Colour Story

This year - the most important thing I have learned about myself as a quilt artist is that I love (and I mean whole heartedly, arms open wide) colour. I never realized how MUCH I loved colour until I began playing around more with design and fabric.

In my first few years of quilting I was really focussed on learning the craft. This is definitely not to say that I don't have any learning left to do, but more to say that after a few years I felt comfortable with the basics of quilting - (the 'how the heck do I turn this machine on?' type of learning) and was able to set myself free to be able to play more.

And MAN have I had so much fun in 2013!!! I have dappled in all SORTS of colour and realized that brighter is better (well to my eyes anyways!!). So I share with you this...

A quilt of many colours. Made for my BFF who loves waaaaaay on the other side of Canada. A friend I have had since grade school. One of those friends that when you meet up - it's like time has not passed. There is something to be said for having someone in your life that knows your life story - all your happinesses, saddnesses and in-betweens. There is something to be said for not having to explain anything, you know?! - cause they just know. So ya, this quilt was made with a lot of love (and colour, did I mention colour?!!!)

My girlfriend's house is decorated with colours like brick red, butter yellow and avocado green. Really beautiful vintage, country colours. I made this quilt with inspiration from both the colours in her house and from a quilt in THIS book (have you read this book? I think it is most fabulous).

My friend has an affinity for dragonflies. So when I saw this fabric at my local shop - it was a no brainer. It absolutely HAD to be included.

I had a lot of fun picking, choosing and arranging all these colours to make them fade just right. I used a mixture of scraps and purchased fabric. I bought a whole lot of small bits. The lady who had to cut it all was very patient with my artistic vision haha!!!

Happy New Year all. I wish you only the best (and many sewing adventures of course) for the coming year!

And I leave you with this...a little secret was unveiled when we had a light snow last week. Guess who's been lurking in my yard???

~Lisa

PS. My blog New Years resolution is to challenge myself to find new and exciting locations for my quilt 'photo shoots'. Wish me luck, I was already eyeballing the barn down the street and wondering if the farmer (not to mention the cows) would mind if I pinned a quilt up on it. It's really close to the street and I would be really quick...

Winner! Sew Mama Sew Giveaway...

Hello all! So happy to be mailing off a package of fun mail to one lucky winner - Mr. Random Number generator spoke and it will be #144 - MELISSA who answered my request of book recommendations with her comment:

"I just finished a young adult fiction called Everneath. It is a 3 part series of a modern retelling of the story of Persephone. Loved it :)".

Sounds interesting - I really like young adult fiction, just might need a trip top the bookstore to pick this one up. 

Melissa - I will email you for your particulars and get this package of goodies in the mail to you asap!

Thank you to everyone that entered the giveaway, I have such a wonderful and diverse list of  books from all of your recommendations. I love to read - so it was great fun to read through the comments and see what books you all have been getting into.

Happy weekend everyone!

~Lisa

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway! Yay!!!

Hello all! Happy Sew Mama Sew Giveaway day. I love participating in this event - what a fun way to meet new like-minded sewy people and have a chance to win some cool goodies. Sounds like a win/win to me!


For my giveaway I am offering up the following:

After all, who doesn't love Aneela Hooey, white Aurifil and white Kona cotton (1 yd)?!!! I imagine you could stitch up some real fun with these goodies.

To take part in the giveaway:

1. Leave me a comment telling me something you have read lately. Any good book recommendations?

2. For a second entry - let me know you are a follower in a second comment. New friends welcome!

EDITED: THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED. THANK YOU TO ALL WHO ENTERED.

The giveaway is open until December 13, 2013 at 5 pm PST time. International entries welcome! I will pick a winner randomly and announce it here, as well as email the lucky person.


Good luck all!!! Enjoy the Sew Mama Sew fun - pop on over here to find all the other blogs who are participating.

~Lisa

Star Keeper

I have been working on this quilt for a while now...pulling out it out now and again to piece, add my corner diamonds and do some straight line quilting. I finished up all the straight-line quilting last week and pulled out the fabric I had ordered for the binding. I had planned on the dark Chicopee Simple Plaid in lime on the bottom here...

And this is where the  dilemma began. I just wasn't really feeling the dark border anymore. I made the binding anyways and let it sit overnight before I began to sew. By morning I had decided that I really needed to try out the lighter Chicopee Voltage Dot in lime (which happens to be my all time favourite fabric, even mentioning it makes me want to head on over to Etsy and buy more...). So I made that one too. I held each up to the fabric and was all hmmmm, with no idea which one was the winner at all??!! This had never happened to me before. Usually I just hold up a few pieces of fabric and know which one I want. Now I had two fully made bindings and still no AHA!

So I took pictures, thinking I would post my dilemma here.

And you know what...the strangest thing happened. As soon as I was looking through the lens of my camera, I knew which one it had to be.

And I haven't looked back. This binding is perfect for this quirky, totally me - now my all-time-favourite quilt.

I began making this star quilt because I so enjoyed making this star quilt and felt like I just wanted more...I had no plan for gifting it or any idea what I might do with it when it was complete.

53' x 66' 

Then an opportunity came up for me to gift this quilt - and you know what, once it was finished - I just couldn't. I think because usually I make quilts especially for a certain person and I think of them while I make it. It seems to make it easier to give - as it was theirs from the start. I guess I secretly felt like this one was mine from the start. So a keeper it is!!!

I used the Ikea numbers fabric for the backing - you can see it peeking through in the sunlight.

We have been so lucky to have some beautiful sunny days this week and as you may know, I have a beautiful big old tree in my backyard, so with inspiration from this post of Martha's at Weekend Doings (isn't her photography just gorgeous! Not to mention that awesome quilt...) I had some fun photographing my quilt in the tree.

And I will leave you with this. The view from the top of the hill we live on. These mountains are called the 'Golden Ears' - very aptly named I think.

Hope you all had a wonderful week! Happy Friday. Linking up with 'Finish it up Friday' at Crazy Mom Quilts.


~Lisa

Mailing off my Plus

This little pretty is heading to Guatemala. How fun for her!

Last week, I read this post written by Valerie at Between Quilts about her passion for Lemonade International, a foundation dedicated to helping the people who live in La Limonda, Guatemala.

Valerie wondered if anyone would be interested in sending quilts to the children in Mi Casita Safe House, a project of Lemonade International  - and instantly I thought of this quilt, which had sadly been sitting in my sewing room waiting for binding for over a year now. Valerie's post motivated me to bind this baby and give her a new (and might I add exciting!!) life. I am thrilled she will be snuggled by someone special in Central America - how cool is that?!!!

She will be popped into the mail tomorrow! Does anyone else have any quilts that they would like to donate to Quilt Lemonade? I know Valerie would love to have them. Happy Halloween all! Linking up with 'Anything Goes Mondays' over at Stitch by Stitch.


~Lisa

ABC - a Quilt for a Special Friend

Some of you may remember the progress of this quilt, it went something like this:

And finally a finish to share:

A closer look at that fabulous sashing...

And a look at the straight line quilting going all the way from top to bottom...

 A cool light denim blue with gold spots for the binding and a fabulously soft (and thick!!!) dark turquoise blue fleece for the backing - nice and cozy for snuggling.

 One last day of sun for a backyard photo op...

48 x 67

I gave this quilt to my friend yesterday. We are not working together this year, so I think it will serve well as a reminder of all the fun and giggles we had together last year.

Wishing you all a fabulous weekend. Linking up with "Finish it up Friday" over at Crazy Mom Quilts.

~Lisa

Scrap Attack Quilt

Finished this baby...

You may remember this quilt from the start of its life on my design wall in the summer.

I have really enjoyed working with all this colour and texture.

Quilted, straight-line of course, in a simple diagonal crosshatch. The lines are one inch and one walking foot with the needle set on 7 apart - I am so tech savvy and precise.

All fabric from my scrap bins, except this turquoise blue backing fabric, which I happened to have in stash. I am partial to a simple, one fabric backing.

Finished off with a label. I love my labels. Machine stitched binding - both sides. One of these days I will put together my tutorial for my binding method.

Believe it or not - I am keeping this one for me!!! Already snuggled under it on the couch. Extremely cozy and relaxing to snuggle under your very own quilt that you made with your very own hands.

48 x 70

I must say making this quilt has encouraged me to work with my scraps yet again. I already have some more magic brewing on my design wall...

On an another note:

Have you been following Jan's chicken stories? Her chicken stories make me happy. I am a chicken lover at heart.

Wishing each of you a very happy weekend!

~Lisa

Creating

Hey all! Still creating away (slowly, very slowly) over here in the beautiful weather that we have been getting. For the moment, creating is stuck in between all the back to school rushy type activity that September always holds for us. New clothes, cleats, shin pads, newspaper route, skating, new teachers, packing lunches etc etc. It feels strange to be tied down to all these schedules after 2 months of FREEDOM. But we always adjust and soon it will be smooth sailing and lovely Fall will arrive.

I have been humming and hawing over these...

And then I did this to them....

Then I hummed and hawed some more. And then I did this to them...

And all that colour made me stop humming and hawing. And then I found some superb sashing fabric from this Canadian Etsy shop (Canadian = save on shipping charges - yay me!!!) and I am sewing it all together as we speak (haha, now that would be a feat we would all like to accomplish...sewing and blogging at the same time - imagine the work we could get done...)

Update soon! Hope you are all in fabric heaven sewing your hearts out this week. Linking up with WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced and WIP Wednesday at The Needle and Thread Network.


~Lisa

Scrap Attack

Mostly I have been doing this...

Blackberry Jam

And this...

Corn Salsa

But I have managed to squeak in some late (and I mean laaaaate) night time to do this...

With inspiration from this book. I pulled all my green, blue and grey scraps and organized them in small, medium and large piles.

Then I trimmed and trimmed AND trimmed...

And turned those scraps into these...

Which, by the way, was very serene and relaxing sooo late in the quiet night.

Then  I played...

And played...

And played...

Don' you just love that moment when you go - OH YA! That's the one...

Now to baste and quilt this baby. Yay!!!

Hope you are all having lots of fun making your makes lately, I sure am enjoying cruising your blogs and catching up!!!

Linking up with WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced.

~Lisa