Wine Gums Top

Well, I'm managing to sneak in bits of sewing here and there. The baby is napping well and my little girl loves to putter around the house on her own, when we aren't having tea parties. Phew.

It didn't take much to finish this top. Worked on in snippets (hah, get it Amanda?) it comes together rather easily. I love this top. I love the concept, I love the colours, I love the construction. I'm looking forward to the finished project.

At one point I can grand plans to make 4 square panels of these and use them as quadrants, all in opposing directions for a large quilt. It is SO hard for me to work small. But I decided to stay true to the original pattern size so people can appreciate it for what it is.

Maple Leaves

There have been many bursts of patriotism in my life over the years:
- Silken Laumenn winning a silver medal at the 1992 Olympics after a brutal accident
- When our former Prime Minister Jean Chretien attacked a would be burgler with a soapstone sculpture
- Watching any Olympic hockey, but especially Crosby's goal in 2010
- The moment I see the mountains as I round the corner on the road to Banff, the splash of seals from the bow of my boat on the Halifax Arm, or the endless gold and blue of a Prairie sky
- Every time the gay marriage and abortion debates are raised in other countries I am thankful for our protection of freedoms
 - And when I saw Amy's Union Jack quilt

Yes, I'm serious about that last one. I have no special affinity to the UK, unless you count Earl Grey tea and Masterpiece Classic series. But Amy's quilt made me think about whether a Maple Leaf quilt could be made just as cool. She had confidence in me to do it and this weekend I finally tried.

I wanted to adapt our national flag into quilt form. The red portions are all pieced slabs - a technique we describe in Sunday Morning Quilts. The proportions are that of the real flag. And I eyeballed the actual leaf based on the original. Using fusible I cut the leaf out from a slab then fused it to a white background.

There are more blocks to be made, possibly in other colours. Let's see where this goes! Cool? Not sure about that, but I do think it is pretty neat.

Wine Gums in Progress

When we were writing the book I was in awe of Amanda Jean's quilts. She specializes in making use of the teeny tiny scraps. It's a great use of fabric, but all those pieces do mean that even a small quilt takes some effort. Don't be fooled by the size. You get great impact and an amazing use of fabric. And truly, it is hard to appreciate the scale of some of these quilts from the book.

It wasn't until we were giving our schoolhouse at Market that I could appreciate this. And now that I am out and about giving trunk shows I realize that I need to share these quilts to show more quilters the awesome opportunity presented by these designs. The first of Amanda Jean's little pieces quilts I'm tackling is Gumdrops.

I actually started this quilt in March, when I got my new scissors. And when cutting up little pieces of fabric was about all my big ol' pregnant body could handle. The little pieces then got put aside in favour of the baby and other work. But after my last trunk show I decided they needed return to daylight and be put to use.

Of course, I had to do things differently than Amanda's pattern. I have such a hard time following patterns. This time, however, it was unintentional.

In the pattern Amanda suggests fusing the scraps to a lightweight fusible BEFORE cutting the shapes. I neglected to read these instructions before I started cutting out my gumdrop shapes. That meant I would have to add fusible in tiny pieces, after the fact. That bit of work did not appeal to me. But, I do think you need some stabilization of the pieces to the background prior to assembly.

This piece has you sew down your applique and quilt as one step, so the pieces need to be stabilized prior to basting.

Instead of fusible I rummaged through the girls' craft supplies for a glue stick. Yup, a plain old glue stick. A little bit of glue on the back of each piece tacks it to the background. Then you can sew your strips together, baste, and quilt. As long as you don't coat the back there is no residue left after quilting and washing. You also don't get the stiffness associated with even a lightweight fusible.

As a bonus, this becomes a craft project with a bored preschooler missing her big sister at school all day. An excellent alternative to the endless tea parties.

Talk

I love to talk. Ask anyone who knows me, it's true. When I can't stand to hear one more word from my girls because all they do is talk talk talk talk talk talk I step back, remember my parents, and sigh knowingly. I'm lucky I'm still loved.

And I love to talk about quilts. Especially quilts. That's why I get such a thrill each time I head out the door with my suitcase of quilts. It always means that they get to see the light of day again (oh, the joys of living in the chaos of a reno) and it means I get to talk quilts.

At the front of the room a stack of quilts waits for willing volunteers to strain their arms holding up the big ones while I bounce around chit chatting with my hosts. With a gentle tsk I shoo them away from helping me set up because I like everyone to get the reaction when they see the quilts. I would also be tempted to start telling their stories right then and there. Those stories need to wait until the room is still and I take my place upfront. That means the business of the guilds must be attended to and everyone has their friends beside them. After what is always a lovely introduction by my host I start talking. And if it wasn't for questions or the need to vacate the hall I probably wouldn't stop.

Every quilt does indeed have a story. Sometimes it is a short one, with a focus on the process or the inspiration. Sometimes there is so much to be said that the volunteers tire from holding up the quilt while I yammer on and on. But the stories need to be shared. It isn't just about a pretty thing or a warm bed covering. Likewise the book has a story and I love to tell that one too. That's why you will find me in community halls, stores, and even on the street talking away.

I am always so happy when I get the call or the email to have me talk. Even more exciting is that people want to listen!

Currently, I'm booking trunk shows and classes well into the New Year. If you or your guild are interested, check out my classes page or send me an email. I'd love to hear from you!