Sunday Stash

We went over the river to Detroit this past Monday, and one of our stops was at Guildcrafters Quilt Shop.  I was specifically looking for Minky to use as the backing for my heart quilt. Although I didn't get actual Minky, I did get a Minky-like fabric made by Shannon fabrics, called Cuddle, in a gorgeous aqua, perfect, as it is my friend's favourite colour.  It goes really well with the hot pinks and aquas in the heart.  You will have to take my word for it, as I did not take a picture prior to loading onto my Avanté for quilting, which is where it currently sits.  Don't worry; you will see it in a day or two.  :-)

When she was cutting the Minky, the Figures by Zen Chic bolt was lying on the cutting table, and well, a yard of it jumped onto the folded piece of Minky.  What's with that?  I'm sure you can relate to that experience.  This perfect neutral is going into another quilt for a friend that I am slowly starting to build.  The numbers?  Utter perfection for this person!

Wool on the left and Figures by Zen Chic for Moda on the right

A note about the cost of fabric.  I always lament the high cost of fabric here in Canada, and as a result, I have bought next to nothing since we regularly started going to Florida, and especially since we moved to the Windsor area in 2012, where I have access to Detroit by simply crossing the river.

And yet.

After this purchase, I'm rethinking this habit to some degree.  This was about $11.50 per yard, or maybe $11.79, I can't recall exactly and cannot find the receipt.  When I compared it to the Canadian quilt shops' prices per metre that I have recently seen here in Windsor, which average $16-17/metre, this regularly priced fabric was not the bargain it at first appears.
$11.50/yard = 31.9c per inch
16.50 (approximate average price)/metre = 42.3c CA/inch (a metre has approx. 39")
Do the current exchange, which is abysmal of $1.30; it is currently 1.298CA at the Bank of Canada to buy $1US, so it will not be as good at your bank.
31.9c US per inch = 41.5c CA

So I saved less than a cent per inch (42.3 - 41.5 = 0.8) which translates to about 31c per metre savings.  Now, having showed you, and myself, that, it is true that US stores do have better sales than Canadian, with a lot more variety and selection of fabric as well as better prices.  Still, the $8/metre sale fabric I picked up a few weeks ago at Sew Sisters Quilt Shop was a decent deal, as it works out to about $5.75/yard US.

The other piece in the photo is a piece of 100% wool, that I would have walked out oblivious to, had I not asked the girl cutting if they had any off-white pure wool (I've checked them out a couple of times previously).  I'd already scoped out their wool section and found nothing.  Well, it turns out they had an entire bolt, but apparently it had a funny smell after taking the plastic off, so they'd been letting it air out in the office.  I could have some, she supposed, but she'd ask the owner first...Well, I felted it anyhow, so I didn't care about a smell, and quite honestly it smelled a bit like damp wool which is fine with me...takes me off to Scotland, and heather...mists... Outlander, and Jamie...and ahem....where am I?  Oh yeah. Wool.  I'm ecstatic that I got this half yard because I can finally finally finish a quilt top that has percolated for several years, one I saw at a sewing show.  I have the top made, just have been waiting to find the perfect wool to felt for my daisy petals to appliqué onto the background. Yay!  I think this cost around $8 for the half yard and it felted beautifully.

So that is it for this computer-free (haha) Sunday post.  I might do my yoga stretch for sewers, (sewists?) post twice a month as it got some good feedback, so pop in next Sunday and see what other stretch I love to do after hours a long time at the machine.  I'm linking up with Molli Sparkles' Sunday Stash.

Heart Quilt Flimsy

I have a potential name, just keeping it quiet for now.  I'm so pleased with how this all came together, from basing it on Helen's design, to the conversation last week with the owner of the studio where my friend teaches, to choosing fabrics from my stash.

In the shade last night after supper

Stained glass effect

A couple rode by on their bikes, and the girl called out to me, "Nice quilt!"  A few seconds later, next-door neighbour Jude walked by with her husband and echoed that sentiment.  :-)  I'm so intrigued by how different the colours are from the shade to the sun behind it.  In both shots, I was facing west.  I'm also very happy that I have this green strip of town land between our lane and the next where I can peg a quilt top.

Tried to get less of the direct sun in this shot

I just love these colours.  Putting in the aquas was just such a perfect addition:  the hot, sultry, rich pinks of the tropical places my friend so loves, balance the cool, calming, water-themed aquas which are her favourite.

It's really great to make quilts for others, for obvious reasons.  For me, it pushes me to using colours and combinations I might never have used for myself.  I am not a lover of hot pink, although I do love the softer pinks and berries and burgundies, but this quilt?  I could keep it in a heartbeat (ha ha, pun not originally intended).  Put the hot pink and aqua together?  Love.  Period. (another pun not originally intended)

I plan to write the tutorial for this quilt.  It's pretty simple in construction, and, like so many of my original designs, has a bit of an unusual construction method.  Funny how I've only just lately realized that I often do look for a slightly different spin on a traditional quilt or construction method.

Amongst the flowers, the impatiens have already more than quadrupled in size!

Current Project with a Reminder or Two

This quilt is going to a very close friend in need of a quilty hug.  Here it is on the design wall on Sunday:

I've known I need to make this quilt for a couple of months.  I just didn't know, or feel exactly what, other than lots of pink.  I've since found out aquas are her favourite, along with rich tropical hues.

I saw a quilt on Midget Gem Quilts, made by Helen for a cousin of hers, which is gorgeous, and I knew instantly, this was the quilt.  Helen and I have been chatting back and forth over the past few weeks thanks to us each having joined the New Bloggers Hop.  She has a great blog, great sense of humour as well as a great sense of colour.  Enough greats for you to go check her out? I hope so.  When I asked if I could use her design as the basis for a quilt for my friend, she said go for it.  Mine is a bit different: I used 4.5" squares, whereas she used 5", and also mine is slightly differently-shaped.  All of the fabric, except for the backing, which I bought yesterday at Guildcrafters Quilt Shop, is from my stash.  There are some scraps (for example: wave fabric from Cloud 9, Tula Pink aqua fabric, hot pinks from my daughter Brianne's second quilt), some that was destined for kaleidoscopes (ex: circles fabric, second last row, centre, and "fireworks" aqua and black fabric, third row from bottom, second from right), and some bought just because I loved it (ex. Australian fabric 3rd row exact centre square)

Yesterday I only had a half hour or so of sewing time, so here is where it currently sits:

Reminder of a previous Tip:  I'm using the "Book It!" method for this quilt which is so awesome in keeping all the squares organized.  I wrote a tutorial which you can find under the tab up top or click here.  I'm on Step 6 right now, where I'm beginning to piece the "books" aka pairs of squares, into columns.  Because the heart is not a square shape, I pieced as much of the square part as I could with that method, and I've got the bottom three rows sewn into rows, attached with a chain of thread holding each set together so they don't get out of order.  For the background, I plan to add in big squares and a couple of strips as opposed to filling in everything with more white 4.5" squares.

And one more reminder, a day late.  After a 2-week break, the New Bloggers Hop is back for Week 3 with more wonderful prizes to be won.  Here are the 4 quilters in my hive

posting their "All About Me" post this week, which you will be taken to by clicking:

Julie of Pink Doxies
Carrie of The Zen Quilter
Lori at Sew Psyched
Cindy at Sewing Moxie

The other 3 hives with their new blogger posts can be found at:
Meadow Mist Designs
Quilting Jet Girl
Childlike Fascination

Happy Reading!  I'll be linking this post up with Stephanie's Tips and Tutorials Tuesday at Late Night Quilter, and also with Nicky's Scraptastic Tuesday at Mrs. Sew and Sow.

I'm also linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced and Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts.  :-)

Sunday Stretch for Sewers #1

Welcome to the first installment of Sunday Stretch for Sewers.  I plan to do this once a month, around mid-month, and see how it goes.  The idea came from a conversation with Julie of pinkdoxies.com, who said she was feeling stiff and sore, so she told me she thought I should write a post about yoga stretches for long hours at the sewing machine.  It's been percolating on the back burner in my mind ever since.  Here we go.

This is not a metaphor for the wacky compartments of my brain, lol, but still a metaphor...

As those of you who have followed me for any amount of time know, yoga is a huge part of my life, has been for more than 15 years.  I teach 3 classes a week, the perfect, in my mind, part-time job for a retired school teacher. :-)  I have a 200-hour Yoga Alliance certificate for Ashtanga training, and two 20-hour certificates in Yin.  Yin is what I teach; I do both Ashtanga and Yin for my own practice.  However, I am certainly no expert, no professional, so these stretches are just what works for me when I have aching shoulders, stiffness in the low back, or legs that want a stretch.  (Thanks to my darling husband for taking these photos, even though he thinks I am a nutbar - and it did feel a little weird, I'll admit, to do this.)

Here is the first one I often will do, a standing forward bend, known as Dangling in Yin yoga.

Feet are hip-width apart, legs are either straight or bent at the knees, and you hold onto opposite elbows.

These are actual Yin poses, however, and, as such, they not only will stretch aching muscles, if held for 2 or 3 minutes or longer, they begin to work on the connective tissues in the body:  the ligaments, tendons and fascial web that holds our bodies together.  In a nutshell, with regular practice, you can begin to find some space, find some more flexibility, and allow better blood flow through these areas that are stressed.  This gives many benefits, but in general, an increase in general well-being will occur.  :-)  Breathe steadily and slowly, in and out through your nose.

Dangling, arms in an alternate variation: relaxed down

Bending the legs will work the thigh muscles more and will release the low back more fully.  Straightening the legs works the hamstrings more but still releases the low back.  Let the back round, and let your head go too.  If your back feels strained, then you can rest your elbows against a table, chair, or on your thighs.  Avoid this if you have high blood pressure; you may want to do the same forward bend idea, but sitting on the floor.

To come out, bend your knees, place your hands on the floor and go into Squat.

Mild back bend; great for the ankles (note I am not sitting on that heat register; there is space between my butt and the floor)

You can rest your ankles on a rolled up quilt :-) so the bend in the front of the ankle is not so intense.  Keep your knees going the same direction as your feet; widening the space between your feet will work into the hip joints more, and can take some pressure off the ankles.  Keep in mind that we start to tighten up and age first of all in our feet, so strengthening our feet (toes and ankles) is really important.  To come out of this pose, either sit down and stretch your legs out, or, more challenging, is to come back up into Dangling and do another round.  You can work up to holding each of these for 2-3 minutes.

A Yin flow, like the first quilty picture, which is the beginnings of my Scrap Vortex, found here at Crazy Mom Quilts, will put several pieces, or poses, together to make an overall wonderful workout (or quilt, ha) for the body, mind and spirit.  As we hold these poses, we have time to go inside our body, both watching our breath flow in and out slowly and steadily, and also getting in touch with the sensations we are experiencing in various parts of our bodies.  This awareness helps our busy minds to slow down, relax, and be more fully present in all aspects of our life, not just while we are on our yoga mat.  However, these two simple stretches can also help to relieve some muscle tension from too many hours of FMQ!

I also mentioned I had started Cynthia's Scrap-a-Palooza quilt #16:

I have a set of blue blocks half done as well.  I really like the circles layout she ended up using, but there are many possibilities for these log cabin blocks.  I've made several log cabin quilts, but never this offset style where one set of the logs is wider than the other.

I will be linking this post with Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework, the place to be every Sunday if you want scrappy inspiration.

Note:  My Yin notes are based on information in Bernie Clark's book The Complete Guide to Yin Yoga.  You can purchase it on Amazon or through his website, yinyoga.com

More 3-D Sewing

I've been having some fun in my basement sewing abode over the past couple of days.  I had these two bowls cut out when I decided to make the ones from the Timeless Treasures fabric first, as those were the ones on my Q2 Finish Along list, the Fabric Nesting Bowls pattern I bought from A Cuppa and A Catch Up.  I went back to them and made both.  One is for a friend; the sunflowers one is for me.  I think.

Sadly, I didn't have enough of the pretty red floral to line both.  It takes rather a lot of lining fabric for these bowls!  These two are the 8" size.

I had some fun again with quilting; this time the ribbon candy mostly shows at the bottom!

Of course, Bella got all excited that I was actually making her a bowl...

She is getting as tired as my family is of me taking photos of everything...

Not a good fit; she prefers the 9" size!

I also made one more so that I now have a trio of the original bowls.

6", 9" and 4" all with different linings

I decided to flip the order of the fabrics so that I could do some cool quilting on the black panel.  Sigh. Well, it doesn't show that well unless the light hits it, and I really am not thrilled with the overal look; it needs the pink sewing print to be the feature.

Inside under the Ott-Lite

I had some really thick shiny thread, a YLI, I believe, left over from a quilted jacket I made about 10 years ago.  This thread goes into the bobbin.  I just did straight lines instead of the original feathers plan because of the thickness.  The pink is a Sulky Holoshimmer.  I've missed quilting with these fun threads.  I did (I think) Mesh Curtain out of Leah Day's first book along the bottom edge.

Lined with more of the sewing themed fabric--eww! See the freaking dead fish fly that wormed its way, pun intended, into this photo?  They are still around, not many, but enough already!

Setup for sewing with Holoshimmer threads

Here's a tip: this thread likes to feed horizontally, as it is a flat ribbon-style thread.  If it goes on my horizontal spool, it comes off the end, and twists, as a result.  This way, unwinding in the same fashion as does a toilet paper roll, keeps it more flat.  I also use a Schmetz Metallica needle.  My good friend figured out how to make a holder using a small knitting needle and two holders made from painters masking tape!  I use an old candle holder that mainly serves as my pencils, scissors, etc. holder when not in use as this.

We also made a new salad, Spicy Southwestern Salad, Wednesday night.  It can be found on Pinch of Yum, here.  It is easy to make, healthy and delicious!  What's not to love about roasted sweet potatoes, avocado dressing and some spiciness?  I love her blog.

Ha, the Hint of Lime nachos are in another bowl I made several years ago, a fabric one from Linda Johansen's book -- gotta keep the bowls theme, right?

Just gotta say taking this photo got much the same reaction from my husband as Bella gave me earlier in this post.

I also had some totally playing-type sewing in between making these bowls.  Kind of a leaders and enders project, and I always wanted to make one of Amanda Jean's (Crazy Mom Quilts) small adorable pincushions, so this one kind of happened with small pieces left over from cutting out my mystery quilt:

It is about 3 3/4" square!  Adorable.  Yep, there's some Sulky Holoshimmer and rayon threads on this baby too, and the red strip finished at 1/4" wide! Crazy, but fun.

I have to find some walnut shells to put in it.  That or maybe some silica sand(?) which is what we put in the pincushion that is on the thread-catcher I have beside my machine.  That might be why you see a small pinhead and a bit of rumpled look at the top edge of the pincushion.  This will go with Avril, as I need a pincushion there (might sew on a wrist strap) when I'm pinning quilts onto the leaders.

I also might have started her Scrap Vortex now too...  and I might have started and made some decent progress on, Cynthia's Scrap-a-Palooza quilt #16...  Next, or, concurrently, is Bento Box, and a heart quilt I'm making for a dear friend.

Linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday and with Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop! Whoop!  And also with WIPs be Gone at A Quilting Reader's Garden, and with TGIFF at Quilt Matters.  So much inspiration and "Oh, look! A squirrel" distractions. :-)

Q3 Finish Along - My List

Half of this year is gone!  What happened?  Hopefully I will have a little better success rate in this quarter.  Q2 had 9 projects, 5 of which were completed, 4 by June 30, the 5th three days late.  Here is this quarter's list for Adrianne at On the Windy Side.  If you do nothing but check her blog on a Saturday for her Caturday Wisdom, it will be worth the trip.  :-)


Without further ado, here we go.
#1.  Bento Box quilt for my nephew.
Absolutely nothing got done last quarter, nor the first.  That in itself, is shameful.  And I am having a hot flash just admitting that I hope you know.  That is why it is #1.

I've even had the pattern right beside my sewing machine...I am motivated by guilt, you bet.  Clearly not enough guilt.  Yet.

#2. So, based on a tiny block someone used for their guild nametag,  I designed a quilt for my daughter Dayna's graduation from Wayne State University this past May.  It was my mystery quilt in Q2, and you've seen hints of it, but never the flimsy thus far.  Here it is.  More info when I get the borders on and have a finished flimsy.  Suffice it to say, she loves it, as do I.

A ton of negative space waiting for FMQ, which is in large part why I've held off on this until I get Avril totally shipshape.

#3.  I picked up this "Cherie" fabric by Art Gallery Fabrics a couple of months ago in Florida to make a couple of makeup bags for my daughters.

#4.  I got this Olaf fabric in the same order, with pj shorts in mind for Brady.  Maybe the remainder will grow into a pillowcase. He loves the ones I've already made him.  Don't tell him it's a girl pattern!  The pants have a button fly in them though, so we're good, and I've used it twice already to make him long pants pajamas, which he loves.

And that is it, believe it or not.  Ya, not. There are a few others on my "hope to do" list, some which have been on the previous quarter lists, but I'm going to keep this short and hit publish before I go and add some more.

Update
#5.  Okay.  16 hours later, and I'm going to add one more.  I realized after I published this and jumped in the car to drive to yoga that I really should have Over and Under on the list.  I want to quilt it as practice before I do Dayna's quilt.  So here it is in its flimsy state.  It's been a flimsy for, cough, a little over a year.  Slept at Dayna's last night, sans computer, so I'm adding it now I'm home from my morning Ashtanga.  That is such a great way to start a day.  Mmmm...   More yoga talk coming this week.

Taken in our condo (sold now) in Florida, March 8, 2014. Think I stood on a counter stool to try to get a full-on shot.  Lots of Tula Pink fabric in this.

July Goal for ALYOF

I haven't' participated in this shaming, er, encouraging linky party since January when I had my Scraps of Calm as my goal, and succeeded.  Since then, I've been focusing on the quarterly goals list for Adrianne at On the Windy Side...clearing of throat...and not succeeding quite as well. In Q2, of 9 projects, I got 5 finished, one of which was 2 days past the deadline.  I digress.

Here is my project for the month for ALYOF at Sew Bittersweet Designs:

I made my mum this bag from the Premiere Issue, 2005, of Quilts 'n More.  I made myself one, my aunts each one, my sister, a few friends; in short I made a lot of these bags.  My mum has loved and used hers until it literally is falling apart.  I replaced the handles once, but when she was here in May, she said she really could use a new one.  A good friend of mine bought this fabric for me to use in a quilt for my mum, but I found a different one I liked more, which I used and made for her 70th birthday.  This has sat on the shelf since.  So it is now going to grow up into the outside of the new bag.  I have to go shopping in my stash for a lining and maybe a contrasting band as per the pattern...maybe not.  Anyhow, I hope to get this done asap, since I know how often she uses the other (or maybe she can't now with it falling to shreds...) At 10 years old, I'd say she got her use out of it!

In other news, I got my fabric all cut for Part 1 of Cheryl's Mystery Quilt.

Looking good...

 Saw these on my walk with Rocco the other day, known as trumpet vine.  Stunning.

subconsciously they might have been the inspiration for this mystery quilt colour

Breath-taking for sure, they climb up poles 30 feet into the air.

Yesterday MacGyver and I tackled the bobbles/jumps in the track on Avril.  He got one pretty much gone, yay.  Of course, I had to load some muslin to find the exact spots, and also so he could run the machine (yep!  I got him to quilt something!) to get the exact feel of how sudden a jump/grab it can be.  We ran diagnostics too.  I got my Karlee Porter on (always wanted to play with her graffiti quilting style).

I looked at pictures of her stuff for inspiration.  Some are based on her designs, tried Kathleen's swirls with pebbles (I call them bracelets), and even invented a few of my own motifs, "QUILT" bubble letters, and the two pale blue semi-circular motifs, tried some zentangle, did some feathers, and Angela's flame feather...just had fun...well not all the time. I had major tension issues and spent 40 minutes ripping all the green.  Found that the needle was jammed in really tight for some reason (Mac to the rescue with his pliers to pull it out, that was weird; don't recall hitting anything) and then I found a thread of the rayon in the bobbin area somewhere...actually it kinda "appeared" when I was brushing it out really really good... Popped in a new bobbin of The Bottom Line, and away we went.  I'm still not totally pleased with my precision, but I have to slap that perfectionist witch down, right?  What am I doing with this, 18X40" piece?  No clue.  Maybe bind it and pin tack it onto the wall in my basement corner.

Finally I got the quilt-on-feet shot of my Auntie Phyl's quilt, Blue Ribbon Stars, this afternoon with the sun on it so hopefully some of the quilty crinkly goodness will show now that it's been washed and dried.  I'm having a very hard time letting this baby go... which is a good sign, I know.

Linking up at Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday.  Lots of great quilty ideas there.  Like I need more...I have to write my Q3 FAL post yet with that list!