A Finish and some WIP's

TaDa!  One black and white curvy pillow done! One more pillow to go and it is only just started...This is a graduation gift for one of my twin nieces. The second pillow may not get done on time, but I will try to get the piecing done tonight so that she can at least see that part tomorrow when the family is here for a Canada Day BBQ.

The second pillow also involves curved piecing...I am a glutton for punishment!

While I was outside taking pictures of the pillow, I noticed that my climbing hydrangea is in bloom.

This orange Echinacea is just starting to bloom as well.  I get to look at this plant every time I go in or out the front door--it is right by the front steps.

Today, Christine, Carol and I got together to work on a new project together. This is the centre of our medallion quilt.

Carol and I made some birds and Christine made some maple leaf blocks.

Christine had to go home early so Carol and I continued to sew...

Before Carol left, we made lots of 4 patches which will be put together for the next border...

 

Here is what we have so far...

 

The maple leaves will probably be in the next border...

Here is my stash report for this week:

Fabric used in the last week: 3.0 yards
Total fabric used this year: 105  yards
Fabric added to the stash in the last week: 0 yards
Total fabric added this year: 93.23 yards
Net fabric used this year: 11.77 yards

These numbers always look better when I don't go to the fabric store...


Here is a sneak peak at another WIP  (Work in Progress!) This is a birthday gift for a friend.

The nine patch mystery is still on the design wall and my Sewing Baskets quilt is still awaiting binding...

 

The Elgin Piecemakers had dinner out for our final meeting of the season and three charity quilts (in progress) were displayed at show and tell, much to the amusement of others in the restaurant.  J and J set the red and white blocks on point.

 

This will certainly brighten someone's day!

 

This batik quilt would be great for a man.

 

We handed in our blue and yellow blocks this month. 

 

I am going to make a few blocks this week for Cheryl at "Dining Room Empire" for flood victims in the Calgary, Alberta area. Here is a link to her blog with the instructions on how to make the blocks. Help her to bring comfort to families who have lost their homes and belongings in the floods by making a few blocks. You can leave a message on her blog to get her mailing address for your blocks.

 

Keep Sewing!

Playing with a New Toy

I bought the May/June issue of Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting magazine recently because I saw a quilt with curved seams that I thought looked interesting. The magazine mentioned a "simple curves" ruler that could be used instead of the template in the magazine. I decided to keep an eye out for the ruler when I found myself in a quilt store. If you read my last post, you know that I went shopping and purchased a roll of batting for my next "few" quilting projects last week. As I was looking around the store, I noticed the ruler hanging on the wall next to the other rulers...they only had one left and I bought it!  (ignore the pins in the picture...this is the back of my project after I pin basted it before quilting...)

Last night, I cut into some black and white fabrics, sewed some strips together and cut out some curvy pieces for a pillow which will be a grade 8 grad gift for one of my nieces.

The leftovers look a bit odd, but I will find some way to use them.

I have just started to quilt the pillow top but here is a picture after pin basting but before quilting.

Stay tuned for an after picture sometime this weekend.

Happy sewing.

Moving Right Along...

I have been absent from my blog lately but I have been working away on a few sewing projects in between gardening.

 

My Swoon quilt has been languishing in UFO land for months now because I did not have any batting for it. Finally, this week, I purchased my 3rd roll of warm and natural batting in 3 years...40 yards to the roll. I have already cut a chunk off for Swoon and delivered it to Cathy at Eagle's Wings Quilts for long-arming this morning. We picked thread but I am not sure what design I want quilted on it...I will continue to look at pictures and ideas on the internet and will let Cathy know what I choose.

 

My nieces and I cut this out and sewed most of it together a couple of summers ago and then it languished with some other UFO's until this week when I took it out and finished sewing the last few rows together and completed the top. I found some fabric in my stash for the backing and it also went to Cathy's house today. This one will be donated to Family and Children's services through the London Friendship Quilter's Guild at our September meeting. I have a kit that I purchased last summer for another charity quilt...maybe I will tackle it sometime this summer.

 

Christine and I got together a couple of times since I last blogged and I managed to finish off Step 3 of the Lazy Sunday Mystery by Bonnie Hunter in Quiltmaker magazine. I love to make scrappy quilts--there is always so much to look at with all of the different fabrics. Each piece brings back memories of where it was purchased, or someone who gave it to me.

 

Speaking of purchasing fabric, I have had a couple of shopping trips to quilt stores recently. I try hard to restrain myself but the fabric just calls out to me to be added to my stash!  Here is my stash report for the last couple of weeks:

 



Fabric used in the last 2 weeks: 5.5 yards
Total fabric used this year: 102  yards
Fabric added to the stash in the last 2 weeks: 12.15 yards
Total fabric added this year: 93.23 yards
Net fabric used this year: 8.77 yards

 

A large chunk of the fabric purchased is the backing for my 9 patch mystery so once I finish putting it together, the numbers will look much better!  (I hope!)

 

What is a blog post without a few garden pictures?

 

 

This mini rose was given to me when I was in the hospital for some surgery 12 years ago. I planted it in my garden and it keeps coming back with lots of flowers every year!

 

 

My alliums are in bloom right now. I love the way they sway in the breeze in my front garden.

 

 

I have several clumps of Coreopsis in my front and back gardens and all are in bloom right now.

 

 

This one is called Globe Flower.

 

I have some binding to do this week on my BIQR 2012 quilt--Sewing Baskets. I picked this up from Karen C this week. She did a great job and captured the whimsy that I wanted in the quilting. I will post more pictures once it is bound.

That's it for now. This week, I hope to do some more Boxy Stars soon and get the 9 patch mystery top done so it can be quilted as well. It may take me a week or two to finish off these goals--I have a busy week ahead.

 

Happy Sewing!



Sew Many Projects, Sew Little Time!

 

 

Christine came over to my house on Thursday night this week to work on our Lazy Sunday mystery quilts. We are putting together these blocks for step 3 of this mystery quilt by Bonnie Hunter. After I put the blocks out on the floor and took this picture, I noticed a little unsewing job that needs to be done...can you find it?  I have already done the unsewing but still need to sew the block back together again! Only 8 more of these blocks to put together and then on to the purple and white border units.  This is the only sewing I have done since my last blog post.

 

I have stared longingly at my sewing machine a few times as I am heading out the door to work in the garden...  My husband and I are expanding our front flower beds, adding stone edging and planting some bushes, moving and thinning out the perennials, etc. What a big job!  We have finished off one garden--I added the mulch the other night. The second garden has the stone edging and the bushes are in but we still need to thin out and replant the perennials. We hope to get this job done by the end of next week. It takes a long time when we only have evenings and limited time on the weekends to be outside. In the backyard, my Dad (83 years young) and I have put in the vegetable garden--pole beans, zucchini, peppers, cherry tomatoes (in a pot on the patio), broccoli, kohlrabi and leeks.  My Dad always had a big garden at our house when I was growing up and after I left home but he is not allowed to have a vegetable garden where he lives now so he and I do the veggie garden here. The garden is fenced so that these visitors do not eat everything before we get a chance to do our harvesting!

 

 

 

This cardinal visited the yard the other morning and perched on the top of our gazebo to survey the backyard.

 

 



Here is my stash report.

 

Fabric used in the last 2 weeks: 2.4 yards
Total fabric used this year: 96.5  yards
Fabric added to the stash in the last 2 weeks: 0 yards
Total fabric added this year: 81.08 yards
Net fabric used this year: 15.42 yards

 

If you read my last blog post, you would know that I started making a boxy stars quilt for a family member last week.

 

 

I worked on this quilt at Jacqui's last Thursday night and have 4/12 blocks completed. Friday night, we had a phone call from my husband's cousin to let us know that her Mom had died early that morning unexpectedly. I had hoped to give this quilt to Aunt M in July. Now, it will be completed and given to her daughter in memory of her Mom.