Lug Nuts in Love Always

This Lug Nuts is very different from many of the samples I have shown on my blog!  I asked my friend Wendy, who owns Fabriculous Quilt Shop (Brandon, MB), if she would like me to make a shop sample for her new store that had its Re-Location Grand Opening this weekend!  She decided on our Highway 10 Designs Lug Nuts pattern and a collection of Anna Maria Horner fabrics called Love Always.  This is one of her favorite collections in the shop and it is very much out of my usual colour palette. But I love to work out of my comfort zone and it turned out fabulous, she loves it!   

I quilted it with the Fascination pantograph, used purple So Fine thread and Dream Wool batting.  The wide backing is also from the Anna Maria Horner's 'Love Always' collection. 

Lori and I took it to Lower Fort Garry, just north of Winnipeg, to take pictures.

I was able to hand deliver it to her, binding done and all, as Lori and I drove to Brandon to help her with the Grand Opening.   Here are some pictures of the big event.

Wendy's husband George free hand painted the front windows, it was beautiful! And here is Wendy a few minute before opening getting the last of the signs up while the customers lined up outside waiting for door opening.

One thing that makes her shop so unique is she carries Fusion Mineral paint and has many painted furniture samples in the shop.

George made the sales counter out of old doors, so cool!

And this lovely Janome came home with me.  My Janome 6500 which I bought back in 2004 is being retired after years of great service.  This 6650 is a great replacement with a few new features.  It will be wrapped under the Christmas tree with my name on it! :)

And here is a peek at the Lug Nuts quilt hanging in her longarm area beside all the embroidery supplies.

We also bumped into Shelley from Ma Tante Quilting as she lives close by!  She took a great photo of us all together and shared on Instagram! :)

Lug Nuts at the Speedway

Gail finished her Lug Nuts quilt that was a Sew Along project at Up North Quilt Shop this winter.  I just loved the purple batiks she chose, they really show off the pattern so nicely.  Since Gail lives in Emo, like I do, I thought I would take her quilt to the Emo Speedway for the photos.  I don't think I have taken pictures here for my blog and this is the perfect quilt to highlight this location.

So Emo is a pretty small town, its actually not even a town but a township. But it has its own speedway and it's right in the center of town.  See Google maps image below!   I know most places have speedways a few kilometres from town. Not here! LOL!  I can hear the cars racing and the announcers over the loud speaker from my house!  Good thing we enjoy stock car racing and that it is only Saturday nights in the summer.  Doubt there will be racing this summer and that will be missed. 

 There are actually three tracks here.  Go-cart in the center, Stock car and then the outer track is for horse racing.

I used a pantograph on Gail's quilt called Taro and used light purple So Fine thread.  The batting is Quilters Dream Blend batting.

 

Gail saved her extra triangles and inset them into the backing like the pattern suggestions.  When I measured her backing I realized I could make the inset design run horizontal or vertical and we decided on horizontal.

This was a fun location to take pictures and show off Gail's quilt! Wonder if any of the other quilters have finished their Lug Nuts from the Sew Along?    

Lug Nuts Sew Along

I'm excited to share this quilt with you!   My friend Missy who owns Up North Quilt Shop in International Falls, MN is having a Lug Nuts Sew Along at her shop and it kicks off this Saturday. Check out her Facebook page for more details!  I quilted her shop sample and it is made with Timeless Treasures Tonga Batiks Sumatra line! Love the mix of beige, gold and dark brown/black, so rich looking.  She has kits made up in this line but you can also pick your own colours to make this quilt.  I'll be there and happy to give my opinion on fabric selections if asked!  I can't count how many times I've been in a fabric shop and find myself helping other quilters pick fabrics for their projects when I see them looking overwhelmed.  That is one of my favorite parts of quilting ...shopping for the fabric!

I quilted this sample with the Fascination pantograph, used beige So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.   Its hard to see the quilting as the sun hasn't been seen here in a few weeks. I got tired of waiting but the resulting photos are very true to the colours of the fabrics. 

I put together a few collages to show how great our Highway 10 Design pattern looks in so many colour ways for inspiration for the event.