Tag Archives: roof garden

Summer Picnic Dish

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The Pickle Dish collections were released on the weekend and I couldn’t resist making this instead of the classic red and white pickle dish I had planned to do.  Something about a summer picnic dish wall hanging just seemed like the right idea for now.  I had cut and pressed fabric to freezer paper, printed my shapes and cut them out and was stitching within a few minutes of downloading the collection.  While I’m hand-piecing, I’m sure this could be easily machine pieced as the curves are very gentle.  To that end, Linda even included a template for paper piecers to print out and use for that method.  It is an amazingly simple block to stitch with the matching points and stitching lines that Inklingo prints.  I really can’t imagine making this block with any other method!

There’s an absolutely fabulous Design Book as well, which is free to download.  There are lots of great tips in it for stitching both Pickle Dish and Double Wedding Ring quilts.

More greenery from the roof garden.  After the weekend,  during which we did have some rain, I think it’s probably even greener out there now.  Maybe some flowers will start to show up soon too.

It was a rather hectic weekend and I haven’t really looked at blogs or even replied to some comments yet.  I hope to get back on track after Tuesday.  In the meantime, if I haven’t responded to a comment,  please know that I really do appreciate getting comments and always do respond — eventually.  This is one of those “eventually” times, it seems.

Lester loves to sleep in the pink chair.

While Smudge finds the couch more to his liking most of the time.

Flowers for the Garden

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The pretty little box was loaded with all that’s necessary to make some flowers for the garden and three flowers were made on Wednesday.

This will be a small quilt — perhaps a little doll’s or teddy bear’s quilt.   I think there will be about 10 flowers, or perhaps even less, in total for this one.  These are 1″ hexagons and they seem enormous in comparison to the .50″ ones I was working with last week.

The backs:

To see flowers made by other hexagon gardeners on One Flower Wednesday, go to Karen’s blog and on her sidebar you will see the names of the gardeners with links to their blogs.

I’ve been looking through the Japanese hexagon book again and, among other quilts that catch my eye, this one really interests me because of the quilting design used in the flowers.  It’s very pretty and very effective.  I think if you click on the picture to enlarge it, you’ll be able to see it.

One of the trees on the roof garden, and I have no idea what type of tree it is, has these little pink buds on it.  I don’t remember ever noticing it flowering before so have no idea what these will turn into.

Lester once again showing why we think of him as the house lion.

While Smudge was having an after-dinner nap.

Getting Ready for One Flower Wednesday

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Last week, I won this beautiful notions box designed and painted by Kaaren at The Painted Quilt.  The shading of the flowers and leaves is fabulous — I hope it’s as evident in this close-up picture as it actually is.  The little butterfly at one corner is such a wonderful touch.

The inside is pretty too.

The colours couldn’t be more perfect.  The shade of pink of the exterior is maybe one or two shades lighter than the walls in the living room.  The inside is almost the same shade as the green in the side drapes and the lining of those drapes.  What could possibly be better than a dusty rose and green? Even the beads Kaaren used to make the handle are incredible.

It truly is a treasure and one that I will make great use of and treasure.  In fact, I plan on keeping my hexagons and threads for One Flower Wednesdays in it!  Speaking of which, I’ll fill it up later today and stitch a flower or two.

It was unbelievably chilly here on Tuesday and windy again.  I think March was warmer than the past couple of days have been.  However, we got a few more shots out on the roof garden on Monday.  From the west side of the roof garden, we can see the CN Tower.

There are two crab apple trees on the roof garden.   When the gardeners start planting, the flower bed surrounding this one is a riot of beautiful flowers.

Lester showing, once again, why we think of him as our house lion.

I think Smudge was just waking up when we took this shot.

More Spring Circles

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The first quadrant has now grown to 20 blocks.  When 36 blocks are done, I’ll start on the second quadrant.  Watching a new group of circles appear has me fascinated every time I add a new row.  I’ve got the blocks for the next row started and am approaching this with a view to finishing a row every week, including adding it to the other rows.  It is still going to take quite some time to finish it, as each quadrant is going to take at least 2 months to make although I am finding them faster and faster to stitch.

We were lucky to get the shot out on the roof garden Monday afternoon.  By Monday evening it had become quite windy.  The wind continued on through the night.

We got some other nice pictures of the roof garden on Monday.  This is one of my favourites, looking from the west side of the roof garden over to the east.

This is the building in which we live.  While it’s very high, we live down quite close to the roof garden — in fact, only a couple of floors above it which means we get all the benefits of having a tree in front of the window and seeing lots of greenery.  The sky was wonderfully blue on Monday with just wispy clouds floating by.

Lester was sitting on my lap, staring up at the ceiling when Mr. Q.O. got this shot.  Usually, I completely fall for it and look up to see what he’s staring at.  This time I didn’t.

Smudge curled up with a teddy bear.

Monday Miscellaneous

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When picking up the frame on Saturday from Sew Sisters, I couldn’t resist these fabrics for the Alabama Beauty blocks.  It will be mostly made from stash but I will need to add a few fabrics along the way as I want to have each circle in the quilt unique.

The roof garden has been opened for the season.  We were out there for a while on the weekend.  So far, there are only a couple of little daffodils blooming but lots and lots of green shoots starting to show in the flowerbeds.

All of a sudden the grass on the roof garden seems green as can be.

We have been taking care of Winnie since Friday morning.  Last time we took a picture of her was shortly after she had been given the kitty lion cut last fall.  Now her fur has grown in as seen here.  When we go in, we’re greeted most times by the loudest meow imaginable.

The weekend saw some very lazy kitties in this household.  Lester curled up in one bed.

And Smudge curled up in another.

Farewell to a Beautiful Tree

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Up until about 15 minutes ago, this was the view looking towards the west from our living room.

Ten minutes ago, this happened:

There is something unbearably sad about a beautiful tree being cut down. I understand there was root disease and they had to have it removed but the sound when the tree fell was indescribable. Up until the tree removal people arrived, the birds had been singing and it was a wonderfully peaceful Saturday morning. Now? Now, there are no birds singing.


This is the view looking towards the west from our living room now. It’s going to take some getting used to. One of the best things about this apartment was the fact we had trees in front of the windows which, in the spring, summer and most of the fall, hid the fact we are right in the middle of the concrete jungle of downtown.


I Got Mail

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These fabrics arrived in the mail Tuesday from Pink Chalk Fabrics, which I ordered using the gift certificate I won during the Quilt Festival hosted by Park City Girl. Pink Chalk Fabrics’ mailing charges to Canada are among the least expensive I’ve found. The package arrived quite quickly too.

Along with these 3 half-yard cuts, I ordered a yard of Kona Snow, which is a fabric I’ve been wanting to try out. I love the feel of it.


We were outside on the roof garden for a while Tuesday. The crab apple trees are blooming and the scent is absolutely fabulous! Just standing underneath this tree was wonderful.

The other crab apple tree on the roof garden isn’t quite as fragrant, but is still glorious. As you can see from the cranes in the picture, there’s a lot of construction going on around us. More and more high-rise condos being built. Traffic congestion is bad enough now. I can’t imagine what it will be like when the new condo towers are up and full.

Lester in his normal spot — on the windowsill. The robins are definitely keeping him entertained.

Smudge was very busy watching the robins early Tuesday morning. He was sitting on the windowsill, his tail was swishing and he was chattering away. It went on for at least 5 minutes. It’s so funny to listen to them when they start chattering at the birds. I think it must have been exhausting — he had to have a rest afterwards with Raggedy Ann.


Batts and Cats and Trees

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There were a few questions about the silk batt I mentioned on Monday. This is what I’m using. It is very easy to work with and, while it is more expensive than a cotton batt, for someone with limited hand strength it is pure joy to quilt through. I had no hand fatigue at all while with cotton I run into that problem very quickly.


The other thing I love about the silk batts is that even with heavy heavy machine quilting, they retain their lovely soft drape. Next time I have a quilt done by a long-arm quilter, I will definitely use one of these!

We had sun on Tuesday. I’m sure I’m wrong, but it feels like it has been weeks since we’ve had sun. I love the look of the roof garden with the snow when the sun is out.

I’m not sure if the boys were admiring the tree shadows on the snow or just posing.


The Finally Finished Label

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The label is finally done and is ready to applique on to the back of the quilt when it arrives. Writing the names on was almost comical – I kept making errors and had to start fresh each time. It was fun to put this together and I’m thinking that a few done with Oriental fabrics and a really rich centre might be quite striking for place mats — but for show only!

This is the roof garden now — very few leaves left and the one bush has partially changed colour.


Smudge watching — squirrels, birds, who knows?

Lester doing the same.


Fall Colours on the Roof Garden

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This is the first year I can remember that the vine on the trellis on the roof garden has treated us to such colour. I suppose the amount of rain this summer really did make a difference.

While the vine turns colours, the flowers at the base of the trees are still going strong and as vibrant as ever.

This shot shows that there are still buds to open on some of the flowers out there. If no sudden frost hits, I suppose we’ll have flowers for a while yet.

The squirrels (BTRTC’s, Karen Dianne) are very busy right now. Looking out the window and seeing them darting about is always good for a laugh. Some of the squirrel races are amazing to watch.


Lester with his most favourite toy. He really likes to keep it within reach.


Today is our federal election so tonight should make for some interesting television viewing as we see the results start to come in.