New project

This past week has not been very productive. By the time Wednesday was over I was sick with laryngitis (oh, was the house ever quiet). That was followed by a dry, hacking cough and later my eyes were infected. So for the first time I had to cancel a trunkshow and a workshop because of illness. I hope that will not happen too often. About 2 weeks ago I was asked to come up with a small project for teaching at a local store. The owner really liked my "Springtime in Ontario" quilt, so I took a look at the Jack-in-the-pulpit block and came up with this design. It should fit, because the workshop is not till next the spring. Still have one workshop to do on Saturday. My voice is not in good shape yet, but we have a few more days.

Frost

Finally.....the harvest is over. Hubby got up at 3.30 this morning to combine the last corn and he finished before sunrise. Conditions were just right with the ground frozen. So that is it for another year. I took these pictures soon after the sun was up and there was still frost on the ground. All is gone now and it turned into a beautiful day. Not much in the quilt department to report. Worrying about a sick mother in Holland and a sick mother-in-law here took most of my engergies.A workshop last Saturday in Newmarket, a trunkshow tomorrow in Brampton and another workshop on Saturday in Orangeville just about does it for this year.I'm trying to machine quilt a small landscape, but I feel like I'm getting worse instead of better. Might have something to do with not feeling the best with a sore throat and a cold. These are my final few roses, clinging to life. This bush flowers from springtime till late fall. The small roses are not very showy, but they are very pretty.

More postcards

Yesterday was the November meeting of the Waterloo County Quilters Guild. There had been a lot of interest shown in making postcards for a quilt for the Mennonite Relief Sale . For those members, who have never made a card, I decided to have a workshop on December 2nd. It did not take long to fill that one with 24 members and now there are enough signed up for another workshop in January. This one will not be till after I come back from Holland in the middle of January. The due date has been changed from January to FEbruary. I also handed out 100 information sheets.These 2 cards are samples I made.One shows the MCC logo over stamps, the other is the logo for the Ten thousend Villages.More information you can find at www.mcc.org The goal is to make a 4 inch by 6 inch fabric postcard showing some aspect of the work by the Mennonite Central Committee. I will collect these cards ( we hope to get around 100) and give them to the local office. From there the cards will be distributed to the volunteers all over the world. They are asked to take the card(s) to the local post office , put stamps on and have the card hand cancelled and pop the card in the mail. I do not think that all the cards will make it back, but I hope for the best. These cards will be the beginning of another group quilt. It usually takes 3 years from the beginning till the quilt is sold.

Postcards

Last month I introduced at our monthly guild meeting a new idea for another quilt for the Mennonite Relief Sale. The first step is making postcards.Since a lot of the members have never made a fabric postcard I will be teaching a workshop on December 2nd. I made a few samples of Christmas cards to use during the day. This is all what I have been able to accomplish this week. The harvest is almost done,but my husband twisted his ankle coming down the steps of the combine, so that changed things. Xrays showed that it is not broken, but he won't be able to walk much for a few weeks.So I will have to do the chores for him. So far so good. I'm fine as long as the machinery does not break down. I'm absolutely not technical, give me a horse over a tractor anytime. When time allows I will make a few more cards.It is fun to make small projects.

Smile Quilts

Every year, in the fall, the Waterloo County Quilters Guild has a bee day where we make quilts for children with serious illnesses. The quilts are called "smile quilts" and are delivered to the hospital in Kitchener. In the last 5 years our guild has provided over 450 quilts. Once at the hospital,they are distributed by the nursing staff.We were provided with a pattern beforehand, but it is up to us to decide want to make. Over the years I have bought a collection of animal prints and each year I make at least one quilt. This year's sample you can see here. I have to buy some flanel for the back before I can machine quilt it. As you can see there was a good turn-out and a lot of work was accomplished. Yesterday I had to teach in Mount Forest, only 30 minutes from here and Saturday it is back to Orangeville. This all keeps me hopping. At home we are still combining. It is muddy, so far so good.I have not had the dreaded call "we are stuck". It is a relieve, when finally all the crops are in and we can settle in for the winter. There are lots of projects waiting for the time when there will be less interuptions.