Catching the Spirit Give Away

click picture to enlarge

In life, I have always been 'a free spirit'.

The Urban Dictionary defines a free spirit as 

   one who is not restrained.

With designers the likes of Kaffe Fassett,

 Free Spirit Fabrics epitomizes that definition.
Check out their blog for more give away opportunities!

But did you know that Free Spirit also has 

a quality line of solids?

As my sewing experience has grown,

due largely in part to quilting's incredible online presence,

I have become a little bit of a fabric snob.

The very first time I handled Free Spirit solids,

You might remember this Bright Birch Trees quilt I made from all Free Spirit solids,
except the scraps, of course.

I never looked back.

They sew like a dream, they hardly ravel, I've had no bleeding issues,

And I just LOVE how they feel.

With the exception of the Maritimes Modern Quilt Guild's
Kona signature colors,

I've been purging my solids stash,

and am in the process of replacing them with...

...you guessed it!

Free Spirit Fabrics!

To help YOU  'Catch the Spirit',
Free Spirit Fabrics has very generously provided
some fabric bundles for this give away.

I have two 20 piece jelly rolls of pretty pastels to give away,
 plus two prizes of  two 20 count charm packs of the same.
Four chances to win!

Entering is easy peasy!
Just leave a comment!
(I'd really like to know what makes you a free spirit!)

If you happen to be a follower of my blog,
a second comment telling me so will give you an extra chance!

I'd like to extend a big thank you to Free Spirit Fabrics
for making this give away possible!

Thanks for popping in for a visit!
Good luck!

This give away will end at midnight, Atlantic Time Zone.
Monday, October 10.

XO,
Karen

October, Already?

Another quick post.
My brain has been sewing,
not writing!

The winner of the Chunky Alphabet Give-away is:

#26, Carol, author of Beads and Birds.
Congratulations, Carol!
Carol is a new-to-me blogger
and we have enjoyed becoming acquainted.
I have met so many new bloggers this year!

Several of you commented that you've never made a zippered pouch.
I know it sounds intimidating,
but Patty at Elm Street Quilts
has a fantastic tutorial for a basic pouch
that you really must try!
She takes all the mystery out of the process
in easy to follow steps.
It's my "go to" tute!
As a matter of fact, I just whipped up another one.
I'll show you later.

Although my sewing machines have been humming,
I don't really have anything to show,
no finishes,
no 'in process' photos,
except.......

I decided it was time to try some graffiti quilting free motion doodling,
that it would be the best way to hone my skills.
How many samples can one make?
There is such a big difference between FMQing on a small square
and FMQing on a big quilt.

I decided to tackle my wonky churn dash Checkmark quilt.
It is a pretty bizarre design that, to be honest with you,
 I figure no one will really want,
even though it was lots of fun to make.
So, why not?
Maybe I'll keep a quilt for myself for a change!

I keep a FMQ journal,
log my time, and discuss with myself
what works, what doesn't.
I'm mostly practicing control and travelling.
On this quilt, I am using Aurifil 50 weight white thread,
and sometimes its difficult to see where I have already stitched.
I love my Janome with a passion,
but there isn't a lot of visibility,
so it's a double whammy.

And blinking!  I forget to blink,
so I'm practicing that, too!

And that's about all from
my little corner of the world!

Be sure to click on the picture to see it better!

Here's a little Tern feather
that was floating by on the surface of the water
last time I was out in my kayak.
Won't be many paddling days remaining.

Happy October!

XO

Bag It 2016 and a Give Away

I've been working with a quilty friend

one day a week during the summer months,

teaching her little tricks of the trade!

When she asked to learn how to make a zippered bag,

I jumped at the chance to refresh my memory

and make a giftie!

I was trying to make the Open Wide Zippered Pouch
from a tutorial by Noodlehead
but I confess,
I messed up.
Worked out okay, because it showed her two
different ways to finish the end of the zipper.

I'm also teaching her how to finish her own quilts,
so I took the opportunity to quilt the front and back
differently so she could see she has
options besides sewing a simple grid.

I apologize for the poor pictures. I only snapped them real fast

to show her from the back, because after the pouch was sewn up,

it was difficult to see.

I'm proud to say,

her first zippered pouch was gift worthy!

Success.

I'm linking up to
Elm Street Quilts.

Speaking of Elm Street Quilts,
I continue to have fun with Patty's Chunky Alphabet.

This 14" x 24" pillow cover

was posted in the mail yesterday to my step-cousin.

An intellectually disabled adult,

she recognizes her name in lower case letters,

so this was a fun project

that she will just adore!

I stitch my letters in the evenings, after I clean up the supper dishes.

It's like having a delicious dessert,

without the calories!

I did say there would be a give away!

Patty is graciously supplying a PDF copy of her 

Chunky Alphabet Paper Pieced

as a give away today!

As an extra bonus, Patty just happens to be having

a birthday sale in her Payhip shop through the end of the month!

Just use the coupon code BIRTHDAY

for a 20% discount!

What a deal!

So take a minute and go check it out!

Thanks, Patty!

Just leave a comment to enter the give away.

The Random Number Generator

will choose a winner

one week from today!

Thanks for popping in!

WIPs Be Gone

Look at the beautiful postcard

that I received in the mail from Sheila!

It's almost just like looking out my front window!

I can take it to Texas with me

so I don't forget!

Thanks, Sheila!

A few finishes, finally.

Sometimes, I work on so many things at once,

it takes me awhile to finish any of them.

This Pineapple Blossom quilt has been a WIP

for a very long time.

Each center square carries a signature.

I will be gifting this to a long time friend who's husband is very sick.

She needs a perpetual warm embrace!

This baby/toddler quilt is a top I made in Texas

and brought back to finish on the Janome.

It still lacks a label.

And that's about all!

Today, I'm linking up to

A Quilter's Reading Garden.

Thanks for stopping by!

In My Humble Opinion

There was more than a wee bit of secret sewing happening at my house during the month of August, but today I can show you one finished project, as it has now been gifted.

(please click on picture to enlarge)

In anticipation of a weekend visit to Linda, The Scrapmaster aka The Fabric Pig, I whipped up this cute little banner for Linda's sewing room.

 The paper pieced alphabet that I used is available in the Elm Street Quilts' Craftsy store. Just click right HERE to purchase yours! 

The pig face is a free tutorial from Sew Fresh Quilts, which is generously offered HERE!  I have future plans for both patterns, and can't wait to get started!

Visiting Linda is such a delight.  Her family is always so welcoming and supportive, and Linda has so much to share and teach, which she does quite naturally.  I drive away with a lot more knowledge about fabric selection, thread, needles, FMQ than I ever arrive with.

Here is where Linda sits when she does her handwork.  Lots of natural light over her left shoulder.
The perfect spot!

I took the picture because I really like the pillow.  

She has the most awesome pillows and quilts all through the house.

They are soft and wonderful and every one is an invitation
to sit and snuggle up.
Here is one on display by Lesley of The Cuddle Quilter,

gifted to Linda when we had our challenge swap
during the late spring, when the NSQBQ met up
 at the Westville Quilt Show.
(This year's challenge is a round robin,
thus the 'other' secret sewing.
We aren't going to show each other until the big reveal next spring.)

I was quite taken with this beautiful wallhanging at that show,
as a matter of fact, it stopped me dead in my tracks.
No way does the picture do it justice.

Imagine my delight when I discovered it was made by our very own Sheila!

Check out the beautiful detail!

They each have lots to teach me!

~~~

Now for my humble opinion:

Creating controversy is what some people do best, however...

.......just because someone makes a statement that you may not agree with, you must remember, it's just one person's opinion. It's not the law.  It's not a rule.  It's not everyone.  It's just one person.  

Bottom line:  If you want to stipple, then stipple.

Sweet Summer Days

Another glorious summer day has dawned
here on Cape Breton Island.
We certainly are being rewarded for waiting so long
for it's appearance!

This past Saturday, the NSQBQ (minus one)

(Karen, Lesley, Linda)

was on the road again;

this time, their yearly trek to Pictou, NS for the

(Click picture to enlarge)

annual quilt show.

Sadly, Sheila of Sheila's Quilt World

was unable to join us this year

and we really missed her.

I love this guild's wall hanging.

The lighthouse is shining right down onto Pictou

on the applique of Nova Scotia mainland.

See Cape Breton Island at the upper right?

And that small land mass in the center is Prince Edward Island.

The red plaid applique on the left is New Brunswick.

This quilt shows the maritimes

appliqued in the different tartans that represent each province.

Extremely clever!

I like clever.

Seemsas though we liked, and photographed, the same quilts,

so I defer you to The Scrapmaster, aka Linda,

and Lesley, The Cuddle Quilter

to see all the quilter's eye candy

on display at the show.

Lesley and Linda brought two beautiful quilted creations to

photograph against the harbor scene at Pictou,

but the wind had other ideas!

See how 'straight out' those flags to the left are flying?

I'm surprised the girls weren't launched skyward!

That's sure a funny image in my mind's eye!

Making memories!

We certainly had fun.

~~~

In my last post,

I showed you a picture of Ruddy Turnstones

and gave you a little information 

about them.

Yesterday, I was paddling in a more sheltered location,

and came across more!

I thought you might like to see one closer up.

Click on picture to enlarge.

Check out those bright orange legs!

From a distance, it's head blended right into the rocks.

I kept waiting for him to turn around,

but he was actually staying really, really still

hoping I couldn't see him at all!

Click on picture to enlarge.

The Ruddy Turnstone is so named 

because it is best know for its habit of inserting its bill

under stones, shells, etc., and flipping them over to find food underneath.

The other migrating shorebirds we saw

weren't as obliging as this little guy.

Ahhh, sweet summer!

Hope you are enjoying yours!

XO,

Karen

Full Force

Summer is in full force

and finding time to sew can be difficult!

But I did manage a few finishes.

As I've already mentioned,
I participated in the Repeat - the QAL

with Patty over at Elm Street Quilts.

I sat each evening after the supper dishes were cleared away

and foundation pieced my letters,

a few at a time.

I called it my dessert!

I quilted it with an all over design
of Angela Walters.
I found the design fun to stitch,
but had trouble making it look random
yet all fit together.

I purchased the whole alphabet here

and have already started a new wall hanging.

As it's a gift, it will have to remain 

a secret sewing project until fall.

Color Play
by the late Carol Turznik
aka MamaCJT

is a finish
with some simple straight line quilting.

I had emailed Carol during the late winter months
to inquire about her health.
During the course of our correspondence,
I asked about the availability of this pattern.
She very kindly dug around and found one lingering in her cache
and sent it to me right away.

Sadly, Carol passed away on May 7th.
Her family has left her blog intact
and I often revisit it for inspiration and rememberence.
Carol was incredibly talented,
loving color and whimsy.
I know she touched the lives of many quilters
around the world,
and that she is greatly missed.

~~~

Our first paddle of the season took us out into open ocean

and what a fun ride it was!

While the sea was relatively calm,

the water was rolling in a big way
as it made its approach toward the huge rocks
that so beautifully adorn our coastline.

No breakers, just rolling.

It made it a little difficult to get pictures,

but managed this almost nice one
before I almost crashed into the rocks,
making the Ranger just a little nervous!

(Click picture to enlarge.)

Ruddy Turnstones

(Arenaria interpres)

8" - 10"

"A squat, robust, orange-legged shorebird with a harlequin pattern."

Arenaria is latin for 'sand-loving'.

These shorebirds breed during the summer months in the arctic tundra

and are now on their way south for the winter!

~~~

Have a wonderful, funderful weekend!
I am joining the NSQBQ
for a quilt show in Pictou, NS on Saturday!
What are your plans?