Danny's quilt in the planning stages

Well, good news today all around. I was able to drive over to Lorraine's AND I remembered to bring my camera! I'll be sharing photos of the process finally. The end product is likely to be slightly different.


Here you can see the center row. We decided on the center row and then worked outward. The pieces of brown fabric on the right edge of each block is the sashing.

We've tried for symmetry when possible and even looked at colour and fabric details when placing blocks. Part of the fun, though, is seeing what we can make out of so many varied blocks. I think it's the real charm of the quilt, the contributions from so many caring women coming together.

In this picture here we're saving space for two blocks that are on the way. Monday should bring my favourite mail carrier - the one who delivers packages!







This picture gives you an idea of the quilt's size. We added a few blocks as place holders.

There will be horizontal pieces of sashing fabric between each row. The top, bottom, left and right edges will be surrounded by the same fabric as the sashing. Then, Lorraine will add one or two borders as she sees fit.

At that point the quilt top will be ready to be layered with the batting and the backing fabric and handed off to Gerene to be quilted.

Things are really coming together. I love it!

Well, I finally did it

I finally made my block for the project. It took me some time to even choose the fabrics and colours. Thankfully I had the benefit of opinions from 2 other quilters.

This is my second attempt. The first try was good enough for me to keep but I didn't feel it was my best work. I wanted the middle square to be, well square. Having a square block is pretty important in quilting. It's part of the whole 'patience is a virtue' thing. I think my block is humanly, perfectly square ;)

I have to thank my daugther for really nudging me to get out of my comfort zone. The block that I made is called TWIST. I got it from my favourite pattern site.

http://www.quilterscache.com/T/TwistBlock.html

What I love about Marcia's site is how organized it is. Twist is a block rated 2 push pins. 1 push pin would be a beginner block. My daughter really encouraged me to give this one a try because I really liked it. Lo and behold it worked.

We are capable of success when we are encouraged, aren't we?

A present for lil ole me!

Just have to share a photo of a lovely wall hanging Lorraine gave me last night.

She said that I had inspired her and showed me this mini-quilt. I loved it immediately, of course, and UNICEF popped into my mind. She reminded me of the UNICEF card I had given her for Christmas. That's when I realized she had worked from the front of the card and made the image with fabric.

I was suitably impressed. I didn't reach for it. I just looked at it. That's when she told me she made it for me. I was a bit surprised. I couldn't imagine what I would have done to deserve such a beautiful gift. Turns out she was thanking me for getting her back into quilting last summer.

How lucky am I? I call a friend and ask her to help me learn to quilt. She helps me get started, I learn a lot and we join a guild together. Then, I get such a lovely gift for basically asking for a favor! LOL

If only all of life was so easy, and so beautiful.

Here are the photos together so you can see how nicely she reproduced the design. Notice how the card has various shades of blue and so does the wall hanging. The dove itself is quite impressive. I love how intricate it is, with feathers that look like the dove is in flight.













They say quilters are great piecemakers. I think we can also be great peacemakers.

Thank you again and again Lorraine.

It's a new year

A lot of things have happened since I last posted. I've been traveling for the holidays and upon returning home promptly injured my left rotar cuff. I'm fortunate that I didn't tear it. I merely strained the tendons in the area of my left shoulder.

Now, 11 days later I'm clearly on the mend. Getting dressed is no longer as painful, I can type pretty quickly and I've begun cooking again. I have to be honest and say that being cared for, and pampered, by my husband and kids has been wonderful. Still, I'm ready to start driving again. I'm hopeful that may happen this week.

My biggest concern was not the pain. I fell and it hurt. That's no big surprise. What really concerned me was getting Danny's quilt top pieced together. In the early days of the injury I had limited range of motion and anything that required the shoulder to rotate was out of the question. Sewing was definately out of the question.

Thank Heaven for friends. Where would any of us be without them? Lorraine will likely do the lion's share of the work piecing together this quilt top. She's happily offered to do it and that is quite a relief. I am going to try to help, at least sitting at the machine, for as long as I can.

Today is an exciting day! We're meeting to begin arranging the blocks. In the next few days we'll be making the creative decisions necessary before we can begin to assemble the quilt top.

This is the part I've most looked forward to. This is the stage in the project when all the individual, lovely blocks sent to me will become a beautiful work of art. The joining together of these blocks is a lot like working with other women. Each strenthens and enhances the other.

And yes, I will be able to take photos because I'm right handed and my camera can be used one handed ;)

Until then I want to share pictures of blocks sent to me by Kathleen. Her blocks are in the mail and should arrive any day.



Here's the other:



Aren't they gorgeous? Very manly and wonderful Earth tone colours. Thank you Kathleen for sending me pictures. I can't wait to receive the blocks and see them up close. Thank you also for your very generous offer of the quilt batting. That's a rather crucial element in quilt making. :)

Dec. 6th brings two more blocks

Two blocks arriving on one day is a pretty good day. Opening the envelopes/boxes as they arrive is a lot of fun. My husband may not admit it but he too has become curious about this project. Looking at the postmark is always interesting because you never know where the block(s) is (are) coming from.

Debra sent another Jacob's Ladder block. You may not be able to see clearly but it's made with fabric that has a camping motif. I love the green fabric and how it picks up some of the green in the camping fabric. My daughter is fascinated by what you can make with squares and triangles. I'm hoping she'll try to make a block like this in the New Year. I think she can do it.

Here's a block from Sandy. This block is amazing. I know to the uninitiated it looks like a bunch of rectangles, squares and triangles and it IS. BUT...if you could see how perfect the seams are on the back and how perfectly flat this block lays you'd be quite impressed. I've decided to give this block a try in the New Year.

I've noticed on this 'quilt journey' that all of the blocks are so well made. You can see they're made with care and attention to detail and just imagine the love that went into each block. These blocks inspire me and always will.

Debra and Sandy, I thank you for caring and for supporting this project.

I'm pleased to have caught up all of the blocks. I'll continue to update this blog as more blocks come in. And more are coming ;) How cool is that?

dawne

A Must See film

Several weeks ago I went to see a film. What an ordinary sentence. Nine simple words that appear so matter of fact. After all, going to see a movie is such a common event. I didn't see a movie, I saw a film. I think it was the first time in my 36 years that I really understood the distinction.

People tell me often that I have a good memory. I don't usually think much of it. I'm now quite thankful for the gift of memory because that which we remember vividly stays with us. If something stays with you, stays in your head bouncing around with your other thoughts, you're more likely to share it with others. When you get something, it causes you to care. Only then are we empowered to act.

This is a film that must be shared.

The film toured Canada with film maker Brenda Rooney. The day before the showing we had quite a storm. Power was out in several areas, including the theatre that was to show the movie at 1 p.m. I called at 11:36 a.m. to learn that power had just be restored and they were going ahead with the film. See what I mean about memory? Who bothers to remember such fine detail?

Me!

I think I remember the time because I really, really wanted to see the film. I would have been disappointed if the weather had cancelled the showing. After leaving the theatre I remember a true feeling of joy that I was able to see the film after all.

Before the film Brenda thanked everyone for coming and said that after the showing she'd be happy to talk about the film, her views on women or answer questions. At the end of the film she took the mic and asked if there were any questions. The audience was so quiet. I'm pretty extroverted so I like to hang back and give more reserved people a chance. As a young girl I was a bit like Hermione Granger in Harry Potter, always having my hand in the air. I sure hope I was less of a know-it-all :)

Back to our topic. I still remember the seat I sat in, next to my friend Kathleen. I remember Brenda's face as she waited for someone to ask a question. I'm not sure if she understood just what was going on. We were all processing all that we had seen. In that moment the whole point of the film was crystal clear to me. I didn't have any questions about the film at all.

I figured that everyone had had their chance to speak up so I was going to take mine. My hand shot into the air and when I was acknowledged I spoke in a loud, clear voice that surprised me somewhat. Part of me was holding back tears. Tears of worry and pain and even tears of joy and hope. I don't actually like to cry in public so I'm relieved I seemed 'together'. I said "I'd REALLY like to hear your views on women". And so it began, a discussion I'll never forget.

Brenda was a reminder to me of what I think good feminism is. Good feminism is being pro-woman. It is not about being anti-man.

In this blog I will often praise womanly things because they are worthy things. This is no reflection on how I feel about men. Personally, I like men and I'm all in favour of 'em ;) I simply think the world can do with a few reminders of just how worthy women are.

So, raise your hand if you want to know the film title?

I'll give you a hint.

"One day an army of grey-haired old women may quietly take over the world." - Gloria Steinem.

OK, I'll be nice and tell you straight out.

The Great Granny Revolution

Here's a quote from the website. I think it says it all.

"The Great Granny Revolution is an uplifting story about the bonds of friendship between women and the power of individuals to make a difference."

Now, for those of you who've been paying attention you remember I'm only 36. Much too young to be a grandmother. I don't know what it's like to be a grandmother but I know what it's like to have a grandmother. I've been blessed with amazing grandmothers. I'm pretty sure I'll end up a grandmother one day. Preferably 10-15 years from now. But still, I know a little something about grandmothers.

Stephen Lewis has called the grandmothers of Africa unsung heroes. I agree. I also recognize that being a grandmother here in North America is very, very different than being a grandmother in many other places.

When I have grandkids, to be perfectly blunt, I can always send them home when I need a break. I'll have my husband, my family, my hobbies and my work to fill my days. I expect and hope that my adult children will be alive and well and able to care for their children. When the grandchildren come to see us we'll bake cookies, read together and go on outings. In a nutshell we'll have the same experiences I had with my grandmothers. And, I'm likely to be accused now and again of spoiling my grandchildren. All in all it'll be a very happy time in my life, even with the grey hair!

Until that time I support the efforts of women [and men] here to connect and support women, and the children, there. There's a lot we can learn from each other. There's also work to be done. If you want to learn more try to see the film. If it's not coming to a city near you buy it. It's really a great flim and costs less than a couple of meals at a restaurant.

You can also visit:

The Wakefield Grannies

Grandmothers to Grandmothers -at the Stephen Lewis Foundation website.

I'd love to hear your experiences of women working together to support other women. There's a lot of really good stuff going on around the world. It can be hard to stay focused in the wake of all the bad we hear about. And yet, we must not lose our hope for if we do then all will be lost.

Till next time, keep hope alive,

dawne

December starts on a high note

I've always believed that a person should give only that which they can comfortably give. Looking over the past years I've often given of my time or my money. Usually it's one or the other and always to different degrees. It's all relevant to where you are at that point in your life, what you have, what you need and what you have to spare.

I say that now because each of the blocks I've received are coming at a time when people are busy making Christmas gifts. Many people are looking at Christmas budgets and making gift choices. To make time to create a block and pay to have it shipped really means a lot.

Imagine my surprise when Mary Anne sent 7 blocks! She told me that if any were too feminine to save them and use them at another time. I love them all and I think we can use 6 of them. Who knows? Once all the blocks are assembled Lorraine and I will play around with them and arrange them in different ways until we find what we think works best.


Here are the Jacob's Ladder blocks. There are lots of smaller squares of really cool fabric that do not show enough in the picture. Take my word on it. This is a picture of 4 blocks. It's cool how they come together.

And here are the 3 stars. They were all done by a method called Paper Piecing. I haven't tried that yet but hope to in the new year. Peggy Martin has a book of paper pieced stars that I find fascinating.



Thank you Mary Anne for these wonderful blocks. I appreciate the time and resources that went into each one of them.

dawne