Spring.....

has finally come to my part of the world...... but the lake is still frozen...... not warm enough to plant any flowers yet.... but there is hope.
I made another bag to go with my tote bag - these will be great to take on retreat!

Thought for the Day

If someone listens, or stretches out a hand, or whispers a word of encouragement, or attempts to understand a lonely person, extraordinary things begin to happen.

Loretta Girzartis

It's Snowing....

today (will we ever see Spring ???) .... and a great day to finish off some projects. I made two bags - a tote bag and a smaller bag with wool applique. I also completed a couple of customer quilts and am now caught up with those.

The wool applique bag pattern is by a favorite designer, Sue Spargo.

Check out Shirley's blog - she has pictures up of the class she taught at our LQS last weekend.

Thought for the Day
There is no medicine like hope, no incentive so great, and no tonic so powerful as expectation of something better tomorrow.
Orison Marden

Busy Month....

April has been a busy, busy month.... lots of quilting. This past weekend my friend, Shirley, hosted a landscape workshop at the LQS in town and was a great success. Check out her blog in the next few days and there should be some pics. I also got a few private lessons - lucky me, on how to paint trees and other fine points of landscapes.

I received a great block in my montly blockswap - another to add to my collection of pinks and browns. This should make a great quilt when I get all the blocks.

Thought for the Day
Of all the judgments we pass in life, none is more important than the judgment we pass on ourselves.
Nathaniel Branden

Look what came

in the mail today!!!! My parcel from the Secret Easter Swap hosted by Julie at Bush Baby Jag. The parcel was wrapped in the prettiest pink Spring fabric - tied with Ric Rac..

Opening it up I found the most wonderful surprises...... my alltime favorite quilting magazine is Patchwork and Stitching, and the little Easter Egg ornaments are just sooo cute. I am a lucky swapper, that's for sure!!! and want to thank Nicole H. from Seton Pk, SA, Australia.... I don't have a blog address for Nicole - but hopefully she will see this and provide me one!! AND thanks Julie for being a great hostess.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
It's never too late to have a happy childhood. Walk in the rain, collect rainbows, smell flowers, stop along the way, build sand castles, watch the moon and stars come out, say hello to everyone, make up new rules, go on adventures, act silly, take bubble baths, hold hands and hug and kiss, dance, laugh and cry for the health of it, feel happy, say the magic words, and trust the universe.
Bruce Williamson

April...

just snuck right up on me. I have been working on a variety of things.... quilting mostly and some piecing and applique. My never ending quest to complete my Baltimore Bunnies is humming right along - I have the borders almost complete, just appliquing the final bunnies and flowers on the borders. I wished I could have completed this for this Easter... but, it will be done THIS YEAR at least, LOL. I am also preparing to teach some classes at the LQS and finishing my University course, which I will take a break from over the summer to get a bunch of UFO's done.

I have completed two more blocks in my wool applique "Chestermere" quilt. This quilt was designed by Laurel Frances Everett of Shaggy Dog Designs - formerly of Calgary, now of Pincher Creek, Alberta. I hand appliqued this quilt in homespuns about two years ago (it is the picture in my blogger profile) ... and I wanted a project to work on in wool and thought this would be great. These two blocks are number 4 and 5, so now I have to decide if I want to do another six for a complete large quilt or just one more for a smaller wall hanging. The other blocks are here and here.

Thought for the Day

I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.

Jimmy Dean

Mountains......

I really miss seeing the Mountains when I drive anywhere!! I guess I just took them for granted when I lived in Calgary - since I lived there my whole life. I took this picture last weekend when I was in Calgary - just a gentle reminder..... I think I would like to to a landscape of just the mountains...

I picked up some new fabric at one of my favorite quilt stores, Traditional Pastimes, and decided that I would make my mom a new table runner for her coffee table for Easter.... I cut out the blocks at my retreat and finished them up yesterday.... I think she will really like it. The blocks are churn dash and it really didn't take that much fabric to make this quilt.

My retreat....

came to an end last Sunday...... this is what it looked like when we woke up on Sunday morning....It was a good thing that our hosts drove our cars to the top of the hill - they then took us up in their 4 wheel drive - my little car would never have made it up the hill. Even tho' this is what it looked like at 9 am, I was in Calgary by noon and the snow had stopped and it was just horribly messy.

The above quilt is a finished "retreat project" that Julie had been working on for the past two retreats - it was so great to see it finished.... we all felt like it was our project being finished!!!

I completed a small baby quilt top and put together my borders for Baltimore Bunnies. I just have the bunnies to applique, then I have to put it together... so there are no photos yet of this Baltimore Bunny project - that is being worked on in its second year.




Thought for the Day
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.
Melody Beattie

I'm enjoying...

my retreat. Yesterday the weather was so beautiful... but tonight we are in for a snow storm.... so, it may make it tough to get home ..... Yesterday and today a few of us went walking.... this is the view looking up into the hills - as you can see the sky is blue and it was about 11 Celsius.

The picture on the left is looking out from our sewing area, which is on the lower level, onto the deck that overlooks the Bow River.

The picture on the right is the common area of North Bow Lodge - where we can sit and chat, have a fire, hand stitch... just enjoy each other's company. It is on the main level. The bedrooms are also on this level.

This picture shows our sewing area on the lower level. There is a small alcove towards the lower deck where we eat our meals. The quilt below is being pieced by Julie, who bought the fabrics when she was on a trip to France. It is a wonderful little quilt.

No pics of me, yet.... I will have to get someone to use my camera! Another update to follow with news of the snow storm that is supposed to be coming.

Thought for the Day

I've found that luck is quite predictable. If you want more luck, take more chances. Be more active. Show up more often.

Brian Tracy

It's....

retreat time.... I am off tomorrow for a 3 day quilt retreat in the foothills of Alberta. I am so excited to see my old friends and to get some of those UFO's completed. I will be taking my computer, so maybe there will be a pic or two in the next few days... hopefully a pic of my Baltimore Bunnies being finished!

Thought for the Day
Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance towards the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vintage point.
Harold B Melchart

I have finally.....

completed a Landscape wallhanging!! My dear friend Shirley does the most amazing landscapes and I have always wanted to make one... I finally took her online class and completed my first one. I am very pleased with it. The sky and orange fabrics are pieces that Shirley and I hand-dyed last year (we dye about once a year)... and I think they go quite well with the other fabrics. I have a long way to go.... but feel I have made a great start. I am looking forward to other landscape projects.

We have had a blizzard for two days in a row... lots of snow.... well, one day, we will have Spring!

Thought for the Day

There are those who work all day. Those who dream all day. And those who spend an hour dreaming before setting to work to fulfill those dreams. Go into the third category because there’s virtually no competition.

Steven J Ross

The Sun is Shining.....

but it is still -30 degrees (celsius) - BUT, we are in for some warmer weather. This picture was taken the other day when we were having a snow storm. It is the view outside my quilt studio - I was thinking if we got any more snow I wouldn't be able to go up the stairs - LOL. This has been the coldest weather in these parts for a few years - of course, the year we move!! I have been busy quilting customer quilts and getting ready for my yearly retreat with friends. We will be retreating at North Bow Lodge on the beautiful Bow River, just an hour outside Calgary, next weekend. I am looking forward to finishing my Baltimore Bunnies that I have been doing for soooo long. I have just the borders to machine applique and then put it together.

Thought for the Day

The best way to knock the chip off your neighbor's shoulder is to pat him on the back.

Author Unknown

Finished...

a couple of blocks for swaps... one is a Peacock block... and one is for a monthly swap for April - April Showers... The Peacock block is a little dark, but if you click on it, you should be able to see it.

Our weather continues to be extremely cold... we had a blizzard last night that made the highways absolutely awful this morning when I went in to work. It doesn't look like Spring is going to be here any time soon - LOL. I have to admit I am getting a little sick of the cold weather.

I have my Secret Easter Swap parcel already to go...... but can't post a pic and... can't tell you where it's going either.

I am quite excited that I am going to be starting a Landscape wall hanging class on Shirley's Learning FA Group - I have all my hand dyed fabrics ready to go... I will probably start it this weekend....

Thought for the Day
The more intensely we feel about an idea or a goal, the more assuredly the idea, buried deep in our subconscious, will direct us along the path to its fulfillment.
Earl Nightingale

Catching up.....

I have been catching up the last few days on sewing that I need to get done.... and since it will never be Spring here - LOL.... I thought I would stitch up a little Easter table penny rug in wool and wool felt...I also made another bag... I just love these bags and they stitch up soooo quick... this one is in a new fabric that we got at the store I work at - it is very Spring-like. Since I'm not a "brand kinda gal" - LOL... I have no idea of the name of the fabric.

My toe is healing and is not as sore as it has been - although once in a while I sure feel it.

Thought for the Day

Be a good listener. Your ears will never get you in trouble.

Frank Tyger

A busy week.....

Wow... can't believe how time flies lately....It would be nice if I could say we are waiting for Spring.... but, alas.... another snow storm this morning keeps me snug in my quilting room, studying and sewing - LOL. I have been doing a lot of quilting lately, so that has kept me quit busy. I am all caught up, which is a great feeling.

I received two blocks last week for two separate swaps - the heart block is from my monthly quilt block swap (we swap blocks related to the month) and the other block is for my civil war quilt, which should just about be ready to put together. I think I need one more block.

On Wednesday, February 25, I will be a guest blogger at the Quilting Gallery. I will be blogging about how I choose quilt designs when I quilt for others and myself. I would be pleased to hear your feedback on my topic.

I watched the greatest movie on the weekend - Passchendaele, written, produced, and directed by Canadian Paul Gross. It is a wonderful love story set in World War I and many scenes were set in Calgary, in the early part of the century. It was wonderful to see my hometown depicted in a movie! If you like period love stories I think you will enjoy this movie!

Oh... and on Saturday morning I stubbed my toe on the side of the bathtub/sink AND.... broke a toe, maybe two.... ugly looking foot I have... but I had to teach a machine quilting class saturday morning... so I just gritted my teeth and went for it. I have broken several toes - and have come to the conclusion that I have "large chimpanzee toes" - LOL.... but, my foot and toes are black and blue, the toe beside the little toe is huge and swolen.... and today it doesn't feel too bad.


Thought for the Day
No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves.
Amelia Earhart

Happy Valentine's Day.....

to everyone. I have had another busy week..... I received a lovely gift about a week ago from my secret sister on my machine quilting list - featherlite clamps for my quilting machine. I have been wanting to try these for some time... and I am very pleased with them. They hold the sides of the backing very well and the machine does not bump into them when I get to quilting the side borders.... Thanks Secret Sis!

I am doing a block of the month thru my guild and it uses the Kaleidoscope ruler from Marti Michell. I don't usually buy specific rulers, but I thought I would try this block of the month - and we had to buy the ruler. I am quite pleased with it. I made my BOM (smaller block) and then I made a block for a swap - it was quite easy to change to another size. I think I will be able to use this ruler for quite a while.

Thought for the Day
We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.
Frank Tibolt

Snowy Week...

We have had an unusally snowy week.... I guess that's a good thing, cause I can get lots of projects finished. I am working on two Block of the Month patterns.... and am up to date with the January blocks, but should get at the February ones. If you don't keep up with these things, they kind of get away from you. I am also doing a few customer quilts - I guess people have saved them up over the holidays - so that keeps me extremely busy. My quilting class at the local store is full this week - I will be teaching 6 beginners to machine quilt - this is always fun..

I had a one year blog anniversary in January - I guess I should celebrate that - and come up with a prize....LOL.... stay tuned!

Thought for the Day

The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof.

Barbara Kingsolver