October 23, 2013 · 17:32

WIP Wednesday/More FAL finishes

I am scheduled to take my first longarm class in a couple of weeks and I need to bring a small finished quilt top to work on. Wouldn’t you know that although I have more than 10 quilt tops waiting to be quilted, they are all large queen/king or small wall hangings that I want to do some special quilting on. Once again I looked to Pinterest for some inspiration for a quick baby quilt.  I found this upsized charm square idea on a blog called Thumbelina. I changed it to run the stripes vertically instead of horizontally.  I had 3 charm packs and a couple of co-ordinating fat quarters which will give me enough for 3 baby quilts.

babycharmsquare1

I finished free motion quilting the last two charity quilts for High River.  That gives me finish number 4 and 5 for the 4th quarter FAL at She Can Quilt.

HighRiver4 HighRiver5
I also finished piecing my final Christmas gift (lap quilt) but I can’t show a picture because it is a surprise for the recipient.

Linking up to

Fabric Tuesday @Quilt Story

WIP Wednesday @Freshly Pieced

Wow me Wednesday @Polkadots on Parade

Whimsy Wednesday @The NY Melrose Family

Wow Us Wednesdays @Savvy Southern Style

We Did it Wednesday @Sew Much Ado

Needle and Thread Thursday @My Quilt Infatuation

Thursday Threads @627handworks

I Quilt Thursdays @Pretty Bobbins

Really Random Thursday @Live a Colorful Life

2013 WIP  Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik  King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box  King   waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’  King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera  King   quilt top
Kimono  Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily  Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder  Queen   piecing
Peacock  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I  Lap   Binding
Leftovers II  Lap   quilt top
Tropical Punch  Lap   quilt top
Blue Hydrangea  King   FMQ
Dragonflies  Wall hanging   Binding
Xmas Surprise  Lap   quilt top
Charm Square Crib  Baby (x3)  quilt top(1), piecing(2)
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
High River Quilts   Lap (x5)
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King
Star Surround QAL   Lap/Twin

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October 21, 2013 · 20:02

Congrats Team Tango

Chewed Slippers Photography-12

Yesterday Don and Tango had their annual RCMP certification in 4 profiles (small article, alley, large article, person) and obedience . I am very proud to say that they passed. During their large article test a stray dog came into their search area and wanted to play with Tango. Our girl just kept searching and didn’t even look at the other dog. There were four RCMP dog handlers observing the certification and they were really impressed with her focus and dedication to her search.  Knowing our dominant, bossy girl….I bet she didn’t want to share her “prize” with another dog so she was determined to find it first.

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October 16, 2013 · 08:38

WIP Wednesday and first FAL finishes

I’ve had a real productive week thanks to my new long arm.  On Friday I was given 5 quilt tops that were donated to the High River Quilt Project.  I’ve managed to quilt 3 of them so far.  They are all quite scrappy and colourful so I just used  a simple all over meander.  As a bonus this also means that I have the first 3 projects for Leanne’s 4th quarter FAL done.

HighRiver1 HighRiver2 HighRiver3

I’ve also finished piecing Tropical Punch so it is waiting in the queue for FMQ.

TropicalPunchtop

Joining lots of linky parties this week:

Linky Tuesday @Freemotion by the River

WIP Wednesday @The Needle and Thread Network

WIP Wednesday @Freshly Pieced

Wow me Wednesday @Polkadots on Parade

Whimsy Wednesday @The NY Melrose Family

Wow us Wednesday @Savvy Southern Style

Needle and Thread Thursday @My Quilt Infatuation

Thursday Threads @627 Handworks

I Quilt Thursdays @Pretty Bobbins

Really Random Thursday @Live a Colorful Life

Anything Goes Monday @Stitch by Stitch

2013 WIP  Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik  King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box  King   waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’  King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera  King   quilt top
Kimono  Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily  Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder  Queen   piecing
Peacock  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I  Lap   Binding
Leftovers II  Lap   quilt top
Tropical Punch  Lap   quilt top
Blue Hydrangea  King   FMQ
Dragonflies  Wall hanging   Binding
Xmas Surprise  Lap   Piecing
High River Charity  Lap (x2)  quilt top
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
High River Quilts   Lap (x3)
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King
Star Surround QAL   Lap/Twin

14 Comments

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October 12, 2013 · 19:43

Meet Milzie

Miller_install

I took the plunge….ok maybe it is more like a giant leap…and bought myself a longarm machine.  I got an APQS Millenium but I’m calling her Milzie.  Here she is being assembled by Matt (aka The Manquilter) and his father-in-law.  When he pulled it out of the box it had a giant red bow on it.  I feel like an overly excited kid with a new toy.

Here is my first quilt loaded and ready to go.  It seems only fitting that the first one is a charity quilt for the folks in High River Alberta who lost everything during the record flood earlier this year.  I have a total of 5 quilt tops that I am going to free motion quilt for them.

Miller_quilt1

Miller_fmq1 Miller_fmq2

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October 10, 2013 · 07:46

4th Quarter Finish-a-Long

I took a break and skipped out on the 3rd quarter so I am primed and ready to commit to finishes for the final quarter of Leanne’s finish-a-long (FAL).

I am going to try and finish a whopping 8 (Update 2013OCT11) 13 projects. Most of them are quilt tops waiting to be quilted .

First, I have two Christmas present projects that are in the piecing phase. Both are lap quilts that I hope the recipients will enjoy.  Can’t give too many details or pictures in case they see my post.

ErinLap1DarwinLap1

Next I have two quilt tops from the Quiltessential Co. 2012 block of the month program.  I did the blocks in two colour ways: Blues and Opera.  They both need to be sandwiched, quilted and bound so that they will be ready for the quilt show in early January.

2012BOMBJan Opera2

Then I have Leftovers I (trim and bind) and Leftovers II (sandwich, quilt and bind).

LeftoversQuilt1 leftoversII

My Kimono wall hanging is still waiting to be quilted.  I think it was on my Quarter 2 list but never got any attention.

Kimono

I still have the first quilt top that I ever made. It is waiting for the last piece of the border to be sewn on and then comes the fun part…FMQ.

BluePinkBatik1

(Update: 2013Oct11) And last but not least I have volunteered to free motion quilt 5 tops for the High River Quilt Project (read more about it here).

photo 1 photo 2 photo 3 photo 4 photo 5

Boy this is a big list but I’ve got faith that I can make a significant dent in my pile of quilt tops waiting for some free motion loving.

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October 9, 2013 · 18:21

WIP Wednesday

I’ve made quite a bit of progress on Tropical Punch.  All the blocks are finished and I’m just starting to sew them all together.
ErinLap1
I’ve started working on another Xmas gift.  I can’t show much because I don’t want the recipient to see too much and make the connection that it is for them.

DarwinLap1

Linking up to WIP Wednesday at The Needle & Thread Network and  Freshly Pieced, Needle and Thread Thursday @My Quilt Infatuation and Linky Tuesday at FreeMotion by the River.

2013 WIP  Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik  King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box  King   waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’  King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera  King   quilt top
Kimono  Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily  Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder  Queen   piecing
Peacock  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I  Lap   Binding
Leftovers II  Lap   quilt top
Tropical Punch  Lap   piecing
Blue Hydrangea  King   FMQ
Dragonflies  Wall hanging   Binding
Xmas Surprise  Lap   Piecing
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King
Star Surround QAL   Lap/Twin

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October 2, 2013 · 07:39

WIP Wednesday

 leftoversII

“Leftovers II” is now a finished quilt top added to the huge pile of tops waiting to be sandwiched, quilted and bound.  I’m embarrassed to admit how many I have in the pile.   I’ve been waiting for cooler weather because most of my quilts are king size and it is just way to hot to have all that fabric draped across your body on a hot summer day.  The last quarter of the finish-a-long will be starting soon so that is my kick in the butt to get some of these tops finished.

I’ve started working on a new  lap quilt using the Tropical Punch pattern from Timeless Treasures.  I bought it as a kit but I had to buy some additional fabric to make it a little larger.  So far  I’ve cut more than 250 HSTs and 144 5×5 squares.

TropPunch1

Linking up to WIP Wednesday @ The Needle and Thread Network , Freshly Pieced and Needle and Thread Thursday @My Quilt Infatuation

2013 WIP  Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik  King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box  King   waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’  King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera  King   quilt top
Kimono  Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily  Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder  Queen   piecing
Peacock  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I  Lap   Binding
Leftovers II  Lap   quilt top
Tropical Punch  Lap   piecing
Blue Hydrangea  King   FMQ
Dragonflies  Wall hanging   Binding
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King
Star Surround QAL   Lap/Twin

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September 24, 2013 · 18:31

WIP Wednesday

Leftovers2-4

I have made some progress on “Leftovers II”.  I think that adding the cream sashing has really helped to improve the design.  Unfortunately this new design calls for a few more 3×3 blocks that my original design so I have to do a little more cutting and piecing work  before I can finish assembling all the blocks together.

Millie

I took an APQS long arm for a test drive.  I decided to use my “Leftovers I”  quilt top as the guinea pig.  I did a panto design and it turned out pretty good for my first time on a long arm.  I’ve been dreaming of owning one for a while now….after the hands on play time……I am really, really, really wanting one now.  It only took 3 hours to quilt it…..it would have taken me way longer on my domestic machine.

Linking up to WIP Wednesday @ The Needle and Thread Network , Freshly Pieced and Needle and Thread Thursday @My Quilt Infatuation

2013 WIP  Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik  King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box  King   waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’  King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera  King   quilt top
Kimono  Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily  Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder  Queen   piecing
Peacock  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I  Lap   Binding
Leftovers II  Lap   piecing
Blue Hydrangea  King   FMQ
Dragonflies  Wall hanging   Binding
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King
Star Surround QAL   Lap/Twin

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September 21, 2013 · 16:21

Mock Search

Chopper

Last weekend we were in Slake Lake to participate in a large multi-agency Mock Search put on by the Slave Lake Regional Fire Service. There were people from the RCMP, Edmonton Regional Search and Rescue, Canadian Search Dog Association, Slake Lake Search and Rescue to name a few. We had 9 dogs teams there representing Edmonton, Calgary and Lethbridge. It was a very well planned and thought out exercise that had scenarios and search areas to suit each group. We even had helicopters flying low over head throughout the day. The dogs did great and didn’t seem concerned about the noise or the low flying choppers. No one encountered any bears or angry wildlife and we all had a great time.

IMG_0859

 

IMG_0850

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September 15, 2013 · 19:25

QAL is finished….just in time

I am thrilled to say that I have free motion quilted and bound my quilt for the Star Surround Quilt-a-long.  I put the last hand stitch in the binding at 5:03pm……done with just hours to spare before the cutoff.  We spent the last 3 days up in Slave Lake at a mock search so I really didn’t think I was going to make it.  I worked on the binding during the drive up and back and any time I could get a few moments to myself .

To see more pictures of the finished quilt and to read more about the QAL…..click here.

Here she is……..

Finished

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September 11, 2013 · 07:28

WIP Wednesday

It has been a while since I’ve had a WIP post……I was too busy working.  I managed to finish the quilt top for the Star Surround Quilt-a-long (you can see it here).  I am hoping to get it quilted and bound by the September 15th deadline for the parade.

I’ve also made some progress on “Leftovers II”.  Here are some of the blocks laid out on my design wall.  I think I still need to add a sashing or something to give it a little more ‘umpf’ and show off each block better.  I’ve been playing in EQ7 and I think I’ve come up with a interesting on-point design.

leftovers2-3

Linking up to WIP Wednesday @ Freshly Pieced and The Needle and Thread Network

2013 WIP  Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik  King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box  King   waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’  King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera  King   quilt top
Kimono  Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily  Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder  Queen   piecing
Peacock  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I  Lap   quilt top
Leftovers II  Lap   piecing
Star Surround QAL  Lap   FMQ
Blue Hydrangea  King   FMQ
Dragonflies  Wall hanging   Binding
     
     
2013 Completions   Size  
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King  
Blue Odyssey   King  
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby  
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King  
     

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August 29, 2013 · 15:12

QAL – Week 7

QAL_QuiltTop

We got to assemble our quilt top this week.  All my points aren’t perfect…..but I’m ok with that.   I think that adds to the beauty/uniqueness of something that is hand made and not mass produced.  I will only go back and redo something if it is really off and it bothers me.

We’ve got two weeks to sandwich and quilt our tops if we want to participate in the final quilt parade.  I don’t know if I will get mine done….but I am happy to have the top finished.  For a quilt with colours that are totally outside of my comfort zone…..I like the final product.  It has a bit of a modern feel to it even though the blocks are more traditional.  I’ve been playing around with free motion quilting ideas….but I’m not totally happy with my plan so far.  I need to do a little ‘surfin’ and ‘pinteresting’ to see if I can fine tune my ideas.

Linking up to Happy Quilting Star Surround Quilt-A-Long

 

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August 26, 2013 · 08:10

Edmonton Derby Half Marathon

EdmHalfMarathon2013

Yesterday I participated in the half marathon.  It was my first one this year compared to three 1/2’s  and one full last year.   My emergency appendectomy earlier this year really messed with my race plans and training this year. Don has some injuries so he didn’t train with me or participate in the race so it was a little lonely by myself…..not even Wally by my side (no dogs allowed).  I was thrilled with my results, a new personal best.  Fifteen minutes faster than my old half record and I even managed to come in 3rd in my age group.   The only benefit to getting older is that in the long distance races there are less people in your age category……otherwise my times are not really that fast.   The ‘grand-poo-pah’ himself, John Stanton, presented me with my 3rd place medal.

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August 25, 2013 · 13:58

QAL – Week #6

This week’s assignment was to assemble the pieces that fit around the centre star.  With these pieces done, we were so close to assembling the blocks that I decided to go ahead and just sew them all the together to complete the full 16″ block.  Here are all 16 of my blocks.

QAL_Week7

Linking up to Happy Quilting QAL

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August 21, 2013 · 20:03

WIP – Week #6

We are at the exciting step of assembling our Star Surround QAL blocks. Here is my first one…only 15 more to go.

20130821-200444.jpg

No sign of my Kona solids order so I’ve given up on that idea and bought two other fabrics to use as background for my ‘Leftovers II’ quilt. I hope the idea in my head turns out as nice in real life. Tomorrow I will start laying out the blocks and see if I like the design…if not…then I’m going to have to come up with a new way to assemble the blocks. No worries, it is just all part of the creative process.

20130821-200415.jpg

Linking up to WIP Wednesday @ Freshly Pieced and The Needle and Thread Network

2013 WIP Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box King   waiting for border s
2012 BOM ‘Blues’ King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera King   quilt top
Kimono Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder Queen   piecing
Peacock Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I Lap   quilt top
Leftovers II Lap   piecing
Star Surround QAL Lap   piecing
Blue Hydrangea King   FMQ
Dragonflies Wall hanging   Binding
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King

6 Comments

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August 17, 2013 · 17:11

Help for premature babies in the NIC Unit

2013AUGSewDay

Today members of our Modern Quilt Guild got together for a sew day.  Some worked on their own projects and others worked together to make quilted incubator covers for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the Royal Alex Hospital.   These covers help block out the light to make for a more relaxing/soothing rest for the little ones inside.  I was on quilt duty.  I managed to quilt enough pieces for 2 covers.  One with an overall grid pattern and the other with a large improvised  baptiste fan design.  I hope we get to see how they look when they are put to use.

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August 17, 2013 · 00:57

QAL – Week #5

This week we have started to assemble our blocks for the Star Surround quilt-a-long.  I am happy to say that I finished piecing my centres two days before the deadline.  Wow that’s two weeks in a row that I didn’t finish at the last minute.  I’m liking the results and looking forward to adding the colour around the stars next week.  Linking up to Happy Quilting’s QAL

QAL_Week5

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August 14, 2013 · 19:47

WIP Week #5

I’ve managed to get all 35 of my 6×6 blocks done and 4 of the 24  3×3’s.  I’ve ordered some fabric to use for my background but it hasn’t arrived yet so I am going to be in waiting mode soon.

Leftovers2-2

We are starting to assemble our centre blocks in the Star Surround QAL.  I’ve got one inner star completed…..only fifteen more to go.

QAL-week5a

Linking up to The Needle and Thread Network, Freshly Pieced:WIP and Happy Quilting: Star Surround Quilt-a-long.

2013 WIP Size   Current status
Pink & blue batik King   waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box King   waiting for border s
2012 BOM ‘Blues’ King   quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera King   quilt top
Kimono Wall hanging   quilt top
Waterlily Wall hanging   quilt top
One block wonder Queen   piecing
Peacock Lap   quilt top
Leftovers I Lap   quilt top
Leftovers II Lap   piecing
Star Surround QAL Lap   piecing
Blue Hydrangea King   FMQ
Dragonflies Wall hanging   Binding
2013 Completions   Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring   King
Blue Odyssey   King
Kassidy’s flannel   Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze   Queen/King

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August 10, 2013 · 22:54

Night race for Kids

Tonight Don and I ran the Night Race to raise money for Starlight Children’s Foundation and the Stollery Children’s Hospital. It was a neat experience to run at night in the river valley with just headlamps to light your way. We took a before and after picture. Can you tell which is which?

20130810-225156.jpg

20130810-225215.jpg

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August 9, 2013 · 14:15

Congrats Team Tango

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I am proud to say that Don and Tango passed their annual RCMP Cadaver certification last night. They had three 20 x 20 metre fields that they had to search, one had no material in it and the other two had 1-3 samples.   The scent sources were placed 48 hours prior to the test.   They were allowed 30 minutes per field but they completed all three fields in approximately 20 minutes.  They found all samples and correctly identified the negative field.  Don said that it was a ‘thing of beauty’ watching our girl work the fields.  Tango got Timmy bits as her reward and the skinny guy and I are going out for dinner tonight for our celebration.   Yeah Team!!!!

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August 7, 2013 · 18:50

WIP Wednesday #4 and QAL Week #4

I have the week off work so I’ve been able to play in my studio a lot more than I normally would. This is week four of the Star Surround Quilt-a-long (QAL) and this week I had to cut and piece 192 flying geese. Here are mine all pressed and ready to go.  The past two weeks I have finished my assignments with just hours to spare before the deadline.   This week I am finished 4 days early…..yeah me!!!  Next week we start assembling our first block.

QAL_Week4

I also started working on Leftovers II.  I had so many left over 1-1/2″ wide strips of fabric from my Blue Odyssey Quilt so I came up with a new quilt design to utilize a few of them.  It will have thirty five 6×6 blocks of 1 inch squares and twenty four 3×3 blocks of 1 inch squares set on point and then a border of 1×1 inch squares.  I haven’t decided if my background will be a bright white kona solid or a deep black.  I’ve ordered both from my local quilt store and I will make my decision once I can lay out my blocks and see which one makes it ‘sing’.

Leftovers2-1

Linking up to The Needle and Thread Network and Happy Quilting: Star Surround Quilt-a-long.

2013 WIP Size Current status
Pink & blue batik King waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box King waiting for border s
2012 BOM ‘Blues’ King quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera King quilt top
Kimono Wall hanging quilt top
Waterlily Wall hanging quilt top
One block wonder Queen piecing
Peacock Lap quilt top
Leftovers I Lap quilt top
Leftovers II Lap piecing
Star Surround QAL Lap piecing
Blue Hydrangea King FMQ
Dragonflies Wall hanging Binding
2013 Completions Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring King
Blue Odyssey King
Kassidy’s flannel Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze Queen/King

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August 4, 2013 · 20:21

QAL – Week #3

Here it is late Sunday night and once again I am finishing my QAL tasks with only hours to spare.  I got my HST done fairly quickly so I thought for sure I would be finished this week’s task days in advance…..little did I know how long it would take to square up 256 half square triangles.  Look at the pile of trimmings…..man that’s a lot and my right hand is exhausted.  I’m liking what I see so far…..can’t wait to get these babies all pieced together to see the full effect.

QAL_Week3

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July 31, 2013 · 19:38

WIP Wednesday #3

I am happy to announce that I have finished “Leftovers I”. It will now go into my pile of finished quilt tops waiting for cooler weather so that I can sandwich it and start the free motion quilting. I still have tons of 2″x 1-3/8″ tiny rectangles that I need to use up. Time to start designing a “Leftovers II” quilt.

The picture is a little dark.  The background is a much brighter white on creamy white pattern.

LeftoversQuilt1

2013 WIP Size Current status
Pink & blue batik King waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box King waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’ King quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera King quilt top
Kimono Wall hanging quilt top
Waterlily Wall hanging quilt top
One block wonder Queen piecing
Peacock Lap quilt top
Leftovers I Lap quilt top
Leftovers II Lap piecing
Star Surround QAL Lap piecing
Blue Hydrangea King FMQ
Dragonflies Wall hanging Binding
2013 Completions Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring King
Blue Odyssey King
Kassidy’s flannel Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze Queen/King

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July 28, 2013 · 18:35

QAL – Week 2

Week two and with only hours to spare, I’ve managed to get all my fabric cut.  Tomorrow we get the piecing instructions.  I’m looking forward to seeing how all of these pieces will work together…..hopefully???

QAL_Week2

 

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July 27, 2013 · 17:00

Wally and Tango’s photo session

Last week we took Wally and Tango to Chewed Slippers photography studio to get some pictures taken.  We had so much fun.  They ended up featuring two of our pictures on their blog.  The first one was of Wally lying down in front of his favourite treats….Timbits.  The drool was pouring out the sides of his massive jowls and he was desperately waiting for the ‘OK’ command to chow down.

chewed-slippers-photography_dog-with-timbits-300x188
Check out the blog post here… Dog Drooling over Tim Horton Timbits, Doggie Tales, Dogs in Edmonton, What’s New | Chewed Slippers.

The second picture features our beautiful SAR girl Tango with a Canadian Search Dog Association jacket in the background.  Isn’t it absolutely stunning.

search-and-rescue-artwork-by-chewed-slippers-photography-300x221
Here is a link to the blog post: Custom Designed Artwork For Dog Owners, Doggie Tales, Dogs in Edmonton | Chewed Slippers.

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July 24, 2013 · 16:02

WIP Wednesday #2

I’ve started cutting all the fat quarters for my Star Surround QAL.  Lots of cutting left to do to make this week’s goal.

I managed to do quite a bit of work on my Leftovers I quilt this past week.  I’ve got all the rows done…..now comes the task of joining together 56 rows that are only 1-3/8″ wide (7/8″ finished) with tons of seams to match up.  Why do I create such time consuming patterns……maybe that is why I keep switching from one project to another???

Leftovers1-2

2013 WIP Size Current status
Pink & blue batik King waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box King waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’ King quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera King quilt top
Kimono Wall hanging quilt top
Waterlily Wall hanging quilt top
One block wonder Queen piecing
Peacock Lap quilt top
Leftovers I Lap piecing
Leftovers II Lap piecing
Star Surround QAL Lap cutting
Blue Hydrangea King FMQ
Dragonflies Wall hanging Binding
2013 Completions Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring King
Blue Odyssey King
Kassidy’s flannel Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze Queen/King

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July 20, 2013 · 16:02

QAL – Week 1

Well I have managed to complete my tasks for week 1 of the Star Surround QAL. It took me several trips to the various quilt stores in my area but I have all my fabric ready to go. I went way outside my comfort zone on these colours but I like them. They definitely have a modern aesthetic which appeals to me but grey…..never in my wildest dreams. I’m looking forward to the challenge.

QAL-Fabrics

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July 17, 2013 · 19:49

WIP Wednesday

OK I admit it, I am a quilt-a-holic with a touch of ADHD.  Whenever I start a new project I am all excited about my vision, totally in love with my fabric and I can’t wait to get started.  I can spend hours cutting fabric, piecing, pressing and creating blocks…..and then all of a sudden I start to lose interest when I have to make many  copies of the same blocks or repeat the same type of piecing over and over again.  And that’s when it happens…my mind starts to wonder and I start dreaming of new ideas, some beautiful fabric  or a quilt I saw on Pinterest.  Next thing I know I am moving my current project to the side and starting something new (hello……joining the QAL last week in the middle of working on Leftovers I).  I am an addict and I need a 12 step program.  I thought the FAL (finish-a-long) that I started in January was the answer to my problem….mmmmm not so much.  I was good in the first quarter.  I only started one new quilt and I finished all but one project and that was because the thread I ordered didn’t arrive.  I lost momentum in the second quarter.  I only finished one of my 4 projects.  The deadline for the third quarter has passed and I didn’t even manage to pick anything that I wanted to finish.  Last week I stumbled across a Canadian blog called the Needle and Thread Network that helps quilt-a-holics like me to keep all their works-in-progress (WIP) front and centre so that they cannot easily be ignored.   I am hoping that this is going to help me get my addiction to starting new projects under control.  This is my first WIP Wednesday post.

So here it is.  I am working on a quilt called Leftovers I.  I am making it with tiny 2-1/2″ x 1-3/8″ pieces of fabric left over  from my Blue Odyssey quilt that I finished in  January.

Leftovers1

It is also week one of the Star Surround QAL.  I’m visiting all my favourite quilt stores looking for 16 fat quarters, background, binding and backing fabric.  Next week we start cutting.

Here is my list of 2013 WIP and completions:

2013 WIP Size Current status
Pink & blue batik King waiting for borders
Asian Shadow Box King waiting for borders
2012 BOM ‘Blues’ King quilt top
2012 BOM ‘Opera King quilt top
Kimono Wall hanging quilt top
Waterlily Wall hanging quilt top
One block wonder Queen piecing
Peacock Lap quilt top
Leftovers I Lap piecing
Leftovers II Lap piecing
Star Surround QAL Lap fabric selection
Blue Hydrangea King FMQ
Dragonflies Wall hanging Binding
2013 Completions Size
2011 BOM ‘Spring King
Blue Odyssey King
Kassidy’s flannel Baby
Sue’s Summer Breeze Queen/King

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July 10, 2013 · 13:27

My first Quilt-A-Long

First it was block-of-the-month club and then came the finish-a-long.  Today I am expanding my horizons and joining a quilt-a-long.  Melissa at Happy Quilting is starting a Star Surround QAL on July 15th and I am going to give it a whirl.  Not that I need another unfinished quilt in my house…but I just can’t resist joining.  Hopefully I will be able to keep up with the weekly goals.  Check out the QAL here.

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July 4, 2013 · 18:57

2nd Quarter FAL Wrap Up

Well I am embarrassed to admit that my 2nd quarter participating in Leanne’s Finish-A-Long was a bust.  I committed to finishing 4 items (see my list here) but I only managed to finish one….Sue’s Summer Breeze.   I have no good excuses except for the fact that I seem to prefer starting new projects rather than finishing existing ones.  I’ve managed to start two new quilts during the quarter….they may end up being added to my 3rd or 4th quarter FAL wish list.

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