Monday, April 22, 2013

Blogging Break…

I have decided to take a Blogging Holiday…I’m not sure for how long but just need a little time to recharge the ol’ blogging batteries.  I will still be popping in on you all the time, after all once a blog lurker, always a blog lurker…!!:o)

Before I go…I need to share a picture with you…(this is after all a quilting blog)!!

My daughter, the quilter, :o)))) finished off another raw edged appliquéd runner…this time for herself!! 

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Dang sweet!!  And doesn’t it look cute on her orange chair!  Yup…she definitely has the quilting bug!!  And I am lovin’ it!

You can find the FREE tutorial HERE!!…You could whip one up for yourself or for your mom…Mother’s Day is just around the corner…trust me, SHE will absolutely LOVE IT!! 

You take care and hope you get to enjoy some sunshine today…it’s a gorgeous SUNNY day here on our little island!

Have a magical Monday and Happy Quilting!~P

Saturday, April 20, 2013

My Daughter…the QUILTER!!!

My daughter…THE QUILTER…ohhhh that has such a sweet ring to it!   Yup, I can officially say that my daughter is a QUILTER (insert heavenly music here) because LOOK at what I received in yesterday’s mail!!!  A quilted runner…a dang cute quilted runner…made by her own little hands!!

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How lucky am I…to not only have a quilting daughter… but to have a quilting daughter who makes such lovely things for her mama!  Look, it’s raw edge appliqué in French General fabric…LOVE IT!!P1230189   This is her second project but her first official FINISHED project!  The first project is now a UFO…yup…already taking after her mama!!

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Erin’s inspiration for this runner came from reading Pine Needles Blog!  OMGosh…it just dawned on me…that makes her a Blog Lurker!  She really is a chip off the ol’block, isn’t she!!

This from the girl who had no interest in needle and thread or in the sewing machine while growing up!!  None…no way…no how!! 

P1230190You know what they say…Never say NEVER…P1230188 

I say, why fight it…it’s in her genes!!  heehhee

I love it Erin!  It exceeded my wildest expectations!!  (Mind you I was still thinking styrofoam Christmas ornaments and clay sunflower teapots…both of which I cherish dearly!!)  BUT your calling is definitely leaning towards quilting…you are a natural!!  Keep ‘em coming!!:o)))

Geeze that’s TWO quilty gifts in two days…you’d think it was my birthday or something! 

Have a Super Saturday and Happy Quilting!~P

Friday, April 19, 2013

Thanks you, Claire!

Nothing is more special than to receive a hand made gift… I think we quilters know this better than anyone!  I mean think of all the time, thought, labour, not to mention the money that goes into a project…So imagine my surprise when I unwrapped this gift from Claire! 

The sweetest dang lamb mat EVER…from one woolie to another!

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Absolutely adorable!!  Would you believe that Claire even hand dyed the wool herself!!  Love that mottled gold in the background…and the pale beige stars pull this whole piece together!P1230184

Love the lamb right down to her sweet little toes! And look at those wee itty-bitty stitches…you probably can’t see them they are so small!

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Claire took the 4” needle punch pattern ‘Star Lamb’ by Teresa Kogut, expanded it and created this wonderful mat…just for ME!

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Now I need to find the perfect place to hang my little lambikins!  Someplace that will scream LOOK AT ME…aren’t I cute?!

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Because really, there is nothing sweeter than a hand made gift!

Thanks SEW much, Claire!!  I love it!


Have a Fun Friday and Happy Quilting!~P

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Heritage Happenings….

I am happy to report that the Heritage Quilters are alive and well and have been having WAY too much fun without ME!!

See for yourselves…

Gorgeous Spring quilts in the making…

P1230152  Yup…this quilt couldn’t get any happier if it tried!!P1230154 I love the fine satin stitch around each flower petal and swirl…

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And this quilt is made from a panel.  The little motifs were cut off in circle shapes from a panel and placed like balloons floating across the sky…very sweet!

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Here’s a closer look….

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Mug rugs seem to be the rage right now…here’s one that Vicki made out of wool…

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And the same pattern made out of cotton…SEW CUTE!

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This beauty was getting prepped for hand quilting!!

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I love the way the colours fade into each other!

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Someone..or perhaps a group of quilters got together and made a gazillion of these blocks…

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They made enough blocks to put together over ten charity quilts!  Which just proves..many hands make light work!

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Hazel’s been busy too…she whipped up this magnificent quilt for a wedding gift for her nephew and his new wife…

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…and just LOOK at her quilting!! Gorgeous!  Hazel has bought herself a NEW LONG arm and is in the process of selling her MID ARM…if you live in the area and are interested in buying it, give me a shout and I will hook you two up!!!  Has she got a deal for YOU!!

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This quilter took a panel and cut it up and put it back together again!!  Very effective!

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I LOVED this Civil War beauty!!  Absolutely stunning!

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You NEED to see the fabrics up close and personal…and while you are at it, check out that wonderful quilting!!  The icing on the cake!

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And look what they FOUND in the back room where we keep the fabrics for charity quilts!  Amazing!  No one fessed up to making it but Hazel generously volunteered to quilt it…this will become a charity quilt..if no one claims if first!!!

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Sew you see…they had WAY TOO MUCH FUN!!  But that’s OK…because they’ve got all kinds of fun planned for the coming months!  Looks like Sandy, Heritage Judy and I came back just in the nick of time!! :o)))

Have a thrilling Thursday and Happy Quilting!~P

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Thanks Bonnie!

I am a Bonnie Hunter fan!!  Pure and simple!  Love her patterns, love the way she is so generous with her time and ideas and love the way she pokes around Thrift Shop!  A gal after my own heart!

So when Bonnie tossed out the idea to use clear textured Nexcare surgical tape on the back of your rulers to prevent slippage, bells and whistles went off!!

I wasn’t sure whether I could buy this tape in Canada so I went right out and bought some before we left Southern California!

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Before I go any further…I need to back up a bit….

I really wanted/ NEEDED a Block Loc Ruler to make trimming half square triangles easier..it’s the square ruler with the groove down the middle…(you put the groove over the seam and it locks the HST tight so that it won’t shift and the ruler won’t rock which makes squaring up these blocks so much easier).  Of course none of the three thousand Quilt Shops that I had visited had one!!

So when Bonnie mentioned Nexcare on the back of rulers…I had an idea…why not try to make my own squaring up ruler!

Do you see how I placed the tape on the back of my square ruler…1/4” on either side of the diagonal line and two small pieces in the corners!

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Here’s another view…

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Does it work…?? 

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It sure does!!  The Nexcare strips forms the groove and by placing the smaller ones on the side you get no rocking!

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Bring on those Half Square Triangles!!  I’m ready for YOU!

THANKS, BONNIE…add to that list…I love how SMART you are!!

Have a Wicked Wednesday and Happy Quilting!~P

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Finished Projects…

The back of the truck finally got unpacked yesterday and with that came out my other finished projects…well ‘almost’ finished projects!

This Maggie Bonanomi project is called ‘Butternut House’ and is all stitched except for where that pin is…would you believe that with three inches to go, I ran out of green thread!!  So I have to do that and then decide whether it will be a big pillow or a wall hanging for over the bed.      P1230176 P1230177 P1230178 P1230179

On the last day of travel I fished this little project out…it was a FREE pattern from Scrap, Stitch and Quilt Blog.  I got the birdhouse and leaves stitched.  Now onto the snowman and special effects, which just may have to wait until our next trip down!

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I was very pleased with the projects completed while driving down and back this year!!  Remember this is dead time..normally spent back seat driving, sucking in breath, stomping on my imaginary brake, and telling my hubby how to drive!!  By stitching on projects, everyone is happy…especially hubby! 

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Ooops…there is one little guy MIA!!  I wonder where I tucked him??

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I guess everything in the RV hasn’t been unloaded after all!!

The hunt is on!!

Have a terrific Tuesday and Happy Quilting!~P

Monday, April 15, 2013

Homespun Baskets…

On the weekend, Sandy and I went to another Quilter’s Estate Sale.  When Sandy showed me the package of sweet little Homespun Baskets that she found in one of the bins, I KNEW that I needed to make some of my own to help her with the pattern!  You see, inside the Ziploc bag there were six sweet baskets and enough Homespun to finish off the quilt…but NO PATTERN!

Remember that Sandy is a fairly new quilter and she really needs a pattern…so I generously snatched offered to take two finished baskets home with me so that I could refer to them when I wrote up a pattern for us her!  It’s what friends do…right?

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Easy to do…measure and add that scant 1/4” for seams…and done!

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Now we she has a pattern to finish off her quilt…

I even put the handle template onto clear plastic so that we she would have an easier time placing the handle.  Such a good friend!  So why do I have TWO handles…?

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Ummmm…welllll…I made two just in case Sandy should lose one!  Yah…I thought she needed a back up handle and I will keep it for her and store it in a safe place…with an extra copy of the pattern just in case she should lose the original!   Yup..that’s what good friends do! :o)))

And just to make sure that the instructions are correct I tested them out…

I cut out the templates…P1230139

Then I cut out the fabric…I hadn’t unpacked my rotary cutter so I had to use my paper rotary cutter…what a mess!!  New rule…always use the proper tools!

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I could have trimmed this better using my teeth!

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Then I pinned on the bias handle and hand appliqued…

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And done…! 

Good thing I did a test run…the handle needs to be thinner and placed higher…but all in all, the shape is good!!

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So I will tweak the handle pattern and it will be good to go! 

I really NEED to unpack stuff so that doing things like this would be a lot easier!  But when the urge hits…you got to go with it!

Have a magical Monday and Happy Quilting!~P

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Not all FUN and GAMES!

As a Canadian Snowbirder, I really do not enjoy the long drive home!  I am a nervous passenger…It’s those FREEWAYS…YIKES!  Drivers weaving in and out…huge trucks barreling passed! I put my head down, focus on my project and stitch like crazy!!  By the time we reached home, I had Band-Aids on my fingers…BUT I DID manage to finish off THREE…almost FOUR wool projects!!
I  already showed you my finished ‘Summertime’ blocks by Primitive Gatherings…well, here is my second finished project “Snowy Days” by Heart to Hand!

The blocks are basically done…except for what I call the ‘special effects’…like vines, French knots and outlining.  That was just too difficult to do in a bumping, jiggling truck!P1230045

You get the idea…and I think you will agree…DANG CUTE!

P1230046   I don’t think that I have ever met a snowman that I didn’t love!

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And this one is no exception!!  Love it!! 

Sew…now I need to finish the special effects stitching, sew these blocks together and then add some decorative stitches on the seams! 

I just remembered that the other two project tubs are still in the back of the truck…waiting to be unpacked!  Hey, Rome wasn’t built in a day.  I will do that today and take some pictures! 

It’s so nice to come home with some finished work!  It just proves that my time down south wasn’t all fun and games!  :o)))

Have a SUNNY Sunday and Happy Quilting!~P