Bowl and Plate Cozies

Bowl cozies were a big fad a few years ago. I made a few for others, but never bothered with any for myself. In order to make them microwavable, you had to use a special 100% cotton batting called Wrap-N-Zap. You couldn't use just regular cotton batting because it has polyester scrim. And everything - thread, batting, fabric - had to be 100% cotton with no sythetics whatsoever in order to be able to put it into the microwave oven "safely". Even with Wrap-N-Zap, the guidelines for use were so stringent that I didn't feel it was worth the bother. I know that there are some people that didn't bother following the rules and claimed they never had a mishap. I also know that I used to swim in Lake Erie when the water was really rough. It was fun, but also foolhardy, and I would never recommend someone else do it just because I (and my siblings) did it and survived. People have died that way. So, if I'm going to take a risk, it certainly isn't going to be over a bowl cozy. There were also some people who did say that they had bowl cozies burn in their microwaves. And I know that some people said that they never put their bowl cozies in the microwave oven, but trying to maneuver a hot bowl of soup into a bowl cozy seemed like a recipe for injury, so I decided to just stick with my hot pot holders.
This summer, I'm hoping to take my daughter and grandson camping. As I was mulling over what I already have and what I still need for a camping trip, I remembered my camping dishes. Metal camping dishes. And I recalled that when we took them on a previous trip, we were painfully reminded that metal dishes can get quite hot when you put hot food in them. So, I determined to make plate and bowl cozies for them. And I didn't have to worry about everything being 100% cotton because they would not be going in a microwave. They would just be providing protection for our hands when they contained hot food. As it turns out, I did have a remnant of Wrap-N-Zap left and was able to cut 3 - 10" squares and 1 - 13" square from it. For the remainder, I just used batting scraps. 
As for the fabric, I found the ice cream and popsicle fabric remnants in my stash. I only had a strip of the popsicle fabric that was just barely over 10", so I could only use it for the bowl cozies. I ordered the cookies and Bits and Bites fabrics online.

Having never made plate cozies before, I did an online search to see what I could find. The first YouTube video I checked out used special precut batting. Not only do I not know where to get such batting, I don't care. I have more than enough batting remnants to make bowl cozies for my entire family, were I so inclined. I'm not, but I did want to make a set of 4. I ended up following this video: 

And it worked well. 
For the bowl cozies, I used these instructions from Craftsy that I'd used when I made them before. I had already cut out 10" squares of fabric when I realized that the instructions called for 10½". No matter, it's just a bowl cozy and the extra half inch would not make a significant difference. And they turned out fine. 
Now, to figure out what else I need for our camping trip. 

Celtic Knot Trivets (Canning Jar Sealer Ring Hot Mats)

 

I'm not totally sure where I picked up the hot mat/trivet in the picture above. I'm quite sure it was a freebie from somewhere and I brought it home, thinking it was a cool idea and I intended to attempt to replicate it. The circles are crocheted around those old red rubber canning jar rings. And I was able to purchase some of the rings as well. But I've had this since before my marriage ended and life kind of got in the way since. However, now that I'm retired, I decided to give it a try. 
By the way those rubber rings are still available at Canadian Tire and Home Hardware, and maybe other places as well. I'm not sure if people still do their canning using these, but someone must be using them for something since they're still being sold. And since they're still around, I'll share with you how I made mine. 
The original one in the picture appears to be made from Phentex, which is a synthetic yarn. I would be concerned about the yarn melting if the item placed on it was overly hot. I opted instead for a cotton yarn, Bernat Handicrafter Cotton. I do have quite a large stash of it, so I wouldn't have to make any purchases. And I used the hook suggested on the yarn label: 5.00 mm (US H/8).
I did an internet search to see if I could find the pattern, but nothing I found initially was exactly the same. So that meant I had to count stitches. The hot mat requires 6 rubber rings as the seventh ring in the centre, which joins them all, does not have a rubber ring and is done as a band of double crochet, which is woven through the rings and then joined end to end. I counted 49 double crochet in one ring, but I opted for 50 because I wanted to make sure it was full enough. And I think it's easier to remember a round number. 

The challenging part was the first stitch. Yes, I suppose I could have just done a slip stitch through the ring and chained 3 to make the first double crochet. But somehow I don't think that would look right and maybe would make the stitch taller than it should be because the chain 3 would be on top of the rubber ring, whereas the rest of the double crochet stitches would be around the rubber ring. Anyway, I opted to just start with the slip knot on the hook, loop around the hook, put the hook through the ring and draw up the third loop, and then finish the double crochet - a standing double crochet, I guess. The challenging part was keeping everything from getting too loose and sloppy for this first stitch.But I managed it. And then I could proceed with the other 49 double crochet. Joined with a slip stitch to the top of the first double crochet, and the first ring was done, aside from working in the ends. 

Since it's just double crochet, the rings work up pretty quickly. Don't ask me how much yarn I used. As I said, I'm just using leftovers in my stash. As the original was done in two colours, I opted for two different colourways as well. But it could be done in all one colour, or each ring done in a different colour, or whatever makes you happy, or you have available. 
Work in all the ends before proceeding to the next step. 
I shared this project with my sisters that crochet. And my oldest sister wanted to know how to assemble it and found this video: 

It's worth a watch as it is often easier to see an actual demonstration of techniques rather than just pictures and descriptions. But I do not recommend using plastic pop can rings or synthetic yarn because rubber or silicone rings and cotton yarn are more heat proof. Nor is her stitch count right to work with rubber rings. I counted 55 stitches in the joining ring on my sample project. I chained 57 and worked a double crochet into the third stitch from the hook, and double crocheted to the end of the chain, counting 55 stitches. Somehow I ended up with an extra chain, so maybe you should only chain 56? Anyway, I worked it in when I joined the ends. Leave a long tail when you fasten off the end to use in stitching the ends together.

Now for the really challenging part - weaving the band through the rings. You might follow what she does in the video. It might make more sense than the mess I have in the picture above. She does hers in a row and then bends it around to form a circle. You just have to make sure that you overlap the two end circles correctly and weave in the right direction. Please don't join the ends as she does in the video. Leave a long tail when you fasten off the last stitch and use a yarn needle and stitch the ends together. Then work the ends in. You should never just tie a knot. 
You've basically just made a Celtic knot. 

Finally finish the edge of the hot mat with single crochet in the back loops of 17 double crochet on the outside edge of each of the 6 circles. Join with a slip stitch to the first single crochet, finish off and work ends in. 
Admittedly, using variegated yarn makes it look messier than using solid yarn because you can't see as readily where the loops are going. But it's still pretty. 
Since I had 6 more rings in the box, I decided to make another one, only this time I decided to make the 7th ring/joining band more of a circle instead of just a flat band. In other words, wider on the outside edge than on the inside edge. Here's how I did it:

• Ch 51, not including slip knot (52 stitches including slip knot)
• In 3rd chain from hook, dc 
• 1 dc in each of next 7 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch
  
• 1 dc in each of next 9 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch - repeat to end of row

Basically, you should increase one every 10 stitches. There should now be 55 stitches, but don't blame me if it doesn't work because I'm not a crochet pattern designer. 
I liked this technique better, but care must be taken when weaving the band through the rings as it tends to stretch. And this is true using either technique for making the band. I suppose I could reduce the number of stitches (50 maybe instead of 55?), but I would be concerned if I should ever wash it and the yarn shrank. And it's just not that significant to keep experimenting. 
And this second time, I decided to try lining the rings up in a row to weave in the joining band, like in the video. For me, that was a bad mistake. I ended up making a couple of mistakes and had already stitched the band together before I realized it. I was able to snip it apart, realign the trivet correctly, and stitch the band back together again. Hopefully, it won't unravel sometime down the road. And I also ended up with the rings overlapping in a counterclockwise direction, and I think it looks neater in a clockwise direction, like the first one, and my sample one. 

Regardless, it's done, I've finally completed a project that's been waiting for years, I've used up some of my yarn stash, and they both look pretty. And I will likely put these in my camping equipment, as I don't think I have any trivets in there. I'm hoping to go camping with my daughter and grandson soon, if the rain ever stops long enough. 
If you have any questions about my techniques, please just message me using the contact form in the right sidebar. Or comment on this post. 

Whimsy

Whimsy:

a fanciful or fantastic device, object, or creation especially in writing or art
(Merriam-Webster)

I think I may have mentioned before that our local quilt shop has closed. Sad, but nothing I could do about it. My nearest quilt shop is now in a smaller community about 20 minutes drive away, which is not bad when you consider that you can be living in a large city and and take at least that long to get to your local quilt shop. But since I no longer drive outside of town during the winter, I guess I  will no longer be visiting a quilt shop in person once the snow flies. 
So, I visited my nearest quilt shop recently and, as usual, headed to the clearance section. That's where I found this border stripe print. 

It says: 
    Open your heart and soul.
    Seek wonderment.
    Embrace whimsy. 
    Envision good things.
    Dream and make it real. 
I really liked it, the colours, the funky design, but I wasn't sure what to do with it. What does one do with border stripes, besides backing or Triangle Frenzy table runners? Then the clerk in the shop showed me some of the quilts where they used border prints, separated into the individual stripes, alternated with simple rectangles of coordinating fabrics. And I thought that was a cool idea - simple and quick yet still attractive.  
And then I thought that I could get enough of the border print to use in a queen-sized quilt top for my bed. I do have several more complex patterns that I intend to make for my bed. Some day. But this way I could make a fairly quick quilt and finally have one of my own quilts for my bed. 
I did some calculations, determining what size and width I wanted the different fabric rectangles (I hadn't taken any measurements on any of the ones in the shop), and utilized my Quilt Pro 6 software to design a layout and calculate yardage. And on my first quilt shop hop with a couple of friends from the Lutheran church crafting group, I took the border print fabric along with me. Once again, I hit the bargain section and came up with some blender fabrics that look good with it. 

I love the colours, but initially I felt that the design was quite boring. You may recall that I like to challenge myself with complex quilt blocks and designs, and this just wasn't meeting my expectations. I felt better about it once I put the borders on as it seemed to help make the quilt top more cohesive. But I determined to use a more complex quilting design since the design of the quilt was so simple. 

And I chose New Delhi #2, a fun and funky design that I felt suited the vibe of the border print. 

I chose this large pansy print for the backing. While I wouldn't normally want anyone to say that the back of a quilt I'd made is prettier than the front, in this case, I think it may be true. 
Now, if only it would stop raining long enough for me to get all of my bedding (blanket, comforter, pillows, etc.) washed and on the line to dry. Then I will make up the bed with this quilt on top. Meanwhile, I'm sleeping in the basement bedroom, where I already have one of my own quilts on the bed. 



 
 

Starburst

 

This one, I was really tempted to keep. But I've been wanting to make a quilt for this particular friend for quite a number of years. Finally, her 60th birthday gave me the impetus to get it done.
I originally started an alternate quilt for her. But then Kim Caskey shared Ricky Tim's Kool Kaleidoscope (videos can also be found on YouTube) and I decided to try that instead. I bought the requisite 20 fabrics for the kaleidoscope part, which then just sat there while other projects took priority. Eventually, I was also able to find the book somewhere, either at a thrift store or among the used books being sold at a local quilt shop. Finally, I was invited to share this friend's 60th birthday celebrations, and that was the motivation I needed. 
Initially, I had 3 Christmas fabrics in the collection I was saving for this project, but decided that that wasn't going to work. This had to be an every day quilt, not a Christmas quilt, and, while the pieces may have ended up too small to be significant, I didn't want to take the risk. So, I moved those three to my stash of Christmas fabrics, and picked three alternates from my stash. I ended up using 19 of the collection of 20 fabrics in my kaleidoscope, and then had to decide what to do to make it into a throw-sized quilt. Because the centre looks like a star, I decided to make it a supernova, with a "night sky" background, and adding a few extra stars on the bottom. I ordered an appropriate background and border fabric online and prayed it would arrive on time. It did, actually several days before the expected arrival date, thank God. I considered adding rays or "arms" made from the remnants of the strata (the fabric strips sewn together to make the kaleidoscope), but when I put them on the design wall, it just didn't look good. So, I decided instead to just square off the kaleidoscope with background fabric. 

I made the stars for the bottom part of the quilt out of leftovers from the fabrics used in the kaleidoscope.
In spite of the fact that Ricky Tims says in his video that many people say they're not happy with their results, I've been happy with mine from the start. But when I was ready for the border fabric - a blue and purple batik with gold metallic stars printed on it, I cut a couple of strips and put them on the design wall beside the quilt top and it did not make me happy. I felt that the stars were too busy and distracted from the kaleidoscope. So, I chose instead to just complete the remainder of the quilt top with the background fabric, especially since I had ordered enough. And I'm very happy with that decision. I also chose to use the same fabric for the binding. 
For the quilting, I continued the star theme and used Becker's Shooting Star. 

The backing is actually a much deeper, richer brown than this. And it's minky dot, of course, so it will be nice and snuggly for her. And I called it Starburst.
The final quilt ended up about 50" by 70", so a good sized throw. 

Sophia's Backpack

 

I've been wanting to make my daughter one of these backpacks for several years. I've had the fabric and hardware, but just didn't take the time to do it. Finally, I planned on making Damian's Travel Bag and Sophia's backpack for this past Christmas, but I didn't get either of them finished on time. Well, finally both of them are finished! 
If you've been following my blog, you've seen this backpack pattern before. It's the Sew Sturdy Essential Backpack pattern, found on the Craftsy platform. You can buy the class or just the pattern. I've used it twice before: first for my grandson, and second as an insulated backpack for carrying lunches. Now, it was finally my daughter's turn. 
I do like the final product when I make bags, and a lot of the process, but putting it all together makes me wonder why I continue to make bags. Such a lot of hassle stitching through the multiple layers - I still can't comprehend how people make bags using heavier materials, like upholstery fabric or vinyl. Nevertheless, it's finished. And my daughter has already made a request for a sewing machine cover, so I'm not escaping bag-making yet (though technically, that will not be a bag). 
And I'm continuing my bread making adventures.

I made the cottage loaf, which made for a very interesting presentation. Not a bad bread, but interesting as to how one actually eats a loaf like this.

I also made the Split Tin loaf, though my split filled in rather quickly and is not as pronounced as the picture in the book. Both of these breads are from the British Breads section in The World Encyclopedia of Bread and Bread Making. 

And finally, I made the Naturally Leavened Sourdough Bread. It, too, turned out fine, though I have yet to figure out the best storage option for my bread. It gets rather hard in the fridge, but I don't generally eat it quickly enough to keep it from getting moldy outside of the fridge. Perhaps I should consider cutting loaves in half and freezing half. 
And that leads me to my freezers, which are overly full. I did get the smaller one defrosted and a little better organized. I have three bags of UFOs (unidentified frozen objects) and "use soon" items. My plan is to take out one or two items out at a time, determine what they are and decide whether to use them or compost them. I took out one unlabelled container and it turned out to be pizza sauce. I managed to use up my sourdough starter discard and made 3 batches of pizzas. That's 3 - 10" pizzas per recipe. I actually staggered my starting time for each recipe, so that I wouldn't have to be making all 9 pizzas at once, especially since I only have 3 - 10" pizza pans. But somehow, even though I started each recipe an hour after the previous one, they managed to catch up with each other. However, I got them all made, and into the freezer. 

Vegan pastrami, green peppers and pineapple

I made a huge batch of veggie cheese sauce that I figured would be enough for all 9 pizzas. But it was quite thick, and not very spreadable, so it only lasted for the first two batches. 

broccoli, vegan pepperoni and red onion

Next time I use that particular recipe, I think I may try adding more liquid. Fortunately, I did have some commercial vegan cheese shreds in the freezer, so I was able to use that for my final batch of pizzas. 

garlic soy chunks, garlic and olives

By the time it came to this last batch, I had run out of space on my cooling racks, and these pizzas were placed on the back of a large cookie sheet. 
And the pizzas have already come in handy when I failed to plan ahead and/or ran out of energy by mealtime.
I also found a pie crust and enough cooked sweet potato in the freezer to make a sweet potato pecan pie for Easter. 

I wanted to try something different for an entree, so I did an internet search for vegan Easter recipes and found a recipe for Lentil Wellington. I was planning on purchasing puff pastry and the website for my local grocery store said that they had it in stock, but after searching every freezer, I had to give up and decide on an alternate. 

I made it into a pie instead. I used a whole wheat pie crust recipe that I hadn't tried before and it was too crumbly. It was still tasty, and so was the filling, but it barely stayed together. 

And of course, I made hot cross buns. Originally, I was going to use a recipe from the King Arthur Baking website, but it called for both yeast and baking powder. That just seemed really weird to me. So, I pulled out my old Purity cookbook and modified their recipe. I made them out of white whole wheat flour and substituted mixed dried fruit for the candied peel (which I find disgusting). They turned out quite nice, but I've got to stop making such large recipes, especially when there's no room in the freezers. And they do tend to get dry and hard in the fridge. 

Leaven

 "Then Jesus said unto them, 'Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees'."
Matthew 16:6

leaven: noun, archaic a substance added to dough to make it ferment and rise, esp. yeast, or fermenting dough reserved for the purpose (Canadian Oxford Dictionary, 2nd Edition)

I've been messing around with sourdough for some time now, with mixed results.  It does make it more challenging that I choose to use 100% whole grain flour, as a general rule, and the majority of the recipes I try are meant for 100% white flour (or unbleached). And I seldom add the extra moisture that I should, (since whole wheat absorbs more moisture than white flour) because I'm leery of a dough that's too sticky. And many of the recipes are what I call "cheater" sourdough - adding a little commercial yeast to boost the effects of the starter. I have since discovered that sourdough purists refer to this as "sourfaux", a term that can encompass anything more in the ingredients than just flour, water, salt and sourdough starter. 
Recently, in a Sourdough group on Facebook, someone commented that it was impossible to make a 100% whole wheat sourdough bread, that it would turn out like a brick. Challenge accepted. I used this No-Knead Sourdough Bread recipe, which again was made for white flour. But I used 100% whole wheat. The purists would be happy that I didn't add the optional diastatic malt (though I might have if I had some), so this loaf was definitely not sourfaux. Water, flour, salt and sourdough starter were the only ingredients, and look how it turned out. 

And guess what? I didn't break any teeth on it, so it did not turn out like a brick. Yes, it had more "body" than a white loaf would have had, but that's to be expected with a 100% whole grain loaf without additives to make it soft like store-bought bread. Look at that beautiful open crumb! And maybe it's a little flatter than if I'd used white flour, but I'm still pretty much a newbie when it comes to sourdough, so I continue to learn.  And I'm proud of how this bread turned out.  
Meanwhile, I ordered a baguette pan, and decided to give it a try. 

I'm not that fond of baguettes, but I'm actually looking for a recipe that will work for submarine sandwiches. I wasn't that thrilled with the results. I found a recipe for sourdough baguettes as well as a recipe for whole wheat baguettes. Overachiever that I tend to be, I decided to try both recipes. The sourdough recipe makes 6 baguettes, or 3 Italian loaves (don't ask me how the same dough can be both French, as in baguettes, and Italian), and the whole wheat recipe makes 3. I'm not really sure what I was planning on doing with 9 baguettes, when I don't even like them all that well. But I did it anyway, deciding to make 3 baguettes and one large "Italian" loaf from the sourdough recipe.

I didn't have a clue what I was doing when it came to shaping them, so to me they look more like misshapen, oversized bread sticks. But again, they had a nice open crumb like sourdough is supposed to have. 

When I slashed the whole wheat loaves, they started to deflate. So when it came to the sourdough loaves, I didn't bother slashing them. Or was it the other way around. Anyway, I ate the large loaf (not all at once) and cut the baguettes into thick slices and put them in the freezer for use in French Onion Soup. I watched a video on how to actually form baguettes and was slightly more successful with the second batch. 

Almost ready for the oven

Once baked, I was planning on turning this batch into croutons, but didn't get around to it, and I've just eaten them with my meals, particularly with soup. I may try serving baguettes with fondue sometime. And I do need to try a vegan French Onion Soup for use with the other baguettes currently in my freezer.
I'm still searching for a good submarine sandwich roll/bread/bun.
But I do want to comment on the text I shared at the top of this post. First, however, a little history.  This is taken from "Jesus and His Times", published by Reader's Digest, 1987: "As for her duties as provider of meals, a wife had to grind grain, bake bread, milk the goats, and make cheese and curds. These daily tasks began around daybreak. To grind the grain she used either a mortar and pestle or a hand mill, which consisted of two stones. The lower stone held the grain, and the upper stone was rubbed or rolled across the bed of grain to make flour. Next, she mixed the coarse meal with water, salt and a little fermented dough saved from the previous day's bread making as a leavening agent." So, in Israel in Bible times, they made sourdough bread. 
If you've ever started your own sourdough starter, then you're likely aware that you can have a bad batch. For me, this time around I had to dump the first batch I tried because it developed a mold smell. Not what sourdough starter should smell like, so into the compost it went. But in the Bible text, Jesus is not warning that the Pharisees and Sadducees had a bad batch of starter. Down in verse 12, the disciples realized He was talking about their doctrine or teachings. Well, we may not have literal Pharisees and Sadducees around, but it's still a good principle to apply to our daily lives. We need to be careful about what we read, see or hear, because, like leaven, it can permeate our whole lives and change us into something we may not have been able to predict. Another piece of advice that Jesus gives is "Ye shall know them by their fruits." Matthew 7:16, or as the New Century Version puts it, "You will know these people by what they do." Sometimes, we need to take a step back and give ourselves time to evaluate the "fruit" of what we're hearing, as is evidenced in the lives of those who are teaching it, and others who are listening as well. Has it made them better, more productive members of society, more loving and giving? Sometimes, it can take awhile for the fruit to develop, so it's always best to be cautious when hearing new "truth". For me, I choose to follow the Bible's advice found in Isaiah 8:20, "To the law and to the testimony (the Bible)! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." NKJV. I need to be familiar with the Bible and open it and study it to know whether what someone is teaching is consistent with the truth of God's word, "that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting". Ephesians 4:14 NKJV.

Forever Canadian

I'm a patriotic Canadian, always have been and likely will be until this earthly life ends. And so the current threats to our sovereignty from both the United States president and the Alberta separatist movement have upset me and exacerbated my anxiety. But when the going gets tough, the quilters get quilting. And so I set aside my other projects and proceeded with a plan that I've had percolating for over a year now.
It started as an idea on graph paper and then I moved it into Quilt Pro 6, so that I could play with colours/fabrics. Originally, I had submitted the idea to a magazine as a possible Quilt of Valour. Of course, the magazine was from the United States, so they weren't necessarily interested in a maple leaf design. Nor do I have sufficient followers on social media to make publishing my designs profitable. Or whatever their reasons were, my design was rejected. I then modified the design to make it "landscape" instead of "portrait" (it had a single strip of HSTs both above and below the maple leaf, instead of on the sides) and eventually decided I could add a couple more strips of HSTs on each end to make it a twin bed sized quilt. But without them, it would still make a great QOV, and I have actually considered offering the design to Quilts of Valour Canada. But I'm not a famous quilt designer and don't know if they would be interested, and maybe I'll see if I can profit from it personally instead. 
My design plan was to use a red-themed layer cake, utilizing what I call the "quick quad" method, where you stitch two 10" squares, right sides together, ¼" seams on all 4 sides, and then cut it diagonally in both directions. Yes, you end up with all bias edges, but it's a quick and easy way to make 4 HSTs at once. You just have to be careful not to stretch the edges when working with them. Nevertheless, it can be very difficult to find an all-red-themed layer cake. No problem - I had sufficient red fabric in my stash, mostly left over from Log Canada, but I had some from some other projects as well. 
With our national Flag Day (February 15) coming up and our current political situation, I was suddenly motivated to get this quilt made. And I started cutting red fabrics. And solid white, of course. 

Meanwhile, I've been studying our denomination's Sabbath School lesson (can be found at Sabbath School Net), which is currently on the Bible books of Philippians and Colossians. The lesson for February 7-13 is titled, "A Heavenly Citizenship" and the memory verse is:

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.
Philippians 4:6 NKJV

And the verses following have this to say:

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

Philippians 4:7.8 NKJV

These verses gave me some definite admonitions to follow and promises to claim. And the introduction seemed to be written specifically with me in mind: 

"Even when things don't go the way we would like, which happens more often than we would like, we don't need to be worried or anxious or discouraged. Instead, there are principles that will help us find inner strength to face the challenges that life brings, and thus we can experience a settled and lasting peace that only God can give. The present and the future are in His hands, and He will supply everything we need.

"Most important, we need not place our hopes in earthly systems of government, which regularly disappoint us. As Christians, we are citizens of God's heavenly kingdom."
(Extracted February 7/2026 from A Heavenly Citizenship - Sabbath School Lesson 07, 1st Qtr 2026, emphasis mine)
So, yes, I recognize that, even though I remain a patriotic Canadian, I need to focus more on where my true citizenship lies, and that my KIng is still sovereign of the universe, no matter what happens to the nations of this world. And claim for myself that "peace that surpasses all understanding" that He promises. 

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:27 NKJV

And yes, I did get the quilt finished in time for Flag Day. And I did have some challenges with the bias edges, but managed to make it work. I chose Maple Grove for the pantograph. 

In hindsight, maybe I should have used Maple Syrup. 

Maple Syrup pantograph on Log Canada quilt

The designs are quite similar, but I don't think Maple Syrup is as "crowded". Or maybe it just looks that way because the white spaces are so much larger in the Forever Canadian quilt. 
Anyway, I did write up the pattern for the Forever Canadian quilt, so if you're interested, message me via the contact form in the right column. I'll be charging $12 for a PDF pattern, and I include instructions for both the throw size (76"x64" - appropriate for QOV) and the twin bed size (100"x64"). As I do not have an online shop, and likely won't unless my quilt designing suddenly "takes off", payment will be via e-transfer or PayPal (if I can figure that out) and I will send the pattern via email.