Quilts Quilts and More Quilts

Spent the last few days going through a stack of quilts from years gone bye. Am moving my mom's late 1950's bedroom suite into the spare bedroom. Now when my vending booth buddy stays over night she doesn't have to sleep on the couch. The couch is so comfortable that when you lay on it, its magic power lulls you to sleep. I've learned to never lay on it when you absolutely want to watch a tv program all the way through.

This bedroom is the catch all for my quilts.

 

Then I found this beauty. It was made from one of Kate Spain's layer cakes. At the time I figured out how to cut one block from one 10" square of the print then add the background. Stay tuned, next week and there will be instructions for the block.

Signing or Labeling Space 2

Signing or labeling your quilt is a very important part of the history of your quilt. Many of us never label a quilt. How many have heard about a lost or stolen quilt, or found or purchased an older quilt and wondered where it came from, who made it, who it was for, when it was made?
I always put the name of the quilt, my name, where it was made, the date finished (some put when they started). If I know who is getting the quilt, their name and relationship is added. If I don't know, then I'll put Made Especially For You.

The labels can be as elaborate as you want. Most of the time I write the information on the back of the quilt using a pigma ink pen. (sharpies have something in them that may bleed leaving an oily stain)

Another way to sign your quilt is by stitching your name on the front of the quilt. You can see how Heather Thomas does it in the video how to sign a quilt.

Ah, Spring happens in a couple days. Well, maybe where you are but, here it happens between late April and late May. You've heard April showers bring May flowers; in Calgary it is May snows bring June flowers. We are told not to plant until after the May long weekend. In two days a foot of snow evaporated only to snow another 4 inches/10 cm the next day. We got to fill in what had melted. Then it snowed every night for the next three nights. However, it all evaporated that day. No shoveling. Hooray! There is a saying in Calgary, if you don't like the present weather just wait an hour.

Our Monday hike took us through Inglewood Bird Sanctuary in Calgary. What fun seeing not only the birds but also mama deer and her baby.

Space Quilt Program Block 2 is online now. We are travelling through the Auroras.
Enjoy!

Women's Day Walking

Happy almost Spring everyone. Even though the 150 Canadian Women quilt program is completed we are still posting about other women that are pioneers on the facebook group 150 CW Quilt Along. Be sure to join if you haven't already done so. This week, we posted about the Australian jockey, Wilhelmina Smith, alias Bill Smith. She rode as a man for two decades and no one new until after her death.

You can find the article on Australia's first female jockey here.

Today Mother Nature in all her glory gave us a taste of Spring. My hiking group winter walk was around one of Calgary's little gems, Bowness Park and the Bow River. You cannot see very well, but the ice is about 2 ft thick in this area. The river barely iced up last year and is sure making up for it this year. The snow on the cookhouse roof is barely hanging on. When the sun finally is high enough in the sky to melt it there will be a major avalanche.

Social Bite - Jo Avery of myBearpaw

This is a wonderful project that the husband of quilt designer and teacher, Jo Avery, of myBearpaw in Edinburgh UK, is building and she is making quilts for. If any of you in the UK are able to help check out her blog here.

Space Brownies Mystery

My Monday smile said 'Once you realize that you don't need a special occasion to buy a cake, the second part of your life begins.' So Ghirardelli and I made brownies. Yum!

Space program launch is happening now. First view is the Galaxy. Don't worry you can still catch up to us here.

I've been working on a mystery quilt 2018 quilt program. So much fun. We need three backgrounds and three feature fabrics. I'm experimenting with cats, diamonds and dots as features on so far these two blue backgrounds, haven't picked the third background yet. Cross your fingers. Of course I know what I'm doing. Maybe.