Calgary Christmas Craft Markets Coming Up!

I am always sewing, but rarely posting!  However, I'm going to be in a couple of craft markets this fall so posting pix here of items that I will be selling. I will add as I make more and/or get organized to take more pix of things already made.  Also - will post more detail about where/when as it is nailed down.

Front and Back of the "Wayfarer Sling" (8" x 17" x 2 1/2")

Front and Back of the "Retro Sling" (7" x 14" x 3")

Wayfarer and Retro side by side - Retro is a bit narrower/shorter, but also a bit deeper.

Blue Whale pencil cases - I love these!

Whale Shark pencil cases - I love these too!

"Louis Waistbag"  - these are like the Lulu Lemon bags I see being worn everywhere!  There are two sizes.  The small one was nabbed by a friend.  When I make another one, I'll put them up side by side for size comparison.

"Open Wide Pouch"  (They stand about 7" - 8" tall and about 10" at the bottom and about 13" across the top - the bottom is boxed so it will stand up as per pix).  I make them with canvas exterior and embroider fun designs.  Lining is light weight waterproof canvas so wipeable.  This was a friend's request so is personalized.  Market ones will not be personalized - obviously.  :)

More to come....

May the 4th Be With You

 

"Long Live Rock"

This is the most recent T-shirt quilt that I've made - back in Jan 2023.  My client loved it.  He had a significant collection of T-shirts from the many rock concerts he has attended over the years. 

I know this blog/website has been neglected for well over a year.  I have good intentions to get to it, just no follow through.  I hope to have a bit of time in the near future to spend on getting it updated.  I usually keep my Facebook page reasonably current so you can always check there for my latest makes.  

However, the main purpose of this post is to announce that I will not longer be accepting commissions for T-shirt/memory quilts.  I will complete the ones I have committed to making, but will accept no more.  

I want to thank all my past customers for placing their trust in me to help them with their projects (long-arm quilting their quilts and making T-shirt/memory quilts).  It's been fun and an honour.  

Quilt Give Away

I have, or at least had, over 40 quilts piling up on my "quilt storage bed".  I decided it's time to start re-homing them.  I'd sell them, but it's difficult to sell quilts for what they are worth in terms of time, skill, materials, etc.  Most people don't understand that the materials alone can mount into the hundreds of dollars for one quilt.  

Also, I'm lazy.  I have no interest in selling on line.  I don't want to deal with mailing, fraudulent claims of non-delivery or damage, etc.  So... I am giving them away.  But not to just anyone.  I have many special friends and family members that I consider "quilt worthy" and it has always been my intention to give each of them a quilt.  So as I see them, which is challenging in these COVID Times, I have been asking if they would like to choose a quilt to take home with them.  So far, I've given six away....  

Joe's niece, Marie, and her fiancé, Stuart, asked for Tropical Galaxy.  

Michelle and Mike liked Flock.

Alyssa got two.  Hounds-tooth for herself and Everyday Magic for her daughter, Leah.

My Bro-in Law, Karl, asked for the Viking quilt when I was making it several years ago.  So I gave it to him.

This is one of my really early quilts.  I called it Time Machine (it's an alarm clock - get it? :) ).  I gave it to sister and bro-in-law - Carol and Dan.

I need to get the sisters and bro-in-laws to "model" their quilts.  Next trip to Kelowna that will happen (if I remember!).

More Bags!

 Yes - it's a new hobby - bag making....

I made several for friends as hostess gifts, for my daughter-in-law as a b-day gift and for my neighbour as a commission.

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Phone Pouches (a Spencer Ogg pattern) for three freinds.

And matching tote bags (Pelican Tote by Bagstock patterns).  Fronts and Backs.  I did some embroidery on all fronts and backs.

The tops of all of them are like this (above) - I added the zipper.  The pattern just has a snap closure like the one I made for DIL (below).  All the bags have a zip pocket and a double slip pocket inside as below.

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My neigbhour liked the "Hope Handbag" (Mrs. H patterns) that I made for the Bag of the Month Club earlier in the year and asked if I'd make her one, but with this fabric.  

Another Applique Quilt

 Joan R brought me another of her applique quilts for quilting.  I don't really do customer quilts any more, but I've kept Joan as a "special" customer and I will do for friends (as I did for Karen, previous post).  

Full on above.

She didn't want a lot of quilting and with black, you can't see it anyway, so it was pretty basic.

Hand Done Cross Stitch

 Karen worked for years doing the cross-stitch on these blocks.  Then she stitched them together and asked if I would quilt the quilt for her.  It's a queen size and I didn't get a great "entire quilt" pix, but here are some pix of the quilting.  

Not a great shot of the entire quilt - but it's what I have...

Here are a couple of border shots.  I've done this a few times - where I continue the quilting that I've done in the body of the quilt into the borders.  I think it worked really well for this quilt.

Here are some "full on" shots of the the block (above) and the secondary design created in the space between the blocks.

The cross-stitch design was printed on the fabric, along with some quilting lines (specifically the outline of the stars).  I did use the quilting lines, but of course elaborated considerably!  :)

Show Off!

 Here is another pattern! Just released!  What the Hex?

Designed to use some travel themed prints I had collected over a few trips.  New York, San Fran, Seattle, other.  I called it Fantasy Travel because, well, made in early "COVID times", you know.  All travel at this point is fantasy.

Find the pattern at my Esty NoRulesQuilting shop or on Quilt Pattern Mart.

Above is the pattern cover quilt.  

I really like this for the secondary designs - a sort of lattice created by the coloured parts and sort of arrows in the black.  And it's fun to quilt - see below!

Not to put too fine a point on it - all my patterns have detailed step by step instructions with illustrations (not photos, actual illustrations!).  The photos are in the "support page" - the Show Off! tab on the home page here.  Also - all my patterns have been stress tested by other quilters of various skill levels.

And for this quilt I had the idea to put some travel themed machine embroidery designs in the black background.  If you do this, embroider first, then cut the block.

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Then to test the pattern, I made this "revenge quilt" for my sister.  It was her 60th birthday recently.  She is a master cake maker and for my 60th b-day she made me a fabulous flamingo cake with flamingo cake pops.  Then she and other relatives piled on with various other flamingo paraphernalia.  So now it was my turn to get even!  This quilt is the result.  All the embroidery is birthday related.  With a few cake references thrown in.

As it happens, I used black again for the background.  I plan to make a "not black" one in the future.  It will get its own post once it's finished.