Some Quilting Is Done

10-25-1012

I was able to use the Sweet 16 HandiQuilter at Inspirations of Art Studio today.  It was a lovely, warm, sunny day in Grand Rapids and Dana had the door open for the fresh air to gently blow in.  One of the quilts was a baby quilt for a friend's new born daughter. I meandered on that one.  The next quilt I used leaf/vines which I had learned in Sally Terry's class at the AQS Show this past August. I am only just beginning to work on this technique, so it appears that I was quilting in a briar patch. It is a larger quilt and I am not sure of its recipient.  The last one was a small Halloween-themed table topper which I meandered.  I later thought I should have sewn pumpkins and vines all over it to keep with the theme.  Now I have bindings to add and finally wash them to give them their character. I will post photos tomorrow when there is more natural light to use the camera.

I look forward to attending the Ice Dying Class on Saturday at Inspirations of Art Studio.  Have the thought of trying this technique on some silk fabric and making scarves.

Nearly November....Where Has October Gone?

October 22, 2012

October began with our daughter flying in from Taiwan to visit for 11 days.  And they were days packed with so much.  Her main project with me was to make a dress.  I haven't sewn clothing for a few years--especially such a dress, but with her help on some of it, we got it done.  I was hemming it the night before she flew back.

I am working on a book proposal and got stuck on one pattern design's measurements, so took a bit of a break and worked on class teaching samples. Here are some of them and I look forward to teaching others how to make these. 

Trees in a Square Table Topper

Dresden Poinsettia Wall Hanging

Paper Pieced Trees

I went with 3 friends today on our own short shop hop.  Had a wonderful time.  I enjoyed visiting 3 different fabric stores and each one has one or more differences in what they sell or display that makes shopping exciting.  I found a few pattern companies I had not heard of before--Vanilla House Designs and Common Thread Designs interested me.  Both had patterns that are whimsical and useful (thinking Christmas gifts) that I could make using many of my scraps.  I hope I can find the time to whip up some of the items before December. I look forward to the day that I see posts on other blogs about people finding my patterns interesting to them.

We had a wonderful lunch--the food was luscious and the presentation spectacular!  Service was very personal and the facility warm and friendly.  If you are ever in Reed City, MI, do plan lunch at Pere Marquette Catering Company at 102 East Upton Ave.  They are open for lunch Monday through Friday (later hours on Fridays).  Definitely a treat.

Off to my personal creation station with the goal of posting very soon information and photos of my projects.

Mid-Week
I have taught two classes at the New Ewe on the past two Saturdays.  The first class was the Folded Flying Geese Placemat class and I am posting a photo of Robin's finished project(s). 

The other class I taught was a Dresden Sunflower.  Robin took that class and here is her wall hanging.  She did a great job.

Here are a few other projects that can be made with the Dresden Flower technique: 

The next class I will be teaching is from the book, "10-Minute Blocks," on October 10. Then on October 15 I will have the first (of many I hope) Building Blocks Club session.  We will be making Log Cabins and variations.

10-Minute Block Quilt Possibility

I entered my Pinwheels and Patches Quilt into an on-line contest at Quilting Gallery.  Friday the voting will open.  Please check it out and vote for my quilt!  

Here is the back of the quilt. I used scraps and pieces that matched the colors of the quilt.  I wanted to use what I had rather than purchase more fabric!

I am looking forward to our daughter coming from Taiwan to visit for 10 days.  Right now we are hoping the typhoon does not delay or stop her plans. 

I have been working on a few more projects.  Last Wednesday I went to Inspirations of Art in Grand Rapids to use the Sweet 16 Handiquilter.  I got 3 smaller quilt tops quilted and will get the bindings on in the next 2 days.  I will add photos when they are done. This is such a great place to work and soak in creative ideas.  I will be taking an ICE DYEING class at the end of October.  I am looking forward to go back more often to work.

I had an offer from Shutterfly for a free 8 x 8 book.  I had quite a few photos of my quilts from the last few years on file for just such an offer.  I put the book together and it came two days ago.  I am quite happy with it.  The only thing I didn't like was that the offers Shutterfly sends via email last for only a few days and I don't always have things ready to do a rush job.  This one worked out well. I also got an offer for free cards. I had to pay for shipping, so each card (a pack of 10) came to about 67 cents each--not bad for Christmas cards. I put a cropped photo of one of my Happy Villages wall hangings on the front, a JOY banner on the inside and a hand-sewn weaving on the back.  I hope the recipients enjoy them. 

September Has Arrived

September 3, 2012

Here it is almost one month since my last post.  I feel like I have neglected telling anyone who is  interested what I have been doing.  The past few weeks have been pretty exciting. 

I attended the AQS show in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for all 4 days.  I signed up for a number of classes, viewed the quilts on display--a small section each day, checked out the vendors and bought only a few things, met some very nice people and had a total blast. 

The classes I participated in were varied.  Susan Purney-Mark taught 3 of them--Fonts and Fabric, Printing with the Thermofax, and Ball Joints.  I were to discussions about publishing and the business of quilting.  The class on machine quilting leaf designs by Sally Terry was very informative.  And the most exciting was meeting with an editor, showing her my patterns and telling of my pattern ideas.  She said I should submit a proposal, so I am now working each day on that. 

I will be teaching a class this coming Saturday at The New Ewe.  It is a new concept for the store:  The Building Block Club.  Each month participants will learn how to construct one type of block and then examine all the possible uses as well as variations of that block.  A person can come to one, some, or all of the monthly sessions.  This Saturday is the LOG CABIN block.

Today I viewed Barbara Brackman's blog and the Block of the Month she posting for the next 49 weeks.  I will be following the blog and trying to construct the new block each week.  She also has such good information about the Women's Suffrage Movement, which I found out was happening in other countries besides the United States in the early part of the 20th Century.

So tomorrow, I plan to test a few more patterns, sew a block, maybe tidy up an area of my sewing room, and post to this blog.

August 14, 2012 

Yes, it has been a few weeks since I last posted, but a busy time.  We moved our younger daughter back home after her internship ended in Columbus, OH.  I have been working on organizing my sewing areas!  Yes, plural.  I have found that cluttered areas do detract from my productivity.  

I visited the Small Art from the Heart exhibit today - at The Stream in Newaygo - it is running through September.  The artwork is amazing.  I was so impressed with the detail of some of the work done on these small cards (2.5" x 3"). I found that my yellow bug card had a sticker announcing 2012 Award.  There were a few other cards that had these stickers on them.  I do not know what it means yet, but am sure I will find out soon. 

I will post some finished projects in the next day or two.  (I have been sewing a bit, even amid the clutter!)