Who needs sleep?

After Wayne's Trunk Show, I had to get on my computer and play with some nine patches. I'd made a small mat a few years ago from leftover HSTs and just picked two nine patches at random from it. Don't know if Wayne has done these configurations, but it was definitely fun. In the one on the right, some of the HSTs needed to be recolored to make the medallion effect. 

Only problem is that I started it late and didn't get to bed. Maybe I'll call these designs, "With Eyes Propped Open I and II."

 

For those not familiar with what Wayne does, I drew a nine-patch (used CorelDraw) and rotated, flipped, etc. until I liked it. Changing colors would create more variations. The quilts look complicated, but the blocks are simple. I've already too many UFOs but if God permits sewing machines in heaven, eternity should be long enough....

Trunk Show

Yesterday presented a delightful opportunity to meet Wayne and Linda. They were at a quilt shop in my city to present a trunk show, a small part of the quilts from Wayne's amazing mind. For this display, he used quilts that came from the idea of nine-patches and pinwheels only. Each quilt is named after a town in our province. The variety is astonishing. You can go to his blog and click on that category from a list down the side.

While the quilts were even better "in live" than the photos and ideas from the blog, the best part for me was the delightful personalities of Wayne and Linda. They are fun, down-to-earth and very friendly. This matches both their talents in designing and making quilts. 

Hop on over to Wayne's sketchbook and poke around. He has a website, a book on designing, and another one in process. If you are every in Alberta, look him up. He sells patterns too, and his patterns are not only well-executed, but he also gives several suggestion in each for variations in using them, a real bargain that shows his heart... he wants everyone to share in the fun of "I designed this myself!"

Thanks for a super couple of hours, Wayne and Linda!
 

Happy Thanksgiving

In Canada, today is officially Thanksgiving. The turkey is in the oven! However, since being thankful cannot be restricted to one day or to one country, my prayers for all to have a delightful day of being grateful for all good things, such as:

- God's grace and blessing
- freedom to live and work and laugh
- family near and far
- times to play, worship, create
- old friends and new
- the smell of toast in the morning
- a good night's sleep
- warm homes 
- clean water
- dishwashers and coffee makers
- good food from the farmers' market
- the ability to say YES
- good sense to say NO
- color
- ideas and plans 
- clear sky and sunlight
- quilts finished and on the go
- memories
- space for books and fabrics and other stimulating stuff
- and time to make thankful lists, even if I must get busy for now instead of writing forever!