Traction Quilt

Bev pieced our Highway 10 Designs Traction quilt in King size!   It will be a gift for someone that has a mid century modern home and loves the colours of the era. She used a green and grey solids along with an orange dot print.  Her fabric choices really allow the design to shine!

Woke up to a sunny day with little wind so took a drive out to the Barwick lighthouse to get a picture.  Its a really good spot for taking pictures of large quilts.

I quilted it with the Soho pantograph, used putty So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

Sparrows Quilt #2

Cindy made this sweet Sparrows Quilt, pattern by Pen & Paper Patterns.  She used all batik fabrics and the backing is a grey Fireside.

I quilted it with the Bountiful Feathers pantograph, used grey So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

 

Now that the weather is getting warmer I have been taking my new camera out to practice my bird photography. Going from a DSLR to a mirrorless camera is a game changer.  I want to record all the birds that visit our yard and its amazing how many species of birds you discover when you really pay attention.  I'm getting pretty good at perching birds but still need to work on my in-flight action.

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

Purple Finch

Goldfinches

Brown Thrasher

Tree Swallow

Yellow Rumped Warbler

Yellow Warbler ( it's so stinking cute and tiny) 

Palm Warbler

Kingbird

Kingbird regurgitating a pellet....learned something new that moment!

And my favorite discovery this spring is seeing an Eastern Bluebird as they are uncommon in our area.

The hummingbirds are back and my main focus when I am out in the yard but I'll save those for another post.  We are also checking on the herons that have a rookery (11 nests) a few km away from our place. At the moment they are all just sitting on their nests, the activity picks up once the little ones hatch.

Spring Market Roundup

Thought I would do an update on my bag making venture and the three spring markets I attended.  In March I was a vendor at the Barwick Market and I was really impressed with the organizer and all the advertising she did for the event.  Lots of traffic through and really good sales. I was actually surprised at how well my sale were for a March sale, it was better than a few of my Christmas markets.  Here is what my table looked like. Its nice when they have 8 foot table, that is a question I make sure to asked at each event, helps with planning the layout.

The next market I did was in my little town of Emo in April.  Again I was surprised at the excellent sales for being in the spring. But I did have a few customers that followed my Tamarack Shack Facebook page that wanted to come see my bags in person so that was nice.  Here was my table in Emo, the organizer gave me a bit extra space for my bag rack. Again love the 8 foot long tables.

My last spring market was in Fort Frances and it was a two day event.  I do prefer a one day sale so don't think I'll do that one again. My sales for the two days were equivalent to my one day sales.  Here they gave us a 9'x7' space with a 6' table.  So we brought an extra table.

 

I try not to make too many of the same bags to have at each sale but like to have at least 3 of each of my favorite bags which are the Oxbow Tote, the Aberdeen, the Compass and the Cambridge bags. So I'm always busy making more for the next sale. I don't want my table to look exactly the same each time.

I decided not to make any more signs, just have one left so that is great.  Still have a good selection of Devon pouches and ones that I have made into crossbody bags, those sell very well.  I have small pouches and my linen baskets.  I like to hang a quilt for sale behind my table to add to the display and as it has been a good way to advertise my longarm business.

So here are some of the bags that I still have available. Lets start with the Oxbow Totes!

Here are the Aberdeen Totes I currently have available.

Here are a few of the many Corduroy Compass Bags, I love corduroy so much.  Make for a super light weight bag too!

I like to add interesting lining fabrics to these bags!

I have more Cambridge bags as well.

And I can't forget my Linen Baskets.  I have a good variety with animal prints that would be great for Baby Shower gifts.  These Hedgehogs have been a big seller!

So there is my Spring market round up and I currently don't have any markets booked for the summer, just taking orders though my social media accounts or you can email me directly at tamarackshack1@gmail.com if you see something that catches your eye! I have mailed a lot of orders across Canada this past year.

Beads Quilt

 

Cathy brought this lovely king sized Beads Quilt, pattern by Jordan Fabrics.  She added the pieced side borders to make it wider which was a nice touch.

I quilted it with the Modernish pantograph, used a grey purple So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

Still Blogging but Focus is Changing.

 

I have found this past year it's been harder to keep up to my normal schedule of posting on my blog, but I'm not ready to give up on it yet.   I am still longarm quilting just not taking pictures like I use too and that's okay.  My focus is changing and I spent 50 percent of my time longarming and the other 50 percent making bags.  I find my interest in making quilts for myself has waned and the bag making is really keeping my creative side well fed.   I book one local craft market a month and that helps sell bags so I can keep making. I'm also selling quite a few bags though my Instagram account tamarackshack2.0  I post my bags as I finish them on my IG account and buyers just message me there. It works very well and it is also a great way to connect with other bag makers.

Okay so here is a loaded post with some of the latest quilts that have come through my door!

First is this adorable quilt by Julie, the pattern is called "We're All Ears" from a McCall's Quilting 2013 Jan/Feb magazine.   I quilted it with the Hearts in Bloom pantograph.

Julie also brought this "Charming Squares" lap quilt which a quilt kit from Crazy Ladies quilt shop. I quilted it with the Bushberries pantograph.

Next is Bev's Layer Cake quilt which is used as a scrap buster. She found the inspiration for this quilt on Pinterest. I quilted it with the Fascination pantograph.

Coleen made this fun Construction quilt for her young grandson who gifted her a piece of fabric that is in the quilt.  Grandma took the hint and found the perfect fabrics to make him this special quilt.  I used the Plush pantograph at some motion to the activity!

This last quilt is Ellen's and she made this quilt using a variety of techniques, no pattern, to create this fabulous layout.  The outer border is a dragonfly print and she pulled the colour from it to create this quilt.  I quilted it with the Flirtatious pantograph.

Now I'm feeling a bit caught up!  I have a spring market to attend this weekend in Fort Frances and then I'll share a few pictures of my bags for those that are not on Instagram.