Process on the Quilts in A Month of Sundays

It's another snowy morning. That means it is perfect to talk about quilts. Today to celebrate A Month of Sundays I want to share a bit about some of the quilts with you. As a blogger it is so hard not to share my work in progress when making the quilts for the book. So hard. I'm used to sharing everything from the initial inspiration to the fabric pull to the frustrations to the finished top to the end. Sharing that is part of my blogging style and I believe in the honesty of that. I did take photos along the way while making book quilts, so at least I can do it after the fact.

When I'm making quilts for publication my process is actually a bit different. If I were to go my normal way of sewing - starting without a definite plan, adapting and making changes along the way, and ending with something for the sake of it - I would have a lot of work to do reverse engineering to write a pattern. That is a recipe for disaster - for me and someone trying to make the quilt from that pattern.

Oh boy, was finding text prints at the time of doing this tough! 

Thankful for some screen prints dug up on Etsy.

Quilts destined for publication always start, for me, with the pattern. Not just a sketch, but the actual pattern. I like to draft the whole thing first. This lets me think about the best way to divvy up fabric requirements and calculate yardage as well the most efficient way to make the quilt. I consider myself the first pattern tester. As I work there is always going to be a sketchbook filled with numbers or a pad of graph paper next to me. That allows me to write down any notes or corrections as I go. A half an inch makes a difference.

From first fabric pull to second, after patter drafting, things changed a bit.

A good friend gave me advice when I was starting on the journey of this book. She told me to send out the quilts to be long armed. I'll admit, this was hard for me, but it was the best thing I could do. I was having another baby, after all. The deadlines may push forward because of the need to get the quilts to long armers, but the time saved for me was valuable. It meant a lot less stress and a lot more time with my family during the work. Not to mention the savings on my already taxed joints. So, thank-you to Angela Walters and Janet Madyski for getting me through the work.

I use a lot of binding tape in the book.

Coordinating my snacks and my quilts.

When I was looking through my photo library to pull these images I was struck by just how much the making of these quilts, these books, is intertwined in my life. On the same day I was cutting fabric there was a crew framing in the basement and I had a book launch for Sunday Morning Quilts! Same day. Other days will be pictures of my babies doing their thing - like finishing preschool - while I finish a quilt. And all while I had a newborn. So the quilts, and the book, are a true reflection of our life at a moment of time. And more than once I had to take my own advice that I was writing to slow down and sew, not just get caught up in the frenzy of making.

It is always a huge rush to get the quilts made, though. You think you have all this time but you end up doing everything at the end. Your fingers are sore from binding, your shoulders hurt, everyone in the house is cranky at the fabric everywhere... Then you send the quilts away and don't see them for months, or even a year! It kind of feels anticlimactic. Such an energy high from the moment of first sketches to the last stitch and you don't get a chance to even snuggle with the quilt. But now the quilts are home, living in rotation. Reminding me of the time spent in creation, the moments that happened then, and the concept to just chill out.

Not helping me when I needed to quilt.

So, on this Sunday filled with sunshine and a blanket of fresh snow I will do just that. Right after a birthday party and coffee date with my Hubby. But then, then I can pour some tea, wrap myself in a quilt, and attend to an afternoon of puzzles and paper crafts with my girls.

Remember, there will be giveaways at the end of this celebration. One comment on each post in the month enters you for the prizes.

Tell me, coffee or tea, or hot chocolate with marshmallows?

Quilts of Valour Donation

Yesterday was Remembrance Day here in Canada and a few other countries, Veteran's Day in the US. As in every other year we hear stories of veterans and the sacrifices made. For so long the stories were consumed with the vets of the World Wars. Here is Canada you would here more about the Korean War as well. Now, however, there is so much said about Afghanistan and more recent peacekeeping missions. Being a soldier did not end in the 50s. And every year we are reminded that being a soldier does not end when your tour of duty ends.

Quilts of Valour provides quilts to service personnel dealing with injuries - those we see and those we don't, like post traumatic stress disorder. We all know that a quilt is such a comfort and a real hug when we need it most. It isn't about warmth, it is the spreading of love.

$1 from the sale of each of my Oh Canada! patterns is being donated to Quilts of Valour. This is from all sales - wholesale, printed, and downloaded. If you haven't purchased the pattern yet, this is the perfect reason to do so.

I'm also proud to know that many people have purchased the pattern to make quilts of Quilts of Valour recipients. To be honest, I never thought of that when making the quilt in the first place or in producing the pattern, but it makes me quite proud to know that this is part of its life.

Buy Oh Canada! here.

Friday Favourites: The Social Tote by Carolyn Friedlander

The Social Tote from Carolyn Friedlander is an awesome project. End of story.

You know me and small projects. We get along as well as clothing and zippers and the neighbour that thankfully moved out this summer. But Carolyn gave me this pattern after seeing them in person at Market. They really are pretty cool. And handy. And not difficult to make at all.

What I really love about this pattern is the inspiration behind it and the rest of Carolyn's Slow Sewing Studio line. In her words:

The projects in this group give us an opportunity to slow down and to enjoy the process as much as the result. Not only a back-to-basics program, this is also a program to strengthen our skills and our relationships with each other.

These projects are things we can take with us and enjoy with others. We'll bring them to our guild meetings, on trips, or wherever our busy lives take us. They require no chargers, adapters, or electricity and will allow us to press pause on the realities of everyday life and enjoy what we are making.

It was that inspiration that pushed me to make this little tote. The pattern is a collaboration with Anna at Noodlehead. It is detailed and well written. As I'm not much of a pattern follower, when I do follow one it must make sense and move methodically through the steps. This one does. And if we ignore that I completely missed the fact I was supposed to interface all the fabric for the inside of the tote and the handles I followed the pattern exactly. There is a pin cushion in the pattern too, but I'm waiting for the pet store near me to have crushed walnut shells in stock again.

Already the tote has found a purpose in sorting and holding bits for my latest project, a baby quilt. I'm pretty sure another tote is on the agenda precisely for my ongoing hand sewing project. This is just what I need. And you too, I bet.

(In coincidental news, Carolyn reviewed my book this week. Totally unsolicited by me. And I think she captured it beautifully.)

Oh Canada Pattern Release

Here it is folks: The Oh Canada! Pattern.

Designed in perfect proportions to the original flag, Oh, Canada! pays patchwork homage to this symbol of Canadian spirit and drive. Make one block or make a dozen. Piece the fabric together from scraps to echo the diverse nature of Canada, or make it solid to showcase the fabric. 

Available as a download (Thank-you Etsy for making this an automatic feature now) and a printed option. Also available for wholesale orders if you are a quilt or sewing shop. Email me for those details.

I'm so excited to share this incredible quilt with you. I'm looking forward to seeing your own versions because no two scrap quilts are the same!

Thank-you so much to Jessica at Blue Jay Graphic Design for her work in making this come together.

PS Just a reminder that I am teaching this block as a class on Thursday, June 20 at Traditional Pastimes here in Calgary.