Professional Longarm Quilting Services
With having to be home so much this last year so many of my customers have challenged themselves to use their stashes as well as to try out new patterns.
This cat quilt definitely fit the bill! When you look at scrap quilts their charm is often how so many different fabrics fit together and look great!
We finished Liam’s spring break with some firsts of the year on Friday
Later that night He and his Dad met up with Pappa and did some smelt fishing… I wasn’t there so no picture other than the result.
Speaking of spring…winter tells us it’s not over until it’s over and we woke this morning to this
I am a machine quilter and piecer. For the most part the only hand sewing that I do is on the bindings on quilts.
For years I have used Bohin size 8 straw milliners and they were great however they have a tendency to bend. Someone suggested Lori Holts needles so I gave them a try but found them too thick and didn’t glide through the fabric as I like. A blogger that I follow had recommended Clovers Black Gold needles…while they are very thin and strong I was still labouring to push the needle through the fabric.
Then I read on another blog that she had ordered and tried and highly recommended Tulip Needles so I decided to give them a try!
They are fantastic! Perfect length very thin and strong. The packaging is different and felt like a little present and the needles come in a cute little tube with a cork top.
I may have to start a hand sewing project soon!
Cathy’s version of the one block wonder type piecing was such a perfect quilt to work on this last while were every day brought rainy grey days. It’s bright green was a reminder that all of the rain will bring out the colours of spring before we know it!
This is a picture of the fabric that she began with. I believe it is by Jane Sassaman .
Her piecing was perfect and so effective!
I used the pantograph Rhododendron that Cathy chose and it was the perfect compliment to this quilt.
As promised Liam really enjoyed his breakfast yesterday.
We spent time outside in the woods practicing with the sling shot…he really has this figured out now and was really excited that he can skip stones on the pond with it! We also had fun navigating the deep water on some of the roads in the back of the property due to the large amounts of rain this week. Our rubber boots were well used!
When we came in he enjoyed a bowl of his most favourite thing for lunch…Lipton Chicken Noodle Soup…I don’t tell him but I buy the low sodium version which make me feel a little better about it. He loves crackers and ice cubes in this soup.
Then it was time to head to the studio!
We spent the afternoon making and attaching the binding…I think that I will sit with him and do the hand stitching while we watch a movie.
This week is what was supposed to be March break for Ontario schools it was changed to April due to Covid…with a plan to reopen schools on the 19th. Plans change and now the schools will remain closed and students are to continue with virtual learning until further notice.
Liam and I made a plan yesterday for how we will approach virtual learning when we start again. It has been a very real challenge to keep him in front of that laptop for learning.
Erik taught him how to use a slingshot over the weekend, so we went for a walk in the woods so that he could practice his shot. No critters were involved.
On our walk to the mailbox Liam reminded me that we spent last March break together so now it’s a tradition. He assures me that he will always want to hang out with me.
The mailbox contained a big envelope that caught his attention and he opened it as soon as we got home and read a lot of it!
We took Liam to the Dells in 2019 with a plan to return the next summer…that didn’t happen. Liam still loves to talk about that adventure and we have promised that when it’s safe and we can that we will go again.
We spent the afternoon quilting his quilt.
It was a challenge at first and then I decided to try standing behind him with my hands over his and help guide the machine. By the time we finished he was the driver and had really gotten the hang of it! This morning we will trim it and make the binding.
Years ago my Auntie Marie suggested that we had blueberry pie for breakfast…I mentioned that to Liam so guess what’s for breakfast today! We are making the most of these days together and hopefully get also making lots of great memories!
I spent the day in my studio yesterday taking a work shop put on by our Thunder Bay Quilt Guild by Daisy Aschehoug of https://warmfolk.com/
I have attended Guild meetings on Zoom and often use the IPad to visit with another quilter while we both work in our own studios.
This was my first workshop on Zoom. It was very very convenient and a lot easier to work from home and I was probably more productive. I did miss the classroom setting and being able to see what everyone was doing and for the instructor to be able to see as well. It was fun learning about Daisy …and a bit about their life in Norway.
We toured northern Finland Sweden and Norway several years ago and I have always wanted to go back with more time to see more.
The class involved 1/4 curve piecing. I did not have a glue stick in order to try her technique so used pins which worked well as I have sewn curves before. I plan to add a glue stick to my next purchase and give it a try. I used the templates purchased from Daisy which amazingly seemed to arrive overnight!
My love of flying geese prevailed and I chose Dutchman’s Puzzle for my traditional block. Using my bin of solids made this block a lot of fun to put together.
I love Saturday mornings not that they are really any different these days from other mornings…I love to start my day slowly with a fresh cup of coffee.
Did you know that you can buy a smart coffee cup and that you can set the temperature on your phone? The coffee stays the same temperature until your last sip!
I still love my coffee in my special to me mugs…but someone is retiring in 6 weeks and has always wished that his coffee would stay hot…
Onto my stash…I have been slowly re organizing my beloved collection…one of my daughters who loves to live minimally suggested not long ago that I purge my sewing room! I told her that I am still regretting the fabric that I parted with when I moved!!!
Quilting has been one of my main passions for most of my adult life however most of that time was full of responsibilities of caring for family and earning our living.
My Longarm quilting has been and will continue to be for others and occasionally myself…all of those quilts have added to the non stop inspiration!
So my stash stays, it grows and I happily and excitingly accept gifts of peoples scraps that would otherwise go to waste…because I can see that as seasons change so do seasons of life and I am finally at the stage that I have been preparing for!
Life was full and busy this week, Liam really enjoyed our field trip and kept me on my toes keeping him fed! He tells me that I make the best food!
I really cherish these days that we share together. He will head back to the classroom the week after next. So far anyways as Ontario is closed to all but essential…
I had planned to buy cards to mail my swap blocks with however…that was a cannot buy item when I was out the other day. I have cards here to use and thankfully we could still buy stamps!
It’s been a rainy several days …not a lot of sunshine. This customer quilt has reminds me of our colours soon to be out the windows!
Today I am taking a class with Daisy Aschehoug of https://warmfolk.com ….more on that soon.
Liam was here for a few days this week and will be back next week. He loves to use his IPad so I have been having him research areas around Thunder Bay.
I wanted him to choose the backing for his donation quilt so we made an appointment to visit Donna and her shop Fuelled by Fabric in Pass Lake. I will share a picture next week of the perfect backing that was chosen. No pictures were taken as he was much more interested in going up their Mountain and exploring outside. It was a fun Day for us all.
Some fabric followed me home…
This backing has been on my mind…it’s a little too much for what I have currently been working on but when I saw a 6” strip by 100” I knew that it need to come home!
When Joan brought me this quilt she said that she wasn’t overly excited with it, she had a huge amount of fabric for the backing. A large beautiful print that deserved the extra time to match. I piece many of my customers backings.
I chose the pantograph Flying Paisley and a 40wt linen glide thread.
Quilters are often so surprised at the difference the quilting makes to their tops. In this case we both agreed that the quilting really made it sing!
Wendy’s Quilting and Life 