Introducing... Alternate Routes by Highway 10 Designs

I am SO EXCITED to finally share the latest adventure that my dear friend Kathy & I are taking together...

Kathy & I have self published a pattern called Alternate Routes that is now available as an instant PDF download in our Etsy Shop.  Kathy's version is featured on the pattern cover that you see here.

And here is my version.

The cool thing about this pattern is that it has seemingly endless layout possibilities.  We have included 20 examples in the pattern itself, but we know there are oodles more once you start playing around with the blocks.

  Kathy and I have worked on many things together in the past, but this is our first truly original design.  It was conceived as a project to use in our respective Quilt Guilds, which we did, but we knew we needed to take the next step as we felt we had something worth sharing.  We are very proud of our first-born pattern,  and (now that the leaning curve has gotten smaller) we are looking forward the next one.

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I took hundreds of pictures so I am going to share a few more....  I used the Paisley panto on this quilt with a lavender thread on top and a charcoal to match the backing fabric which I just love.

Be sure to check Kathy's blog for some beautiful photos of her quilt.  And I can't end this post before saying a big thank you to our proof readers Desley and Eileen, you ladies are amazing and helped more than you know!

A Little Experiment

I don't have anything really quilt related to share, but hopefully that will change tomorrow!  Kathy and I have been busy bees working on a new project.  It has meant many hours in front of the computer, copious emails and phone calls and me trying to get some half decent pictures of my own work that won't look totally ridiculous next to her always beautiful photos. (If we lived a little closer I would have put her in charge of all the photography, but it wasn't meant to be this time.)  While I was whining to Nolan about how to get the shot I really wanted he rigged up a solution for me.  I am really lucky to have such a handy guy!  He turned his combination ladder, a few spring clamps and some scrap wood from our basement demo into a portable quilt stand. He even schlepped it all over town and beyond to find the perfect spot! (Yes, I do realize I am spoiled.)

Now for something totally off topic.  A friend of mine posted a photo on Facebook of some lettuce that she was re-growing and I just had to give it a try.

Cut the stump off your next head of romaine lettuce.

Place it in a container with about 1/2" of water in the bottom.  Change the water everyday.  (Your family will think you have lost your mind at this point.)

By Day 5 things were starting to change.

And here is is today.   (I had only left a very small stump on the left one, and it is not growing nearly as quickly as the others.)   It might be a while before I can make a salad, but it is fun to watch!

Fox Trails

 Fox Trails (from Riley Blake) is the name of the absolutely adorable fabric line that Michele used in this quilt for her young son.  I think she chose a great pattern that allows you to enjoy the prints without being too busy.

Michele is the first client I have had that has found me online, so design decisions by email it was.  Michele wanted a fun panto that went with the cute woodsy camping theme in her fabrics.  She was leaning towards the "Hedwig the Owl" panto.

I thought the owls would look great, but just didn't feel right about quilting so many large flowers on a quilt for a little boy, so I suggested swapping the flowers out for stars.  That sealed the deal for Michele.

I just love all these cute prints.

Michele used two contrasting fabrics on the back for a little fun, and the owls show up best on the soft green.

 Thanks for trusting me with your quilt Michele.  I'm sure you son will be very excited to have it on his bed!

A Great Visit and a Reno Update

My good friend Kathy came to Dauphin from Flin Flon for a visit this week. She had teased me on her blog that she had a cool birthday present for me, and she was right.   A few weeks ago Kathy had asked me to send her a picture of the front of my house and not to ask why.  This of course had me curious.  She wouldn't give me any hints, and I wasn't able to guess, but I was very excited to open my present and find this metal compass "barn" quilt.

The metal block and other designs can be found at the Classic Metal Company. I need to find the perfect spot to hang it outside, and I will post a picture when I do.  

Whenever Kathy comes to visit we like to take a trip to a favorite quilt store - Kickass Country Store that is.  It is located in the tiny town of Plumas, Manitoba (population 250) and it is totally worth the trip!  Wayne and Carol always take great care of us.  I was too busy shopping to take many pictures  but you can get the idea - it is crammed full of quilty goodness!

Many of the members of my local quilt guild follow Kathy's blog, and have heard me talk about her at meetings, so I thought it would be fun to have a little get together for everyone to have a chance to meet. Ten ladies were able to make it out that evening, and it was a lot of fun, so we might just have to do it again the next time she comes to visit.  Everyone took a turn playing on the Innova, and we spent some time snacking and visiting.

Kathy had to head back to Flin Flon this morning, and we decided not to go camping but to tackle the flooring in the basement instead.  I am totally exhausted now, but very happy with the progress Nolan and I made today.

 Clearing out the studio to get ready.

The long run in the hallway. This was definitely the most challenging part - 4 doorways and the most annoying telepost to deal with.

This is what it looked like when we stopped for supper.  The girls made supper for us on their own, and it was a real treat!

We got back at it and decided that this was a good place to stop for the day.  Working around the longarm has turned out to be a non-issue.  I hope I can move in the morning, because crawling around on the concrete is more tiring than I was expecting!  I'm not sure how many boxes of flooring we went through today, but I counted and there are still 27 in the pile, so I know the work is far from over.....

Quilt Ladder

I hope all the moms reading this had a very relaxing day yesterday.  I had a nice easy day after a busy week that included helping with costumes at five shows of "Grease" at my daughter's high school, and visits from my Mother-in-law and my Mom and Dad to see the show as well as my birthday in the midst of it all.  I did get one special present from my hubby that I wanted to share.  He made me a quilt ladder!

  He designed it to fit beside the fireplace in our living room.  The hearth extends on one side only, so the ladder was the perfect thing to fill the space.  He made it out of Purpleheart as I have always found it very intriguing when wandering around Windsor Plywood.   Purpleheart is really interesting as it is just kind of a greyish brown color when you first cut and sand it, but after it is exposed to UV light is turns a gorgeous purple color.

I feel very spoiled.  I just need to finish something else so I don't have to have a Christmas quilt on the top rung.  Good thing my Mother's Day present was "guilt free shopping" at the fabric store later this week!

Spicy Spiral Table Runner

 

This is actually my own finished project for a change!  I made this table runner for my local guild challenge.  Every year we are given three fat quarters and asked to make a small project with them.  The rules are very flexible.  There are no limits as to how many additional fabrics you can add, or the finished size.  These were the fabrics.

I used the Spicy Spiral table runner pattern and a 10 Degree Wedge tool.  After I got my head around the instructions, it went together really fast.  I decided to try some feathers for the quilting, and a few swirls to fill in the center.

The pattern does not call for traditional binding, but I knew I would prefer it that way.  The biggest problem was deciding what color binding to use.  I didn't like the look of the binding blending on one side and contrasting on the other, so I decided to use two colors.  It was a little finicky to get the seam to line up exactly where I wanted it, but I am very happy with the result.

Woodland Butterfly

This is Bev's Woodland Butterfly that she made for her granddaughter.  The pattern uses a 10 degree wedge tool and can be found in the book "Quilts Without Corners", by Phillips Fiber Art.  Bev did an amazing job piecing the 50" circle into the backing fabric. (I'm glad she did that part instead of me!)

The brown background fabric got and allover windy meander with some flowers added to larger corner areas for a little interest.

I stitched in the ditch in all the butterfly seams and added a few wiggly lines and some chevrons to add simple details in the larger pieces.  The green background got the 3's and E's treatment.

And a little swirl in the outer border.

I was able to get good pictures of the quilting on this quilt thanks in large part to my wonderful husband. Nolan has a hard time getting rid of things that could be used "for something."   This tendency worked to my advantage this time as he was able to rig up a hanging bar and clips for me in front of the fireplace in our living room all from found objects.

 There are four windows that give me great side light, and I am able to hang the quilts without any help.  Thanks Honey, you're the best!