Magpie Quilts

I am so thankful that we live where we can travel a relatively short distance and be in the middle of the Rocky Mountain foothills.  Wild Tiger Lily  Throughout the summer, these foothills come alive with various wildflowers, each season bringing in a different palette of color and texture. Goldenrod  This past weekend I enjoyed an opportunity to camp with my family in the middle of this beautiful wilderness. Wild Delphinium  And along with photos of my kids and grandchildren, I managed to take some of the flowers that were in bloom. Indian Paintbrush These may become inspiration for a quilt further down the line, but for now, I'm just enjoying the show that nature put on! I hope you like seeing some of the things that inspire me! --Ann  

Those of you who have been reading this for a while will know that besides quilts, I also like to garden. This past week the U-pick farms have been open for picking Saskatoons (aka Serviceberry). These berries grow on bushes and as a child, we would just go out in the bush and pick them wild. I don't have any berries in my own garden and places to pick the wild ones are becoming more scarce, so I spent a pleasant hour picking berries last week at a local U-pick. Saskatoon berries on the bush Beautiful saskatoon berries! Pie ready for the oven!  I've misplaced my favorite pie recipe, so I used another and although it's still good, it's not the one I would like to share with you. My other favorite thing to make with Saskatoon berries is a simple berry sauce for over ice cream. Yum! Saskatoon Berry Sauce 2 cups saskatoon berries (or blueberries) 1 cup water 2 tablespoons cornstarch 3/4 cup sugar (I use a scant 1/2 cup) 2 tablespoons lemon juice...

I love it when that final step of making a quilt is done and it's ready to go on to where it will be used and loved. These 4 quilts all went to new homes in the past couple weeks, 2 here in Calgary, 1 to Washington and 1 to Chicago.  Custom Yellow & Gray Chevron with Dog Applique & Minky back Sock Monkeys Rose Parfait lap quilt Soft Pastel lap quilt with Minky back --Ann

I love to piece quilt tops and I had a package of fat quarters from a customer that she wanted made into this quilt: Raspberry Parfait by Verna Mosquera of The Vintage Spool. The fabrics she chose are Floral Collection Antique Rose printed by Lecien in Japan. Normally, I stay away from quilts with lots of triangles, because they can be fussy and sometimes it's hard to keep points sharp and pieces of fabric from stretching with bias edges. I must say that I am very happy with this quilt. I slowed down my sewing speed and took the time to trim up pieces that were out of shape as I went and the end result shows that attention to detail. Now, I just need a trip to the fabric store to find a backing so I can quilt it! --Ann

Here's what's blooming in my yard this week! Wish there was a way to share the lovely scents with you too! Morden Centennial Rose Hardy Single White Rose (unknown variety) Hardy double pink rose (unknown variety) Hardy Yellow Rose (unknown variety) Rosa Rugosa "Hansa" Hope you enjoyed the rose tour of my yard! --Ann