My name is Jenn and I live in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. When I'm not quilting and blogging about it, I'm a Middle School French teacher at a local independent school. The most exciting non-quilty news in my life these days is that Himself (as I refer to my husband throughout the blog) and I are soon to be parents of twins. Have I started their quilts yet? Nope! Still waffling on a design choice! ☺
*A note about the smudgies in the above photo. Not smudgies, but actual Canadian snowflakes.
A few fun facts about me and my blog:
- I'm a life-long Girl Guide.
- I use a LOT of Kona solids in my projects and (one of) my dream job(s) would be to name new Kona colours.
- I have a weakness for chocolate and peanut butter - together, apart, whatever.
- I can't throw away selvages. Just. Can't. Do. It. Especially if they don't just have dots on them...
- I like to take my finished quilts to fun locations for photo shoots.
- I use nicknames for friends and family on my blog and I rarely show anyone's face. Just because I have a blog, doesn't mean they want to find themselves on it!
- I don't talk much about my non-quilty life on my blog. I figure people read quilt blogs 'cause they like quilting - not because they care what I made for supper last night or what TV show I'm obsessed with (and that would be Downton Abbey BTW).
Elli @ Lovelli Quilts
Marcie @ Marcie's Quilt Therapy
Sharon @ Motherdragon's Musings
Cynthia @ Cynthia's Creating Ark
Jane @ Jersey Jane Quilts
Sally @ Wonky Patchwork
Bee @ Pink Almond Quilt
Debbie @ Quilting Makes My Heart Sing
Leanne @ Devoted Quilter
Karen @ Capitola Quilter
JP.S. My quilty guilty pleasure is... Robert Kaufman's Kona solids. I love organizing (and re-organizing) my Konas. They're stacked in warm and cool piles and labeled with yardage and the colour name (even though I own a Colour Card!) I even have a scrap bin just for Konas! I can hardly wait for the 32 new colours to be available!
I'd say Kona is becoming my guilty pleasure. Perhaps I'm hanging out with you too often. LOL. And I will vouch for her organization...including organization of the Konas at our LQS. Thanks for the blog tips.
ReplyDeleteDoes my comment have to be about a quilty guilty pleasure? I just want to tell you, stop pondering design, and start making those twins some quilts! You don't think that one each will be enough, right?
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the upcoming twins! I love learning new things all the time. Quilting is my passion.
ReplyDeleteTwins! Such happy news, congratulations! My guilty pleasure in the "alone time" quilting gives me :)
ReplyDeleteJumeaux?! Quelle bonne chance!
ReplyDeleteMy quilty guilty pleasure? The amount of time I spend on it when I should be doing other things. My ironing basket is so full that I have nothing presentable left to wear, but I can iron fabric for sewing lickety-split.
Thanks for the photos of actual Canadian snowflakes. I have a Canadian husband and have visited many times, but only in the warmer months. Visiting his family's small country town gets tricky in the winter, he says.
That first photo with the colourful quilts with the snow is so pretty! The only reason i would ever want snow is because it makes a pretty backdrop. As for a quilty guilty pleasures, I spend more time on it than I should and I feel terrible about the state of the house!!
ReplyDeleteYour photography is fantastic-really, I don't know if I could lay my newly finished quilt on the beach in case it got dirty!!! I know, silly. Anyhow-guilty pleasure; being happy when school starts again so that I can sew for hours sans interruption
ReplyDeleteYour quilts are beautiful! My guilty pleasure is the same as Jo's, I spend more time on it than I should and I do feel extremely guilty about the state of the house but I guess not so much that it pulls me away :D
ReplyDeleteDo you use Instagram? I would love to follow you there as well!
ReplyDeleteJenn, your quilts are just wonderful and as far as guilty pleasures...hmmm...ice cream, lots of ice cream!
ReplyDeleteSo glad to get to know you, Jenn! My quilty guilty pleasure? Hmmm... that one is tough for me somehow! Honestly, I think that reading and following other blogs might be mine. For years I found a lot of inspiration online but did not have the bandwidth the add to the conversation; what little free time I did have I spent quilting. Now that my full time job has gone away and I have been able to start my own blog, I guess I feel less guilty about it and hopefully I can do just what you mention and provide good links and other helpful content to people who find my blog. But I still love the inspiration and reading / looking at photos from other quilters. Great question and thanks for making me pause to think!
ReplyDeleteTotally enjoyed your post! Twins - how exciting! I have identical twin girls but they are all grown up now. I was completely shocked when I first found out but it was awesome. I'm a Canada Cord Girl Guide and only stopped being a leader a few years ago - best times! My quilty guilty pleasure these days is Aurifil thread and having lots of nice new sharp rotary blades on hand. I used to make those blades last forever because they can be expensive but I watch for them on sale and stock up because a fresh blade is just the best!
ReplyDeleteI love adding Kona solids to my quilts, too. My current favorite is Kona Snow. I quilt for fun and for my sanity. So I do what I can to avoid guilt. ;)
ReplyDeleteI love your post and your exciting news--twins! Congratulations. My quilty guilty pleasure is antique quilts, I.want.them.all--and it just isn't possible, so I remake them, or let them inspire me.
ReplyDeleteTwins! How exciting! My bestie has twin boys and they are just the cutest! I love fabric...and Kona is becoming more and more of an obsession but I am in love with aurifil thread! Oh my goodness! I joined a stash club that also throws in some aurifil thread to match! It is too fun!
ReplyDeleteHi Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you! You have some lovely quilts, shot in wonderful locations. I like your photos!
FYI - I used to name colors as part of my job when I was a color specialist.
My quilty guilty pleasure is actually how much time I spend reading blogs, etc. instead of actually quilting!
love your quilts the color choices are awesome. Congrats on the twins. My quilty pleasure is fabric, I love it, could pet it all day. If I bought no more fabric this year I would have enough to continue quilting for at least a year if not more. But what is the fun of that?
ReplyDeleteI grew up in Upper Tantallon, NS, and my three boys are currently there visiting my parents! Your quilts are beautiful. Have fun making quilts for your twins - how much longer do you have for that project? My guilty quilty pleasure is magazines. I have so many already that I'll never have time to make even half the things in them, but I'm always drawn to the newest issues.
ReplyDeleteLucky, Jenn! I do like your blogging advice. I'm considering some revisions for my blog. Such a conflict with ALL my pleasures. I do like solids and started with them and I'm working my way back. I luv making collections, combo's, design plans with all my fabric. That makes it somewhat harder to locate the one particular fabric I know I have but its folded away in its grouping! lol
ReplyDeleteHi Jenn! Nice reading about you...erm, your quilty habits! I think my quilty pleasure is piecing. I love piecing new things, but then everything gets bottle necked before quilting and finishing. Go figure! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Definitely keeps you reading! The pictures of the quilts really match their scenery... my favorite is the one on the beach (Southern Cali girl here a.k.a. beach girl)! Look forward to seeing more posts of yours!
ReplyDeleteI don't know why, because for a while I thought I hated cutting my pieces... yet in reality, I absolutely love it!
Nice to meet you. Reading your post I kept thinking "I can relate". More recently I started including people pictures in my blog, especially my baby grand girl. (her parents gave me the thumbs up) Congratulations on the twins. It's intimating to make quilts when they are for someone special - I tormented on the one I made for the baby shower but then needed up making her a half dozen since and she's not even one! Takes the pressure off there being just one (or in your case two) perfect choices. My Guilty Quilty pleasure is probably second-hand scraps - they have such potential.
ReplyDeleteHi Jenn! I think my quilty guilty pleasure right now is all the money I spend on fabric and supplies. I left my job last year (thank goodness, now I have more time to sew!), so I probably shouldn't spend so much but when that fabric whispers my name I can't resist! :) Congrats on the twins!
ReplyDeleteI think that's an all too common guilty pleasure for us quilters! I'd reply to you personally, Beth, but you're a no-reply blogger! :)
DeleteHi Jenn. Lovely to meet you. Congratulations on the twins. You must be looking forward to their arrival. I agree with many of your sentiments about blogging. It's about the quilts - not what you had for dinner last night, or how cute your cat or dog is!
ReplyDeleteI guess my biggest quilty pleasure is quilting when I should be doing house work or cooking dinner. Oh well, no one has died from hunger in my house yet.
I love the way you have used bright colours in your quilt. That top photo in the snow looks great. And thanks for the link to Nova Scotia - another member of this group comes from Newfoundland so I'm learning lots about the geography of that part of the world.
Wow, twins! Congratulations! Your quilts are lovely, I love your use of solids! I would have to say shopping for fabric is my quilty pleasure.
ReplyDeleteI love your quilts in all the different colourways!
ReplyDeleteMy girls love girl guides. And I can't throw a selvedge away ever, either!
Hi Jenn, Nice to meet you and congratulations for the twins. My guilty pleasure is leaving fabrics & notions everywhere in the house. That's what my husband complains :-)
ReplyDeleteLove your quilts and your scenery!! Big congrats on your twins. My guilty pleasure is that I keep buying fabric even when I am out of places to put it!
ReplyDeleteLove your quilts and your scenery!! Big congrats on your twins. My guilty pleasure is that I keep buying fabric even when I am out of places to put it!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words, Laurelar! I'd reply to you personally, but you're a no-reply blogger. I think lots of quilters share your quilty guilty pleasure. I'm looking at moving my stash from one room to another and am sort of regretting those purchases right now!
DeleteVisiting from Plum and June's Blog Hop. Nice to meet you! Blogger doesn't like Wordpress, so I'll be a no-reply, but don't worry about it. There is nothing I can do about that. Carole @ From My Carolina Home
ReplyDeleteSo sad that Wordpress doesn't like Blogger... the feeling isn't reciprocal. I can easily comment on Wordpress blogs! So glad you stopped by and commented, even if I can't reply to you by e-mail!
DeleteHi Jenn! I also love peanut butter and chocolate, I love putting peanut butter on chocolate ice cream. I like your quilting tip, I've been trying to focus on only buying fabric I really love, and on making quilts and designs I really love. It makes the process much more enjoyable. I think my quilty guilty pleasure is probably not quilting, but reading blogs and looking at quilts on pinterest. I always get sidetracked!
ReplyDeleteAs much as I love Kona, I gotta say that web based quilt ogling is high on my quilty guilty pleasure list too! I'd reply to you by e-mail, but you're a no-reply blogger :( Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteTwins - how exciting - Congratulations to you & Himself! ;) I love that you respect someone not necessarily wanting their face posted on your blog. I have some family that snap photos constantly at gatherings & post them all over social media - hello - I looked awful maybe I didn't want my photo posted....LOL Love your quilts. My guilty pleasure while quilting is probably munching on Twizzlers strawberry licorice or peanut M&Ms. Glad I found your blog.
ReplyDeleteHI Jenn, its nice to meet you through the blog hop. Congratulations on the twins - exciting times ahead :-) And you are right about making what you love - it makes the whole process so much more satisfying.
ReplyDeleteCongrats! exciting news. I was brownies/GG/Rangers for years! I'm not sure if this counts as a quilty pleasure but I love watching no brainer TV when sewing (supernatural or any crime/detective!).
ReplyDeleteIt was nice to learn a little more about you and thanks for all the great advice. My quilty pleasure would be reading blogs when I should be sewing.
ReplyDeleteLove your solids quilts at the top of the post. And congratulations on the twins! Wow, scary and awesomely amazing at the same time
ReplyDeleteI love your series of solid quilts in the first image - the colours just pop!! Funny you should mention naming the Kona colours as your dream job - mine has always been to name paint colours!
ReplyDeleteYour quilts are STUNNING! I'm especially fond of the ones in the first picture with the three color variations. Its amazing how changing the color can really change the whole look of the quilt. I'm assuming those are made with Kona...my favorite choice of solids as well! I love looking at the color card and figuring out which will work just right!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the big news! Baby quilts are the most fun projects to make in my opinion :)
Your quilts! SWOON! Congratulations on the babies. This Canadian left Canada because of those smudgy things on quilt photos, and then in a roundabout way ended up in Germany. Luckily we had a sum total of about four inches of snow this winter, so yay, global warming!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing more of your quilts :).
Carmit
www.quiltingrainbows.com
Nice intro! Yay for twins! Exciting but scary. Good luck! I don't think I have any guilty pleasures. I take my sewing hobby very easy :) I feel guilty sometimes for spending too much time on computer checking what others are making. Does that count? :)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the twins! Sounds like you'd better get as much sewing in as possible before they arrive. Beautiful quilts, they look classy but modern at the same time. And your tip on just making what you want to seems spot on, who needs practical all the time!
ReplyDeleteSo glad to meet you- congratulations and get your sleep now-LOL Twins will for sure tire you out for years and years! I too love Kona and that is what I seem to be using all the time now. Funny to see you are from NS- as just this week I decided that when my husband retires (in 10 years) I want to move there- just have to decide where as I have never been to NS. Looking forward to getting to know you more and reading your posts.
ReplyDeleteOh, congrats on the soon-to-be-new arrivals, Jenn! I spent so much time trying to decide on a quilt for my first that it never happened. Mine just turned 3 and 5 and are finally getting their first quilts from me : P
ReplyDeleteWhat a fabulous photo with snow smudgies! Those colors are brilliant against the snow. My guilty pleasure is definitely ignoring my entire family and hiding my studio. Two kids (almost five and almost three) and while they're wonderful and I love them dearly, I can understand the "I quilt so I don't kill people' t-shirts. Perhaps I shouldn't be saying that with twins on the way, but congratulations!!! Such big and exciting news! I can't wait for the new Kona solids to come out. You must be excited about the new Cotton + Steel selvedges. I bet we'll be seeing a lot of projects with those soon. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for looking at my blog Jenn. I'm glad to have found yours, too! and Congratulations on your twins! I have identical girl twins (although they are very old now). I remember people asking me just how I accomplished ANYTHING during the day with all the work they bring. Actually, the truth of the matter is that they loved to coo and visit with themselves (after the first couple months anyway). And I had to get permission to read them a story - they really didn't want to be bothered!!!
ReplyDeleteGood think - you'll have plenty of time to quilt! Now I take care of my Mom (86) and that is a real challenge - my guilty pleasure is taking time for my "therapy" and quilting while her caregiver is here. Actually - I don't feel guilty at all!!!! just PLEASURE!