The kitty cookie quilt is complete

The Kitty Cookie Quilt shall henceforth be known as April Showers. That is the theme that emerged. April showers bring May flowers, and all that. Cats and raindrops and lots and lots of flowers.

It did get a border, as you can see. The batting is lovely Warm and Natural which is (quelle surprise!) both warm and free from harsh chemicals.

The joining strips are from a piece of fabric I've had for a long time. In the mid-90s I was in a quilt shop when it caught my eye. Beautiful and VERY expensive at a time when we were quite poor. I was financing my quilting indulgence by teaching quilt classes and selling my own quilt pattern designs. In fact, I was in that shop, because I was meeting a writer who was interviewing me for a now-defunct Canadian quilting magazine. I bought an entire metre of that fabric, and I had no idea what I wanted to do with it. It just sang my name. It's called Winter Solstice. I don't think it's all that unusual for quilters to be able to tell you the provenance of the fabrics in a particular quilt. I chose the fabrics, because they spoke to me. Winter Solstice, with its muted teals and faintly tree-like images has been waiting for its moment all these years.

And I think I mentioned that the border print around this block came from a shop in Maui exactly 10 years ago. I loved the fabric when I saw it, and now, all these years later, it has good associations because of the family vacation we were on.

But this quilt has other connections for me. See this back? Almost all the fabrics (except the blue pieces) were donated by Arlene M. of the Gananoque & District Humane Society. She gave me these fabrics to use in this quilt, because the proceeds from its sale are going straight to the Lyndhurst Feral Cat Project for the benefit of the cats.

Here's what the front looks like, in full. A couple of the background fabrics are Arlene M's as well. The border fabric was donated in a circuitous way by  Mag M-H who had offered some fabric up online, and Susan H who saw the opportunity, and brought it to us. As they say, 'It takes a village!'.

So many people coming together to do something good!

But all this would be for nothing except that Arlene C stepped up to buy our little quilt! The circle's complete. We took an idea, some sketches, some fabric, thread, and a whole lotta love, and we turned it into cash to use for the cats. Thank you to all who helped along the way.

The kitty cookie quilt continues

If cats had rain gear, wouldn't they play in the rain?

You can find the template sheet here if you're working along with me. This is the last image of the quilt. The 11th of 12 blocks. We'll do this one reversed, and then, we'll be done!

Keepin' up!

This is the end of the 5th week, so here's the 5th design reversed.

That's means I have 10 of the 12 blocks completed for the quilt. Next week will be the last design....cookie and quilt block for the Kitty Cookie Quilt. And I think I've saved the best for last!

Smiley Cat quilt block

And here's the link for the line drawing template for the 5th design.

May Flowers.....Reversed

The 8th block in the Kitty Cookie Quilt.  Only 4 to go!

May Flowers, the quilt block

This is the 4th design, making this the 7th block (out of 12).

The border fabric is a little bit of some fabric I bought when we were on a family vacation in Maui several years ago. The entire store (and it was BIG) was full of tropical colours. I felt right at home.

Here's the link for the drawing, if you're working on your own Kitty Cookie Quilt. Don't forget when you print it that you need to be sure your printer isn't scaling the design to fit your page. The square should measure 8 inches.

Raindrops reversed

Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head (Reversed). I think there's a theme emerging.

More raindrops

The cookie was more complicated than the quilt block. This one is pretty simple. Now, to do it reversed.

You can find the .PDF for the quilt block HERE.

Everything's Comin' Up Roses! - the quilt block

So, OK, I got a bit excited, and accidentally did the reversed image first, and then had to do the first image before I posted them here. Or else, I'd confuse myself even further. Here, then, are both appliqué blocks for the Kitty Cookie Quilt.

And here is the .PDF for anyone who is stitching along with me.

Next week, another cookie and another block. Stay tuned.

Kitty Cookie Quilt - Block 1

The Kitty Cookie Quilt begins. Here's the first block, April Showers.

I'm fusing the appliqué pieces to the background, but I'm only fusing the edges, so it's not too stiff. That just means I'm trimming the centre out of the fusible web before I iron it onto the fabric. Then, I cut the fabric patch on the outline I traced for that purpose.

I'm zig-zagging around each patch with machine embroidery thread, but I'm working on the block with it already layered onto the batting. It gives it stability, and the only downside I've found is that the backing needs to be a good quality fabric, so that all the stitching lines and thread ends don't shadow through.

Batting. I really like Warm and Natural.

Fortunately, we (the Lyndhurst Feral Cat Project) were given some fabulous fabric by Arlene Massey (who is a big friend to us and to the Gananoque & District Humane Society and to cats everywhere!). There was a lot of high quality flannelette in the bag she gave us, and I've used that on the back of this block. It will make the finished quilt extra soft and warm. Each block will be backed with a different fabric, so the back is as scrappy as the front.

Next up: April Showers reversed!
Remember if you'd like to work along with me on this, the .PDF for this block is available in the previous post.

Gossip

Do you like gossip? I like the good kind. The kind where someone does something good, or someone succeeds at something. I've got some of that to share today.

But first, see what came in the mail for me yesterday?

I may be a rotten photographer but I'm lucky to have good friends. My friend Karen Neary sent me this little pin ....See it?  On my knitting project bag? The pin is a reproduction of the cover of her NEW BOOK!! It's about to be published. So very close to being published that I think it's OK to share the news here. A book of New York Beauty quilts!!

But that's not all.......... Karen's designed a New York Beauty block that you can find in the current Quilter's Connection magazine. It's on the cover, too. Go have a look. It's fabulous.

The quilt is on display at Mrs. Pugsley's right now. It's being raffled off in support of the Nova Scotia Fibre Festival.  Beth (of Mrs. Pugsley's Emporium) wrote an excellent piece about the quilt and Karen. You'll find that here: http://mrspsamherst.blogspot.ca/2014/09/it-here.html

It makes Grandma Coco happy when good things happen to good people. That's the way the world OUGHT to work, don't you think?

Some things never get old

Pretty? Our hand quilting isn't perfect, but with the brilliant October sun shining on it, we think it's quite alright. We see more quilting in our future.....and maybe even some cookies!!

Lucky us

It's a soggy day in the Kingdom. Just the right kind of day to find a treat in the ol' mailbox..... a package all the way from Hawaii! Karen of Sew Karen-ly Created took part in a blog hop for a new line of fabrics designed by Mark Hordyszynski from Maui. The Mad Hatter of Maui. The prize was FIVE fat quarters and a dazzling colour card that was tied with a bright orange ribbon (almost too pretty to untie!) And we won!!

A real day brightener! Thanks, Karen and Polly! Thanks, Mark!

Mo' Mittens

Cosy Quilted Mittens
(aka Frost Buster Mittens)

About a million years ago, long before the internet made communicating ideas a hundred times more easy, we designed a pattern for mittens. Those mittens match the Cosy Quilted Cap. In The Beginning, they were called Frost Buster Mittens. Catchy, eh? Years went by and we busied ourself with other things. Eventually, we prepared the pattern in .PDF form, so we could just shoot it off across the ether and not have to worry about printing and postage. However, up until today, we hadn't found a home for it. Today, spurred on by Kate and Maria, we've made it available on Craftsy. To that end, you can find the Cosy Quilted Mittens Pattern here. Back in the mid-'90s, it sold for $8.95 and today, almost 20 years later, it costs $5. from Craftsy. We think that's reverse inflation :) and a pretty good deal.

The Cosy Quilted Mitten pattern is pretty simple, but very unconventional. In a nutshell, you knit a picture frame and 2 quilted panels. You insert the panels into the frame.....by hand. The only real skills required are patience and a willingness to do handwork. Somehow, we think handwork isn't as popular today as it was then. However, maybe there are some die-hard handworkers out there who will appreciate it.

"Hands Up, Pardner!"
(no husbands were actually harmed in the photographing of Cosy Quilted garments)

While you're checking out mittens, we'll remind you of the Oddball Mitten Pattern, which is similar. The quilted panels have been replaced with knitted blanks. All very unorthodox, but very pretty. If you're tired of the same old, same old, you'll find a refreshing change in this take on mitten-making. Also $5. available from Ravelry.  Edited on November 15, 2016..... For now, this pattern is no longer available due to the fact that it's a really, really odd way to go about mittens, and I just don't have the time to defend it. :)  Maybe some day.......

Trending

See over there on the right? That photo of the woman in the quilted cap? The cap with the knitted brim?

That's the Cosy Quilted Cap Pattern. It's pretty cool. One of our best designs, if we do say so ourselves. It fits well. It's warm. AND the pattern comes with 5 sizes for kids through adults. All in one .PDF.

Wanna know what's cooler?

Our friend Karen at Sew-Karen-ly Created, tipped us off this morning that it's featured on the Craftsy site. It was trending at 8th spot this morning, and right now.....at this minute....it's at number THREE!!

Pretty in pink

Two little baby sweaters finished today. 

Pink, girlie sweaters. 

With simple quilted yokes.

Duetta sweaters.

Unashamedly, by hand

We've been workin' away on that half-finished quilt we resurrected for therapy. We stitched the rows together, and added the borders. We did that part twice, because, of course, we weren't paying attention as to which were the outside edges (as opposed to the edges that meet in the centre of the quilt).

We haven't hand quilted in a while. We usually use those old Q-Snap frames. You know, the white pastic tubes with the covers that snap tightly in place. You remember. Those old frames that used to say, right on the packaging, "Guaranteed for Life"?????  Remember???? Well, it seems they were guaranteed for the life of the plastic, 'cuz they sure weren't guaranteed for a normal, human lifetime.....or even an abnormal human, such as us. The parts that snap over the quilt to hold it in place are all cracked and useless.

We ended up with a fairly flimsy-looking wooden frame that measures about 15 inches across. It has a good, strong, and functional screw and wing-nut join though and it seems to hold our quilt nice and taut. We think it's going to be fine. And it only cost us seven bucks!!

The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry (you should read it!)

We do have the lumber and hardware for a floor frame, but there's something much nicer about holding the quilt on your lap to quilt.

We have our quilt in its frame. We have our good Ott light. And, we have the CBC radio to listen to while we quilt. It feels good.

Foresight or sloth?

We don't understand why some people work so hard to finish up their projects the way some mothers insist you have to eat your veggies in order to get dessert. We've always thought a well-saved WIP can be a treasure. This is a case in point:

We're at a low ebb creatively. Starting something new seems like a monumental challenge. We seem to have all we can do just to get out of bed and brush our teeth. We knit away on sock after sock because that's easy. Grab wool. Grab needles. Pick out a stitch pattern. Make a few simple calculations, and we're off! But yesterday, we had the urge to handle fabric. We wanted the comfort of the needle slipping into the cloth. We needed the soothing monotony (and we mean that in a good way!) of hand quilting. However, we don't have the energy to pick out colours or slice up fabric.

And then we remembered. We have at least one quilt project already under way. It's a quilt that needs no thought. All the really creative bits have already been thought out. It just needs the drudgery of the doing. And that's what we need right now.

We dragged a chair in, to stand on, in order to reach the highest shelf in our closet. Way up there, is the box, with an actual layer of dust on top. Once upon a time we had this crazy idea that we'd do a scrap quilt in a controlled colour palette, and we'd hand quilt it in 4 sections, with a hoop, and then join the quarters together in a quilt-as-you-go approach.

When we opened the box, we were shocked to see the template we drew is yellowed with age and marked, "Arc quilt, 9 inch block, March 2003".  How cool is that? Nine years' gestation. Two quarters are already completed and joined together. That's fully 1/2 of the double bed-sized quilt done. We have the 3rd quarter partly assembled, and all the blocks for the 4th are there as well. We even had the foresight to package up the backing fabrics AND the border strips. What a gift, to find this almost-finished quilt! It doesn't really matter what stopped us last time. This is its moment.

A girl can never have too many bags

Love Will Find Us
Copyright  © Cheryl Coville 2012

That's a quote from Kate and we agree wholeheartedly. We love bags. We love them for holding all the projects we have on-the-go at any given moment. We have one that's very special to us because Stephanie made it and she made a sweet label that she stitched inside. The fabric she used features cats and mice because she knows how much we love cats. (Mice?...not so much.) We keep all our quilting templates in that one and always know where to find them.

Not too long ago, our friend Karen told us about Spoonflower. Yesterday, we got a little envelope in the mail from them. We put one of our drawings on fabric and sent for a couple of test swatches to see how they look for real. (It's one thing to see them on the monitor and quite another to see them on fabric.) Spoonflower allows you to buy an 8 inch test square so we ordered one of each. The cool thing is that 8 inches is useable!!

This morning we decided we'd take the day to play. (So, what else is new?) And we made ourselves a knitting project bag from Love Will Find Us. SO MUCH FUN!!! It shouldn't even be legal. The second fabric swatch is a variation with white lettering. Both fabrics are now available for sale since we've seen and approved them.

The really interesting thing is that last week when we were at Taylor's Sewing Centre (our favourite local quilt shop) we fell deeply in love with the flowered fabric in the photo. It was on sale and it didn't take too much convincing for Cheryl to let Grandma Coco have it. We didn't have a project in mind for it. We just liked it. And, look! It's perfect for this bag.

Three Cheers for Mr. CoCo

This is the long weekend that kicks off the summer season here in the Kingdom and, as usual, the countryside is alive with garage and yard sales. We know many people find these sales appealing but we generally avoid them lest we find ourselves in an episode of Hoarders.

However, this morning after his tennis game, Mr. CoCo found himself with time on his hands and a yard sale beckoning. He moseyed over to see what was on offer. This is what he brought home:

For all of $5. including the storage container. Hail the conquering hero! It's full of quilting cotton! and some of it still sports price stickers from a local (now out-of-business) quilt shop.

Even Cassie was impressed.