UFOs #11 Rose Medallion 2004

In winter 2003-2004 I took a bi-weekly Sacred Threads class with the infamous Rosemary Makhan where I learned how to draft my own blocks from a photo. She had a picture of an antique sampler quilt and we collaborated on drafting out each block to a 12 inch size. After the first class, I went home and redrafted the 4 blocks of the day into 9 inch blocks and very quickly completed my first Biblical Blocks Sampler. She also taught us the theory of drafting up the setting using graph paper. Who would have thought to use that? I had been drawing on the back of envelopes up until then. 

I was on a roll. I completed 2 large quilts that spring with the simple incentive of anyone whose quilts were completed and at her house by a certain date would be shipped off to the publisher of the newest book she was writing. I also started 6 more quilts that year and bought fabric for a couple of others.  

I had made several more blocks than I needed for the Sacred Threads class so decided to use some of the more complex ones and design my own quilt. Have you ever tried to bring 16 points together in the middle of a 12 inch block? It was suggested to use a hammer to flatten them.

I thought I would venture out and do some broderie perse sort of techniques with the rose applique blocks. I had good intentions but disastrous effects. And, trying to be daring in colour selection I bought this bold floral print but did not know how to work with it and I used a yellow for the background and fussy cut some shapes. I was working hard on my undergrad degree that year and started an internship at a pregnancy resource center where I did peer counseling with women in unplanned pregnancies as well as milking cows, etc. 
It ended up in yet another box.

Blessings,
Chris

UFOs #10 Woodland Creatures BOM 2002

This was one of 5 quilt starts in 2002. I completed one last year. Others I have written about before. 

It was at Jilly Bean's Pride Quilt Shop that I discovered BOMs - Block of the Month programs. You signed up for the year. If you paid all up front, they paid the shipping. The first few months blocks arrived on schedule, but then, all the rest came at once and I was overwhelmed with the task. That and we had just taken over the family farm and I was overwhelmed with the paperwork involved in running a small business. I was smack in the middle of my anger-depression para-menopause journey and taking a couple of classes for my undergrad degree. Did I mention I was milking cows every day? I was. And driving tractor. 

Also, this was the year I started giving up doing stuff like my very big vegetable garden then the 3 hours of grass cutting. Also, this was the year I started flying to the east coast to visit my daughter.

All the patterns which were sold separately, were included and all the fabrics needed to make each of the nine 18 inch blocks plus the borders. I cut lots of freezer paper templates and fun fabrics. I never actually got anything stitched down. I had taken a machine applique workshop and I see that I bought all that really nice expensive mono-filiment thread. I opened one large spool and it exploded and was useless.  

However, the background fabric was not included. I was adamant that this quilt had to be big enough to fit a queen bed, so needed more than the required amount. I was on the hunt for a suitable looks-like-dark-but-not-solid-black background. Enough background. I eventually found what I wanted and purchased enough. I hoped.  

Now I am thinking I might make 2 smaller ones for the little boy grandchildren. I might even put the snake in somewhere along with the spiders and bugs. After all, the original was made for the designer's son. I think I will do the applique by machine. Goodness knows, I have enough different coloured threads. If I machine quilt it as I go, I can be more creative with bugs and spider webs, etc. 
I wonder if there is enough of the exact background fabric? 

Blessings,
Chris

UFOs #9 Country Bride 2 2002

I continue to amaze myself with how many 
quilts I have actually started and why I did 

not complete them. 

I had made one of these Country Bride quilts for my daughter when she got married in 1997. After all, she was a country bride growing up on a dairy farm. I hand appliqued and hand quilted the thing and even did a scalloped border.  

I impulsively (no surprise) decided to make a quick one for a friend getting married that summer. I was going to machine applique and machine quilt in squares. My daughter was helping me, but she and her husband suddenly decided to move to the east coast where he got a job as a pastor. We got all the applique done and even removed all the freezer paper. But did not get past that.

I have to remember that at this time I was still purchasing the very cheap and not so good quality but really nice colours from Joann's fabrics. I had made a few quick quilts in earlier years that wore out way too soon. My Sweet Farmer said he saw how much time I was putting into the hand applique and hand quilting of our daughter's quilt and said I should be using the best quality fabrics that I could find. And now I do. But not with this one.


One of the things that I was having trouble figuring out was how to applique the stems on by machine. I had done the first one by hand. I suppose there is nothing stopping me from doing them by hand here now is there? I think I might use these blocks to practice some fancy dancy free motion quilting.

All the borders are cut, the extra appliques for the top are made, batting and backing cut and ready to go. But they ended up in a very large pizza box to keep them nice and flat. We gave the bride an envelope with cash. We do that a lot. 

Blessings,

Chris

UFOs #8 Stained Glass Windows 2002

When I started quilting I was happy to make a few quilts and decided that I needed to make at least 2 quilts for each bed in my house. Then in December 2001 discovered an amazing quilt shop in Oakville on my way home from the airport after taking one of my sisters to the airport after our father's funeral. This quilt was hanging from the ceiling. I had to make one! Not only this one, but nearly every one hanging from the 14 foot ceiling. I walked through that shop gawking at all the wondrous quilts and patterns. I had to wait until Sept to take a Biblical Blocks class so I signed up for machine quilting, machine applique and foundation piecing.  

I was in the middle of doing an undergrad program in counseling studies, the details of taking over the family farm and all the farm books were in process and I was in the middle of a nightmare menopause journey as well as mourning the death of my father all while milking cows every day. I am writing a book about that time in my life and I realize now, that writing up these blog posts about my quilting journey is allowing me to revisit those difficult years albeit through the happy journey of quilting. Quilting, or at least starting new quilts became my happy place of escape from the realities of real life.

I started signing up for classes and making whatever they were offering. I had more money now and bought patterns and gadgets. Many I do not remember how to use. I even bought EPP papers to eventually learn to do that.

We did one block in the all day workshop and I went home and made a whole bunch of units. The challenge then became to find suitable fabrics for the stained glass effect. It took buying dozens of fat quarters in random colours for my "stash". Most of these are still in the stash. I realized that the newly available batiks gave the best stained glass effect. I wonder how many windows I will eventually make to complete something? 


Blessings,
Chris 

UFOs #7 Bricks and Mortar Kit 1998

I only started 2 quilts in 1998. I did complete one. Not this one. I thought if I got the whole kit and pattern I stood a chance to get it done. And it was easy, 

until I tried to figure out how to do the applique flowers on the borders using freezer paper because that is what I knew how to do. But this is flannelette. 

I think I would do raw edged applique with no fusing or paper. 

Blessings,
Chris

UFOs #6 Rose Sampler Supreme 1997

My daughter was getting married the summer of 1997 and we were working together at the national election. It was fun to do some real adult things with my 18 year old daughter. She had finished high school earlier that winter and was working 3 part time jobs. We fit this in. Often, when working at an election, one had to sit behind a table for 11 hours. This was the last election that I worked at. 

I sat for hours tracing leaves and flowers onto freezer paper for the twenty 14 inch Rose Sampler Supreme blocks by Rosemary Makhan. I decided to try my hand at machine applique. I had had no instructions then and was trying to figure it out. To me, every background block had to be the same colour from the same bolt of fabric. I did not yet know that using a variety of different backgrounds would be legal and that it would look really good. I always did my sewing with the quilt police looking over my shoulder criticizing every move. I am glad I have lightened up. But it has taken a lot of years.

It was a few years later that I took a workshop in machine applique. This block is 16 inches and I have been trying to figure out how to make it fit into the one above since I did not have extra background fabric.  I still like to use all the background and borders cut from the same bolt. But now, I make sure I buy enough in the first place. One of the reasons I have so so much fabric in my cupboard, closet, other closet and under some of the tables.

I have these 5 blocks made and only 15 more to go. To my credit, I started using a different pink and different green for each block. Now that was pretty radical for me back then. That's about the time I started collecting many different fabrics for future projects. 

Blessings,
Chris

UFOs #4 Lancaster Rose 1994

My sister went to university in Waterloo and I often drove the hour to visit her. One of those trips, I discovered the quaint village of St Jacobs and several quilt shops and the Farmers Market nearby. There are often a lot of Mennonite made hand quilted quilts on display and for sale. I wanted to make one. So I started dreaming. Eventually, I got the pattern for the Lancaster Rose. It was a simple 2 page photocopied sketch of the  rose and the leaves. There were no instructions. Seriously. For a newbie like me, that was a challenge to figure it out. I did this by asking a lot of questions each time I visited there. I bought some cheap muslin  and some solid and some print fabrics. I started this hand applique journey in 1994 using brown butchers paper I got from my father, a retired butcher. I even took an applique class there where they taught several different applique methods including ironing the freezer paper to the back of the fabric and using UHU glue to turn under the edges. I always used too much glue. Way too much. 

I was struggling to manipulate the fabric with the freezer paper under my left hand while stitching with an applique needle from right to left. Turning corners was a struggle as was turning an inny point or curve. Pushing through all that glue.

Again, I was trying to figure out how to grow the thing to finish 72x90, but this time, it was going to be set on point and I needed one more block. I had only enough pieces prepped for 12 blocks. I often thought I would use these blocks to practice machine quilting, but new projects came along and I kept moving forward. I even thought about sashing with a border print. 

For the life of me, I cannot find the blocks anywhere. I know they are in this house somewhere. Now that is a challenge I should enjoy, except that our son and the girls have moved in to the old Farm house and there are quite a few more things piled up here and there until we get things sorted out. I will post pictures when I find them. Wish me luck. 


Blessings,
Chris