2017 FAL Meet the Host: Felicity

My guest blogger today is fellow BeeSewcial mate Felicity.  We were able to meet in person at QuiltCon and I adore her creations and gorgeous photos all year long thanks to social media.  I'm sure you will to so - read on! Karen 

Helloooo!

I'm Felicity

and this is my family - Husband of 17 years K and our nearly-10-year-old daughter G:

being silly, something we do very well

I am lucky enough to live in Naramata, British Columbia. It's a village of fewer than 2,000 people nestled on the Naramata Bench in one of Canada's fruit- and wine-producing regions, the Okanagan Valley.



As you can see, we're on the side of a lake, and it's a big tourist destination because our summer weather is hot and dry.

We moved to Naramata from Vancouver just over a year ago. After living for nearly 25 years in Vancouver, we grew tired of the traffic and the astronomical cost of living and decided to take a different approach to life. We couldn't be happier.

I quit my job in the financial services industry and now I work part time in a local quilt shop as a designer, teacher and retail associate. I also work from home as a training and development consultant. My husband was a stay at home dad in Vancouver and he also works part time here in the area.

I began quilting in 2000, shortly after I got married. My husband is the one who encouraged me to look for a beginner's class because I spent a lot of time looking at and admiring quilts in museums and at shows but I was too intimidated to try it myself. But boy am I glad I did. I knew from the first minute of that first class that this was going to be my thing.

This is my first quilt - the classic beginner's sampler with one large scale fabric plus some blenders.

I even free motion quilted it all by myself on my tiny Bernina 145.

Yikes, amirite? But you know what? That was the start of something, and you gotta start somewhere.

Baby quilts for nieces and nephews happened in due course, as did a quilt for my husband's 40th birthday (2 years late).

I subscribed to quilting magazines, I read books about quilting, I could spend a whole weekend at a quilt retreat and come home and sew some more. It consumed all of my free time! Eventually, though, I got to the point where I was reading about quilting but becoming overwhelmed by all the projects I wanted to do so I didn't start anything.

Thankfully, I was able to give myself a good talking to, and came to my senses. Every quilt is just a whole bunch of seams that are sewn one at a time, right? Well, I said to myself, just commit to 20 minutes a day of sewing something. Anything. But sew. Eventually you'll get something done.

One of my first modern quilts

I was right! I did get lots done, aided as well by the explosion of the online world of modern quilting. I found Flickr and the myriad active quilt groups it hosted (RIP, old Flickr). I also found quilt blogs and started my own as a way to keep myself accountable by journalling my progress.

It's not an exaggeration to say that blogging and sharing online changed my life! I found Vancouver Modern Quilt Guild online and attended the first meeting in mid-2010. I met dear friends in person and via blogging (and blogging friends became in-person friends too). I participated in Flickr quilt swaps, virtual bees and met many of my online friends at the inaugural QuiltCon in Austin.

These two quilts won honourable mention at QuiltCon 2013.

Though  I don't do many swaps anymore and online bees have fallen a little out of fashion, I still belong to a virtual quilt bee with 9 other incredible quilters, called Bee Sewcial. We work in solids only and we piece improvisationally based on that month's prompt and colour story.

Winter is my first quilt finished with Bee Sewcial blocks. The prompt was "abstract minimalist winter landscapes in shades of grey." Did my bee mates deliver or what? I love this quilt, and I will be submitting it to QuiltCon 2018 show.

Winter, a Bee Sewcial Collaboration

I like to have lots of projects on the go, in varying degrees of complexity because I never know what I want to work on at any given time.

Here's a sampling of some of my favourite quilts from over the years:

In a (Solid) Pickle, 2011 (swap quilt)

Burst of Colour, 2013

Helen Keller Wisdom, 2011

Selfie, 2015

Naramata Summer, 2014 (made after a visit and before we knew we'd be moving here!)

Modern Stripes, 2016 (accepted to QuiltCon 2017)

I'm extremely fortunate to be able to have a completely separate studio to work in - we finished the 450 square foot space over our detached 2-car garage just for my quilting. (Truth be told that space was what sold us on this house. Good thing we like the rest of it!)

 

Before

After

I love participating in the Finish A Long, and I'm so happy to be a host as well. We motivate each other to get our beautiful projects finished so we can move along to the next thing that makes us happy, yes? Yes.

Thanks for visiting with me!

2017 FAL Meet the Host: Izzy

Today's guest blogger is Izzy.  She and I have a few things in common.  We both have a gorgeous granddaughter and have served as VP for our MQG chapters.  Read on and learn more about what things you might also share with us like the love of quilting!, Karen

  

Hi - I'm Izzy from Dizzy Quilts and it's my turn to tell you a little about myself!

I'm a mother, step-mother and foster mother to six children, grand-mother to one gorgeous little girl and wife to my soul mate. During the day, I manage a team of e-Learning designers/developers at a global financial company.

All of this keeps me pretty busy, but I've always made time to be crafty - when I was a little girl, my mom taught me how to knit and I made all my teddy bears knitted sweaters!

During my teenage years, I was a little too busy with school (and with boys!) to craft, but a few years later, when I had my first child, I started sewing.  I made some baby clothes and I made curtains mostly. I even took a sewing class to learn how to make garments for myself, but I never got the hang of that - nothing ever really fit right.

About 9 years ago, I walked into JoAnn's to get fabric for new curtains and spotted the cutest little quilt kits. I bought one, put it together and haven't looked back since! I was completely and totally hooked.

The first few quilts I made were very traditional - lots of small pieces, small florals, etc. I really had no clue what I was doing, but learned so much with the making of these quilts.

A lap size log cabin quilt made for my step-mom

I started making these quilts for pretty much everyone in my family.  And pretty soon, every bed in the house had a quilt on it.

Quilt I made for my sister-in-law - this is Bronx testing it.

I even made quilts as curtains!!

Around 2010, I discovered quilt blogs and the online quilting community.  That literally changed my quilting life!!  I started my own blog, met some amazing people and a couple of years later, found the Montreal Modern Quilt Guild.

Through the members of this guild, I learned about modern quilting and I fell in love with quilting all over again.

I started making modern quilts and building a stash of really colourful fabrics and solid neutrals.

When I first started quilting, my least favourite part of the whole thing was the actual quilting. My sewing machine was pretty small and wrestling with a big quilt in that tiny little space was painful and I very often ended up with puckers on the back of my quilts.  And then I changed two things: my sewing machine and my basting method.

I purchased my Juki TL-2010Q. It is literally a dream to quilt with. Lots of room to the right of the needle and super consistent, fast stitching.

I also learned how to board baste my quilts - which has saved my knees, my back and to a certain extent, my sanity!  :-)

And now quilting is actually my favourite part. I look forward to finishing a top just so I can get to the quilting. My dream is to some day own a long-arm machine, but I would need to get a much bigger house before that could happen!

Last year, I became the Vice-President of the Montreal MQG and that has been a lot of fun. The group is growing and we have such amazing people and quilters.  Each meeting is a great source of inspiration and I'm learning so much.

When I was approached to become a FAL host last year, I was so flattered and so happy. I love hosting these link-ups - so much inspiration and so much talent every quarter.

Thanks for reading and if you have questions, please leave a comment!  :-)

Izzy

Easy Framed Accent: 2017FALQ2 Host Tutorial

2017 FAL Q2 Host - Tutorial

Welcome!  It's my turn to share a tutorial as part of the Finish A Long Quarter 2 hop.   I hope you've been enjoying meeting the other hosts and have taken the time to check out their blogs.   Remember the Finishes Link Up closes July 1st.   See the FAL tab for details. 

Easy Framed Accent

Adding a special touch to any project just got a little easier and a tad bit clever if I do say so myself.   There are a TON of patterns out there to make simple projects like a zipper pouch, bag or tote.  No matter how great they are, I'm often tempted to give them a tweak.  If you're the same way, consider embellishing with a Framed Accent Strip.  I'll show you how.

The sample above is made using Swag charm squares and could be top stitched down and sewn into any of the above mentioned projects.

See how great this promotional free duffle bag transforms into something useful and pretty once the ugly logo is covered up.  Excuse the wonder clips - I'm contemplating the best method to use for attaching it since the outer pocket isn't conveniently accessible. What do you think, fabric glue, wonder under, hand stitching? 

Where to Begin

1. Choose your accent.  These can be scraps of any kind or one long fussy cut piece.   Left over from a swap mini, I chose to feature six 2.5" HST half square triangles.  Originally I planned to make one for each side of the duffle, but in the end decided to just use one set.  

1/4" seams throughout.  Chain stitch the squares together and press the seams open. 

Cut ONE outer frame (grey) 4" wide and slightly longer than your accent.

Cut ONE inner frame (black) at least 2" wide and slightly longer than your accent.

Sew the inner frame (black) to one side of the outer frame (grey).  Press towards the black.  Right side facing up and using the seam line where the grey and back meet, measure 1/2" and trim*.  Use the cut off excess of the black to repeat the same steps on the other side.

*alternate method: you can also cut TWO 3/4" strips.  I personally find very thin strips awkward to handle and prefer the other but either technique will work.

Sew the accent strip to one side.  Tuck in the seam allowance under as shown below as you press. 

Gently fold over to align the other side of the accent placing it directly across and sew the second side.

Using the tip of your iron, tuck and press the second side in the same manner as the first side.  

Turn the "tube" that you have created Right Side Out.

 Use your fingers to position the frame with approximately the same amount showing on each side and press.  There you have it!

Four Charms Version 

Constructed basically the same way as the HST version except that the black 1" end tabs were added.

I also like to cut off the pinked edges.

Here's a detail shot below of the presser foot running under the pressed seam.   I'm not that particular about accuracy but for those who really want it to be as even as possible you might want to take this step slow and watch your line. 

The excess trims away at 10" so that is what I will use for the width of the linen.