Almost There on this Epic Quilt

Years ago - I don’t even remember when - I started marking the places I’ve travelled to for quilting. They started as samples for my Improv Lettering class, and have continued to be so. Folks, I am so close to finishing the Canadian place names. Just one more left to do: Carseland. After that, it’s the challenge of puzzling them all together for a quilt top.

Not too long ago I put them all up on the design wall, just to see what they looked like. As a single quilt it would be massive. Bigger than king sized. And frankly, I don’t want a bed quilt of the places I’ve travelled to for quilting. Not the bedroom vibes I am going for. That being said, if I split up the Canadian places and the international places I will have a generous quilt top, and a smaller one that I can add to for a backing. A double sided quilt!

While I only need one more Canadian location, I need at least a half dozen on the international side. Just a little bit more sewing to do.

When a Professional Hockey Player Makes a Quilt

It all started with a simple text. My nephew had asked for a quilt to gift to a teammate. We’d done this a few times before, so it wasn’t odd. Then, one day, I was playing with scraps in preparation for the Quilters’ Playcation Adventure Sewalong and sent him a pic of the slab in progress, with a little tease. Instead of just handing over a quilt he should come and help me sew it.

So one day, a few months back, he showed up at the studio and sat down to sew. His mom, my sister in law, is also a quilter. Along the way she’d already taught him how to use the sewing machine. Phew! I pulled out the scraps, did a quick reminder, and he went to town on his very first slab. We chatted and sewed. It was an absolutely wonderful break in the day for both of us.

To be perfectly honest, I thought that would be it. He made one slab, about 16” big or so. His job done I assumed I would make the rest of the quilt.

How wrong I was!

In between games and training and road trips and rest and visits with a new girlfriend he showed up to the studio and kept sewing. Very quickly he realized that the time with fabric and our time together was an excellent stress reliever. We were having fun, and as I’ve said to anyone who will listen (and many who won’t) learning a new hobby is a great way to have the rest of the world melt away.

In our second session together he added to the first slab and made an excellent design decision. I promise, it was all his own idea. He thought to break up the slab by adding in a band of a colour. We auditioned a few choices and he went with the orange. A perfect choice. After that we made more slabs and assembled the whole top. By that point he was keen to be involved in every step of the process.

Except the quilting. He said he wasn’t ready for that yet.

We were getting close to our deadline (baby being born and the end of the season) so he missed out on basting the quilt. Honestly? I think he was a little sad, but they were on a road trip and I needed to get going on the quilting. After I basted it I settled in for some time with my free motion. He went home one night with a collection of my machine quilting books and picked pebbles as the doodle of choice. It ended up being a nice contrast to the angular nature of all the piecing. For thread I used my go to colour choice on a multicoloured quilt - Aurifil 2882, Light Fern. Olive Green, Aurifil 5016 is pretty good too. Whichever one is handy, really.

It was down to the final minute when it came time to bind. He really liked the idea of using the same fabric as the orange band for the binding. Unfortunately, we used all I had for the band and no local stores had it in stock. It’s not actually a solid, but a textural print from Libs Elliott. Thankfully she confirmed the colour for us and I found it in a Canadian store. Did Canada Post cooperate though? Not so much. But Lucas showed up to the studio for a chat and the hope that it was here and boom! It arrived 15 minutes later. We got the binding cut, pressed and attached that day. Then it was time for a hand stitching lesson. He wanted to finish it with some big stitches, instead of invisible and I had the perfectly matching Valdani thread. I tried, folks, but he would not go for a contrasting thread. With a little sewing kit I put together he went home and finished it.

Don’t worry, it’s labelled too. He actually signed the back before I quilted it so the label was already on.

He finished and gifted it in the knick of time. All throughout the process he let me take pictures of him because he was sure his friend wouldn’t believe it - that he actually made it.

Folks, I was totally impressed by this kid. I can say kid because he is my nephew, but he is in twenties and towers over me. He dove in, taking a real interest in the design process, enjoying creating something from nothing. He now looks at my quilts and even colour a bit differently. Ho notices potential in the real world. Will he make another quilt? Who knows?! We don’t know where he is playing yet next year. If back in Calgary I am sure I will have him in the studio again, if he wants. And he’s told his mother he would like to quilt with her too.

Quilters' Playcation Adventure Sewalong 2026 Quilt Tops

We wrapped up the Quilters’ Playcation Adventure Sewalong a few weeks ago. To be honest, it took me those weeks to both recover and finish the quilt tops. I knew I wanted to get the tops done quickly so that I didn’t lose any blocks or momentum. But let me tell you, I was tired! 30 days straight of live events is a lot. (How do streamers do it?)

Exhaustion aside, it was a truly fantastic month! I’m going to write more about it in the Quilters’ Playcation newsletter and I’m editing a longer video for You Tube. I just have to say, though, that it was such a heartwarming month full of connections and support. Whether folks were sewing along or just hanging out, it was a joy for all of us to be together. We shared the joys and sorrows of the world in the moment, the fun and challenges of making a new quilt block every day. Most importantly, we shared being together in play.

These are the three quilt tops I made throughout the month. Each of them have the same blocks, but showcase different fabric selections and layouts.

The rainbow version shows what happens when we pick a different combination of fabrics for each and every block. I chose a rainbow layout to keep it cohesive. All in all, it has both energy and order.

Using slabs I put together the centre version in the order the blocks were made. I loved the secondary patterns that developed as I went and wanted to keep that. Using the slabs was not difficult, as long as you pay attention when cutting and pressing. The result is absolutely worth it!

The 2-tone version was a definite challenge for me. To be so minimal AND in colours I am not generally drawn to. I kept wanting to throw in just a little bit of something. At the same time it was cool to see the graphic nature of the blocks really pop. I’m glad I stuck with my original intentions.

Now to get all these quilted!

Interested in making your own versions and missed the live events? Don’t worry, all the videos are saved on You Tube and available at any time.

Kai - The Quilters' Playcation Adventure Sewalong 2024 Quilt

Kai

70” x 70”

Kai is full of adventure. They live life in a just jump in and see what happens kind of way. If someone asks them to try a new food, they don’t even ask questions, they just open wide. If someone wants to climb a mountain Kai packs the snacks. When the airlines offer a deal and there is money in the bank, Kai hops on a plane. They want to see all the things, meet all the people, try everything. And the one thing that brings them the most joy? Rainbows. Rainbows are experienced the world over and never fail to make you smile.

The 2024 Iteration of the Quilters’ Playcation Adventure Sewalong is now a finished quilt. Well, one of the versions I made. (The other one remains an unquilted quilt top.) For 49 weeks in 2024 I hosted a live session on Instagram where we made an improv block. My theme for the year was Rainbows so each block contained the 6 colours of a rainbow (or any gradient chosen), and half the blocks included an additional background fabric.

Want to catch the replays and make your own? All the tutorials are saved on You Tube.

Unlike previous years, I decided on a size for the blocks at the beginning of the year and planned out this 7 x 7 layout. That way I was alternating the background/no background blocks for a somewhat checkerboard effect. It came out well.

The rainbow on this quilt was made from a selection of pastel colours of Moda Grunge. This textured, not quite solid colour at all made for a lovely rainbow. I liked that it read as rainbow without being overly cliche.

When I started the quilt I bought a meter or so (I can’t remember exactly) of each colour. At the end of the day, I had a lot of the fabric left so I used the remainders to piece the quilt back in a rainbow stripe. Look at me being all coordinated! And while the quilting on the front amounts to great texture, the pattern itself is very visible on the back. I combined spirals and lines in a free motion pattern that I did on a rented long arm. Full credit to Angela Walters and one of her books for the idea. It is pretty densely quilted and feels a bit stiff now but as soon as I wash it the cuddles will come out.

The background fabric I chose is this terrazzo inspired fabric with a creamy base. It had all the rainbow colours in it so it was perfect. Midway through the year I did have to go buy more, thankfully my local quilt shop still had it in stock! Of course, I bought more than I needed that time so it was ready for me to round out the rainbow stripe backing AND use it for the binding. We know how I love a contrast binding, but this quilt asked for something more subtle. Sometimes it is good not to introduce something new when the original is already working.

There is no doubt that I chose rainbows deliberately for the theme. They really do make me happy and never fail to stop me in my tracks. But this is - for me - also a political quilt. I have queer family members, my kids have queer and trans friends, and I want the entire community to know that you are welcome here, and everywhere. It’s just a quilt, I know, but I can use it to share my support, amplify your voice, and wrap everyone in the love and joy they deserve. I can’t give every single queer and trans youth a hug, but know that that is what this quilt intends.