What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

 I was just getting used to it being June and now it is July. I feel like I've been very busy. Tony had his drivers' license renewal which, being over 80, meant he had to go to the office and do the testing which he aced. I find it odd they don't check how your feet or any reflexes are. Shouldn't that be as important as knowing how to draw a clock face to include 10 past 10. However, I've read seniors still have the least accidents of all age groups, so maybe it's all ...

 This is beautiful ground cover if you need such in your garden. I find the name an unfortunate one for something so pretty...Lungwort. All the colours at once...purples, pinks and violets but tiny so easily missed. I also note they do okay in the shade here.

I am so excited to share that I have a new book coming out later this year! Modern Scrap Quilts will be out with Stash Publications in November!

This book was originally supposed to be mostly a pattern book, but I realized I had a lot to say about scraps in the negative space, so it has ended up being a bit of a follow-up to my first book, The Quilter’s Negative Space Handbook. That means that in addition to the patterns, there are lots of ideas to help you design your own quilts—and help use up some ...

June is a month of new starts of all sorts!

The robins on the front veranda have started their family. I had the step ladder ready and waited till they were over on the far lawn to grab a quick shot of their nest. Two things that impress me about robins...their nest is always a thing of beauty in construction...so strong I've seen them last many winters and the other thing is the rich, gorgeous colour of the eggs they lay. Crayola makes a crayon that is robin's egg blue and the famous Tiffany's trademarked ...

 I am a voracious reader. We are a family of avid readers. I always have one audio book, one physical book, and one Kindle book going. I read a variety of books. I love memoir, biography, historical fiction and non- fiction and mystery / thriller (no gore please), and literary fiction. I'm not a big fan of fantasy (but loved The Ten Thousand Doors of January) or Science Fiction (but

 A few photos of a reluctant spring here..

AHA --- Someone mentioned that it might help if one person read the EXIT story. That's what we typically do, except this is a graphic novel, so that won't work. We'll each read and then collaborate on the puzzle solving. We didn't get a chance last night as DH was working late. 

I must remember to focus on what I did! But that's usually what I do on the blog anyway. It's kind of a recap of everything that happened the day before!

Oh, the second thing I made on my digital cutter arrived at ...

 Spring has been put on pause while we had a day and half snowstorm starting Tuesday and actually have had light snow falling every day since. Lots of the fresh stuff on the ground and trees; it makes for pretty photos. So Christmassy....big sigh.

I love lists! Lists make me feel in control! This little apple did not fall far from the tree. My mom keeps tons of information, but most of it is useless, like tracking the amount that the telethon (they still have those out west) raised over the last 50 years. Now, that's a list I can do without! However, I have to say that having a list like that and keeping track of it for 50 years is a feat! 

My most extensive lists are book-related! 

Back in the day, and I could not find an exact date, there ...

 We had it very foggy with wild wind and pouring rain here in our corner of Ontario this weekend. There was a fog and rainfall warning -there are always weather warnings these days it seems. It is still very gray and windy this morning. Ned and I were sorry to see so many of the trees have lost branches. The white snowbanks are littered. But it is an old forest here on the property and we have to have these March winds to bring on those May flowers...eventually. The path along the left fence line always floods in spring ...

In late 2024 I participated in a quilting event associated with the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild. The ask was to create a house themed quilt that would be shown during a homes tour in Kansas City. One of those homes was of Mid-Century Modern design. When I was searching for inspiration, I came across a pattern called “Clerestory”, by textile artist Debbie Grifka. I found it in Fons and Porter’s Love of Quilting magazine in May/June 2016. She also published a book in 2016 called Lines By Design Quilts that contains this pattern. I knew instantly that ...

In late 2024 I participated in a quilting event associated with the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild. The ask was to create a house themed quilt that would be shown during a homes tour in Kansas City. One of those homes was of Mid-Century Modern design. When I was searching for inspiration, I came across a pattern called “Clerestory”, by textile artist Debbie Grifka. I found it in Fons and Porter’s Love of Quilting magazine in May/June 2016. She also published a book in 2016 called Lines By Design Quilts that contains this pattern. I knew instantly that ...

Horse panel quilt top

The next top I am putting together will use lots of scrap strips to frame some western-themed panels. I will be using the same design I used for ...

How are you...snowed in or sweltering in the summer heat?  The new year has started with wild and horrible weather around the globe. Heartbreaking to see devastation on such a scale in California. It makes us appreciate what is a normal winter so far here in the Ottawa valley. Wind chills of over -20 many days but you can have all the gear to layer up and keep warm on walks while out and about. I notice some folks have very fashionable, and what I would call, even beautiful winter outer wear. Mine tends to be more utilitarian and ...

A crisp -23 C wind chill out there this morning. I'll bundle up for the morning walk, maybe even break out my balaclava. I'm now filling two bird feeders with black sunflower seeds. These little guys are getting snacks from the ground.