cog & wheel top: finally finished!

Finally, I can say I finished my Cog & Wheel quilt top. It took me an awful long time--actually, an embarrassingly long time--but I enjoyed myself along the way. This quilt has some of my favourite fabrics in it (mermaids! circuses! Heather Ross roses!), which made it even more special to sew.

It's the first queen size quilt I've finished, and it's destined for my bed once quilted. I'm sending this one off to the lovely and talented Lindsey for quilting. Let's just hope that it doesn't take me as long to bind it as it did to sew the top ...

P.S. Taking pictures of queen size quilts is really hard!

wedding quilt

In early September, a friend of mine was married. Perhaps people will eventually tire of receiving quilts from me, but I hope not. I have it on good authority that this particular friend was not going to be disappointed with a handmade wedding gift.

The colour palette is outside of anything I've done before, but I knew that I wanted to give a quilt that incorporated the wedding theme of simple black and white. To avoid a checkerboard look, and, again, to symbolize the blending of two, I was liberal with my use of grey.  It worked out well, since my stash of fabrics is low on black fabrics, but loaded with greys of all sorts!

Instead of machine quilting, I tied this quilt. I love the look of it, and for a wedding gift I liked the symbolism of binding the layers together with ties. I read somewhere that people think tied quilts are old fashioned. Maybe, but there's a sweetness to them that I adore. Next time I hand tie a quilt, I'm going to try with wool.

This is the second quilt I've made from simple squares, and I'm working on a third. I love the classic look of it, and it's perfect for showing off favourite prints. And it's quick, because, let's be honest, in today's world, we don't always have as much time for sewing as we like. It doesn't make it any less special, just more practical for what is for me one of the busiest work periods.

I liked working outside of my comfort zone for this one, and it's got me thinking about more quilts with dark colours and neutrals. Perhaps something like this or like this or even this?

new beginnings

So, it's been a while since I've visited, hasn't it? It wasn't intentional: sometimes, life just gets in the way. I've been busy with family, with friends, with work, with crafting. For a while, it was exactly what I needed.

But here I am, even if I don't know where to start. I hope you'll forgive one more mushy feel-good post before I give you a real project (they're coming!).

During my blog break, I finished two (!) quilts; I spent an amazing weekend away sewing with four amazing women; I turned 30. I went to the inaugural Sewing Summit with Karyn, one of my favorite people, and met more amazing women (like Amanda J, Amanda H, Jeni, Deirdre, Angela, Jessica, Kait, and Lindsey). I made new friends. I got to hang out with Lizzy twice, and once with her equally amazing sister, Melissa. Lizzy is another of my favorite people, and I've decided officially that we need to live much, much closer together than we currently do. I made not one, but two improv mini-quilts.

Mostly, though, I've been thinking. About inspiration, about possibilities, about the people I'm so grateful to have in my life, many of them because of quilting. Reminding myself about what's important, and who I want to be, where I want to go, forgiving myself for things that were never really a problem in the first place (yes, being analytical can make me a better quilter, and yes, it is sometimes good to let go of reason).

When Lizzy was in Toronto in August, she said something that was profound to me, even if I instantly knew it to be true: people create things that look like them. I started seeing it everywhere. My quilts, my garments, indeed, all of my craft projects looked like me: pink, soft, and, mostly, orderly. It's a comforting thought, isn't it, that we really are a part of everything we create? The more I sew, the more intrigued I am about how craft shapes who we are, and vice versa.  For me, it's meant an interesting collision of my worlds--quilting, politics, and family--without really knowing where those things will take me.

It doesn't matter, though, because I'm feeling inspired to branch out and put a little bit more of me into the world, one day at a time. Especially if it means more improv patchwork and mini-quilts.

Wiksten Tank Top

Way back at the start of summer, I managed to find some time to make this adorable tank top in a fabric from Alexander Henry. It's since become my summer staple, and I'm wearing it with jeans, shorts, and skirts.

My friend Carolanne recommended I try the tank top pattern from Wiksten long ago, but since the pattern is only made in limited quantities I had to wait until this past May to order a copy for my very own.  The wait was most certainly worth it.

The pattern comes together quickly and easily, and the finish is completely professional. I lack a serger at home, and I dislike zigzagging fabric edges immensely, so the added instructions on doing french seams was a wonderful treat. (I've made clothing with french seams before, but always seem to forget about them when it comes time to actually sew anything!).

I'll be making more of these for fall and winter; they're perfect under cardigans and blazers. Perhaps I'll even try a silk version for dressier occasions .... ?!

thank you

What a lovely, surprising response to my last post. Emails, post comments, phone calls, and random hugs from people I had no idea read this wee blog reminded me that so many have and are experiencing the same things as me. We're never alone, though we sometimes might feel we are. Please know that your kind thoughts are returned ten-fold.

And thank you.

a special kind of quilt

Sometimes the universe has plans for us that aren't at all fair. One day, it seems, you wake up to find that nothing is going your way. So what's a girl to do?

Sew.

The last few weeks have been rough. My cousin passed away rather suddenly and without warning. Gordon was diagnosed with epilepsy after suffering two seizures. Someone I love very much, my step-mom, was diagnosed with cancer. I made a choice long ago to live in Toronto, more than 2,000 km away from family. Being so far away can be difficult at the best of times, but when the people you love aren't well, it's much, much worse.

We all sew for our own reasons. Some people are just too talented not to sew. Some people do it for the community. Some people sew because they've always done. Some people simply love all of the gorgeous fabric that can be found, and can't justify having it unless they sew. All perfectly wonderful reasons to be a sewist.

I sew because it keeps me healthy. Because it helps me say what I sometimes can't. Because making things inevitably leaves a bit of me behind, a physical reminder of me when I can't be there. Because the friends I've made inspire and amaze me every day. Because it carves out time to spend on me in a world that demands so much. Because it can help turn grief, anxiety, and worry into something special and beautiful and happy.

I started a quilt for my step-mom last week, a very special Dresden Plate in her favourite colour. Each blade I cut, every stitch, I'm thinking of her, of her recovery. I know that she'll enjoy this quilt for years to come, and I hope that every time she sees it, she knows I'm there with her, even when I'm 2000 km away.

Summer Fun with Gordon

It takes only 5 minutes with Gordon to know that he's a tad lazy. Or really lazy.  When it comes to water sports, though, Gordon is a different dog.