Kim Hanson

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A Canadian Quilter in Russia

June 27, 2017 | Leave a Comment

Have you ever wondered if there are quilters in Russia? Do they embrace the art of quilting with fabrics in the same way that North Americans do? Gail Heller, a Canadian businesswoman and Certified Instructor for Studio 180 Design happens to know the answer and it’s a resounding “yes”!

Gail recently returned to Calgary from a trip to Russia, teaching quilting skills to women in the quaint and charming medieval-style town of Suzdal, located on the banks of the Kamenka River a four hour drive from Moscow. Suzdal’s warm, friendly and welcoming citizens quickly put Gail and her Canadian travelling companion Sharon Thompson, at ease.

As part of the Suzdal second annual International Quilt Festival, Gail was invited to attend as international quilt instructor. She feels privileged to have given a trunk show and taught three classes to 36 willing and eager Russian students.

Each student, working within a three hour time frame, made four quilt blocks using the Petite Hunter Star tool and Studio 180 method of piecing. At the conclusion of the class, the ladies used the floor as their design wall and “pooled” their individual blocks to make one pleasing integrated pattern. Gail quickly discovered that design skills in quilters is universal. The students were thrilled with their efforts. Apparently “thumbs up” means the same in Russia as it does in Canada!

Gail loved and appreciated the enthusiasm of the quilters. She was struck by their wonderful work ethic, their talents and their willingness to learn and embrace the North American style of quilting. Subtle differences in their quilting habits however make their style unique.

  • Although Russian quilters love the unbeatable quality of North American quilting cottons, these fabrics are not readily available to them. Proving their amazing resourcefulness, Russians will tend to use whatever fabrics they have on hand for their quilting.
  • A patchwork style is very popular in Russia, with quilt tops being “backed” only and not quilted.
  • Long arm finishing is just being introduced to the country.
  • Time is of the essence to these ladies – they want to work hard; efficiently and quickly. Gail distilled her usual five hour quilt class down to a mere three hours to better accommodate the needs of her women students.

In our country, mothers leave their children at home when attending quilt class. Not so for Russian mothers. Gail had several women arrive to class with their daughters in tow. In the case of one mother, she brought along her adorable daughter dressed in Russian costume, who did all Mom’s pressing and ironing as the blocks were pieced together.

Gail, Hunter Star quilt, mom and daughter

There is a greater desire in Russia that children are to be included in sewing instruction…..in fact, there is a wonderful feeling of community and support in passing down sewing and quilting skills from one generation to the next.

Teaching a quilt class in English to a group of Russian-speaking students presented its own set of challenges. But Gail was armed and ready. As part of her pre-class preparation, she learned a few Russian sentences to help her students feel at ease. Я рад быть здесь means, “I am pleased to be here” and Я надеюсь, вам понравится мой класс translates to “I hope you enjoy my class”. Rimma Bybina, Russian quilt festival organizer is fluent in both English and Russian and helped Gail effectively communicate with her keen students. A useful translation app, the pattern book itself and “charades” kept the ladies learning and moving forward.

Language barrier aside, another teaching obstacle for Gail came in the form of measurements. Quilting in Russia is taught using the metric system. Even though Canada is a metric country, quilting here is taught using yards, feet and inches – the imperial system of measurement. Gail had to convert the quilt patterns to metric and assisted her students with their fabric cuts in order to avoid any confusion.

Gail is home, back working at her company in Calgary. She is grateful for her wonderful experiences abroad and would encourage Canadians to visit Russia and the annual International Quilt Festival without trepidation. Her visit has left her with many new Russian Facebook friends….her translation app is working overtime!

Gail and quilt festival organizer Rimma at the Applefest in Suzdal. Applefest ran concurrent with the quilt festival.

Quilts hanging from the balcony at Applefest

 

 

 

 

 

At the Field of Quilts – Marina (Moscow host), Gail, Nina (St Petersburg host) Sharon

Note:

Gail Heller is a transplant to Calgary, Alberta from Port Stanley, Ontario. She runs Erie Quilt Art, a Calgary based distribution company selling quilting products to quilt shops across Canada. She is one of only four fully accredited Studio 180 Design Certified Instructors in Canada. Gail is also the exclusive Canadian distributor for Studio 180 Design (Deb Tucker) patterns and tools.

 

This article previously appeared in Quilter’s Connection magazine.

 

Thank you everyone.

Kim

Filed Under: Magazine quilts, Profile pieces, Quilt Patterns, Quilts |

Mehndi Hearts – Quilted and Embroidered Pillow Tutorial

June 12, 2017 | 1 Comment

Good day everyone. Thank you so much for joining me here on my blog.

I have another tutorial for you all.

Triple Mehndi Hearts

Quilted and Embroidered Pillow

Ever since Julie at Designs by JuJu released her super sweet Mehndi heart design collection, I’ve been longing to use them for a project. Now, finally, I have! Here is a quick and easy pillow project you can easily make over a weekend. There are ten different Mehndi Heart designs available; your challenge is to choose just three. Begin by gathering together a few fabrics, some colourful rickrack and your favourite embroidery threads and let’s get started. Hope you LOVE your new TRIPLE MEHNDI HEART pillow.

Please be sure and read through all the instructions prior to commencing.

Finished Size:  17″x19″ – pillow cover

Shopping List:

Designs by JuJu Mehndi Hearts designs DBJJ799 – choose three, one large and two small

Fabrics (Shown on pillow cover – Lila Tueller’s Fantine Collection, Riley Blake)

 

White for embroidery – piece 8″x10″ and two pieces 8″x9″

Blue for pillow top front and backing – two fat quarters

Pink for backing to Mehndi hearts and for pillow corners- fat quarter cut 7″x7½” and two pieces 6″x6½” and four pieces 6″x8″

Green for pillow back – two pieces 12″x21″ and two pieces 13″x21″

Quilt batt –  19″ x 21″, 12″x21″ and 13″x21″

Lightweight fusible web – three sheets 8″x11″

Tearaway stabilizer – 1 yard 20″ wide

Pillow form – 18″x18″

Small Pink rickrack – 44″

Small Orange rickrack – 44″

Large Green rickrack – 44″

Embroidery thread, embroidery needles, scissors, pinking shears

Regular and white pencil, omnigrid ruler, rotary cutter

Temporary Spray Fabric Adhesive

*I use Brother Embroidery thread for all my projects

 MACHINE EMBROIDERY

  • Download three Mehndi Hearts designs, one large and two small. Beginning with the large heart, load the first design into machine.
  • Large hoop 8″x10″ white fabric with corresponding piece of stabilizer and place the hoop onto the machine.
  • Stitch out the first heart design, being mindful to clip jump threads as you go. Repeat for two small heart designs – medium hoop 8″x9″ white fabric and corresponding stabilizer.

CONSTRUCTION:

  • With a pencil, draw a line around the perimeter of the large embroidered heart, ½” from the edge of the finished design.
  • Using pinking shears, cut around the pencil line. Repeat for two small heart designs. Press all three hearts.

  • Using fusible web manufacturer’s instructions center and fuse the large heart to the 7″x7½” piece of pink fabric. Repeat using the 6″x6½” pieces of pink fabric for the two small hearts.
  • Using the white pencil, draw a line around the perimeter of the embroidered heart, ½” from the edge of the finished design.
  • Using pinking shears, cut around the pencil line. Repeat for two small heart designs.
  • Fold one blue fat quarter in half lengthwise and press and widthwise and press again to find the natural center. Center all three hearts as shown in the photo, being mindful to line up bottom point on each heart and fuse in place. (Fuse the small hearts first, then the large one).
  • Machine applique stitch around the embroidered heart and the pink fabric heart.

  • Measure 1¾” from bottom of heart tips and with the white pencil, draw a straight line widthwise across the pillow top. Center 20″ strip of pink rickrack on pencil line, pin and stitch. Pin and stitch 20″ strip of green rickrack in place directly under the pink rickrack. Pin and stitch 20″ strip of orange rickrack in place directly until the green rickrack. Repeat these steps for top of pillow. Trim to even.

  • For pillow corners, see diagram #1.

  • After stitching, fold over pink fabric and press. Trim pink fabric to mimic corner of the pillow. Repeat for three other corners of the pillow top.

QUILTING:

  • Make a quilt sandwich; place right side of pillow top back (second blue fat quarter) on a flat surface. Spray lightly with fabric adhesive and carefully layer the quilt batt on top and smooth. Spray the quilt batt lightly and layer on pillow top. Pin if needed. Quilt as desired. (I used an echo – outline stitch around the triple hearts and a basic, straight line grid to quilt the pillow top.) Trim pillow top to measure 17½”x19½”.

PILLOW BACK:

 

  • Sandwich a layer of batt between the two green pillow back pieces sized 12″ x21″. Turn under one edge, widthwise ½” and press. Turn under another ½” and stitch. Repeat for two green pillow back pieces sized 13″ x21″.
  • Right sides together, lay one back piece over pillow top, lining up bottom edge. Right sides together, lay the other back piece over pillow top, lining up top edge.
  • Stitch pillow top and pillow back together ½” from outer edge. Trim and turn pillow cover right side out. Insert pillow form.

 

If you have any comments or questions, please email me directly at km.hanson@shaw.ca.  Thanks!

Kim

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Filed Under: Decorating with Quilts, Quilt Patterns, Quilt Photography, Quilt tutorial, Quilted and Embroidered originalYoga mat bags, Quilted pillows featuring machine embroidered, Quilters, Quilts, Quilts and Machine Embroidery |

Who doesn’t love a Challenge? A Quilt Challenge that is.

March 29, 2017 | Leave a Comment

Several months back, sometime in 2016, I came across this fabulous fabric line called With Glowing Hearts. It was designed by a lovely young and talented Canadian designer named Grace Noel. I bought a lot of this fabric from Dinkydoo online and I totally fell in love with it, especially the first fabric featured here; the teal one. Teal and Red. What’s not to love?

Grace designed her fabric collection for TrendTex to commemorate Canada’s upcoming 150th anniversary (called a sesquicentennial by the way). Once my package of fabrics arrived in the mail, I sat down and drew out my idea of what a Canadian celebratory quilt might look like. Initially, all I was interested in was designing and stitching and creating a project fellow quilters would want to make. So, tweaking my design drawing as I went, I have finished the quilt top; it’s a row-by-row style actually. The simplicity of my design really allows the fabrics and colours to shine.

Then, I read Quilter’s Connection Winter issue featuring Grace Noel and her work. Grace announced that TrendTex was sponsoring a Quilt Challenge….using her inspirational fabric collection. They are calling it With Glowing Hearts – Quilt Challenge 2017. So once I have finished machine quilting my top I may enter it in the Challenge. I’ve never done that before so I think it could be fun.

You may want to enter too! I know this fabric is still available through Dinkydoo. Here are some Rules and Regs:

There are two quilt categories

  • Large (must be a minimum of 240″, maximum of 360″ total perimeter)
  • Small (must be a minimum of 100″, maximum 160″ total perimeter)

Your quilt must have a minimum of six fabrics from the With Glowing Hearts collection. You can only use With Glowing Hearts fabrics AND coordinating Bella Solids. Embellishments and threads will be accepted. Sounds like fun, right? Prize money ranges from $750.00 down to $100.00 and winning entries will be showcased at the International Fall Quilt Market in Houston at the end of October, 2017. Quilts must be submitted to participating quilt shops by July 31, 2017….you can find a list of participating shops right here. And you can find more detailed contest details right here.

Do you feel challenged?

Kim

 

Filed Under: Magazine quilts, Quilt Inspiration - Where Do Pattern Ideas Come From?, Quilt Patterns, Quilters, Quilts, Uncategorized |

Best Rag Quilt Scissors Ever?

March 22, 2017 | Leave a Comment

I’ve been making machine-embroidered rag quilts for the past decade or so. I love them! This one is called Animal Sunshine.

This one I made for my sweet granddaughter, Harlow, when she was born.

And this one is Theo’s Quilt.

I have designed a new, machine-embroidered rag quilt pattern which will first appear on the Designs by JuJu’s website in the very near future…so I can’t yet show you any photos of it here.

When working on my new project, I stumbled upon some wonderful, inexpensive, rag quilt scissors. These are Fiskars and they could not be more perfect for clipping the seams on your rag quilt! Gone are sore fingers and fatigued hands and weary wrists. These scissors are truly splendid, gliding along, making very short work of your seam clipping.

Grab a pair for yourself!  You’ll be all ready to try my new pattern when it’s unveiled.

Thank you so much everyone.

Kim

Filed Under: Decorating with Quilts, Embroidered Rag Quilts, Quilt Patterns, Quilt Photography, Quilts, Quilts and Machine Embroidery, Uncategorized |

Tic Tac Toe; A Quilted and Embroidered Cupcake Pillow……. Just in time for Valentine’s Day!

January 23, 2017 | 1 Comment

Good day everyone. Thank you so much for stopping by.  Today we are featuring a pillow tutorial – highlighting quilting, machine embroidery and cupcakes by Designs by JuJu.

qcpillow

Red and aqua with a dash of lime swirl together to make this sweet pillow a delightful project to welcome spring. Love and creativity blossom as you adorn your pillow with machine appliquéd cupcakes, embroidery embellishment and yo-yo’s disguised as “puff cakes”.

Please be sure and read through all the instructions prior to commencing. It will make the project much easier for you.

Finished Size:  16½” x 16½”

Shopping List:

Designs by JuJu Cute as Cupcake applique designs DBJ331

(Fabrics shown on pillow cover are Riley Blake, Apple of My Eye Collection)

Floral Red- Fabric 1   .8 yard

Apple Stripe Aqua – Fabric 2   .3 yard

Apple Stripe Red – Fabric 3   fat quarter (18″x22″)

Apple Petals White/Red – Fabric 4    .6 yard

Apple Basket Aqua – Fabric 5  scrap

Pear – Fabric 6  scrap

Quilt batt –  19″ x 19″

Lightweight fusible web – 17″ wide  1 yard

Heavyweight stabilizer – 20″ wide  1 yard

Crocheted flowers – 1 small red

Aqua buttons – 4

Pillow form – 16″ x 16″ or 17″ x 17″

Cupcake Embroidery Designs DBJJ331

Embroidery Lettering – LOVE.  This can be any script lettering, including a standard stitch on your embroidery machine or Designs by JuJu DBJJ850 or DBJJ862

Embroidery thread, embroidery needles, scissors, pinking shears

Pencil, omnigrid ruler

Hand sewing needle, thread and thimble

Spray starch

Spray temporary fabric adhesive

*I use Brother Embroidery thread for all my projects

CUTTING:

 For Pillow top:

From Fabric 1:

4 – 8″ squares for block B

From Fabric 2:

5 – 8″ squares for block A, centre block and 2 – 1½” x 42″ strips (sub-cut into 8 – 6″ pieces for “X” on block B)

From Fabric 3:

heart template for centre block, 4 – 1½” circles for puff cake centres (cut with pinking shears) and small pieces for appliqué as needed

From Fabric 4:

19″ x 19″ square for backing and 4 – 4½” circles for puff cakes and small pieces for appliqué as needed

From heavyweight stabilizer:

5 – 8″ squares and 8 – 1½” x 6″ pieces

Quilt batt:

19″ x 19″

Cut lightweight fusible web pieces as you go

Ingredients to make a puff cake: (Puff cakes are a stiffer variation on a fabric yo yo.)

4½” circle of fabric

2½” circle of fusible web

1½” pinked circle of fabric

button

photo1

For Pillow back:

From Fabric 1:  2 pieces 17½” wide x 14¼” long

CONSTRUCTION:

Block B

Match “X” aqua pieces measuring 1½” x 6″ with corresponding piece of heavyweight stabilizer. Fuse the stabilizer to the fabric piece using fusible web.

Fold red block B in half diagonally and press.

photo2

Open square and draw two pencil marks ½” on either side of centre dividing line. Repeat for diagonally opposite side. Fold aqua strip in half lengthwise and match up centre folds.

photo3

Align, centre and pin one aqua strip. Stitch around the perimeter of the strip using a machine blanket or appliqué stitch.

photo4

Centre intersecting aqua strip on top of first strip to create an “X”. Stitch around the perimeter of the second strip.

photo5

Press block and trim to 6½” square. Erase any remaining pencil marks. Repeat for other three block B’s.

TIP:  When trimming the blocks to 6½” square, be mindful to trim small amounts from EACH side of the block, so that the design is centred.

Centre Block

Using fusible web’s manufacturers instructions, fuse the heart to the centre of 8″ aqua square. Stitch around heart outline using blanket or appliqué stitch to secure. Set aside for machine embroidery.

MACHINE EMBROIDERY APPLIQUE

Block A

Download the cupcake appliqué designs. Using the small size, load the first cupcake design into machine.

Hoop 8″ aqua block A together with 8″ square of stabilizer and place the hoop onto the machine.

photo6

Centre embroidery design. Stitch outline of first part of the design.

photo7

Remove hoop from machine.

TIP: Cover ironing board with towel or cloth to prevent overspray.

Cut a piece of Fabric 4 slightly larger than outline stitching. Lightly spray starch fabric scrap and press. Lightly spray wrong side of fabric scrap with temporary fabric adhesive. Place the fabric scrap over the outlined stitching area and pat gently to smooth and adhere.

photo8

Replace hoop on the machine.

Stitch tacking stitches and remove the hoop from the machine. Carefully clip around the stitching as close to the stitch line as possible.

photo9

Return the hoop to the machine and continue to stitch out the design.

Stitch out three more cupcake appliqué designs in the same manner to make four block A’s. Trim all block A’s to measure 6½” square.

Hoop the centre block heart and an 8″ square of heavyweight stabilizer. Download the word “LOVE” and transfer to machine. Centre design and stitch.  Trim block to measure 6½” square.

CONSTRUCTION

Lay out all nine blocks as per diagram #1 – see below. Stitch blocks together to form pillow top, using a ½” seam allowance. Press seams in the direction as per the arrows in diagram.

Make a quilt sandwich; place right side of pillow top down on a flat surface. Spray lightly with fabric adhesive and carefully layer the quilt batt on top and smooth. Spray the quilt batt lightly and layer on pillow top backing. Pin if needed. Quilt as desired. ( I have used an all over free motion quilting style on Block A and simple outline quilting on Block B).

Trim pillow top to measure 17¼” x 17 ¼”.

Hand stitch crocheted flower in place on block 9.

PUFF CAKES

Make 4 puff cakes as follows: (See diagram #2 and photos of Block B) Place 4½” circle of Fabric 4 right side down on ironing board. Centre 2½” circle of fusible web and press to adhere. Do not peel off fusible web paper backing. Thread your hand sewing needle with a double strand of thread and knot. Fold over raw edge of fabric circle ½” and begin to hand stitch seam, gathering fabric as you go. Pull thread taut and finish stitching the circle. Knot thread securely.

photo10

Press to flatten circle slightly. Centre 1½” red circle over puff cake and stitch the aqua button in place on top. Hand stitch the puff cake to the centre of the “X” on all block B’s.

Pillow Back:

On both pillow back fabric pieces, turn one edge under ½” lengthwise and press. Turn edge under an additional 1″ and stitch to seam. Right sides together, lay one back piece over pillow top, lining up bottom edge. Right sides together, lay the other back piece over pillow top, lining up top edge.

photo11

Pin. Stitch pillow top and pillow back together ¾” from outer edge.  (I rounded the corners on the pillow. If you choose this option, trace rounded corners onto pillow back prior to stitching.) Trim and turn pillow cover right side out. Insert pillow form.

Toss your new pillow in your favourite chair. You will LOVE  it.

If you have any comments or questions, please email me directly at km.hanson@shaw.ca or leave me a comment on this post.

After you make this pillow, please send me a photo!  It will be displayed on both my website and Designs by JuJu’s website as well.  Thank you all so much.

Kim

pillowdiagram1

 

pillow-diagram2

heart-template-2

Filed Under: Quilt Patterns, Quilt Photography, Quilt tutorial, Quilted Pillows, Quilted pillows featuring machine embroidered, Quilters, Quilts, Quilts and Machine Embroidery |

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