 9 patch quilting
    • #2600: 50 wt (dove) piecing
  • Hobbs Batting: Silk
  • Accuquilt dies: Tree of Life, Glorified 9 patch
  • Studio 180 tool: Wedge

So would I make this housecoat/robe again? The answer is “not this way!” If I were to make another one, I’d quilt the lining as I quilted the top and simply serge the inside seams. But that won’t be happening anytime soon! 🤪

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,   Studio 180 Designs, Accuquilt

Island Batik Ambassadors

Visit the rest of the Island Batik Ambassadors to see what they have made for this challenge:

Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany

Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost

Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine

Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt

Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

A DrEAMI for Friday’s Finish!

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Just in case you’re not aware, a DrEAMI stands for “Drop Everything And Make It.” And I did. I put all the things I was working on aside and made this cute “Call Me” pouch. It’s a free pattern byAnnie and is super easy to make!

Our grand-dog is here and we go for daily walks. It’s too warm to wear a jacket and I HATE carrying my phone in my jeans … so I made this! I tried it out this morning and it’s perfect!!!

Island Batik fabrics were used: Nautilus Floral Baja, from the Mystery collection and Cherio – Bermuda from basics. Quilted and pieced with Aurifil Thread. The Annie’s Soft & Stable, mesh, vinyl and fold-over elastic were left-overs from a previous by Annie bag.

At the end of the month, Sandra, from MMM Quilts holds a link party for DrEAMIs. Since it’s the beginning of the month, I’ll have to wait until the end to link up!

A Mistake

When I finished my pouch, I went back to working on a few works in progress. There are 2 mistakes in this Splendor quilt … can you find them?? Time to get the seam ripper out! And then give this one a good press!

I was Featured

Featured the Trivet I showed last week!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

Monday Moments: July 17

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A Heart-warming Email

This weekend, I received an email from the local coordinator of Quilts of Valour. The quilt I made was given to the longest serving combat doctor in Canadian History! How cool is that? And now I wonder if he’s aware that the quilt was designed and made by a former nurse educator?

I’ve given a few Quilts of Valour over the years, but never knew what happened to them. It’s truly an honour to know where this quilt went! Dr. W, I’m glad you were the recipient!

The quilt was made with Accuquilt “Maple Leaf” die and dies from the 8 ” Qube. I used Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting and Aurifil thread. You can read more about it HERE.

One Gift a Month

July’s gift is a Trivet. You can go to Days Filled With Joy for information and the link to her tutorial (when you go to Raewyn’s blog, click on the Patterns & Techniques tab.) Or, you can visit Kaye Wood’s youtube video HERE. (That’s where Raewyn originally got the instructions).

I found my Insul-Brite!!! (remember last week I asked if anyone knew where I had put it?) It was in the space under my ironing board, tucked behind my bolts of fabric. Not exactly where I would expect it to be! But I found it when I was searching for something else! Hopefully next week I can show you my finished trivet!

So far for the One Gift a Month, I have made gifts for January, February, April and May.

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!

  • January – June:  178 / 181
  • July:  16 / 16
  • Total: 194 / 197
  • Percentage: 98%

Stash Report

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly link 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 had to buy backing … 3 yards to be exact … I’ll be using it soon … well, maybe soon, I still need to make the top, but I knew the company had gone out of business, so I had to buy it soon! YUP, that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!

Yearly Tally:

  • Fabric Used the last week: 0 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2023:    131.5 yards  from non-IB: 52
  • Fabric Bought this week:   3 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    15.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             116 yards 

Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.

To Do Tuesday

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list from last week: 

  1. Finish Mystery Quilt (making and writing) In Progress I figured out what I need to do.
  2. Start August IB challenge. √   DONE. it’s started!!!
  3. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “Pin Dot Blossoms” #1 In Progress it’s sandwiched
  4. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind “Pin Dot Blossoms” #2 to flimsy stage In Progress it’s sandwiched
  5. Sandwich, Quilt and Bind Island Batik October challenge In Progress it’s sandwiched
  6. Finish binding “Test” quilt In Progress no change from last week
  7. Continue piecing “Splendor” Quilt. √   DONE. still more to be done, but it’s being worked on
  8. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE
  9. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE

This week’s list:

  1. Finish Mystery Quilt (making and writing)
  2. Continue working on August IB challenge
  3. Quilt and Bind “Pin Dot Blossoms” #1
  4. Quilt and Bind “Pin Dot Blossoms” #2 to flimsy stage
  5. Quilt and Bind Island Batik October challenge
  6. Start working on September IB challenge
  7. Finish binding “Test” quilt … come on, Gail! It’s almost done!
  8. Continue piecing “Splendor” Quilt
  9. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  10. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

Design Wall

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

Piecing projects:

  1. “Splendor” Quilt (blocks in progress in the picture.
  2. Island Batik August challenge (I finally decided what I was going to do!)
  3. Island Batik’s September challenge

Quilting:

  • “Pin Dot Blossoms“ #1
  • “Pin Dot Blossoms“ #2
  • Island Batik October challenge (A secret … obviously until October)
  • Finish Binding Secret Project (Test quilt)

Upcoming Blog Hops

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: Picnic Party. (My day is July 20)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Call Me Crazy (My day is August 21)

Island Batik: Pieced to Perfection (My day is September 11)

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: It’s a Dog’s Life (September 18 is my day)

Here’s a list of the Picnic Party bloggers;

July 17

 July 18

July 19

July 20

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Accuquilt: Covering the World

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This was a Hugs and Kisses quilt that used various Island Batik pinks, purples, and greens. If you recall, I made a blue & green Hugs & Kisses quilt and cut out too many greens (you can read about it HERE). So not wanting to waste those blocks, I cut out the pinks and purples and joined them up to make the following quilt.

I used the Accuquilt Go! to cut the pieces: Die #10 from the 8″ Qube ‘Corners’ collection paired with Die #5 from the 8″ Qube set. It made piecing the Hugs and Kisses very simple. Each Hugs or Kisses block uses 4 mini blocks composed of 1 Die #10 and 2 Die #5. Then the blocks are arranged to form a Hug or a Kiss. I added sashing and borders and the quilt was a flimsy!

Hobbs 80/20 is in the middle and I used Odif 505 spray baste to hold the layers together.

It was quilted with both the 3″ and 4″ Cupid ruler from Silly Moon.

This quilt was donated to the “Comfort Quilts” committee at the guild and will be given to the B.C. Cancer Agency at Surrey Memorial Hospital. Here I am giving the quilt to Dawn, one of the volunteers of the “Comfort Quilts” committee.

Why did I choose “Comfort Quilts” as my charity? I don’t know anyone that hasn’t been touched by cancer. We all know family members and friends that have dealt with cancer. When I was working as a nurse in the hospital, we cared for cancer patients daily: it didn’t matter what department I was working in. It’s a heart-breaking disease and the treatments can often be grueling and harsh as one fights an uphill battle. If providing a quilt can give someone comfort, I’ll all for it!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:

Sunday Summary: June 25

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I had a busy week with blog posts … showing you my “When Pigs Fly” project and all the projects for “Perfectly Pieced Backs.”

One Gift a Month

June’s gift is Little Gift Pouches. You can go to Days Filled With Joy for information and the link to her tutorial. She initially made the pouches for tea bags, but they can be used for many different gift ideas: lip balm, gift cards, … you get the idea! And the bonus is that they take less than 5 minutes to make. I know it’ll take me longer to pick out the fabric and ribbon! 😊

So far for the One Gift a Month, I have made gifts for January, February, April and May.

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!

  • January – May:  147 /150
  • June:  25/ 25
  • Total: 172 / 175
  • Percentage: 98%

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 following quilts used 17 yards of fabric.

Yearly Tally:

  • Fabric Used the last week: 17 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2023:    131.5 yards  from non-IB: 52
  • Fabric Bought this week:   0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    12.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             119 yards 

Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.

To Do Tuesday

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list from 2 weeks ago: 

  1. Finish Mystery Quilt (making and writing) In Progress
  2. Finish the Secret Project #1 for Kelly Young’s new book √   DONE and posted
  3. Finish the Secret Project #2 for Kelly Young’s new book. √   DONE and posted
  4. Lone Star Left-overs – make back √   DONE and posted
  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 Mystery Quilt (making and writing)
  2. Finish project for “Picnic Party” Blog Hop
  3. “Pin Dot Blossoms“
  4. Island Batik October challenge
  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 projects:

  1. “Picnic Party” Blog Hop project
  2. “Pin Dot Blossoms” (a secret, I can’t show you until September)
  3. Island Batik October challenge (A secret … obviously until October)

Quilting:

  • Quilt Secret Project (Test quilt). Here’s a picture of the back …

Upcoming Blog Hops

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: Picnic Party. (My day is July 20)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Call Me Crazy (My day is August 21)

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: It’s a Dog’s Life (September)

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Perfectly Pieced Quilt Backs

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Kelly Young has done it again!!! She has a fantastic new book out that you will absolutely LOVE!!!

This book has an amazing number of quilt backs in different sizes … some backings are scrappy and use left-overs and others use stash.

One bonus is that there are 18 FREE downloadable patterns that you can make for the front of the quilt to go with the backing – or vs versa.

This book is available at Essem Textiles now! Phone or order your book right away!

I am going to show you 1 front and 4 backs that I made using this book, “Perfectly Pieced Backs!”

Back #1 – Plus Front

This is the quilt top “front” I decided to make: It’s called “Waverunner.” It is one of the 18 free patterns available with the book!

Cutting out this quilt was very very quick!

I was working on the ‘front’ while I was at a guild sewing day and the ladies were thrilled to get a sneak peak of a book that was not available to purchase – yet! 🥹

Now, the first thing you’ll notice is that mine is not done in teals / blues … I used purple and green fabrics from the Island Batik fabric collection called “Napa Valley.” And, my quilt is smaller although the blocks are the same size. I just didn’t make as many because I didn’t have enough of the fabric from the collection to make more.

As I was piecing the front, I quickly realized that it was the perfect opportunity to make half-squared triangles instead of discarding the excess fabric. I made a lot of HST.

Here is my completed top.

And all those HST I made? I decided to join them into groups and sort-of follow the backing for “Islands.” I didn’t have focus fabric for the “Islands,” so I thought that making my own ‘Islands’ would work. My ‘Islands’ used up all of the HSTs! Perfect – no left-overs!

Here’s my “Islands” placed into the back. I paired them with the background fabric “Wheat-Dusk,” also from the Napa Valley fabric collection. The quilt was quilted with “Wild” or “Graffiti” quilting – Anything goes!

Backing #2

I made a top called “Lone Star Left-overs” (right). Yes, I used left-overs from the lone star quilt I made earlier this year (picture on the left).

I took a lot of the pieces and made “Crosses.” I used the “Cross Purposes” backing as my inspiration. The “Crosses” were made from scraps. Again the quilt was quilted with “Wild” or “Graffiti” quilting! So easy and quick!

Backing #3

I can’t show you the front of this quilt – YET – because it was made as a test quilt and the pattern is not available until later this year. However, I can show you the back! And, you probably notice that it’s not even sandwiched, let alone quilted! This is based on the backing pattern, “Every Little Bit.” The fabric scraps are from Island Batik’s “Wild Blooms” fabric collection.

Backing #4

Earlier this month, I showed you my June Island Batik challenge with flying geese. You can read more about it HERE.

My inspiration for the back was “Coin Strip.” I made 2 strips and here is the back:

Book Review

As with all of Kelly’s books, this one is very well written!!! The directions are very easy to follow and the diagrams are great! There are multiple sizes for each of the backings! Of course, the 18 free lap sized patterns are also well written and easy to download.

One of my former concerns with backings that have straight lines is getting it straight. I inevitably have them crooked and off set and anything but straight. Kelly has that covered in this book with clear directions on how to get you backs straight! My backs turned out straight! Thank you, Kelly!

This book is available at several online stores: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Connecting Threads, and Missouri Star to name a few. However if you want a signed copy by the author, you can get it from her Etsy shop HERE.

Along with all the backing patterns, links to 18 additional patterns, this book also features full quilt finishing instructions.

This book will definitely be a fantastic addition to your quilting library!

Other Bloggers

Here is a list of the other bloggers that are posting today with their “Perfectly Pieced Backs.” I can’t wait to visit each blog and see what they made!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Sew It – Show It: When Pigs Fly

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June 19

Joan, of Moose Stash Quilting dreamed up this blog hop!!! At first I wasn’t sure if I could do a quilt with a pig on it. Boy, was I not thinking or paying attention!!!! Of course, with the PHD in 2023 happening on my blog, this blog hop is right up my alley!

Of course I have PIGS

  • PIGS: (Projects In Grocery Sacks)… they might not be in grocery sacks, but I have them!!!
  • UFOs??? (UnFinished Objects) Of course, I have a list … and I keep finding more!!
  • WIPS (Works in Progress) … usually many many of those!

Here’s what Joan had to say in May: Our next month’s challenge is all about those pesky projects that we haven’t finished. If you haven’t joined already, you might want to look in the corners of your sewing area and see if there isn’t something you can finish and share with us, too! 

It’s never too late to finish a PIG, UFO or WIP … but you can certainly go find one and work on it!

My “When Pigs Fly”

I’ve had my 2022 “Nutcracker” (by Helen Godden) on my To Do list as a UFO since Christmas. I decided it was time … time to ‘get-er-done’!

I have done several projects, guided by Helen Godden. You can visit her website HERE … she has some free patterns and there are Youtube videos to guide you in your quilting. The first picture is “Flower Power” and each block is around 8-9″ square (you can read about it HERE) and the 2nd picture is the Merry Christmas from 2020 or ’21.

I had outlined the Nutcracker with a sharpie. and had coloured it in with Inktense pencils. I used Aloe Vera to set the colour, sandwiched it with Hobbs Batting – Thermore (which is perfect for wall hangings) … and it has sat and sat and sat …

In May, I pulled it out … and started to work on it. The first thing I needed to do was all of the outlining with black thread. I used Aurifil Thread #2692. I started that and within about 30 minutes, I was bored. I did think about tossing it aside, but I resisted. I looked at the youtube video to see what the December 1 stitching was. It was the cap/crown. OK … so I continued to do the outlining until I reached the cap/crown. Figuring that I would do the rest of the outlining as I went along! December 1 was the cap/crown … easy peasy, December 2 was the red part of the crown … easy peasy … and on it went … checking out each day and stitching as directed.

I didn’t take a picture of each day’s directions, but I took a few as I went along. I completed the quilting in about 3 days … doing a little here and a little there. (So I obviously did not do one day at a time!)

In the following pictures, you should be able to see the progress … and yes, the definite imperfections!

When I went to outline the “Merry Christmas,” I realized that Helen had coloured hers in black. So, I pulled out my trusty “Stained” Sharpies and coloured mine in as well. This was easier and faster than pulling out my Inktense pencils and Aloe Vera gel.

Here is my finished Nutcracker from the back. I cut out 3″ squares of the binding fabric and folded it in half to give me the corner hangers.

And from the front where I used Aurifil Thread #2311 (Muslin) for the background quilting.

Other Piggy Participants

Here’s a list of everyone that’s participating in the blog hop! I’m exited to see what everyone’s been working on!

Monday June 19

Tuesday June 20

Wednesday June 21

Thursday June 22

Pinterest

Joan has set up a Pinterest Board where you can see all of the projects from this blog hop. It’s HERE.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

TGIFF: June 16’23

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I am hosting TGIFF this week!

Here is my finish. It’s left-overs from a lone star quilt that I made earlier this year using Island Batik’s Naturescape fabric collection, solid grey and a blender. You can read about the Lone Star HERE. I will show you a close-up of the back next week when I showcase “Perfectly Pieced Backs” a new book by Kelly Young.

Quilt Stats:

  • 48″ X 55″
  • Hobbs 80/20 is in the middle
  • Wild / Grafitti quilting
  • Island Batik Fabric: Naturescape, Solid Grey and Blender: BE24-E2
  • Pieced with Aurifil 2000 (Light Sand)
  • Quilted with Aurifil 2600 (Dove Grey)

Link YOUR Friday Finish!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Fly Away: Island Batik’s June Challenge

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Here’s what Island Batik had to say about this challenge:

This month, your challenge is to use one of the four Strip or Stack precut bundles that you received in your December box and play with the versatile Flying Geese blocks to create a fun quilt or table runner! Your project must use Flying Geese blocks as the focus but you can combine other blocks to enhance the project. 

What makes Flying Geese quilts so popular? First, blocks can be used in a variety of quilt designs, from traditional to modern, and arranged in rows, columns, diagonals, and more, making them a versatile choice for quilters. Second, flying geese blocks are relatively easy to make and require only basic sewing skills. Third, the flying geese design creates a sense of movement and visual interest in a quilt, making it eye-catching and dynamic. We can’t wait to see your Flying Geese quilt!

Well, a couple of years ago, I would have totally disagreed with Island Batik. I certainly didn’t find them easy to piece unless I was paper piecing … which isn’t a favourite of mine. However, I have discovered the perfect way to make flying geese … more about that later in this post.

I went to EQ8 to play with flying geese and fabrics. I decided to use the beautiful stack of 10″ squares from the Island Batik fabric collection “Maple Island” designed by Kathy Engle.

While I was playing and designing, I paired the fabric with Island Batik’s solid grey and this is what I came up with.

To make the flying geese, I used Studio 180’s Wing Clipper Tool. Using it guarantees PERFECT flying geese EVERY SINGLE TIME!

The 1st picture is of sewing flying geese in progress on my featherweight … a new package of Schmetz Needles at the ready. (There was already a Schmetz needle in the machine.) Then, using the Studio 180 Wing Clipper Tool to square up the flying geese and the 3rd picture is of the pretty pieces that were trimmed off.

The star points are flying geese blocks.

Once I had my star blocks and the flying geese sashing blocks made, I put them on my design wall. OH DEAR!!! It did not look as good as it did in EQ8!!! It looked washed out … I was not happy!!! So, I auditioned the blocks on the 2 coordinating fabrics that I was sent:

I was still not totally happy … although “Seaweed” was better than “Dot Sky,” I still wasn’t happy. I pulled out lots of different fabric from my Island Batik stash. The solid black was better, but not quite ‘just right.’ Then “Midnight Blue” was the perfect one! Midnight Blue almost looks black, but it has mottled bits of blue in it.

It was super hot (35oC or 95oF) when I was piecing this … so I set up my featherweight outside and was enjoying the warmth! And yes, that’s my grand-dog “Daphne” supervising! Plus, you can see that I use a cone of Aurifil Thread when I’m piecing.

I decided that I would do an all-over quilting pattern and feathers was the perfect choice to go with flying geese!

Aurifil Thread #6734 (Swallow), 40 wt was the perfect colour for this table topper. Hobbs Batting Thermore is inside and is just right for a light-weight topper! And, as per my usual, it was quilted on my domestic Janome M7 sewing machine.

Here is my flying geese table topper. There are 92 flying geese … 4 flying geese to make each star and there are 4 flying geese in each of the 17 blocks that surround the star blocks. This is 25″ x 36.”

This picture shows the feathers much better than the front picture!

Where can I find Maple Island?

Here’s a partial list of where you can find Maple Island. Check with your local quilt store and ask!

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 Studio 180 Designs.

Island Batik Ambassadors

Visit the following blogs to see the flying geese creations!

Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany

Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost

Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine

Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt

Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

Linking to:

Sunday Summary: June 5

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I’m wondering if I’m Going Crazy?

Last week, on Monday, I was teaching at Essem and we were looking at walking foot quilting. My machine wouldn’t work with the walking foot on it. Dang! I couldn’t figure out what was wrong. The class participants were stellar and so I didn’t need to demonstrate on my machine. When I came home, I pulled the machine out and it worked like a charm. I was relieved that it wouldn’t need to go to the machine doctor or have a spa appointment!

Fast forward to Friday. I went to a Quilt-as-you-Go workshop. When I got there, I set up my machine. I put the extension table in place, with the slip slide thing taped in place. Turned on my machine. The walking foot wouldn’t work! WHAT???? Knowing that I needed it, or at the very least, I wanted to use it, I sat and stared (maybe GLARED) at it. I did not swear – promise! 🤪

The feed dogs were not working. WHY? The feed dogs were not lowered. I checked that! What is wrong???

I stared glared some more … and then it hit me! DUH!!! DUH!!! DUH!!! The slip slide thingy is good for free motion, but it does cover up the feed dogs. As soon as I removed it, the walking foot worked like a charm!

Yup, sometimes I think I’m going crazy!

Classic Cars: Monthly Colour Challenge

May’s Classic Car colour is Grey …. Visit Patterns by Jen HERE for your free download of this month’s block …

Here’s my May block, followed by the January, February, March, April and May blocks … I know that I ‘stretched’ the grey colour a bit, but I’m trying to use up my bits and pieces of Island Batik scraps and this seemed to fit the bill!

One Gift a Month

May’s gift is Soup Bowl Cozies. You can go to Days Filled With Joy for information and links to several different on-line tutorials.

So far for the One Gift a Month, I have made January’s, February’s, and April’s gifts.

Yes, I will be making Soup Bowl Cozies … soon, it obviously won’t be in May! Here is the fabric for my bowl cozy … These are 10″ squares from a stack of Island Batik “Pumpkin Spice” that I had. Now to get some cotton batting that doesn’t have scrim on it! …

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!

  • January – May:  147 /150
  • June:  4/ 4
  • Total: 151 / 154
  • Percentage: 98%

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 saw this meme on a friends blog (Brenda) and it just cracked me up! “I’m not a Hoarder … I’m the Curator of an Extensive Private Fabric collection.” And with the chicken holding all the extra fabric, it’s perfect. You can see this at Songbird Designs HERE.

This meme is very appropriate for me!

So, as I mentioned, I took a workshop making a Quilt-as-you-Go quilt. It was a LOT of fun!!! Thanks to Dawn and Nora for organizing and teaching. This quilt used 3 yards of fabric from my extensive stash collection, plus about 1/2 yard for binding and Hobbs 80/20 batting from left-over pieces. It will be donated to the guild’s baby quilt charity!

No shopping. No fabric added!

Yearly Tally:

  • Fabric Used the last week: 3.5 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2023:    111 yards  from non-IB: 50
  • Fabric Bought this week:   0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    12.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             98.5 yards 

Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.

To Do Tuesday

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

The To Do list from last week: 

  1. Finish Mystery Quilt (making and writing). Partially done. I have the quilt quilted and just need to bind it. The border portion needs to be written.
  2. X’s & O’s #1 & #2: bind √   DONE #2 is bound, but I need to do a photo shoot and then I can show it to you.
  3. Finish “When Pigs Fly” project √   DONE … you’ll see this on June 19!
  4. Finish the Secret Project for Kelly Young’s new book – I’ll be telling you all about it in June! Partially done. It’s still a work in progress
  5. Lone Star Left-overs – get it to a flimsy stage. … Partially done. I’m still webbing the top
  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. Finish Mystery Quilt (making and writing).
  2. Make the Crazy quilt with Decorative stitches for Essem … I’m teaching this class in a few weeks.
  3. Finish the Secret Project #1 for Kelly Young’s new book – I’ll be telling you all about it later this month!
  4. Finish the Secret Project #2 for Kelly Young’s new book
  5. Lone Star Left-overs – get it to a flimsy stage
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  7. 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 projects:

  1. #1 Secret Project for Kelly Young’s new book (mostly the purples and greens from the Island Batik Napa Valley collection)
  2. #2 Secret Project for Kelly Young’s new book. (Island Batik, “Wild Blooms”)
  3. Crazy Quilt for Essem using Grunge and other fabric
  4. Some blocks ready for webbing from Lone-Star Left-overs (Island Batik “Naturescape”)

Yup … it’s official, I am crazy … working on 4 projects at once!!! I know I often work on at least 2, along with a leader and ender … but 4??? Actually 6 … I don’t have a picture of the back for Secret Project #1 … it’s also in progress, as is the back for the Lone-Star Left-overs. YIKES!!!!

Quilting: These are all sandwiched and ready to quilt …

  • Nutcracker
  • Bird Panel

Upcoming Blog Hops

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: When Pigs Fly (My day is June 19)

Just Let Me Quilt: Sew It – Show It: Picnic Party. (My day is July 20)

Moose Stash Quilting: Sew It – Show It: Call Me Crazy

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting! 
Gail 

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A Fun Friday Finish! May 26

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I LOVE having quilty finishes!

This was a Hugs and Kisses quilt that used various Island Batik blues and greens. I used the Accuquilt Go! to cut the pieces: Die #10 from the ‘Corners’ 8″ Qube collection paired with Die #5 from the 8″ Qube set. It made piecing the Hugs and Kisses very simple. Each Hugs or Kisses block uses 4 mini blocks composed of 1 Die #10 and 2 Die #5. Then the blocks are arranged to form a Hug or a Kiss. I added sashing and borders and the quilt was a flimsy!

Unfortunately, I didn’t count very well and I had too many green blocks … so I cut some pinks and purples and I’ll show you that quilt next week (if it’s finished!)

One person that saw this quilt called it my “Sea Hawks” quilt. I’m not a sports fan … but I know lots of people that are and I get that it’s the colours of the team!

Hobbs 80/20 is in the middle and I used Odif 505 spray baste to hold the layers together.

I was zoom quilting with my sister and cousins at the beginning of the month. I wasn’t sure how to quilt it, but I knew I wanted an all-over pattern. My cousin, Terry (machine quilter extraordinaire! ) suggested these curly c’s that go every which way and back-track on themselves. I gave it a try, I must admit, the back-tracking was not fun, but it was well worth it in the end and I LOVE the look! I’ll be using that random pattern again! Thanks, Terry for your fabulous suggestion!!!

I was Featured

Andree from Free Motion Quilters featured my Studio 180 Wedge Star Quilt with Island Batik Sandalwood fabric collection. You can read about it HERE.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

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You Never Know

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A few years ago, Patti participated in a Stay at Home Round Robin … she diligently sent me photos of her progress … then decided she was DONE. She can’t remember if she put it on the “Free” table or put it somewhere else … but it was out of her hands … she was done with it!

Fast forward to the present day …

Patti is on the “Comfort Quilt Committee” for our guild (Boundary Bay Quilter’s Guild). She was given a quilt that was donated for the cancer centre. She absolutely HAD to show it to me … Can you see why????

And here you can really see Patti’s started SAHRR …

The lady that picked up the discarded SAHRR added lots of her own fabrics and made a super beautiful quilt …

Sew, You Never Know!

IB Blog Hop is Over

Island Batik has had a blog hop over the last 3 weeks. Did you see it? It featured Studio 180 Tools and new fabric lines.

I was given the “Sandalwood” collection, designed by Kathy Engle for Kari Nichols of Quilting Renditions and the Wedge Star Tool. You can read more about this quilt, the fabric and the tool HERE. It was a lot of fun to make! I was especially thrilled when I had PERFECTLY pieced star centres (well, on most of them!)

And here’s the back and a close up of the quilting.

If you would like to see a recap of all of the quilts from the hop, (without visiting each blog) visit Island Batik’s blog HERE.

I Was Featured

Jennifer, from  Inquiring Quilter and Andree from Quilting and Learning – what a combo … featured my 2nd Baby Stars quilt on her blog.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

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An Alberta Quilt Show and a Friday Finish!

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Central Alberta Quilt Show

Are you going??? This Quilt Show is known to be one of the best!!! It’s in Red Deer. On Friday, May 12 & Saturday, May 13.

Exhibition Hall, Westerner Park

4847 – 19 St. Red Deer Alberta T4R 2N7

I’m super excited about this show. My friend, Carmen, who owns Prairie Spirit Alpacas, will be there with her Alpaca/wool pressing mats …. If you see her … say “hi” and tell her that you “know” me! 😀.

PLUS: she will be selling a lot of my patterns!

PLUS: she will have this quilt there … It’s made with the Baby Stars pattern in Island Batik fabrics and the batting is Alpaca fleece. It will be a super super warm quilt!!! It was quilted on my domestic Janome M7. The Alpaca fleece certainly gives the quilting great texture! The fleece was doubled for this quilt, but I think it would have been just as good, if not better, with a single layer!

And this is my Friday Finish!

This is the original Baby Stars, it’s the picture you’ll see on my pattern … photo credit: Jerry Khiev, Island Batik.

Let me know if you buy a pattern, a mat, or some wool … buy some alpaca batting if you want to try it!

Retreat

I just came back from a 4 day retreat! LOTS of fun!!! I’ll tell you all about it on Sunday!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

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