Flora - A Baby Doll quilt from Park blocks

Flora

36” x 36”

She’s a sweetheart. Flora loves all things nature, especially plants and birds. But she will also stop to rescue a bug. Even the caterpillars because, while kind of gross, she knows they will turn into something beautiful. So drink the nectar, watch the sunlight move through the trees, and count birds eating mountain ash berries outside your window, Flora will be right there along with you.

Earlier this year I finally gifted an overdue wedding present to my husband’s cousin and her wife. Around the same time their son was enjoying the new baby doll that Santa brought him. Knowing I hd a few extra blocks around, I turned them into a coordinating quilt. Now he can snuggle with his baby just like his Mamas snuggle with him.

There were already 3 blocks started (and none finished). They combined my old Tag Fabric and some prints from Heather Givans’ Succulents collection. Went into the vaults for these! I made the last block with another of Heather’s prints and something else I found in my stash. It was kind of neat to have a theme to the fabrics - all plants. The Park pattern by Carolyn Friedlander is a good opportunity to show off fabrics. On the back I used a Charlie Harper print with birds on it that I know the Mamas would appreciate.

On the original quilt I also quilted a grid. That one was a vertical/horizontal. On this one I went for diagonal. In both cases it should be sturdy enough with the hand applique. Both quilts are going to get some good snuggles.

To finish the quilt I had just enough of the green fabric from the original quilt to also bind this one. It’s another way to tie the two of them together.

Flora is already in her new home, already in use with that loved baby doll. She’s big enough for snuggling under right now. At one point in life I made a few dozen doll quilts and there were tiny. Just big enough to cover a doll or stuffie. While they are loved and used this way, I like the idea of making them a bit bigger so kiddo and doll can be snuggled together. It works while the kiddo is little, at least.

Calla - Another Version of the Lilla Quilt

Calla

81” x 81”

Calla is Lilla’s younger sister. Not quite so driven as the first born, but way more fun. She is the free spirited second child, moving to her own rhythm and enjoying life as it comes. She dreams of sandy beaches, big parties, and a good glass of wine. Not content to stay home or stay quiet, Calla loves to live and lives to love.

True confession, I finished this quilt at some point last fall, maybe even in the summer. That was after the top sat for a few years. She is another version of the Lilla quilt pattern, designed in collaboration with Lotta Jansdotter. This version was actually made as part of a blog hop for Scott Hansen’s Tie One On Fabric, in 2018. That’s just how quiltmaking goes for me and I will not apologize for it.

I will, however, apologize for the massive delay in getting this quilt to its recipients. I just gifted this as a long overdue wedding present to some extended family. They had a Covid wedding that we watched on Zoom. Does that mean they should wait 4 years for a wedding present? Of course not. But they have it now, that’s what counts!

I quilted her on a rented longarm with a unique all over design. Mostly, just me doodling. Much like the quilt itself, it is a mish mash of shapes. In all honesty, I wasn’t too fussed about it. One, this is a functional quilt, not a show quilt. That means the quilting is there to hold the quilt together and give it texture. And two, with the 100% cotton batting I use, the crinkle factor kind of negates most detail in a quilting pattern. Best to enjoy the quilting process and do it well, rather than stress about the quilting design itself.

To bind her I used an orange Grunge fabric. It was a great frame for the quilt, with so much warmth in her colours. The original inspiration of the fabrics and my background selections was Sedona, Arizona and this Grunge was a pretty close approximation of the rocks in the dessert.

She sat then, for months and months as I waited to finish a few other quilts. Actually, just one. Her recipients now have two kiddos. The first babe got his quilt before he was even born! The second, well, hers was just finished. Then it took me another month or so to get labels on everything. And we won’t even talk about my inability to get to the post office to mail everything! Then we got a text this week that the family would be in town. I almost went to the post office on Monday and they came on Tuesday.

Needless to say, the quilt is finally delivered!

Quilted Baba Update

Making progress over here. It’s slow, but it is progress. This is the first 9/81 blocks, all sewn together.

Early in the year I let you in on this epic portrait project. It is a pixelated quilt portrait of my Baba. Each pixel is actually a little x block. And when I say little, I mean that I square them up at 1.5” x 1.5”. When all is said and done, the quilt will measure 90” x 90”. To make the quilt I’ve divided the picture I started with into a 9 x 9 grid. Each of those 81 blocks is made from 100 of the little X blocks. That means there will be 8,100 little cross stitches in the finished quilt.

That picture there? That is 9 of those 81 blocks of 100 together. They constitute the bottom corner. Why did I start in the bottom corner? Well, I had to start somewhere! It also allowed me to test the fabric choices and pixellation because all the other corners were mostly background colours. I’m happy with how it turned out so I shall keep going!

For the most part, I’ve been making the blocks as my Morning Make practice. I tend to make them in batches of 10-15. It is tedious and boring sewing, so that seems to be all I can handle. That, and the fact that it was in the morning and there is only so much time to sew. When I have 100 for the block I lay them out and start the process of sewing them together. Assembling rows goes quickly, but the pressing is a definite slow down in the process. It’s worth the time and effort, though, as there are a lot of seam allowances and having a mess on the back is not good. With such small pieces a messy back would spell disaster for a quilt that stays flat and in order. Once the rows are sewn I pin - yes, me, pinning! - to join the rows together. I want them to line up as best I can. I will admit, there is a some work needed on my part to improve accuracy. But it improves with each block.

Now that I have the studio space I have to figure out a new time to piece these blocks. I think a regular time would allow me to see continued progress, and make it harder to put things aside for weeks or even months on end. So far I’ve been taking 20 minutes after lunch, after I walk with my son and the dog to school. We’ll see how that works.

I think it is important to tell myself that this won’t be an exact representation of the photo. I did my best to match colours and fabrics, but we are always limited by what is available. I wanted to use prints, which meant buying commercially available fabric. I fear that my work with the values, more than the colours, isn’t exactly spot on. I know, however, that the story of the quilt will still be successful. For me, that matters more.

Moving to the New Studio

After 3 and a half years years I am finally in my new studio. I went back and checked, it was March of 2021 that I first spoke about getting this studio space. It was a much delayed renovation (for so many reasons) but we are in the space. Big sigh! Not sure if it is a sigh of relief for me just yet, but it will come.

Over the years I have sewn at 3 different dining room tables, in my bedroom, in a few different basements in various states of being, in a closet once, and most recently (for the last decade) in a dedicated sewing room at home. Every single space has been a place of creativity and challenge. All I really cared about was that I could sew and I made any space work. What all those spots had in common, though, was that they were at home. This is my first time with a space outside of the home.

The goal for this space is twofold. One, I will have my own creative space for sewing and creating. It is much larger than anything I’ve had before with excellent storage and good lighting. Two, I will be able to both host small classes and film classes here. So, personal and professional opportunities.

My personal space is quite lovely. Open with a lot of room. I’m still missing an actual desk, but it is coming. Of course I set up my sewing table first! After a few days of moving and not sewing I was getting antsy. I’ve more or less set it up exactly as I did at home. It works well for me, this standing configuration.

It is a treat to set up a little sitting area. Technically, I had this in my sewing room at home because it was also our guest room and there was a couch in it. Not surprisingly, it was covered with stuff (quilts, quilt tops, blocks, fabric) most of the time so sitting on it wasn’t always an option. I’m hoping for generous cups of tea and visit with friends here. The chairs themselves came from a friend of mine. She and her family were moving away and leaving furniture behind. These chairs were her grandmother’s. I got new cushions made for them from fabric collected over the years (like hemming pants, cushion covers are not in my wheel house most of the time.)

Since the initial planning I knew I was saving this blank wall to be a giant design wall. I’m nearly finished making it and just have to install it. Folks, it is massive. I am so excited. For me, yes, but also when I am teaching. Having been in so many spaces for classes over the years I know how creative we quilters have to get when it comes to design walls. This is going to help so much.

As much as I am thrilled to have this new space for me, let’s be honest, it isn’t just for me. My son is doing online school in the mornings here. He is transitioning to full time school after missing most of the last 2 years with Long Covid. Then, because the house is now empty in the mornings the dog also comes with us. I won’t lie, this presents a challenge. It isn’t exactly the quiet space I would have hoped for. At least not in the mornings! Maybe that actually helps me with the transition out of the home though? Bring some more of home here so it doesn’t feel weird?

True confession time: this is weird. I am feeling rather discombobulated still. There was the stress of all the moving (and the resulting chaos left at home) and adjusting to change. That’s going to take some time to resolve, I think. Then there is the impact on my schedule. I haven’t had to be up and out of the house in a long time. Plus, I am used to throwing a load of laundry in or getting dinner started in the middle of the day. I had my multitasking game down pat! Truthfully, though, I was doing more of the home/mother stuff and very little of the work stuff these last few years. It was what was required for our family but it sure was frustrating for me. Finally, I’ve worked hard to compartmentalize my life since joining the family business. This new studio space is connected to our office/workshop space. That means I can be interrupted at any time with accounting or strategy questions. I can also pop back and forth between my own quilting work or writing and the family business. My head is spinning somedays! I really liked home is home and work is work. Now it is all jumbled.

Time, I need time. Change isn’t always easy, even if it is the right thing to do. I miss hearing the birds in the background or the noises of residential life. Now I have trains on the regular, power tools, and our employees on their lunch break. That being said, I have the wide open space and opportunity plus excellent storage (as soon as all the shelves are up). Nothing is ever going to be perfect, but it sure can be good.