Seams Likely

My First Sewing Machine

2012-01-30T14:23:00.001-05:00

It still works.

Scissors Completed!

2012-01-26T13:30:00.000-05:00

Here it is! Finished!

Another scrappy backing; check out the huge chunks I used up from the Stash. I used the quilting bar attachment on the walking foot that came with my machine, and I really enjoyed not marking parallel lines. I added a bit of free motion quilting action on the scissors blocks, and finished it off with some old buttons and a contrasting blue binding.

Time to cut on a new quilt and take a little break from the UFO pile…

Scrappy Scissors

2012-01-18T20:42:00.000-05:00

Here is yet another top that has been languishing in the pile of UFOs. As I am fond of the Scrappy Backing, I threw some fabric from the Stash on the floor, and I’ll be straightening up the edges and making my backing from what you see here. I had originally selected a big chunk of solid beige for the back… boring! I like this a LOT better. Let’s see how fast I can get this thing finished…

Blue & Cream Log Cabin

2012-01-11T22:21:00.002-05:00

The UFO Round Up continues…

This top has been finished for ages, and the first stage “in the ditch” quilting had been done for a while, too. So, hot on the heels of Cog and Wheel, I slapped this one into the hoop and finished the quilting by hand, taking quilting passes through two rounds of “logs” in each block. Quilted, bound, DONE.

Next up, Scrappy Scissors…

Stash Builder Shirtings

2012-01-08T13:57:00.000-05:00

Thrift shops are a great place to supplement your stash with lovely, non-quilt shop fabrics. I spotted these two gorgeous violet cotton shirts (can we call them "mulberry" instead?) at my local Value Village and snatched them up. They are absolutely delicious.

Cog and Wheel: Mine's Done, Too!

2012-01-02T13:41:00.003-05:00

With the decision to NOT enter an epic quilt competition this winter, I feel a measure of relief and happy anticipation of the new year and all the quilty promise it holds. I have some new projects brewing, but I am also eager to hammer away at older unfinished quilts and get them done!

My Cog and Wheel quilt had been pieced quite a while ago and had been quilted, but hadn't been bound yet. So, I kicked off the New Year with finally attaching and hand-finishing the binding. Hooray for a finished quilt! Plus, recent blog posts by Karyn and Katherine provided a boot to the behind...

You Look Familiar...

2011-12-22T12:15:00.005-05:00

I check True Up all the time to scope out the latest and greatest in quilt fabric. I'm scrolling down... Hey! New stuff from Anna Griffin! But wait, that one looks familiar...

Anna Griffin's "new" fabric...

...compared to the Happy Homemaker by Darlene Zimmerman for Kaufman Fabrics some years back from my collection...

They are "swirl for swirl" identical except in colourways. Is it legal? Was the scale of the design tweaked just enough to make it so? Is fabric design this unregulated? And can't Anna Griffin just design fresh? Come ON.

Kanzashi!

2011-12-11T10:14:00.002-05:00

Not a whole lot of time lately to sew, but I squeezed in some craftiness this week after the arrival of this wonderful book, "Kanzashi In Bloom." I want to make a hundred of them, then go downtown to a specialty button shop and spend a few hours selecting just the right button centre for each one...

The Grid

2011-09-24T08:04:00.000-04:00

Look! I'm in print!

A weekly magazine here in Toronto called me up last month and asked if I knew anyone who might be able to design and stitch the title of their next issue on short notice. Yes, I did. How about me?

A few days later, the finished cross stitch was packed up and sent to the photographer by way of courier. A few days after that, it appeared on the cover of The Grid magazine in stands all over the city! As I was working that morning, a search posse (family) was organized and many issues were scooped.

Hooray!

(And no, I did not stitch the work in that wooden hoop! I never use circular hoops with Aida cloth; they would have left really bad hoop marks. I used a Q-Snap frame. Dang those stylists!)

CQA 2011

2011-08-27T09:13:00.004-04:00

This post is extremely overdue. Prepare for horn-tooting...

I entered a quilt called "Album" in the Canadian Quilters' Association National Juried Show this past spring and won Second Place in the Excellence in Original Traditional Wallquilt category! There had been a two year gap since the last time I entered, so this win seemed extra important and special to me. I was glad the show was fairly close to home this time (if a two-hour drive is close) and also that my dear quilty friend Michelle Dunn of Kallisti Quilts was there to share my excitement with me.

Houses!

2011-06-17T07:10:00.003-04:00

I avoided Foundation Paper Piecing like the plague for a long time. Picking out all the paper after sewing everything was a mind-numbing exercise in tedium. When I'm finished sewing, I want to be DONE. I made a tiny little sample or two, and chucked them aside for the maddening irritation they caused.

I have since had a change of heart. Karyn at the workroom sent me a link to the Twiddletails website. I clicked on it with scepticism.

It was a complete game changer.

This version uses freezer paper as the foundation! You don't pick out bits of paper for hours- you just peel it away! Genius. AND you can see where you are sewing. AND you have nice, neat and even seam allowances.

I designed Houses! and had a really fun time making it. I was so excited that I slammed out all the house blocks in a weekend. And now I'm designing more...

Mission Accomplished!

2011-06-12T11:10:00.002-04:00

...with time to spare!

A Letter

2011-06-11T08:45:00.003-04:00

Dear Baby-Shower Givers,

We share in the happy anticipation of the arrival of this special bundle of joy with you! This baby couldn’t ask for more wonderful parents. However, two weeks notice is insufficient time to inform those guests who might be quilters. We want to make this baby something cozy, colourful, and comforting, and we need time to make this token of our affection. Given the time constraints, we must pare down our artistic vision.

Squares. The quilt will be squares. Not adorable appliqué, nor whimsical pinwheels, or anything else that can’t be cut and sewn marathon-style. They will be lovely, thoughtfully selected and placed squares, but squares nonetheless. We hope you understand.

We will see you at the shower, on time and with gift wrapped in a bulky, tell-tale bundle. When it’s opened, we hope to please the expectant mother, and some ooh’s and aah’s would be nice, too. And tears of happy joy at the awesomeness of handmade love in blanket form wouldn’t hurt either.

Respectfully,

Johanna Masko and Daughter

Tutorial: Do-It-Yourself Quilt Labels

2011-05-06T09:08:00.004-04:00

Here's a nice way to make a quilt label- quick, easy to do and professional-looking.

When I was planning this one, I knew I wanted a hand-written look for the title, but my regular hand-printing was not going to give me the neat and tidy appearance I was going for, as anyone who had tried to read my scribbly notes can tell you. So, I did a hand-written, scripty title in pencil (using a penciled-in bottom guide line), and tweaked it until I liked it. Then I went over it with a felt tipped marker.

Then I used the computer to type my name, city and year the quilt was completed. (Of course, you could use the computer to do the whole thing, including the title.) After that, I tried out different fonts and sizes to see which one I liked, then printed my favourite. You can tape your title to the computer-printed info and decide on your line spacing.

I pressed a big scrap of muslin for my label. Then I cut out an oversized chunk of freezer paper and pressed it with a dry hot iron to the back of the muslin, shiny side down. This keeps the fabric smooth, stable and flat so you can trace your lettering.

If it's daytime, tape your lettering to a window, then tape your paper-backed muslin on top and trace it. Or, do what I did (because it was evening and I didn't want to wait) and rig up an improvised "light table" with a cheap-o piece of picture frame glass and a table lamp with a lamp shade (to rest the glass on) and a fluorescent bulb.

I used a black Pigma Micron permanent pen with a 0.25mm line width.

When your ink is dry, peel off the freezer paper, cut to size, turn under your edges and applique to the back of your quilt!

Taming Your Selvages

2011-03-29T20:06:00.000-04:00

I always pre-wash my fabrics before they enter The Stash, and sometimes I notice that the selvage will shrink more than the rest of the fabric. (This is one of the reasons to not use selvages in your patchwork!) Even after pressing, I end up with a gently curved edge along the selvage, which I don't want. I want a nice, straight edge to start with so all my long cuts parallel to the selvage are also nice and straight.

Now, if I just plunk my rotary ruler down and trim off that wonky curved edge as it is, I will end up with a cut edge that is curved in the opposite direction. Still not what I want.

To fix this problem, there is a simple solution. Snip into the selvage every few inches with scissors, for the whole length of the fabric edge. This will relax the shrunken edge and, after you re-press it, your selvage edge will lay straight.

Now you can trim off the selvage and be sure that your freshly cut edge is straight, too.

Un-sexy Scraps

2011-03-25T09:52:00.000-04:00

Here is a confession. No. Strike that. A declaration- I do not have a gorgeously arranged, carefully organized scrap stash.

Why am I mentioning it at all? Just a little reassurance that beauty can indeed be made out of chaos. There are as many kinds of quilters as there are quilts, and some are highly organized, and I totally honour that. I am organized in my own way for the bulk (and I mean BULK) of my stash, but scraps? They get collected in a reusable shopping bag that hangs from the back of my sewing chair, and then sometimes, for fun, I dump them all out on the floor and sort by colour. Then they get stuffed back into bags (reused Ziplocs, old gift bags) that roughly represent a broad colour group and then they wait for me to paw through looking for a gem.

I have mentally established a minimum size that I will use to determine if a scrap is actually useable. That size is about the size of a playing card. If it does not meet this minimum size, out it goes. Will I ever use a skinny selvage that I trimmed off a fat quarter? Really? No, I won't. I'm all for frugality, but even my thriftiness has its limits. I don't want bags of miniscule scraps lurking around making me feel guilty.

And that is my highly specialized system for Scrap Management.

Stitchy

2011-03-21T09:31:00.004-04:00

I've been on an embroidery rampage lately.

I got onto cross stitch a few years back, as my go-to stitching during times of "lost quilting mojo." It happens, and it seems to happen seasonally, right around the end of June and lasts until Labour Day. Anyway, feeling the need to branch out and embrace all that might possibly involve the use of embroidery floss, I've begun to do "free embroidery" or "surface embroidery."

I can tell you: it is a LOT of fun. The satin stitch, especially, is very gratifying, both in the execution and in the finished stitches.

This little hanky ended up with my mom. The design is from "Embroidery Companion" book by Alicia Paulson. Lovely book.

(I do some work as a custom framer, and any needlework that comes through the shop needing to be stretched and framed is referred to as a "stitchy/pin" on our work order sheets. So, this little embroidery is a "stitchy.")

Stuff With Scraps #6...

2010-08-10T07:29:00.000-04:00

...well, not really scraps, but chunks of fabric that I still like, but I'm not in love with.

I am a major fan of the Scrappy Backing. I get to use up fabric that I already have, and create an interesting and unexpected back for my quilt. I dig around the Stash and find chunks that are sort of similar in overall colour and tone, and then I just cut the edges straight and sew it all together. I just keep on going until I can fit my quilt top on it with a little extra all around.

Do I measure it all out and meticulously plan it? No, I do not. I literally throw the fabric chunks on the floor, mix and match and start trimming and sewing.

Check out how many chunks of fabric I used up! And that, my friends, lets me buy more delicious fabric with a clear conscience.

Tutorial: Tabletop Quilt Basting

2010-06-08T19:00:00.009-04:00

When I have the time and I plan ahead, I have the luxury of basting quilts on the great, big, perfect-height cutting table at the workroom.

However, there are times when I want a top basted right now, and the tops are often too big to fit entirely on the surface of my dining room table. No matter! I baste it anyway and here's how I do it.

I put the extra leaf in my table; it's an old IKEA table that's been used and abused over the years. Though we still love it, it is already a bit scarred on the surface so I have no qualms about sticking in my safety pins and adding to the rich assortment of scratches that are already there. I'm adding "patina." See how that works?

So, I press my backing on a tabletop ironing board (handy!) and then I tape the backing so the length of my quilt will fit on my table, but one edge hangs over the side of the table. I tape the three sides of the backing, layer and carefully smooth out my batting, then layer on my quilt top. (I'm working with an Amish-style Bars quilt top that I just made. It will be quilted in red and blue, with a blue binding! Anyway...) I smooth out the top and proceed with the safety pins.

When my pins are all in, I thread-baste the one continuous long edge I have available to me.

Then, I untape the backing and simply slide the whole thing over so the extra un-basted part is now resting on my tabletop, and the now-basted part is hanging over the other side of the table.

I peel back the top and batting and smooth down and tape the backing on three sides.

Then I carefully smooth down the batting, and then unfold the top over it and smooth it down, too. (Did I mention the "smoothing" part?)

Now I finish up my pin-basting and thread-baste the other full side of the quilt sandwich.

Almost ready! Just untape the backing from the table and swing the whole thing around so you can thread-baste each shorter side in turn. Trim your batting and backing down a bit if you like.

(I have used this technique for even larger quilts, too. I do the middle third of the quilt, then do the outer thirds one at a time. Make sure that your quilt sandwich is supported on a couple of chairs when you do the outer thirds.)

You now have a fully-basted, smooth quilt sandwich that is ready for quilting! And you did it without killing your back by doing it on the floor (ouch!) and you didn't waste valuable sewing time waiting for the perfect basting table to become available.

See? You can do it! Now get quilting!

Tutorial: Using the Backing as the Binding

2010-06-03T09:13:00.011-04:00

Sometimes you just want to get the quilt done. Here is a fast and dirty way to bind a quilt- just make sure that what you've chosen for the back will also look good as the binding, because in this method, they are one and the same. In these photos, I'm just going to show you part of an edge and a corner. Ready?

Cut your backing a few inches larger all around than the top, as usual.

Layer it up and quilt it! BUT, don't quilt past the edges of the top...

...because the batting gets trimmed away. With scissors, trim the batting so that it is flush with the edge of the quilt top.

Pretty already! Now, using a grid ruler, mark the wrong side of the now-visible backing with a line that is 1 inch from the cut edge of the top/batting.

Now trim the backing along that line. You can skip the rotary cutter and just use scissors.

Okay! Now take your quilt to the iron, and carefully press that little 1 inch wide exposed backing in half, so that the raw edge of the backing touches the raw edge of the top/binding. Just press the backing fabric; do NOT press on your quilted top/batting. See how I'm scooting the iron just along that edge? You don't want to compress your gorgeous quilting.

Press in half right to the end.

Now, you're going to fold that pressed edge over your quilt top, covering the raw cut edge. Pin in place.

Go ahead and pin the whole side to the corner.

Fold the corner down on the diagonal, like this...

... and give a little careful pressing. Don't squish your quilting! Now, fold the next section of raw edge backing in half again, and do the careful pressing along the next side.

Now again, fold this pressed edge over the raw edge of the top/batting and pin in place.

Look at that pretty little mitered corner! Nice! Now you can stitch down the edge either by hand for an invisible finish, or you can take it to the machine and edge-stitch it in place.

I'd be inclined to machine-stitch, since that would give you a nice stitched edge finish on the back as well. Plus, it's faster, and I just want to get this thing done! TODAY!

Kaleidescope!

2010-01-03T14:05:00.006-05:00

Here I am!

How long has it been? Never mind...

If you're in the Toronto area before March 21st, you MUST see the "Kaleidescope" exhibition of antique quilts at the Textile Museum of Canada! I saw it (experienced it, soaked it up like a sponge) a couple weeks ago, and I must tell you: You will swoon. Seriously.

Victorian-era crazy quilts, mind-boggling English paper pieced masterpieces with thousands and thousands of patches, classic appliqued quilts- all lovely, all stunning. The quilts are grouped together by type, and there are really interesting and informative placards throughout. I liked the fact that laminated sheets with the details about each quilt were provided in each section. You can grab one and walk around with it. Nice!

In a section called "Variations" were a number of examples of the classic Log Cabin design. Americans associate it with American pioneer culture and call it Log Cabin, while Canadians also lay claim as originators, calling it Canadian Loghouse, etc... What I found particularly fascinating was, according the information presented with the quilts, there was a mention of the Log Cabin design in a publication from 1897, which suggested it might be more properly called "Egyptian" or "Mummy" since this lattice-like pattern is evident in linen mummy wrappings.

Friends, I give you the cover of the November 2009 issue of National Geographic... Pet mummies!!

And more inside...

See there? How cool is that?!

I can't decide which is more fascinating- that this Log Cabin-like design existed all those thousands of years ago in pet mummy wrappings (which I never knew about until my issue arrived in the mail) or the fact that someone in North America in 1897 knew enough about mummy wrappings to draw the comparison! It's not like they could have watched a mummy documentary on the Discovery Channel! How did that little tidbit of Egyptology find its way across the ocean way back then?

Okay! Back to the present! By the way, there is an exciting event to go with this very special exhibition hosted by the workroom. Karyn has arranged for a private tour of the show, along with an exclusive peek into the Textile Museum's stored collection of quilts! I know!! Check out either the Textile Museum of Canada's website of the workroom site (click on classes). The tour is January 31st, a Sunday.

Go and see it!

Done!

2009-08-04T23:28:00.003-04:00

"Her Sampler"! She is finished!!

Whee! A finished cross stitch always supplies a great sense of accomplishment. I think it's the perfect craft when you can only sneak in a few stitches here and there. (Or sit for hours hunched up in the corner of the living room in the wee hours squinting through reading glasses- you know, either way.)

A side note for cross stitchers, from my experience as a custom framer- please leave a nice margin around your images, say three inches or so. If you have your work professionally stretched and framed, the framer will LOVE you if you leave enough extra to work with around the edges. Also, try your best to keep your work nice and clean while you work on it, and press it nicely (from the back) before you take it in. I have seen some dirty, soiled embroidery come through the shop, and it's a real shame they didn't take the time to clean the work beforehand.

Onward! I'm working on stitchy gift for Dad, so I'll be taking a brief break from samplers, which I have decided that I adore. I have a number of them in queue after this- I'd better stitch faster!

Stuff With Scraps #5

2009-07-24T08:40:00.002-04:00

I have been obsessing over finding the perfect snap coin purse for a long time. I had a great one for a while- it was leather, the ideal size- but I lost it somehow.

Years pass.

I start teaching (and shopping!) regularly at the workroom. One day...

"What's this? Metal purse frames?! I could make my own coin purse?!" This idea cooked in my brain for quite some time. This week, after realizing that I would not be able to attend Reva's Snap Coin Purse class, which I've been wanting to take for ages (drat!), I decided to take matters into my own hands.

It's not perfect, that's for sure, but look how cute! I'm sure Reva has some tips that would make it all come out even better. The hex patchwork is from a chunk of it I made last year. The fabrics are all Japanese scraps leftover from when a friend was finished cutting out the pieces for her quilt. ("Umm, are you going to throw those out?")

I will now pay for all cash purchases with exact change just so I can show it off.

Just... one... more...

2009-07-16T21:51:00.003-04:00

One more English paper pieced pillow. Here's how it happens...

We plan a road trip that involves several hours in the car, followed by a few days away from the sewing machine, then several more hours in the car driving back.

I'm not driving. My hands will be free, and not working on something during all those free hours isn't appealing. So, I cut a whole bunch of papers, quickly pick out a batch of scraps from the scrap bin, iron the papers to the back, pack an abbreviated sewing kit, and I can be happily on my way.

This patchwork was started last month on such a road trip, and since I don't want to be a collector of (more) half-done projects, I made it big enough to be a pillow top. I finished it up yesterday. Yay!! I had another pillow that was looking sort of worn out, so I ripped off the old cover and crammed the form into this new cover. It was a tight squeeze, but I managed to get the zipper closed. Yess!!

Busy Hands

2009-07-12T09:59:00.004-04:00

Since I just completed (yet another) English paper pieced pillow top, I needed a new project to work on while waiting for kids at lessons.

I love love love Carriage House Samplings. Their designs all have that early American, folky-but-not-cutesy look that I really go for. Plus, I find myself very attracted to alphabet samplers, and they have lots.

My most recent major proud accomplishment has been getting my sister into cross stitch!! She lives in Houston, Texas and given their crazy, tropical storm prone weather, I decided she needed to have a hobby to work on when the power went out. So, I hooked her up with a pattern I knew she would love, and all the floss and everything, and now she's going like gangbusters.

Problem is, even in a huge city like Houston, she can't find a cross stitch and embroidery dedicated shop... I KNOW!! Needlepoint, no problem, but not cross stitch. Go figure.

I, on the other hand, am spoiled for choice here in Toronto, with not one but TWO lovely stitching shops within 15 minutes of my house- The Sampler on Browns Line in Toronto, and Gitta's on Lakeshore in Port Credit. I was in Gitta's the other day and called my sister to gloat, because I'm evil.

Anyway, new project, and I'm well on my way!

Black Creek Pioneer Village!

2009-06-30T09:59:00.004-04:00

School's out! June end-of-school madness is OVER! Yaaaay!!

To celebrate, I took my daughter to Toronto's Black Creek Pioneer Village. Of course, there was quite a bit of quilty goodness there. Check out these lovely old Log Cabin quilts!

The first one was in the building with the man making brooms. He informed me that the Log Cabin design was considered a manly one for a quilt. It is very scrappy (then again, they all were), with the logs about a half an inch wide, six deep all around the centres- hefty and substantial with all that wool.

The next one I found had traditional red centres. I couldn't get my grabby paws on it, though.

And look! A Log Cabin puzzle for kids! This was part of a hands-on exhibit. I love how under each "patch" there is a little title of where the fabric came from. So smart!

I'm really looking forward to teaching my Log Cabin workshop at the workroom this month! Seeing all these old lovelies was extra inspiring.

Tutorial: Mitered Borders for Quilts

2009-04-08T13:56:00.015-04:00

Give your quilt top a classy touch with an elegantly mitered border! Here's how...

Just work with me for a moment with sketches for the first few steps to get us going. Step-by-step photos are included. (Think if it like the opening scenes of The Wizard of Oz in black and white, followed by glorious Technicolor!)

Ready?

Here is your quilt top, face down so I can show you more clearly where you will stitch.

Cut your 4 border strips to the required width. The examples in the photos are with borders that are 3 1/2" wide.

Now, determine the length of each border strip by adding the length of a side PLUS the width of the border times two PLUS a little extra (a couple inches). If you have a square quilt, all 4 will be the same. If a rectangle, then you'll have two short and two long. But you already figured that out... never mind...

Use a 1/4" seam allowance. Sew each border strip to its correct edge on the quilt top, right sides together, matching centre of quilt top edge to centre of border strip. Begin a 1/4" in from the starting end and stop 1/4" from the other end. You'll have an equal amount of overhang on each end.

Turn over to right side, open out your border and press seam allowance away from the quilt top so it sits under the border. Press.

Attach opposite edge's border strip in the same way, making sure you start your stitching 1/4" in from starting end and stop 1/4" before you reach the other end. Turn over, open out border and press away from the quilt top.

Add remaining two border strips the same way.

Now you have all four border strips attached, but with free-flapping ends at the corners.

(Cue the pretty photos...)

Work on one corner at a time.

Overlap the corners, nice and square.

Pin together so they don't shift while you trim.

Trim off extra fabric as shown. Just trim carefully with scissors and skip the rotary cutter. Now your two strips will meet perfectly in the corner.

Carefully un-pin so the corner will lie flat while you mark. On the wrong side of your overlapped corner, mark a fine pencil line from the outer corner to the inner corner where the stitching line from attaching the border strips form a wee little right angle at the corner of the quilt top.

Now un-lap the corners, fold your quilt top on the diagonal (right sides together) and match up the corners of the border strips.

Pin along the pencil line for stitching, making sure to keep the border seam allowances free where the meet at the corner of the quilt top. (We want to keep all the seam allowances free and not caught accidentally in other seams. We are constructing a "Y seam.")

Start stitching at inside border corner (1/4" from the edge) and stitch along pencil line right to outside border corners.

Open out the borders. Finger-press the corner seam open, then press.

Trim off excess fabric, leaving about a 1/4" seam allowance...

...and VOILA!! Look at your pretty mitered corner!

Now do three more just like it. Easy peasy!

New York!

2009-03-10T14:13:00.003-04:00

I just got back from a weekend in New York! Wheeeee!!! A friend and I had been talking about going forever, and so we had to jump on the opportunity when her friend generously offered to host the two of us for a weekend.

Where to begin? Purl Patchwork in Soho, Kate's Paperie, MoMA, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Grand Central Station, the Chrysler Building- I could go on and on (and on...)

This is Robert Rauschenberg's "Bed"- painted on a quilt.

Everything was fabulous and exciting, but I have to say that the art museums were overwhelmingly awe-inspiring. After all those Art History slide lectures back in art school a million years ago, to see many of those famous works in person was just incredible. Walking through was like, oh look! Famous painting! And another! And another! And, hey, I wrote a paper on that! And, oh! I didn't realize how gigantic that piece is in real life!

Utterly amazing.

Betrayal!

2009-02-20T13:20:00.002-05:00

I noticed a while back that Coats & Clark had done a huge overhaul of their threads, with brand-new display racks and a new spool design. C & C thread has always been my favourite thread for general sewing and quilting. I loved visiting the fabric store on a thread-buying mission, and seeing row upon lovely row of delicious colour, made even more appealing with their slight, shiny-cotton sheen.

When the switch-over to the new look happened, many shops tossed all their old C & C spools in clearance bins and marked them down. I stocked up.

Today, after looking through my thread stash and not finding the colour I wanted, I headed out to Fabricland, and bee-lined to the Coats & Clark rack. As I was holding up spools next to my little fabric swatches, I noticed an odd thing- the thread was all sort of dull. No hint of shiny-cotton sheen. Hmmm...

Then I took a closer look, first at the rack labels, then at the paper spool sticker... My beloved Dual Duty was no longer composed of cotton-wrapped polyester, but was now "polyester-wrapped polyester." WHAAAT? The entire display was now 100% polyester!! And dull, dull, DULL!! My choices are now 100% polyester (which boasts the biggest variety of colour), various weights of 100% cotton (not always a fave), and one small section of the old cotton-wrapped polyester, which is labeled for machine quilting, and only comes in a comparatively few colours.

Look at the bigger spool (the dull "polyester-wrapped polyester"- redundant!) compared to the smaller spool (shiny and pretty). Also witness the tragic black "X" on the little spool- the mark of clearanced, unwanted thread!!

I really really liked the old, slightly shiny threads. Why, why, WHY? I'm sure my indignation will fade eventually, but for today, I'm crabby and resentful.

What's the deal, Coats & Clark?!

New Things

2009-02-17T13:56:00.003-05:00

An envelope from eQuilter is like Christmas, only better!! This Paris print made my heart skip a beat, and I had to jump on it! And there's a few other prints in there, too... ahem...

A trip to Cloverdale Sewing Centre for snaps only resulted in a few other tiny, happiness-making purchases, too. New sewing machine needles- totally necessary. But this little wee tin that houses a measuring tape? Had to have! I'm a sucker for a cute tin!!

Double Wedding Ring

2009-01-30T10:25:00.002-05:00

Okay. The show is up, and I can start digging through the stash again. Bliss! My first order of business was an idea that has been buzzing in my brain since the fall. On one of my visits to the ever-delightful Quilt Sundays at the workroom, I got into more than one conversation about a certain popular quilt pattern that looks absolutely fantastic, but turns out to be challenging to make. Make that extremely challenging. Challenging as in "I'm losing the will to ever sew again."

Not on my watch. No, Ma'am.

How about this: Easy. Quick. Fun. Yes, I'm talking about the diabolical Double Wedding Ring!! I have tamed the beast! This evil Bridezilla has been cut down to size and made simple and fun. In fact, this just might be the new "potato chip" of my quilting repertoire. I can't stop at just one!

This is destined for a class at the workroom... Wheee!

The Big Show!

2009-01-13T22:15:00.003-05:00

Hey, everyone! Contrary to popular belief, I have not dropped off the face of the earth...

I've been getting ready for my solo quilt show at Greenwood Quiltery!! Hooray!!

It's running from January 14th through February 28th, and I'll be there this Saturday the 17th from 2 to 4 in the afternoon. So, drop by and say Hello and eat some snacks! Or I will have to eat them all myself, and that is never a good thing. Plus, you can check out this lovely shop with bolt after bolt (and skein after skein) of gorgeousness.

And... Happy New Year! I resolve to be a better blog poster and also to carry fewer bags around with me. Lately I've been feeling like a pack mule on a mountaineering expedition. Too many bags!! Edit, Johanna, edit!!

See you Saturday!

Janome love

2008-11-07T17:02:00.004-05:00

Remember this?

This quilt is the one I was honoured with a Judge's Choice award from fibre artist Anna Hergert at the 2008 CQA National Juried Show. Since Janome sponsored the award, my quilt is now on view on the Janome Canada website! Yay Janome! And thanks!

A place for everything...

2008-10-19T11:47:00.005-04:00

With new craft obsessions come specialized tools and accoutrements. (And, in my case, random embroidery floss purchases. Can't... resist... pretty colours...) Since I end up stitching in the living room, my supplies should be attractively housed, no?

So... embroidery box! I started with a naked, plain wooden box, painted it, glued on some cut-outs from an old pattern envelope and some Martha Stewart craft paper, and now my stitching supplies are stored in style.

I splashed out and bought a flower-shaped Martha craft punch to use, too. I couldn't help myself. (It is so much fun to play with!)

Obsession du jour

2008-10-19T11:16:00.000-04:00

After spending my crafty time this past spring/summer attempting to clear the backlog of incomplete quilty projects, I found myself in need of a breather. Not a non-crafty breather (that's crazy-talk!), but a change-up from patchwork. Something new...

...like cross-stitch and embroidery!

The embroidery and I are getting along like a house on fire, let me tell you. I started off with a wee tiny alphabet sampler, then moved on to two small Halloween projects from the "Just Cross Stitch" Premier Halloween Issue. Now I'm blazing along on a much larger project (which is a gift, so I can't show it) and getting others cued up and ready to roll.

Meanwhile, I also did a freestyle embroidery "sampler" (one floral design that used lots of different stitches), which I really enjoyed working on.

I have to say that thinking about fabrics and threads in a whole new way is a great, gulping lungful of fresh air.

It's that time.

2008-09-24T17:39:00.004-04:00

What time is it, you ask? Why, it's Sampler Class time! My seven-week intensive quilt/fabric/colour love-in is about to begin at the workroom! The bolts of fabric will be flying, my friends, flying!

One of the many things I enjoy about teaching this class is finding out how each person decided to take the class and what they bring to it. Some have dabbled in quilting before, others have been focused on garments, and some are brand-new to sewing in general, all of which I find extremely interesting.

So, welcome Sampler students! We're all going to have a great time!

New Season, New Tote!

2008-09-22T15:27:00.000-04:00

My IKEA fabric bag was looking entirely too summery, plus I'd made it on the big side. By the end of August it was starting to annoy me with its too-large interior and non-divided outer pocket.

This bag was made with a vintage kitcheny print and a lovely chunk of a Japanese cotton/linen cross-stitch print. It feels great to wear and it's just the right size.

I'm ready for my favourite season now; bring on the pumpkins and changing leaves!

9 Patch class!

2008-09-20T15:19:00.002-04:00

Hello, all! Back at last, after all the start-of-school rush and bustle.

I can't believe my three-week 9 Patch class at the workroom is already finished; it just started! What a lot of fun! I get a huge kick out of seeing what fabrics students bring in to work with. Everyone came away with a really lovely quilt, including Josephine, who blew me away with her sheer ambitiousness and the joyful and unexpected choice of classic red and white gingham for her background. This baby is quadruple the size of the class sample!

You GO, Josephine! Well done!

Stuff With Scraps #4

2008-08-19T11:21:00.003-04:00

Still continuing my quest to complete half-done, orphaned projects into finished pieces...

The scrappy strips in the centre panel came from the cut-away backs of appliqued fan blocks. The chunks were too big to just chuck in the garbage in good conscience (and the fabrics were really really nice), so- a few long seams here, and some rotary strip-cutting there, and voila!

Pillow tops are a great place to try out some experimental, improvised machine quilting. I like the look of contrasting quilting threads, and I had such a good time on the top I totally quilted the backing, too. All that quilting makes the finished pillow very "tactile"- the kind of thing you want to just hold on your lap and pet...

Umm... that was too much information, wasn't it?

Yo-Yos for Misers...

2008-08-10T17:20:00.000-04:00

Don't hate me because I'm thrifty... Did I just say "thrifty?"

Make that cheap.

I've had an idea lately for a project involving yo-yos of different sizes. Having made a few the traditional way (a bit tedious), I was eyeballing the yo-yo maker gadgets at Michaels. They have them in a few different sizes...

for twelve bucks each... HELLO!!

There must be a better, cheaper way, my friends, and I have found it!

So get out those plastic yogurt and margarine container lids, because I know you save your empties, right? Right! Here we go...

[For another project, I had used a compass to draw circles (2", 3", 4") on cardstock and cut them out. Yay! Headstart!]

I traced a circle onto the back of a yogurt tub lid with an Ultra Fine Sharpie marker.

Cut out the plastic circle.

Using a single hole punch, notch out little bites of plastic at north, south, east and west on your disk. Just eyeball it; it will be fine.

Now, make notches in between the ones you just made...

...then notch between those notches. What we're looking for is evenly spaced notches about 1/4" to 3/8" apart. For a larger circle, you might be dividing the space between notches into thirds.

Punch 3 or 4 holes into the centre of the disk (or as far into the disk as your punch will let you reach).

Take some little sharp scissors and trim off those tiny sharp points of the notches so they won't catch on your fabric.

Your yo-yo maker is finished!! Now let's make a yo-yo...

Pin through the holes to secure the fabric to the disk.

Trim seam allowance to about 1/4" to 3/8".

Fold the seam allowance over the notched edge of the disk with your thumb.

With a threaded, knotted needle, take a stitch through both layers of fabric in the space of one of the notches.

Skip to the next notch space, and take another stitch.

Continue around the disk, taking a stitch in each notch space, and end up taking another stitch in the notch space you started in.

Push the needle through the seam allowance once again so the thread is trailing from the right side of the fabric circle.

Put down your needle and ease the disk out of the fabric circle you just stitched.

Gently draw up the thread, gathering the edge of the circle into a darling little pouch.

Holding tight, take a couple tiny back stitches, pull them snug...

... and then push the needle back through to the inside of the yo-yo to hide the thread end. Snip the thread.

Push the gathers flat and shape the yo-yo with your fingers.

There you go! You made a yo-yo for free!! Wasn't that fun? Yahoo for yo-yos!!

Stuff With Scraps #3

2008-07-30T10:14:00.002-04:00

Some of my teatowels are getting ratty, so I picked up a five pack at Canadian Tire last week. They are all solid neutral colours. I had the bright idea of doing a little embroidery motif in the corner of each, but then I have all those bits and pieces of cool vintage prints...

I really like the way they turned out! And they were really fast, too. I'll save the embroidery thing for something else, I promise.

Glutton for Punishment

2008-07-25T23:17:00.005-04:00

I found another craft book from the seventies the other day; lots of crafty goodness. The Patchwork section has directions for Cathedral Windows patchwork. So, it looking to be fiddly and hateful and taking-forever-to-make, I decided to try it!

Behold! The Sample! For scale, those Japanese indigo squares are just shy of 2 inches square to begin with. It was indeed fiddly to make, but the effect is really cool. I did manage to find a little shortcut toward the end (of course). This will probably end up being a pillow. I know, not very creative, but do I really need a teacozy? Do I want to make it into a panel for a bag of some sort? No and no. So, pillow it is, but I'm open to suggestions.

Cathedral Windows Patchwork Beast: slapped and tamed.

Floral Log Cabin

2008-06-27T11:28:00.000-04:00

My mom has always loved Log Cabin quilts. And had I made her one? No. Bad daughter.

And now, guilty no more!! Here is the Floral Log Cabin I recently completed and gave to her for her birthday. I machine-quilted between all the blocks to hold everything together, and then hand-quilted two concentric squares in each Log Cabin block. In two and a half days. (I had a deadline, and, lucky me, only drew blood once.) The border is machine-quilted. As you can tell, I'm no purist when it comes to machine-quilting and hand-quilting; I will use both in the same quilt. It's about 60" by 70".

Whew!!

Next stop: 136 yellow and cream half-square-triangle squares from a long-abandoned quilt project! Stay tuned...

Beribboned

2008-06-26T17:22:00.001-04:00

So, I've been holding back on you. I'm pleased to report that my entry for this year's Canadian Quilters Association National Juried Show received a Judge's Choice Award.

I finished the quilt in time for the February deadline, bit my nails hoping to get in, and got word of my acceptance the following month. I shipped it out to St. Johns, Newfoundland for the show, and a couple days after the show opened, received an e-mail from the president of the CQA about the Judge's Choice Award.

I was giddy for days.

The quilt is called "Downriver Industrial," measures about 31" x 66", and is fused, painted, machine-pieced and machine-quilted.

Check out the saucer-sized ribbon! And No, I didn't wear it out in public. :-)

Superstar!

2008-06-24T23:01:00.003-04:00

After a heads-up from my friend Ally, I arranged to get myself to Ann Arbor, Michigan to see and meet the wonderful Alex Anderson, Quilt Ambassador Extraordinaire and former host of HGTV's Simply Quilts. She gave a chatty and entertaining talk, sharing her lifetime of sewing and quilting with us, and then graciously spent several hours meeting us all and signing her books. Alex Anderson signed my book! We chatted! I met a famous quilter!!

Then I bought a whole bunch of fabric and ate some pie. Then I came home. All in all, I'd say that was a pretty great way to spend the day, wouldn't you?

(That thing in my hand is a photo album of some of my quilts, and I held it up because there is a photo of my daughter on the cover, and I wanted her to be in the picture. She's a quilter, too.)

Hello, gorgeous!

2008-05-26T09:47:00.003-04:00

I scored this lovely Arrow Deluxe sewing machine over the weekend at a flea market. The belt is broken and she obviously needs a clean up, but look how pretty! They don't make 'em like this anymore (which might be a good thing, given the sheer, back-breaking heft of it). But...

Yay!

Shiny... Pretty...

2008-05-20T17:09:00.003-04:00

I found these fabulous beads last Saturday at Golden Beads on Queen Street West. They were all two bucks a strand, and Buy Two, Get One Free to boot!! Usually, talk of quilt "embellishment" grates my nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard, but these just might, might, find their way onto a quilt.

Finished!

2008-05-19T16:48:00.003-04:00

Here is the Taupe and Citrus Log Cabin quilt. I made it as a "teaching quilt." The backing fabric is one that I bought a while back at Ikea and had been saving for... something. The Perfect Project with which to show it off, I guess. But, since I'm trying to use what I already have on hand, it landed on the back of this quilt. It seems happy enough there.

Taupe and Citrus

2008-05-14T20:01:00.000-04:00

I'm currently working on a Log Cabin quilt that I hope to teach as a class in the next few months. I'm still pretty excited about working with solids, and I've built quite a nice collection.

I'll show the top when it's done...

Grannies Again

2008-05-11T22:27:00.000-04:00

I'm branching out. Living on the edge. Granny Squares with more than one colour of yarn. Yes, yes, I'm a crazy thrill-seeker. After sewing my brains out lately, crochet feels like an actual hobby- strictly for fun. Once my "big enough for one person but not too huge" throw is done, I might actually attempt something from this book. The projects are mega-cute! Sorry, I meant "Kyuuto!" I do have a bit of crochet cotton around here somewhere...

Pinocchio was a pirate

2008-05-07T16:30:00.003-04:00

Here are three items from the Trove. (Need I mention that these don't even begin to scratch the surface? No, didn't think so.)

Treasure Trove

2008-05-06T13:10:00.000-04:00

We recently explored some attic storage in my house to see exactly what an elder relative had stashed away. Box after box (after box after box...) emerged from hiding. Think clowns spilling out of a VW Beetle. The majority went straight to the Goodwill, but after the entire contents of all the boxes had been gone though, I ended up with an overflowing basket of Vintage Goodness. And I do mean vintage. Lovely printed tablecloths? Check. Pretty hankie? Check. Random chunks of midcentury barkcloth? Lonely embroidered linens? Check and check again.

Now, what to do with it all? I'm not sure. Pictures to follow. Suggestions are welcome. Help. Me.

What's new?

2008-05-03T21:59:00.002-04:00

This post, that's what! In the next few posts, I'll show what I've been up to lately. For now, here is a Simple Doll I'm teaching at the workroom on Sunday, June 1st from 12 noon to 3pm. She was fun to make; I think she needs some friends now...

Thread Wrangling

2008-04-01T21:46:00.000-04:00

When I get a small ball or skein of perle cotton, I like to wind it around a big, fat, flat craft stick. It takes up less space (than the ball with the cotton wrapped around a squat cardboard tube), and the cotton can be unspooled without turning into a tangled mess (like in a loose skein).

As a bonus, it's also lollipop-like. Yummy candy colour. The bottom two are from The Cotton Mill Threadworks . They are a delight to work with, not to mention utterly gorgeous!

The Enabler

2008-03-22T12:30:00.000-04:00

Me to Nancy: ...so I did a little experimenting with crochet cotton to see how it handles for hand-quilting. I've used hand-dyed perle cottons before, and I really love the effect. Anyway, it works great! And it's so cheap, Nancy. I can get a huge ball of it at Zeller's for three bucks!

Nancy: Well, you know, I have a bunch of it that I'm just not going to use, so you're welcome to have a look...

Me: Are you really sure you're not going to use it? Come on, Nancy- you make lots of stuff!

Nancy: I have LOT of it, Johanna. You're more than welcome to it. Take as much as you want...

Oh, the shame...

Slide Show

2008-03-19T09:46:00.001-04:00

On a recent trip to visit my folks, my dad unearthed some ancient slides and we were treated to an Epic Slide Show. I was delighted when an image of my grandmother slid into place and onto the little portable screen.

There she is- Grandma at her sewing machine! She didn't sew much for fun; she sewed because she had to mend things. She did, however, enjoy needlepoint and crewel embroidery. I'm so glad to have this photo showing part of my "needlewoman" heritage.

Tutorial: Salad Bowl Pincushion

2008-03-19T09:46:00.000-04:00

By popular demand (well, two or three of you), here's my first tutorial. I started off with a straight-sided wooden salad bowl, but with some creative tweaking and glue, you could use other shapes as well.

1. Sew a couple layers of tightly woven fabric into a circle that will fit inside the bottom of the bowl. I used the bowl as a template and did two lines of stitching. Leave a small opening and fill with sand. Glue the opening closed.

2. Cut 2 circles of very thick felt, using the bowl as a template. I had some industrial felt- the thick stuff used to line winter boots. My circles were too big to begin with, so I kept trimming until they would fit snugly into the top of the bowl.

3. Using your felt circles as a template, cut 2 circles of thin quilt batting about a 1/2" to 3/4" bigger all around than the felt (eyeball it), then cut a circle of your top fabric 1/2" bigger than the batting. On one pincushion I made, I stitched the batting around the edge to attach it to the top fabric, and on the other one I didn't bother. Either way worked OK.

Assembly:

1. Put in your sandbag into the bottom of the bowl. Give it a shake to even out the layer of sand.

2. Fit your 2 felt circles into the bowl on top of the sandbag.

3. Position your layered batting and fabric on top of the felt.

4. Using a wooden craft stick (popsicle stick), tuck the fabric/batting around the sides of the felt.

Voila!! Finished pincushion! And since nothing is glued in, you can change out the fabric when it starts looking tired. Yay!

Un-idle Hands

2008-03-17T11:10:00.000-04:00

The idea of being away from thread and fabric for several days makes me a little edgy, so while I was getting stuff together for a weekend trip to Michigan, I was racking my brains for something portable to take along. I scanned the bookshelf for ideas. Hold on a sec... "Stitch Sampler"... let's try that.

With some pretty threads, tools, fabric and the book in hand, I was ready to go. Here's what I did on the weekend.

Unfortunately, I'm hooked now. Mental gears are turning.

Demon: Victorian Crazy Quilt! No wait- a modernist, contemporary crazy quilt with all this gorgeous stitching!

Angel: But all those unfinished projects... Must... stay... focused...

Salad Bowl Pincushion

2008-03-10T15:02:00.004-04:00

Like most crafters, I love a re-purposed cast-off. I picked up a stack of 70s-era wooden salad bowls from a garage sale last summer. I knew I would do something craft-ish with them, but I wasn't sure what.

Then, inspiration: A pincushion! A big hefty one! The Mother of All Pincushions!

Months pass...

Today I got out one of the salad bowls, and in less than an hour, I have the best pincushion ever- large pinning surface, substantial enough to stay put while removing pins, cool looking (I think), and I used stuff I already had to make it. Wheee!

New Tote

2008-03-08T10:07:00.003-05:00

I finished this new tote from that swirly, irresistible Ikea fabric! In fact, my sewing room has been a frenzy of activity this week. In my constant zeal to make-make-make, I've amassed quite a collection of half-finished projects. Some of those are demos from classes I've taught, but those are relatively few in number. The simple ugly truth is, most are just UFOs just laying around making me feel guilty and unfocused.

SO! I'm taking control of the situation and completing unfinished projects into finished... things! Three orphaned 9 Patch blocks? You are now a potholder! Random hexagon rosette? You are now also a potholder! (I told my sister to expect a steady stream of random patchwork objects for her home.)

Huge group of really nice little 9 Patch blocks? You are now all together and will become a throw for my couch! And the strips are the result of me fishing through all my scrap collections, finding everything blue-ish and green, and sewing them all together. These will somehow live with the 9 Patch group in the same throw, I think. One bag of scraps used up, only a million more to go! Eat my dust, scraps!!

The Big One

2008-03-01T10:58:00.005-05:00

I've started it. The Big One. The Monster-Huge Applique Project.

I bought this lovely book at the CreativFestival (what's with the absent "e"?), and I've been wanting to do an intensive hardcore applique project for a while now. I thought removing the design-angst would be a good idea. Look at this beauty...

Here's Block #1 from the book, and my start on it. I have my palette all picked out- aquas, greens, indigo, mustard, light and dark neutrals. It's gonna take a while...

I've been tagged.

2008-02-25T18:49:00.000-05:00

I've been tagged by Claire from Needlebook! I feel like a real, live blogger now!

Okay, you know the drill- here's 7 interesting (or not) facts about me. Ready?

I "collect" U.S. presidential sightings. I've seen Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush #1 and Clinton. I still need to get an in-person visual on Bush #2.
Webbed toes run in my family. That's the second and third toes stuck together like little Siamese Twins. My dad and sister have them. Cool!
I'm a dual citizen (U.S. and Canadian).
Tragically, I'm unable to wear bangs (and believe me, I've tried!).
When I have a lot of fabric cut at the fabric store, I insist on folding the pieces myself. Because I am particular. Staff are usually slightly puzzled at first, then glad for having less work. See? Win-win!
Moving-to-Canada culture shock moment: Milk in a bag. Whaaa...?
Michigan relatives think I sound Canadian. Canadian friends will sometimes point out an occasional Michigan twang. Maybe I should adopt an obviously fake British accent and be done with it. Like Britney Spears.

And there you have it.

And since those I would have tagged have pretty much all been tagged themselves lately, the Tagging Buck will stop here...

...except for Ally! Superb figurative sculptural artist, vintage-inspired craftster and my "talk me down from the creative ledge" friend since college. Check 'er out!

New Acquisitions

2008-02-18T13:11:00.003-05:00

I went to IKEA today and ever-so-casually swung past the fabric section. New prints, kids! This one is crying out to be split up the centre and used as a quilt border. It is 18" wide with the long selvage edges prefinished, apparently intended for use as decorative hanging panels. I have used another print as teatowels for my kitchen.

This other chunk is a print they've had for a while, and I've been eyeballing it for ages. I finally broke down and bought some. I'm going to make a tote out of it. This week. I will sew it into something right away. Really. I mean it.

Extreme English Piecing...

2008-02-13T16:24:00.003-05:00

Back to "Honeycomb" for a sec, here's a detail shot of one of the wings. For you, Marnie.

Liberty at last!

2008-02-12T15:54:00.000-05:00

I bought this delightful little bag from the equally delightful Claire of Needlebook blog fame. I spotted this bag in her suitcase of goodies at the workroom and City of Craft Valentine Trunk Show event this past Sunday.

Way back in May 2006 I bought this issue of Everyday Food just for the pictures of the background fabrics. Of course, I searched everywhere for this print and couldn't find it anywhere to buy for myself. Then Sunday! Yay!! The bag was a must-have.

Now if I could just find this one, too...

Honeycomb

2008-02-12T15:34:00.000-05:00

Here is another example of the possibilities of English Paper Piecing. I was honoured to have "Honeycomb" included in the Canadian Quilters' Association National Juried Show last year in Kamloops, BC. The background is pieced with a "coffin" shape, and the bees are appliqued in cotton and silk. The pieced wings were a challenge to make and are my favourite part of this wall quilt.

Hexagons!

2008-02-12T15:13:00.000-05:00

English Paper Piecing is my long-car-trip, sports practice, waiting-for-water-to-boil best friend. You may recognize the hexagon patchwork as the basis for the old classic Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt design. I think it looks fantastic as a random monochromatic patchwork and also in little rosette formations like on these little turtles' backs.

2008-02-03T18:58:00.000-05:00

Here is the third pillow in my Patchwork Pillow series!

Stuff With Scraps #2

2008-02-03T11:56:00.000-05:00

After recently finishing a massive quilt project, I decided that a small and fun quickie project was the order of the day. (And I was tired of my old needlebook.)

I'm still digging J. R. Laury's running stitch method for applique. The green stem is made with a teensy strip of bias-cut cotton that has been put through my favourite sewing toy ever... the Clover Bias Tape Maker. I have it in 1/4" (used here) and 1/2" widths. Makes me want to stitch a quilt with loads of vines and stems... Hmmm...

Ta-Daa!

2008-01-27T22:02:00.000-05:00

Here are two of the three pillows from my Patchwork Pillow Series class. I'm absolutely nutty over that antique map fabric. It's from an Anna Griffin collection called "Blythe." There are other script-y/text prints in the group, too. Scrumptious!

Mmmm...

2008-01-16T19:32:00.000-05:00

The best part about starting a new patchwork project? Choosing the fabrics, of course! This group is going into samples for a Patchwork Pillow series I'll be teaching at the workroom on Queen Street West.

Hereditary Yarn Love

2008-01-11T16:14:00.000-05:00

Mom knitted beautifully.

She tried to teach me several times as a kid, but since I am left-handed and she's not, I had a hard time with the whole mirror-image learning thing. She also sewed like a fiend (in the nicest, best possible way). Happily, I picked that up.

This funky Granny Square poncho must have been a one-off crochet project for her. She made it for my sister circa 1975. The acrylic has gotten a bit crunchy, but it's still awesome!

Look, Ma! I'm crochet-ing!

2008-01-11T15:55:00.000-05:00

Since I decided that yarn was a whole area that I had been shamefully neglecting in my high-fibre diet, I looked to Martha for help...

Granny Square directions! Right there on her website! That, combined with an uncharacteristic perusal of the yarn aisle at Zellers (I'm not fancy... yet...) and I'm five squares into a retro-fabulous brown and turquoise scarf. Dig it!

Stuff With Scraps #1

2008-01-06T09:12:00.000-05:00

With a big stash comes... scraps. Lots of them. I whipped up this little bag out of strippy scraps of some fave fabrics. And the best part? Pen pockets! Since I carry a totebag instead of a purse, this little bag holds the important stuff so I don't have to fish around the whole big totebag for my wallet and lip balm. Yay!

...the forest for the trees...

2008-01-06T08:46:00.000-05:00

So. I'm working on an entry for the 2008 Canadian Quilters' Association (CQA) show. For me, this is the Big Deal show. I have three weeks to finish it. No pressure... (Yeah, right...) Things are coming together after many stalls and starts.

But...

I think I need a little more of a certain fabric. A fabric that I used a while back for parts of a quilt that are ending up in this one. A fabric that I got for really cheap and in abundance. A fabric that I decided I didn't need any more of and got rid of the excess...

What. Have. I. Done?!

Days pass... Should I cannibalize the pieces I have and sort of surgically remove little sections that I think won't show and relocate them in patches elsewhere? Should I go against my own better judgement and just leave it as-is? Should I...? Should I...?

Now today. I buy some hotdog buns around the corner. I get them home, take off my boots, settle in and then see that the bag has a tear in it from the store and half the buns are kinda hard and stale. Ew.

So I go into my front hall and start putting my boots back on to return the buns for fresh. I look up at the front door in mid-shoelace tie...

...and there is a pristine swatch of the fabric I need!!!

I had made a window cover out if it for the long narrow window in my front door a long time ago! In passing it a thousand times since I made it, I didn't see it any more.

Thank you, Fabric Fairy! I'll try to pay more attention from now on! You rock!!!

Resolution...

2008-01-01T14:10:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year, everyone!!

...and more Laury...

2007-12-28T10:06:00.000-05:00

These images are from Better Homes and Gardens Stitchery and Crafts (1966). The group of dolls are not specifically credited to Jean Ray Laury, but I'm pretty sure they're hers.

Their wonky joyfulness makes me very happy.

The Glory of Laury (sorry!)

2007-12-28T09:45:00.000-05:00

Here are a few snaps from Applique Stitchery (1966). The simplicity of the shapes combined with the bold colour are what do it for me. And the directness of her applique stitch, which is a very visible running stitch taken along the edges of her shapes, is refreshing.

How could I not be inspired?

Bundle of Joy

2007-12-26T10:14:00.000-05:00

Lately I've been leafing through my mother's collection of 60s and 70s craft books, and the patchwork projects that appeal to me most use lots of solid cottons. (Also, the ones I love the most seem to be often designed by Jean Ray Laury. More later...) The solids have since gone out of (quilting) fashion for the most part, and I have a hard time finding quilt shops around that carry a really huge palette of solid colours.

So, during Christmas I went to Michigan to visit my family, and made a side-trip to JoAnn Fabrics on Christmas Eve day. Umm... you know your fabric-buying excursion is going past the point of no return when you fill your cart with bolts for cutting not once, but TWICE...

Solids!! Glorious SOLIDS!! Drink in the spendour!! (And very inexpensive to boot!)

NOW I can explore the wonderful world and inspiring work of Jean Ray Laury, whose 1966 book called Applique Stitchery I just received in the mail after a rare eBay order. This book really speaks to me in a lot of ways, particularly her views on colour, design and craftsmanship, and the use, almost exclusively, of solids. I've been a fan for years, apparently, but never knew her name until recently.

Okay! I have to go wash and press and fold my new-found friends...