Bitten by the hexie bug!

I made a pillow about a million years ago using hexagons and paper piecing.  It was when we were in Peru for several months.  I kept busy then with a lot of hand sewing.  Last night, while husband watched the Superbowl, I made hexies.  I made a lot of them.  I see a pillow in their future.  Good colours for the living room.  And what is the fabric?  I don't know.  I know the solid is from Gramma's stash and the other two... Hmm.  Definitely Moda.  Maybe Blackbird Designs?

And the big news is that I read on a blog that there is a fabric store in Vancouver that is carrying all 221 colours of Kona cottons.  That is crazy!!!!!  I think I may have to go on a field trip.  I told husband.  He was less than impressed.  221 colours!!!!  I might faint.  Happy rest of Monday.

Work in progress status report

"Feeling Blue" quilt sneak peek

While husband was shouting at the TV, watching darts before the Superbowl started, I finished the "Feeling Blue" quilt top.  I must be getting somewhat clever in my old age because I actually remembered to mark the first block of each row with a masking tape label.  Row 1, square 1 etc.  I have learned that I sometimes mess up when sewing the rows together if I do not identify the order in some way.  After getting the whole thing together and it is a big one, 70"x 70", I did notice to same fabric touches but they are small and I am going to live with it.  This is after all a scrappy quilt.  (Notice how I am trying to convince myself and squash my inner OCD.)  I had been really focused on spreading out the centre squares so that there was lots of variation and also varying light and dark blocks so I missed the 2 tiny same touches.  I still need to add a border around the sewn together blocks because Mum wants the quilt to measure 75" x 75".

And about the shouting at the TV during darts.  First of all, who watches darts other than husband???? And secondly, daughter phoned while he was watching darts and all I had to say was, if you are lucky you may even hear your father yelling at darts.  Even her room-mates groaned.  They know what this sounds like.  But if it makes him happy, it's all good!  I think it is something like how I felt when I found my flea market fancy at the thrift store.  Maybe I should start shouting in happiness when using my new iron.  There's a thought!

On a Saturday...

love those buttons!

milk glass

Husband stayed home this morning.  He was BUSY.  He had a to do list that did not include driving around with me to thrift stores.  I don't think he missed waiting for me while I poke around a thrift store but I missed him!  I bumped into one of my buddies at one of the stores.  We marveled at the quantity of STUFF and had a quilting discussion about using spray baste.  Neither of us have used it yet.  I am planning to use it for the blue quilt because it is going to be so big.

As for the blue quilt, I have made 30 blocks but I think I need another 5.  I will crank those out tomorrow and see if I can get it sewn together.  I cannot start on the quilting though as... trauma... I took my sewing machine for a tune up today and they said it will be 2 weeks.  Yoiks!  I still have my old machine which is in great running order so I can use it for piecing but definitely not quilting.  It was so strange to thread the needle and I kept pushing blank space where the needle up button is on my new machine.  I am so spoiled.

vintage pillow ticking

And for thrift store finds today.  I found the sock pattern booklet that I have been looking for.  And one for dolly clothes and last weekend, I picked up the one with patterns for Bazar items.  Lots of toilet roll covers which I won't  be knitting but lots of tea cozies which I will be knitting.  I am determined to knit a pair of socks this year.  With the pattern book I am that much closer!  I also found another milk glass footed bowl and a bag of buttons from someone's button jar.  And check our the vintage ticking!!!!!!  50 cents each!!!  Still have labels.  100% cotton, down proof cotton.  Awesome!  They are in great shape.  I could make a pillow ticking quilt.

and for more flea market finds, you can check over at Sophie's blog.

Sky fire...

 Dramatic or what?  Husband and I were talking just after I arrived home from work.  He looked out the dining room window to see that the sky was on fire.  It was incredible.  And the clouds were blowing across the forefront of the horizon as if the clouds were on different levels of the sky.  It was really something to see.  Incredible colours.  I ran out to the driveway to take a few pictures.  I am sure that this type of sky means something ominous about the weather that is to come.  The high fence that you see is the net around the golf course driving range that is over and across the way.

Husband is complimenting me on my photos of late.  I was not convinced that the pictures I took of the sky would turn out.  I used to take really bad pictures but I seem to be getting better.  Such a critic!  Thank goodness it's Friday.  A weekend of playing with fabric lies ahead of me and for husband... the superbowl!  Happy quilting!

It came!!!!!

Oh my goodness!  Husband left me a message today that there was a package in the mail and that I might want to know that.  Oh my goodness!  I now have faith in the system.  Online fabric buying from the United States and shipped to Canada does work.  It took just a bit over 10 days.  Not bad.  Not great if you are wishing for instant fabric-gratification.  And no extra duty, charges, taxes blah blah blah.  I ordered from the Quilted Castle and I am happy to say that I would order from there again.  Good story.  Happy, happy, joy, joy.

So what did I buy?  1 yard of Meadowsweet Grand Foliage in Celery by Sandi Henderson for Michael Miller .  On sale!  And then 1 yard of Daisy Path and Meadow Dot in Robin's Egg.  Same designer.  And then 2 colourways of Trees, It's a Hoot by Momo for Moda.  Too cool for school!  And not to be forgotten Bella solid, Sunshine by Moda Basics.  And sunshine it is on a rainy day!  And this is just stash building.  Pure fabric happiness.  

Work in progress... are you feeling blue?

More blue blocks.  Mum's quilt is coming along.  I just threw these down on the "design bed" for their photo op.  I have a lot of playing around to do with them so that there is greater randomness.  It is totally scrappy, and full of bluey-ness.

I still have not received the fabric that I ordered.  I am pouting about that.  Of course the site said that it could take anywhere from 6 days to 6 weeks depending on how customs deals with backlogs.  It's been about 10 days.  I am all about instant gratification though and would really like to order one day and have it the next.  That would be in a perfect world of online fabric buying.  I am trying to deal with the jealousy of seeing fabric purchases arrive in the hands of some of the blog world while I am still waiting.  Crossing my fingers that it will arrive soon!  Happy Groundhog Day!

A thing of beauty

Several years ago I bought an antique quilt at a garage sale in the small town we lived in at the time.  It was really more of an estate sale as an elderly man had passed away and left a modest estate to the local senior's organization.  The seniors decided to have a garage sale at the gentleman's home.  He led a modest life and the senior's group was not out to make big money.  The small home was opened to the public and everything was up for sale.  There were not many people so I was free to poke around from room to room and down into the basement.  I found some nice bits of china and some odd bits of things.  I went down to the basement which was pretty musty and I found, in an old suitcase, a quilt.  I took it upstairs and asked the volunteers for the price.  The lady thought maybe a dollar.  And here it is.  Out for a bit of an airing on the clothesline.

Beautiful, yes?   I have had it put away for a bit and it was lovely to visit it again. It is completely hand sewn, hand appliqued and hand quilted.  Based on the pattern and the colour choices, we estimate that it is from the 1930s.  It is absolutely stunning.  There are 2 different colours of green used and I imagine it is because the quilter ran out of the one green and used another.  I also like to imagine that it was a wedding quilt.  And I hope that the quilt was treasured by the elderly gentlemen and his wife, as I treasure it now.  And I feel guilty for having only paid a dollar.