It's a Good Day...

photo from www.measha,com

Last night I had the privilege of attending a local (sold out) concert by Measha Brueggergosman. All I can say is WOW! She has a new Christmas album out and part of the concert was Christmas music, with a smattering of other music as well. Her rich tone, her tremendous vocal range,  her command of the stage, her incredible band (Aaron Davis on keyboards, in

photo from www.measha.com

particular) all combined for an awesome evening. I can't sum it up any better than this paragraph from the programme: "One of the most significant sopranos performing today, Fredericton's own Measha Brueggergosman is critically acclaimed as much for her innate musicianship and voluptuous voice as for her strong stage presence far beyond her years. Brueggergosman has performed with some of the world's most celebrated orchestras and has carried her own solo shows in major venues around the world, repeatedly breaking the stereotype of an opera diva, and standing apart as a fresh and youthful ambassador for classical music."
It's been quite a while since I've seen Measha perform live, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but let me tell you, she did not disappoint. She is on the eastern Canada leg of her Christmas Tour now, so if she is coming to a venue near you, and tickets are still available, run, don't walk- give yourself a Christmas treat, and attend her performance. You can see her tour schedule here.
I still love Measha's duet with David Myles, "Whole to my Half", I think it will always be a favourite. You can listen to it here. Fredericton is so very proud of these two "home town kids"...    :)


A few days ago I promised to show you a surprise I got in the mail this week- As a thank-you for being a hostess in this year's Blogathon Canada, I received a Fat Quarter bundle from Sew Sisters of Toronto and a "six pack" of thread from sponsor Aurifil. What a lovely gift, and a complete surprise! Don't you just love it when the doorbell rings and you see the mailman standing there with a parcel for you?! Thanks Sew Sisters and Aurifil!! You're the BEST!

Other great news to share today: dear son Mark just got his first "real job"! (Insert big WHOOP!! here) Today is the final day of his six month clinical practicum for Medical Lab Technologist, and he just secured a job at our local hospital, starting Monday morning!! Guess he won't be sleeping in on Monday, as he thought... lol


Darling daughter Laura also is now working. She is in Ontario, and has been job-hunting all fall. She started working three weeks ago for an online travel agency, in their head office in Hamilton. She is their SEO copywriter with duties including writing copy, managing and creating marketing campaigns and contests, social media work, SEO (that's Search Engine Optimization) and analytics, and writing blog posts for TripSense. So far, she loves it!  (another Big Whoop!!) Although she feels there is a big learning curve for the business aspect of things, I assured her this is common with any new job. Check out her company at www.tripcentral.ca. I am so proud of both of them!!

The sun is shining brightly today, although it's very nippy out there... -11°C at the moment. I plan on spending the afternoon sewing, trying to get some Christmas sewing finished up... Can't show you any photos, as a certain someone might see... wink   Can't say who that would be but that might be her on the left... lol
While I'm sewing, I'll be singing.. still some work to be done on this Sunday's concert repertoire...

Peace,
Linda

Music is my escape. It silences the world and my worries.

We Have a WINNER!

Blogathon Canada 2014 is over. Wasn't it fun? I hope you discovered lots of new exciting blogs to follow, and hopefully you made some new friends along the way too. I know I did. I still have a number of blogs to visit as I was out of town for two days so that really cut into my "visiting" time... I will continue this week.
I kept a list of my commentors as the comments rolled in, assigning each a number. I counted only one comment per person (as some people left more than one comment) so everyone had one fair chance. I was surprised at how many were No Reply/Comment bloggers, or Google+ users, with no access to their email. People, if you want to have a chance of winning in a Giveaway, you have to be reachable!! If you are a No Reply/Comment blogger and you don't include your email with your comment, you are out of luck. Simple as that!! And not everyone is on Google +. Just sayin'...
When all was said and done, and comments were counted I had 282 "eligible" comments. Just because I enjoy seeing where my visitors are from, I kept track of locations as well (and yes, many didn't tell me where they were from). The majority were Canadian (150 - every province!), 81 were from the USA, 4 from the UK, 3 from France, 2 from Australia, and single visitors from Finland, Greece, Spain, Germany, and Italy! Awesome!!
I asked my hubby to choose five numbers between 1 and 282, in case some were No Reply bloggers. And guess what - the first two he chose were just that - unreachable! (Point taken!) So, the lucky winner was the third number he chose - 275 - and that was........... drumroll please..................... Jennifer of  Tamworth, NSW Australia. Jennifer blogs at Bronze Wombat and commented: "Love your quilts! I am visiting from Tamworth, Australia, where it's been very hot and dry. I'll swap you for some of your cooler weather right now!" I have emailed Jennifer to tell her the good news. Sew Sisters will be sending her that gorgeous bundle of blue batiks!! Congratulations Jennifer!!! I know you will create something wonderful with these beauties!!
Thank you to ALL who visited and left such lovely comments. I enjoyed hearing from you all!! And a warm welcome to my new Followers too! I hope you'll visit often.
Finally, a huge THANK YOU to Sew Sisters of Toronto for hosting the Blogathon, and to all the sponsors - Auriful, Robert Kaufman, Timeless Treasures, Northcott and Camelot Fabrics. I had great fun and I'm sure everyone else did too. I hope we do it again next year!!

Piece!
Linda

May today's success be the beginning of tomorrow's achievements.

Welcome to Blogathon Canada Day 2 in Atlantic Canada

Hello! Welcome to Blogathon Canada! My name is Linda and I'm honored to be one of your hosts for Day 2 in Atlantic Canada, along with Linda at Scrapmaster. There are so many exciting things going on today! First of all be sure to stop by Sew Sisters, the Blogathon sponsor, to enter today's giveaway of goodies from Camelot Fabrics. Remember to check back at Sew Sisters each day this week, for a new giveaway! There are wonderful prizes to be won! Don't miss out.

"Blue Northwind" - generous twin size

Below is a list of links to other blogs in Atlantic Canada that I encourage you to stop by and visit, and of course I have an exciting giveaway too! But first let me tell you a bit about myself.

I've been sewing since the age of 12, quilting for over 25 years, and teaching quilting classes at local quilt shops and for Guilds for almost as long. I am a retired school teacher, and I have to say, teaching quilting classes is more fun!! For a little sample of my "teaching", you'll find two tutorials on my sidebar; I hope to add more in the future.

"Talkin' Turkey,"  a Bonnie Hunter design

 I love everything about the quilt-making process, especially choosing the  fabrics (I love color!) and piecing the tops. For me the journey, the "process", is more important than the destination. Scrap quilts are a particular favourite right now.

I've been blogging for almost 6 years and am so grateful for the many wonderful friends I have made through this blog.

"Not Quite Civil Pineapple", 8.75" sq.

 Lately I've been bitten by the "Miniatures bug" and I enjoy the challenge of seeing how small I can go, while still being absolutely precise in the piecing. (Some people think I'm crazy, I'm sure.) Actually I do enjoy Crazy Quilting too! You can see my Miniatures and Crazy Quilting in the Galleries on my sidebar. This miniature is 8.75" square and has nearly 450 pieces. It's one of my "garbage can quilts" - made with scraps anyone else would throw in the garbage. Not me! If it's larger than 1/2" square, I save it! (Did I already say some think I'm crazy?) Miniatures is one of my most favourite classes to teach.

 I hope you'll spend a little time looking around my blog. You can see more of my quilts by clicking on the "My Quilts" and "Small Projects" labels. You'll notice that quilting is not my only hobby. I am also a stitcher, a gardener, an avid reader and a photographer. So you'll find some gardening posts, book reviews, the occasional tried and true recipe, and lots of photography. I hope you'll return to visit me again, and I'd be very happy if you chose to "follow" my blog!









Now, on to some other bloggers in my area. I know some of these gals in person, and look forward to getting to know the others. After visiting them, don't forget to come back to enter my giveaway!

Marjorie's Busy Corner

Through My Window 

Judy Cooper Textile Images

Quilt, Knit, Run, Sew

Devoted Quilter

One Mother of a Blog

Quilti

Sister of the Brush 

A Pictorial Quilter's Journey 

The Q and the U

Cool Cats

It Is what It Is!

Love to Quilt

Fredericton Quilters' Guild

Cotton Mill Quilt Guild

Elm City Quilt Guild 

Now, on to my Giveaway of a luscious batik Fat Quarter Bundle, courtesy of Sew Sisters. (Naturally it is blue, my favourite color!) It is open to everyone, no matter where you live, and there are no hoops to jump through and no word verification. Just leave me a comment below ON THIS POST and tell me where you are visiting from. That's it! Easy peasy. There is one tiny catch though- you must have an email address. If you are a No Reply blogger, a WordPress blogger or you don't have a google account, you must leave your email address in your comment, otherwise I cannot reach you, should you be the lucky one drawn! The Giveaway remains open until midnight my time Nov. 23, the winner will be drawn and announced on Nov. 24. I will email the winner.

Finally, don't forget to visit my host partner today, Linda at Scrapmaster. She, too, has a wonderful Giveaway for you to enter, and more great Maritime bloggers for you to visit. 

Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy Blogathon Canada the rest of this week - each day two host bloggers will have giveaways and a list of other blogs for you to visit! Now how great is that! I know you'll want to join me in saying "Thanks Sew Sisters!"

Piece!
Linda

"Make new friends, but keep the old;
Those are silver, these are gold."
~ Joseph Parry

Blogathon Canada Day 1

Today is the first day of Blogathon Canada 2014. Today's hosts, Stacey of  Stacey in Stitches and Jessica of Momiji Studio are in British Columbia. You'll want to visit both of them to see their wonderful quilts, surf their blogs and enter their giveaways. On their posts you'll see a list of other B.C. quilting bloggers, so there are lots of new blogs to visit and new friends to make! And of course don't forget to visit Sew Sisters, the Blogathon host, to enter their daily giveaway (click here), today's sponsor is Aurifil.

Tomorrow, Blogathon Canada moves across the country and comes to Altlantic Canada, where I'll be hosting, along with Linda of Scrapmaster. (Yes, tomorrow is "Linda Day"! lol)  Be sure to come back tomorrow and visit us - we'll both have awesome giveaways with prizes provided by Sew Sisters, and a list of Maritime blogs for you to visit. By the way the giveaways are open to everyone - Sew Sisters will ship anywhere in the world. All you need is an email address to comment and enter. More on that tomorrow.

It's snowing here today, and although it's been melting all morning, it's now starting to accumulate. Ugh. I know winter IS coming, before long we'll be looking at a white world, which I guess is better than November's dull neutral palette of browns and greys. Neutrals are great in quilting - we need them! But I find November to be such a dreary and uninspiring month.. good thing we have Christmas-y greens and reds to brighten things up!  :)

Remember to come back and visit me tomorrow! Until then...keep stitching!!

Piece!
Linda

"Since there is nothing so well worth having as friends, never lose a chance to make them."
~ Francesco Guicciardini

Blogathon Canada

Today I have an exciting announcement to make! A few days ago, I told you to watch for more info on Blogathon Canada which is coming up November 17-22. Well, today I can finally tell you I will be one of the hosts for this blogathon! Linda, who blogs at Scrapmaster, and I will be sharing "hosting duties" for the atlantic provinces on Tuesday Nov. 18.
This is the third year for Blogathon Canada, sponsored by Sew Sisters Quilt Shop in Toronto. This year will be bigger and better than ever! So, are you wondering "Just what is Blogathon Canada?" It's a week long celebration of Canadian quilting bloggers: a way to connect, find new blogs, make new friends, AND win some amazing prizes! (Who doesn't like to win prizes??!!) Sew Sisters will have sponsored giveaways on their blog during the week, so you'll want to be sure to visit there to check out those giveaways from these wonderful sponsors: Aurifil, Northcott fabrics, Robert Kaufman fabrics, Timeless Treasures and Camelot Fabrics!

Woo-hoooo! You just know the giveaway prizes from these sponsors will. be. awesome!

Here's how it works- Each day host bloggers will introduce themselves and their work on their blogs -  the schedule is below. They will include links to more blogs in their province(s) so you can visit those blogs as well. Each hosting blogger will have a giveaway of goodies from Sew Sisters Quilt Shop. (Just wait till you see what I have chosen for you! Oooooh, you're going to love it!!) So - you'll have a chance to win every day of the week! How great is that?! And the giveaways are open to EVERYONE! Sew Sisters will ship internationally! 

Would you like to join the party? If you'd like for the host blogger from your province, territory or area to link your blog in her post, email Sew Sisters at connect@sew-sisters.com and they will add your blog to the list. Please note, you must live in Canada, and your blog should have posts about quilting or crafting to be eligible. Linda and I will be linking to blogs in all of Atlantic Canada - NB, NS, PEI and NL.

Here is the schedule for the hosts:

Monday          Nov.17       BC                  Stacey         Stacey in Stitches
Monday          Nov.17       BC                  Jessica        Momiji Studio
Tuesday          Nov.18       Maritimes       Linda          Scrapmaster
Tuesday          Nov.18       Maritimes       Linda          Stitch Lines   (that's me!)
Wednesday     Nov.19       AB                  Kelsey        Everyday Fray
Wednesday     Nov.19       AB                  Leanne        She Can Quilt
Thursday        Nov.20       SK                  Heather       Peace. Love. Quilt
Thursday        Nov.20       MB                 Lori             Night Owl Quilting
Friday            Nov.21       QC                  Josée           The Charming Needle
Friday            Nov.21       Territories      Janet            Caribou Crossing Chronicles
Saturday        Nov.22        ON                 Lorna           Sew Fresh Quilts
Saturday        Nov.22        ON                 Sandy          Upstairs Hobby Room

So, be sure to mark Blogathon Canada on your calendar so you can visit lots of new-to-you Canadian quilting bloggers! And be sure to come back and visit me on the 18th, although I certainly hope you'll return before then!  :)

Piece!
Linda

"I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship." ~ Brené Brown

It's Coming...

How the days fly by! I don't know where October has gone. Hallowe'en is almost here, and Ollie is watching for ghosts and goblins already!
And guess what else is coming soon? Blogathon Canada! Canadian quilters will be able to connect the week of November 17-22. It's such fun to see what quilting bloggers all across the country are up to! And there'll be Giveaways too! I can't wait! Stay tuned for more info soon.

I have two new classes coming up in early November so I'm busily preparing... samples, notes, etc. I hope to spend most of this week in my studio, and I'll be sharing a few photos soon...

Piece!
Linda

"Eventually everything connects - people, ideas, objects. The quality of the connections is the key to quality per se. " ~ Charles Eames