Tag: Scrap Quilts

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Summer Piecing

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With so much of my quilting time taken up with Longarm Quilting for others…which I love by the way, it is very easy to neglect piecing time which is a major passion of mine.

I began piecing my Longtime Gone quilt a year ago last March! Being a very scrappy quilt I have loved the challenge but it also involves many bins of my scraps that can wreak havoc in my sewing room which often overflows with customer quilts and is also Liam’s favourite place to sleep when he is here.

The Color Collective also took front and centre stage this year taking up my precious piecing hours.

Well my scrappy quilt has been calling so I began puttering with it again.

Sometimes spending too much time planning a scrappy block isn’t a great thing… I was almost finished this block when I noticed too much of the same thing in the upper left of the block. I also should have made the outside geese scrappy.

I decided to leave the outside geese as they are at least for now but did make a change that I much prefer.

This block is the most subtle of the blocks…

I have more than half of the blocks finished for this quilt, and might just work on kitting up the rest of the blocks so that I can just pick up one as time permits and tuck the scrap bins away for another time.

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Fun Scrap Quilts

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How much fun is this quilt…well it was for me. I love scrap quilts and this one made with the makers scraps from all of her other quilts just blended into a beautiful collage of colour.

Years ago I made a quilt by cutting a few strips each from many fabrics in my stash and divided them into dark and light piles and placed each pile into paper bags. My rule was…what came out was what I would use and made a log cabin quilt. That was a fun project and the result was a beautiful quilt that was fun to look at.

This quilt reminded me of that project…one I may just repeat sometime.

The swirl pantograph played so nicely adding to the fun of this project.

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

May!! Spring and Cathy’s Quilt

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Spring May finally be arriving! We still have a ways to go before the snow disappears, the ground is still covered the yard with more than a foot in unplowed areas and the bush is still heavy with the stuff.

The good news is the weather forecast is for sunshine and warmer temperatures and no overnight freezing temperatures.

Onto Quilting.

I have quilted many quilts for Cathy and always enjoy our visits. When I first met her she was still working as a community nurse and had been my Moms Nurse after she had cancer surgery. My Mom really liked her and it wasn’t long before they discovered their link of quilting. This led to Cathy meeting me.

Cathy’s latest quilt really helped to brighten some very grey days around here.

I have always loved scrap quilts, they are so much fun to make and to look at!

I chose the pantograph Helix which really adds motion to the kaleidoscope.

Cathy chose a very soft flannel for the backing.

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Snow, Stellar, Quilting and Life

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Well…yes it’s still snowing there is even more forecasted for Wednesday yet again! The trees are heavy with snow and an attempt to walk to the back of our property failed due to it being waist deep!

The good news is that it’s not too cold, the snow is wet and heavy to shovel but it did feel good to be outside this morning and the sun was trying hard to break through the clouds. hopefully the sun will shine tomorrow.

11:30 am April 18 2022

On Friday I spent some time pressing and started cutting the fabric for Stellar, the third quilt from Season 4 of the Color Collective. It is comprised of 2 paper pieced blocks that mirror each other.

Marilyn’s third half square triangle quilt left this morning. Theses quilts are full queen size and such fun to look at. Her stitching is so precise and her quilts are always square.

Folded in half

I am presently quilting a super fun 2 sided quilt that is nice and bright! I always press the tops and backs before loading, it’s worth the extra time in my opinion. This quilt like the Minecraft Quilt has a very pieced and fun backing.

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Why Have A Large Fabric Stash

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Do you remember those large boxes of crayons.. the ones that came with attached sharpeners? Now that was exciting! Maybe more so for some than others. I really don’t remember not creating and enjoying playing with colour.

Growing up, my Mom always had her sewing machine out and often was used mostly for making clothes but sometimes home decor. The visits to the fabric departments… were so much fun!

Seventh grade in Winnipeg meant a sewing class…that meant my very own set of new notions! The beginning of a love for sewing notions that still exists today. Oh and the fabric!

While it is true that styles change and that is very true in the quilting industry as well, and collecting fabric that may or may not get used isn’t the wisest use of money. Having a stash that has been collected over the span of many years has its benefits.

I have been Longarm quilting for others for 18 years, I have noticed that many of my customers who are ahead of me on this life journey have more time and the fabrics to make the most amazing quilts.

Marilyns quilt is one! I asked her if the fabrics in this quilt were all hers and she said yes all accumulated over many years of quilting!

This quilt is one of three queen size quilts that Marilyn has made for her adult granddaughters.

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Fabric and Scraps

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As a small child I was always delighted to be given scraps of fabric! I think they were probably my most favourite plaything, add to that scissors, thread and a needle and I was set.

The quilts on the tv show Little House on the Prairie is where I recall first seeing or maybe noticing scrap quilts! I know that I always questioned the colour rules and just loved the look of all kinds of colours together.

One of the most fun part of the Color Collective I am participating in is receiving a palette of colours that I may not have chosen myself for a quilt.

During the break out portion of our local guild meeting last night we were encouraged to talk about how we store our scraps. Of course there are new quilters who haven’t reached the what do I do with all these scraps, part of the quilting journey. There are probably quilters who make a quilt and have very little left overs…I am not sure that I know those quilters, are you one?

So back to the breakout room… I love scraps and I have a lot of them. I love to use them to try out new techniques and ideas. I love to save them to use in future projects and I sometimes just like to look through them and reminisce or sort through them.

Do I need all of them? Maybe not but then maybe I do…perhaps I will have a season in life where I can really dive in and play and I will be prepared.

My Longtime Gone quilt is a scrappy version, I have had hours of fun playing with scraps. This is a quilt that I am savouring the journey…sone things shouldn’t be rushed.

So many quilts come my way to be quilted…thank you thank you to everyone who allows me to be part of your quilting journey! I am constantly inspired.

This is one of 4 quilts that is made up entirely of 2” finished half square triangles. So many fabrics I recognize but many I don’t because this quilter has been collecting for more years than I have.

The view out the window this morning is a little drab, winter has a strong hold right now with a ton of snow and many chilly and today windy days….. My sewing and quilting rooms will be my bright sunny retreat today!

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Margaret’s Tulips

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What a fun and happy quilt! It was quilted with the pantograph ground cover. Margaret used fabrics from her stash to piece this quilt and like so many of us, she told me it didn’t make much of a dent in her stash.

I love the variety of fabrics in this quilt.
The backing was primarily the green but was grown using strips of some Kaffe
Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Customer Stash Quilts

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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!

A soft flowing pantograph added a little movement …
This leopard print mad a fun backing!
Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Stash, Scraps, Work and Life

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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!!!

My friend Marlene recently gifted me with fabric that I have always wished I had bought more of! It just makes me smile.

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.

Sometimes a couple things need to be added to an order to reach free shipping 🤓

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!

Sisterhood Quilt Swap blocks ready to go.

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.

Wendy's Longarm Quilting, Thunder Bay, Ontario

Piecing Backings and Blocks etc…

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The days seem to fly by! It’s been a busy Month of quilting and piecing in between Liam’s school and day to day responsibilities.

This quilt back took a little more time to piece than most as it had a larger motif and called out to be matched. I enjoyed the challenge and feel it was well worth the effort. The quilt is on the frame is close to being completed. More on that soon.

The pineapple blocks have been so much fun! I have a plan for them and a pattern on its way that I am looking forward to jumping into. I will make my sisterhood blocks first and send them on their way!! The papers are printed and ready to start.

Maybe some sewing room tidying is in order as well! I often joke that I am a bit like Jillian Jiggs a story that I used to read to my girls…she would start cleaning her room only to find something else to play with!!….Oh also the fabric to finish my blockheads 3 is on its way, along with some other goodies. Life is so good!