The pantograph Azalea is a fairly new design in my collection and was a perfect choice for this quilt. The backing reads solid which really showcases the quilting design.
When choosing a quilting design, it can be tempting to copy an image such as the butterflies in some of the prints however adding the azaleas and leaves added a little more interest in my opinion.
This quilt left my studio trimmed and with the binding prepared.
Just a note that I brightened the photo below which really captured the actual look of the quilt colours.
My design wall is loaded with blocks made with Betty’s 2 1/2” squares. She gifted me a large bag of left over squares from a project she started and after one quilt she was done, and passed them to me. After several years I finally just started sewing them together with a loose rule of light and dark.
I will play with the placement of the 16 patch blocks before sewing them into the top.
It’s been a wonderful project for playing with my sewing toys as I find the process very relaxing…I hadn’t really been thinking of a what’s next project until I came across a picture from Gigi’s Thimble http://www.gigisthimble.com/2021/12/postage-stamp-quilt.html
When I first began making quilts…almost 40 years ago…I was first drawn to quilting by scrap quilts. I also remember wondering how I would ever accumulate enough fabric to make something like the above quilt!
Well after almost 40 years of quilt making I now know how and I have enough to make many!
And so this project began….first I made a smaller block with 1 1/2” squares…
Which would be ok but would take a lot longer than I think I want this project to take.
After watching some tutorials on postage stamp quilts I have decided on a variation of Kimberly Jolly’s tutorial on youtube.
And so it begins!
This will take some time as I have other projects on the go as well. My piecing time is usually limited to an hour or so in the evenings as my customer quilts come first.
It will be an easy project to take and work on at the Rec centre on Mondays which my plan is to add back into my routine…
Most of my customers ask me to choose the quilting design for them, when I first began my long-arming career…almost 20 years ago this would often cause what was referred to as the stand and stare!
Back then I was a member of a chat group called LACHAT and we used to joke about how we would clean house instead of settle on a design. We also really worked together sharing ideas with each other and would post quilt pictures for suggestions.
It didn’t take long before I learnt to trust myself and my creativity to make my decisions.
This recent quilt of Joan’s was so much fun to work on! I decided to let the circles in some of the fabrics guide my choice and quilted it using the pantograph Bubbles.
The solid backing really showcases the quilting doesn’t it?
I usually prepare Joan’s binding for her and this quilt was no exception.
It’s official, the Summer has passed and our home is now filled with the sweet aroma of apples from our trees being made into juice!
We had to be a little creative and purchase a new canner that would work with the induction range and thankfully it’s all working!
My Longarm and I are busy as usual and as always I continue to accept tops for quilting.
My 2 1/2 squares project is almost ready to become a quilt top and has made a fun project to look at on the design wall.
And….playing with these squares has inspired me to start a new project to play with…a postage block quilt!
This one will take a lot longer…more to come!
Thunder Bay Quilters Guild held the first meeting of the 2023/24 season this week. Also the first in person meeting after 2 years! The meetings will resume on zoom over the winter months and back to in person in the spring.
Ana Paula http://www.canadapaulabrasil.ca and I have collaborated on a fun project for the Teddy Bear Quilts program for the guild this week. These quilts are small and fun and will be gifted with a stuffed animal from Santa Claus for Christmas.
As much as I love the beautiful soft greens of spring…the blazing reds, orange and yellows of autumn always amaze and inspire me!
Cathy’s fun Autumn quilt left this week, quilted using the pantograph Star Swirl played on the brewing storm in this moonlit scene. The fire orange fireside backing really showcases the quilting design as well.
I have some fun projects brewing in my studio, what are you working on?
I absolutely fell in love with this recent quilt that I worked on for Cathy. Her fabric choice of Linen along with the print and solid were a perfect fit for the Interconnected Pattern by Brooke Shankland.
Maybe I am aging myself a little here but the flower colours reminded me of the Kitchen Appliances of my childhood…in the 70’s.
Many of Cathy’s quilts are backed using fireside and this is one is no exception. Fireside is a product of Moda and is soft and cuddly and easy to work with. The quilting leaves an indentation in the fabric instead of easily visible stitching.
We chose the pantograph Rhododendron which added such a fun softness to this beautiful quilt.
The quilt left my studio trimmed and ready for binding.
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The leaves are changing colours and after a very full summer life is feeling quieter.
Its always a shock to the system as the days get shorter, well they don’t really get shorter of course, however the sun disappears earlier.
Living in Northwestern Ontario it takes us a split second to get used to the long days of sunlight beginning in June and the warmer temperatures.
After a deep clean of my Longarm studio, I noticed the light catching these two recent quilt jobs catching the light just right! Both quilts have fireside backings which will be perfect for snuggling under as the days get shorter and cooler!
Mummus Rug really adds to the Autumn feel doesn’t it!
Our summer feels like it flew by, though taking time to reflect it was full with many fun filled days with grand children, friends and family. Working on outside project (mostly Erik) and of course quilting.
I almost always allow for an hour of play in the evening after turning the Longarm off. Lately it has been with a large pkg of 2 1/2 in squares of scrap fabric gifted from a friend.
I am often contacted about the Police Patch quilts that I have made and my previous posts about them are often visited both here and on Pinterest.
Several years ago I was contacted by an officer who had an amazing collection of patches and wanted a quilt made with them for a friend who was retiring.
If you are interested in making a quilt like this…I started by choosing the largest patch and making the blocks 1 1/2 “ larger than that patch. Each patch was centred and stitched down (around the edges) using clear thread though I might choose a 60 or weight now that blends.
The block colour was as close as I could come to match the officers uniform. For fun, I used solid colours pulled from the patches for the corner stones and the fun binding.
I used my Longarm for the quilting though it could have been quilted on a domestic machine as well.
Not long after making the above quilt I was commissioned to make a second one for another officer.
After posting pictures on this blog I was again commissioned to make another patch quilt.
This is a recent customer quilt that left my studio quilted, trimmed and ready for binding.
At first glance, it would seem that a butterfly pantograph or quilting design would be the perfect and easy choice for this quilt. It would have been a fine choice of course. Though a closer look shows the pieced flowers on the top and then there’s the backing to consider.
With dragonflies gracing the backing…I chose a fun simple floral pantograph to work with the piecing on the front which really didn’t compete with the back.
Many of my customers leave the choice of quilting designs to me, which is such a fun part of the process. Some customers choose their quilting design with me from my many many pantographs and some request pantographs that I don’t yet own that I order for their quilts…(at no extra charge to them)
We have had a great summer filled with fun filled days of Grand Parenting!
One super fun activity has been when Kaija comes over and asks to sew! Her last visit involved making a card and gift for her Moms Birthday.
Kaija loves digging into my scrap basket and I love both watching her and letting her decide what to use. For this project she chose the outside fabric because Mommy loves rainbows! The bright yellow lining made her smile and she knows where my zipper drawer is and chose pink.
We spent some time looking through my threads and she chose an almost fluorescent pink for the quilting.
I of course took care of the cutting and most of the pressing…she loves to push the buttons on my sewing machine and push the pedal while we sew and quilt.
The soft wavy quilting using the walking foot is a great and fun way to show a child how to quilt. Some of the steps she watched and helped.
After adding one of her favourite stickers she wrapped her gift and card…
I am planning to find a platform for my sewing machine pedal for her next visit and will plan a simple project that she can sew on her own.
Wendy’s Quilting and Life 