2021 is another one for the books!
It was another record year of long arm quilting customer quilts which is no surprise because the quilters get busy during times of stress as well as during good times. In 2021 they were busy! I had six quilts from one customer which I worked my way through in between other quilts (at her request). Six at one time might be a bit hard on the budget right?
I managed to get all but three quilts in my 2021 queue done before I cut off for some time off on the 24th. I ran out of energy and time and the last three weren't for gifting over the holidays so the customers were gracious to wait.
It was a productive quilting year for me too. Let's see what I managed to finish:
This is my last quilt pattern design for 2021. It's not quite finished so might not make it into my Etsy shop this year, but stay tuned! I have some more in the hopper to release in early 2022 but this one measures 67" x 67" and will be available first.
https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/dayspringquilter
Let's see some tops that I made in 2021 which are in the quilting queue:
This Trip Around the World was gifted as a quilt top to another quilter in December 2021 so I won't be quilting it. I'm excitedly awaiting the end product pictures.
It was a kit I purchased from Craftsy and finally pulled it out and put it together. I wonder why I wait so long sometimes. Things can seem like a huge mountain when in fact when you get closer it is a rolling hill. I learned that about myself this year. I always look at projects as long term challenges. They aren't all that way and I'm trying to change my mindset about it so I don't add to the UFOs.
This half square log cabin was born out of my strip bins. I love scrappy the most. In early December I dug out all my batting pieces, catalogued them, and then decided what could be sewn together into bigger batting pieces to get some of my own quilt tops quilted. I ended up cutting all the batting, backing and putting it all together with a tie for the quilting queue. Now all that's stopping me is some personal quilting time. Stay tuned. It won't be long until this one is quilted.
This one is one of my all time favourite quilts, period! It was created over the course of years. The pattern is Tumalo Trail from one of Bonnie Hunter's books. It's 100% scrappy, including the neutrals and the piano key border. The inner border came from yardage. I have some Warm and Natural 100% cotton for backing and I purchased a lovely wide back for it. It's also just waiting for some personal quilting time. I hope to have it on our bed for spring. It is a king sized quilt.
So, as I was scrolling through my photos looking for the unfinished quilt tops of 2021, what I found is that I actually managed to quilt some of these this year as well, so ta da...they're actually finished!
Ha ha...in this one picture alone we have a table topper I quilted for my friend. She gave me her mom's linen pieces and I decided to return one piece to her quilted. Next to it is Postcards from Sweden, created as a sew along with my guild earlier in the year and promptly quilted and bound. Look at me go! And underneath as a backdrop to cute doggies is my Strictly Triangles quilt. It's a larger quilt, folded and draped because I want to see it every day. The quilted pillow has a story too. I was encouraged to join a Round Robin, my first one. I was the only one in the group who didn't do modern and I used the fabrics I had on hand. The others were vastly different in style and genre. After staring at it for awhile, I decided to return it to its original state as a block and make a pillow for my couch. And another story about it...when I went on my quilting cruise to the Mediterranean in 2016, I met a new friend from Florida named Suzy who won a prize for creating the design on the pillow for the Rose Sharon contest put on my Accuquilt. Suzy and I connected over this block and have remained friends. She's a great designer and quilter.
Postcards from Sweden
One Day Mystery Quilt (from Homespun Hearth)
Whole Cloth Linen quilt made as a sample for our new business Tahorah Designs
A Commission I did this year for someone in Quebec. She provided the colour fabric and I added the white. Quilted it with Puppy Paws.
My first rag quilt made with some homespuns from my stash.
Contraflow made with a layer cake purchased on a road trip to the USA. Gifted to close friends.
Class done with Susan Teece during an online retreat with my guild.
Simply Triangles quilt
Hand quilted Amish style block for block exchange.
A pattern I created for APQS for their blog. The quilt was finished a gifted to someone in the USA battling health issues as a comfort quilt.
My humility block. It was only when I quilted it and was binding it that I caught the mistake. In my defense, I made a big quilt with these blocks and it's not surprising that my eyes glossed over.
The quilting shot of the above quilt.
A baby quilt. My own design and published pattern "Eugenie".
Another pattern release this year called 'Barcelona' inspired by my 2016 trip to the Mediterranean. My friend made the quilt top with the fabrics I provided. I quilted it and published it. Pattern available in my
Etsy Shop here .
My mandala quilt. Another UFO. Once I got going on it the inspiration returned and I finished it. It hangs in my entry way. I quilted it with edge to edge over all the raw edge applique.
and another of my Amish Block party patterns, done with an extra row to make it fit a bed better. Quilted it with Ikat. For sale!
FOR SALE HEREDone and gifted to the Transition House, a local charity in my city.
This sampler, finally completed in 2021, was born as an idea about 8 years ago when we had acreage and a barn that I dreamed of turning into a cottage. Dreams come and dreams go, but sometimes quilts dreamed during those times make it into real life.
This was a kit I purchased on a road trip from Sisters Quilt Shop in Chehalis, one of my favourite stops south of the border.
This was an idea I had for charm squares and denim. It's all raw edge appliqued on the denim and quilted with an all over design (that escapes me). It has been finished, although I don't seem to have any finished pictures. Picnic quilt!
This quilt was skinned, resandwiched and quilted in 2021. It was severely damaged. Thread was popping from the original quilting job about a decade ago. It was a huge job but I am so very glad I persevered. It lives on our bed.
Scrap Jar Stars (from whence came my humility block).
This is a future wedding quilt for one of my kids.
Well, that was a long post! I hope it had enough pictures to keep you scrolling through. I drained my cup writing it and I'm sure you drained yours reading it.
Happy New Year to my readers and quilty hugs all around,
Mavis
