Banners tell it all

Each of the guilds that attended the Gathering of the Guilds 2010 brought a banner that depicts the points of interest in their encompassing area. They were also asked to bring a queen size sheet to pin their banner and some samples of the projects done through the past two years.

As you can see by the diversity of the banners, there is a lot to see in New Brunswick. Not to mention the myriad of projects the guilds have been creating. We saw vests, clothing, purses, tote bags, crumb catchers(donations to seniors homes), preemie blankets, children's quilts(to the RCMP for children in distress) and charity quilts(to transition houses and families in distress), Victoria's quilts(cancer patients undergoing chemo), ouch pouches(breast surgery) ...you name it, quilters make it and donate it.

We were astounded at the fabric art we saw...the creative side of each and every
guild...the great number of teachers that are willing to travel to promote the
craft and share their ideas.

I guess you can tell I am an avid supporter of the gathering. Not only did we learn a lot this past weekend we had a lot of fun. We played Quilter's Quarrell ( a version of family feud) with
questions from a really old game...needless to say we got to giggle about some of the answers. Absolutely everyone got a door prize..one lady actually went home with a full size quilt...how's that for a door prize.

More Quilts from the Weekend.

This quilt was a block of the month project by the Kennebecasis Valley Quilt guild...







The next quilt is from the Bathurst ..Northstar Quilt Guild...a bargello with a jellyfish applique using organza...quite extraordinary.


Christmas block of the month and the Tisket , a Tasket block of the month from Fat Cats website of Sindy Rodenmeyer...I don't have mine done yet.

The Guilds Gathered

What a wonderful, quilty weekend in Sussex, NB. Fifteen quilt guilds brought samples of their work for the last two years and got us all excited and motivated to get back to the machines and our stashes. The first picture is the New Brunswick banner depicting the areas each guild covers. As you can see, since its beginning, the number of guilds in the province has multiplied(like our stashes, it happens when you least expect it). Each guild is given a template that is much like the geographical area it covers and is required to applique, piece or embroider that which they feel exemplifies the uniqueness or their location. The pieces outside the shape of the province are new guilds...their patterns are placed as close to their actual location as is possible. This banner travels around the province to any or all of the quilt shows so that everyone can see how "alive" quilting is in New Brunswick.

I chose this picture to post today because it is one of the newer members of the Provincial Guild. Grand Falls Quilt Guild. They absolutely blew us away with their enthusiasm, their committment to quilting and the wonderful new ideas they showed us. In less than two years they grew from 10 members to 62 and boy , were they busy. The ideas they came up with to motivate their members was astounding. They are an outstounding group.
Out of the 5 Gatherings, I have been fortunate enough to attend 4 of them. I have watched them get more and more stimulating each time. We have them bi-annually so it has been 10 years ongoing. It's not just that you get to see some wonderful quilting, that alone would be a reason to attend, it's the new projects, the ideas for guilds, the incredible generosity of quilters...each and every guild had amazing contributions to women's issues, cancer groups, children's groups, senior's homes and not the least by any means, animal shelters(we quilters do care for our furkids). It actually floors me when I hear that guilds sometimes have trouble finding delegates.
I find quilters to be the most generous and kindest of women...oops, pardon me ....and men, we now have the distinction of having a registered and attending member of the opposite sex.
It was a fabulous weekend, and as I go through my pictures (official photographer here), I will pick some more to share. One thing I did learn this weekend, I am NO photographer. I took over 300 pictures and I still cut feet off...can't help the height thing.

More Hollow Cubes

This was great fun to do. Once I got the pattern set in my mind all I had left to do was experiment with colour. It is something I often have difficulty with. Especially value...I've tried taking a picture and changing it to black and white and determining the value by the darkness of the grey but I still don't have a great success with it. One thing I have learned about this design, is that there should be a great difference between the dark and the light to determine the 3D effect and the medium should lean towards the dark side. (May the Force be with you!)

Trish's game

 Trish from Homemade Quilts by Granny invited me to a little game...find your sixth picture and re vamp the post...well it took me a while to figure out how to find my post...it was sometime in January when I first started blogging and there it was, way back there.. When I looked at that post I saw that I had put in a picture of the Snowman Collector on its side. Since I didn't have the Picasa software then, it took a minute or so to figure out how to "right side" it up.( I have my own language) So here it is, revamped...I've actually done a little more work on this project...I've added borders and stars..and cornerstones. It is ready for quilting but I have a quilt in my frame now that I want to finish in time for our quilt show in September, then I will quilt this one for Christmas this year...lots of time....right? Did I do it right, Trish??? I decided that you should see it as it is today.....

Tweaking Done

I took a few minutes and tweaked the pattern that I drafted yesterday. This size is more to my liking. I think I will try some more in the primary colours and see which ones I like better. Did these two this evening so they work up fairly quickly...remember I am a hand piecer. Still not sure I want to do a large piece in this pattern...I just know I like the 3D effect and colour choices have not been my strong suit. I depend on colour smart people to help me choose.

New to me

This pattern is called Hollow Cube. I saw a picture on a website and it intrigued me. When you break down the pattern is it simply a hexagon or baby blocks. I tried to draft it in my EQ6 but I'm not as proficient as I would like to be so I hauled out the old 1/4 inch graph paper and got to work. I used some of those techniques we were taught in Algebra and said we'd never use in real life....you math people know what I mean. Anyway, it is actually bigger than I would like it to be but I got it figured out. I will probably redraft it in a smaller size since this one is way too large....I like smaller "squares". The placement of the colours creates the dimensional look. It was fun to do once I figured out my measurements were just a little off...I know, I know...".measure twice and cut once". I won't make a full quilt but I would like a wall hanging...scrappy , of course.

I've Made another Bag

I bought the pattern for this bag last fall but we were in the process of moving and it got put aside. Then once we got settled in, I decided the fabric I thought would work, sucked. So, off I went to the fabric shop and chose something entirely different from my first choice(more funky). This fabric is a flowery , paisley type in green with beige and the contrast fabric is a darker green with black ...pictures don't really do it justice , it's really quite snazzy.

I have to take my laptop with me to a conference and I wanted a 'pretty' bag instead of the serviceable ugly black bag my hubby used to use for his laptop. He doesn't understand how us quilters just like to make our own although, by his smarmy grin, I think he is getting the message.

The pattern was quite detailed, but easy to follow. I cut out all the pieces and labelled them last night...took a while . I started sewing this morning and finished it this evening. Once I get a rhythm going , I hate to stop.

The thing that I liked about this bag is all the zippered pockets. It even has a swivel toggle for keys...side pockets for water bottle or umbrella and zippered pocket for passport...velcroed pocket for cell phone...It has it all.

It would make a great travel bag. Too bad, I'm not travelling too far these days.

How do you say Goodbye?

He was called Skeeter, named in honour of the singer who passed away the week he came into our lives six years ago. He made quite an impact on our day to day living. He wanted to be helpful. If I used a rag to wipe a spot on the floor he grabbed it with his teeth and "helped". He chased away vicious squirrels and defended his property with great zeal. He would herd us...after all, he was a sheep dog.His coat was magnificent and his tail swept the floor. He hated to be brushed but once it was done, he pranced around like the little prince he was. He loved everybody, especially women that talked baby talk to him...I think he was a real softie at heart but thought he was a "big boy".  We will miss this little guy more than words can say.

A new Quilt in the Frame

I had some time on my hands tonight so I put a quilt in my Hinterberg frame. While we were waiting for our house be be finished last fall, we spent a month in a housekeeping unit and I needed something to do to keep me from going nuts(don't tell anyone, but I actually missed having housework to do). As a result, I sewed this quilt completely by hand. It is called Starry Path but I am calling this one "Sylvia's Stars" in honor of the lady that gave me a huge and beautiful collection of batik fat quarters. The picture below is the pattern that I traced in the plain squares. I drafted it using parts of a quilting template that I used on my daugher's Hunter star in the border. If a quilt has lots of point(i.e, stars) I like to quilt something curvy to offset. If there are lots of curves I try to put in lots of straight lines...I am perverse that way.