"Star Light Star Bright" - Kits and Block of the Month Available

This is a quilt I did for a customer Kat from here in Calgary. Kat is the owner of Next Step Quilt Designs and is offering this beauty on her web site by kit or Block of the Month - please have a look.  The link to Kat's site is:  http://www.nextstepquiltdesigns.com/

I did a freehand all over swirl design using variegated thread by Wonderfil.

Elizabeth showcasing more Kaffe Fassett fabric

Another gorgeous quilt made by Elizabeth.  The fabrics are all from the Kaffe Fassett line - aren't they the most gorgeous fabrics.  Elizabeth has a good eye for yummy fabric.

The quilting is a pantograph " Curly Q" by Lisa Calle of Intelligent Quilting.  The thread is a variegated - Mirage by Wonderfil and the batting was W/N blend.

Gift Quilt by Marjorlein - Pantograph "Dainty"

A new customer Marjolein brought me this quilt which she is giving to her niece who will be coming from Europe in the new year. She will have it on the bed the niece will be using and then when she returns home Marjolein will give it to her to take home as a gift. Ahhhh! Isn't that the sweetest!

The quilting pattern is a pantograph "Dainty" by Jodi Beamish of Willow Leaf Studio.  The batting was W/N blend and the thread was a solid rayon by Marathon.

"Ice Cream" by Kaffe Fassett & Customer Elizabeth

This gorgeous quilt is hot off the frame.  It is a Kaffe Fassett pattern called "Ice Cream". Customer Elizabeth did an awesome job putting this large quilt together  (104" x 107").  "Ice Cream" will adorn her daughters bed after she receives it from Mom for Christmas.

Freehand swirl/leaf quilting, W/Natural batting and Mirage variegated thread by Wonderfil. The backing was pieced using more of Kaffe's yummy fabric to add a bit more flavor to the white tone on tone fabric.

Christmas Quilts

Some beautiful Christmas quilts coming in and going out of the studio.  These are a few.  Awesome work ladies and always nice to see what the gals are doing with those gorgeous Christmas fabrics.

Can you see the balloons? Freehand Balloons

This is another quilt from awesome customer Elizabeth.  There are so many adorable fabrics out there now and a number of my customers are picking up the assortment packs and making very nice quilts - soooo cute.  I don't get to the fabric stores very often anymore so it's nice to see all the yummy fabrics and what the ladies are doing with them. The designers are doing such a wonderful job coordinating their fabric lines don't you think?

This is a freehand design - swirls with balloons (or bubbles if you prefer).  The batting is Warm/Natural and the thread is Mirage variegated by Wonderfil.

New Customer - Margie from New Brunswick

This is a lovely quilt made by a new customer from New Brunswick, Margie.  It's a bit of a long story how I ended up quilting a quilt from so far away but it arrived and I quickly went to work.  Margie made this beauty as a wedding gift for her niece here in Calgary - how lucky is that gal and her new husband?  Most of the time only other quilters can appreciate the work that goes into a large wonderful  quilt like this (88" x 98") - there are exceptions to the rule of course.

I did a freehand leaf design using Mirage variegated thread by Wonderfil and W/N 80/20 batting.  I also put the binding on using a great gold stripe fabric cut on the bias - I think it pulled everything together well, don't you?

Doris's Cat Quilt

This is another one of the Tin Can Projects I often mention.  In our guild we do a swap of sorts and for those participating we end up with approx. 10 - 13 blocks on completion.  Doris my friend and quilt guild member started with this adorable cat fabric and when the project was complete she compiled the blocks ending up with this beauty. Sometimes it takes a bit of creativity to set all these blocks into a eye catching quilt - Doris aced this one don't you think!

I did a freehand swirl with an extra spike thrown in.  As usual I used Mirage variegated thread by Wonderfil and the batting was Hobbs 80/20.

  

More Freehand Swirls

This adorable quilt was made by a customer who I have never met.  I know her daughter and she brings Betty's quilts for me to longarm as Betty does not live in the city.   I also know that Betty is a very good quilter and is in her 80s.  "An inspiration indeed".

This is just an allover freehand swirl meander using 100% cotton batting and Mirage thread by Wonderfil.

"Lucky Granddaughter" - Freehand Design

This is from a new customer Elizabeth.  She is fairly new to quilting but I spent a bit of time with her and I think she's hooked ladies.  Besides she has a granddaughter who absolutely loves grandma's quilting.

This is freehand swirl designs with flowers thrown in for interest.  I used 100% cotton variegated thread - Tutti by Wonderfil.

Customer Quilt - Pantograph

This beauty is a customer quilt.  Kathy does an awesome job piecing and wanted a pantograph design called "Dainty".  I used black to white variegated thread - Mirage by Wonderfil.

I'm Back!

Wow what a wonderful trip I just came back from -  MQX in Portland.  Took some great classes and met a bunch of awesome people from all over the place.  Met another longarmer from here in Calgary - Edith, roomed with Elsie, a quilting friend, and spend a lot of time with Michele from Calgary who just purchased a longarm at the show - lucky duck!  Thanks everyone for such a great conference!

I took a few minutes this morning to size photo's of a few projects I finished up just before I left.

This one is a retreat block draw that one of my guild members won at our annual retreat last year.  Sheila did a great job putting it together and is actually going to keep this one for herself.

I did a freehand tight swirl design as this quilt reminded me of large multicolored lollipops and I used a lovely variegated thread by Wonderfil.

Busy Time in the Studio - All Freehand Quilting

Well  "be careful what you wish for" - this is what my husband always says to me.  I have had a number of customers lately just wanting my freehand swirls.  Wow, I'm dreaming swirls in my sleep. LOL  I'm not complaining - love doing them - fun, fast and an overall nice finish.

These are a few of the beautiful customer quilts that I've finished up these last few weeks.  All freehand swirls - some with a bit of attitude, some not.   Most of the thread used is Mirage (variegated) by Wonderfil.

Mysterious Ladies - Freehand Quilting

This wall quilt is another sample of Max's lovely work. The choice of metalic and sparkly fabric added a great element to these mysterious ladies.  I quilted an allover freehand swirl meander using a gorgeous black to silver variegated thread - Mirage by Wonderfil. The back fabric is a mottled black showing off the contrast of the variegated thread.

Dalmation Panel

This is a great example of what we can do with some of these adorable panels that we've accumulated over the years.  My friend Jane cut the panel apart and added a coordinating fabric to make the panel into a child's quilt instead of a crib quilt.  I did an allover swirly meander with a bit of outlining inside the faces of these sweet sweet puppies to show some definition. What a face!

"Sister's at Heart" has a new home

After my BFF Lynn passed away in 2009 I made this quilt in her memory.  It was raffled off at the Rockyview Hospital in Lab Services here in Calgary in July of this year.  This lady is now the new owner of "Sister's at Heart".  The proceeds from the raffle will stay in Lab Services to financially assist co-worker's Lynn worked with in any struggles they may need help with due to medical problems.

"Day & Night" - Eleanor Burns & Maxine

This beauty is another one of my friend Max's "Honken Huge" quilts (94" x 104"). Max is spot on with her piecing and it's alway a joy to work on her quilts.  I used the juxtaposition of the curvy flower pattern against the straight lines of the design complimenting the pattern "in my opinion". The pantograph was "Demask" by Patricia Ritter and the thread was a rayon by Wonderfil.  The batting used was an 80/20 blend by Legacy.

Lisa's Animal Applique Quilt

My friend/customer Lisa made this adorable baby quilt for her girlfriends baby coming fairly soon.  Lisa drew the animal blocks and from there went on to design her own pattern - awesome!  Each block is unique and so absolutely adorable. The fabrics in this quilt are also some of the fabrics the babies mom is using to decorate baby's room.   Lisa asked for custom quilting with the majority of the blocks having different fill - we both thought the bubbles were appropriate for a few additional blocks. The border has a fairly basic zigzag pattern to it coordinating with the pink and purple stars. The thread I used is Invisifil 100w by Wonderfil for the motifs and a black rayon for the borders.

Max's Coy Fish Sampler

My girlfriend Max is still trying to wear out her embroidery machine. This is another sample of her wonderful work.   I tried to do a different fill in each block but really liked the bubbles so used them and McTavishing a few times.  The border is done with a freehand fern design and can only really be seen from the back.  I used Invisiful thread by Wonderfil.