Scrappy Saturday Catch-up: January/Red

Scrappy Rainbow Challenge Saturday, well Friday night as I will be on the road early Saturday. I thought I would make a collection of nine patches as I clean off the top of the scrap bin. So at this pace it is not too exciting (and out of focus to boot). But there will be some additions, ie March, April, etc.

In an attempt to play some catch up here, I have decided to do a very red scrap spool challenge covering off the month of January. February will just have to wait.

This is from the book Cut the Scraps, by Joan Ford. These are large pieces compared to the standards of Bonnie K. Hunter, but each have their own use-it-up commitment.

While it is not suggested in the book, as I have drawn my corner to corner line, I have also moved the ruler over another half inch and marked another line. There by creating a bonus set of triangle when tidied and squared are 4" and 2 1/2" respectively: seed for another quilt in my further. BaZinGa!



Thanks for your feedback and encouragement you have all shared. Happy Saturday you Scrappers.

Rainbow Challenge(s)

I think I will try to get caught up with my friend Cathy Tomm and those linked up with SoScrappy and the Rainbow Challenge.

For January it was the colour red. Well, red with a tint of white is pink.

In one failed attempt to tidy the studio I came across a bag of pink scraps that I had inherited from my friend Judy Hatt. I hauled out all the scraps onto the table, did a quick assessment..."looks like the beginnings of an irregular log cabin" I mused. (wish I had taken a picture at that point) What to do, but get sewing, and sewing, pressing, trimming and sewing, add some more of my pinks, florals, grapes, oranges, limes, melon (this is no ordinary fruit salad).


What if I add this bold stripe and a centre of melon? (melon dyed fabric from Margie Davidson)


Viola, a disappearing nine-patch. I am quite happy with the results. I have several hours of sewing ahead of me to create this double sized "Fruit Salad".

Now for the month of February it is GREEN. Hummmmm where is this going to take me.

Orca Bay Top Finished!

Here is my finished top. Sorry about the great human fold, but Betty and I were doing our best. it turned into a very large, heavy and amazing quilt. I am looking forward to getting this quilted.

thanks again to Bonnie K Hunter of quiltville.com for her inspiration and leadership.

Because we received our 'star' clue just before Christmas Eve, my quilt is called "Stars of Wonder Stars of Might".

Bill MacKinnon

My brother-in-law Bill MacKinnon left us yesterday, January 9, 2012. While he was here and before he left he made sure of a few things.

He raised with my sister Marg two beautiful daughters: Carla and Mary and one son: Doug.

He showed a granddaughter Jamie and grandson Billy what it was to be loved so unconditionally that he became their best friend. He could have been hardly have been prouder to welcome his great granddaughter Savannah into his life.

He taught them all how to ride, how to drive, how to treat people with respect and how to get the most of every moment.

He rode high into the mountains of Jasper National Park and Willmore Wilderness, and had memorized every horse's name, wrecks he had, trails he rode, peaks he saw and every great spot he camped. He was also known to tie knots in small saplings at the tree line, or so it is rumored. If you find one I would love a picture.

He was the original maker of "witches brew", aka pancakes which were always served with peanut butter and jam. This was washed down with generous cups of black coffee.

There are countless stories of his compassion, fortitude, resourcefulness and generosity that will be told at his memorial service on February 18.

He was so special and such a good friend to me. He is riding with the angels now and I already miss him terribly.

Orca Bay Update

UPDATE: February 6 2012. Top is done. Apologies for the very human fold but Betty was doing her very best.

Thank you Bonnie for your inspiration and leadership. I can hardly wait for the next one.

Imagine the frustration. I was without internet and phone service for the past 9 days. Well I had other things to do, like make the 4 more Ohio Stars that I had somehow miscounted.

In desperation to get my Orca Bay fix I did go round to the public library to get caught up on all the new Mr Linky posts that were happening. I did call my DD after new years (not knowing the next clues were going to be released) and she read the #7 clue to me so that I could get my flying geese made. Those went together amazingly fast.

Then I talked to Cathy Tomm and she explained over the phone (cell) how to contruct the rows. Since I have gone back to work full time now, I make the most of those hours between 5 and 7 am by working on Orca Bay and my other MQ.

The following quilt I did at a LQS Dec 27-30 with my friend Maureen. We give each other the gift of time for Christmas by taking this 4 day class together.

(Near) Completed pictures shall be posted after the weekend.

Wishing you all a very happy and creative new year. Many many thanks to Bonnie for your generosity of spirit and talent.

Orca Bay Step 5

How I do love a mystery. And this Orca Bay offering by Bonnie Hunter (Quiltville.com) is a very good one, albeit my first one. I have also enjoyed going through past mystery patterns. I understand that this is the first time that the Mr. Linky has been used, and I agree it is a wonderful addition. It is a lot of fun seeing the interpretation that everyone around the world is doing.

So now I have cut 350 - 2 3/8 squares re-cut to 700 triangles and have sewn (and sewn and sewn) them onto either side of the 350 hst's. These look great.


the chain of triangles sewn to hst's
Triangle #2 sewn to opposite side...a chain waiting to be pressed and clipped.
Because I know these were stacks of ten...I know that I have 70 still to convert.

Re-stacked in batches of ten, they are easy to keep track of this way. I look forward to using more of the yellow/orange, the blue green and the red/violet. Bring on Step 6, etc etc. This is a lot of fun.

Like the rest of you there are other considerations in our lives and not the least of which was having my granddaughter here on Friday for her 7th birthday cake at Grandma's and a sleepover.



Quilt On!!

Tiny Reindeer

My parents moved with 10 children from Saskatchewan to Alberta the year I was born, 1951. It was to custom growing up in this large family that the Christmas tree did not come into the house until Christmas Eve. We children, from a large range in ages, would spend the afternoon decorating that tree. Mother would bring out the few commercial decorations out and we would make the rest. We would have saved papers to cut these apart and glue into paper ring garlands...by the yard. This may be one of the only surviving commercial decorations. A small bakelite reindeer.

My father, once outside chores were complete, would boil russet potatoes til done, then mash with icing sugar to the desired consistency. These little potato balls were dipped in Bakers Dark Chocolate. The centers with flavored with peppermint, chopped maraschino cherries or crushed candy canes. Dipping those chocolates was made easier by using Mother's metal sock knitting needles.

While all this was going on my mother was making our HUGE Christmas Eve meal. My father would take us kids to evening church service. My mother would use this time for a much needed breather from her task...or get the finishing touches on dinner.

When we came home it was time to sing to the Christmas tree...now aglow with real candles (only on a fresh tree would it be possible) and starting with the youngest child in attendance we all sang the that child's favorite. Then up through the ranks, youngest to oldest, every one got to pick their favorite Christmas carol that we sang. Even if you had to sing the same song more than once (or three times or four). Singing was finished with my mother singing The Lord's Prayer. She had an amazing voice.

Then in turn again starting with the youngest we blew out the candles one at a time. This was the signal it was dinner time. Once that glorious meal was over we got to open one present and play with it before bedtime...when ever that was...sometime around midnight or later.