Hurry up Finish

As you read this the wedding quilt has been made and gifted. You can read about it here. The wedding was lovely and we had a great time. The nice thing about small weddings is everyone knows each other and the conversation just flows. I thoroughly enjoyed myself, for a few hours the worries melted away.

finished with time to spare

The designing and making of this quilt was a mad crazy rush. Why oh why did I do this to myself? As I told my friend the bride 'only for a special friend would I have made a quilt in such a short time.' She loved it.

I couldn't find the sun to take better pictures in, it's that overcast time of year. Oh well the pictures must be taken as everyone wants a little eye candy. The four patch blocks went together quickly. 

four patches in a four patch.

The star blocks I made and used a template to cut the points, and wonder of wonders from the first one to the last one everything fit perfectly. This quilt was cooperating, that doesn't happen very often. My seam ripper for once was quit, no rip, rip rip this time around. Not to worry it gets lots of workout on a regular basis.

star blocks fit perfectly

For the quilting I did simple loops and leaves using Aurifil 2605 on top and Superior bottom line in the bobbin. I may have gone a little crazy stitching them, I got in the flow and there was no stopping me. My hubby said I had the peddle to the medal.

flange binding

I made my first flanged binding! What a great way to finish up a quilt that little pop of colour that the flange gives, in my opinion added to the overall effect. I like how this quilt turned out, and may have given myself a little pat on the back for a job well done. I even finished with time to spare.

back

I knew I wouldn't have time to piece a backing so I used a gray mottled wide backing. 

Now it's back to the slower more relaxed type of sewing. I'm working on my 150 Canadian Women blocks in celebration of Canada's 150th birthday. Three blocks are released every week with a story of a Canadian women with every block, week 7 is the latest release. I have week one, 6 and 7 done. I may be playing catchup with these. 

week 7 top row, week 6 second row, week 1 bottom row

I am going to make them using my scrap reds and whites. The blocks are 6'' finished so some of the little pieces of white on whites are getting used up, hopefully I'll get all those little bits and pieces used up on this project. I may have to get a few red FQ's, we'll see how things progress first.

Linking up to 

Needle and Thread Thrusday

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Sew Fresh Quilts

 

Moving forward

As Christmas draws near, only four sleeps left, wow where did the time go? Are all the preparations ready...NO. But as ready as they are going to be this year. We will have a nice Christmas watching our grandkids open their presents and making sweet memories. One of my granddaughters asked if we had presents for them and at the time the answer was no, extenuating circumstances happening over here. Our grandaughter informed us that grandparents just have to have presents for them. So what is a grandma supposed to do but make sure there are presents. There was some shopping done in the last couple days. Oh heck the tree is even decorated and that is thanks to a couple of grandkids helping out.

one good looking tree

I guess they really want Christmas at grandmas to happen. I usually love Christmas and look forward to all it brings. This year has been a difficult year with some serious health problems, which I will not go into here.

Christmas village

Christmas to me is more about family and the love of being together, and not the gifts. I love the spirit of it all the joy on peoples faces, the food and the smiles and doing the decorating just not so much this year.

I am not a list maker by any stretch of the imagination. But I do have one goal for 2017 and that is offering my Medallion Quilt, you can read more about it here that I designed for my guild in 2015 as a BOM on my blog. The plan is to start mid January with the first months instructions.

Medallion Quilt 2015

I have also been sewing like crazy. We have a wedding on December 28th of a dear friend and I thought I'd like to make a quilt for the couple. Oh and I had 14 days yes you read that correctly from the time of invite to the big day. What in the world was I thinking, or just maybe I wasn't thinking at all.
I quickly came up with a design and set to work gathering fabric, some emergency shopping was necessary. The top is almost together. I am going to need a quick quilting plan to get it done ontime as there may be a big holiday in the middle of my mad rush.
Want to see what I have come up with? Her walls she just painted gray with the end walls a turquoise and she has a charcoal gray chesterfield. Thankfully I decided to make it lap size.

in progress wedding quilt lap size.

Any suggestions for the quilting?

I doubt I'll have time to write another post before Christmas so I wish each of you and your families the joy and love that the holidays can and do bring. Merry Christmas!!

Linking up to Quilting Jet Girls Planning Party I love a good party and this one is great thanks Yvonne.

New Stash Additions

Want to see what made it's way to my house? I'm sure I heard a yes please. Okay here goes.
First up I won a designer scrap bag from Flaun Cline of I Plead Quilty! for my entry into Persimon Dreams Scrap Quilt Challenge. I entered 'Pinky', you can read more about it here.

'Pinky'

These are the winnings. Some strips, and some bigger chunks and those adorable fish that is an 18" piece.

strips

bigger pieces including a couple batiks

fishies 

No real plans for them at this time but one never knows what idea will pop up. I have been thinking about making a string quilt at some point and some of them will perhaps work their way into that.

 I may have done some Black Friday/Cyber Monday shopping.

design wall

This design wall was on sale at Connecting Threads( not an affiliate), for hold onto your seats $1.00. An extra design wall may come in mighty handy, how could I go wrong especially at that price.

local shopping

We also need to support our local quilt shops and I did that with this lovely bunch of fabrics from 'The Quilting Corner' in Simcoe, Ontario. I love the green, of course I love green anyway. They are as follows: green-Maywood Studio, beige-Dowager Countess from Andover Fabrics, blue-Mary's Blenders by Mary Koval, gold-Northcott, beige print- Bees'n Blooms from Moda, red-Northcott, red leaves by Kona BayFabrics

Linking up to Molli Sparkles Sunday Stash

Quilting Decisions

Quilt top sandwiched and in the ditch stitching done, now what. This is were the indecision starts, how do I want to quilt it or better yet what does the quilt itself want.

top waiting to be turned into a quilt

Supplies all gathered, I spent over an hour looking for that ruler toe foot. I rearranged some of my quilting things and of course I moved that foot. You know where, that place where it is easy to find and you can put your finger right on it. Yeah right...sure. NOT!! Note to self quit rearranging things, leave well enough alone.

supplies gathered, dove(2600) on machine ready to go

I use clear wrapping rolls from the dollar store to test draw possible quilting designs. They don't take up much room are 36 inches long a nice size when test drawing designs.

swirls????

or maybe?

swirls and lines??

Sandra of mmmquilts thought of radiating lines or swirls. How about a combo of the two? I do think this quilt is finally starting to speak to me.

I need to order another spool of Aurifil 2600, it is my go to colour. I am in luck Craftsy is having a Black Friday sale. (These are affliate links) 

Class Offer: $17.99 USD or less on all Craftsy classes

Supplies Offer: Up to 70% off Quilting and Sewing project kits & supplies

Aurifil Thread

 I'm going to try out some Boundless fabric.

Boundless fabric

 Did you do any on-line shopping from the comfort of your home?

Quilt Tops

When your mind is a jumble what do you turn to? Me it's simple I sew and sew I have done. I made three quilt tops for my guilds charity Ronald MacDonald House.

First up is the strip top. This one was started after my regular guild meeting, some of the members stayed and worked on the charity quilts. It is always fun, some people sew, some cut others press and of course there may be some laughter thrown in along the way.
I opened a bag of strips and just started sewing them together. They were all different sizes and some were not straight.

varying size strips

 I then cut them into 10 x 10 squares to straighten them up. I had 5 blocks done and more strips to go when I came home. I put them up on the design wall to decide on a layout, wish I would have taken pictures but never thought about it. I had enough strips to make three 10 inch rows with a couple 2 1/2'' strips to sew in between then. I then decided to frame the center and am glad I did as I think it brings it all together. I used a 1 1/2'' dark grey strip and then a 2 1/2'' strip followed by another 1 1/2'' strip.

42 1/2'' x 40 1/2''

For the next two I raided my stash. I had put some fabric aside that I knew I wasn't going to use for myself when I straightened things up the last time. It is a must, the cleaning up part, as once in awhile there may be a mess of stuff laying all over. I pulled a print and then found a solid that worked.

I had a little over a yard of each. I wanted something simple and easy so I made 6 1/2'' HST's. I had 50 HST's when I was done and just started playing around with layouts in EQ7. These are the ones I settled on. The first one uses 30 HST's.

39'' x 32 1/2''

That left 20 HST's and the second layout. I had a few strips left over, but the not enough of the print to make a complete border. An addition of the leftover solid and the border came together.

32'' x 30 1/2''

The last top I worked on is one I'm writing a pattern for. This one needs a name. Any ideas for one?

nameless

The next step for nameless is the testing stage.

Non Quilting Topic - Retinoblastoma

I don't normally share personal stuff on my blog, but am making an exception this time. This past week has been a whirlwind. It all started out innocently enough our daughter took her youngest son in for a routine eye exam, it quickly became a nightmare. 

Brandon 

In less than a week this cute little 3 year old went from what we thought was healthy to having been diagnosed with Retinoblastoma in his left eye. Two days later we were at the Ivy Eye Institute in London. The next morning his parents were on their way with him to Sick Kids in Toronto. He has had surgery and the doctors removed his left eye on Thursday.

Brandon with his brother and sister

It feel on my hubby and I to try and explain what was happening to their little brother without using the 'C word. This is one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do and never want to do again!

 They have been hanging out at grandma and grandpas the past 4 days. One thing I have found out taking care of a 6 and 9 year old is exhausting, this grandma isn't as young as she thought.

I wasn't sure if I was going to post this next picture or not. 

Our daughter and SIL wanted to make sure that Brandon's brother and sister knew that he was okay, so off to Toronto we went with them. It is roughly a 2 hour drive when the traffic is good, it took us 3 hours to get there. I am glad we did take them as both his older siblings did feel better and had a chance to talk to a social worker at Sick Kids.

after surgery

He is to get the eye patch off today and a temporary eye in place. He will to be fitted for a prosthetic eye in 6 weeks. 

Hopefully he comes home today.

Please if you have young children or grandchildren have their eyes checked ASAP.

Mini Round Robin Finish - 'Oops and Friends'

one round robin mini patiently waiting for quilting

You can read about how 'Oops' came to be here, Sandra of mmmquilts first round here, Tish of Tish's Adventures in Wonderland round here and last but not least Julie of Pink Doxies round here.

Once I sandwiched my Mini Round Robin quilt, it was full steam ahead. With no clear plan I put it under my domestic machine's foot and just started it felt so right, isn't that the way with friends. It seemed to flow as I went.

ahh a finish

In the center I echoed the star then did some meander stitching in the grey to make the star pop a little. I maybe should have used a smaller meander to make it pop more. In the seminole blocks of both Sandra's and Julie's round I again did some echoing. I also echoed the star points that Tish did extending the star into the black corners that Sandra added. I love feathers, and quilted them in the black rectangles that Tish added in her round. To finish it up I did some paisley's in the darker purple outer rectangles of Julie's round.

hanging out in the garden

The back shows the quilting much better than anything I can describe.

the back is an Andover grey print

I used two colours of Aurifil thread, black and dove for the quilting. Dove is one of my favourite colours of Aurifil thread.

The label

Every quilt needs a label, whether it is written right on the back or attached. 

one more look at 'Oops and Friends'

This piece holds a very special place in my heart, it helped four friends become one. 

Thank you Sandra, Tish and Julie for helping 'Oops' grow up and for being the best of friends!!!

The Not List

I am horrible with lists. I can make a list with all the best intentions, but and that is a big BUT I never seem to follow them. I start out good, stroke number one off the list and that is as far as it gets. That's not to say I don't like things organized, because I most certainly do, just not lists.

I have a few things I'm working on and in no particular order and NOT on any list, they are as follows.

For my guild meeting tomorrow, we are doing an applique demo. I will be bringing my sewing machine and demoing machine applique. I usually do a blanket stitch with invisible thread. Unless I am using the 'Crafted Applique' method by Lara of Buzzin Bumble, then I sometimes do a straight stitch.

I designed a sunflower pattern in EQ7 for my guild members, and then touched it up in my graphics program. I am going to get better at using EQ, can't learn the program if I don't use it. Right?

Next up on my not list is to finish writing up the pattern for this quilt. I have 3 blocks left to make. More on this one later.

Pattern writing in progress rather slowly I might add

I have been trying to decide how to quilt my round robin mini. Not a single idea, I haven't even sandwiched it yet. I think that may be up next. You can read more about it hear.

round robin mini

Mother nature continues to play games with us in South western Ontario, it is October 16th and I am wearing my shorts, we continue to have humidity. It is going to feel like 26 Celsius today. Although I do enjoy being able to see the beauty of nature that surrounds me, especially when my world has been turned upside down. My roses are still blooming but I do have a glimpse of fall in my tulip tree.

rose just starting to open

white rose bud wish you could smell the lovely fragance

Tulip tree leaves starting to change colour

 If you want the pattern for the Sunflower Applique it is available for free in my Craftsy store.

Speaking of Craftsy they are holding a fall sale on supplies. This post contains affiliate links.

Hope you are able to enjoy a glimpse of nature around you.

Bloggers Quilt Festival Second Entry

My second entry in the Quilters Blogger Festival is another BOM that I just finished designing for my quild. I am entering it in the applique quilt category. I am especially proud of this quilt and what it represents. You can read the full blog post here along with a little Canadian history.

Canada birthday quilt

When I was designing and making the blocks I kept thinking of the various symbols that are Canadian. I think I succeeded in representing those symbols.

Bloggers Quilt Festival

Amy  of Amy's Creative Side is running the Quilters Bloggers Festival. My entry of a quilt in the large quilt category is Pinky you can read more about it here.

Pinky

I made this quilt as a result of making extra blocks when I ran my guild's BOM last year. You can read about my medallion quilt here and here. I didn't want to make two of the same quilt even in different colour ways. 

Medallion BOM quilt

Pinky now graces one of my granddaughters bed.

Guild BOM for 2016

I  designed my guild's BOM last year and am at it again this year. I wrestled with a few ideas and wasn't sure what I was going to design. Last year I designed the Medallion Quilt you can read about that here and here and some examples made by my guild members here.

 Inspiration finally struck! In 2017 Canada celebrates her 150th Birthday, I thought it would be nice to design something celebrating her birthday. I thought something that depicted Canada would be nice.

Maple leaf

The maple leaf is recognizable as a Canadian symbol and flies proudly on the Canadian Flag since 1965.

Hockey

Ice hockey is the official national winter sport of Canada. It defines Canada like nothing else does. It started on a frozen lake as early as 1825.

mountains and moose

The Canadian Rockies are a system of multiple ranges of mountains which run from the Canadian Prairies to the Pacific Coast. Much of the range is protected by national and provincial parks.

Another Canadian symbol is the moose which represents the country's native wildlife. A bronze statue can be found in the Canadian Paliament's House of Commons. It is also featured on the coat of arms of the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador, and Ontario.

 Lake Erie and a lighthouse in Port Dover

Canada has about seven per cent of the world's renewable freshwater. The Great Lakes basin, is the world's largest freshwater lake system. The five great lakes are Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. I have been to all 5 of them and live near Lake Erie.

CN Tower in Toronto and the Beaver

The CN Tower is a 553.33 m-high concrete communications and observation tower in downtown Toronto, Ontario near the northern shore of Lake Ontario . Constructed in 1973 and completed in 1976 it was the tallest building in the world until 2010 and is now the third tallest building in the world. 

Rogers Centre, originally named SkyDome, is a multi-purpose stadium situated just southwest of the CN Tower and is home to the Blue Jays. It opened in 1989.

The national animal of Canada is the beaver. It became an official symbol in 1975 but was used as early as 1678 on the Hudson Bay Company's coat of arms.

Parliament Buildings in Canada's Capital Ottawa

Canada’s Parliament Buildings are home to the federal government in Ottawa. Designed in a gothic revival style, the buildings officially opened on 6 June 1866, about a year before Canada's Confederation.

The Parliament Buildings in Ottawa are a visually striking complex of buildings located on a promontory overlooking the Ottawa River.

Following Confederation in 1867, the newly opened Parliament Buildings became the heart of the Canadian government and a national symbol. 

They are composed of three blocks, the Centre Block and the East and West Blocks are to each side of the Centre Block and create a public plaza facing the city's urban core. The surrounding open grounds are interspersed with monuments of important political figures who helped shape Canada.

All the parts as one 'Canada'

I didn't mean for this post to turn into a history lesson, but there you have it a few facts about this great country I proudly call home.

the back

A couple pictures showing the stitching on the back.

close up of the stitching on the back

The finished quilt is actually a wall hanging measuring 36'' by 36''. I used the 'Crafted Appliqued' method for all the applique you can read more about Lara's of BuzzinBumble method here.

Thank you Sandra of mmm!quilts for testing the blocks.