Guild Meetting last night

Last night at our guild meeting the speaker was one of the original founding members of our guild - Gail Hunt. Gail has gone on to write a few books and I have one of her books. I think it was one of the first big "hard cover" quilting books that I ever bought. I was quite pleased to read in our newsletter she was coming to speak. I got her to sign my copy of the book.



This hand dyed piece is one from her collection of quilts featuring each Province and Territory in Canada. This one is Nunavut.

Gail is now teaching and does some beautiful work - lots of hand dyed fabric and special surface designs. She can be found through The Fibre Art Network of Western Canada.

Lots of thread work and pictures. She has had her quilts shown in many shows and magazines and has won a bunch of awards.

This is Saskatchewan -- lots of thread work in this one.


I bought the book "Quiltworks across Canada" when it first came out in about 1998 or so.
Gail packed up her family - husband, 4 kids and a dog into an RV and spent a summer traveling across Canada where Gail met with quilters from each province and interviewed them - got a workshop from them and pictures of their work. It is a wonderful book. Every so often I bring it out and look it over again.



This is one of the workshops in the book. I really would like to try this one - it is so beautiful - but you know me -- it's on the list. The workshop is by Carol Galloway from Manitoba - and the difficulty is advanced! But the instructions are very clear and well laid out with great pictures. So maybe one day!




Look at some of the pictures in the book. Canadian quilters.

This is a collection of quilts by Win Burry in Ontario.



It was certainly great to meet Gail Hunt and get my book signed.

On the renovation front - things are starting to get going. The designer guy gave us some plans the other night and the contractor is hoping to start in about 10 days. And Jim thinks the front entry way needs to be re-designed and a new entry built outside of the house in the front porch area. I think Jim might have won the lottery and not told me!! Anyway he has now asked the designer guy to give him some drawing for a new entry!! But the kitchen plans that have been drawn up look good and I am happy with the design. Who knows what tomorrow brings!

What is happening here?

First off I thought we needed a new picture of Hunter!! I like this picture - he looks so gosh darn cute with his little glasses - which he never leaves on for more than 30 seconds! And it's not that bad of a picture of me - LOL. As I usually take pretty terrible pictures.




So - the news from the homefront. We all remember the photo of the new wallhanging finally up on the fireplace wall. Well - now the plan is to remove that wall!!




The fireplace is a great big brick rectangle in the middle of the house. It is about 37 inches wide by 87 inches long. We have decided we need to do a kitchen renovation - and hired a designer guy to help with the remodel. The kitchen is very small and needs to be made a little larger.




So - the designer guy says - "you really should decrease the size of the fireplace - that would make a huge difference" And the fireplace is not all that attactive - the brick is old and dated the actual fireplace is old and dated. But it is not going to be as easy as it sounds - and it doesn't really sound easy. The fireplace needs to be removed from floor to roof - the floor will have to be redone - the ceiling redone - the roof patched. A new fireplace, and chimney installed -- and we haven't gone anywhere near the kitchen.

Now the designer guy has been sick for a couple of weeks and we don't have the plans yet and the builder guy is "supposed" to be starting next weekend. We haven't really decided what to do for a new fireplace - have no idea what the kitchen will look like and haven't ordered cupboards - because we don't have a PLAN!

We are going to remove the valances and curtains from all the windows in the house -- so all the drywall will need to be redone above the windows - and off course we are allready having to redo the ceiling because of the changing of walls for the kitchen and removing the fireplace.


And summer is coming!! Supposedly it is better to get started instead of waiting for fall. But with summer comes Jim working full on with the start of the fishing season and I have holiday's booked. I was hoping to go to Calgary - which might have to be put off until August. And I have a road trip with my quilting peeps to Sisters Oregon in July. I am excited to go - rooms have been booked in Bend - quilt shops picked out! That trip won't be cancelled - and it is a short trip - 4 days only.

I am looking forward to the new kitchen and the more open living area - but I can feel the stress level rising here. Good thing I don't monitor my blood pressure! Or - maybe I should.

I am working on getting a few Dear Jane blocks ready for hand stitching as my sewing room might become a bit of a living room storage room. So ----- it should be an interesting summer.

The African Wedding Quilt

Is Finished -- well the top is finished. I am thrilled that it is finished a very happy with how it turned out. The panels that the bride wanted in the quilt are on the sides and I off set them because I didn't like the way they looked at the same eye level. I am going to talk to the long arm quilter about putting some decorative stitching in the black panels on the side - or I may decide to put a bit of applique there instead. I will decide after talking to the long arm quilter.



A few pictures of how it fits a queen sized bed. It is a little long and narrow but I find it fits the bed nicely.



I put a narrow piano key border on the bottom and a wider piano key border on the sides.



I think I need a better name than the "African Wedding Quilt" Any suggestions?



We have been busy here as we have decided to do a bit of a kitchen renovation - which is growing into a bit more of an event - as all renovations do I guess. We went out all day Friday to look at fireplaces --- what do fireplaces have to do with kitchens. Ah yes - it is growing!! Even though the wedding is not until October I really wanted to get the top finished an off to be quilted before I have to give up my quilting room to storing all the living room furniture - which seems to be where the kitchen renovation is going.......