Marit is having a give-away to celebrate her 100th blog post. Head over to her site to leave a comment, Pot Holders and Napkin Box Give-Away

Please join me in welcoming another Guest Blogger to the Quilting Gallery. If you’re interested in being a Guest Blogger, just drop me an email to discuss.

Greetings from the hot and humid Fundy Shore of Nova Scotia. Living in such an isolated part of northeastern North America, I find the internet a very valuable and liberating source of information and networking contacts. It allows me to see and read about all the amazing things that are happening in the quilting world and has given me many new friendships I could never have had without it.

I have been a needlewoman for well over 60 years, and have been making quilts on a professional basis for about 15 years.Because most of the quilts I make are commissioned, I have gained experience in making many different types of quilts. I’ve included a couple of pictures to give you an idea of some of the quilts I’ve made.

In addition to making quilts, I have been a collector of vintage quilt kits and have decided to downsize my collection. I will be selling many Doublestencil, Paragon, Bucilla, Yours Truly and Tobin quilt kits and some matching thread kits for the cross stitch quilt kits.

Recently I’ve launched a new endeavour: I am developing a membership teaching site at Simple Quilt Making. My mission is to empower emerging and more experienced quiltmakers to move past the simple, mass-marketed patterns like Turning Twenty, Yellow Brick Road and Disappearing Nine Patch, and develop their inherent artistic vision and to learn techniques which will enable them to piece precisely and design quilts that are a reflection of their individual experience.

Members will have access to a Forum, to exchange tips, comments and support, and to post pictures, as well as providing an opportunity to try out various quilting projects and sample some thought-provoking articles. A giveaway is being held in conjunction with my membership drive, and anyone signing up between now and the end of August will be eligible for a drawing of a number of “quilty” items of the value of at least $50, to be drawn on October 1, 2008.

As always, during the summer and fall my Quilt Studio is open daily for visitors here at 641 West Hall’s Harbour Road in Kings County, Nova Scotia. If I don’t see you at my door, I’ll see you in Blogland at Quilting with Janet!

Until then – Janet

Here’s a quick and easy project, Bali Pops Tutorial. I love these fabrics, and this pattern is sure to come together very quickly. Sometimes we all need a project that’s just straight stitches and no fancy points to worry about… or is that just me?

In addition to instructions using 2.5″ strips, Rachel also provides measurements if you are using Fat Quarters, Jelly Cakes and Sweet 16 Rolls.

There are some beautiful free patterns and blocks over at Quilt in a Day. There’s also some great instructions on using their rulers. All are in PDF format, for easy downloading and referencing later.