Kaboom.....not!!!

Before I write about quilty stuff I am going to share something going on in my neighbourhood today.

For many years in Nanticoke, Ontario there has been a coal-fired generating plant. For most of my years living here, until just a couple of years ago, I could count on looking out my window and seeing the stream of brown pollution drifting across the sky.

Today the two tall stacks were slated for demolition by imploding them. Evidently this process has taken a year and a half of careful work. 

From my house, I can see one of the stacks...

I'm sure you can't see it in the picture, but it is sitting just left of the windmill way down the road. The plant is about a 15 minute drive from here.

As I was taking the "before" picture I heard a helicopter headed that way....maybe a news station?

After watching a television programme describing this type of procedure sometime this year, I find the story somewhat thrilling...I don't know why :S

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So, I'm back moments after the big event. I was ready to take a picture of the moment. lol....how anti-climactic! I could see the stack tip out of site, but I couldn't hear anything and there was no big plume of dust that I was expecting! What a letdown. I'll have to watch the local news later to see it for myself.

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So, back to quilting!

I'm taking part in the Postcard From Sweden Quiltalong hosted by Sandra at Musings of a Menopausal Melon, and today is the day to show our progress.

I have done the cutting and labeling of the pieces...

This is going to be a fun and colourful quilt! Part of the fun was in the labelling, as I think it's the first time in my life that I've actually written the words, "kumquat, chartreuse, leprechaun", even though I do know the words.

Now, after all the distractions of the day, I'd better get back to working at the longarm! I have a big quilt on today that should just take a couple more hours to finish.

I am linking up today with Sandra at Musings of a Menopausal Melon, Susan at Quilt Fabrication for Midweek Makers and with Esther's Blog for WOW - WIPs on Wednesdays.

And, because this quilt is a new start for 2018, I am linking up with Pomegranate and Chintz for 6and6in2018!

Rainbow Scrap Challenge AND One Monthly Goal - Complete!

Just a quick post today as we have house-guests for the weekend.

I wanted to show my blocks for February's Rainbow Scrap Challenge.

Here are my purple blocks for Squared Away, I am making the 7.5" size...

......and here are my purple birds for my Rainbow Birds....

The cutting of all the background fabric for Rainbow Birds, as well as the leg/background piecing, was my February goal for OMG-One Monthly Goal.

Even though it's been a crazy busy month, I was able to sneak my goal in and got it completed...

Not the best picture, but I am glad this got done...it will make the piecing of my Rainbow Birds much quicker every month.

That's all for now! My step-son and his baby are here for the weekend from Alberta. He has just finished his 7-month deployment in Latvia and has a bit of down-time now that he's back. 

This means a big family dinner tonight and a couple of outings before they go home on Monday.

Wow, this has been such a busy week!

I am linking up with So Scrappy for Scraphappy Saturday. I'm looking forward to what the colour for March will be. 

And I'm linking up with Elm Street Quilts for OMG- One Monthly Goal.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Busy times!

I hadn't thought I'd do a post today, but it's been such a hectic four or five days I'm just going to take a few extra minutes of down-time this morning.

I attended a guild workshop yesterday....lots of fun and food and great people. It was "VP day"....the vice-presidents of the guild present a fairly easy project to work on for a fun sew-day each year.

The pattern was interesting to work on....we all were to cut our fabrics ahead of time so we could get right to it. I decided to try my hand at some mostly Kaffe Fassett fabrics...

We sewed the 6" squares into large nine-patches and chopped them up and moved them around...

Then some more moving around and more sewing...

....and in the end I'm not sure I like how mine is looking :(

The pattern makes a wonderful looking quilt, but I just don't think mine is working.

So here's the question. In this case, do you just plod on to get it done....or see the day as learning experience and not worry so much about actually finishing???

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I had a wonderful time on Monday at Selkirk Heritage Day. This year I had a small quilt on a frame for people to try their hand at quilting. Even though last year was successful, the fact that we had a hands-on booth this year made it that much better.

At the beginning of the day I guessed we'd maybe get three people willing to sit down and give it a try. Well, I was wrong! We had people all through the day wanting to put some stitches in.

I wasn't surprised that a lot of children were curious to try quilting. 

We had from the very young....

....to an experienced quilter I've known for many years, who will be 91 this year and who spent the better part of the afternoon quilting with us....

I also got to visit with dear friends in my community...

On another note, please send your thoughts today for my sister, Linda. She is in the advanced stages of Multiple Sclerosis and is in the hospital with an awful case of pneumonia and influenza. We will make our way to the city today to visit with her. What a truly horrible disease....it makes me cry thinking of what my sister has faced in the last thirty years. She is absolutely the bravest person I know.

Today I am linking up with Lorna at Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social, who is also a very brave woman. And with Susan at Quilt Fabrication for Midweek Makers.

More Down the Rabbit Hole

It's nice to sit at my regular routine of morning hand-stitching.

This week has been all about Down the Rabbit Hole (except for a bit of binding that needed doing).

As I quilt along, I enjoy seeing the fussy-cutting in this quilt!

Any hand-quilter knows that once in a while you have to take a peek at the back to see how things are looking. I'm loving how the quilting design is looking on this backing!....

Last week I had a suggestion from Julie at Pink Doxies to try using a compression glove, that maybe it would help with the wrist problems I've been having. I couldn't find one in my neighbourhood so I turned to Amazon....and two days later, voila!!...

I can't explain how, but it does make my quilting more comfortable....thanks for the tip, Julie!

I think I will still be on the hunt for a better one, though. This one has a seam on the inside right near the wrist which I'm not terribly fussy about.

I'm enjoying journalling my progress of the quilting of this quilt on Instagram. I'm thinking it's helping me to do a bit of quilting everyday so that I'll hopefully have this one ready for our quilt show.


The next few days will be so busy. Tomorrow is a holiday here called Family Day. There will be lots of activities around for families to enjoy together. 

One of these takes place in Selkirk, Ontario (not far from me)...they have something they call Heritage Day and it takes place in the community hall. 

We will be showcasing all kinds of old-timey stuff at Heritage day....

.....homemade ice cream served in cones for a dime
.....wonderful live music
.....homemade sausage served on homemade bread with homemade butter and homemade sauerkraut!
....there's a man with an antique rope-making device and the children get to try it out and take home a bit of rope they make themselves
.....lots of crafts, such as spinning, wooden toys, smocking and, of course, quilting! 

Everyone enjoys looking at all there is to see and the children seem to enjoy it.

I will be manning the quilting booth with my friend, Sherill. We will also have a small quilt set up on a frame so if you're in the neighbourhood,  stop in....I'll have a couple of extra thimbles so people can sit and put a few stitches into the quilt!

Today I am linking up with Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching, where we get to see what others are working on today. 

Happy Valentine's Day, xo

So far this week has been a week of "fails".

I attempted a bit of paper-piecing. Eventually the inevitable happens...

....one of these things is not like the other! Also, it was the second time I did this within the hour, so I walked away....maybe later today I'll try again.

I haven't worked on my Dutch Treat blocks in a few months, so I prepped one to work on at guild last week and I finished it up over the last couple of days. Why oh why is reverse applique so difficult???!!! I'm not particularly happy with this, but it's the best I can do so it stays...

Enough about that!

On the weekend I threw some fat quarters that are for a new applique project into the washing machine with my regular laundry. Usually all the threads that come loose end up in the lint trap, right? 

Well, who knew that my husband's socks must be some form of Velcro....

I should have thought of taking a picture of the whole week's worth of socks that were exactly the same, but I didn't think of it 'til this last one, haha!!


I lamented the other day about my sore, swollen wrist which I think may be from my hand-quilting this past week.  One nice thing about blogging is that you do get some help from readers.

I had a comment from Julie at Pink Doxies to possibly try a compression glove while I'm quilting. I've ordered one and will look forward to trying this....thanks, Julie!

I suggest visiting Julie for a look at her post on How To Create Quilts With Drama. It's a good read and she offers some valuable tips.

I returned to my Down the Rabbit Hole today after a couple of days off so I could finish binding another quilt. 

I left the thimble in the picture so you could get an idea of the scale of the rabbits. I'm not sure how to quilt the rabbits, they will definitely need something. For now, I'll just SID and return to them later....

Writing this post has brought some thought about my hand-work. I have had many "mature" friends over the years worry that their work is deteriorating due to physical limitations....eyesight, arthritis, etc. I've always commented to this by saying they should just enjoy their craft and not worry about perfection. I think the time is coming for me to practice what I preach. There are definitely some days that my hands waver a bit holding the needle. 

I am going to choose to look at it this way...

My quilting journey is full of many chapters and I want to enjoy them all. My first quilts, like many of us, are obviously "first quilts"! Then they progress and become our best work. Now, in my middle-age, my stitches are changing once again. But I will make the choice to enjoy my craft for what it is on any given day....because I quilt to make me happy....and I choose to be happy because it is good for my health (that last bit is a quote, not actually my words!).

I remember as a hockey mom some parents being so upset at their child's performance. I would say to them to give the child a break, because on any given day that child is doing their best on that day. This philosophy has stuck with my in different ways over the years, and now I will use it in my stitching.

So....now at the end of this long (boring?) self-realization I look back at the photo of my Dutch Treat block and think it's ok.....it's the best I can do today!!!

lol....thanks for sticking with my if you're still reading along!!!, this is not the blog post I started out writing a half hour ago!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I am linking up with Lorna for Let's Bee Social, and with Susan at Quilt Fabrication for Midweek Makers.

Sunday Stitching

This morning I am doing some slow stitching on my Down the Rabbit Hole quilt. 

I've been enjoying this every morning this past week. I started in the middle and it was tough going....a bit thick, lots of seams and I should have cut out the backing behind to make it a bit easier...

I should have taken a few days off because I'm sure it was this quilting and the fact that I haven't quilted for a few months that has caused me a swollen and tender wrist. I guess hand-quilting uses muscles differently than my usual appliqueing.

Even working on the flowers near the middle of the quilt has been a bit of a chore, albeit easier than the centre, so I've moved my quilting out to the bunny border which is a bit easier for now.

This morning I am doing the stitch-in-the-ditch on the ribbon border. The pieces are about 4" tall, so I'm thinking it may need some quilting inside the ribbon area. I'm not really sure, so I will continue with the SID and re-visit this decision later!

I've decided to journal my daily progress of the quilting of Down the Rabbit Hole on Instagram so as to keep motivated to do the quilting on a regular basis. I want this one finished in time to hang at our quilt show in May. 

I had to find a way to make this goal do-able to me, so I figured out that there are 60 or so square feet of quilt. If I can do an average of one sq.ft. per day of quilting it would make for a couple of months to have it completed. 

So there you go, that's how my brain works, lol ! 

I think it's like the old adage....How do you eat an elephant?...One bite at a time. This always helps me when I have something seemingly overwhelming in store for me.

Have a lovely day. Hopefully you have better weather than what's in store for us today....a bit of snow (again!) and freezing rain :(

I am linking up with Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching. I think it will be a nice day to sit back and check out what others are stitching on today!

Friday Finishes

Looks like another snow day here today. After a bit of obligatory work on the longarm, maybe I'll have time to do some piecing :)

I feel quite lucky to be able to stay home when there is inclement weather!

I've been spending my morning coffee time doing some quilting on Down the Rabbit Hole...

I'm glad the quilting of the middle bit is done. It was difficult to hand-quilt, and with the fact that different muscles are being used from my usual morning applique, my wrist and hand are a bit achey. Today I worked on an easier section.

This is the middle of the quilt...

I have completed this month's step for the PEI MQG Mystery quilt. 

These blocks were not my friend, I had a difficult time with them. They are not perfect and they are smaller than they should be, but they are done and still quite pretty. 

I am making a small version of this project, but seeing the blocks on the design wall makes me think they would make a striking bed-sized quilt!

I also completed this month's block for Simple Folk. I love it!....and this from a person who didn't like the Grunge fabric line! That is what I am using for my background and it is perfect.

For the corners of these blocks, Sarah Fielke gives us another method for those triangles on the corners that is an alternative to "snowballing" the corners, so as to save on fabric waste. I was skeptical, but thought I should give it a try as fabric in Canada is getting so expensive....and I'm glad to say it worked out perfectly!

I'm looking forward to the next block! In this month's instructions there are many nine-patches to complete, also, which I have not started yet.

I am linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?,  with Katie Mae Quilts and with Busy Hands Quilts for Finished or Not Friday.

Oh, Happy Day!!!

In my previous post I was moaning about the fact that I'd found a spot of blood on my Happy Days quilt once it was on the longarm.

I thought I'd share the outcome of how I solved the problem.

Here is how it first looked....

...actually that first picture is probably taken after applying a bit of spit....I also dabbed it with a bit of lemon juice once it was off the frame, which did lighten it up a bit but not totally.

Here is what I did next. I appliqued a little "band-aid" in matching background fabric, which has worked in the past but this still shouted "here I am" to me....

I probably could have left it at that, but it was bothering me. 

Here is my final (I think) solution...

So, Happy Days is now a real quilt....with only half of the binding still to sew down! It's such a cheerful quilt :)

I quite like the background quilting in this quilt. It was easy and fun to do, so I will definitely be doing this again.

Today I am linking up with Lorna at Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social, and with Susan at Quilt Fabrication for Midweek Makers. 

It's a snowy, blustery morning where I am....a perfect day for visiting bloggers to see what they are up to!

Slow stitching and a Scottish Fry-up

What a blustery morning....feels like a good day for an extra cup of tea and a few extra stitches!

It always feels good to start a new quilt...am I right???

The final piecing of my Down the Rabbit Hole came just in time to begin this year's Sarah Fielke BOM...Simple Folk.

Sarah is actually offering two quilts this year, the second starts in a couple of months ( and I may even participate in that one, too! ). 

Here is my first block of Simple Folk started...

The background is a bit deeper indigo in real life and there are hints of purple running through it. 

The corners of the applique blocks will be "snowballed" and up to yesterday I was in a real quandary of what fabric would be best. 

I was at Quilt Junction in Waterford on Saturday and walked through the shop with my block in hand and an open mind. Luckily I found something in a turquoise colour, not at all what I imagined at all. The next time you see this block it should have the corners on and it should look wonderful!


I'll be at the longarm today for just an hour to finish my Happy Days quilt. I think I have only about 20 minutes of quilting to do and then I will attach the binding while the quilt is still on the machine.

Along with sewing the binding down this week, I'll have to repair this...

...a little speck of blood. Why couldn't I have noticed this at the applique stage??? I can't believe I missed it. And look how close it is to the edge of the quilt....a half inch over and it would have been hidden by the binding! Oh well....it'll be all good in the end.


I'd better finish off now....as much as I'm trying to eat healthier, this morning I'm giving in to one of my husband's Scottish Fry-ups for breakfast....can we say "heart attack on a plate"? Nice to indulge, though, once in a blue moon....and we did have a blue moon this past week, right??? 



I don't know if ours will be exactly as pictured, but you get the idea. Square-cut sausage, black pudding, eggs, bacon, tattie scones, etc.

I am linking up with Kathy's Quilts for Slow Sunday Stitching. I think it will be a nice day to visit with all the quilters who will be linking up their Slow Sunday Stitching today!

Have a wonderful Winter's day!

February - One Monthly Goal

Here we are in February already....Spring can't be far off, can it???

I don't know why, but for me, even though February is the shortest month, it feels like the longest :(

February is my least favourite month. I hope to keep busy and beat off the Winter blahs.

Maybe it's fate that for my least favourite month I am choosing a somewhat boring goal, lol....but one that needs doing and I'll happy that I did it.

My goal for February is to cut all the background pieces for my bird quilt that I am doing for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and complete the legs for all the birds.

 I need to think of a name for this quilt, as the pattern is one of Lorna's from Sew Fresh Quilts called Black Birds...

...hmmm...maybe Rainbow Birds??? I like that name, for now. I don't like getting political, in life or in my blog, but perhaps this quilt will represent inclusiveness to me....so now I like the name Rainbow Birds even better :)



I am linking up with Pomegranate and Chintz today so I can take part in the linky party for the 6 & 6 in 2018. 

I want to show my finished Down the Rabbit Hole quilt top...

.....and my new "start". This is the beginning of the first block of Sarah Fielke's BOM, Simple Folk...

My background fabric is an indigo-coloured Grunge fabric with purple running through it. I think it will show off the brightly-coloured applique beautifully!


Today I will do the final longarm quilting on my Happy Days quilt. I can't wait to take it off the frame and see how it looks! 

I'll have to do a bit of repair on the quilt....right at the top, when I first began quilting, didn't I notice a small blood stain! How could I have not seen that when I was doing the applique! I tried the old hand-quilters' trick of using my own saliva on the stain, but it didn't work this time....I think you have to catch it right away. 

I will fix it, though, because if I choose to enter this quilt in the Fall Fair this year the judges would disqualify it for being stained.

I am linking up with Elm Street Quilts for One Monthly Goal, and with Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop!.

Happy Groundhog's Day!!