Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Many years ago, a little 10-year-old girl in grade 5 named Dayna had a friend named Julia. Both were avid readers, both had ties to England through their nanas. When Julia brought back a new book she'd read while on Christmas vacation in England in 1999, called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by an unheard of author, J. K. Rowling, she loaned it to Dayna to read. It wasn't available in North America as yet. Dayna almost literally fell into the story, talking non-stop about a character named Harry and magic and his awful aunt and uncle and a school of magic where he was going to go and his friends Ron and... Hermy-OH-knee? (what kind of a name is that?) and something about an owl and a special magical train... 

As Dayna's mum, I thought, "Who would name a main character, a kid, Harry?" first of all, and then, "Just what IS all her fixation and waxing poetic exactly about?" And so, one day when both girls had left for school, but I was part-time and didn't have to start teaching until block 2, I picked up the book, standing in our new-built house in Calebo Estates, Sherwood Park, Alberta, leaning against the kitchen counter by the door to the attached garage, such a clear memory. I started reading it, and... guess what happened? Yeah, I was nearly late for school, I got so completely pulled in. I got Dayna's obsession.

Her obsession that has lasted to this day, 28 years later.

Falling Into You Tote Bag

I've had this idea for a long time, even had the diagram done in EQ for a year and a half. I actually have ideas percolating for a couple of other 'themed' tote bags, but for now, this is a stand-alone pattern.

I'd hoped to have it done for the Hallowoof Fundraiser where I was a vendor but that didn't happen. So it's now listed in my Etsy shop.

Gratitude and Glimmers #112

Welcome to my post of glimmers (of joy and wonder) and gratitude for the month of October. You can find links to more posts like this one at LeeAnna's blog, Not Afraid of Color.

A grateful heart is a magnet for miracles.

--Unknown

Sorry that this is a few days late!

1.  I like what I think will be the cover of one of two upcoming new patterns.

I just need to figure out yardage for the baby size; I have it mocked up in EQ8.

2. I love hearing birds pitter-patter or scurry across the roof of my sewing room. I love hearing robins softly cluck-cooing to each other. I do not know, but I like to think they've come from further north and are pausing here before crossing Lake Erie on their way south for the winter.  I love seeing them coming zooming in from one of the trees in our yard straight at the window to land on the roof just over my head.

Floral Galaxy

It took me a little longer to get this quilted than originally anticipated but she is done and I am so very happy that these incredibly gorgeous, floaty fabrics have grown up into this quilt.

Part of the reason for the slower finish is that I elected, or rather the quilt requested, some custom quilting. The other reason was in part Zora and in part some unplanned sewing.

Quarter Square Triangles With Directional Fabric

One of the purposes of writing this blog is to keep a record of how I did certain things in various quilts over the years. When I inadvertently got the cakestands Liberty of London fabric all going the right way when making Quarter Square Triangle units (QST) I decided, for future reference, to figure out exactly how I'd done it, along with how to get the star points in those QSTs also going the correct way.

Here is how I did it.

Gratitude and Glimmers #111

Welcome to my post of glimmers (of joy and wonder) and gratitude for the month of September. You can find links to more posts like this one at LeeAnna's blog, Not Afraid of Color.

It is in the wild places, where the edge of the earth meets the corners of the sky, the human spirit is fed. 

--Art Wolfe

Rather an apt quote for this month's gratitude post.

1.  What a glimmer this was!

This wee moth was having a daytime snooze in one of my mandevilla vine flowers. Wouldn't you love to be tiny enough to have a nap there?!

Biblioasis

Biblio was the name that kept coming to me, for obvious reasons, as I worked on this quilt. Then I remembered the name of a really good bookstore in Windsor, independent of course, and it just kept coming back to me, so that is what I have named my quilt, but the perfect name, Biblioasis, is the store's.

Of course I had to photograph it in my very own Kingsville Public Library, resting on a book trolley, not currently in use! The statue in the background is of Jack Miner, aka Wild Goose Jack, an avid bird conservationist who lived on land just north of the town. Yes, that is a Canada goose beside him.