Fantasia

This is Valery's quilt and I just love the colors and piecing on this one. The pattern is called Index Cards by Michelle Harris of Periwinkle Quilt Shop in Saskatoon.

I decided to use the panto Fantasia on this one to add some soft curves to the straight line piecing.

You can see the panto very nicely on the backing!

Thought I would take a picture on my neighbours dock as they have some cool weeds growing over there.

5 Minute Block Quilted

I finished my 5 Minute Block quilt yesterday and had fun with some free hand stippling and feathers.  I even hand stitched the binding on last night while watching an episode of season six of the latest Dr.Who.

I wanted to avoid SID on this one and it seemed to work out fine as the pinwheels still popped without it.

Used Quilters Dream Blend batting and So Fine yellow thread.

Lone Star Quilted

The transformation is complete!

This is my client Katie's Lone Star Quilt which is the very first quilt she ever made. She made it in a class many years ago and it has just been sitting in a box ever since.  She really wanted it finished but didn't know how to do it herself.

 I am really glad she gave me call as it would be a shame if she never had her first quilt finished.  Maybe now she will try her hand at another one now that this one is done.

I cc'd the diamond shapes and feathered the corners and setting triangles.  Dream Blend batting and So Fine thread.

I am really looking forward to her picking up her quilt in a few weeks.  I hope she likes it!!

Transformation

I am keeping up with my Just Takes Two blocks, here are Sept 1st blocks.

I have a beautiful Lone Star quilt on my machine right now but it has presented me with a few challenges.  My client made this quilt in a class and told me it was the first quilt she ever made.  I couldn't imagine making a Lone Star quilt for my first quilt so I expected it to have a few issues. 

First I decided to float the top which I never normally do but it allows me to have better control of the top. 

I have also been quilting one handed so I can manipulate the fabric as I quilt with my other hand.  

I have to confess I am really enjoying this quilt and no longer have fears of making a few pleats or tucks when needed.   I am also feeling really good that I can help my client finished this quilt as she had it stored away for many years since she didn't have the confidence/experience to quilt it.  That is one of the things I love about my job, helping other finish their projects that they worked so hard to make.

I can hardly wait to finish this one and show my client. I think she will be pleasantly surprised with how her quilt top has be transformed!

Hopscotch Quilt

This is Eileen's Hopscotch quilt and it looks great in the outdoors! The leaves are just starting to turn a bit yellow and in a few weeks they will all be gone.

We decided on Whirlygig for the panto, Dream Blend for the batting and Lava brown thread for the top and Bottom Line for the backing.

Back to Work

The boys went back to school today and I am back to work in the Shack.  The summer break really helps keep me motivated to quilt for others as I had time to work on my own projects for awhile.   I am caught up with my Just Takes Two mystery and even finished one of the two hand pieced blocks that I was avoiding!  

We had a beautiful misty morning here a week ago and the dew covered all the spider webs in the yard. It is amazing to see just how many webs there are in the trees that you don't normally see.

Good bye summer, hello Fall!

New Addition

Hope you enjoyed your Labour Day long weekend, we did!  Took a quick trip down to Winnipeg to deliver my Ice Cream Swirl quilt as well as one of my feather fleece blankets to it's new owner.... this cutie pie!!

Meet the newest addition to our family, my nephew Evan.  I made the Ice Cream Swirl quilt just for him but didn't want to mention that on my blog and spoil the surprise for his parents.  Evan was 2 lbs 13 oz when he was born as he came 6 weeks early so was in the hospital for a month. He is very healthy for a preemie and was even allowed to go home when he was 4lbs!  He is now 6 lbs and is a real sweetie!!

The boys were thrilled to have a new cousin and enjoyed holding him.

As you can see I enjoyed my cuddle time with Evan too :)

I took A LOT of pictures of him that night and he was very cooperative but I'm sure he must be telling me something in this last picture......

"Okay Auntie Kathy put away the camera.... it's time for me to sleep!"

Cobblestone Road

This is our guild's next Christmas Craft Sale raffle quilt and the pattern is called Cobblestone Road by Cozy Quilt Designs. If you want to read about a fantastic way to raise money for your guild you can check out my post here where I share the secrets to our guilds best fundraiser.

 I can't remember the name of the fabric collection used in this quilt but it has a retro Christmas feel to it.

I used Starlight for the panto, Quilter's Dream Poly Black batting and So Fine black thread.

As I was taking these pictures this morning I could hear a familiar Fall sound over head...look who's heading south already!

Another sign that summer is almost over is my fruit trees are almost ready for picking.  Three years ago after my dad passed away my quilting friends took up a collection and told me to buy something for my yard to remember my dad.  Well I knew right away what I would buy....an apple and a plum tree as that is what my dad loved in his yard. Since we have very short summers I was not expecting to get any fruit but just enjoyed seeing these trees bloom in the spring with hopes that one day I might get some fruit.  Well this year is the first year they have produced and I have 6 apples and about 30 plums :)

They are not quite ready to pick but I might take a few off just in case a bear wanders by and decides he wants to eat them first!

Thank you to my quilting friends for this wonderful gift!

Urban Abacus Quilted

I finished my Urban Abacus quilt today!   You can find the pattern here at Jenny's website.  This is the third quilt I have made using her Quick Curve Ruler, I think it is just the best!

  I used all bright batik fabrics and the backing is batik as well.

I used Lava Threads and did multiple thread color changes to match the threads to the fabrics.

I used light blue thread in the bobbin for the whole quilt.

I did a free hand wave on the colorful beads to give the appearance they are spinning. I decided to leave the background unquilted and just SID around the beads.

Just need to add the binding, that will be a good weekend project.

Tumbler Done

Had a good test run with the new Bliss upgrade today and the verdict is in, my machine feels like it lost 20 lbs!!  I just have to get use to the new feel so hope to work on a few more of my own quilts before September rolls around and I start taking client quilts again.

I used the panto Rhapsody on this one, Dream Blend batting and So Fine thread.

I had planned on quilting first thing in the morning but became distracted when I saw how calm the lake was.  There is just something about being out on the lake on a day like today that is so relaxing and peaceful.

Love the reflections in this picture.

The lake's water level is quite a bit lower than last year.  I posted this picture last summer of a rock reef.....

....and here it is today.... 

...with a fresh coat of 'paint'!