Finishes

With the Christmas excitement over now, I can get back to the business of quilting!  Running up to Christmas I did manage to get a few quilts finished, but it seems in my excitement to gift them, I didn't take the finished product pictures!

A "Joy in the New Year Challenge" finish was this quilt which was gifted to my sister

in progress - sorry no finished pics

I wanted to make it larger than just the jelly roll size, but I only had a blue that was too bright and a plain cream, and no time to go shopping.  Out came the tea and in went the blue, which toned it down nicely, and with the cream, out came my stamp pads and some gold ink, and voila, the cream works better now as well!  This was quilted with a simple diagonal grid, and was a big hit when it was received.

The next two finishes were starts as well so don't go towards my "Joy" totals - the disappearing 9 patch I first blogged about here.  This was a present for my nephew and I am very happy with how it turned out. 

I really like the back, too!  Wanting to use up the fabric from the front, I pieced together the back in a very random fashion. 

The grid pattern I quilted it with made for another quick finish, although I was sewing the labels on  moments before we were jumping in the car to go deliver them both!

The final finish was a set of placemats that just had to be made!  I was looking at my pile of green scraps and decided that my brother, who is really into his golf, needed a set of placemats commemorating "The Greens". 

I had fun making and giving quilts this year, and I've already made some plans for who is getting what next year!  Time to get started, Christmas will be here again before you know it!

Happy quilting!

take time to enjoy some peace and quiet

Burnaby Lake  - K Griffiths

and have a fabulous Christmas!

and now for your viewing pleasure

a virtual quilt show!  SewCalGal wanted to show off so many people's wonderful Christmas projects, so she has set up this fabulous Virtual Christmas Quilt Show.  Thank you!  There are some extremely talented people out there!
My entry into the quilt show is a wallhanging that I just completed this year, even though I started it back in 2000.  It was done in a class, and on seeing my completed top, the teacher called it "Cranberry Salsa" and the name stuck!

Cranberry Salsa

I had started off hand quilting it, but just didn't like how it was turning out, so this year I decided to machine quilt it and added metallic thread to some of the black areas to provide a bit more interest.

Have a fabulous holiday season!

Christmas Memories

At this time of year, especially, I spend a lot of time thinking about past Christmas' - there are so many memories collected over the years.  Good times with friends and family, lots of laughter, lots of food!
One of my most cherished Christmas memories is from 1966.  My grandparents had moved to Nova Scotia from England and were living just down the hill from us.  It was a very WHITE Christmas that year!  My aunt was home visiting from, I think, Bolivia that year, with her fiancee.  My brothers and sister and I were up early, as usual, and all waiting at the top of the stairs for my parents to get up.  (Mum had actually been up for hours at that point, getting dinner in the oven and breakfast ready, as mother's do!).  We weren't allowed to go downstairs until everyone was up.  There were the usual stuffed stockings and loads of presents, but the best memories are of my grandparents being there with us, after struggling thru the snow up to our house, and my aunt reading Jemima Puddleduck books to us, a fire burning, Christmas music playing - a picture perfect Christmas (without any photos for me to share :( ).  A huge feast full of laughter and food - Christmas crackers, everyone in their paper crowns.  My little sister - she was 4 - with the biggest drumstick imaginable! Oh it was marvelous!  Unfortunately, it was the only one with my grandparents, as after that winter, they decided that it was too white and cold, for too long, in Canada so they moved back to England, but I'll always have those memories!
Do you have a special Christmas memory?  If you share it, you too, have a chance to win with Charming Chatter and Cotton Charm Quilts.  They have so many different products, its really hard to decide just which would be my favorites, but I can say I would create some mighty fine new memories if I found this

Glace by 3 Sisters for Moda FQ bundle

or this

Simple Abundance FQ bundle

and then there is this, too! 

Millhouse Inn Layer Cake

under my tree! 

Draw will happen on Christmas Day, so don't delay!  Good luck and once again, MErry Christmas!  (we can't really say it too many times, can we??)

Christmas Came Early!

I've been keeping pretty quiet about it - didn't really believe it was true, but the parcel arrived today!

Do you remember the Cross Country Christmas Blog Hop back in November?  Organized by Gudrun, and with 12 fabulous designers participating? All kinds of really neat projects and stories were told over the course of the hop. Well, I was the third place winner!  Yup!  Me!  and this whole pile of fabulous goodies arrived in the mail today.  Thank you so much to all of you.  Christmas has really come early this year!

Here's "The Pile"

I've got fabric from Pat Sloan and Linda Lum Debono, a Clearly Perfect Angles tool from New Leaf Stitchs (Kari Carr), a new 6" sq Olfa ruler and a package of Heat n' Bond light.

7 - count 'em 7! patterns and 1 kit & pattern from the following designers:  Pat Sloan, Terry Atkinson, Sandy Gervais (signed copy!), New Leaf Stitches (Carri & Kari), and This & That (Sherri Falls)

and a Quiltmaker's 100 blocks magazine AND  Gudrun's "fast & furious quilting as you go" book.  I see a few things in there that I'm already itching to have a go at!

Am I spoiled?  Yup!   Was I excited?  Yup!  Was Chico impressed?  Naw - bearly lifted his head to see what the excitement was about.

That's okay, I can handle my excitement just fine!  Oh the fun I'm going to have!  Oh wait, I will have fun AFTER I finish making Christmas presents!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Dear Santa

I know you're really busy right now - those elves are probably all starting to show a bit of attitude, what with having to make all those gifts, with time running out!  I'd recommend that everyone take a cookie and cuppa choco break to refresh and reinvigorate. 

A few carols and Christmas songs would probably go a long way to improving spirits, and keeping everyone in the mood.  But, not too long a break - we don't want any of those children to go without at Christmas time, do we? 

Just so that you don't have to make anything for me, I've found the perfect gift - right off of The Fat Quarter Shop's website. 

A fat quarter bundle of Blessings, by Brannock & Patek would look lovely under my tree, and wouldn't require any effort from your elves (although it would require a bit of effort on my part to actually cut into, and use this lovely present!) A win-win for everyone!
You can thank the Jolly Jabber for letting me know that you were still accepting Christmas wish letters.

Merry Christmas to you and yours,

J

Distracted!

well, I should have been working on this,

but instead got distracted by this!

Ah well, another Christmas present in the works!

Happy Quilting!

I didn't know that!

Did you know how many options you get when you use striped fabrics for piecing? I was just over checking out on some blogs that I missed reading after being down in Seattle for a few days, and on Geta's Quilting Studio Geta had posted her November tutorial on using striped fabrics.  You've got to check it out, I had no idea that by simply using striped fabrics I could end up with so many block options!  Also, Geta has posted her December giveaway and its another stunning Shadow Trapunto mini quilt.

Do head on over and check it out!