The next quilt in line was one made from a Charm Pack. I usually do not buy precuts, as I never know what to do with them. But I could not resist this one when I saw it at a quilt show – it was just so pretty. The fabric line is “Bee Vintage” by Lori Holt for Riley Blake Fabrics. With its charming mix of vintage florals and cheerful hues, it was perfect for a special project.
Now, what to do with it? I searched online for charm pack quilt ideas and found one that I really liked on Sew Me, a blog written by Sarah in Northern Ireland. You can find the pattern here.
It was very easy to put together, and I completed the top in just an afternoon. I quilted it fairly soon afterwards and once again used the curving stitch to create a binding that was done entirely by machine.
This little quilt finishes at approximately 38″ x 42″, so I decided to donate it to a different charity, the Meadow Rose Society. This organization provides basic needs to children under four for families experiencing financial crisis, and I thought this small quilt would help keep a child warm and cozy.
After completing the Jelly Roll Quilts, another donation quilt was waiting to be finished. This was my ‘leaders and enders’ project, inspired by my friend Renate’s idea of alternating light and dark fabrics to create this pattern. Sewing time was limited over the past year, so finishing this top took a little longer than expected. But once it was finally done, I quilted it right away, and it has since been donated to the Ann Davis Transition Society. And, of course, I have already started on the next one!
Whenever I post one of these quilts, people ask about the pattern. There actually is no official pattern – the large squares are simply 4 inches, seam allowances included. From this starting size, you cut them in half to create rectangles and into quarters for smaller squares. I have written a bit more on how to put it together in this post.
You might remember that I won the “Left, Right, Centre” game at last year’s guild Christmas party and ended up with a hotchpotch of 120 jelly roll strips in every colour and pattern imaginable. It only took me a day or two to decide what to do with them – since they were all so mismatched, a Jelly Roll Race quilt felt like the perfect solution. I had never made one before, but I knew of the pattern, and plenty of instructions are available online.
I actually finished two of the tops right away – they were done before New Year’s! The third one, however, had to wait until summer, but as soon as I wrapped that up, I quilted all three of them. I also finally found a method for binding quilts entirely by machine that works well for donation quilts. For my own quilts, though, I’m still a bit picky and will probably always take the time to stitch the binding down by hand – I’m just not fond of the flat look that machine binding tends to create. My trick is to use a decorative stitch instead of a straight one. There’s a lovely curved stitch on my machine that meanders over the binding edge, making any irregularities on the back less obvious.
All three quilts have been donated to a local charity, the Ann Davis Transition Society. One of our guilds regularly provides them with quilts, and I know from past deliveries that they try to give as many quilts as possible to the children who come seeking shelter with their mothers. Supporting this effort means a lot to me.
So where do we go from here? You might have noticed that I didn’t announce anything for 2024 after finishing the HedgeHUGS BOM. And that’s because I need a break. Even though I pretty much stopped posting and abandoned some social media platforms, it feels like I didn’t get anything done this year. I have pattern samples finished that have been lying around for almost a year and a half with no time to actually write and publish the pattern. And let’s not even talk about the long list of half-finished designs and design ideas. Longarm quilting is still my main business and eats up most of my time but I also have quite a few medical appointments and am involved in the two local guilds. And I did quite a lot of traveling which of course I don’t want to give up either.
I have also not come up with “the” idea for a new BOM. I have played around with several ideas but I found nothing really satisfactory. So here is where you come in. I would like to start another project later in 2024 but I haven’t been hit by inspiration so far with anything that might work as a block of the month. What would you like to see? Leave a comment, and maybe inspiration will hit me.
So instead I will show you a few of the things that kept me busy this fall. I did the registration for the quilt show again and organized the quilt intake and return which is a huge, very time-consuming task. But I love a good spreadsheet and well organized events, and I had a lot of fun doing it. The guild had not enough people for setting up the frames, so this year the quilts were displayed in the sanctuary of the church where we hold the shows.
Picture courtesy of Lyn R.
I usually don’t participate in the show challenge (if the day just had more hours!!). But this year inspiration suddenly hit me in late September, and I whipped up an entry in a few days. The theme was a “song with a colour”, and I suddenly had this vision of “Red Roses for a Blue Lady”, and it turned out pretty much the way I saw it in my head.
Two guilds means two Christmas parties with lots of activities. At the Chilliwack Quilters Guild we played Bingo with fabric cards, and the blocks were collected afterwards and will be turned into donation quilts.
We also made a bobbin blossom brooch which is a very quick project, especially when you use a magnet instead of a pin. It looks really nice and is easy to do although the instructions looked quite intimidating at first.
And then we played the “Left, Right, Centre” game. Everyone starts out with three Jelly Roll strips, and the one who ends up with the last strip(s) when all the others have been placed in the centre wins the whole pile. Only that this year the winners of each table played a final round against each other with the winner taking all the strips. Well, guess who the (reluctant) lucky winner was… yes, I went home with about 120 strips of fabric. There is a huge variety of patterns and themes, and nothing is coordinated. I folded them, and they found a home in my big Fisherman’s Friend tin, and I have decided I will make (probably three, depending on how many strips there actually are) Jelly Roll Race quilts and donate them back to the guild’s We Care program.
The Chilliwack Piecemakers Christmas Party was even more hilarious (you would have loved it, Joanne). We played some games, had lots of door prizes, and the President made all executive members sing a quilty version of “Twelve Days of Christmas”. I was lucky (and maybe everyone else too because I can’t sing very well publicly) and managed to get the twelfth verse that I only had to sing once.
We also made Healing Heart blocks for a member going through some rough times, and a nice collection was gifted to her as a “fabric hug”.
And then my husband needed a new Dinkelmaus (the German version of a bean bag, if you want to know more or download the free pattern, check here). His was wearing thin after about 15 years, and he would leave kernels of spelt all over the house. Since they make such great gifts and don’t take long to sew, I made a whole collection and gave them away to my quilty friends.
Last but not least I spent almost all of November on my Christmas Cards, they were all finished in time and mailed out in early December.
I hope you all have a happy and safe holiday season, take some time to slow down and relax and enjoy your friends and family. See you all in 2024!
It’s December, and once again I am asking myself where time has gone. The older you get, the faster it seems to fly. December is always busy with Christmas approaching quickly, and before we know it, another year will be over. We are not going to put up a tree as our silly cats are out to destroy it. And what’s even worse, they munch on the needles whenever they have the chance, standing there under the branches like little ruminating cows. The last time we had a tree we ended up moving it into our son’s room and kept the door closed, so it makes no sense to even buy one. But I will hang up my favourite Christmas decoration, a silly moose wreath I made a long time ago. Probably 20 years or so, and it came to Canada with us and still makes me laugh evey time I see it.
Our hedgehog friend is busy with one of our favourite fall activities – quilting! When summer is over, when the days get shorter and the air cooler, there is less to do outside, and we tend to spend more time at our sewing machines. This little guy or gal has assembled a pretty Nine Patch block. I tried to stay with fall/Halloween-ish colours but feel free to substitute for your favourite colours. As always the pattern will be available for free download until the end of the month and move to the pattern store when the next block is released. The finishing instructions are also available now, scroll down for the download link.
EDIT: The year is over, and the block has moved to the pattern store where it is now available for purchase if you missed the free download. If you just need the finishing instructions, they are still available for free download.
Für die deutsche(n) Version(en) mit metrischen Maßen bitte dem/den Kauflink(s) unten für die englische(n) Version(en) folgen und beim Checkout angeben, dass die deutsche Version gewünscht ist. Ich verschicke dann per email die Anleitung(en) in der gewünschten Sprache.
Wer nur die Anleitung zur Fertigstellung sucht, kann diese nun auch auf Deutsch kostenlos herunterladen.
It’s November, and the garden season is barely over. I still had cucumbers two weeks ago, and I only pulled them after the last harvest because there was arctic air in the forecast and overnight frost was coming. I also had a final bean harvest of about 1 kg before the cold air arrived. The warm fall temperatures have really extended the season this year. I am happy to get a small break now as I need to plan the garden set up for next year. And I am also going to start radishes indoors today. I have been doing this for the past two years as we always need radishes for a New Year’s Eve dish, and sometimes they are hard to find at the grocery store. With a grow light they’ll be ready to harvest around Christmas.
Our little hedgehog friend is celebrating Thanksgiving this year. Canadian Thanksgiving is in October but since there was also a Halloween block, the Thanksgiving block had to wait until November and American Thanksgiving. This is the most complicated block of the year, December’s block will be easier and have a lot less pieces. I tried to just add a single vegetable instead of the basket but the only one that looked right was a squash, and it looked too much like the October block with the carved Halloween pumpkin. So a basket it is, and the pieces are a bit fiddly but you can always do less, embroider or add a cute button. I like how he turned out, and pumpkin pie is my favourite, so it had to be included in the block. As always the pattern will be available for free download until the end of the month and move to the pattern store when the next block is released.
EDIT: The month of free download is over, and the block has moved to the pattern store where it is now available for purchase. If you just need the finishing instructions, they are still available for free download.
Für die deutsche(n) Version(en) mit metrischen Maßen bitte dem/den Kauflink(s) unten für die englische(n) Version(en) folgen und beim Checkout angeben, dass die deutsche Version gewünscht ist. Ich verschicke dann per email die Anleitung(en) in der gewünschten Sprache.
Wer nur die Anleitung zur Fertigstellung sucht, kann diese nun auch auf Deutsch kostenlos herunterladen.
Welcome to October! The garden season is almost over, and I pulled my tomato plants yesterday. We have a ton of green tomatoes now but most of them will turn red over time. And if not, my friend Connie makes the most delicious green tomato relish, so I would have a recipe to try if I am drowning in green tomatoes. Today I will clean up the front yard with the sunflowers. I grew Velvet Queen (a red variety) and Lemon Queen this year, and they are both still producing small new flower heads but overall the plants look pretty beaten up. Twice I saw a squirrel scurrying away with a flower head. I am growing the sunflowers for the birds and other animals, so I don’t mind that at all. It’s mostly entertainment for my cats who love sitting in the front window, watching the birds. We’ll harvest whatever seeds are left and put them in the bird feeder, so the cats won’t lose their entertainment.
As for our hedgehog friend, he has decided to dress up as a ghost for Halloween. That makes for a pretty easy block this month, although the bat eyes are a bit finicky, and you might want to embroider the orange eyes as well, not just the black pupils. It is possible to appliqué them but if you don’t like fiddling with tiny pieces, just simplify the design. As always, the pattern will be available for free download until the end of the month and move to the pattern store when the next block is released in November.
EDIT: The month of free download is over, and the block has moved to the pattern store where it is now available for purchase. If you just need the finishing instructions, they are still available for free download.
Für die deutsche(n) Version(en) mit metrischen Maßen bitte dem/den Kauflink(s) unten für die englische(n) Version(en) folgen und beim Checkout angeben, dass die deutsche Version gewünscht ist. Ich verschicke dann per email die Anleitung(en) in der gewünschten Sprache.
Wer nur die Anleitung zur Fertigstellung sucht, kann diese nun auch auf Deutsch kostenlos herunterladen.
July and the first half of August were extremely busy for me with quilting for customers. Now I am finally caught up and have started working through my own project queue. Some of the things I found in my closet were quite a surprise! As for gardening, the season is winding down. We have harvested all the onions, leeks and cabbage. The tomatoes are still going strong. But the biggest success of the year were the watermelons. We have picked two so far, and they were so good! Sweet and juicy and full of flavour, the best watermelon ever. I will definitely try this again next year. For those in my area: the variety is Sugar Baby which has a shorter ripening time, and it needs to be started indoors in late April and transplanted around May long weekend, otherwise there won’t be enough time for the melons to ripen before the temperatures start to drop. I highly recommend giving this a try, you will never like store-bought watermelons again!
As for our hedgehog friend, it’s time to go back to school. He maybe looks a bit old-fashioned with his blackboard but I thought it looked cuter than having him carry around a laptop. The backpack is a bit more complicated with a lot of small pieces but I think it looks adorable. Please remember that you don’t have to do everything exactly the way I did. You can always simplify or embroider details. As always, the pattern will be available for free download until the end of the month and move to the pattern store when the next block is released in October.
EDIT: The month of free download is over, and the block has moved to the pattern store where it is now available for purchase. If you just need the finishing instructions, they are still available for free download.
Für die deutsche(n) Version(en) mit metrischen Maßen bitte dem/den Kauflink(s) unten für die englische(n) Version(en) folgen und beim Checkout angeben, dass die deutsche Version gewünscht ist. Ich verschicke dann per email die Anleitung(en) in der gewünschten Sprache.
Wer nur die Anleitung zur Fertigstellung sucht, kann diese nun auch auf Deutsch kostenlos herunterladen.
Another month has flown by, and I wonder where time has gone. My veggie garden is keeping me busy, I am about to start the third batch of beans. The first one is done, the second one is ready to harvest. The cherry tomatoes are so sweet and yummy, and the first big tomatoes are ready as well. And I just noticed today that the first grapes are changing colour. This year I was smart enough and covered them with netting, so hopefully we will get to taste them. Last year the birds got them all. I don’t mind sharing with the crows, not even my fruit and veggies but I would like to try at least some of them myself.
For our little hedgehog friend, it is already (still?) fall, and he is busy raking leaves this month. The blocks are getting a bit more intricate, feel free to simplify the maple leaves by omitting the stems. As always the block will be available for free download until the end of the month and move to the pattern store when the next block is released.
EDIT: The month of free download is over, and the block has moved to the pattern store where it is now available for purchase. If you just need the finishing instructions, they are still available for free download.
Für die deutsche(n) Version(en) mit metrischen Maßen bitte dem/den Kauflink(s) unten für die englische(n) Version(en) folgen und beim Checkout angeben, dass die deutsche Version gewünscht ist. Ich verschicke dann per email die Anleitung(en) in der gewünschten Sprache.
Wer nur die Anleitung zur Fertigstellung sucht, kann diese nun auch auf Deutsch kostenlos herunterladen.
Happy Belated Canada Day and Happy Fourth of July to our American Friends! The past six weeks have been super busy for me as I have been traveling a lot. I was square dancing and sightseeing in Washington State for ten days in May, then spent two weeks at home trying to catch up on everything, then went to see my mom in Germany for two weeks. I came back last Monday, and after another three days of playing catch up we went down to Oregon on Friday to meet friends at Crater Lake who we hadn’t seen in ten years. We got back last night, and now I am back trying to catch up again. I don’t have a lot of quilts in the queue (phew) but the garden is still two weeks ahead of regular years and will need some attention. I have the first watermelon growing and two butternut squashes, and the first cherry tomatoes are turning orange. I plant only the Sungold variety that turns dark orange but never truly red, so they will be ready to eat soon. The peas are almost done but I still have a ton to harvest, peel, blanch and freeze. My first Velvet Queen sunflower, a red one, has started to bloom, and it is so pretty! I have always wanted a red sunflower and decided to go for it this year. And our California Dreaming rose decided to surprise us with five open flowers yesterday when we returned, that was a beautiful surprise. We spent some time in Portland on our way back and visited the International Rose Test Garden where almost all the flowers were in full bloom… I took over 400 pictures! Now I have to decide which ones I like best and try to hunt some down for next year.
Our hedgehog friend is roasting marshmallows over a campfire this month. I personally am not super fond of marshmallows but I know that roasting them while camping is a popular activity, so it had to be included in the quilt. As always the block will be available for free download until the end of the month and move to the pattern store when the next block is released. Thank you for your patience and enjoy!
EDIT: The month of free download is over, and the block has moved to the pattern store where it is now available for purchase. If you just need the finishing instructions, they are still available for free download.
Für die deutsche(n) Version(en) mit metrischen Maßen bitte dem/den Kauflink(s) unten für die englische(n) Version(en) folgen und beim Checkout angeben, dass die deutsche Version gewünscht ist. Ich verschicke dann per email die Anleitung(en) in der gewünschten Sprache.
Wer nur die Anleitung zur Fertigstellung sucht, kann diese nun auch auf Deutsch kostenlos herunterladen.
