A Homemade Christmas

Christmas is over and the new year will be here soon.  It was a topsy-turvy Christmas this year.  There were some very sad days before Christmas, my sister-in-law passed away very suddenly in Florida where she lives and my niece in Kenora had her house burn down and her 13 year old son was flown to Winnipeg with severe burns.  When these kinds of things happen at Christmas time it is impossible to be with the people who need you most.  So I sent lots of good wishes and prayers their way.

Now that Christmas is over and things are starting to get back to normal (I said starting) I can post all the gifts I made and gave.

An Iron Caddy

Placemat with wine leaves and wine sayings.

A bag for Christine.

A table runner and placemats for both my

children.  I made 8 placemats and 2

table runners.

Mug Rugs, Oven Mitts, and a Hot Pad for 

Lynda who loves anything rooster.

A couple of Mug Rugs for 2 young

ladies who came for Christmas dinner.

I also made lots of Kleenex holders.

All in all it turned out to be a very nice Christmas.  I had 11 people for dinner and was lucky this year that I was prepared and had made 12 new placemats.

Peggy.

Baby It's Cold Outside

I had to take the words from an old song because when I woke up today it was -27 C and the windchill was -37 C and for all you Fahrenheit people that is -15 F and the windchill is -35 F.  No matter what system you use it is just plain cold.

I was able to get some of my quilted items finished for Christmas.  These are for me so I can post them now since I don't want to give away any presents that I am making.

I made 12 placemats so that I wouldn't be caught

short like I was last Christmas when there

were 12 people at our Christmas dinner

table and I only had 11 placemats.

I also made a table runner to match.  This pattern

was in the December/January 2014 

McCall's Quick Quilts.

It is still a few weeks till Christmas and I didn't want to put my best Table topper on our table to I quickly sewed binding on a piece of quilted fabric that I purchased a few years ago.  It does the job and I will put a better one on when I have cleaned the house and decorated it for Christmas.

I picked this piece of fabric up in Newfoundland

when we visited there a few years ago.

Jinny Beyer has lots of free pattern on her website and this placemat is one of them made from border fabric.  

This will be given to Meals on Wheels.  

I made 2 of them and have cut out 2 more.

If this cold weather keeps up they will be made

very soon.

Peggy.

Christmas Cheer Teddy Bears

Each year our quilt guild makes quilts for Teddy Bears and gives them to the Christmas Cheer Fund.  Many of the ladies buy the bears and make quilts and then we also receive bears from the Teddy Bear Toss when the local University Hockey Team have a fund raiser by having the fans throw bears onto the ice between periods.  

This year there were 109 bears and dolls turned in to the guild.  I was fortunate to be with the group that delivered them to the Christmas Cheer fund today.  

They were all piled onto three long tables.

Carole, me and Judy with some of the bears.

Thank you ladies for all your hard work.  I am hoping that next year we can make even more.

Peggy.

A Neat Placemat

I get a newsletter from Jinny Beyer and she always has something interesting to show and talk about.  This month she was showing how to make a placemat from border fabric.  I have some fabric that isn't border fabric but all stripes that could be used as border fabric.  When I see a new pattern sometimes I just have to try it.  So I did.

It is made with templates but I think next time

I will use freezer paper to cut the sections.

You can find the pattern HERE.

I have made a few new purses lately so I decided that I needed new matching tissue holders.

Three new Kleenex holders.

These are called Ahhtishoo!! Travel Tissue Cover.

You can find the pattern HERE

They only require 2 fabrics and no bias binding.

One fabric is longer than the other and that

makes the trimming after you

sew them together.

Peggy.

Some New Toys

On my last trip to Southern Ontario and visits to quilt shops I picked up a pattern called "Caddy Pad" it is from Sisters' Common Thread. It is an iron tote and ironing pad all in one.  It opens out into an ironing surface.  The Heat-Resistant Lining comes with the pattern.  I had a lot of fun making it and now have a neat way of carrying my iron when I go the a quilt bee or sewing meeting.

It is true quilters fabric with thread and needles on it,

and it says "A Passion for Patchwork".

I also tried my hand at making some new mug rugs.  The pattern is from the Winter Issue of Quilter's World.  They are called Cuppa Coasters.

I think they are nicer than the usual rectangular ones that are quite popular.

Peggy

Home again

I have been to Southern Ontario visiting my sisters and 2 of my grandchildren.  On the way to visit my oldest sister Carole, Lynda and I stopped at 3 quilt shops.  We went to Norwich to Seven Sisters Quilting, I bought some fabric and another bag pattern.  We  then we travelled to Kitchener to Creative Sisters Quilt Shop.

Creative Sisters Quilt Studio.

It was pouring rain so I didn't get a good photo. 

I bought another pattern and some really cute blue fabric

with alphabet letters for my baby quilt that is

kitted and will be started soon.

 We then drove to Guelph to Greenwood Quilts to a large shop where Lynda purchased fabric for me to make a Christmas gift for a friend.

Christmas is coming so I won't be able to post a lot of what I am working on now and will have to take photos and post them after Christmas.

Peggy

Some Visitors and Another New Bag

I have had a few visitors this past week.  YKW and our son have gone moose hunting (no luck yet) so I thought it was easier to bring his cats to my house instead of me travelling across town twice a day to feed them and make sure everything was okay at his house.

Buckley sitting on my sewing table.

Banshee is getting ready to sit on my knee while I sew.

She is on my knee right now and it is taking me longer

to write this than usual, with lots of correcting to do

as I go.

The Everything Goes Bag

I bought the pattern from Brenda at the London International Quilt Show

last June when I went down for my grandson's graduation.

You can see more of Brenda's pattern here.

She has a website and a blog with lots of patterns and info.

I found this pattern very labour intensive but there were a lot

of good detailed instructions.

I will only make one change and that is to put a small piece

of Velcro or a snap on the inside pocket that holds

my netbook.  I found that the pocket gaped open when my

 netbook was in the pocket.

I will add that now by hand.

Anyone that sees this bag really loves it, and so do I.

I think I will get a lot of use out of it.

Peggy.

Fabulous Saturday Workshop

I went to a fabulous workshop this past Saturday.  It was held at one of the local community centers.  We were lucky to have Dori from Sioux Lookout be our facilitator.    

This is one half of the room.

There were about 12 of us, so Dori

was able to spend a lot of time with us.

We focused on the Janome sewing machine

and I learned a lot about my

little Janome Jem.

Dori helping Betty.

Marlene sitting at the other end of the table.

My table.

Wendy with her Janome Jem and Alva working 

on their projects.

Peggy

Quilt Therapy Thursday

It has been a while since we got together for some quilt therapy.  We just picked up where we left off.  Joyce and Maria worked on finishing up some projects that were started before we stopped for the summer and I made a place mat for Meals on Wheels that I had cut out but hadn't sew together yet.

Joyce's small throw quilt that she is making for her brother.  He likes horses, in case you couldn't guess.

Maria has a very large Teddy Bear

to make a quilt for and she started

it on our retreat so she was

finishing that up.

I had used this fabric before for different placemats

last Christmas and thought I would use

the leftovers for more.

I also finished my Christmas Cactus Quilt and sewed the binding on to it yesterday.

Christmas Cactus Quilt.

I think I will keep it around for awhile until I decide who might like to have it.

Peggy.

Design Wall Monday

I started this a few days ago.  YKW was at the cabin so I had some time to myself.  I put it all up on the design wall and then started sewing the rows together.  I sewed two rows at a time and in order to keep everything straight I put a stack of squares beside a large pin and a large pin on a row and called it row number 1.  The other one was row number 2.

You can see what I mean in this picture.  

The stack on the left

has a large pin in front of it, 

and you can see the pin

in the row number I was sewing.

13 blocks across by 14 rows down.

Can you guess what this is?

See if you guessed it when I post it later when it is finished.

Peggy.

I'm Still Here

I've been under the weather and in hospital so I haven't done much sewing lately.  I am on the mend and decided to finish up the fall purse that I started over 10 days.  I purchased the fabric a long time ago and all I know is that it is a Moda Fabric.  I made this pattern up as I went along when I made the yellow purse with the sunflowers on it so I decided to give it an other try.

I laid the fabric out on my work table because I couldn't decide how to put it together.

I only had some fat quarters and some charm squares.

This is the result.

The handles are from different fabric since

I has so little to go with.

I want to put a button the pocket but

I want a funky one if I can find one.

I also added a zipper to the top.

Peggy.

A New Water Bottle Holder

I found this pattern years ago on the Internet and have made quite a few of these holders. Christine walks with a friend who carries her water bottle in her hand and she thought it would be nice for her to have a holder while they are walking. It is so much more convenient.

I sent it in the mail today so

hopefully it won't take too

long to get there.

Peggy. 

Hunter Star Quilt Number 2

About a year and a half ago I took a class on making the Hunter Star Quilt pattern and really fell in love with it.  I finished my first quilt and gave it to my son-in-law.  Since I had done it in browns and gold I thought it was a masculine quilt.  I bought some beautiful fabric last July when I went to Duluth with the Quilt Therapy Group just because I liked it.  Because it had large butterflies on it I had to find a pattern that would do the fabric justice and I decided on the Hunter Star.  This time I also wanted to make a 2 colour quilt instead of a three colour one that I had made last time.

I finished quilting it yesterday and then put the binding on it so now it is ready to enjoy.

Hunter Star Quilt

Peggy

Quilting the Hunter Star

I have been busy quilting 2 quilts this past week, the Christmas Cactus Quilt and the Hunter Star Quilt, so not much news.  I will post full pictures when they are finished.

One Corner of the Hunter Star Quilt.

I don't want to give it away completely until I have it finished.

Peggy

Three Finishes

I went to the London International Quilt Show in June when I was in London for my grandson's graduation and met a Canadian the vendor named Brenda Miller who sells patterns and accessories under the title "Among Brenda's Quilts".  I purchased 4 patterns and some special batting for bags and have finished making "The Yoga Girl Bag"

The Yoga Girl Bag

It matches the bag that I made to carry my blanket and blocks in when I go to my yoga class.

I am looking forward to classes starting up again in September.  I have been doing aquabics this summer to try to keep in some sort of shape, but miss yoga.

I also was able to finish putting the binding on another of my comfort quilts.

This will be donated to the Guild to go to one of the Homes for the Aged.

The Hexagon Quilt.

I cut all my bindings at 2 1/2 inches so any leftovers were perfect to make hexagons.  This is made entirely of scraps.  I like a scrap quilt to look like 'something' in the end and not just a bunch of scraps thrown together.

I was able to make the place mat pattern that I will be putting in September's Quill Newsletter.  I really like the way it turned out.  I got this pattern off the internet and emailed Alissa and asked her permission to use it and she was more than willing to give her okay for such a good cause.  I have been putting patterns in the newsletter so that the members have some new ideas to make place mats for Meals-on-Wheels.

Lines in the Sand Place Mat

Peggy

Making Kits

When I get a project in mind I like to make a kit up so that when I am ready to make it everything is organized and I don't have to start looking for fabric.  

This is for a table topper and placemats.

I picked up the pattern at the London International Quilt Show in June.

This kit is for a small quilt called "The Neighbourhood Quilt"

It has 44 charm squares so I am going to use up some from my stash.

Two more placemats to be made.

"The Yoga Girl Bag"

I started it tonight and just have to finish up

the binding on it.

It should be finished tomorrow.

Too tired to complete it tonight.

Peggy

Summer Will Soon Be Over

I say that summer is almost over when today it is 30 C here in town, but it is only 2 weeks until school starts and things get back to a routine.  We thought summer was finished a few weeks ago when the temperature never got above 17 C.  So glad that we are having a few more warm days again.

We spent the last 4 days at the cabin doing a bit of work.  We always need firewood because of the precarious temperatures so we got a truck load and then had to unload it and stack it.

Almost empty.

Stacked, ready for the fall.

The garden up there is really growing and somethings are doing better than the garden at home.  We have ripe tomatoes at home but no beans or peas.  YKW picked peas last weekend and lots of beans and more peas this weekend from the garden at the cabin.

YKW in his country garden.

Yesterday we had time to pick blueberries.  Between the 2 of us we picked almost 4 litres over an hour and a half.  We had to drive about 16 km to a great blueberry patch and we were not disappointed.

This is my second 4 litre pail.  We picked another

one a few weeks ago when Lynda

was with us at the cabin.  

Lots of Blueberries for the winter.

Peggy.