Snow Day! Sew Days!

When I looked out the window this morning, this is what I saw!  My husband did not believe me so I took a picture and showed it to him!  We spent much of the day outside, digging out the driveway. We can't go anywhere because the snow plough has not been down our street yet, but at least the driveway and path to the door is clear.

Do you see the red square above the door on our garden shed?  Here is a closer look in a different season:

Our shed quilt!

My husband and I (with some help from a friend's son) put in the flagstone landing zone in front of the shed in the spring.

After the shovelling was done, I did some sewing. I spent all day yesterday at a Quilt 'til You Wilt day with the London Friendship Quilters' guild and so lots got done this weekend. My Christmas projects are coming along nicely and should be done in plenty of time for the big day. I would rather make gifts than go shopping in a crowded mall any day!

This lap quilt is a gift for someone who does not read my blog. The colours look better in real life! The pattern is called Trimming the Tree by Sharon Holland. 

The Kaffe fabric was my colour inspiration for this quilt.  The batik background has been in my stash for years and is now just about all gone. I even had enough for the back! This quilt is made entirely from my stash so my stash report is looking good this week.

Fabric used in the last week: 9.7 yards

Total fabric used this year: 202.76  yards

Fabric added to the stash in the last week: none
Total fabric added this year: 151.66 yards

Net fabric used this year: 51.1 yards

I have some binding to do tonight while I watch TV. I will sleep well tonight with all that shovelling and fresh air today.

I need to get this pumpkin thrown into the composter. I am a bit mixed up with my seasons at the moment. I changed my header photo to make my blog more seasonal!  Have a good week!

Weekly check in

I had some time this afternoon to make this cloth book for my cousin's new grand-daughter. I keep a few cloth book panels in my stash so I can quickly make a baby gift. This panel was purchased at one of the quilt stores we visited while on our way to the Beaver Island Quilt Retreat in September.  I will also be making the baby a pillowcase, as I have done for all the children (up to age 25) in that family. I include a bit of fabric from my grandmother's stash in each pillowcase.

This pillowcase is a Christmas gift. I am fairly certain that the recipient does not read my blog!  She likes horses.

The members of the Elgin Piecemakers were challenged by one of our members to each make a pillowcase for the local homeless shelter for our November meeting. Here is my pillowcase. I am hoping to find a bit of time to make another one before our meeting next week.

 

The London Friendship Quilter's guild met this past week. I have signed up for a Quilt 'til you Wilt day that has been planned for this coming Saturday. It runs 9am to 9pm and I hope to be very close to finishing off some Christmas gifts by the end of the day. Cathy, Christine and Carol and I will be sewing up a storm!  Tonight, I have some hand-stitching to do on some binding. No pictures yet--sorry.

 

My stash report for this week is not too bad...

 

 

Fabric used in the last week: 6.15 yards   

Total fabric used this year: 193.06  yards
Fabric added to the stash in the last week: 5.25yards (mostly already used up!)
Total fabric added this year: 151.66 yards

Net fabric used this year: 41.4 yards

 

 

My husband just made supper and it smells delicious!  Time to go and eat!

Great Aunt Sarah's Sewing Box

Recently, my MIL gave me my husband's Great Aunt Sarah's sewing box.  Aunt Sarah died in 1977 so this box has been in the closet, untouched, for a long time. 

 

 

There is lots of tape on the outside of the box. Great Aunt Sarah labeled the box herself... "Odds and ends of spools of thread".

 

 

 

I wonder what treasures I will find in here???  (Thankfully, no cigars!)

 

 

 

 

Lots of old wooden spools of thread in various weights and colours...

 

 

 

 

There were a couple of spools of invisible thread, including the one in the picture below.

 

 

I had not heard of this brand of thread before.  Belding Corticelli thread was manufactured in Montreal, Canada and three factories in the US. You can read more about this company and the way they housed their employees  here.

 

 

I also found a few upholstery pins, two thimbles--one plastic and one metal, a measuring tape and a very fine crochet hook,



 

some elastic, ribbon, a zipper and some lace,

 

Snap fasteners and two unopened packages of "flexilace".  I remember my Grandmother's dresses had this on the hems of the dresses her dressmaker made for her.

 

 

 

 

Buttons, most of which were taken off clothes that were being discarded or used for other purposes, (maybe quilts???)

 

 

This was an interesting find...

 

It is a spool holder with a cutting blade on the outside.

There's a hole in the top for the thread to go through...

In the bottom of the box, some Christmas wrapping paper!

I have not done a stash report for quite a while.  I have been doing lots of sewing, none of which I can show you until after Christmas. Here is my stash report:

Fabric used in the last 4 weeks: 4.0 yards  plus 50 yards cleaned out of my stash! 

Total fabric used this year: 186.91  yards
Fabric added to the stash in the last week: 5.5yards

Total fabric added this year: 146.41 yards

Net fabric used this year: 40.5 yards

 

Until next time....

 

 

 

 

Catching up

This quilt came home with me from our last London Friendship Quilters' guild meeting. It needed to have the binding sewn on...which I have now finished. This quilt will be donated to Quilts of Valour--quilts for injured soldiers. Our guild has made several quilts for QOV over the last couple of years. We each signed the lighter blocks to show our appreciation to the soldier who will receive this quilt.

 

The Elgin Piecemakers continue to work on quilts for adult chemo patients at our local hospital. The colours for October were brown, beige and green. Here are our blocks:

 



Two more quilts were on display too:

The binding is not quite finished on this one!

I am working away on the borders for Bonnie Hunter's Lazy Sunday Mystery.  There is some progress on Christmas gifts too.

On Thanksgiving weekend, our extended family had a chance to go for a hike in the woods on a beautiful sunny day.

It was a perfect day for pictures!

I spent a few days in St. John's, Newfoundland in mid October for a conference for work. I had an afternoon to walk around and take a few pictures on the day I arrived. ---Another glorious sunny day!

I walked around old St. John's and admired the colourful Jelly Bean houses.

I see some quilt inspiration in these houses...

BIQR 2013: Gwen's Show and Tell

One of the highlights of BIQR for me is Gwen's lecture/show and tell on Wednesday morning. This year, our theme was "Looking Forward" and Gwen picked some of her favourite quilts to show us.

Someone once told her that the borders should be in scale with the piecing. She obviously disagreed!

Simple piecing with a few rogue blocks.

Lots of baskets...love the handles!

Red baskets with dancing handles.

More applique, completed while travelling. The quadrants are not all the same.

 

Another wonderful two colour quilt.

 

 

Gwen's first liberated star quilt.

 

 

A more recent liberated star quilt. I love how the on point setting pops the starts out into the border.

 

 

Gwen's favourite quilt showcasing of the people, animals and things that bring meaning to her life.

 

 

Gwen is a big fan of string quilts.

 

 

Gwen gave us a mini lesson on how she makes string blocks without foundations.

 

 

 

Creative hands

 

 

Amazing hand quilting. She did a mini lesson on hand quilting too.

 

 

 

A look at Gwen's quilting frame posts.

 

 

 

These hands have done a lot of this!

 

 

Gwen always leaves the quilts out for us to look at them more closely. 

So much inspiration!