While my parents were here visiting for a few weeks this summer, my Mom was plugging away on a lovely shawl. And lo and behold, it was for me!

It’s a big rectangle, with some seaming up the sides to create sleeves. It allows you to fold over the collar any which way and change the look quite a bit (as a side note, every single time I try to type “quite” I do “quilt” first. Ha.)

Excuse the bizzaro look on my face. My neighbour was looking for me and came around the back of the house to find me with the camera propped up on the BBQ taking pictures of myself. She must have thought I had lost my marbles.

I can see that I am going to get lots of use out of this one, particularily when we are all cuddled up on the couch in the winter. We keep the temp really low (68F) to save on heating costs, but it means when you sit still it tends to get really chilly. It will be just like a big hug from Mom! Thanks again Mom, I love it.

Thanks everyone for your sweet comments on our quilted gown. The show is next weekend – I am starting to get nervous!

The final quilt that I made for Christmas this year was for my preteen (recently had her 13th birthday, so frighteningly she doesn’t fit in that category anymore) niece.

As always, you can click for a larger picture. I decided to do a wonky log cabin pattern, by following the tutorial on Tallgrass Prairie Studio. It was such a fun way to make blocks, but definitely time consuming with so many little pieces. As each block was made one at a time, one piece at a time (pressing and cutting between each strip) it took a lot more time than I thought it would.

I used Tula Pink’s Hushabye fabric for the majority of the quilt, with a few others for accents. I pieced the back because I wanted to display some of the great fabrics in this line.

For the binding I used a chocolate swirl accent fabric. Handbound, just like the other two.

The quilting was done on Laura’s Statler, and it is a simple meander. I didn’t want the quilting to take away from the wonkiness of the blocks.

As I said at the start, each quilt had something that was my favourite. L’s was the fabric, Z’s was the quilting, and B’s is definitely the piecing.

While I don’t know that I would recommend making 3 quilts in the month before Christmas, seeing the kids reactions was worth it. Mom (TJ’s sister) had a fantastic reaction too, all teary eyed from the corner. They are great kids, and they deserve something special.

Thanks everyone for your kind words about the first of my quilts. Today’s second quilt was made for my other nephew, who just so happens to be the middle child.

Z is soft spoken, but not shy, and one seriously soft hearted polite kid. Soft, like his quilt.

A simple random squares and rectangles quilt, with some really fun fabrics.

The back of this quilt is something I am quite proud of. It is actually two pieces, but I managed to get the seam lined up well enough that I don’t think it is noticeable.

It is bound in a striped fabric, which I think gives it just the right amount of fun on a masculine quilt.

As I said previously, each one of the three quilts had a favourite part for me. This one was by far the quilting.

The whole quilt is covered in concentric circles. I will definitely use this pattern again, because it gives the quilt the coolest texture.

As I was making each quilt, I was thinking about what the kids reactions would be. I certainly underestimated Z. His eyes popped open when he pulled it out of it’s wrapping, he gushed the entire day about how he couldn’t believe I had made it, and a couple days later when I saw him the first thing he said to me was that he had used it every day since he got it. Seriously, how could that not melt your heart? He will make a great catch for someone someday.

For Christmas this year I made three quilts, one for each of my nephews and my niece. For each one I thought and planned out the pattern, the fabric, and the quilting to match their personalities the best I could.

Over the next three posts I will give you the details of each one, I hope you like them! Today is my youngest nephew L’s quilt.

L’s quilt is a variation of a log cabin pattern. I used a charm pack for the squares, and a jelly roll for the strips.

The fabric is Moda’s Shirtings 1875-1900. It has sweet bicycles, baseball bats, cuff-links, and other small patterns on it.

I don’t know if it is because I spent so much time with this quilt, but these colours just really made me think of L. He is a level headed kid (the blues, creams), with just a streak of…trouble (red).

The quilting is Wind Swirls, done with Laura’s Statler Stitcher. I bound it in red, because I thought that gave a really good framing contrast.

I pieced the back to use more of the awesome fabrics, and to make it more interesting.

I think it was a hit, because he slipped away from the table at dinner and was over playing with it in the living room. Folding it up and looking at it. That is a pretty big thank you from a 7 year old.

Each of the three quilts had one thing that was my favourite, and in this case it was definitely the fabrics. I think TJ kinda wanted to keep this one – I am definitely going to have to make him one soon.

When I was a little kid, my dad had these really funny looking mittens. They had an extra finger part, so that your index finger was free from the rest of your hand. Dad explained that they were for hunting, so that you were able to use the trigger without having to take your hands out of the mittens. His Mom, who was from Newfoundland, had made them for him.

Unfortunately I never got to know my grandma before she passed, so I never got any of her patterns. I was surfing around Craftster one day and low and behold I found this post! I was so excited I could hardly contain myself.

Guess what my dad got for his birthday this year?

My very first fair isle project. I used Berroco Peruvia, so they are super soft. I also used the method of fair isle that has you weave the floats, so there are no long floats on the inside to catch your fingers on. (Can you believe I forgot to take a picture of the inside??)

I don’t know why I had never tried fair isle, it is super easy once you read the instructions. The hardest part was finding a way to wrap the yarn I was holding in my right hand around my fingers. I knit continental and I don’t really wrap the yarn – I just sort of smoosh it between my hand and the needle for tension.

He was surprised, and I think he liked them. TJ really liked the look of them (minus the extra finger), so I think he will get a pair of fair isle mitts at some point too. I can see the practicality of the extra finger though, even if not for their original purpose. It would be so much easier to grab things in my purse!

It’s fun knitting old patterns like this. A nice connection to my history.