Dog Days of Summer Challenge Entries

Kindred Spirits Quilt Co.

Thanks to Michelle Denham of Kindred Spirits Quilt Co. of St. Catharines, ON for her donation of the 3 prizes for the winning entries into our Member Challenge - The Dog Days of Summer. The top 3 prize-winners will be featured in The Canadian Quilter - winter edition and below are the other amazing entries! I’m glad I didn’t have to judge and pick the winners for this one.
Thanks to all who entered the quarterly challenge and your very interesting interpretation of the theme “Dog Days of Summer”.
  






 
Goose Tracts

Goose Tracts by Margaret Markham

This quilt is an embroidery quilt pattern of HoopSisters.com. There are 64 –8” blocks. Each block is pieced and embroidered all in the hoop and then sewn together and bound. It is a C.D. transferred to the machine via a computer stick. I sewed it on my Janome 15000. I started on June 10/14 and completed it on Aug. 4/14 even though it was a  5 mo. program at Triangle Sewing in Guelph.  Once I started it I had the time and couldn’t stop. Each of the 36 centre blocks was so much fun choosing fabric and colours and then watching it happen with my supervision, changing colours, fabric and correcting little hiccups. Thank you for letting me share my Dog Days of Summer quilt.

Margaret Markham 

 Sunbonnet Sue's Retirement Dream 

Sunbonnet Sue's Retirement Dream by Kaaren Biggs

                                                                 My dream in retirement is to be tall (already there) and thin (not so much) and able to stroll on the beach in a bikini and eat all the ice cream I want! Note the little dogs following at my heels waiting for drips from the cone. The palm trees are three dimensional with two layers of fabric fused together, and attached only in the centre.  Kaaren L Biggs 

Mr. Moose by Linda Steele

"Mr. Moose"
In 1958, I started town school, having done the previous year, Grade 1, in an 8-grade country school. This move was terrifying to say the least, having cried most of the night before. The first person I met was Pat, who saved the day for me and has remained a close friend to this day. She lost her first husband to cancer in 2006 and has met the second love of her life and is getting married this August weekend. As a wedding gift for her to give her new husband, I have just made and sent her this moose. Working on it to choose the right cool winter shades, was very rewarding, not to mention a bit of a cooling effect during the record breaking heat in the Shuswap area we live in, true Dog Days of Summer! Mr. Moose was just finished and mailed to its new owner.
Linda Steele

Flip Flops by Karen Killins-Robinson

Flip Flops

I love the approach of summer when I can start wearing my Flip Flops.  I made this wall hanging as a welcome sign for our new house.
Karen Killins-Robinson






Rollin' on the River

Rollin' on the River by Beth Cameron

I consider this triptych to be somewhat of a self portrait of me in my youth...when I really could indulge in the dog days of summer.  I grew up on the Rideau River and spent hours in and on the water during the summer with family and friends.  I didn't know it at the time but according to Chinese astrology I was born in the year of the water dragon...how fitting!
This piece also qualifies on another level for the Dog Days of Summer as it was created in a week long summer arts camp with Pamela Allen.  I loved these summer arts courses and used to call them 'summer camp for adults'....a week of just playing with my fabric.  Does life get any better?
Beth Cameron

Seamus by Paula Jolly

Seamus

The phrase "dog days" refers to the sultry days of summer and relaxation. My daughter’s beloved American Bulldog, Seamus, spends hot afternoons resting his chin in his favourite chair while a fan blows cool air on his face.
My love of colour encouraged me to draw him in bright colours. Then I hand painted him with various paints and finished with details in stitching.
Paula Jolly



Hot Dog Beach Express

Hot Dog Beach Express by Trisha DellaVella and Mary Eeg

This wall hanging was created from our original Doggy Daycare pattern by Harebrained Happenings (Pattern Company).
What would be a better way to cool off from the blazing sun than to hop on the "Hot" Dog Beach Express bus and head to the beach to splash around in the cool ocean water and roll in the sand. 
Trisha DellaVella and Mary Eeg

My First Canadian Summer by Ana Paula Brasil

My First Canadian Summer
The very first feeling about summer was seen thru the window - the happiness of my son and his dog playing over the grass.  There were close to 6556 ½" squares in this quilt. Size: 39.60" x 26.40" - Technique: Amazing
Ana Paula Brasil










Swimming Laps

Swimming Laps by Megan Hanna

I am an avid swimmer and, to me, there's no better way to cool off than a dip in a pool, lake or ocean. This quilt is my own design and the idea for it came to me one day when I was swimming laps. The tiles on the bottom of the pool looked like hundreds of pieces of fabric!
Megan Hanna

Summer Blues Over Colpoys Bay

Summer Blues Over Colpoys Bay by Pat Golem

Summer evenings are spent watching glorious sunsets over Colpoys Bay, part of Georgian Bay. This particular evening everything looked blue so I took the picture with my digital camera and printed it on fabric. I thread painted the foreground details in a black thread and a clear black thread to highlight them. Water’s edge is my favourite place to spend the “Dog Days of Summer”.   Pat Golem

Dog Days Tablerunner by Linda Schmidt

Dog Days Project


This is the quilt I made during the 'dog days' of summer 2014. It started as a piece of glue resist and textile paints. I added a hand dyed fabric, white for the border, embellished with ric-rac, decorative stitches and dense quilting on my long arm. It's turned into a fun summery-looking table runner.       
Linda Schmidt