Spring Road Trip

A nice little stash came home with me from our road trip to Shipshewana, Indiana (Yoder's and Lolly's) and also a couple of quilt shops in Michigan, Quilts at the Marshall House, in Marshall MI and a new one for us, Lake St. Mercantile, in South Lyon MI, which is in a beautifully restored 1880's bank building.

Both Lolly's and Yoder's have added wool yarn to the inventory and I found a few must haves for rug hooking.  I also noticed precut wool fabric for penny rugs and wool applique, but too small for rug hooking, though they did sell some wool on bolts, just nothing that grabbed me.

On our way home we stopped in Ann Arbor, Michigan to attend the Michigan Hook-In and Rug Show hosted by the Northville Heirloom Hookers.  I have never been in a room full of hookers before and must say it was a delight.  The pretty wool flower above was a gift from the Northville Heirloom Hookers, to wear on my jacket. There were lots of rugs to see completed and in progress.  And, also vendors, which meant I wasn't coming home empty handed!

The bottom three will be used for overdyeing and I just couldn't resist the rest.  Though my plan is to use mainly recycled wool, I will treat myself to new wool every now and then.  The thrift stores have been very good to me and my inventory of recycled wool is growing at a rapid pace.

Home just in time to see the Fiddleheads and to enjoy some perfect spring weather in the garden.  It always feels good to complete the spring cleanup and worth all the aches and pains that come with it, but no time to rest, round two is about to begin, the weeds are coming!

Until next time.....happy quilting!

Karen

Stash Building

Reproduction Fabric

More Reproduction Fabric

1930's Fabric

Primitive Muslin

Mixed Fabric

and Asian Fabric

A good road trip and even though I bought more fabric then I should have, I did buy a lot less then I could have.  As you can see,  I do love the reproduction fabrics.  Great sales on some, so I purchased extra yardage, good for backing doll quilts. 

I was a little disappointed with the 1930's fabric, very little caught my eye, until I discovered the sales table, once again, good for backing.  Also, very pleased with the Primitive Muslin and guess what, it was on sale too!  Love the Asian fabric and I think I did a pretty good job with my mixed fabric.

Oops!  I almost missed some!

The washing machine is humming away and the laundry room floor is covered with piles of fabric, now the hard part, finding a place to store it all. 

Until next time.....happy quilting!

Karen

Fall Road Trip

It is time for a road trip and I am pretty sure it will include lots and lots of quilt shops.  But, will I be able to stick to my Quilters' Diet, seeing that I have not set foot in a quilt shop or ordered anything online since spring, we will see!

With the blink of an eye, summer became fall, with a chill in the air and colour everywhere.  The weatherman predicted a dry, warm autumn, but it has been raining for days and is as cold as can be.  Still, it is going to be an excellent adventure and not even the rain can put a damper on things.

I began a new project, the time was right, Hocuspocusville, by Crab-apple Hill.  One of my favourite blocks is The Black Cauldron, so I started with that one.  Spider Soup and Worms Alfredo, now doesn't that make your mouth water?

 

Such a very busy season and I have been working overtime to see that everything on my To-Do List gets checked off.  This has left little time for quilting the past few weeks, other than stitching up my weekly Dear Jane block and cutting out pieces for a quilt called Crazy Cats.  My sister is machine piecing it, which is good, because I'm not that crazy about the Buggy Barn method.  Anyway,  if all goes well, this will be a Christmas gift for my other sister.

Now, I must pack my bags and get a good night's sleep, as soon it will be time to hit the road.

Until next time.....happy quilting!

Karen

A Splash of Colour

222 of 500 Klosjes Completed

18 made in April

The first of many Kaffe Fassett spools!

Our annual spring road trip to Shipshewana, Indiana came a little earlier this year.  It was mostly sunny, with a little rain, but warm enough without a jacket.  More time than usual was spent on the road, as we decided to venture off the beaten path and explore a few new quilt shops. 

Last year, we discovered two great shops in Michigan; The Hen House in Charlotte and Quilts at the Marshall House in Marshall.  After a return visit this year to both shops, we decided to explore more of Michigan and stopped at Ann Arbor Sewing & Quilting Center in Ann Arbor, The Quilter's Garden in Fenton, The Quilting Season in Saline and The Village Quilt Shoppe in Lake Orion, all lovely shops.

The bulk of my purchases, though small, as I was careful to follow the Quilters' Diet came from Yoder's and Lolly's Fabrics in Shipshewana.  My shopping list was a short one and I found all three items; border fabric for my Flower Garden, sashing fabric for Dear Jane and more background fabric for my Klosjes. 

Also, I did carefully select a few extra pieces of fabrics to take home with me, because one does not drive 6 hours for just three pieces of fabric and besides I have been fabric free since the beginning of the year, except for a piece of muslin I purchased in February. 

Although I stuck with my Quilters' Diet by selective shopping, I didn't do so well with my food diet, as delicious food is all around you in Shipshewana.

Until next time.....happy quilting!

Karen

Stash Builders

One never comes home empty handed after a road trip to Shipshewana. This was my third visit and well worth the 6 hour drive to get there.  My first purchase was some Gee's Bend fabric, so beautiful and vibrant, with slight variations.  It was suggested that I purchase a small bottle of Synthrapol to pre-wash the fabric with as it is very over dyed.

Even though my reproduction bin is filled to the brim and the lid will not close, I just had to bring home a handful or two of Civil War fabric.  My eyes go straight to the cheddar, isn't that wonderful!

A pretty green Asian fabric and a few very different ones also made the trip home.  I was thinking of cutting a clamshell or two out of each of them, but I think I have enough clamshells to keep me busy for a very long time.

And, I could not resist a few Kaffe Fassett, 1930's and Batiks. 

My search is now over for an accent fabric to go with my Shades of Autumn POTC background fabric, as this dark green fabric turned out to be an excellent find.

The last bit of fabric I will show you, but not the last of the fabric I bought, is a mix of solids and others I just couldn't live without.  I also bought background fabric for my Hocuspocusville stitchery quilt and some polka-dot fabric for an upcoming project.

And, a few more stencils to add to my collection. 

I did take some pictures at the Shipshewana Quilt Show and will share them with you once I get a chance to go through them. 

Until next time.....happy quilting!

Karen

New Gadget

Before I put this little gadget away, I thought I would show you what I found during my road trip to Shipshewana, Indiana.  It is a needlepuller for hand quilting.  Ellen uses one and I was very surprised and delighted when I came across it at Yoder's, my favourite quilt shop in Shipshewana. 

A little pricey at $10.99, but I was looking for something better then rubber disks and scissor forceps.  Rubber disks work fairly well, but I am always losing them and spend more time searching around my chair then quilting.  They also wear out fast.  The scissor forceps are a great idea, but then tend to bend the needle.  This new gadget stays on your finger as you quilt.  Click here to see how it works.

Up next.....

 some Stash Builders from my road trip. 

 Like I need to build my stash!

Until next time.....happy quilting!

Karen

One Flower Wednesday June Report

Here it is the end of June and I'm feeling pretty good with seven flowers completed this month, for a total of 59 of 92 flowers.  I wish I could start piecing them together now, but because my flower fabric repeats I will have to wait until they have all bloomed.

Members Note

A handful of members are still not using the Sign In Sheet.  If you would like other members to visit you, please sign in on the weeks you are posting.  Having trouble signing in?  The problem appears to be how you enter your blog link.  Some members need to enter http:// before their blog link and for others it works without.   So, you may have to try it both ways to find how it works for you.

I wondered if I would see any Grandmother's Flower Garden quilts at the Shipshewana Quilt Festival and I did!  Two full size quilts and a little pictorial quilt with hexagon flowers in the border.  Note the addition of the diamond shape border around the flowers on the second quilt.  I like that!

Today I do a double post because not only does One Flower Wednesday fall on the last day of the month, but it is also the day my Clamshell report is due.  So, off I go to post my clamshell progress for the month of June.

Road Trip

June

The green grass and the happy skies court the fluttering butterflies.

Astrid Alauda

Summer has officially arrived and what better way to start the season then with a quilt related road trip.  Our bags are packed; we are ready to go, to Shipshewana, to see the show! 

I've been twice before, but not for the Festival and Shop Hop, which has a basket theme this year.  And, for the long drive ahead of us, I have selected a project or two to work on in the car.  Shipshewana Quilt Festival, here we come!

The Pumpkin Patch

"October's the month

When the smallest breeze

Gives us a shower

Of autumn leaves.

Bonfires and pumpkins,

Leaves sailing down -

October is red

And golden and brown."

October Country Calendar

Last week flew right by and I never had the chance to wash and iron all my new fabric. I noticed my Quilters' Compost bucket was overflowing, so I worked on that. I also stitched the October Country Calendar block, prepared and pieced another Dear Jane block and prepared and started appliqueing the September A Tisket, A Tasket Basket. Then, I did a little more shopping! Off to the Creativ Festival, in Toronto and a side trip to Sew Sisters and Cock-A-Doodle Quilts. Would you like to see the goodies I came home with?

Some black and tan fabrics for Over the River and Through the Woods. More fabric is needed, but this is a good start.

Two pieces of Asian fabric, three 1930's and three pieces of Westminster Fabric.

And, last by not least, some more reproduction fabric. The bundle is Jo Morton's new line called, Toast II.

The green fabric show above (in the middle) is what I purchased in Pennsylvania to surround my POTC blocks. What you see placed around the green fabric is my finished blocks. The green fabric appears a little duller then it is, in the photo, but you can see it better on my previous post. It's in the shopping bag and also at the bottom of the pile of fabric. Each block would be outlined by a round of green fabric, and then separated with an accent colour. Any ideas for the accent colour? Or, maybe I should be considering something other then the green to surround my blocks? I have yet to look through my stash for possibilities. In the meantime, I still have eight more blocks to hand piece.

Until next week.....happy quilting!

Karen

Shopped Till We Dropped and More POTC's

Boy oh boy did we have fun shopping in Pennsylvania last week! I purchased 44 yards of fabric and a pair of scissors. The fabric is mostly reproduction, one Asian, some 1930's, Kaffe Fassett and a handful of allsorts. I also purchased 200 thread count muslin for Dorothy Bakers Sweet Nostalgia and some fabric from a line called, Kansas Winter to make a pattern my sister bought for me in California, called Ringing in the New. Oh, and background stitchery fabric for Over the River and Through the Woods, but was unable to find a nice blend of black and tans for the rest of the quilt. I'm thinking this is going to be a challenge.

Another challenge I face is finding red fabric for Aunt Millie's Flower Garden. I'm very picky when it comes to red and it has to be just the right shade. I didn't find anything in Pennsylvania and wonder if maybe I should consider another colour? But, I do love how it looks in red! I also purchased 5 yards of muslin to back stitchery blocks and I think I found a suitable fabric to go around my Shades of Autumn POTC blocks. It's the green fabric in my shopping bag. Photo above.

We also stopped at Boyds Bear Country to see the bears. Sadly, the museum was closed for renovations. It would have been fun to see the old bears. I didn't find any new bears to add to my collection. They seemed to all look the same, just with different outfits.

Isn't it interesting how quilt shops display fabric? Some shops group fabric strictly by colour. So, if you were looking for a specific collection (new line) of fabric, it would be scattered throughout the shop according to the colour of the bolt. Not so good if you like to purchase by collection. Other shops display by manufacturer. So for example, all Moda fabric would be grouped together. Not so good if you are looking for a specific colour, but good if you are looking for a collection by a specific manufacturer. And, some shops group by types of fabric. Like batiks, reproduction, 1930's and new fabric lines. In most cases, they also have a large collection of fabric grouped by colour. That would be the way I like it best.

All Hallows Eve - POTC Block 7

Indian Corn - POTC Block 8

Just eight more blocks to go for my Shades of Autumn POTC quilt. My fingers are crossed, that the green fabric I purchased in Pennsylvania will work well with my blocks. Still, I will first go through my stash and see what else I may find. Plus I need to select a fabric for the little squares.

Until next week.....happy quilting!

Karen

P.S. Thank you Teresa for the Blog De Oro award!

P.P.S. Today is Thanksgiving here in Canada, so Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadian bloggers and followers!

 

 

 

Civil War Bride Block 9

Two blocks finished and eighteen to go! As you can see, I am not piecing them in order. Just selecting them by what catches my eye at the time. And, what caught my eye were the beautiful feathers on this bird. The pattern suggests sewing the eighteen feathers together, then appliqueing them on as one piece. I decided to applique each feather separately. I think it gives it more dimension. Isn't she beautiful! Her feet are pretty small, but I think, twice as large as the bird's feet I stitched on a Red Delicious block.

Suminagashi Japanese Maple

The long storm was followed by a north-west gale, and when it was over, the hills took on their first umber tints, the sky grew more densely blue, and the big white clouds lay against the hills like snow-banks. The first crisp maple-leaves began to spin across Miss Hatchard's lawn, and the Virginia creeper on the Memorial splashed the white porch with scarlet. It was a golden triumphant September. Day by day the flame of the Virginia creeper spread to the hillsides in wider waves of carmine and crimson, the larches glowed like the thin yellow halo about a fire, the maples blazed and smouldered, and the black hemlocks turned to indigo against the incandescence of the forest.

~ Edith Wharton's Summer

I hope to see some of what Edith Wharton described above, in the next couple of days. Early Monday morning, my sister and I are heading off on a road trip. It will take us seven hours to drive to Pennsylvania. This will be a second visit and yes, quilt related. My little black book is updated and in my purse. We plan to return to our favourite shops and visit a few new ones. To keep my hands busy, when not driving, I will work on basting about 400 hexagons for Karen's Flower Garden.

Until next week.....happy quilting!

Karen

A Trip to California

My sisters recently returned from a trip to California. Upon arrival, they rented a car and headed off on an excellent adventure. Their travels took them to Malibu, Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, Morro Bay, Nipomo, Santa Maria, San Simeon, Big Sur, Carmel, Monterey, San Francisco (Golden Gate Park (Japanese Garden) and Fisherman's Wharf), Yosemite Park, Clovis, Mojave (Red Rock Canyon State Park) and other places I can't remember. So, why am I telling you this? Well, California has lots of quilt shops. That's right. Lots!

First they stopped in Santa Barbara to see Rosalind Perry. You may recognize the name, as she is the author of three books about and the granddaughter of Marie D. Webster. I am now the proud owner of A Joy Forever and Marie Webster's Garden of Quilts.

They managed to squeeze in a few quilt shops everyday. Apparently 'cleaning up' at Betty's Fabric in Santa Maria and loved Quilter's Paradise in Clovis. Top of the list was Quilter's Coop in Temecula and they also liked, Temecula Quilt Company. I'm very excited about my two new stitchery patterns. Over the River and Through the Woods by Crab-Apple Hill and Ring in the New! by Kathy Schmitz.

Look what else I got.....

Lots of reproduction fabric

and 1930's fabric

Wool swatches and other Fall coloured fabric

A lovely mix of Asian

and some Allsorts!

And I must not forget the other goodies: a Kwik Klip for basting, John James Straw Needles for applique, a Jelly Thimble, YLI Fusible Thread for applique, Cosmo embroidery thread, Fons & Porter Pyramid Ruler, Quilters Dream black batting and a Yosemite National Park T-shirt and some nice Dellagio Caramel Praline hot cocoa. The black batting will be used for a project I hope to start this winter. I've had all the fixings for it for a couple of years now and am itching to get started.

My one sister quilts, so she knows what I like and my other sister loves to paint, so she has a good eye for colour combinations. Boy was she proud of her fabric finds. They both had fun being my personal shoppers and would e-mail me pictures from their Blackberries, but not of everything! They had to save a surprise or two!

Until next week.....happy quilting!

Karen