Marian Edwards DreamWeaver

a small quilt-a-month challenge...

January just flashed by within a couple of eye blinks, or so it seems..how did we get to February so quickly??..it's like we're on fast forward, don't you think?? i sure hope this month doesn't go by in a flash..it's all just a bit too scary :((

Having said that, i'm really pleased [and surprised] at how organized and creative i've been in my studio, this past month.  I've alreday finished one small quilt, and three quilt tops are waiting to be quilted. One of them, Pink Lemonade has been basted and i'm planning to start quilting it tonight. 

As part of the 'small quilt-a-month' challenge, Kathy will be choosing a pattern, for the group, from one of her books, each month. The challenge is to finish the quilt within that month. Each month, Kathy will present us with two choices, ie the pattern as shown in the book or a smaller version which she has designed for us. We're doing it as a small QAL, with weekly prompts on her blog and motivation along the way, to keep us on track.

January's quilt challenge was ::Crosses Mourning:: from 'Prairie Children & Their Quilts'

i chose to make the smaller version....with four crosses.  As i was choosing the fabrics from my stash i knew i wanted to combine a few older cw prints with a few new ones. To my delight i still had some vintage purple paisley fabric from the 1960s, which i've had since my teens....perfect!!!

so, here's the finished top...

sandwiched, basted & hand quilted....

it's all a bit too much for Elmo...time for a cat nap on my fabric, if you don't mind!!

Oscar's happy to nap on the floor...on my fabric, of course LOL!!

and here's my finished 'January' quilt... 

and in case you're wondering about the dragon....

2012 is the year of the water dragon, which happens to be my sign, in the Chinese Zodiac.  My brother, Henry [who's a potter] made the dragon for me, and i've got a purple one as well..lucky me!! It just so happens that 1952 [my birth year] was the first year of the water dragon, how about that?! It comes around every sixty years, which makes me think it's highly unlikely that i'll be here for it's third incarnation, but you just never know.  OMGoodness, i'll be a really, REALLY old dragon by then LOL!!!

In the early hours of this morning, 1am [est] Kathy announced Feb's small quilt challenge.  She chose another pattern from the same book, this time it's ::Broken Dishes:: the smaller version has redwork embroidery in the centre block..which i really like.  For those who are going to make the smaller version Kathy suggests that we make it in red & white, as a Valentine project..nice :))

i've chosen a few of my fabrics and over the next couple of days, i hope to start cutting & piecing... but first things first, i really should finish quilting my pink lemonade quilt, shouldn't i??..wink!!

spending time with kindred spirits...

Last Friday Lois & i made our way to Melbourne to spend a fun day out with our old buddy Helen [we've known each other since our teens, like a zillion years ago LOL] and her three quilting buddies Meredithe, Kaye & Karen...who have become our buddies too btw!

Our destination was Kaye's place and OMGosh from the moment i laid my eyes on her Californian bungalow i knew we'd be in for a treat...i was right!!

take a peek...

gorgeous collectables at every turn..a girl after my own heart lol!

ooooh and don't you just love the display of vintage washboards on the laundry wall???

Kaye loves kitchenalia too!!

look at that picture rail shelf..what a fab way to display her china.

the table setting was divine...check out Kaye's gorgeous quilt, i'm gonna pinch that idea LOL!! 

i could've spent all day in her sewing room....

goodies in every corner of the room.... 

Kaye's bathroom was amazing..look at those water pitchers & tins galore...drool!!

not to mention her potty collection..what's not to love LOL!!!

and here's what you'll find on the back porch..i've always wanted one of those cookers!!!

back inside we were getting ready for show and tell..but first i must show you Kaye's beautiful wicker sewing basket...am  i just a tad green with envy??? you BET!!!!

Meredithe's handpieced quilt was jaw droppingly gorgeous..you gotta see it to believe it!!

watching her piece was awe inspiring....

Karen with needle & thread [in mouth] was busily working on her gorgeous applique....

and here's Helen with her stunning quilt in progress...

such a clever bunch, wouldn't you agree??...don't know how i missed taking a pic of Kaye's beautiful quilt in progress, sorry Kaye!

oh, i almost forgot to show you Meredithe's medallion quilt top..isn't she clever??!!

 

what a fabulous day spent with kindred spirits!! Lots of yummy food, champagne, lots of cuppas &  sweet treats, lots of laughter and even a bit of sewing...a PERFECT day!!

a little more pink lemonade...

I'm really happy with the progress i've made on my little 'pink lemonade' quilt this week...

Monday night i got busy and finished the [four] corner blocks..

and then i got stuck on what to use for the background...don't you hate that!! 

I really liked the cheddar fabric [my first choice] but suddenly i was undecided so i dragged out all the yellows & oranges in my stash..which isn't many, but just enough to REALLY confuse me!!!!

It was all too much so i slept on it for a couple days and i didn't venture back into my studio until last night, after work. 

To my surprise, the minute i walked into my studio and saw the blocks lying on the floor i instantly knew what my choice would be, can you guess?? yep, the yummy cheddar, my first choice..of COURSE..what was i thinking LOL!!!

Without a moment's hesitation, i cut into my yummy cheddar fabric and began to sew...oh i'm so happy with it..it actually looks better than i thought it would...time for a happy dance LOL!!!!

i was on a roll and before long, this little corner section turned into...

two BIG halves...

and then into a completed quilt top YAY!!!!...

i'm really happy with how it's turned out...i can't wait to see what quilting design Lori comes up with!!

in the meantime...guess what else i'm working on???

i'm lagging behind on Jeanneke's building houses from scraps project, but that's ok i've decided i'm only going to make twelve, unless i get carried away, and that's definitely on the cards LOL!!!

more pink lemonade...

Yesterday, i spent a lovely few hours playing with & piecing my 'pink lemonade' blocks. At this point i had only pieced one block and soon after i had blogged about it i decided that it definitely was lacking something. Initially, i wasn't sure what, but then it hit me like a tonne of bricks..of course, i could see it now.  It was the pink print that i chose for the background. Don't get me wrong i love that pastel pink, but somehow it just didn't work on it's own. I started madly pulling out all my pinks, and there it was a perfect mid pink which when combined with the pastel pink made the block come alive..and it's even more scrappy looking now, just the look i was after.

Here's Elmo giving it the once over..yep, that's definitely the sniff of approval LOL!!

and Oscar wasn't going to be left out LOL!!!

both my boys like to be close-by when i'm in my studio...and i like to run things by them, i'm sure they enjoy it just as much as i do..it's a team effort LOL!!

anyway, here are my six blocks with the double pink combo..what do you think??

 

no sooner had i finished piecing the blocks, i started looking through my fabric stash for plaids to use in the half squares for the outer border.  Unfortunately, i don't have many plaids in my stash and the ones that i do have are the wrong colour, except for a blue one. I've made a mental note to keep a look out for more plaids on my next trip to the local quilt shop!!

i decided to do what Lori did..i made five pairs of the same fabric rather than ten different half squares.

Here's the layout..i'm really happy with how it's coming together...

all that's left to do now is the corner blocks, then i'll be ready to cut into my yummy cheddar fabric for the setting blocks..which, btw i'm a little undecided about. Might just have to pull out a few other cheddar fabrics from my stash and see which one works best..decisions, decisions!!

i know, i know... i'll run it by my feline sewing buddies LOL!!!

Pink Lemonade...

What was i to do.. after seeing this little QAL that everyone [it seems] is talking about??? I was determined to be strong, i tried really, REALLY hard to resist..i really DID!! BUT i just couldn't get Lori's little antique quilt out of my head. It's the sweetest little shoo-fly quilt..can't blame her for wanting to replicate it!!

 I knew i should've resisted temptation to go back and have [yet another] teensy peek today. What can i say?? It's TOO LATE now..don't try to stop me, i've already caved LOL!!!

I dived into my stash and made my choices...two reds, two browns & two blues...

 

for the background, this muted pink was the perfect choice and i can't wait to cut into that yummy cheddar!!

FULL steam ahead, no stopping me now... LOL!!!!

my first little shoo-fly block DONE!!!

and five more little shoo-flys in the making..so MUCH FUN!!!!

I'm loving this cool change...it was so chilly this morning we simply had to light the fire, can you believe it ??... and it's s'posed to be summer!! BUT, i certainly don't mind!!

Today, also happens to be the birthday of a sweet friend...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Robyn..i hope you've had a perfectly wonderful day!!!! xx 

Day 11 & 12...mystery revealed...

I finally got blocks 11 & 12 of my mystery quilt done..after being laid up for a couple of days with kidney pain & gastro [not a nice combo, believe me]...

block #11 & #12 at the top of the pic are made with fabrics, from my stash...the blocks below are fabrics from the kit...

on the 13th Day of Christmas ie last Saturday, we were give the layout of the 'mystery' quilt...and here 'tis...

and here's the 'other' one...

here they are side by side...

i LOVE them both..which do you prefer??

all that's left to do now is to baste them and get hand quilting..the FUN bit LOL!!!

if you want to see more mystery quilts there's a new group been set up on flickr at http://www.flickr.com/groups/1906436@N22/

i'm sure you'll be inspired :))

Day ten...two days to go...

It's been so much fun making these little 12 Days of Christmas mystery blocks..something to look forward to each day. i'm on leave until next Monday and it's been bliss just chilling at home and sewing :)) and now with the cooler spell..it's even better!

so here are my blocks #5,6,7,8,9 & 10...made with fabrics from my own stash

and the same blocks made with the kit fabrics..

i really don't have a fave...they're all lovely. 

Only two blocks left to make and then it's done..can't wait to see how they all come together in a small quilt.

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In the meantime here's a long overdue update on my civil war blocks. I strayed a little in the last couple of months which resulted in my being 8 blocks [weeks] behind.

Well, i suddenly got the urge to get them done last week, and not only that i set myself a goal to get them made by the Dec 31....8 blocks in four days...that's do-able!!!

PHEW!! what a GREAT feeling!! 52 blocks finally DONE..YAY!!!

and here they all are....


SO...all that's left to do now is to turn them into a quilt top, right?? rest assured that's not going to happen anytime soon lol!! 

It's been an amazing journey making these blocks with hundreds of other quilters around the world...thanks to Barbara's generosity & inspiration. 

12 days of Christmas quilt...

Two weeks ago i bought a '12 Days of Christmas' kit from Temecula Quilt Co .....being this time of year i naturally anticipated a delay in delivery. Undeterred, i decided to use fabrics from my own stash, [until my kit arrived] that way i'll end up making two little quilts...i'll pop one away to give as a gift to someone next Chrissy.

oh btw, i forgot to mention that it's a mini mystery sampler quilt, which means you have to pop by Temecula's blog, each day, for instructions for that day's block...nice & easy!

We're up to Day 4 already and guess what?? my kit arrived in the mail today, YAY!! But before i show it to you, let's take a look at the four blocks i've made from my own fabric stash...

and here's a peak at the kit...yummy fabrics with no double-ups!

without further ado i started cutting the fabric in my kit...resulting in Day 1,2,3 & 4 blocks...

what a fun & quick project..gotta love that!!

FYI the pattern is free and available to everyone..so feel free to join in anytime :)))

click on the 12 Days of Christmas link to discover the hidden meaning behind this weird & wonderful Christmas carol..i'm sure you'll be just as surprised as i was.

Joy to the world...

It's time to wish all my blogging friends, both near and far, a Joyous Christmas....

and...

an abundance of Love, Peace & Happiness in 2012...xo

the doll quilt that Izannah inspired...

Those who know me, know my passion for collecting all kinds of vintage trash n treasure.  However, what i treasure most is antique textiles, especially in the shape of quilts & quilt blocks, of which i am very fortunate to own quite a few. I also collect vintage toys..i have a few dolls and several toy sewing machines. I dream of owning an antique doll quilt, one day. 

You can imagine my delight when i discovered Maida Today [earlier last month] with a post dedicated to antique inspired doll accessories and antique doll quilts. I drooled over all the gorgeous little quilts, not to mention the adorable little doll beds and those dear antique dolls, on display.

Several of the photos were taken by Edyth O'Neill which prompted me to visit her blog to see more images of doll quilts, oh what fun!! But before i hopped over to visit My Red Cape i was drawn to an image, in the sidebar, of an Izannah Walker inspired doll. I knew i wanted to know more so i clicked on the image which took me here ...before long, i was emailing Dixie who makes Izannah Walker inspired dolls. Not only does she create these unique dolls, she is also an artist & a tutor..not to mention a busy mum & homemaker as well. 

Dixie's passion for Izannah Walker dolls has inspired her to write the Izannah Walker Chronicles where you can read about the history of this little known 19th century dollmaker by the name of Izannah Walker, as well as being informed of antique Izannah dolls available at auctions...and more.

Dixie has given me permission to show you an image of an original Izannah doll...isn't she lovely!

This sweet little Izannah doll was to be the inspiration for a doll quilt which i designed and made especially for Dixie. In our emails to each other Dixie had expressed that she would like to have a go at making a doll quilt one day and that she would also like to start her own quilt wall inspired by this image from the book, Collecting American Country... 

here's the doll quilt i made for Dixie...she received it in the mail last week.

i had so much fun designing and making this little doll quilt.  It's made entirely with reproduction civil war fabrics [some new, some old], including an 'old' favourite of mine i used in the border, which tied in perfectly for that vintage look i was after. I'm so pleased to hear that Dixie likes it as much as i loved making it for her...you can see more photos of it on her blog here.

In exchange, Dixie kindly sent me her copy of Edyth's book [as seen below] after i expressed interest in obtaining a copy of it...how lucky am i??

 

it's a wonderful little book and i can't wait to make one of those sweet little pockets!

NB: one day, i hope to be the lucky owner of an Izannah inspired doll, made by Dixie. Even though Dixie doesn't take orders for her dolls, never-the-less, she has promised to send me a photo when she has one made...it might take 6 - 12 months. Can i wait that long?? of course i can!!