Category: PEIMQG

Cross Purposes….a Queen Bee Block

March 29, 2024

Fabulous Links included, Good Things, PEIMQG, QALs, Quilt Blocks, Sew Alongs etc
Hey PEIMQG quilters. Its time to make another Bee Block. I call this one Cross Purposes. Its very similar to lots of others out there in Internet World but mine has its own unique charm. My block stitches together at 12.5″ square–unfinished and allows you to try your hand at partial seams…..DO NOT PANIC….Partial seams are easy peasy to do. Seriously.

Here are the fabric requirements needed to make one 12.5″ (unfinished) block.
- four 4.5″ x 4.5″ squares of “cross” fabrics of bright modern fabrics
- four 3.5″ x 2.0 ” rectangles of “cross” fabrics same colours as above
- four 4.5 x 4.5″ squares of busy background fabric
- one 2.0″ square of same busy background fabric
The block center is the only pieced unit so we will make it first.

Are you a newbie to partial seams or feel like a little technique refresher would be a good idea? No problem…follow the link below to watch a great tutorial by Andi at “A Bright Corner” http://www.abrightcorner.com/2022/09/how-to-sew-partial-seam.html

Again, DO NOT PANIC. I guarantee this will be one of the easiest techniques you will ever decide to learn.

Let’s do this!

Start by placing the strips around the center square as in the above tutorial, and shown below.

Select Strip 1 and begin stitching it to the 2″ BG square. Remember, sew with a 1/4″ seam allowance and stop sewing about 1″ from where you start. Finger press the seam that you just sewed, but try not to press the unsewn section, because its easy to distort the seam.

Next, with the partial seam in place on the top of the center block, select and line up Strip 2 to the left side and stitch it to the BG square.

Naturally Strip 3 gets stitched on next. No need for photos of this part,

Strip 4 gets sewn on next ….

And Holy Heck! Just like that you have four strips attached around the sides of the center block and the only thing left to do is finish sewing the Strip 1 seam to the unit…it should fit perfectly! Next you can trim the block to measure 4.5″ square. (I deliberately made the block a bit oversized so there would be wiggle room at the end to trim the sides to size).

It REALLY is as easy as that.

The rest of the block goes together easy. It’s just a nine patch after all. Just make sure to place the coloured crosses in the correct position…like this.

Here is another example I made

And another one

Now you can add partial seams to your technique toolbox. I can hardly wait for April Guild meeting to collect the blocks you make.
Lets Ketchup!

February 9, 2021

Critters, Fabulous Links included, Good Things, Mini Quilts, patchwork, PEIMQG, QALs, Quilt Blocks, Random Stuff, Sew Alongs etc, WIPs
Holy Heck its been a while since I shared what I’ve been working on…and also what’s in my future. So in no particular order…lets catch up!
- I am carrying on with the Deep Dive Quilt Along which is hosted by the folks at https://arteastquiltingco.com. Since last September we’ve been building all kinds of deep sea darlings. February was kinda off the wall block wise, sigh, it’s Jellyfish…These are NOT my favourite ocean critters. If you’ve ever been to the beach on the East Coast (or probably any coast), you know you always have to watch where you are walking or swimming, so you don’t run into one of these guys. I am making two quilts, one from the kit I purchased and one using fabrics from my stash.
Fred and Gladys

Nelly and Kelly

Here are my January blocks from the same QAL. Yup these guys are Seals. I love both of them.

And here are my December blocks…

John and Yoko

And now we are all up-to-date on that!
- Since I enjoyed the January Hearts on File Blog Hop so much, I jumped at the chance to join the Salt and Sand Blog Hop coming up in March. Watch for my post coming on March 25. If you want to see more details about this Hop, just click on the link and you can read all about it. https://www.justletmequilt.com. Just a little heads up…I’m looking for patterns/tutorials for a simple pouch to put my eyeglasses in at the beach. If you have a lead on one, please let me know in the comments.
- I love Round Robin quilting bees–in case you don’t know, these are quilt-alongs that start with your own centerpiece block, then are passed to the next quilter to add a round, and so on and so on…Sadly its just about impossible to participate in one right now because of that dang Covid-19 virus. So imagine how happy I was to find a virtual version of a Round Robin event. If you are interested in building a round robin quilt with a group of like minded folks, click on the link. https://quiltinggail.com and see what this is all about. We are on Round 4 now. (its still a work in progress, so I cannot show you the finished flimsy, but here is where I’m at so far. At some point this week, I will be adding a checkerboard border.
- Next up its the Mini Mod Swap – Atlantic Bubble. Here in eastern Canada, we continue to be unable to travel between provinces, but that doesn’t mean we cannot participate in a multi-guild block swap. This swap was created by Berene from https://happysewlucky.com. It began as a mini-mod block swap away out on the west coast of Canada and found its way to our Guild in February 2021. Eye Candy from Guilds in PEI, NS, NL and NB is out there for your viewing pleasure at https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/atlanticbubbleminimod/ . Here are the itty-bitty 2″ unfinished blocks I made yesterday during the snow storm.
And last but definitely not least…we have a new puppy. Say hello to Myrrhy. He is a mini-schnoodle. He came to live with us on Boxing Day. He is a 5.2 lb whirlwind. Naturally we love him and think he’s perfect. Stay tuned for many many more photos of this guy.

Did you do something creative today?
Its time for an E.H.* Adventure

September 23, 2020

Fabulous Links included, Good Things, Mini Quilts, patchwork, PEIMQG, QALs, quilts, Sew Alongs etc, WIPs

*Elizabeth Hartman , a quilter, pattern designer, and fan of color from Portland, Oregon.

I love the PEIMQG. We are a small but super spectacular group of sewists here in Eastern Canada. Today I’m excited to tell you guys all about our current Sew-along hosted on Facebook. You can find our Page by clicking on this link. https://www.facebook.com/groups/797557650984897.

But first things first– I’m sending a ginormous THANK-YOU to Cathy V–and her mom, for dreaming up this faboolus idea and then coordinating everything nicely so all the rest of us have to do is pick an Elizabeth Hartman quilt pattern and start piecing.

FYI I grabbed the following information directly from the Facebook Page because there is no reason to re-invent the story.

This group is for members and friends of the PEI Modern Quilt Guild who would like to take part in an Elizabeth Hartman Sew Along. The fun begins September 1st, 2020, and will continue for at least 8 months. Pick a pattern and your fabric and get ready to have fun, while being encouraged by fellow EH enthusiasts!!! You set your own pace, and post as many or as few photos as you like!!! Need some help or advice?? Feel free to post your questions here…. More than a few members have already completed some EH projects and will be happy to help in whatever way they can. Most of all remember to relax and have fun. It’s not a race and everyone sews at their own speed. Feel free to share this group with your friends, who might be interested in sewing along with us ( even if they just wanna look at the pretty, pretty pictures!!)

So there you go….Have you always wanted to piece an Elizabeth Hartman pattern but have a few anxiety butterflies in your tummy? If so, this is the perfect opportunity to do some good old fashioned slow sewing and meet a whole bunch of folks from all over the world who are in exactly the same space as you are. I say jump in and give it a go. I did!

I’ve already made Avatrix Medallion (so much fun). This time I wanted something to simply make me happy every time I sit down to sew. That’s why I’m making “Neighbourhood” .

The pattern is taken from Elizabeth Hartman’s book — Modern Patchwork. FYI, this is a great book, full of 12 stunning and straight-forward quilt patterns…and I found a copy in our Guild’s library. So Yay!

In the spirit of full disclosure, I already made a test block,

This is one for the back of the quilt!

and already changed my colour way to make it feel more “Me-ish”. Going forward the mini-quilt below is the inspiration for my version of Neighbourhood. FYI, I found this photo on Pinterest and credit for the mini-quilt goes to m.blogspot.com/2012/05/block-is-born.html

Stay tuned to see my progress here, or go ahead and check out the link above to our Facebook Page to see what all the other folks already signed up are planning.

Did you do something creative today?
Another Month, Another Mini…Maybe?

October 29, 2019

Good Things, patchwork, PEIMQG, Quilt Blocks, Serendipitous Things

Here’s the thing….I said I was going to make a mini a month for a year….but did I say that all the minis I’m making this year are going to find a place on the wall going up to my studio? Nope I did not. Some will be big enough to be table toppers or perhaps mini table runners. A few will be really small and might turn into mug rugs…..and…..some will turn into patchwork throw pillows.

I pieced this fabulous mini quilt last Sunday and decided it was too pretty to just add to my stack of finished mini quilts. BTW, the stack is growing surprisingly high, because I am gathering quite a collection.

Even before it was sewn together I knew I would be making several more because they are just perfect as throw pillows.

Our Guild hosted its Fall Workshop last weekend, starting Thursday evening with an ahhhsome trunk show by Andrea Tsang Jackson, textile artist, quilt designer, author and educator based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. You may know of her, or her studio, 3rd Story Workshop. And if you haven’s visited 3rd Story Workshop, already, you should go there sometime really soon. I’m sure you will find a whole lot of projects there to add to your “must do” list.

After an evening spent drooling over Andrea’s really one-of-a-kind quilts, and listening to her unique story, we were all very excited to start stitching. I opted to attend the Sunday “Teardrop Gemstone” workshop because I fell head over heels in love with her Gemology quilts.

Sapphire is my birth stone, so when I was considering what gem to make, it was dead easy (and would have been much more so, if I had a larger selection of blue in my stash). And, as many of you who follow my story know, I find solid fabrics especially challenging, so I had to really really dig to the bottom of the blue bin. But I persevered. Andrea had instructed us to bring at least nine 10″ squares of one hue, in a range of tones from very light to very dark. Once again, I say thank goodness for my Grunge FQs. With them and a few ombre panels, I was able to come up with the numbers I needed. Then, I had to choose whether I would give my Gemstone a dark or light BG/. Naturally, I chose to go with a light fabric and packed three FQs of modern LV fabric, so I would be able to re-choose if I needed to.

I’m not going to go into all the details of the workshop here, but just let me say that Tiffany’s would be green/blue/pink/purple with envy when they saw all the beautiful gemstones on display at the end of the workshop.

Sew, there you go…

Did you do something creative today?
April 9, 2019

Good Things, patchwork, PEIMQG, Quilt Show Stuff, quilts, Serendipitous Things, Sew Alongs etc

Well I’m not gonna lie, it feels good to be able to say with just the tiniest bit of snootyness in my voice, “Please DO come to the Grand Opening of my Exhibit at the Eptek Centre on Sunday”… not that I haven’t spoken in a somewhat snooty voice before, but OMG this time, there is actually a Grand Opening and it is at the Cultural Centre on PEI, so possibly, perhaps there is a degree of deservedness in the snootiness.

Okay all joking aside, this is a banner month for the PEIMQG, of which I am a member. We have been planning an exhibit of modern quilts for over 2 years and last Sunday, we were able to invite everyone to the Grand Opening of our Exhibit – Quilting Forward.

This was the poster provided by the centre. It showcases the quilt that the Guild is raffling off in 2019. It was designed and pieced by members in a couple weekends after one of our members graciously offered a stack of orphan blocks left over from another quilt top. Thank you to Cathy for that and to all the members who gave up a couple Saturdays to piece this together and of course, a huge thank you goes to Liz over at Blueberry Cove for doing such an awesome job on the long-arm quilting machine.

It truly is stunning and possibly does look a tiny bit like a lobster, which is totally appropriate as a representation of our tiny Island.

So do you want to see some of the quilts hanging in the gallery? I knew you did, so here goes. I confess I didn’t personally take photos of all of them, but as others share their photos, I will be sharing with you here. Please remember this is just a tiny sampling of the talent hanging on display.

First up, here is our President’s Challenge quilt from 2018. We were given a selection of of solid fabrics and asked to make a block with a nautical theme. We are a very small Guild and many of us participated. Several of the members created words out of nautical flags, others built lighthouses, sail boats and buoys. My personal favourite block (well I have 3) are the sail boats with the flying geese on the sail, the lighthouse with the beam pointing to the shore and the beautiful seahorse. Nope, none of them are mine – mine is the buoy.

The next quilt I have to share with you is just simply amazing. I don’t even know what to say about it…other than I’m so lucky to have Janice as a friend. I hope some of her talent rubs off on me. This is her grandson, Callum. Janice pieced and appliquéd the block, and did all the quilting on it herself. Truly stunning.

There is a Viewer’s Choice Rosette to be shared with one of our members at the end of the Exhibit. I’m not sure how anyone will be able to choose one favourite, but after some agonizing, I narrowed it down to these 3.

All are gorgeous, which one would you choose? I wonder if its possible to vote 3 times?

Finally, I’ll show you the two quilts I entered into the Exhibit. First up is “My Sister, My Friend”. And yes, that’s me beside the quilt. Can you guess which one of the four sisters I am…. The others are Gwenneth, Rebecca and Donna. And you’ll have to go to the Exhibit to see which of us is which.

This one is “I tried Improv”. It is the result of a One Week Improv Challenge hosted on line this spring by Amy Ellis.

I hope you like our quilts. I am so insanely proud of my Guild. I will share photos of other quilts as they are shared on social media. I don’t want to show them all….because I’d really love it if you took a few moments out of your day and dropped in to see them all in person. When you get there, check out the beautiful Queen Bee Quilt that Susan Paddock put together — and the sophisticated purple and grey beauty by Heather Jarmyn. And, if you really want to smile, make sure you see Helen’s Flamingos. Seriously there is so much talent in this Guild, it humbles me.

and FYI, the quilt at the top of this blog post is Liz’s version of Patchwork City by Elizabeth Hartman. This was a quilt that a group of us worked on over the course of a year. Linda’s version is on display at the exhibit too.

Come see the exhibit. Its going to be on until May 10, 2019 at the Eptek Centre in Summerside PEI.

Did you do something creative today?