Posts

Kitty Cat quilted placemat

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My favourite cat is the orange tabby. I had an orange tabby when I was young. Her name was Abby; Abby the tabby! I loved her, and it broke my heart when she didn't come home one day. Later in life, I developed an allergy to cats, but I still love them to pieces. I designed this cute Kitty Kat placemat pattern for a child, but a real cat lover could also use it in the kitchen as a hot pad.

A Taste of Honey Placemat Pattern: Honouring our precious pollinators

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Who doesn't love the sweet taste of honey? These stylish and modern hexagon placemats showcase the Bee Creative and Bee Inspired fabric collections by Deb Strain. But no matter what colours you use, these placemats are sure to make a statement. I love the quilting on the back. It reminds me of sacred geometry . OUR HONEY BEES ARE IN DANGER! After being here for thousands of years, their population is declining and one species of bee is on the  endangered list . It’s scary to imagine what would happen if all our honey bees were gone. Most of our non-grain foods are dependent on honey bee pollination. There are 90 different food plants that depend almost exclusively on the honey bee. When my husband and I heard several years ago that the bee population was declining, we planted more flowers and plants that would attract and feed them. Also, we use only non-toxic, natural pesticides. Photo by Monica curry Here are five things you can do in your garden to help the b...

Wooden Scissors Pattern Now Available!

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About a year ago I posted my wooden scissors project that my husband and I worked on (see post HERE ). This was such a popular post, I decided to make the pattern available for sale in my Etsy Store . These would be a great gift for the sewist or quilter in your life. They would be a wonderful addition to any sewing studio. I think it would also be a great project for a woodworking student learning the basics of using a scroll saw.

Blue Diamond Quilt Block

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Who doesn't love a little bling? My cute Blue Diamond quilt block, designed in facet art style, would make a sparkling quilt. While designing my diamond I soon realized that the facet colours had to make sense. The biggest challenge in doing faceted art is positioning the colours so that they look just right. Below is the inspiration for my little diamond quilt. This stunning quilt titled Bling was designed, pieced, and quilted by Katherine Jones. Bling won Best in Show at the 2017 QuiltCon Quilt Show , and you can sure see why. The details in this quilt are stunning!  Bling  by Katherine Jones

Hexagon Colour Wheel Mug Rug Patterns

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I'm introducing three new mug rug patterns to brighten your home for spring. The bright primary colours against white, black,  and grey is a crisp combination. You could use these as potholders as well as mug rugs. They would look lovely in a modern kitchen. They would also be a great gift for an artist or art student. This is a good project for quilters just learning to foundation piece. Instructions assume basic knowledge in foundation piecing. The pattern includes instructions for all three mug rugs.    

Phone book paper for foundation piecing

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Earlier this year, I was able to get the Layer Cake™ of  With Glowing Hearts by Grace Noel before it was sold out from pretty much everywhere. I'm using this gorgeous line of fabric to create a commemorative quilted throw to mark Canada's 150th birthday this year. I decided to make my quilt using the Hunter's Star quilt block because I love the block and it ties in with Canada's fur trade history. Hunting and trapping, especially beaver, was how Canada began. There are several ways to make a Hunter's Star block. I chose to use foundation piecing because it's the technique I'm most comfortable with. However, this left me with a dilemma. I needed 48 blocks to make the quilt, but I didn't want to use 48 expensive sheets of foundation paper for the project. I know phone book paper is used for strip piecing, so I thought I'd try using it for foundation piecing. I was very pleased with the results. The phone book paper printed beautifully with my ...

Pixel Beach Mini Quilt

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Inspired by a day at the beach, Pixel Beach is a simple and elegant quilted wall hanging in a checkerboard of neutral tones. What a lovely addition to your summer beach house. Think warm summer sand, collecting pretty stones and sea glass on the shore while the gulls singing overhead. These were my inspirations for my new mini quilt pattern Pixel Beach.