Two Quilts - Done!

One quilt took almost 2 years to finish, it shouldn't have but life intervened for almost a year when I didn't get much quilting/sewing done. I know the recipients understand, it is a wedding quilt signed by all the guests at the wedding. I have made 5 of these, all for very special couples, mostly for family or for friends who are more like family. I hope they like it, they haven't seen it yet!

Naomi and Nick were married on a beautiful beach, under a wedding chuppah. Family and friends came from far and near to celebrate the happy occasion.

It is machine pieced and handquilted.

I like to piece the back with fabric that reflects the bride and groom's life. So this back includes footprints in the sand, lupins and lobsters, camping and cycling, running and travel, Christmas and Hannukah. I stitch in the labels which have pictures of the bride and groom and their baby...the quilt took so long that they are now the proud parents of baby Gwen. Congratulations Naomi and Nick, may this quilt bring you memories of a happy day and warmth for many years to come!

The second quilt was much quicker, not much piecing and a brave attempt at machine quilting on my part (not my favourite pastime!). I made it for Quilts Recover, a Calgary based group that will send quilts to families who have experienced a massive tragedy. The first quilts will go out to families in Slave Lake, Alberta. I was really glad to participate in this worthwhile cause and to be able to deliver it to Cheryl in person soon.

Jungle Friends

Colour in my Neighbourhood

One of the reasons I loved living in Halifax (we last lived there 15 years ago) was the colour of the houses. No boring beige or gray, people used colour. Our last house had nine different colours, there was the basic colour of the house and trim but then there were all the accent colours on the insides of the trim and around the windows. I loved it, there was always a surprise tucked away. Then we moved to the country, to another old house in a neighbourhood where the tradition was white house with green trim. I know for someone who loves colour it is boring. We have made up for it with the colours of the interior walls, every room is different.

Yesterday we drove out the Aspotogan Peninsula, to take the car in for a service. It has been a while since I have driven out there and I was reminded that even though we have a white house there is colour in our neighbourhood.

Northwest Cove

Just around the corner from there was this display of colour...

I think that deserves the title " a riot of colour". The more I look at it the more I see surprises. Do you see the cormorant sitting on the float? I love the red on the workshop across the Cove. So even though we have a white house, there is lots of colour around me. great inspiration for a quilter. I wonder what I can do with these colours? That will be a fun challenge.

Stab Stitch Quilting

That's how I quilt, stab stitch, one stitch at a time. Never mastered the running stitch, this was how I was taught and it has worked for me for 38 years.

Way back in 1973 when I had a 2 year old and a 3 month old I decided I need to do something to keep me busy! Just joking! I had always wanted to make quilts. I was so lucky to have several of my Grandmother's quilts as a child and I still have them. I learned to sew and always loved fabric, making doll clothes and when I was about 10 my aunt took me under her wing and taught me to sew. My Mom was left-handed and it just was such a struggle for her to teach me how to sew or knit or crochet. So during the summers when my aunt lived in the cottage behind ours, she happily taught me how to sew.

Then in the fall of 1973 the Nova Scotia Museum offered a one day quilting workshop with Polly Greene. Just what I needed, I took the class and haven't stopped. In that one day we cut out and pieced a block, then we learned how to quilt it using the stab stitch method. Polly learned from her Mother when she was about 7, her Mother had learned to quilt when she was 7 (1914) in Lawrence, Massachusetts at a local department store who were giving quilting lessons to young girls. Polly is still stab stitching, still teaching others how to do it.

 

In between my thumb and forefinger is a small needle, usually a 10 or an 11 "between" that is my left hand. Underneath my Q-Snap frame is my right hand ready to pull the needle through, turn it and "stab" it back up through the quilt. My grade seven Home Ec teacher, Miss Clarke, would be so pleased with me as I use about 15"-18" length of thread. Any longer and it will tangle or knot and it's much quicker with a shorter length of thread. I have learned lots of tricks over the years and analyzed just how I quilt like this. There isn't much information on the internet. I have taught a lot of quilters over the years, it is such a great way to quilt...no thimble, no stress or strain on your fingers.

Here are a few of my favourite things to use when I quilt. A Q-Snap frame, usually the 11" square one, Americana Quilting thread from Jo-Anns in the US. It is much like the old Lily quilting thread, 100% cotton with a silicone finish, Fons and Porter mechanical pencils are the best for marking. I have 2, one with wite lead and one with black lead. They mark easily and erase easily. My little Fiskars scissors and my needle nose pliers for pulling through the needle from stubborn spots where there are a lot of seams. Plastic templates, I make my own, keep them and reuse when I can.

The quilt in the pictures is a wedding signature quilt for the daughter (and her husband) of a dear friend. At their wedding everyone signed squares of fabrics with messages for the happy couple, then I pieced the quilt top. They haven't seen the quilt yet, the last stitch was put in today, now to get to the binding.

I'll be teaching Stab Stitch Quilting at Quilt Canada 2012 in Halifax, NS. Can't wait!