Posts

Embellishing Clothing-Jean Jacket

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Hi folks, ladies and gents who follow me, this is me, Carli The Quilter.  I know that many of you have probably gone onto to more exciting bloggers. But I took a bunch of time off from my usual blogging to reside with more quick types of posts on Instagram. @carlithequilter My favorite Jean Jacket was going under going a transformation. This was back in 2020. Covid etc was ruling our lives and I was busy working for our family business.  This is the back side about half way through embellishing the back of the jacket. Times are a changing and with all that's going on in the world, we need our hobbies to help keep us sane. I find that embellishing my jacket is a process that does take time. So perhaps wearing other clothing will help you get through it. This above photo was taken this past summer, You can see my pants drying on the rocks! I was rockhounding and stumbled over a rock and into the creek I went. Luckily it was fairly hot and my stitching on my jacket came in handy ...
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Memory Quilt Extraordinaire!

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My journey in quilt making is always a joy to do. Sometimes, its challenging when a needle breaks, but all in all its a great way to record a family's history in one or more quilts for snuggling under and remembering that family good times. It starts with someone reaching out to me. Its a difficult thing for someone to do. Its brings a flood of memories  back to them.  Making a memory quilt is not a transaction. Its honor, repect and gentleness. I've been usually given the briefest of information about how it should look when finished. Most people are just happy that someone will take care of their loved ones clothing in an artistic way. Working with clothing is where I started sewing back among the whispering aspens as a child. I lived quite remote, my family took care of farms and we lived at one of those farms for part of my childhood. Remote living isn't for everyone and I excelled at being alone in the woods, fishing with a pole and learning how to embroider as a means...
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Homewood Retreat

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I joined the Nanaimo Quilt Guild earlier this year and attended my first guild retreat. It was held at the Homewood Camp on Quadra Island and its a great site and these are some of the highlights of quilts made during and before the event. It rained everyday we were there and only had a wee bit of sunshine on the day we left. But it was still awesome to quilt every day with new friends.  
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Red is Best

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 Hi everyone! I know its been a long time since last posting, but I've been working away on several fronts. The past Red Quilt is still undergoing more borders and then finishing. But I'm plagued with getting used to having Meneire's Disease. I have new glasses, new diet, new orthotics, and I'm getting used to slowing down literally!! (Note added 2026: I don't have Meniere's Disease) This is a great way to use up an older made piece from the center and then also use up some of the Circle Blocks I made eons ago! And then that very busy border print is perfect to cool the rest of the quilt so far. I made myself a really nice dress made from two linen table cloths. Super stocked no stains were found on these two table cloths and they are so soft, I'll post a better photo down the road. Smaller projects are going to be the focus for 2023. My space is what it is and its better for me anyway. And life does bring change, right, always, change is the factor. Happy Q...
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Catching up with my work!

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This is a flashback photo to 2006! Family visiting from down south, this is one of the little fantastic cabins at Round Lake Resort. Highly recommended if you are visiting the Bulkley Valley. I finally found some time to update all that's been happening with me since the lovely wedding our oldest son to our beautiful daughter in law in August. I  What you see below is the fully finished Hexie Quilt before the borders and machine quilting were done. It took me 18 months of doing only one thing. That experience taught me a lot. I don't like working only on one project at a time.  But even though I did complete this for the wedding of course, but still don't have any updated photos from the wedding, I think maybe Christmas is the time we'll see these photos. I We've been fussing with our Old Girl, Rusty is now 15.5 years old and still doing OK, but very frail and not into travelling anymore. We recently took her along on a quick trip to the Kootenays. That was clearly ...
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A little bit of stitching...

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We are helping to tidy up my father in law's home and get him settled into a new home. Its tough, not easy to deal with and we are trying our best to hold down all that we have going on. But thank you for all the kind comments on my spring posts, its been kinda dismal in terms of my stitching, nothing really new, just a bunch of little pages for my weight loss journal. The following pages are some of what I've been mindlessly stitching out the stress of these times. Rusty is aging fast and this is a common view of Rusty whenever we find a shady spot to sit and watch the waves come in. She is 14.5 yrs old this year. We are taking time in small bites to reset our extra busy-ness this summer, elder care and a wedding, its way too busy. Happy quilting everyone. Carli  
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Upcycled Christmas Crazy 2021

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When I started the four central blocks of this Christmas Crazy it was around 2014. I was looking for another crazy quilt to provide me a winter of hand stitching, hand embroidery and embellishment. That winter was almost 7 years ago. The four blocks were complete and ready to incorporated into the new design by end of 2016 when we moved to Vancouver Island. But then they sat in a storage unit without me for another year. I make all these goal posts because, so often I hear things like, "Wow, that must have taken years? or Did you do all this stuff by hand?" and it makes me think that many times, the task is soooo daunting to a person, that they become stuck and don't ever let themselves fall in love with the freedom of crazy quilting. Early in crazy 2020, the year that we'll all universally remember forever. I leaned back on my busy life with building a business and trying to stay safe all at the same time, I decided to get busy finishing a few things and I've got...
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