My mother and grandmother were masters of making do. They came from an era when money was tight, so they lived by the adage of waste not, want not. My grandmother used to purchase bags of remnants from the garment houses. From those leftover bits of fabric, she would sew fashionable dresses with matching hats and purses for her two daughters. For patterns, she used dinner plates, or saucers. She could make just about everything, except shoes.
So, when I am faced with the leftover bits after making a quilt, I gather the leftover pieces, cut them into consistent sizes and save them until I have enough to make another quilt. Strips of fabric, squares and rectangles for the shaded four-patch, squares for Joan Ford’s scraptastic system, are all stored in their separate corners. Then I look for the patterns that will turn those disparate fabrics into a quilt worthy of gifting. The shaded four-patch with its many layouts, coin quilts, Border Creek’s stashbusters are all reliable sources of inspiration. I find the key factors for success are a background to let the eye rest and a consistent palate.
The “Drop, Swap and Sew Days” in Arnprior and Orleans were successful. Thanks to Nancy Terry of Sew Inspired, 10 of us gathered to create three different tops. While we were stitching, other quilters were dropping in with finished quilts/quilt tops and picking up new kits. In Orleans, we continued to collect tops and sign out kits, and assembled sets of backing/batting/tops to go to the quilters.
We have topped up our supply of tops to fuel our quilters as they stitch away in the 11-in-11 Challenge. Brigid, Chantal, Christine, Kim, Lynn, Robbie and Sharron are all busy at their machines and two of those brave women are working on two sets of 11! They are posting their completions on Facebook, so be sure to cheer them on!
At our next sew-day, on November 23 at CannaConnect (215 Menten Place) (9:30 to 3:00), the focus will be on binding all the quilts from the challenge. Now some people swear by a hand-stitched binding and some swear by a machine-stitched binding. We are going to let you choose your preferred approach. Please register for this day by sending an email to Christine Langlois, our new Mistress of Quilt Production, at christine.langlois@quiltsofvalour.ca and let her know whether you prefer to machine stitch both sides of the binding, or prefer to hand-stitch the binding in place. Christine and Brigid will be ready to accommodate your preferred method.
Claire Vanston, who is in charge of the QOVC online store, will be visiting us at the November sew-day and bringing some new poppy panels, fat quarter bundles, and greeting cards for anyone who is interested in shopping. Additionally, we have a quilter who is reducing her collection of quilting and sewing books; those books will be available for a donation to QOVC. Remember to bring your wallet so you can shop!
Stay well, stay safe!
Happy Stitching!
Nancy
Upcoming Events*:
November 23 (9:30 – 3:00) Sew-day (binding!) at CannaConnect (215 Menten Place, Nepean)
January 12 (9:30 – 3:00) Sew-day at CannaConnect (215 Menten Place, Nepean)
February 9 (9:30 – 3:00) Sew-day at CannaConnect (215 Menten Place, Nepean)
*For the health and safety of everyone, please be attentive to health protocols — vaccinations, masks when moving around, stay home if you are ill. Thank-you.
Ottawa Region: Quilts of Valour - Canada 