latest quilting adventures

For weeks now, all I have really wanted to do was to make another quilt (or two, or three....LOL!)  With my first jewellery class put to bed a couple of weeks ago, I put off putting everything away* and starting going through my batiks, plucking out some possible contenders for my first project.

If you're interested in a bit of the how and why, read on....but I will warn you, it's not really all that interesting, unless you are interested!  No one will know if you just scroll through the pictures.... ;-)

Inspired by this, I knew that I wanted to start with squares of fabric as my base.  Since I already had a bunch of 10" squares (including those I won on Debbie's blog giveaway eons ago - thanks again Debbie! <3 i="">, it was a easy choice to go with a match (and use 10" squares for my starting point).  To make a quilt large enough for a Queen bed, I quickly determined that I needed 110 squares (later revised to 121 because I initially only factored in half of the seam allowance loss...sometimes it doesn't pay to rush through the math!).   I was determined that they would all be different fabrics, so I had to make several passes through my fabrics and broaden my range a little to include a few greyish greens and some lighter values than I would have otherwise chosen....

All of the fabrics lined along the back and in the first 2 rows in front (above) were pre-cut squares - the rest needed a quick pressing and a square cut.  This process took a couple of evenings....but by the Friday night, I was ready to start making little groupings of fabrics I would 'stack 'n' whack' (essentially stacking 5 different fabrics in one pile, then taking even cuts off of two sides and repeating a second time....then shuffling the pieces from the first pair of cut to reveal the fabric in 3rd place, and the pieces from the second pair of cuts to reveal the fabric in 2nd place).  But first I decided that I should loosely sort my final fabrics into lights, mediums and darks....

About half of my stacks of 5 pieces were lights + mediums and the other half were more mediums + darks.  I tried to make sure that I didn't pick two pieces that were too similar one after the other....but I later discovered that when a bigger piece is cut, it can almost look like the parts came from different pieces of fabric (since there is sometimes a lot of variation in both colour and value across the surface of a single batik, esp. in a 10" square piece)....so when some of my blocks were sewn together, there was a bit less definition (= more blending) than I would have liked to see.  All in all, I was pretty pleased with how it all came together. 

So on the Friday evening I started making sets of five fabrics and cut four of the stacks and sewed them back together again (=20 completed blocks).  Each set of 5 squares received a different set of cuts, so essentially there are really only 5 blocks with the exact same shape dimensions within the block (just look at the corner squares in the above picture and see the range....then look at other blocks with the same corner-square size, but likely different framing widths around it). 

For my attention span, I need to work with a system and it's especially important that I trim as I go....so I would work on sewing two sets of blocks at one time (=10), chain sewing the first piece and then pressing (for all 10 squares), then attaching the 2nd piece to all 10 squares, etc.  Once each set of 10 blocks was completely sewn and pressed, I would trim (to 8 7/8" square) and then stack in a pile of either 'dark' or 'light'.

On the Saturday I was able to sew the rest of the blocks (= 101 or 121 in total), and I finished off my evening by starting to lay them out on the floor.  But before I did that, I did 'deal' my lights into five different piles, in an attempt to spread the fabrics around a bit (each fabric appears only 3 times - so I didn't want to have to worry too much about clustering them all together).   I was only able to fit about 4-5 rows at a time in my open space...so I alternated between light and dark squares (on the diagonal), and then adjusted as necessary.   Once I was happy with the arrangement, I stacked up each row and kept the pairs/squares in order. 

Sunday morning I started working on sewing the blocks into rows and then joining the rows together.  By lunchtime the quilt top was all sewn together, save the centre seam (I really want to give it a good pressing first, and the smaller pieces will be a bit easier to handle).

Now I just need to piece together the back (yes it will be pieced, but more simply)....and then deliver it off to Sue to work her magic and make it into a quilt!  Hopefully I can get it put to bed (tee hee!) before I head off to Vermont in 10 days...

* in the interest of full disclosure, I must confess that for more than a week following the class, the wonky piles of baskets and bins from class were still cluttering up my mud room.  Right where I unloaded them upon arriving home.  Once again, it's a good thing that I live alone and get very little company.... ;-)

binding my first bed quilt

For 8 days in May, I immersed myself in the bliss of cutting, pinning, stitching, and pressing, of my lovely Liberty Tana Lawn...and when then marathon was over, I was left with a finished quilt top and a pieced back.  Granted it was a bit of an impulsive beginning (I just decided on Victoria Day weekend* that that I was going to get started, and five minutes later I had my rotary cutter in hand), but I came to the realization that I was probably never going to love those fabrics any more than I did right then and there.  I'd been crushing on them for as long as I'd been back from my trip to England (2 years ago this month).  And while I didn't see that love fading any time soon, I realized that I didn't want to risk waiting until it had before I started using them.  Because sometime that happens - you use up all of your love for something in the imagining, the dreaming, the playing in your mind.....and when it's all said and done, nothing can live up to all of that imagined potential.   And that is never good!  Especially when you really $plurge -- and I think few would argue that making an entire quilt out of Liberty Tana Lawn is anything short of insanity a major $plurge.

For the last three months, my quilt has been sitting and waiting at the long-arm lady's to be quilted (machine quilting is not in my repertoire), and I was excited to finally go and pick it up a few days ago.  My first reaction was "I can't believe how light and airy it is....", which is because of the fabric itself and also the silk batting I chose (why stop $plurging at that point!?!?). 

I still had the binding left to finish, and I carefully pinned it in place and sewed it onto the front with my machine, yesterday.  Now, I am a novice quilter....and while I have sewn lots of binding onto hotpads, etc., recently, I have never had to bind something so large as a bed quilt, so I was more than a little nervous to begin. 

When I picked up my quilt, Sue had trimmed away the excess batting and backing about 1/4" from the edge of the quilt top.  I was curious about whether or not I should do further trimming before I attached my binding, and she recommended that I did not - the excess will help fill and firm the edge.  I was a bit skeptical at first, but decided to heed her advice.  I lined up the edge of my binding (2 1/2", folded in half) with the edge of the quilt top and pinned in place.  When I started sewing, I initially used a 1/4" seam allowance.  After I sewed several inches, I removed the pins and wrapped the binding around to the backside.  What I discovered was that the edge wasn't quite as full as I was expecting – or desiring.  So I quickly switched feet on my machine and changed the seam allowance to be a bit more generous, and re-sewed the same section over again.  A quick flip later, I was much happier with the results. 

Because I know that this is something I will be doing infrequently (and thus easily forgetting), I took a quick picture to remind myself of what I did – and which foot I used for the job.  And, posting it here on the blog just means that I will be able to find it more easily in the future!  :-)

I've hand-sewn about 2/3 of the binding onto the backside of the quilt so far.....and when I am finished, I will take some proper snaps to share.   I can already say that the promises of silk being as warm as down appear to be true – having the quilt on my lap while I was stitching quickly had me turning on the A/C!  ;-)


*I don't know what it is about Victoria Day weekend, but just realized that this is also the weekend I started working on Jumbo three years ago.....!?!?!

little bird

I arrived home last night feeling too tired to hook, and too tired to blog....but I managed to needle-felt this little bird onto a sweater before I sought out my nest on the couch.


The sweater was one of those 'too-good-to-be-true' deals, regular $98 or something on clearance for about $12 at Banana Republic. I didn't notice the hole until after I'd tried it on – and I'm not in the habit of buying defective clothes – but the sweater has some great rouching (sp?) up the sides and I really liked the fit...and it was a really great price! Plus, I already knew how I could fix up the hole so that no-one knew it was there.....


I like the simplicity of just one bird, but I can't help but wonder how it would look (and whether or not I would wear it as much) with a little branch underneath the bird. Maybe a couple of leaves, a flower bud, or else just something down at the bottom of the sweater. But before I decide, I'm going to 'test drive' the sweater a couple of times first, to see how the little bird wears. Starting today - I'm meeting a friend for lunch! :-)
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P.S. I'll be back tonight with my Friday list of fun things....

holiday handmades (belated)

I'm a little late is sharing these snaps....but you know what they say: better late than never! :-)
While I don't feel as though I made quite as many of my own gifts as I have in previous years, I certainly seemed to receive a good share.

Of course, it all began with my uncle's stained glass, and quickly resumed with a sweet little snowman hooked by Elaine (I'm sure you can spot him in a photo below....), followed by this wonderful hat that Wendie knit for me....


It's a great pattern - and wonderfully executed. I've received comments and compliments on it almost every time I've worn it...and several requests for me to make others. I haven't said yes yet to anyone, but I'm more than happy to share the pattern (better yet, it's a free one!). It's called Capucine and you can find it on Ravelry here along with details and pictures of almost 2000 projects, or if you're not a member, directly on the maker's blog here.

On Christmas morning, one of my first presents was a bit of a re-gift. A couple of years ago (maybe even 3?), she gave me her newly completed version of Emily Carr's Sombreness Sunlit (licensed pattern available here)....with a promise of getting my Dad to make a frame for it. It's been sitting (and waiting...and hiding) in the back bedroom of their house for some time now, but I am pleased that it's finally framed and ready to hang on the wall. Now I just need to find a spot on the wall and do some shuffling.....



My dad made me a collapsible, adjustable, portable wooden swift, using cherry harvested from their land....


I know that this swift is something I am going to use and treasure for the rest of my life. So handy for skeins I dye and skeins I buy. I've already given it several test runs and cannot offer any suggestions for improvement – it works like a charm!

The last photo of this year's handmades wasn't made by the gifter, but they're a wonderful momento from another great trip: handwoven tea towels from PEI. Drying dishes with a handwoven tea towel makes the chore actually enjoyable. As I remember, those at Belfast Mini Mills were very reasonably priced.


Nothing says love quite like giving a gift that you made yourself. I'm a pretty lucky girl.

back to normal?

I don't know about you, but I've found that it's taken the last few weeks for the postal system to get everything sorted out, following the labour dispute. Much of my mail has taken longer than usual (like 10 days for an envelope to go from Parry Sound to Huntsville - normally a 1 hour drive by car). Maybe it's just the summer....and little bit my imagination, but everything seems a little sluggish lately, including me.

In need of a little pick-me-up, I placed my first order with Alewives a few weeks ago. I've visited their site many times to gorge on the lovely eye candy, but I always seemed to feel a bit overwhelmed by all of the choices and had a hard time deciding what I really wanted. It's difficult to complain about having too many beautiful fabrics to choose from......but I do find I get easily overwhelmed by attractive selections -- finding the rose among the thorns is so much easier!

In any case, I finally took the plunge, chose 10 different batiks and placed an order, and the slow-poke mail service finally delivered the last of my fabric at the end of last week. It's been spread out on either the counter or the coffee table ever since, and cheers me up each time I look over at it. There is so much promise in a pile of fabric...

Meanwhile I'm busy planning my trip to England, hence the book that's usually by my side. It's hard to believe I'll be leaving in less than 7 weeks -- there is much to do between now and then. Including finalizing where I am going, staying, seeing, etc. Any and all recommendations welcome for Amsterdam (I a 12 hour stopover en route), London, Yorkshire, _______ (anywhere else I should go for a good 3-day adventure in September? Scotland? Wales? _____?)

Once I finish knitting my new sweater (hopefully this weekend), next up on the project list is sewing a pocket-protector for my iPad. I love the thick felt Christine used for hers, but I think I will try to make something from my stash - either wool fabric with batting and then contrasting free-motion quilting or maybe a little pieced top using some different batiks.... Luckily there is still time for me to decide and/or come up with a new plan :-D

balls of colour

Over a year ago, I ordered a bunch of these felted balls, not knowing exactly what I would use them for....just feeling confident that they could make something neat. Somehow they got lost in the shuffle (that is my closet) and I happened upon them right before I left to teach a creativity workshop last Fall, so I brought them along. I guess other people felt (ha ha!) the same way, since I virtually sold out of them at the class.

Fast forwards a few weeks later, while teaching in Vermont, where I was introduced to creative jewellry fashioned by the youngest rug hookers I've ever had the opportunity to teach: Sammy and Lexi....



My pictures hardly begin to do it justice....but suffice to say, I was very impressed -- and very inspired to create some of my own 'hooker jewellery'.

There was a bit of a time delay before I actually started though -- I had to order more felted balls first.....and then get around to granting myself some "play time", which finally happened a week or so before the Annual.

I found it easier to wind up a bunch of quillys (? --> I've heard that's the name given to the wheels of wool, but I've never seen it written before), pin the end in place and then sew a bunch at once. A sort of mini- assembly line.

To sew, I use matching thread, a long doll's needle, and stitch through the diameter of the quilly in multiple places, that that the stitch pattern is similar to the spokes on a bicycle wheel.


After I have a good collection of quillys, I picked out some coordinating balls and beads and started threading...


I've made two so far. The extra-long necklace on the left is mine, and the shorter, more condensed one was my mum's Mother's Day gift (she picked out the balls, and I did the rest).

There are lots of more ideas swimming around in my head...so I'm sure there will be more necklaces to come.

Handmades received....

I've been making handmade gifts for as long as I can remember. [One of the earliest was a major flop -- I grated soap and mixed it with water and shampoo to make bubblebath. Luckily there haven't been too many that turned out like that....so gross (and slimy, too).]

A few weeks ago, Wendie and I were having our usual MSN marathon at work....and she wondered about whether or not I received very many handmade gifts (which is what I call items made especially for me by the giver, not by a craftsperson/artist who's a stranger), and if I liked to receive them. To be quite honest, I don't really receive too many of them compared with the number I produce (which, in recent years, has resulted in fewer of these time-consuming gifts being given).

Strangely enough, this year there was a bumper crop of handmades for me under the tree...all beautiful -- and all greatly appreciated ;-)

Wendie made my this cute little fella.

This pretty scarf was knit by my Auntie Betty.

My Mum finished my gorgeous quilt top (and promises to have it finished for my birthday in March...yippee!)

My Auntie Betty knit me the cozy socks I'm wearing today.

There were two other handmades I recieved: an "I love you" candy bracelet from Sienna (did you know they have such toys/kits?) and a felted pillow from my mum.

My mum took one of my favourite Kaffe Fassett cardigan sweaters, felted it, and turned it into a pillow cover (perfect for one of those inexpensive down pillows I blogged about almost 3 years ago!). I haven't worn the sweater in years (I knit it about 20 years ago and it has the boxy look of the 80s), but couldn't bear to part with it either....so it was great to see it given a second life. The pillow was accidentally forgotten at my folks place -- it's so cozy that it hasn't left the couch since it was unwrapped! -- but I will be sure to snap a pic as soon as it comes home.

I think that the key to holiday crafting is to not wait until the last minute to get started. So if you're at a loss for project, you can always get a head start on next Christmas! ;-)

deux cent cinquante

I’m sure that I’ve already mentioned my fascination with Kaffe Fassett on this blog... It all started almost 20 years ago, when I was still in high school and my Mum brought home his first book, Glorious Knitting. I started off knitting his sweaters when I was still in high school. Around the same time, the Textile Museum featured and exhibit of his work….and we traveled down to Toronto see it.

Over the years I’m sure that we’ve bought all of his knitting books, the needlepoint books, the book on mosaics, and a few of the quilting books. One thing is for certain: I never tire of looking at any of them! Often I find that some of the most interesting things to look at in the books aren’t the patterns and projects themselves, but the locations of the shoots and other little pictures…and of course, the colours. Oh, the colours….

Okay, back to the giveaway….. Several sweaters later, I decided to foray into needlepoint. My Nana had done needlepoint – and petit point, too – and I had plans of chairs I’d like to reupholster with needlepoint….but I first needed to learn the basic technique. Armed with blank canvas and dozens of mini skeins dyed in one of Mum and AJ’s Around the Colour Wheel demonstrations….I started experimenting.

This pillow front is the only needlepoint project I ever completed. I’m not sure exactly when I did it, but it was at least 10 years ago (and more likely closer to 15!) The design is a one-of-a-kind conglomeration of several of Kaffe's different knitting patterns. The dimensions are a not quite square 15.5” by 16”



Although the piece has moved homes along with me – several times – I never seem to get around to making it into a pillow. During my big tidy before Christmas, I happened upon it in the closet and pulled it out, determined to finally finish it and/or find a home for it. It’s been sitting in a pile on the counter ever since.

So, I’m not going to finish it for you, but it’s up for grabs to anyone who thinks they’d like to do it. You need only leave a comment telling about the oldest WIP you have tucked away in your closet before Sunday January 11th at midnight to be considered. On Monday I will use a random number generator to determine the lucky recipient and then I’ll announce it here on the blog.

leaves and beads...

A month or so ago, maybe longer, I was wasting time at Chapters...looking forsomething to buy so that I could use a coupon (yes - I am a victim of marketing!) and happened upon this book:
One of the blogs I check periodically had had a post about it, and upon recognizing the cover, I picked it up for a closer look. It was love at first sight. It came home with me, and I think that I read the whole book that first night.

Although I was eager to get started creating some funky embellished clothes, I knew that my schedule would not permit it. The next day, I took the book over to AJs for her to look at....removing the temptation.

I picked it up again on the long weekend, and to avoid working on the newsletter, I started modifying a t-shirt I'd bought last summer. It was lots of fun to play around...but I think that I'm going to be taking a closer look at the book again before I begin my next project. Here is a picture... (although not a great one - have you ever tried taking a picture of yourself?)

The next time your wandering aimlessly in Chapters - check it out! As for me, I'll be back soon with pictures of other things I've made...

feast or famine

I have come to the conclusion that my approach to many things in my life is either feast or famine. All the time or not at all. Regularly or never. A lot or none. This blog is just one example (the irony is not lost on me as I write a new post for the first time in a couple of weeks...)

Yes, I know that the best blogs and more widely read blogs are those with frequent posts. I often think of things to post about, I do. But if for some reason there is a long enough delay between the seed of an idea and sitting in front of the laptop, nothing happens. The longer I put things off, the easier it becomes. I am sorry. I will try to do better.

So, what have I been up to? I did manage to create some scarves...


...they are a lot of fun to make, and I am thinking that they will be my handmade gift for most of my friends and family this Christmas (it's too late in the season for new scarves now). There is a real opportunity to play around with colours and use up leftover bits....while diving into my stash of novelty yarns.

I modelled the design on a scarf I purchased here a couple of weeks ago -- sorry, I forgot to take a picture -- but they are practically unrecognizable from the original, anyway. I was going to sew my knotted "ropes" together with a bodkin and yarn....but ended up using them as warp threads and weaving them together with yarn. Maybe I follow in my mum's footsteps and take up weaving one day...

Lucky Seven!

We had our final throwing class at pottery last night. Most of the night was spent finishing our pieces and narrowing our week's work down to seven that will be bisque fired sometime between now and Wednesday (glaze night). I took a couple of pictures of the chosen few...and just tried adding them to the post, but silly dial-up at my folks seems to be making this impossible. I will add them as soon as I can.

Preparations for my upcoming workshop in Etobicoke are well underway. I spent several hours dyeing wool today and the last of the patterns will be drawn tomorrow. I really enjoy the dyeing process--sometimes I think that I like it even better than the hooking ;-)

While I was reorganizing my wool a few weeks ago, I was noticing that I have a lot of dark, duller colours and not too many light or brights. I really tried to focus on dyeing some new values and shades today....and the results will be in soon (the wool is all in the dryer as I type...)

The new Rug Hooking Magazine arrived yesterday...and on first glance it looks like a really good issue. I also received my copy of the new Celebrations today from AJ....so there will be some reading happening tonight. I know what I'll be doing with my extra hour....

Pottery is fun!

I finally finished the Fall/Winter 2006 issue of "the R.U.G. sack", after spending most of the weekend making up articles to fill all of the white pages... I took it to the printers first thing on Monday morning, so hopefully it will be ready for pick-up some time today and out by the end of the week (fingers crossed!)

In the meantime, I started a pottery class on Monday night and it will run every evening until Friday. On Friday we will choose our 7 best pieces to be bisque fired and return next Wednesday to glaze 5. It is pretty messy work, but a lot of fun. I am hoping that the momentum will continue between now and Friday--I produced only 2 bowls worth keeping on Monday, and 6 yesterday! Here is a picture of my keepers to date....



I know that my sisters are hoping that some will be worthy of gift-giving--we will have to wait and see... ;-)

Sadly, no hooking until the weekend at least....