My dad

It was sudden, but peaceful.  He was 82.

I didn't know a lot of his early years, as life in the 30's and 40's in Prague and Germany was not something he wanted to talk about.  

 I learned he was a police officer before he came to Canada.

I learned he traveled by ship on the Neptunia to Canada to start a new life of adventures.

My dad was a very patient and kind man.  A hard worker and a love for the Canadian wilderness.  I remember him taking off on canoe trips and hikes in the middle of nowhere.  I remember camping in canvas tents with rivers of rain flowing through them in the middle of the night.  He taught me to whittle wood and make campfires.   I remember his love of animals and mother nature.  His absolute love of dogs....sometimes we wondered if the pets ruled the house.    Weekly trips to the library with stacks of books in his arms.   He seemed to be able to fix anything and everything.   His artwork, which he never showed off and kept it tucked away.    His love for his family, and his grandchildren.   A skeptic,  a man who questioned everything,  

My dad was a great father and a really great opa.   I am so glad I got to know him in his later years and had lengthy conversations with him - sometimes they drove me nuts, and sometimes they really enlightened me.  I would learn little snippets about him that made me appreciate him more.

Losing a father is never easy.  I take some comfort knowing that it was quick and painless.  That there was no long term suffering or loss of mind. He was still able to drive.  He was planning his next cruise.  He was aging, but he was still able.  

Losing a father is never easy.  I take a little comfort thinking and believing that he is with my mom now.  I miss him.

Rainbow Log Cabin Quilt

This beauty was made by a first time quilter!

totally honoured to quilt this one.... It is just full of happy and cheer!

 I called it the beast as I was quilting it.   It is approximately queen sized, and because the colours were on the diagonal,  the quilting was requested to be on the diagonal too.   That means, that I had to do a lot of rolling up and down the quilt, back and forth to quilt in those diagonal spaces. Hence,  it was a beast to quilt.  But it sure turned out beautiful!

 I quilted spiral swirls and plumes up each colour way.

The piano key borders were done in a whimsical feather shape.   The small dark border was a simple loop de loop. 

Thread:   Superior Magnifico in Yolk

Batting:  Warm and Natural

Straight line quilting and Channel Locks

One thing that I really wanted with my APQS machine was the ability to do straight line quilting.   I love the look of it, and was hoping that it would be fairly easy to use.   Last week I got to finally try it out.

I use my channel locks every single time I quilt.  But not for straight line quilting.  I use it to square up my quilt,  straighten seams and blocks, and make sure everything is falling into place the way it should.  The push of a button and I can guide my machine down a wobbly seam line and adjust my quilt top so that it appears straight.  It doesn't work magic, but it does help!

Sounds easy for quilting, right?    Wrong.

Unless your quilt and blocks are totally squared, precision pieced and straight,  

 straight line quilting will be tricky.  

Luckily I had a great quilt to try it out on.  

Tip -  if you do try straight line quilting,  just use your finger to push the machine along in the direction you are going.  Don't grip the handles -  just a simple push with your finger down the frame will ensure no wobbles or wonky lines. Yes, the machine is that light and that amazing that I can push it with my finger to stitch.

 If your borders or blocks are slightly wobbly or uneven,   the straight channel locks are unforgiving.  You line will be a straight line,  but it may not match up with a wonky seam line.      

 This quilt is just so cute.  I love the colours - so different.   I used a combination of spirals, straight lines and wishbone quilting in the teal and green blocks.   In the print blocks, I did a simple geometric maze to lightly quilt. 

The pieced backing is equally as cute -  it really shows of the quilting as well.

Batting - Hobbs 80/20

Thread -  Superior SoFine in pea soup green ( I forget the number and am too tired to go downstairs and look! )