1st Quilt in New House!

You guys, I feel ashamed to say this - but I think I'm in over my head. I thought I had more in me, but it turns out I don't. Eric and I recently purchased a new home on an acreage where we can keep our horses and live the quiet country life and let our girls run wild and toughen up. As a couple of farm kids, living in town for so many years has been a challenge (and a blessing) at times. We moved January 2, which means I went straight from my final Christmas-deadline quilt order to packing up our entire household to unpacking in our new house. And I'll admit that it's taking MUCH longer to get unpacked and settled in than I thought it would. Parts of our basement are still neck-deep in unopened boxes. I can't find the power cord for my digital piano!

So in the unrest of packing and Christmas and New Year's and unpacking and getting things re-puzzled into our new home, I spent over a month doing NO WORK - no paying work, that is. Eek! I already had several quilts on my waiting list when I finished my Christmas rush, so now I'm dreadfully, shamefully behind, and my clients are just dangling! I'm so sorry, quilting friends!

But, at long last, here's the first quilt that I completed in our new home. I've had it since October! THANK YOU, Ann, for your patience and understanding. This was a BEAUTIFUL piece, and I was very honored to work on it!

For those of you who've asked. I don't have a perfect set-up for quilting in our new house. The house, on the whole, is laid out really nicely for our family - lots of common living space, lots of openness. But not one bedroom that was large enough for my quilting machine! So for now, it's in the basement family room. It's TIGHT, let me tell you! But Eric and I have plans of creating a dedicated quilting studio on the side of the house, once we sell our old house and free-up some cash. I'm dreaming.... sigh.

Petals in the Pot

Here's the last quilt that I will post in 2017. There are two more that I'm not at liberty to share until later when they've been given to their recipients. Check back, because they're awesome! Counting those two, that makes 152 quilts on my longarm in 2017. Up from 105 quilts last year. A total of 318  since getting my longarm quilting machine in August 2015. I'm having so much fun!

This is a little piece that I quilted for local quilt shop, Rumpled Quilt Skins. This is a class sample for two of their upcoming courses - "Scan N Cut Project" and "Advanced Applique". In this little showpiece, I echoed around the applique pieces, and then filled somewhat tightly around them. There are two layers of batting, so the unquilted applique pops up beautifully. I put a double-orange peel in the checkerboard at the top and bottom. Simple, elegant, pretty!

For further info about the upcoming classes at RQS, be sure to stop by their open house on Saturday, January 6, from 9am to 5pm. They will have 20% sales, as well as new samples for their new classes!

I-Spy for Grownups

These two quilts were made for sons that have recently moved into the adult world. They both went off to university this fall, and while they were away, their mom worked tirelessly on these surprises for their Christmas trip home.

Susan had been collecting these fabrics for YEARS, and I suspect that she actually made a few of them herself! I noticed a couple of swatches that looked like they had some kind of iron-on prints. There were SO many great finds in these pieces. I have no idea where she procured all of these rare fabrics. They're so great! Each quilt was specific to each son, showcasing prints or themes that were of particular interest to them. As I was quilting, I felt like I was playing a game of I-Spy! My fav piece: Stuart Maclean's Vinyl Cafe!

I quilted these quilts with an edge-to-edge woodgrain motif. It's hardly even noticeable on the front side, with all those great fabric swatches to catch your eye! I put a couple shots of the backside below, on which the quilting is more identifiable. Merry Christmas!

Country Lane Raffle Quilt

This is a raffle quilt for a local quilt guild. It's called the Country Lane Quilt Guild, and they meet at the beautiful old Anglican church east of Millarville, Alberta. This quilt will be raffled off, to raise money that will be used to pay for fabric, batting, and thread. These supplies will let the group continue their work creating comfort quilts that they give away to people in need or having tough times - Rowan House, Teen Challenge, or other groups that request a little dose of cozy love for a person or family. Tickets will be on sale by members of the Country Lane group starting in January 2018. For further info about this fundraiser or about the group, email countrylanequiltersguild@gmail.com.

The Country Lane quilters pieced this quilt together and brought it to me for quilting. I applied my "charity rate" edge-to-edge stipping, for just a penny per square inch. I think it turned out nicely, and allows the gorgeous fabrics to really shine, without hogging attention from them. It's a beautiful piece!

A Quilt for Mama

My client, Danna, gave me this quilt top "for mama" - which I found completely adorable. I love hearing people's terms of endearment for various family members. I've lived in several regions of the USA and now Canada, and I've heard some humdingers! Nanna and pappaw, gram and gramps, meemaw and peepaw, momma and daddy, mudge and pops, mother and daddy, goo and pap, and on and on!

This is a lovely star-themed quilt, featuring complex stars in several color ways. The first thing I noticed was the paisley-printed fabric in the setting triangles around the sides. I knew immediately that I would choose paisley as my edge-to-edge treatment for this quilt (Danna told me to do whatever I wanted). This quilt was a DREAM to work on. It was perfect flat and straight and square. A DREAM!

I also loved applying my "Effortless Binding" to this piece. I have SO much fun doing binding this way! I have a special tool that fits onto my Janome sewing machine, and it allows me to roll and attach the binding (both front and back) in one step. See more info at the bottom of my "Services" page.

Heather's Nephew's quilt

Here's a very masculine quilt - which is good for a nephew! I'm always trying to find ways to make quilts look more masculine. My wheelhouse includes so many flowy, feminine shapes. It's just the way my brain works. But this edge-to-edge series of interlocking squares and rectangles accomplishes the desired effect, I think! Great gift, Aunt Heather!

Two Quilts From Trish

Two little cutie quilts from my client and quilty friend, Trish. I tell you, her taste is IMPECCABLE! Every single project that Trish brings me, I just fall in love with. She asked for straight-line quilting or something very simple, edge-to-edge on these two pieces. They are actually the same pattern, with different color schemes. I went with her suggestion of straight lines on the teal and white one. So fresh and clean! And for the multi-colored one, the floral prints just ASKED me to put something flowy and flirty on this piece. I love them both!