Quilts and Canada 150

If you have not yet heard about the efforts being made by quilt guilds and quilters across Canada to help Ronald McDonald House by creating 1000 quilts as part of the celebration of Canada's 150th Birthday then here is a picture of a child size one.

The blocks were a few of the ones made by a group of quilters belonging the the Mahone Bay Quilters Guild a few weeks ago. Mahone Bay Quilters Guild  I volunteered to put some of the many, many blocks together.  The ladies had pieces of the Canada 150 fabric being sold by various quilt shops and the rest were fabrics brought in by the quilters.  It was a huge scrap swap and a fun day.  The blocks are called Slabs.  This is a  name coined by a Canadian quilter from Alberta Cheryl Arkison at  Cheryl Arkison .  If you have not see Cheryl on The Quilt Show  The Quilt Show or one of her books or her blog, do so.  You will be infected by her 'can do' persona.  If you want to see the show she did, there are a limited number of free shows available.

The blocks from guilds and individuals will be put together and quilted before or at the big Quilt Bee in Toronto this June.  Dates and details can be found here.  CQA  Quilt Canada Bee  I so hope to make it there.

Quilters are givers.  Doing a quilt for charitable reasons is a double pleasure; first in the making but most of all in the giving.  Quilts are for celebrations; comfort; caring and prayer where each stitch is a prayer for the recipient.

If you do not belong to a guild who is holding a day to make slabs for this cause then try to make a few yourself (great scrap busting) or get a few friends together.  For those who do not sew, they can pick out fabrics and cut and press.  It only takes one sewer and one sewing machine.  Details on how to contribute your slabs, see the CQA site above.

Quilt Canada and lots of friendly quilters

For the first time I attended Quilt Canada.  I went back to Toronto where I lived for many years; a mini vacation.  But a busy one.  I walked until I dropped.  Not 'shopped til I dropped' but did that too.  

There was so much to see from the friendly market vendors to the wonderful shows of quilts it was colourful, interesting, and just plain fun.  I met some lovely people from across Canada when I sat down to eat and got to put faces to names of vendors I use for on line purchasing.  

I live in a small town in Nova Scotia and sometimes I need things that I cannot get at local shops i.e. shops 1 to 1.5 hours driving.  This is in part because I love to experiment and so what I want is not a regularly stocked item.  So I came back with some items I have been looking for.  

Some of these things caused me to be singled out in the security line at Pearson when my carry on bag went through.  A bodkin, a box of gorgeous Aurifil threads from Bytowne Threads and a glue pen were my suspicious items.  I was cleared although I was a bit tense to see if any items would be taken away.  I have had this happen with a nail file in Vancouver.  I wonder what they thought the threads were?

The quilts on display at the show were superb and I took pleasure in the back stories of their creation.  What struck me in many instances was the fact that the quilt made a physical memory of a time in the life of the quilter when they were suffering through a life event of great meaning.  The quilt became a medication for the soul.  My first quilt was just that and although it is not as complex or intricate as some of my quilts are it is a reminder of a time when I could not process a change in my life but I did as I worked through the quilt.  I became a dedicated quilter after that and now find it is part of my soul, providing interest and challenges I would never thought I would attempt.  This includes doing long arm quilting for others.  When an owner picks up a quilt and smiles and says thank you is a huge bonus I never expected.

I do not have any pictures of the quilts on display as I concentrated on the themes and how those themes were replicated in fabric.  I know there are lovely pictures on the web site. National Juried Show 2016 
The winner was 'A Winner'.  

This post does not have a picture of current quilts on the go as they are intended for a show put on by the Mahone Bay Quilters Guild in September. Mahone Bay Quilters Guild But I am having fun with a traditional style quilt i.e. it is has blocks but not your ordinary blocks.  I ventured into doing my own block design on EQ7.  And the other two are art quilts.  I took a class with Katie Pasquini Masopust at Mahone Bay in the spring and it was an eye opener and was permission to go and keep on going beyond traditional boundaries.   

Using my computer and applications is another fun thing I have been doing.  Because my 'traditional' quilt will be straight line quilting to enhance the design I used Microsoft Paint to draw the quilting lines.  One should not ignore simple things like Paint although I do have more than one program for such designing.  But Paint was great for the straight lines which will outline a complex diamond and now I can put the quilt on the frame and have a master to follow.  Quilting is just plain fun: Learning, meeting, sharing.  Thanks to the executive and volunteers of CQA for a great mini vacation.

May and Quilts

From now through September/October there are quilt shows all over Nova Scotia.  In June, the CQA Show is in Toronto.
And I can actually say that this year.  I am going to see the show and enjoy.

Before that and after I plan to attend as many shows as possible locally. Nova Scotia is a quilters mecca.  We have world class quilters of traditional and modern quilts and art quilts.  Often there are very old quilts with history on display.

We all know the gorgeous quilts on Pinterest; the YouTube videos of major quilt shows.  But there are many talented people who show their quilts at local shows.  Not everyone wants to make a competition quilt.  I admit it would be wonderful to make what amounts to a perfect or almost perfect quilt with lots of details and a theme which appeals to the judges.  But making something you are proud of and will enjoy for yourself or as a gift for family or friends is heartwarming and satisfying.  You are the maker, the judge and jury on just how your quilt satisfies your criteria.  Putting one of your quilts in a local show is fun and if you get compliments or happen to come upon someone examining your quilt and saying nice things, it makes a warm spot in your creative heart.  

So, exhibit locally or get out there and bring a friend or two to enjoy your local talent some of whom might just be displayed at Quilt Canada.  

Heres to warmth and green and quilt shows and friends and just having fun quilting wherever you are. I have to get a quilt finished for the show in Mahone Bay Quilters Guild Show and Sale in September from the 23rd to the 25th  so cram time.  Not as  for an exam but stuffing as much quilting into a day as possible while still keeping home and garden ticking over.