Week 6... Love love love

Last weeks 52 question was... Love Love Love...

I have had a very difficult time with this challenge because I don't think out of my box enough! I tend to find traditionally pieced blocks and things that piece quickly, in all my quilting projects and the reason I wanted to do this challenge was so that I could work with some other medium and make my blocks more interesting... So far I haven't really done that. So this week I checked to see what Dale Ann Potter did before I made mine, and cheated a little, but in retrospect I am glad I did, because I realized I could do some fun things with a little thought and a trip to Walmart!

Week 6  LOVE LOVE LOVE

So I went out and looked for stencils and dug out my oil paint sticks and with a little effort (didn't know you had to peel the skin off those paint sticks) I managed to complete my block. And I was very pleased with the end result.  I paper pieced the heart from EQ7 and the rest was done with a stencil I bought from Walmart and  the oil paint sticks.  I had bought some sewing related buttons a while ago and I sewed them on and my block looked great. I am very pleased with the end result.

Of course this week was Valentines and I have to tell you my husband is a little bit of a sentimental Guy!  This year he got me his usual funny card, a single red rose and a shinny red 2010 Chevy Camaro SS.  Always wanted one of those, but not quite so small... LOL

Happy Valentines (belated) to all my blogging buddies!

My out of the box Project...

I have been searching for my "out of the ordinary" for me to make this year and I think I have found it. No paper piecing... (thats tomorrows story), not traditional and not colours I would normally use.... Out of my quilting Box!

I think I will give it a try... now the search is on for the fabric... Where will I find Black and white striped fabric.... any thoughts???

Does this look fun or what?

 Pattern can be found in the Australian Patchwork and Quilting Magazine, Vol 19, No 10... page70.  The design is by Estelle Micklethwaite who I am going to google as soon as I finish this.

Week 5... already...



My granddaughters having a snow day

For those of you who think I have forgotten... again.... I have been away and haven't had time to work at anything... should have thought of the fact that I was going to be away most of January right from the get go, but I didn't....

Anyway, I have all 5 weeks started, 1 and 5 are finished so I just need to catch up with 2,3, and 4....

Week one of 52 Questions was..List something you are proud of...



I wasn't sure how you could list something you are proud of when you are working with fabric and making quilt blocks, but I finally decided to make a family tree and hang my kids on it. It didn't turn out as well as I would have liked, but I wasn't doing it over again. I didn't think the point of this was perfection... but a compilation of things done as you think about them. I like the tree, but the embroidery is all over the place. I did learn some techniques about embroidering letters and next time it should be a lot better. I think I am going to enjoy this... lots to learn as I go and totally out of my box.



Week 1



Week 2, 3 and 4... Well hopefully I will complete them in the next week, so I will be totally caught up.

Week 5, which is this week is: Use some ephemera from your week.



Great question and I wanted to oblige... but I had never heard the word "ephemera" before and had no clue what it meant.  I went to  Dale Anne's blog to see what she had done, and although her project was beautiful... it didn't help me... so off to the dictionary I went...

Ephemera is transitory written and printed matter not intended to be retained or preserved. The word derives from the Greek, meaning things lasting no more than a day.

Well that was helpful, except that I am working in fabric, making a quilt, that I hope will last more than a day! This question definitely made me sit and think. But it is funny how things work.... I happened to be leafing through my new Connecting Threads catalogue, when my hubby asked me to look for something for him and while I was looking I came across one piece of Printed Treasures Print Quality Cotton Fabric Sheets and ... Connecting Threads and fabric were married nicely on my photo copier and I have something ephemeral that will last me a life time... Oh, and that reminds me... I need to go find that thing for Victor... hmmmmmm... sidetracked again!



Week 5









This has been my first sew day in January, (haven't had much time to sew), so I am grateful that the heavens opened up and dumped 20 cm of snow on us, cancelling life as we know it here in our little town. I packed projects for camp, sewed a little, worked on my blog and now I am off to make supper.... It has been a great day!

Week 1 of 52 weeks....What are you most proud of?

This is the x Block Quilt, which I call 'all over the Place". I backed it with Dora Fabric, quilted  it and gave it to my granddaughter Avery for Christmas.

I have not had a lot of time this week to get things done.  Its year end at CxCanada... and the boss has been busy giving me things to do....

I did start on this weeks project. The theme was given to me by Emily Falconbridge, Through  Dale Anne Potter. they have been making cards and tags, but quilting is really my thing, so I decided to make a 52 week quilt with 6" blocks.... so every week (not necessarily completed each week but hopefully by months end I will always be up to date) I will plan a little 6" block around a question.   The list can be found on Dale Annes blog if you are interested in following along. ...

From Left to right... me, Kris, Scot, Susan and Kevyn

This week was very difficult because there are a lot of things I am proud of, but the "MOST" proud of... well that was hard... But I landed on my children, Kevyn, Kris, Scot and Susan who I adore and I am most proud of the way they have grown up and become very successful adults. So my block will revolve around them. Its all together in my mind, but not quite into fabric yet... Tomorrow I plan to have a sew day with myself and I will diligently work on that 6" block.

I also mentioned this year I want to make 12 Quilts. That has been a mind struggle all week.

1 - I want to make 1 quilt by hand... took me about 100 magazines to find the one I wanted to make... I am going to cut templates this week and test a block this weekend. Once I have done my test, and if it seems like a doable thing, I will get some more of it cut and  it will be my evening handwork and travelling project for this year.... That's 1.

Hexagon magic from Australian Patchwork and Quilting vol 16 no 11

2 to 5 -  I want to make 4 seasonal quilts... one for each season... approx 25" square to hang on a quilt rack I have in my Kitchen that is empty... has been for 3 years.  I am going to find a nice wintery one to do at the end, but I am going to start with spring so I can hang it in Late March... I have a theme... each one will have flowers... something seasonal since I don't have a green thumb and kill anything living... I will bring my flower garden into the house with fabric.

6 - I have a wedding quilt to make... by June..

7 to 9 - 3 grandchildren still don't have quilts so they are on my list for this year.

10 - I am going to dig through my "Bought the fabric, but never made the quilt box" and finish 1 of them

11. My 52 week memory quilt

12 Something fun and fanciful, out of my box, full of colour and oddities!

Also I would love to do some UFO's but by the looks of this I won't have much time.... oh well.

So there is my commitment to me... lets see how I do!

The last word... I have been really enjoying Wayne Kollingers blog... thought you might like it too!

Happy New Year everyone

Today is the first day  of 2011 and I have a blog plan....

I plan to blog once a week if possible more often, but at least once a week... starting Monday.

I plan to have a theme... 12 Quilts... 1 quilt for each month of the year but not neccessarily one a month!

I plan to make it interesting and informative.

I plan to post picture only blogs in addition to my weekly blog.

I plan to try and follow Emily Falconbridge's and Dale Anne's blog prompts and maybe do something outside my box and share it on my blog

I plan to blog!!!!  its time to get out of my funk and move into the new year... hope you haven't all ditched me... and if you have... well I will do this for me and love it.

See you next week... Gail



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