Christmas Shows and Gifts

It has been quite some time since I have posted a new blog. I went right from summer with no internet to getting ready for Christmas shows.

I have made several items to sell at the Christmas shows I am doing, but I have also made this diaper bag for a friend of one of my daughters who is expecting twins any time now.

I made a bag this style for Christine and she loves it. It has several convenient pockets on the inside as well as lots of other space. It's a large enough bag to travel for a week with it.

I had fun making this bag as well as Christine's. It makes me think that I should be making more of them for the shows that I am doing. 

                                                                             

Where has summer gone?

Summer was busy and I spent time at the cottage where we have no internet so I was unable to post. 

I made a quilt for Leah. She buys one from me every summer. This year she wanted a flannellette frayed edge quilt in shades of blues and greens. She loves the quilt and so do I.  What do you think?

Leah's Quilt

I will be participating in the North Frontenac Back Roads Studio Tour so I have been sewing and quilting several  hours a day. I am anxious to complete projects so I can post pictures of them.

All this and time at the Cottage

 

 I have been real busy lately. Betty and I have our artisan shop up and running again after a three year waiting period. We were unable to find a suitable location for the past few years after our lease agreement expired on our previous location and the owners sold it.  Betty and I have lots of our own creations for sale at the shop as well as having twenty other artisans who have placed their items for consignment at the shop. We have 2 artists who paint, 2 photographers, stained glass, fused glass, lots of knit, crocheted and sewn items as well as jewellery. I spend 2 or 3 days a week working at the shop and use that time to create new items.

July's Block of the Month from Quilt Doodle Designs

 

I have completed the July portion of the Mystery quilt that was designed by Cindy at Quilt Doodle Designs. It is a row of ste

aming mugs. I love hot drinks. They just seem so comforting and are a great way to warm up when there is a chill in the air.. They are so much more enjoyable when they are shared with a friend or family member, especially if there is laughter. I think that these hot steamy mugs would look on a table topper too. What do you think?

 

Quilt Doodle Designs Block of the Month for June

It is getting close to the end of the month but I have completed the June portion of the quilt.
It was fun to make these hockey skates, but a little odd to be thinking of winter sports when it is hot and muggy here. I'm not complaining though. After the cold and long winter we had it is great to be getting outdoors more and even getting into the lake.

 I am not a skater and never have been, but I do appreciate the skill and strength of the skaters, especially those who do figure skating. When I was a kid Saturdays in the winter were saved for "Hockey Night in Canada" even though we watched it on a 17 inch black and white t.v.

                                                   Hockey does represent winter well.

A New Focus

Traveling by car to British Columbia has offered some extra quilting time. I know that most people wouldn't even attempt this because of the possibility of motion sickness and the small confined space. I decided to take my "House Hunting " quilt along and my small lap frame so I could put the time to good use. During the 6 day drive I managed to get the center of the quilt hand quilted. Before leaving home I heavily basted the quilt to make sure there was no shifting of fabric. I am happy with how this turned out. We'll see just how much that I can accomplish on the trip back home.

  

While in B.C. I helped Christine with the quilt she is making for herself. We also made burp cloths, swaddling blankets, and cloth wipes.

 

1 row of Christine's quilt

 

                           Burp cloths and swaddling blankets

Most of my time was taken up with Charlotte as well as helping Christine and Philip with meals and chores.

My Fir Tree

I have made the block for May for Quilt Doodle Designs block of the month. It is a fir tree. If you have a cabin in the woods you probably have more than one tree in your yard. Maybe this perfectly shaped fir tree will be a future Christmas tree. This  was a fun block to make.  I can't help but wonder if there will be a snowman next to this tree.

 

April Projects

I made a baby quilt called "Peekaboo Monkey".  I first saw this pattern in a quilting magazine. I love the bright colours and am reminded of a few childhood songs that would be fun to teach a child such as "Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" and "Monkey See and Monkey Do".  I wanted to make one. I have pieced this quilt but still need to quilt it. I will use a crosshatch pattern and hand quilt it.

Quilt Doodle Design Block of the Month

The project for April was to complete a row of stars. Everyone who spends time at a  cabin in the woods  needs shining stars to wish upon.

I also finished hand quilting a quilt for a friend but forgot to take a picture of it before she picked it up.

March Projects

March did not bring spring with it, but I have had a rough month of catching the flu and other viruses.

Needless to say I am anxious for a change in the weather.

I have made curtains for our living room. We've been in this house for 5 1/2 years now and I finally found fabric that I like. We don't really need curtains since we havle no neighbours and live in the woods, but it's nice to have the extra colour. Both Richard and I are very happy with them.

I completed the "Fun and Done" baby quilt that I was working on last month.

I grew a tree. The March block of the month from Quilt Doodle Designs  was a big tree. It will go next to the cabin that was made last month. That's really appropriate because at our summer cottage we have a large cedar tree that shades the cottage nicely on hot summer days. "Come on warm weather".

 

February's Projects Completed

This past month has been quite a busy one for me. I made a table runner and am now working on a crib quilt, both "quilt as you go" with the "batting buddy"  rulers. I will be doing a demo of this ruler and the technique for using it at the next quilt guild meeting.

 My friend Betty and I planned a craft show and sale for the Frontenac Heritage Festival.  Throughout the weekend  we organized several different demonstrations. I showed how to do pin weaving using ribbon, for a cushion front. I completed this project a few days later.

    I have also finished a crib quilt for my first  grandchild. My daughter requested that it have turquoise in it. I have finished machine quilting it and just need to tack down about half of the binding.

February's Block of the Month from Quilt Doodle Designs

I have been having fun with this block of the month program. Last month we created a row of snowman faces. This month we built a cabin. Some snowflakes will be added during one of the future months. They will be made using yo-yo's. That will be a new skill for me but I think that

they will be a perfect embellishment for this "Chilly Silly Snowman Quilt".  I wonder if  Cindy knew  that we would need to have some fun with the weather during this icy snowy winter???

Quilt Doodle Designs- January Block of the Month

 I love block of the month programs and mystery quilts. This quilt in process is a block of the month designed by Cindy Staub of Quilt Doodle Doodles. It's also a mystery quilt because participants will not know what the completed quilt will look like until it is sewn together. Cindy loves snowmen and excels in "cuteness" with her creativity. I'm sure that you will agree that these snowmen are adorable.

I had a lot of fun making this section of the quilt and I love the fabric that I have chosen. I have just finished it in time for the deadline of the end of the month.

    A Truly Canadian Quilt

This quilt is one that I made last year with members of the quilt guild. It was a lot of fun to make, especially choosing what to include in my quilt. It is a sofa size quilt so I chose to use flannelette to make it extra cosy for winter evenings. I machine quilted it on a domestic sewing machine ( my first attempt at machine quilting). It was a lot of fun to do and I especially enjoyed free motion quilting. I hope that you can see in the pictures the tree bark including knot holes, the moose fur and the tree branches. I choose to do the background in a cross-hatched pattern. I will continue to do machine quilting in the future. It is great to have completed a project.

North of the 49th

Quilt Guild Outreach Quilt _ 2014

The quilt guild that I am a member of donates a quilt to a local  organization  each year to assist in their fundraising endeavors. This year we are making a quilt called "Meet Me at the Manor". It was featured in Quiltmaker magazine September/October of 2010.  Nine members have gotten together twice to work on making blocks. We are having fun and enjoying donating time to this project. The guild paid for the fabric and 3 of our members chose the fabric. I have made 12 "Sawtooth Star" blocks.

The Quilting Journey

Over the past 5 years I have been happily spending a great deal of time quilting. I have been a quilt guild member, have taken many quilting classes, and have learned a lot on my own.  I have led my guild in a mystery quilt, gone on a quilt retreat with 6 of them, and completed many projects (not as many as I have started though). I think it is time to invite you along on the quilt journey. Please check often to see what I am up to. In the meantime enjoy pictures of some of my handiwork.