Another give away to tell you about

If you like to scrap book go check out this site. Nilla is having a wonderful giveaway but it ends tonight so hurry if you want to be included. Update: it ends at noon today because there is a 12 hour time difference. So hurry, hurry up!

Blast from the Past!!

If you : have some extra time on your hands, are bored, want to waste some time or you feel like being creative without a needle and thread in your hands then have fun with this site. Yes, I really was that old in 1960- NOT! (but at least I haven't aged a day in the 36 year span of these photos!).
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OMG was 1986 ever a bad hair year!! I am sporting at least 3 different hairdo's that my relatives still have to this day! (I wonder if they realize).
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PS. I give up on trying to get 1974 and 1978 to line up. I must have tried 50 times but everytime they post they go haywire.

Another give away to tell you about

There is another giveaway to tell you about. Luxe Lanai is doing a giveaway here. Better hurry. It is being drawn today!

Update: Sorry ladies (and any gentlemen that might be looking in), this giveaway was drawn early so it's over all ready! :0(

Update on our space at the store

Here are some updated views of the space my sister and I have in an antique store in Long Sault. This is where you can check for information regarding the store. My sister is the creative one and is really enjoying being part of this and I am too. Most of the items in the space do belong to my sister because I am having a hard time finding the time to get things finished even though our house is being over run by items that need my attention!

Last update on the birdies

This will be the last update on the birdies. I took the top photo a few days ago. They were really getting big.

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I noticed yesterday that they didn't really fit in their nest anymore. I decided I better go out today and get another photo before it was too late. They are all grown up now and I was thinking they are going to be leaving the nest soon.

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As I was taking the photo and the flash went off one of the birds flew right out of the nest. I am not sure if this was it's first flight but I think they should all be gone in the next couple of days. I haven't seen that one come back yet so now there are 3 in the nest.

Another give away to tell you about

Bunny over at 'The Creative Hare' is doing a giveaway to celebrate her 100th post. Go over and take a look if you have time. I hope you can take some time to look at her blog because she has some very nice ideas. This contest runs until Aug 27th.

...And then there were 6!

Well, it's kinda like this...

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On friday morning we had 1 cat but before I had a chance to go to bed we had 6!

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My cat named Ginger gave birth to 6 babies on friday night. Sadly 1 kitten was lost so we have 5 left. We have 3 boys and 2 girls among the litter. The first kitten was black when first viewed but now we have noticed that she is black and white striped with some orange mixed in. I think she's going to be a real cutie! EVERY kitten after was orange! Some look like the mommy with some white mixed in and a couple of them seem to be predominately orange. It's too early to know if they will be short or long hair. We will be looking for some homes for them in about 8 weeks (but maybe not all of them!)

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I think Ginger is going to be a good mommy now that the initial shock of the whole thing is over. At first she didn't know what to think . I guess HER mommy forgot to explain the whole "birds and bees" thing to her.

Baltimore Bunnies

This is a quilt I made using a pattern called Baltimore Bunnies. The pattern for this quilt was designed by Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs. I love all of Anne's patterns and have 2 more quilts waiting for me to start. Thanks Anne for making such beautiful patterns.

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This quilt is hand appliqued, machine pieced and quilted by me. There are lots of hours in this quilt and worth every minute. I absolutely love how this quilt looks. This is going to be my special Easter quilt. Don't all the bunnies look like those chocolate bunnies that we all love to eat?

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This quilt won 'Viewers Choice Large Wall Hanging- Traditional' at our guilds quilt show this past June.

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I was so excited to finally get this quilt finished and actually finished it the day before the show (along with my other 4 quilts I put in the show). I will post each quilt I put in the show because they are also all my 'June finishes'. I hope you enjoy this little quilt show :0)

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As usual, you can click on the photo for a close-up look at all the details and quilting.

Winter Wonderland

This is one of my favourite quilts (but then every quilt I do is a favourite or I wouldn't put the time into making it!). It was so fun embroidering all the snowmen and I just love the little expressions on all their faces as well as all the small details in each of the blocks. I think the "scrappy" reds set this quilt off just right. I purchased the pattern and fabric as a kit on-line from Shabby Fabrics.
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This quilt is called Winter Wonderland and it is a pattern designed by Crabapple Hill. All the embroidery is done by hand and the piecing is done by machine. This quilt is machine quilted by me.
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This quilt won 'Viewers Choice Best Christmas Decor' at our quilt show in June. You can click on the photo to see a close-up image of the details and quilting.

Coffee Time- Mystery Quilt

This is a quilt I made in Kingston at the Perfect Stitch. I took the class as a 'mystery class' and am very happy with how it turned out. This quilt was shown at the Thousand Islands Quilters' Guild quilt show in June. This is also one of my 'June finishes'.
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This class was taught by Elizabeth Lake and it's an original design by her. I took this class 3 years ago and finally got it finished! What's nice about a mystery is the fact that you don't actually know what you are making until the class is almost finished and the end quilt is revealed! I have taken the (mystery) class for the past 3 years and love each of the quilts.
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This is a close up of my favourite mug of course because it has my name on it!
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The outer border is my own design because I could not find the instructions (or even a picture) for Elizabeth's quilt. This quilt is large measuring 82 1/2" x 103". This quilt is completely done by machine with machine piecing and quilting by me.
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I loved some of the coffee fabrics and continued the "coffee" theme throughout this quilt with the quilting. I did a different coffee mug in each of the large blocks and a different word representing a type or flavour of coffee in each of the setting triangles on the outside. I think the quilting sets this quilt off and makes me really want to cuddle up in front of the TV (on a cold day) and have a hot coffee!
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This is a close-up of some of the quilting.

Crazy Cats

This quilt was started by me a few years ago and was a class I took at Wilton Creek Fabrics in Harrowsmith, ON.
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The patten for this quilt came from Buggy Barn and was so much fun to do with the "crazy" piecing involved. There were no precise points to match and it didn't matter if you had a perfect 1/4"! This is probably the most "out of the box" I ever get since I tend to do things in a traditional manner. This piece was liberating to work on to say the least. I find this quilt whimsical and it makes me smile.

Summer Day Sampler

This is the last of the quilts that I entered into our guilds quilt show in June.
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This quilt is called "Summer Day Sampler" and is designed by Lydia Quigley of The Rabbit Factory. Lydia has a great new blog you can check out here.
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I absolutely loved making this quilt. This quilt pattern was being sold as a BOM with all the fabric at a store in the states called Calico Alley but I picked it up from them on sale at the quilt show in Pennsylvania last year as an entire kit. I think the store may now be closed because their web address is no longer.
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Once I started making the quilt, it was impossible to do it as BOM and completed the top in only 10 days. I really loved making each and every block and LOVE the finished quilt. I have many other patterns of this style and would love to get going on another one.
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What a great quilt to use as a throw during the summer (or winter when you are feeling those winter blues and need a picker-up).

People come for the pool.

Although I did not get out today to swim in the pool we did have some visitors. My niece (and boyfriend), my other niece and my great-nephew came for a swim today. My son joined them. Everybody had a good time cooling down while swimming. I have included a couple pictures of my great-nephew for you to enjoy. My little nephew lives for the water and goes swimming whenever he can. It's practically impossible to get him out once he's in even when his lips are turning blue and can't stop shivering. Hope you are all having a happy day :0)

What a nice couple of days!

I decided since today was so nice that I was finally going to get some photos of my quilts done so that I could show them to you. I will post all the pictures tomorrow of my 'June Finishes' but until then I will leave you with this photo.

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It was brought up to me lately that maybe I should start exercising (don't say that too loudly- it's a bad word in my vocabulary!). I decided today that exercise is not something I need to do. I think all I need to do is try to take photos of my quilts on an extremely hot and somewhat windy day.

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Today I was trying to take photos of my quilts from our clothesline (which is off our deck-which is currently being ripped up to be re-done). I have to watch for nails and loose boards (I've already fallen thru the deck twice!) The wind was blowing a bit and because I was trying to get as much of the quilt in the photo as possible (and therefore pinning very little at the top) the pins kept 'snapping' off. I was running up and down the deck trying to get the quilts to stay on the line and get the photo while the sun and wind were co-operating. This is more difficult then it sounds.

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Anyway, to make a long story short...by the time I finished and came inside you would have thought I just ran a 10 mile marathon! I was all hot and sweaty and could not wait to get downstairs where it was cool. Maybe I'll take a swim in the pool later but I am finally cooled down now and don't feel like going out in the hot again at the moment. Besides- some work has to get finished first!

What a nice day- continued

What a couple of beautiful days here at home. It was gorgeous out yesterday and it's the same again today! The weather man is calling for more of the same for the weekend- Yippee!
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Yesterday I was fortunate enough to spend a little while on the river with my son and there was not a ripple to be had. My dad called home and suggested (gave Chance permission) to take out his fishing boat for a little ride since it was so nice. I tagged along for the ride so Chance would not be alone (my father 'suggested' this too!) What a nice ride. I decided that no fancy ski boat was needed to enjoy the wind in our hair. My dad has quite a large motor on the boat and it goes pretty fast. I am not sure he was really thinking 'fishing' when he bought this motor. Anyway...here are some photos of the trip...
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This is my son when we were first taking off in the boat. Our house is behind his head on the left. You can see a glimpse of a bridge. My dad built this bridge 2 years ago for my nieces wedding. She got married in the back yard and what a pretty wedding it was with the river as the backdrop. Here Chance is enjoying some 'wind in his hair' as he decides to go a little faster.

This is a view of the Ogdensburg/ Johnstown International Bridge.

Here is the Prescott elevator where all the salt is brought in.

This is a view of the river- not a ripple to be had! What a PERFECT day.

A Morning Laugh

Here is a little laugh for you all this morning. I was looking at some of my blogs I have listed under favourite blogs and I came across this post this morning. I thought I would like to share it with the rest of you so you could have a laugh this morning too. You can see it here at Abyquilt. Enjoy!

Thousand Islands Quilters' Guild Quilt Show 2009 Continued

This is the 2nd quilt I'd like to share with you from our quilt guilds' show this past June. This quilt was also made by Jeannette Catchpaugh.

This quilt was taken as a class at the Perfect Stitch in Kingston last year. The quilt was designed and taught by Elizabeth Lake. Jeannette hand appliqued and machine pieced the quilt and I machine quilted it for her.

Jeannette won Viewers Choice Best Bed Quilt Pieced at our quilt show . Jeannette also had the honour of receiving the Ontario Connections Rosette for this quilt. All in all Jeannette came home with 4 Rosettes--WAY TO GO JEANNETTE! You are one talented lady with a great eye for colour.

You can't see Jeannette very good so I included another photo with her a little larger.


I included this next photo with a bit of a close up on the quilting. (If you click on the picture you will see the quilting better).

Quilt done by Dianne Fyn

This is the 3rd quilt I would like to share with you and it's a prize winner as well. My frined Dianne Fyn made this quilt using the 'Rabbits Prefer Chocolate' pattern by Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs. This is one of my favourites and I can't wait to make my own. I have all the patterns and fabric ready to go (now to find the time!).

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This quilt was hand appliqued and machine pieced by Dianne and machine quilted by me. Dianne even made the little wheels on the cart- aren't they adorable? I am going to have to get Dianne to show me how to do that when I get to that stage.

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Dianne was unable to be there during the presentation of the Rosettes so Darlene Nelson accepted the ribbon on her behalf. Dianne received her rosette in the 'Viewers Choice Best Small Wall Hanging- Traditional' category. Way to go Dianne!

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I have included a smaller picture of the quilt as well to show the quilting a bit better. As usual, you can click on the photo to make it larger. ( PS. This photo was taken before the binding was put on )

Quilt done by Rita Borger

This quilt was done by my friend Rita Borger. Rita designed, hand appliqued, hand embroidered and machine pieced this quilt. The machine quilting was done by me. Rita won her rosette for this quilt in the 'Viewers Choice Large Wall Hanging- Innovative' category.

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This quilt was done beautifully and I can't even imagine how long it took to do all that embroidery. Rita is a painter and it truly shows in this original quilt by her. I wish I had half the talent she does in her design! Way to go Rita!

I'm hoping that with the top picture you will be able to see all the work Rita did with her embroidery and hand applique.

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The picture directly above is Rita with her rosette and the photo on the right is a candid shot I got of Rita in Pennsylvania last year on a quilting trip. (I didn't think you could see her very good in the other photo so I included this one).

Update on the birdies

Here is a picture taken this morning of the little birdies I see from my studio window. They are growing up very quickly and will be gone soon. There are 4 in the nest and the mommy bird was getting very mad at me for trying to take the photo. My son had a brilliant idea that we should remove the board above the nest to get a better shot. At the moment the deck is being re-done and all the boards have had their nails removed. It was (seemed to be) a brilliant idea until my son fell thru the deck! We should have know better since it's already happened to me twice! It only takes a step on the wrong section for it to happen and a board will flip up and your leg will be dangling thru.

Thousand Islands Quilters' Guild Quilt Show June 2009

As mentioned in an earlier post back in July our quilt guild had our quilt show at the end of June. Our guild had a lot of positive comments about the display of quilts, quality of work and presentation of the show. We had lots of vendors on had to supply all our "needs" and everyone was very happy with the show in general.

I will include over the next while some photos from the show.

The first picture I wanted to share with you (above) is a picture of my friend Jeannette Catchpaugh with her prize winning quilt. This quilt was made by her and it is a pattern from Country Heirlooms out of Louisa, VA. The quilt is hand appliqued and machine pieced by Jeannette and then machine quilted by me.

Jeannette won Viewers Choice Best Bed Quilt Appliqued at our quilt show in June (2009). Jeannette also had the honour of receiving the Canadian Quilters Association Rosette for this quilt in the Viewers Choice Best Quilt Overall category. Congratulations Jeannette!

The second photo is a close-up of the applique work and some of the quilting. I had done some hearts on a quilt for Jeannette previously and she asked if I could include something similar on this quilt. We were both very happy with how it turned out. If you click on the photo you can see a better close-up image of the applique work and quilting design.

View From My Studio

This is part of the view I get when I look out my window from my studio. These are baby swallows and aren't they just the cutest? I don't really care much for this species of bird but I think the babies couldn't be any cuter with their little tufts of hair on top of their heads. I enjoy watching the mommy bird come and feed them. Soon they will be all grown up and 'fly the coop'. This is just one of the things I like about summer. I will try to post some more pictures as they get older

Sad News

I have just found out that a long standing member of the Thousand Islands Quilters' Guild (this is the guild guild I belong to) has just passed away. Henny Bakker was a very long standing active member of our guild who continually contributed to our guilds needs. Henny donated quilts for our silent auctions, made items for donation for our sales booths at our guild quilt show, made blocks and helped with the hand quilting on the donation quilts that went to other worthy causes in the community. She volunteered her baking skills and time to help out with our guilds quilt show as well. She was active in both the "applique group" and the "library group" with our guild and I know she is going to be very missed by many of our members. My thoughts are with her family and friends at this time. Here is a small quilt that I was lucky enough to win at one our guilds silent auction. Henny's work was impeccable and I will cherish this quilt. The back is simply signed "Henny Bakker 2003". This has been in our living room on top of one of our chairs since I bought it but I think I will now get it framed to make sure nothing can damage it. Thanks for being such a great lady Henny- we will miss you!

Blog Giveaway

One of my favourite designers is being so kind to give away a $50 gift certificate for her online shopping page. Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs is the designer I am talking about and you can read about the giveaway here at the blog of "Mama Spark's World".

You can see what Anne had to say here.