Fabric with Weight

Progress on a quilt! Trust me, this is momentous news lately. Hubby has been out of town a lot, I've had some writing deadlines, and Quilt Canada is now a month away.  Things are busy! But we had a low key weekend and I squeezed in some sewing, during naptime of course.

This is the start of what is currently being referred to as my Slaveship Quilt. I promise I will get a better name in time. These strips have come from this pile of indigo fabrics. Oh, I heart these indigo fabrics. These are designs that are well over a century old, but some of them are so bold and modern today. And that indigo is melting my heart.

It wasn't until I started cutting into them that I realized these were real Da Gama fabrics, imported from South Africa. Suddenly the fabric had more weight, and the project took on even more symbolism for me.

Yes folks, I would say that I am making my first art quilt. With every step, from inspiration to design to sewing I feel the importance of each decision. There is a reason to everything I'm doing. So not only do I intend to have something beautiful simply to look at, I hope it is something meaningful and symbolic too.

(My nature is to suddenly retreat into something self-deprecating right now, but this project doesn't deserve that.)

This is a multi-step design and who knows whether I'll finish it this week or next year, but I hope you will enjoy the process as much as I will.

Friday Favourites - Quilts of First Quarter 2010

I heard back from a lot of you in January that the round-up of my favourite quilts was something you wanted to see more of. I've decided to do this every 3 months for you. Even then it is hard to narrow it down!

The Selvage Quilt by Jacquie at Tallgrass Prairie Studios

Selvages are something that I now cut off and set aside - to giveaway. I have absolutely no motivation to make a selvage quilt myself. Even after seeing this one, I still don't want to make one. But I can look and admire the quality and beauty of this quilt.  Great job Jacquie!

Hideaway Quilt by Jess at Urban Patchwork

There are some lovely, lovely quilts on Jess' site. Simple and graphic.  You see similar quilts around, but there is something about the way she places just that one extra bit of fabric or a carefully chosen binding that elevates her quilt above many modern others.

Katie Jump Rope Quilt by Andrea at Millions of Thoughts Trapped in My Head

If you've been reading me for a while you know that I'm generally not a fan of quilts made entirely from one fabric line alone. But I adore what Andrea did from her inspiration - a drawing and design by her son.  How cool is that? And a nice break from her year of solids.

Boardwalk by Latifah at I Dream of Quilts

White binding. White binding on a multicoloured striped quilt.  Need I say more?

Kelpies by Digs at Digs and Beans

I'm glad I'm not the only one who puts quilts in her office.  At least it doesn't seem odd when you work in a crafty kind of place like Lark Books.

Off Kilter by Amanda Jean from Crazy Mom Quilts

Okay, so a slight bias here. But I had to share one more finish from my quilt along. I know many of us miss Amanda Jean's blogging, but you can keep up to date with all her work on Flickr. Thank goodness!

I hope you enjoyed this little tour.

I Joined a Bee

If you know me or have seen the hidden boxes in my basement you know that it is hard for me to keep commitment to bees and round robins. I don't know why, but I get so stuck on these projects and I'm the one who either hands in the project ridiculously late or not at all.  Yes, I've been known to be THAT quilter.

Alas, no more! I promise, I swear, and I cross my heart because this year I joined a bee.  I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to work with these ladies. And my logic also tells me that if I am being told what to do I should be able to manage it.  

One month down and I was only a tiny bit late. But I'm totally blaming my knees.

This is the first block for Valerie. It was also the first time for me to work with these Heather Ross fabrics.  They're sweet, but I won't be losing any sleep over them.  And after seeing the blocks headed her way, I am quite excited to see them all together.

That is probably my favourite part of this process. I just wish I could be there with every one of my partners to help them assemble the tops.  I love taking blocks and putting them together, moving this one over here and that one there, until it all just feels right. I've got to wait until January for my turn.  That gives me plenty of time to change my mind about what I want done.

My Favourite Gadget

Do you know what this is? Hands down, it is my favourite tool for quilting. I'm not a gadget, multiple rulers, fancy papers kind of girl. But the day I discovered this was revolutionary.

To be fair, I think it was my sister or Hubby who actually discovered it for me. I remember getting it for Christmas one year. how I survived without it is beyond me. If you are a pin baster then you NEED this.  It's the best $20 you'll ever spend on quilting. The handy Kwik Klip saves your fingers and a heck of a lot of time when you are pin basting a quilt. It essentially lifts the bar of the pin to close it. Instead of you pinching it yourself. Finger saving, I tell ya!

I've seen these at every local quilt shop, but I've also found them on-line.

(If you do decide to search for them on line, be careful of your search terms.  If you only use Kwik Klip the internet seems to think you are looking for a specific gun accessory!)