Canada/Hockey jelly roll race quilt

 This morning we delivered a jelly roll race quilt with a Canadian theme to friends of ours.  He's going through treatments for cancer so a quilt was needed for him and his wife ☺.  I started out with a camping theme as they have a trailer so I figured they could use the quilt in their trailer if they are able to get away this summer.  However, all my camping fabrics were pink or more suited for children.  I spotted the panel that I used on the back at a quilt shop and ordered it online.  When I got it in the mail, I noticed it said "hockey" on it.  Our friends are avid hockey fans too so that gave me the idea to do the jelly roll race in Canadian fabrics.  I used 54 strips of Canadian fabrics (2 of each print) and the quilt turned out to be 59" x 64 1/2".  They loved the quilt and we pray it will help a little to know others are thinking of them while they go through a difficult time. (Click on the photo for to enlarge.)

The colours look a little yellow as the morning sun was shining on the quilt.

Some of the prints in the quilt.  I was thrilled to find the maple syrup fabric awhile ago

The poppy fabrics are among my favourite Canadian prints

The Canadian word panel which I used in the back of the quilt

 

My friend sent a picture of the quilt in her family room with her teddy enjoying it 😀.  This photo shows the colours of the quilt quite accurately.

Roman coin Kaffe Fasset quilt

 This quilt top has been sitting around for a long time.  In 2013, my friend Alice and I visited Hyggeligt Quilt shop which is one of our favourite shops when we need a colour fix.  This shop specializes in Kaffe Fasset fabrics.  I believe they were still in London then.  We fell in love with a package of fat eighths that were meant to do a jelly roll race quilt top with 1 1/2" strips using shot cottons plus one Kaffe fabric.  We both made a quilt and they were displayed in the Shedden Quilt show one year.  I looked back to tag the post about this quilt and there wasn't one!  I never did blog this quilt so I added a few pictures below.

The quilt turned out to be an odd size; very long and narrow, so we just cut it to a pleasing length.  I had this strip left over and years ago I cut them into different width strips and used a wine red shot cotton I found in my stash to sash it all around.  I had purchased some lotus leaf fabric for the backing of the first quilt and had just enough to add borders to it.  There it sat in the pile of quilts to be quilted until I got inspired.  

In September I found it again and decided to give it to an older lady from our Church who lost her husband in 2020 and with covid was pretty lonely.  She's quite artistic and I thought she'd like the colours.  I quilted it with funky flowers all over and miraculously found the same fabric yet in the stash for binding!  When does that ever happen?  I had a lovely visit with her when I brought the quilt and she loved it.  It matches her room perfectly.  So happy to have this quilt go to a good home. (Click on the photos to enlarge for a better view.)

The finished quilt

The funky flower quilting

 

This was the original quilt.  I have it hanging over my computer chair to brighten up room ☺

We challenged ourselves to do circular quilting on our original quilts.  I love the texture this gives!  This was a learning experience as I started and stopped each circle (using the edge of my walking foot as a guide).  If I do this again, I will be starting on a seam and sneaking down the seam for the next circle. You learn something with everything you do lol.  Alice embroidered on her quilt.  I'll add a picture if I can find one on my computer!

 

Two Jelly roll race quilt finishes

Finished quilt top

A few years ago, I used up a lot of batik strips to try a larger jelly roll race quilt.  It made a large top so I cut it in half and had two nice lap size tops.  I quilted it a few weeks ago and gifted it to a friend who lost her husband in September.  

 

I used up a lot of batik strips from my 2 1/2" drawer

I quilted it with a variegated King Tut thread and a funky flower pattern

My friend, Chris across the street, who has a long arm quilt business, was all caught up on her Christmas quilts so managed to squeeze this jelly roll race quilt top in before Christmas!  I sewed this one last Christmas using a stack of turqouise, red and green fat quarters I picked up at Cherished Pieces a few years ago.  I love the modern look of this one.  This will be my own Christmas lap quilt.

I've had this fun fabric for a few years waiting for a special quilt to make with these cute foxes. 

Beautiful snowflake quilting by Chris Bogart

Wedding Quilt for my nephew

My nephew in BC was married this past summer and I finally got his quilt in the mail together with my brother's Christmas quilt this past December.  For Jamie and Deneice, I decided to do a Canadian quilt with my large stash of Canada fabrics.  I love the way this one worked up.   I used 48 strips 2 1/2" wide.  Quilted by my friend Chris Bogart who does long arm quilting and lives right across the street! (click on the photos for larger views)

Finished quilt

Lovely quilting pantograph called maple syrup

The poppy fabric is one of my favourite Canadian fabrics

A quilt for my brother

This year I made a jelly roll race Christmas quilt for my brother out west.  Last year I finished one for my other siblings.  These are so much fun to make.  And they use up some stash :-).

jelly roll race quilt for Jim

Found this lovely bright poinsettia print for the backing

My friend Chris who lives across the street quilted this with a new Christmas tree pattern she got.

Lots of fun prints....they are like an "I spy"

Siblings Christmas

My sister from BC came to visit for a family wedding in November and we decided to get the house decorated for Christmas early and have a siblings Christmas on December 9th.  I have never had my Christmas tree up this early ever!  We have not celebrated Christmas together for many years, so this was the perfect opportunity.  

The day before the party, we picked up three of my granddaughters from school and they helped us decorate the tree and put up our village and playmobil Christmas sets. (Click on the photos to enlarge for better view.) 

Three granddaughters, Lauren, Leah and Kara, decorating with Aunt Thea

We enjoyed supper together and played a game and brought them home again.

On the morning of the day, my sister and I got the turkey dinner all prepped and wrapped up lots of gifts to place under the tree and set the table with our late Mom's china dishes.  We also had lots of candles and pretty Christmas napkins.

The china that my Mom and Dad received as an engagement gift in 1954 is still being used.  Here is my sister, Thea, getting the table all nicely set.

The Christmas village

My Mom embroidered this table cloth for me for Christmas probably 40 years ago.  The log cabin table topper was one of the first things I made when I started quilting in 1989. 

The stockings were hung to be filled later for the grandkids

Gifts arranged under the tree

Even the weather was picture perfect with a pretty layer of snow!

Last year I got together with a couple of quilt friends and we exchanged 2 1/2" strips to make a Christmas jelly roll race quilt.  You can read about that here.  When we decided to have Christmas together with my siblings, I started to think about a gift for them and the thought of a quilt crossed my brain!  A couple more friends wanted to make jelly roll races this year and I again joined in thinking I could make one as a gift for someone.  When we finished cutting strips, there were enough to make two quilts.  But, I needed three!  I remembered the top from last year which had not been quilted yet and ran over to my neighbour across the street, Chris Bogart to see if she could quilt three quilts in the next week!  She is a long arm quilter.   Yes, she was game and told me to bring the first one over.  She quilted all three of them in short order and I sat down to hand stitch binding in between all the other busyness of Christmas.  It was so much fun surprising them with their very own quilt this year!! 

This is the quilt for my brother Bas.  I chose the darker strips for his quilt.

This is the backing for my brother's quilt.  It was quilted with a beautiful snowflake pantograph

Close up of a few strips

This quilt was for my sister, Thea.  I added bright lime green squares between each square when sewing them together.

Close up of the strips

It was quilted with an awesome mittens and skates pantograph

The quilt for my sister Eva

Close up of the strips

This one was quilted with a holly design as she is an avid gardener.

All in all, it was a very memorable and relaxed Christmas.  I now need to make another Christmas jelly roll race for myself and maybe one for my other brother who also lives a long ways away and could not be with us.

Canadian Eh?

I had a lot of fabrics left from my Canada 150 quilt.  After doing a number of jelly roll race quilts, my friend Alice came up with the idea of doing one in Canadian fabrics.  So, we dug through our stashes and cut at least two strips for each of us and then went shopping together to buy enough fabrics to make 48 strips.  This made a great lap quilt measuring 62" x 66".  We were both really happy with the way this quilt turned out.  I had it quilted with an all over pattern called Maple Syrup by Julie Cassidy on her long arm machine.  (Click on the photos to enlarge.)

The finished quilt

backing

lots of Canadian in this quilt :-)

all over quilting design is called "maple syrup"

I still had lots of leftover strips and I had a 26" feather pillow form in my closet so I put together enough strips to make a pillow to match the quilt.  I appliqued a red maple leaf with a black maple leaf cut 1/2" larger to make a shadow behind it.  The red maple leaf was just too small on that large pillow. It is quilted with straight horizontal lines. 

Finished pillow front

I did the usual zippered back in the pillow with a Canadian newsprint type print.  I had to buy a duvet zipper as the largest dressmaker zipper I could find was only 22".

I have used the pillow and quilt for naps several times...perfect size for the futon in the playroom :-).

Another Jelly Roll Race quilt

I was rooting through my 2 1/2" strip drawer that contains leftovers of fabric from many years of sewing and got into the mood to sort the colours.  There were a lot of the 1980's greens/teals in there and some purple and mauves that went together nicely.  I supplemented them from the comfort quilt stash at the Hearts and Hands Quilt Guild that I belong to and put together a Jelly Roll Race quilt from it.  This quilt has 48 strips in it and makes a nice lap quilt.  I trimmed 2 1/2" off the sides to make the finished size 55" x 62 1/2".  We even had the perfect floral fabric in the backing stash.  I quilted it with an overall swirly flower pattern and it's already being used by a chemo patient at our local hospital.  She loved the purple and greens. (Click on the photos to enlarge)
 

Perfect 1980's floral fabric for the backing :-).

Close up of the quilting

label

The finished quilt