Blogger's Quilt Festival

Blogger's Quilt Festival

The Blogger's Quilt Festival is on now and hosted by Amy's Creative Side. I learned about this blogging event last year. I'm very happy to be participating in it today.

If you're a blogger and not familiar with the event, go to Amy's Creative Side and check it out! (see Related Links below),

We get to submit up to two separate entries, in posts for quilts that we made in the last year. It's not an easy choice to make but for my first entry I chose my Sweet Memories: Northern Lights art quilt.

Sweet Memories: Northern Lights

Sweet Memories: Northern Lights is my first entry because:

• It's got hexies (and I'm now very much addicted, due to this project)!
• It's an original design although based on JoJo's World Quilting Travel Adventure as the project for Canada (my home and native land!)
• I got to work with hand-dyed cheese cloth and batik fabrics (which I love).
• This project was featured on my 150th post and 5 year blogging anniversary! 
• It reminds me of my mother, whose absence hits me hard every once in a while (I guess when I'm in need of my mother).

Sweet Memories: Northern Lights

What I've learned since then:

• The original finished post is dated March 6, 2017. It's only been less than 7 months but in some ways it feels like years ago. I've produced so many quilts since then and it's all a little bit of a blur. 
• I never thought that this first hexie project would be the first of many. Given my present obsession, who knows where this little project will lead me to. I do know that I want to make more art quilt featuring these beauties.
• I love the northern lights and added them to my Canada 150 art quilt. I've been studying how other textile artists have made them and I hope to eventually make more art quilts featuring the northern lights. They are the perfect subject - magical and colourful. What not to love?
• I've also dyed my own cheese cloth this summer. One of them is my favourite hand-dyed piece. The vibrant colours look good enough to eat :-) 

  

  JoJo's World Quilting Travel Adventure

Related Links

Posts featuring Sweet Memories: Northern Lights

• Five Years - 150 Posts, March 6, 2017
• Working in a Series,  February 3, 2017
• Catching up on World Quilting Travel Adventure, January 12, 2017
• JoJo's World Quilting Travel Adventure - Canada

Linking parties: I'll be linking this post to the Blogger's Quilt Festival. Have a look at all the amazing quilts! Finished or Not Friday, Needle & Thread Thursday, Can I get a Whoop Whoop?, Oh Scrap!, Slow Sunday Stitching, 

Souvenir of England

England souvenir in
my kitchen

It's finished! My souvenir of England from JoJo Hall's World Quilting Travel Adventure is completed and now hanging up in my kitchen :-)

JoJo Hall's World
Quilting Travel Adventure

This was the fourth stop on our world adventure. I 💚 England and am happy that we stopped there for tea!

This project has been around for a while and was my April OMG (One Monthly Goal). My next World Quilting Travel Adventure project will be the Hoopoe bird from Israel. I hope to start it in May.

I've included the details of this project in the "What I Learned" section below.

Tea Time - England Souvenir

Here is an image of some of the details.

Details of Tea Time

This is the foundation paper pieced label I made for Tea Time.

Label for Tea Time - England Souvenir

What I learned

• The Crafted Appliqué technique was perfect for this project. 
• I made very few changes to the pattern, but I regretted making the steam over the tea cup smaller. It was only after I finished the appliqué that I noticed that the original was much larger so that it could be linked to the "Tea Room" sign. (oops!) 
• I loved the way that JoJo had quilted the piece, so I copied it. Before FMQ I marked all of the lines on point. Thank goodness my son looked at the project before I started quilting it since all of those lovely cathedral windows would have been very crooked. 
• I didn't embellish the piece as much as I wanted - I think I may be tired! Oh well, I can always add beads later if I change my mind or am up to it. 
• JoJo won ribbons for both her England and Oregon souvenir quilts. Check it out in the link below!

Related Links

• JoJo Hall's World Quilting Travel Adventure 
• JoJo Hall's England and Israel souvenir 
• JoJo Hall, Ribbon Winner!
• Posts related to Tea Time - England Souvenir
• Celebrate - Fêtons 150 in April, April 1, 2017
• Getting Things Done, March 23, 2017

Project Details


Tea Time - England Souvenir
16" x 20"
Designed by JoJo Hall from the World Quilting Travel Adventure
Materials: Cotton, chain
Techniques: Crafted Appliqué, free motion quilting (FMQ)

Wonderful news! Tea Time - England Souvenir was featured on Midweek Makers! Thanks Susan :-) and
Free Motion Mavericks! Thanks Muv!

Art with Fabric blog hop - coming soon

April has been a very busy month but May looks even busier. Celebrate - Fêtons 150 in May will come out on May 1st. After that comes the 2017 Art with Fabric. My project is almost finished. I can't wait to share this artist and her work with everyone! That will be on May 15th. See you there :-)








Linking Parties
I have linked this post to JoJo Hall's Travelers' Souvenirs and OMG's April Finish (One Monthly Goal). See what else is happening in the quilting blogging world through these link-ups. Moving It Forward Monday, Let's Bee Social, Linky Tuesday, Midweek Makers, Needle & Thread Thursday, Free Motion Mavericks, Can I get a Whoop Whoop?, Off the Wall Friday, Oh Scrap! MOP Monday,

Celebrate - Fêtons 150 in April

Welcome to the third month of Celebrate - Fêtons 150!

Let's party with quilts this year! Twice a month this year I will preview some of the great patterns and events celebrating Canada's 150th,

Canada 150 pattern by

Kathy K. Wylie Quilts

First thing - Celebrate - Fêtons 150 in March was a success with 11 link-ups. Including those from the More Celebrations the Quilty Way post (March 13, 2017), there was a total of 16 comments. The draw was based on 27, and number 7 was the winner - which is the link up from Kathy K. Wylie Quilts. It's really great that we have quilting professionals linking their Canada 150 projects. I'm looking forward to trying Kathy's technique and pattern this year.

Canadian Beaver Block - designed by Sew Fresh Quilts

We are also in for a special treat as Lorna of Sew Fresh Quilts is donating one of her quilt patterns to the lucky winner of the April link-up. Thanks so more Lorna!





Here's one of Lorna's patterns that I just completed - the Canadian Beaver Block. It was a joy to sew and quilt (and believe me when I say that I don't find joy in piecing very often!) Thanks Lorna for this wonderful project :-)






What else is happening in the quilting world to celebrate Canada's 150?

Linda Hutchinson's quilt at QuiltCon

Canadian quilts at QuiltCon, Savannah

Did anyone get to QuiltCon in Savannah this year? As I've been reading blogs and magazines about the event, I sure wish I had the chance to attend. It sounds wonderful! Lisa from Sunlight in Winter Quilts posted a few pictures of fellow Canadian quilters' work. Here is an original piece by Linda Hutchinson of the Toronto Modern Guild. The quilt is hand quilted - and with luck we'll see it at Quilt Canada in Toronto this June.

Wonda's Designs - This is Canada

I haven't seen this design anywhere yet. The quilt is made up of 12 panels which can be bought in packages of 3. They can make a lovely quilt or wall hangings. See the link to Wonda's Desings in Related Links at the bottom of the post.

All Around Canada Block Pattern by Along Came Quilting Store in Calgary

This lovely 18" quilt block is the store's block pattern for the Northcott Trans-Canada Block Party. If you're in Calgary this summer, you can pick up the pattern or kit at the store. Otherwise, you'll be able to order it after September 1st.

My husband is going to Calgary in May, so I have a month to figure out how to convince him to pick up this beauty for me!

All Around Canada Block Pattern by
Along Came Quilting Store in Calgary

SeaSew - Canada's 150 Paper Pieced Logo



















This is the official logo of Canada 150. Here's a free paper pieced pattern from SeaSew by Dana Szucs Hayden.

Canadian Critters Series Designed by A Quilter's Home 

Celebrating with the Canadian Critters Series

After seeing this little Canadian Critter - I'm doomed. Celebrating Canada's 150 is definitely going to cost me a small fortune :-)

How can you resits? I'm not sure, since the other 2 critters are just as cute, and it's only March! You can purchase these kits individually or as a Block of the Month... one for each month of the year!!!

Celebrating Canada's 150 Events

I don't think that I can stand any more amazing quilts and blocks right now, so here are some websites to find out what is happening around your area (or places you will visit) this year. The links are all below, in the Related Links section.

Free Parks Canada
Discovery Pass

I have to start with the Free Parks Canada Discovery Pass. This pass will get your group free admission this year to National Parks, National Marine Conservation Areas and National Historic Sites owned and operated by Parks Canada. It's a great opportunity to discover amazing places around the country. Check out the link below for details. You won't want to miss out.

Canada's 150 Site
The Government of Canada has an internet site and an app to help you find events celebrating this special year.

Quilt Shows and Events page at the Canadian Quilting Association Website

Spring brings with it the beginning of quilt shows around the country. I suspect that every show will have something to celebrate Canada's 150th. Check out what shows are coming in your area. Enjoy!

What I learned:

• Although I usually attend only one quilt show a year, I know that this year will be different. Although I can't travel across the country to give you accounts of all of these quilting events, I hope that you will link up if you have a post of any of these shows with their Canada 150 exhibits.
• Aren't these quilt patterns wonderful? I'm not sure how I'm going to resist getting many more of these special designs.
• With everything that's going on, I posted my April objectives with my March Finishes. That's not how it works. So please bear with me as I repeat my April goals.

My April Objectives:

England Souvenir - to be quilted & embellished

• My OMG is to quilt and embellish the England souvenir from the World Quilting Travel Adventure and hang it up in my kitchen; 
• Make more slab blocks, and if I’m really productive, finish a small quilt top for Canada's Big Quilt Bee;
• Work on and hopefully complete my Art with Fabric project. I'll be posting on the first day - May 15th! No pressure :-)

Related Links:

• Celebrate - Fêtons 150 in March (March 1, 2017)
• More Celebrations the Quilty Way (March 13, 2017)
• Sew Fresh Quilts blog
• Sew Fresh Quilts patterns
• Sunlight in Winter Quilts - Wow! (March 3, 2017)
• Wonda's Designs - This is Canada (go to the fourth row on the page)
• All Around Canada Block Pattern - Along Came Quilting
• SeaSew's Canada 150 Paper Pieced Logo
• Canadian Critters Series Designed by A Quilter's Home 
• Free Parks Canada Discovery Pass
• Canada's 150 Site
• Quilt Shows & Events - Canadian Quilting Association 

Linking Parties: I am linking my OMG at Elm Street Quilts. See what everyone else is making this month. I am also linking to the following Link-Ups: Can I get a Whoop Whoop? Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, MOP Monday, Monday Making, Main Crush Monday, Moving it Forward Monday, Linky Tuesday, Let's Bee Social, Off the Wall Friday, Can I get a Whoop Whoop?, Finish or Not Friday, 

Here is the button, if you want to add it to your blog!

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Now it's your turn to show us what you are doing to Celebrate Canada's 150th.

An InLinkz Link-up

March Finishes

Celebrate – Fêtons 150

What a month! It started with the second Celebrate – Fêtons 150 link-up and the draw of the first prize among those who left comments. Three Canada 150 fat quarters were sent to Susan from Quilt Fabrication.

The link-up has been a success!! There were eleven link-ups – and only one of them was my own :-) This month I also had my own celebration – 5 years of blogging and 150 posts! Thank you to everyone who participated in the link-ups, left comments and best wishes for my own anniversary. What an amazing online community.

I had two goals for March, which I accomplished. My One Month Goad (OMG) was to finish the beaver block created by Lorna of Sew Fresh Quilts. Here it is:

Canada 150 - Beaver block designed by Sew Fresh Quilts

Canadian Beaver's Close-up Shot!

Here’s the label made with some of the scraps from the original project.

My second March goal was to make more slab blocks for Canada's Big Quilt Bee. I now have 6 completed blocks. I’m halfway to making a small quilt top.

I’m trying to keep my goals to a minimum but I do have a few deadlines, so here are my April goals:

• Make more slab blocks, and if I’m really productive, finish a small quilt top for Canada's Big Quilt Bee;
• Quilt and embellish the England souvenir from the World Quilting Travel Adventure;
• Work on and hopefully complete my Art with Fabric project. I'll be posting on the first day - May 15th! No pressure :-)
  .

What I learned:

• As I mentioned in my last post, I really enjoyed making the Beaver block. It was easier than I expected, in no small part due to Lorna’s technique and instructions. I’m not sure that I’ll ever commit to a full quilt, but I definitely want to make more blocks. They make great wall hangings.
• I am so happy that the link-ups have been a success. I’ve reached out to many Canadian quilting bloggers (and some non-Canadians too!) who have been very supportive. 
• I’ve research and found many quilting patterns and projects that celebrate Canada’s 150th. Can you believe that I had forgotten to check Pinterest? I found lots of interesting projects that I will share with you on my Celebrate – Fêtons 150 in April post.

Related Links

• Celebrate – Fêtons 150 in March (March 1, 2017)
• Quilt Fabrication
• Five Years - 150 Posts (March 6, 2017)
• OMG March Goal Setting Link-up
• Beaver block pattern from Sew Fresh Quilts
• Canada's Big Quilt Bee and Sew Fresh Quilt Bee
• England souvenir from the World Quilting Travel Adventure
• Schedule for the 2017 Art with Fabric blog hop

Project Details

Canada 150
16" x 26"
Canadian Beaver quilt block pattern by Sew Fresh Quilts
Materials: cotton
Techniques: piecing, free motion quilting



Great news -this little guy was featured on Main Crush Monday. Thanks Beth!

Linking Parties: I'll be linking this post to the OMG March Finish Link Up, as well as many more. Please check them out! Can I get a Whoop Whoop?, Free Motion Mavericks, Midweek Makers, Needle & Thread Thursday, Off the Wall Friday, Finished or Not Friday, Let's Bee Social, Moving it Forward, Main Crush Monday.

Getting Things Done

When I come home from our monthly Out of the Box Fibre Artists meeting - I was all hipped up and didn't get to sleep until late. So many quilts, techniques and ideas....and never enough time!!!

This month's speaker, Sharon Collins, sure wowed me! For whatever reason, I'm totally intimidated by paint and fabric dye - but after seeing her work, I just have to learn this! She is creating these amazing landscape art quilts with her hand-dyed cotton, silk and silk organza. Some of her pieces have 4 or 5 layers. She uses a technique called flat dying. This summer, I'm going to learn more about this and let you know what happens! Check out her website in the Related Links below.

It's been a very busy March so far. I've made progress on a few things. Here they are:

Beaver Block (It's my March OMG and being made for Celebrate - Fêtons 150)

I've been working very hard on Lorna's (Sew Fresh Quilts) Beaver block. I have to admit that I was pretty anxious about making it since piecing is not my favourite thing to do. Well, I am thrilled to say that it was a really great experience. The pattern was easy to follow and her technique was great. I finished piecing it in a couple of days. I am very impressed!

Now I'm quilting it. That's the fun part of the process - where the quilting gives it that extra boost.

FMQ the Beaver block

Details of the FMQ of the flag and tail

England Souvenir with JoJo Hall's World Quilting Travel Adventure

Progress on the England Souvenir 

England was the fourth location in our World Tour. I'm a little behind, but slowly catching up! I love this Tea Room wall hanging and it's going to hang in my kitchen.

World Quilting
Travel Adventure

I used the Crafted Applique technique and as usual, it was a success. Since I want to make it an art quilt, I visited a local beading shop and found some black chain to use to hang the sign from the post. I can't wait to start the embellishing, but I should probably clean up those loose threads and sew down the applique first!



Growing Up QAL - Block 3

Block 3 of Growing Up QAL

The third block in Alida's Growing Up QAL is all about circles. I'm really proud of myself. I took my time, used tons of pins and it went very well. It reminded me of why I disliked sewing sleeves on garments! I can't see myself making an entire quilt of circles, but after making 8 of those suckers, it was getting easier.

Postcard from Sweden Quilt Along

I know, I really, really don't need another QAL project - but in my defense, I started this quilt top over a year ago.

Half-Square Triangle

I saw a finished version that was incredibly FMQ somewhere in Internet land and fell in love. Any excuse to make something to practice my FMQ on, even if it involves half-square triangles (HST)! I bought two Hoffman Bali Snaps packages - Sea Glass and Gemstone to start with but once again my planing and math skills were off :-) That's ok - I have lots of potential batik fabrics in my stash.


What I learned:

• I'm not sure if it's because it gets darker later but I now feel like working on my quilting after supper. I've been able to advance a lot of these projects.
• I enjoy having projects at different stages of completion - it gives me the chance to FMQ, piece or plan - depending on my mood.

Related Links:

• Out of the Box Fibre Artists Group
• Sharon Collins Art - check out her landscapes
• Sew Fresh Quilts Patterns and Beaver Block Pattern
• OMG setting for March - Celebrate - Fêtons 150 in March (March 1, 2017)
• Beaver Block - More Celebration the Quilting Way (March 13, 2017)
• Visit England with JoJo Hall's World Quilting Travel Adventure
• Growing Up QAL - Block 3 link-up
• Postcard from Sweden Quilt Along (scroll down past the links for the QAL info)

Linking Parties: Here are the link-ups that I'm participating in. Check out what everyone is making! Postcards from Sweden QAL, Growing Up QAL Link-up, World Quilting Travel Adventure - Travelers' Souvenirs, Let's Bee Social, Linky Tuesday, Midweek Makers, Needle & Thread Thursday, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Free Motion Mavericks, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?, Main Crush Monday.

Five Years - 150 Posts

Five years ago in March 2012, I wrote my first blog post. Who would have thought that I would keep going with another 149 posts, or that I would love it? I still remember how great it felt that first time, to see my words and my creation on the web.

My very first blog post - March 2012

I'm also extremely lucky that I've been able to take web writing and design courses through work. It's great to be able to do some of what I love at work. Part of my job is to teach employees to post on our corporate intranet. I get to see their eyes light up as they see their words published on the intranet for the first time. It's wonderful to be able to spread the joy!

In my first year I wrote 8 posts. This has increased every year, from 23 the second year to 41 last year. The good thing about the increase is that it reflects the amount of time that I've spent quilting. On a quilting blog, it's hard to post if you don't quilt!

I was thrilled when I discovered link-up parties. It's great how they bring bloggers together. I get to see what others are doing and share what I've been up to. The specialty blog hops and linking parties have really helped me grow as a blogger, quilter and artist.

Quilting bloggers are so generous - offering tutorials, patterns and encouragement as well as sharing what they've learned. Thank you all for making my quilting life more enjoyable and productive. I hope that I've also contributed these things to my fellow quilters and bloggers. Even as I quilt alone in my studio (aka bedroom), I know that there is a community out there that shares both my passion and obsession!

World Quilting Travel Adventure

with JoJo Hall

Merci / Thank you!!!
Andrée

Which project will be featured in this 150th post? It's the second project from JoJo Hall's World Quilting Travel Adventure - Canada.

As usual, I've been expanding on JoJo's great souvenir ideas to create art quilts. So far this one is my favourite. There is a lot less embellishment than the previous project, but I love its simplicity.

As you may recall, it started with some English paper pieced hexies to illustrate Canada's Northern Lights. It took me a while to decide how I wanted to place these. I got a lot of design help from my son. When I did put it all together, JoJo's videos were invaluable.

Attaching the multi-coloured hexies

Sweet Memories: Northern Lights

This project is called Sweet Memories: Northern Lights. The memories come from a night, about 20 years ago. I was in my kitchen in Orleans, talking to my mother on the phone. As I looked out of the window, I notices the Northern Lights dancing away. As I shared this with my mother, she went to her office to look out her north-facing window. Sure enough, she saw the Northern Lights. They must have been especially strong since we were both in areas with some light. It was a magical moment that I'm glad to commemorate with art.

What I've learned:

• I love the hand-dyed cheese cloth over the black fabric. It adds lovely texture and colour to the piece. It was, however, tricky to FMQ over. I learned the hard way that my free motion foot, which opens in the front, got easily caught in the loose weave of the cheese cloth. The way around this was to quilt backwards, with the foot's opening facing the back as I quilted.
• I appliquéd the hexies by stitching near the outside edge, and then FMQ around each hexagon.
• I used Superior's Bottom Line thread and three colours of Kimono silk thread to appliqué and FMQ. 

Featured Links

• The First One (March 27, 2012)
• JoJo's World Quilting Travel Adventure - Canada
• Previous Northern Lights posts:
• Catching up on World Quilting Travel Adventure (January 12, 2017)
• Working in a Series (February 3, 2017)

Project Details
Sweet Memories: Northern Lights
18½ " x 12"
Materials: cotton, hand dyed cheese cloth by Linda Palaisy, batik fabrics, Superior's Bottom Line thread and Kimono silk thread
Techniques: English paper piecing, appliqué, FMQ

Art with Fabric - Spring 2017

Linky Parties: If you're interested in seeing what other travelers have made, check out the links on the Travelers' Souvenirs. I'm also linking to these link-ups. Check them out! MOP Monday, Oh Scrap! Monday Making, Main Crush Monday, Moving it Forward Monday, Linky Tuesday, Let's Bee Social, Midweek Makers, Needle & Thread Thursday, Off the Wall Friday, Free Motion Mavericks, Finished or Not Friday, Can I get a Whoop Whoop?

Other News:
I'll be participating once more in Alida's Art with Fabric in May. I'm really looking forward to it!

Here's the link to the Celebrate - Fêtons 150 post and link-up for March, Join in the fun and a chance to win prizes!