The latest

This is my latest quilting project...I bet some of you can tell what it is! Hint...I'm not doing it quite the same as the rest (of course)...

Be Kind

OK I have failed miserably. My sewing every day goal lasted about 6 days, I am 2 mini quilts away from my 1 per week goal, and I felt so guilty about the whole thing that I didn't blog! It's a vicious circle isn't it folks?!

However, I am back with a renewed spirit. I have decided to give up on the sewing every day thing. It's too much pressure on myself, and I think I actually sew more without it, so next January 1st would you all remind me of that?!

Today I finally broke the sewing drought and made a little quilt. As you can see, it's called "Be Kind".

A few days ago someone very dear to me was faced with a decision and when I asked what I could do to help, they responded by saying, "Just be kind". I have thought about that simple statement all week, and how appropriate it is for so many situations. This week when I have been impatient with my children and wanted to yell at them, (you know we all want to sometimes!), I have remembered the words, "Be Kind" and it has softened my heart. As a result, we have had a very peaceful week. Makes you wonder who the problem is...it's not the kids!
I thought it would be good to have a physical reminder of those words, so why not make a little quilt with them?! It's right in the hallway - I walk past it 100 times a day. I can't wait until the kids get home from school and the inevitable bickering starts - I will tell them to go and look at the new quilt in the hallway gallery and to follow what it says! So many possibilities! But mainly, it's a good reminder for myself.
PS I am IN LOVE with the Phillip Jacobs print I used for the border. I know his fabrics aren't every quilter's cup of tea, but they make me go weak at the knees :)

Thrifty Thursday 6

I thought I'd combine the finish of my flowerpot quilt with a thrift store find tonight. Remember when I bought these embroidery hoops a few weeks ago? My flowerpot quilt is now mounted in one of them and hanging on my quilt gallery wall! I love it. I did end up quilting it, as most of you advised, and also added some elastic to the edges like Karen suggested, which worked out beautifully.
Here you can see the back with the elastic...
Here you can see the proof that this post really does have a thrift store find in it...(oops I better trim that edge a little more!)

And here is the finished product...The colors in this photo are very true to life...
And some closeups -

I love the tiny zig zag!

The gallery is slowly expanding...

I am so excited that I had two finishes this week. I doubt I can keep it up, but I'll give it a good try!

Flowerpot

My first applique project for the year is this little flowerpot with 3 simple flowers in it. This is before I started the applique...
The fabrics, even the brown background, are all Jinny Beyer fabrics which I picked up in her store (scroll down towards the end of that post to see the pictures of Anna and I in the Jinny Beyer Quilt Studio) when I was visiting with my friend Anna in April last year.

I am going to mount this little quilt in a wooden embroidery hoop I picked up at a thrift store recently. My darling 9 year old girl told me last night, "I like the design but I hate the fabrics Mum!" I told her, well lucky I'm not making it for you then! I should finish up the applique today. I might add some leaves - it is looking a little naked. So tell me, since I'm putting this in a hoop, should I quilt it first or just put it in the hoop with no batting/quilting? I'm not sure what the 'right' thing to do is. Not that I actually believe in the quilt police!

New year, same goal

Last year in January I told you that my quilting goal for the year was to stitch something every day. You can read about that here. I kept it up for about 6 months, longer than most of my goals last, but not long enough to have achieved what I set out to do. So this year I have, surprise surprise, the same goal! And unlike last year, I didn't fail on the very first day! I am 3 days into the goal and right on track. I also christened 2009 the year of the mini quilt. I made a handful, but nowhere near what I had envisioned, so I am going to steal from myself and call 2010 the year of the mini quilt. Again. And guess what? I have already made one and have it up on the wall!

January 1st I made the top ...
and on the 2nd quilted and bound it.
It is called a Wave Runner quilt, and a lot of us in blogland have joined in the Wave Runner Quilt Along fun! Go have a look at Victoria's blog called Bumble Beans Inc and be prepared to be inspired! I can promise you that the technique is super duper easy and SO much fun!

I am thinking that if I were to take a photo of what I stitch every day, that would motivate me to both stitch more, and blog more. I hate to make that a goal for the year - I'm not going to say that I will post every single day, but I will make it an 'unofficial' goal:)

My gallery of quilts in my hallway is growing...Can you imagine if I were to make one a week for a year? That's 52 mini quilts for my gallery. A lofty goal indeed, but then, January is always full of lofty goals!

Back tomorrow with pics of another mini quilt I have started, and this time it has applique, my very favorite kind of quilting.

Thrifty Thursday 5

It is 11.30pm New Year's Eve, but here I am, sneaking in my Thrifty Thursday post. Priorities!!!

I didn't get to any Thrift Stores this week. Something to do with things called Christmas....New Year's....kids home from school...the usual! But I do have plenty of recent thrifty finds I haven't shared with you yet! So just a quickie, here is a bag of buttons I got for $1 at a new to me thrift store.
I was driving past the local Senior Centre a few weeks back and on the sidewalk was a sign saying Thrift Store Open Now. You have never seen a minivan do such a tight u-turn! And it was well worth it to get all of those lovely old buttons.

Something else I want to show youn (not thrifted) is our new organizing bucket.
A friend/mother from our school makes them and I had her make me one for the kids for Christmas. It has been the BEST thing to happen to our home! No more kids running around saying, "But I can't find a pencil...", or, "Moooooom, Where are the scissors?! Yes you mothers out there have heard it all before from your kids! This bucket has single handedly made our home a little more peaceful. Amazing stuff!

Well it's time to turn on the TV and wait for the ball to drop. But first we have to explain to the kids (who are begging to go to sleep!) what the ball actually is! This is the first year they have stayed up for the big event. They even planned their own little picnic on the living room floor on my millenium quilt I made 10 years ago - I didn't even tell them to use that one, they chose it themselves!Happy New Year to you all and thank you for taking time to hang out here now and then and for all your kind comments this last year:) Big hugs to you all!

A Finish!

I stayed up until 3 this morning to get it done, but done it is, and I am so glad I got it done before the end of the year. This quilt has dragged on way too long. I started quilting it at 10 last night, finished that at 12, then it took me 3 hours to bind it. I have never timed myself before, and found it interesting that it takes me longer to bind a quilt than to quilt it. I would have thought the opposite was true. All I have to say now is - ehhh - I'm not quilting again until next year!