When you String upon a star

 I was inspired by the Spring Cleaning quilt on the left (found on Pinterest, by Brioni Greenberg) Her quilt was featured on the front cover of Quilt, June/July 2013. Isn't it a great collections of scrappy happiness.

 This is my rendition, When you String Upon a Star, with a framing border of half neutral half colour added. Will be binding it with a dark yellow green.

It has been beautifully quilted by Kim Caskey Custom Quilting, and I just love it. We used a wool batt over a 80-20 Hobbs batt. I for sure will have to retire now, as I am sure I will not be able to get up to catch the bus now that I will be snuggled under this beauty.

I am thrilled with this newest finish (binding going on as soon as I am off the computer). Will be linking up to Cynthia at Quilting is more fun than Housework and with Angela at SoScrappy, who really should take credit for getting me going on using up my scraps in such a fun and purposeful way.

On this very snowy and very cool Canadian Thanksgiving, I wish you a day filled with gratitude and good wishes where ever you are and with whomever you are spending it with.

Love and hugs
Kathy

Turning (3)65 update

Working on the Quilty 365 theme of a circle a day keeps the doldrums away, mine is celebrating this year that I have "turned 65" myself. Each range of temperature is assigned a colour on the thermometer and from this palette I have made my circles.

June was comfortably warm

 I love making these circles and as I sew the days/weeks/month together I am reminded over and over how truly blessed I am to have this life I live in the country that I love. ♥

Linking up today with Cynthia over at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework...truer words were never spoken!

love and hugs
Kathy

Catching up to the Pack

It is about sweet time I got back to recording the coming and goings on in this Studio at 106B. I have changed the pre-wound bobbins many times recently.




I recently bought the grandchildren new pillows and made fresh spring pillowcases, and for a 12 year old boy...his first shaving kit using Janelle MacKay's fabulous Emmalline 'Retreat Bag'. What a great pattern. Of course though when you are 12, your first shaving kit should be made with Angry Bird fabric! I am hoping when he is 30 his "wife" will be bugging him to get rid of it...."but my Grandma made it for me", will be his reply.




Over at SoScrappy there is always encouragement for getting to the bottom of those scrap bins. She provides a pattern if you don't know what to do yourself. When last year I create this beauty...which I just love so much!

That one was so much fun I was making one in marked time beside it, except the centre for the Sawtooth Stars were 16 patches.

That first one was also so much fun, my LQS sought permission from Angela to run the same quilt challenge through the store. So I am doing it all over again, though this time with a scrappy gray background. More pictures to follow on that one.




I have also joined the Citizen's Police Academy. A volunteer education program about the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and a brief look into all of its program. We have had a visit from Traffic Division, 911 Communications Centre, Community Police Liaison and of course everyone's favourite...K9 Unit. So far it has been highly educational and entertaining.


Love and hugs
Kathy

Turning 65!

Wow...where have I been? Here. And I have been busy, though not in blog-land.

Since we have last spoke I have celebrated by 65th birthday. It was a wonderful collection of celebrations, with my family, my quilting friends and with my work colleagues. Several weeks long I was feted and fed at special breakfasts and lunches and dinners; I thank you all for making me feel so special. I received flowers, fabrics and was fawned upon in great order. Pictured here for birthday lunch with my Odessa and Tanea, following their dance competition...high gold!

I had a special late hours birthday get together at LQS Earthly Goods. The very generous owner and friend Patti Hansen stayed for dinner and cake and then handed over the keys and the door code. We, the senior set now, sewed on and on and finally trundled out at midnight.

I was sewing together my collection of string blocks to create this sew sew simple layout, "When you String Upon a Star", inspiration found on Pinterest.

I have continued to stay caught up on my Quilty 365 project...which in my case is Turning (3)65. I am so thrilled with this quilt (Jan thru Mar are shown here) and am already wondering to my self what will be my personal project for 2017? Note the abundance of aquamarine used in Feb and Mar!

Depending where you are in the world, you may be aware of an enormous forest fire that continues to burn out of control in Northern Alberta and Saskatchewan, so named The Beast. Approximately 90,000 people have been evacuated from the city of Fort McMurray. Approximately 30% of the homes and businesses have been lost to The Beast and others have been deem imhabitable by the saturation and spread of ash and fire retardent. One of the families that have fled is now staying at my daughter's. She selflessly gave up the main floor of her home and has moved into her basement. This family have even been re-united with the little pet guinea pig...Arty! There have been so many heart wrenching stories of gallantry and kindness in the face of the tragedy. For the little girl that is now residing at my daughters (while her FMM home is being assessed) I have made this Colour Me Quilt, pattern by Emily Herricks Designs.

I have a lot of other catching up to do, and will promise to be a little more faithful in contributing at the SoScrappy Saturday Linky party, found here where they are celebrating the completion of the colour green scraps and have now moved on the aquamarine scraps. I promise to do better at staying caught up!

Warm love and hugs
Kathy

Sweet Bird

On the RSC2016, the colour of the month is brown, with an accent of pink. I have been busy making chocolate strings blocks, catching up on a few LQS endeavours (Gypsy Wife - started Feb 20) .

I have FINALLY made my first few Figure 8's with Chocolate and re-purposed embroidery pieces.
Other things are out of the way for now, and my cutting is done...just a matter of getting them sewn together. 

But I wanted to check in at the linky party for other just desserts of the chocolate nature, click here.


Love and hugs
Kathy

The Quilter's Bucket List

I am sure that we all have one. There are different types of bucket list...for Travelers, Foodies, Knitters...you know where I am going with this. Quilters at least have those quilts on their bucket list that you just have to have made at least one. Please feel free to edit this list to your own liking. But mine goes something like this: a hand pieced hand quilted Grandmother's Flower Garden (1), a Dresden Plate (hand pieced and hand quilted) (3), a Dear Jane (0), a Baltimore Album (0) or a New York Beauty (started).

I have taken the plunge. I have had Karen Stone's iconic paper pieced pattern book on my shelf for years...the book was printed in 1995 (you do the math).

So in addition to following along with Angela's RSC16, and using up the colour blue for the month of January, making string blocks and the requisite Twinkle stars, I have also started MY New York Beauty. My rationale is to following along using the 'colour' of the month and just keep adding to the blocks. Which, are coming together surprisingly 'easy' (for fear of jinxing the process).

I love those sharp pointed spires! The sewing of the arcs and folding the fabric back is a magical moment.

Thou shall not forsake other works-in-progress though. My Quilty 365 Temperature Chart has taken a surprising leap into the aqua blues this week with some unseasonably high temperatures - for Alberta. There we have it. January is done.

In keeping with all things Chocolate and Hearts and Love and Kisses, I have finally finished my Star Gazey Heartz quilt. These were pieces and parts of hearts, some whole hearts that I bought at a guild garage sale quite a few years ago. I 'edited' the stack, made a few more...and just like that I have a new (to me) Valentines quilt to display in our front office.

I used a 'vintage' brown and pink paisley for the sleeve and binding.

A good friend of mine has given me a small jar of buttons from her MIL that has moved into extended care and I have used those in a small crazy quilt piece that I have started. The background are 4 chocolate string blocks and I shall continue to embellish until I am satisfied that I have done enough.

Linking up to SoScrappy to view other quilters savouring the chocolate.

Love and hugs
Kathy

Twinkle Stars complete

Over at SoScrappy the colour of the month January is Blue (with an accent of purple) and a suggested pattern for the Column Along 2016 is this lovely Twinkle Star. And I LOVE it. And all 9 are now made (apologies I should have hung that a little straighter).

I have made a Fabric Blue Board and  Light Blue Scrap box to create a 'pretty' side to this scrappy-string-saving venture. Not sure yet if it will also house the Indigo, Blue Greens, Aquas...or if they shall all receive their own bin. Only time will tell. But I do look forward to getting the primary Colours done first, secondary and tertiary colours all in good time. A note to self, use a cotton batting and not a polyester one working with a hot glue gun!

I know I am invested in my Quilty 365 by Turning 65/Daily Hi-Temp quilt, that when the morning weather man says we are going to have a high of -10C today, and I automatically translate that to mean red-violet circle day. We have a few purple days too, -11 to -20. I know that we will also get a few blue days, -21 to -30. Recommendations for a colour for the days that will have a daily hi of colder than -31?

Or I can get specific with the backgrounds and select this particular one to mark this -5 Monday January 18 (a teal day).  Recognizing that this city's major newspaper, Edmonton Journal, laid off some very good people.


I have continued to create more blue string block (on the right), and I am adding to the already de-papered 2015 stack (on the left). I have been researching (aka - time spent on pinterest) different quilts made with string blocks. Options are endless!

Linking up with SoScrappy to see a sea of endless blues.
Love and hugs
Kathy

Twinkle Stars #1

My first January-is-blue Twinkle Star for the RSC16 Column quilt is complete. For my backgrounds I have a 'quantity' of charity shop embroidered table runners and pillow cases and towels etc. All done in wonderful jewel tone colours. This background piece may have too large of leaves, but once the whole quilt is assembled, I believe all will be forgiven and the quilt will be magnificent. Eight more sets have been cut and ready to sew up leader-ender style today.

I too have succumbed to the siren song of the Quilty 365. (See that post here.) These circles are a personal record of your life or community. I have chosen to make this my signature Turning 65 This Year quilt. So whatever the weather might be, wherever I might be, I will record it in a fabric choice made from this thermometer, with some revision to the bottom end as the winter temperatures here in Western Alberta Canada deserve their own categories and dedicated colours.

I also took a calendar and marked it up with the 30 day forecast (in tiny print) and then with a sharpie have marked the actual HI for that day. I doubled checked the past week's temperature starting with January 1st, which was +1.4 C!! But I suspect that the rest of the month (and February) will be a lot of Sultana or some darker purples.

 

I am linking up at SoScrappy, so head over here to see what is new in blue for 2016.
Love and hugs
Kathy

Wither the Weather

There have been some excellent examples and inspiration of the Quilty 365. I love them all. It is a very personal quilt for some, an exhibition of their moods and feelings on any given day. A depiction of what is happening around them or around the world. Mine will also be personal, and a record of my Edmonton Alberta home climate.

I have liberated a graph shared with me and found on FB by my oldest daughter. Her challenge to me! Well, I do not have enough of these yarns to make this afghan, but I do have fabric!! In all these Colours. So this idea and this thermostat ...

I think I will do the blank spaces to start a full month,  for instance to show that January 1 was a Friday. It was below 0 degrees but above -5C on New Year's Day, so I started of with a dark blue/green circle. Suffice it to say that I will be working in the purple range for the next foreseeable future (-6C and colder).

Love and hugs
Kathy

Dashing through my Stash

And because there  is nothing quite like working under some real pressure, the quilt I had intended to give Hanna for Christmas was snapped up by my LQS for a store sample. And look where it has ended up...on the front cover of their newsletter and will be the inspiration for their in-store QA2016. (with kind permission of Angela of course). I'm a cover girl, well my RSC15 is.

So because the RSC15 is otherwise engaged I was busy piecing this Sew Kind of Wonderful Metro Rings to give to Hanna. It had to be flimsy-ready to take to my LAQ ...and just like that she had it finished and ready for gift giving. Bless her little 9 year old's heart she recognized it immediately as the quilt that was on 'the wall' that she had admired a few weeks earlier.

Love and hugs to you all - Merry Christmas and a very Creative New Year
Kathy