I was away for a bit … travelling in some weird white stuff for part of it. But, since my sister didn’t drive into the ditch, I’ve come to the conclusion that she’s not too bad of a driver. Although, I’m not sure if my white knuckles have regained their colour yet! 
It’s good to be home … but it was good to go … Continue reading
Oh – it is so lovely outside! Although I’m missing summer, I’m loving these wonderful west coast fall days. It’s hard to be inside when it’s so nice outside! However, they are forecasting rain for Tuesday, so this wonderful days will come to an end.
Fireburst has the first stitches of quilting done. There is nothing active happening with piecing. 
Continue reading
It is beautiful right now on the West coast of Canada. Cool crisp nights, some morning fog, and sun in the afternoon. It’s hard, very hard to stay inside and quilt when it is so nice outside!
However, I have been working with digitizing software. It’s 
actually fun! A simple project that I have been working on is taking an element from the fabric in the quilt, making a simple outline and stitching it out.
It worked great on my sample, (first picture), but when I tried to put it on the quilt, it wouldn’t line up right: see the “line” between the ears?” I have a very small machine and I don’t think it was intended for quilting. I will finish the quilt on a bigger machine at work.
No piecing … but I’m having fun quilting the Wonky Logs quilt! Craftsy / Blueprint is free this week. My cousin Terry told me to watch “Wild Quilting.” Oh, it was an excellent class! I don’t have a tone of wide open spaces to apply her techniques but I did take notes! However, if YOU are interested in Free Motion Quilting – I would advise you to watch this class!
I know that I said I wouldn’t use straight lines in this quilt … but as you can see in the green square, I changed my mind! I’ve got about half of the blocks done! Six more to go!
Two finishes for September. Both of them are UFOs! I must be liking easy and square pieces!
Here are the questions I had before I started serging this quilt together and the answers to those questions:
I have 3 August finishes. The quilt and the little zipper bag. I cannot show you the secret quilt because it has not been gifted. However, it is finished!!
Here are before and after pictures … I know I prefer the “after” picture! Continue reading
A few days ago, a couple of cousins on my mom’s side came to visit. It was a fantastic visit as I had not seen either of them for at least 50 years! Anyhow … one of them quilts, and when she saw my very messy creative sewing room, she asked how many projects I had going at one time. Just off the cuff, I said, “5.” Um … well, I didn’t really take a good look at what I had actively going in the room … and of course, it’s the reason for the MESS CREATIVITY. Continue reading
These are the 4 August blocks for the Fireburst Mystery that Tish’s Adventures in Wonderland is hosting. The pattern is currently free, but I suspect that it will be for sale when the mystery is done.
Tish posted 3 different layouts for these blocks … but I know better – it’s just a tease and the final design won’t be anything near what she’s posted. There’s still lots of bits and pieces and partial blocks to be used. I’ll be extremely surprised if the blocks end up anything like what she’s posted. Continue reading
The little quilt in the 2nd picture was made with left-overs from the quilt on the right. The one on the right was finished in January. You can see a close-up of the quilting HERE.
The “Left-over” quilt has not been washed yet – so it’s not a wrinkly and cozy. It’s 45″ x 45″. The backing and black border were also left-overs from another quilt. I did not have enough fabric to bind it in one colour. SEW, I used both green and red fabric to bind it.
I have an embroidery machine. It’s OLD and the hoops are small. At work, I was told that I needed to learn to use the embroidery machine. A big one. It’s nice. But I don’t have it at home. I can work my way around it and have designed several things, using the designs that are build in.
But I wanted to try appliqué in the hoop, on my machine. There is a real cute pattern at Sweet Pea, an Australian company. It’s a free pattern. “Learn in the Hoop.”
My sister, Lynn, is starting to quilt!!! Finally!!!! She has taken a class at Lori’s Country Cottage near Edmonton. Here are pictures of her homework from the first 4 classes, from cutting to a flimsy:
This picture is perfect for my husband … he’s always working with tools of some sort and figuring things out! Continue reading
With travelling, working at Quilt Canada and my job, it’s been a bit of a struggle to get back into sewing / quilting.
My design wall now has a secret project on it. I can show you the material for the back. And no, the picture does not give the true colour! I told you, it’s a secret project – so you won’t be able to see it until May. It is a UFO that is for a secret exchange … I can tell you that it will be a table runner and the theme is winter.
Orca Bay has all the borders on it!
No shopping – nothing added. Yes, I was at Tradex at the Creative Festival and I only bought 2 sided fusible pellon. No fabric. To be honest – I didn’t take a good look at the fabric and so I didn’t buy any. I did see a quilt panel that was fractured at the Quilted Bear booth and the same panel that was not fractured at the Needle & I booth. They were both wonderful! Beautiful colours and great quilting. But I was only tempted to admire, not buy!
Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 94.1 yards
Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added Year to Date: 14 yards
Net Fabric used for 2017: 84.1 yards
For the past 2 months, the guild Quilting 101 class has worked on baby quilts. We choose a simple pattern and made 7 quilts. It was good learning … how to make large half-square triangles, How to trim them easily and then arranging the blocks. This month we did quilting with the walking foot. Organic waves. I thought it was fun to quilt! Unfortunately, I only have pictures of the one I did. Next month, the group will be putting binding on and I will try to get more pictures of the quilts then.
Silly me, I went ahead and put the binding on this one – so I’ll need to find another project to demonstrate binding next month. That shouldn’t be too hard! .
This quilt finishes about 37 x 37″. The 2nd picture is from the back with the sun shining through … fun.
The white Ohio stars are done. About ¾ of the black ones are done. And about ½ of the red string triangles with black and white “wings” are done. I need to make a zillion more “wings”, but they are not as tedious as the hourglass blocks to make. (In my opinion).
Then there is the assembly of the quilt, then adding borders, then quilting, making and adding the label and then binding. Believe it or not … I think I see a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. It’s just a glimmer.
All of the straight line “in the ditch” quilting has been done. I think I have decided what to do in the big negative rectangle spaces: a feather arch. The big floral-type squares will likely be a flower made with what I call “C”. And the checkerboard section … who knows.
I used guild fabric for the above pink quilt – so nothing deleted from my stash. No shopping, so nothing added!
Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 94.1 yards
Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added Year to Date: 14 yards
Net Fabric used for 2017: 84.1 yards
I was wandering around blog-land when I came across “The Free-motion Challenge Quilting Along” by Angela Walters of Quilting is My Therapy.
If you don’t know who Angela Walters is – she’s a fantastic quilter! She has a quilt show “The Midnight Quilter.” Well – go look for yourself! HERE
Anyhow .. the Challenge … “The Free-motion Challenge Quilting Along”
Yes, I signed up …
The first video talks about what you need for the Challenge … the necessities and the “nice-to-have.” There is even a free quilt pattern to do the quilting on.
Am I going to make the free quilt? Yes & No.
I’m going to take fabric – draw some boxes on it (roughly the same size as the boxes on her free quilt pattern). Sandwich the quilt and start practicing.
I’ve already watched the first video … now I’m ready for Week 2.
And the best part: all the videos will be on YOUTUBE … so if you’re like me and already a week or 2 behind, you can still follow along. And it’s FREE!!!
And the very next BEST part is: this is learning … it’s like going to a free motion class with a bunch of 12″ squares sandwiched together … and they don’t count as UFOs or anything … so this won’t count towards my UFO list or influence my PHD in 2018.
And the very next BEST BEST part: I will learn a LOT about free motion quilting! YES!!!
Hole in the Barn Door Wall Hanging used 2 yards.
And, I needed backing for a quilt, so I bought 4 yards.
Fabric Used this Week: 2 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 94.1 yards
Fabric Added this Week: 4 yards
Fabric Added Year to Date: 14 yards
Net Fabric used for 2017: 84.1 yards
To see what other’s in the quilting world are working on – click on the following links:
Quilting Gail 