Allietare Part 3 - Done!

Such a sense of accomplishment to get the Bonnie Hunter MQ Allietare clues caught up todate.

That and getting ready for Christmas with bindings to get sewn onto quilted presents for my grandchildren. I have a zillion miles of binding left to go!! All quilts have been quilted by Kim Caskey Custom Quilting in Edmonton (and photo credits as marked).

Grand Illusion, the very generous 2014 Mystery Quilt from Bonnie Hunter, itinerant and prolific quilter, from Quiltville (& from her mountain retreat aka Quiltvilla). The backing on this is a chevron blue white and grey minky and my granddaughter is going to love it.

Tumalo Trail, a brilliant way to use those 2" squares. Another fabulous pattern from Bonnie Hunter's book Scraps & Shirttails II, Continuing the Art of Quilting Green. Bonnie used 1.5" in her's, but I have had a stack of 2" to use up...Quilting Green.

My Little Irish Dream, a Disappearing 9 Patch using up some of the delightful shamrock phat quarters (even the thread colour is named "Limerick") that I have bought over the past 3 visits to Ireland with Celtic Quilt Tours. We always have a fabulous time and you should come with us. They have also added quilt tours to Scotland and France to the list. So much quilting fun around the world and so little time!

Enough blogging for one night, I have binding to sew on!!!
I am connecting to Quiltville, click over here to see the progress and fun going on in the name of Allietare.
my love and hugs to all
Kathy

Catching up...again

I feel like that short legged cousin who when you go for a walk, is always running to catch up. There is lots of fun going on, but how to keep up with it all. I am closing in on completing all of my Christmas presents  and it time to deliver these quilts to my LA and to fill those reserved spots.

I have finished to Tumalo Trails top (76" square), pattern by Bonnie Hunter from her Scraps & Shirting II: Continuing the Art of Quilting Green. It is ready to go to Kim Caskey Custom Quilting. That has used up 'some' of my 2" colour wash squares, unlike Bonnie who used 1.5" in her original pattern

and "Grand Illusions" is also off the LA.

The RSC15 is coming together beautifully! I will have a reserved spot for sometime in the new year. I think it deserves so custom detailing rather than a panto. I love these lime green blocks in here. To check up on other lime green loveliness head over to SoScrappy.

And getting right in the upcoming holiday mode, I got a few Christmas Baubles together with a glue gun on a Sunday afternoon. This is the happy result, a jewel toned wreath (click on the photo to enlarge).

Love and hugs to all
Kathy

It's a 16 Patch Throwdown.

I have had so much fun this week. Simple things...take a pile of blue scraps and divide it up into blue and 'not really blue". From these I have made more slabs, 17 in total. I will need 36 slabs to make a decent sized quilt for one of my little boys.

and more 16 patch/Sawtooth blocks.

I have also used the scraps from cleaning up the table after my Grand Illusion finish and have 'sewed-ahead'. Will show those blocks when the time and colours are right. But they are finished blocks in the bin and ready for their great reveal when that month comes.

I have a cutting plan for the alternate blocks with the Sawtooth Stars and have started to cache my 2.5" colour squares into the RSC15 bin.

It doesn't matter how many times I count my "Farm Girl At Heart" Blocks I come up with a different number. 1, 2, skip a few, 3, 4.... Ah well, how about sewing up a few more with some blue scraps. I started the one on the left with 1 3/4" squares...nope...ended up with a 7" unfinished block. Okay do it again with 1 1/2" squares...nope, this one is a perfect 5 1/2" square. When really all I want is a 6 1/2" unfinished square. These two will go into the orphan block bag!! Can anyone out there provide the math?

Next up for the Grand Illusion is to have it quilted in time for Christmas gift presentation 2015, until then it can go on the shelf for a few months.

See what else is happening with the colour Blue at SoScrappy.
Happiest in the studio
Love and Hugs
Kathy

I See Slabs of Blue

Opening a scrap bin is a bit like opening a present. Peeling back the layers to see what shall be revealed. That is what it has felt like for me this week and I have taken a good hard look at my scraps, some that were gifted by Wanda.

First off I made a couple of wonderful 16 patch, only put the Sawtooth Star around one so far. And I made the card trick, the tricky part was it gobbled up my points on one side!

I have the centre of my Grand Illusions quilt done and will continue on with the borders this weekend. Looking for a finish before I go back to work on Monday.

Also in the bag of blues were a lot of strips, in varying shades of blue: torquoise, baby blues, and dark blues. With these I created Slab Blocks, so named by Cheryl Arkison of Calgary and co-author of Sunday Morning Quilts. She advises us to use up the strips to make a 12 inch monochromatic block, with one slice of white. However, since I was on a roll and since I have a 15 inch square ruler...that is what mine have grown to be.

As I press and trim up and get close to the 15 inch size, I mark with a pin the side that still requires an additions...gets a bit confusing as they start to all come to the magic size, and this helps eliminate having to un-sew a side.

Also while I am going through the stacks, shelves and bags I am trimming off selvedges, because I love to crochet scatter rugs. Durable, colourful and keeping one more thing out of the landfill.


To stay caught up on other RSC15 Blue Scrappiness click here.
Love and hugs
Kathy

Coming together

I am working away on assembling the Grand Illusion Mystery Quilt Blocks (8...count'em with 17 to go). To echo what many have said, if you had showed me this pattern ahead of time, I would have said...ummm no thanks. But breaking it down to the 5 steps (sometimes quite involved) this quilt got done. And it is full of wonderful colours that one of my beautiful granddaughters is going to just love.

Also over my Christmas break I participated in a 4 day mystery class at LQS Earthly Goods in Edmonton. I chose a quiet palette of yellows and wonderful array of grey with a dash of heavenly pinks.  I don't have a full on shot of the whole quilt (yet), but here are some of the parts and pieces. It has been agreed by all that have seen it that it is a beauty.

You will note that there I am drawing lines on the back of the 3 3/8" squares. This is so counter-productive to the using of the efficient Easy Angle Ruler it was almost painful. If I ever did make this quilt again, that is one of the things I would definitely change. But because we had to do all of our cutting ahead of time, I was obliged to play nice in the sandbox with all others in the class.

I look forward to this quilt being finished and presented to my daughter Cynthia. I love how the pink in some of the fabrics just warm up the whole palette. I made this quilt to be two rows larger than was called for and I am so glad that I did.

I have chosen a brushed dark grey for the backing and will be dropping all that off for my LAQ Kim Caskey to work her magic on it.

Wishing you all good health, full bobbins and prosperity in the coming year.

Love and Hugs...Kathy

Same but different - and DONE

Was a quick turn around on Clue # 4 this week.  I took a stack of these

and sewed them together to make something very similar but different. But the best part (times 40 each) it is done!

Finished the binding on Devin's Spidey Web quilt, ready to gift.  Insert "Happy Claps" here for another quilt finished (thank you to my friend and LA Kim Caskey) and thank you to Bonnie Hunter at Quiltville for your generousity, industry and talents for another free pattern.

On Sunday night I assisted with the cookie baking at my daughter Cynthia's, who lives on Candy Cane Lane. A little fund raiser for Slow Food Edmonton and the Edmonton Food Bank. The RULE is to make sugar cookie, but I never have been known to colour within the lines. So I made Double Chocolate Chip cookies (the recipe right off the Chipits bag), which took less time to get on the cookie sheet and a lot less room on the cookie making counter with 5 other busy cookie makers rolling away.

The dozens of fresh baked cookies were whisked out of the kitchen to the crew at the sidewalk who were also serving hot chocolate to those enjoying the light displays of residents up and down 148 st (aka Candy Cane Lane).

Check out what other Mystery Quilters around the world are doing over at Bonnie Hunter's Part 4 Link Up

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas


Hugs
Kathy

2 x 4's Like My Dad Never Used

Week 3 clue is out and I was all weekend making 2 x 4's like my Dad never used. These greens are marvelous and so refreshing to work with.

I did have one small mishap with the iron however on Saturday night. Or rather a tipsy can of spray starch did. The can is empty (and btw how long have I had this) and has for a long time been waiting to be banished from the studio forever. To be replaced with this quilt piecer's best friend - Mary Ellen's Best Press. I recently won at guild a $50 gift certificate from Central Sewing. So off to cash it in this weekend and used that as the down payment on a gallon of the stuff which the sticker price is $70. So thank you very much Central Sewing for a great supply. Wonder how long this is going to last?

Back to the mishap with the iron and SS. While it was still hot I scrapped it off with a putty knife and cleaned both on newsprint. Good as new.

In between birthday party for beautiful 10 year old granddaughter and an Edmonton Police Service volunteer brunch I did get all of my 2 x 4's completed.

I also have been having a great time sewing together mine and Lou's 2" squares into 9 patches for  Ty's Tumalo Trails quilt (leaders and enders).

With a few left over ends from the 2 x 4's trimmed and put into these 9 patches, they will have not spent to long languishing on the cutting table between projects.

 For more fun than you can possibly handle on a Monday night, head on over to Bonnie's Linky Party for more gorgeous and inspirational GI's Mystery Makers.

Hugs
Kathy

Trying to stay caught up

But trying to stay caught up with what...there are so many choices this time of year. Concerts, shopping, baking and of course the online MQ Grand Illusions. I was so busy piecing this past week to get Step # 2 before Step # 3 was published, and even I did not have time to write and post at the Linky Party. 

But I learned a few things along the way. Clean as you go, cut a few to get you started the next time you have a chance to sit in front of the Bernina and a new way to turn parallelograms into rectangles. The 100 blocks are made and marinating in the bin along with the 200 Broken Dishes blocks and 80 hst's. The clips only stay on for the counting part of the process and then then help to clip the next step.

I am very happy to report that in Step #3 that 50 of the required 120 8-patches are pressed, counted and clipped together.

While I am doing all that I have started (leader and ender) a Tumalo Trail with assorted (and lively) nine patches. Pictured here the first two blocks. I LOVE THEM as much as I LOVE the GRANDSON this quilt is intended for. 

 I promise the next posting won't be so long, but I had a lot of catching up to do this time.

So much to sew and so little time.
hugs
Kathy