International Plowing Match

In September, 2010, the International Plowing Match will take place in Central Elgin, on property owned by the St. Thomas airport. A tent city will be erected on the site and thousands of people from all over will descend on the area to take in the plowing competitions, displays, food and events. One large tent will be dedicated to quilting. I plan on entering a few quilts into the competition which will take place on May 28th and 29th at the Southwold Keystone Complex in Shedden. I still have a while to meet the deadline for the quilt competition, however, the deadline for the block competition is today!

I have had the kit to make the block since May 2009 and have been thinking about what I might do with the fabrics provided for months now. This morning, I finally took the material out and made my block. We had to use at least 4 of the 5 fabrics provided and we were not allowed to add any other fabrics. These blocks will be made up into quilts which will be on display at the Plowing Match. If you happen to go to the quilt tent and see the quilts, you can look for my block:
For more information about the International Plowing Match and the Quilt Competitions, please go to www.ipm2010.com.

Just in Time!

This is the fall table runner I made for my MIL for Christmas. The material is from a Moda Fat quarter bundle called "Acorn Hollow". I made a cobblestones quilt using most of the FQ's in this bundle just over a year ago and the squares in the center block were leftovers from that quilt. My MIL was very pleased with her gift and can hardly wait until the fall rolls around again so she can put the runner on her dining room table! Last year for Christmas, I made her a winter table topper which she has on her table right now. My MIL already has a spring/summer table topper that I made her as well. My SIL received the "Figgy Pudding" turnover table runner shown in a previous post for Christmas. We were at her house for supper tonight and she had it out on the island in her kitchen. It warms "the cockles of my heart" when people like the gifts I make for them!!!

Still Sewing

I'm still not finished all of my sewing projects that must be done by the 25th! Yikes! I am running out of time. I have to work almost all day tomorrow too! The above candle mat is for a young woman at my church. I will give it to her tomorrow night at the Christmas Eve church service.

I finished piecing the table runner that I am giving to my MIL tonight. It still needs to be quilted and bound. Guess what I am doing when I get home from work tomorrow? Check back tomorrow for pictures of her finished runner. It is for her dining room table for the fall season. She has runners for the other seasons of the year, but not the fall.

I am a Christmas Gift Machine...

I made this table runner from a Moda Figgy Pudding turnover. This is the first time I have purchased a turnover. The red border fabric is leftover from my Christmas lights quilt in the next post. The red fabric is all gone now--I even purchased extra when I bought it for the quilt so that I could build up my red stash. I guess I will just have to go shopping for more red fabric! This is another Christmas gift. It is getting down to the wire now and I still have quite a few gifts not quite done yet... I guess there will be some evenings at the sewing machine to try to get them finished in time. (Yes--that is the toe of my shoe in the picture...)

Christmas Lights is Done!!!

It has even got a label!!! This quilt was quilted by the quilting man--a quilting friend's husband who has claimed their quilting machine as his own. There are holly leaves and berries quilted on it, which go quite well with the border fabric.
There are no decorations on our tree yet. My daughter just got home from University last night so we are going to decorate the tree all together, maybe tomorrow night. My husband is out at a meeting tonight for work. We bought the rocking chair when my daughter was first born--she turned 18 last week. Where did the time go???? The Christmas tree skirt which I made when we got married 20 years ago will get put around the tree once the decorations are on.

Tired of my Mittens yet???

Another table runner gift! Nancy came over last night and we had a QNIC. I finished off this table runner and pieced and quilted another one--no mittens on this one!!! I have to figure out what to use for binding. Only one week to go until the big day and I still have lots to do. Some of my cards got mailed today. We hope to do some more this weekend. My neices are coming for a sleepover at our house this weekend. We are going to decorate gingerbread trains! They love to sleep in our "special guest" room under one of the quilts that I made. My daughter gets home from university on Sunday. This will be a busy weekend!!!

A Christmas Gift

I am slowly checking off the projects I hope to finish in time for Christmas gift giving! This table runner is for someone at work. I just finished doing the binding and the label. I made some progress on another gift tonight as well, but it is not done yet. My friend, Pat, and I enjoyed a cup of tea together while she knitted a sweater for her grandson and I sewed. Wednesday is my next sewing night. Maybe some friends can come over for QNIC???

An Evening of Sewing

I spent the whole evening at the sewing machine last night. I made progress on a number of projects but only completed a few smaller items. Our quilt guild has challenged each member (there are over 100 of us!) to make two placemats to be given to clients of "Meals on Wheels"--a service that provides hot meals to mostly seniors who may not be able to get out to shop or cook for themselves. I finished my placemats and also made a post card for our post card exchange at the guild meeting on Thursday night. You might notice a theme going on with some of my projects... (Just look back a couple of posts...) I have more gifts underway but no pictures to show yet. Keep checking back... there may be more pictures tomorrow night if I get something done and I'm not too tired to do a post!

Star Hot Pad Class

I took a class with Jacqui this past Wednesday night and learned how to make these round hot pads. I think I am going to give this one to my MIL for Christmas (don't tell!). I am going to put a loop on the back so that she can hang it up in her kitchen. She likes sheep so she should like the fabric! I would like to make a few more before Christmas. I have a long list of projects to finish before Christmas but I am not crossing them off very quickly!!!

Mittens Table Runner

We recently had our backyard landscaped --it was a sea of mud for quite a while as it rained much of the time they were working on it. Our neighbours gave us permission to take out a couple of sections of the fence between our yards so that the bobcat could get into our yard with the dirt, rocks, pavers for the patio, etc. The project is complete now and looks great. The neighbour's fence has been re-installed and the sod has been laid. It all looks so much better now! To thank them for letting us use part of their side yard during the project, I made this table runner for them. I finished it today and we will take it over to their house tonight along with a bottle of wine. Thank goodness for great neighbours!!!

Comfort Quilt Pieced

Tonight, Pat and I got together to put this quilt top together. The blocks were made by members of the Elgin Piecemakers as a tinners project last year. A piece of material was put into a large coffee tin. Each month, a member of the guild got one tin to make one 12 1/2 inch block using some of the focus fabric included in the tin. Each tin had a theme. At the end of the year, there were 16 blocks in each tin and the blocks were sold in a silent auction. I purchased two sets of blocks--garden blocks and basket blocks. pat and I picked out 20 blocks from the two tins that we thought went together. She purchased sashing and I supplied the green corner block material from my stash. The green fabric will also be used for a 5 inch border for the entire quilt. Tonight, I sewed and Pat ironed and cut. She took the top home to add the borders and then it will be taken to the quilting man to be quilted. The members of the guild are all paired up and each pair is making one quilt for cancer patients at our local hospital. We did one set of quilts already and donated them to the hospital back in June this year. Apparently, they have all been given away to the cancer patients and the hospital needs more now. They will soon have 8 more quilts! All of the quilts are to be done for our January meeting show and tell. I will be sure to post pictures of all of the quilts at that time.

Spinning Squirrels and Maggots Quilt Progress!

I went to Jacqui's house last night for a little QNIC (Quilters' Night in Canada) and worked on the borders for my spinning 4 patch--spinning squirrels and maggots quilt. All of the purple blocks are done but I am still working on the blue blocks. Here is a sneak peak at how this quilt is going to look when it is done. I have a piece of the original Australian fabric that I started with to use for the border. Others at QNIC were also working on Spinning 4 Patch quilts--one was done with cat fabrics for the quilter's daughter for Christmas and the other was a charity quilt for cancer patients at our local hospital. This method of cutting and sewing the blocks makes for very interesting quilts!

Christmas Lights Flimsy Done!

Here it is!!! I purchased the fabric for the borders on Friday night at Cherished Pieces in Tillsonburg. I washed the fabric this morning and then put the borders on this afternoon. Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville is starting another mystery, Carolina Christmas, this coming weekend which I hope to make. Christmas Lights is the first Quiltville mystery I have ever done. I do not think I will do this next mystery quilt in Christmas colours. I have to take a look at my stash to see what I can come up with...

I just spoke to the long arm quilter and he has time to quilt this quilt next weekend!!! It will be ready for Advent/Christmas! I bought flannel backing for this quilt which I will have to piece early this week. This quilt will probably live on the back of our couch in the family room for the Christmas season--nice to cuddle up in while watching old Christmas movies with my husband and my daughter, when she gets home for the holidays from university.

I finished my Inchie Ornaments for the swap and they will go out in the mail tomorrow to an address in the USA. I will post a picture when I hear that they have arrived at their destination.

Onto the next projects--table runners which will be Christmas gifts, and two placemats for Meals on Wheels--this is an outreach project for the London Friendship Quilters' Guild. I will post pictures when they are done.

Finish #3

I finished sewing the binding on this wall hanging before my last guild meeting so it was ready for show and tell. Now, I just have to figure out where I am going to hang it. I just love the colours in this quilt! The pattern was from Claudia's Quilts and was a border of month mystery quilt. I still have to take a picture of the last quilt I showed at the meeting.

Last night, my husband and I went to the sale at Cherished Pieces in Tillsonburg where I purchased backings and borders for three more quilts that I have put together recently. No pictures yet but I will blog about them as I finish them. I also bought some Christmas turnovers to make some Christmas gifts. I was at a friend's house the other night working on cutting out some applique pieces for more gifts. Lots to do here in the next few weeks, but I feel like I have a good start on everything.

My First Bag!

Brenda Miller of "Among Brenda's Quilts" fame was the speaker at the London Friendship Quilter's Guild meeting this past Thursday night. She presented a trunk show and the story of her quilt design business. It was a great evening with lots of interesting quilts and bags that she had designed over the years.

Yesterday, she led a workshop for several guild members on her "Out and About Bag". We started sewing at 9am and I did not leave to go home until 4:30pm. Others were still sewing when I left. It was a great day. I had been up late the night before getting all of the cutting out done before the workshop so last night, I was tired, but pleased with the bag that I had made that day. I managed to find everything I needed for the bag in my stash. That is a good thing because I did not have time to go shopping!

I used a charm pack for my flying geese border and the outside pockets of my bag. Brenda's bags are all lined with no raw edges showing. Even the pockets are lined! It takes a little longer but makes for a better bag in the end.There were also pockets inside the bag to keep things such as a pen, cell phone, etc.


Above, you can see the cinch closure at the top of the bag.

And, here is my finished "Out and About Bag":
Thanks for a great day, Brenda!

Ready for Show and Tell!

I just finished the last stitch on the binding of the 4th quilt that I have bound this week, just in time for show and tell at my guild meeting tomorrow night. I got caught up on a lot of old TV shows that we had recorded over the past few nights as I sewed. I will put pictures of the last two quilts on my blog after tomorrow night.

Now, I must get going on the inchie ornament swap and get it in the mail by the end of the month. As well, I need to work on some Christmas gifts. I am also hoping to do the next Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt "Carolina Christmas", although I think I am going to pick a different colour scheme than red, green and gold. I will have to go digging into my stash to see what I can come up with.

2 down, 2 to go!

I am going to call this Mahone Bay Stars--I purchased the fabric in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia at Suttles and Seawinds. Two of the four quilts are now done! I just have two more bindings to finish and I will have 4 items for show and tell on Thursday... That's one per night. I guess I know what I am doing for the next couple of evenings.

Quilt "til You Wilt Report

What a glorious day of sewing! Karen and I were among the first to arrive in the ballroom at a local hotel at 7:52 am. We had our sewing stuff and machines up and running by 8am. 26 quilters spent all day quilting--finishing UFO's, starting new projects, chatting and sharing inspiration and encouragement for each other. We cheered when people held up finished projects! The food was fabulous--pastries, bagels, fresh fruit and yogurt for breakfast, sandwiches, salad, crudites, homemade soup, fruit and squares for lunch and salad, garlic bread, lasagna, pasta primavera and strawberry shortcake for dessert. Pop, water, juice, coffee and tea were available all day. AND, no dishes and cleaning up to do!!! You can check the London Friendship Quilters Guild blog for pictures of everyone's projects.

One of the quilters had this pencil case with her and it says it all:
I brought several projects with me in hopes of finishing them off. First, I machine sewed the binding on three quilts that I recently got back from the long arm quilter:


"The Plan" is to finish hand sewing the binding down by Thursday night so I can bring them to the guild meeting for show and tell. Time will tell...

Next, I finished sewing all the blocks of my Fractured Squares quilt. This has been an ongoing project for several months. It kept getting put aside every time there was another project with an urgent deadline.
I laid out all of the blocks on the floor and then sewed them all together. I did not bring the border fabric with me so I will do that later. I am just glad to have all of the blocks pieced and put together!
I also got a good start on my MIL's Christmas gift--she hinted that she wanted a Fall table runner for her dining room table at Thanksgiving. I did not have all of the fabric with me that I needed to finish it off.
Last, but not least, I worked on the last 12 blocks for my disappearing 9 patch. I did not take any pictures of them but will post a picture when I get the top together.

It was a great day... Karen and I left to go home at 8:15pm. There were still a few others there when we left. We had the room at the hotel until 9pm. By 9:30 pm, I was asleep on the couch at home.

Stay posted for more pictures later in the week as I finish the binding on those 3 quilts.

A Finish!

I put the binding on this little quilt the other night. I have been very busy lately--not much sewing time. I have 3 more quilts to bind before next Thursday night so I will have them ready for show and tell at the London Friendship Quilters' Guild meeting. I will be spending my evening tonight getting ready for Quilt 'til You Wilt tomorrow. It runs from 8am to 9 pm and I have big plans to finish a lot of UFO's!

A Parcel in the Mail

Back in September, I signed up for the Inchie Quilts Christmas Ornament Swap. I have not made my ornaments to send to my swapee yet, but I received mine in the mail this past week, all the way from Texas! They are very nice and I look forward to hanging them on my tree. Charis also sent me a little cross stitch kit and two fat quarters. Thanks Charis!!! I will put a special thank you gift in the mail tomorrow!

In case you did not know, an Inchie is a 1 inch by 1 inch quilt that is often embellished with beads or buttons or embroidery or special quilting. I have never made any Inchies before and thought this would be a good opportunity to give it a try. I am supposed to mail my Inchie Ornaments before the end of November. They are next on my list of sewing projects after I get the binding on the quilts I just got back from the machine quilters. I want to have something to show at show and tell at the next guild meeting...

Workshop: Disappearing 9 Patch

I was at a Disappearing 9 Patch workshop all day on Saturday. As I said in an earlier post, I used leftover flannel from PJ's that I have made for my daughter and my nieces for this quilt. It may look like a hodge-podge of colours, but it has lots of memories in it. I can remember how my daughter looked when she wore each pair!!! The bug fabric in the middle of each block was from the year I made all three girls matching PJ's. Flannel PJ's are so cozy! It takes 30 blocks to make a lap quilt and I managed to finish 18 blocks on Saturday.

I have lots of works in progress at the moment. It's a good thing that our guild has a "Quilt 'til You Wilt" day coming up in a couple of weeks. Maybe I will be able to get some of these UFO's done...

By the way, I finished this year's birthday pj's just in time--I finished sewing on the last button as we turned into their driveway!

Back from the Longarmers...

Earlier this week, I received the phone call I had been waiting for!!!! My quilts that had been at the long arm quilters were done and I could go and pick them up!!! Here are a few sneak peaks at the quilting on some of them. All are custom quilted with designs that the quilting lady and I came up with.

The first one has a beautiful big feather in the middle,

and lovely designs in the borders too. This yellow and blue quilt has an overall pattern in the center section and neat little swirls in the narrow blue border.
This little table topper was made from the leftover triangles from the star quilt above. It too has feathers on it.
The last one has large flowers and leaves, as well as baskets of smaller flowers.
Binding these quilts and getting labels on them is my next sewing goal, after the birthday pj's are made. Speaking of which, I need to go and sew so the pj's are ready for the birthday party this weekend.

Bye for now!

Preparing for a Disappearing 9 Patch workshop

On Saturday, I am going to a disappearing 9 patch workshop that the London Friendship quilters' guild has organized. I am supposed to bring 270 3 1/2" squares with me to make my quilt. At first, I thought this would be a daunting task, but it turned out to be easier than I thought. I have been cutting flannel squares all week. Most of these fabrics are leftovers from PJ's that I have made for my daughter and my twin nieces over the years. My flannel bin was overflowing and I thought this would be a good way to use up some of the bits and pieces. I have cut over 600 squares and my flannel bin is still overflowing!

Christmas Lights Layout Winner

The votes are all tallied. I received some votes via my blog, some by e-mail and others on the quiltvillechat website. Thanks, everyone, for your input!!!

Here are the results:

Option 1- 11 votes

Option 2- 18 votes

Option 3- 35 votes.

I will sew the blocks together using option 3 shortly and will post a picture of my completed top shortly.

Thanks again for your help!

Maggots and Flying Squirrels!

Yes! The title is correct! I went to a quilt class last night at Jacqui's house. She designed a pattern she called the Spinning 4 patch and I went to the class. We were to purchase a large print fabric with 4 repeats. I purchased my fabric at Cherished Pieces in Tillsonburg--it is a wild Australian print with bugs, maggots and flying squirrels on it!! Jacqui wondered if this would be too wild for her pattern...

I cut out all of the squares, and started to sew them together...
WOW!! They look great! I think my "Spinning Squirrels and Maggots" quilt will be very interesting. Jacqui still thinks people should not look too closely at the fabric.

Here are a few close ups of some of the blocks.

And, here is a picture of all of my blocks--32 in all. Now I just have to figure out whether to put them on point or straight with sashing... Check back to see what I decide to do. This project may have to go on the back burner for a while so I can finish "Christmas Lights" and I also need to make some PJ's for my twin neices' birthday gifts.
I will post the final results of the voting on my Christmas Lights settings in my next post.