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It’s quilt show season – can you tell? The Pine Tree Quilt Guild show was last weekend and I think it was their best ever! There was a huge variety of quilts of every genre and I was happy to see a good number of Modern quilts too. I try to limit my posts to 40 quilts but I was spending so much time trying to make that goal that I gave up at 45. Please note, by the time I got to the Mountain Art Quilter’s display, I was just flat pooped out. I didn’t sleep the night…
The theme for the Loomis Quilt and Fiber Guild Show this year was “A Wonderland of Quilts” and it was a colorful show! There were lots of bags and other fiber creations, making it an interesting and varied show. I always have such a hard time culling my photos; I try to keep it to 40 photos because, well…..40! I get angsty as I try to narrow it down. Enjoy the show! BTW, this is not a juried or judged show, no ribbons. Brilliant color! Love the low volume prints and contrast. Beautiful applique. Gorgeous sashiko. Judy used free…
It’s been a week with not a lot to show, even though I’ve been quite busy. I’m planning a family trip to Denver this summer, working on the never-ending beaded piping, entering shows, booking contracts for 2025, finished a secret sewing project and catching up on admin stuff. I decided to show off my yard instead of quilty stuff. This spring has been spectacular with plenty of rain and sunshine and NorCal is just dazzling this year! Except for the first photo of the street in front of my subdivision, these are all in my yard. It’s all about…
It’s been a fractured week with a visit to the Sunshine Quilters of San Diego, a pin basting debacle, progress on my beaded piping and tiny DIY project. First up, “Why I Don’t Pin Baste”: I am quilting a small project that includes a variety of substrates with some stiff embroidery stabilizer and some fabrics with a bit of dimension. My design wall is full right now (yay!) and I just did not want to take something down so that I could spray baste. I always spray baste on the wall, not a table, so much easier. I decided…
I enjoyed two delightful experiences this week – a visit to the Rossmoor Quilt Association in Walnut Creek and having oldest son/Daughter-in-Law (plus baby due soon!), grandson, and, youngest son with his girlfriend. My heart is full! I drove to Walnut Creek (about 90 min away) to visit the Rossmoor quilters. Having had a fender bender just a week before, it was significant that I got there with too much angst. You know, “get back on the horse”. I received such a warm welcome from the Rossmoor group that all that angst faded into the background. The group has…
NOTE: I won’t be publishing my newsletter this week as I’ve got family coming in for Easter! Soooo, I’ve been appliqueing this week, unusual for me. I took an excellent live online class from Kathie K Wylie who knows more than a bit about applique. It was specifically about the Appliquick method. I’ve had the tools for some time, watched Rosa demo them probably at least 4 times at various quilt shows, and finally jumped on the chance to really learn about the tools in a live online class. Kathie was excellent, gave clear instructions, pleasant to learn from and I…
NOTE: I wrote about my teaching and traveling experience at Branson here. I got very little time on the show floor, but I did get a respectable number of photos. I will not include any of the Winner’s Circle quilts as the professional photos are so much better. So check out the top winners here. They were spectacular! I am deliberately posting ribbonless quilts or quilts that were prize winners but their photos do not appear on the AQS site. As usual, just a few of my photos were too blurry to print. Also, I do not post photos…
NOTE: I posted all the quilt show photos in this post. Well that was a whirlwind – I taught 4 half day classes, one full day class, did a lecture and presented at the All Star event. I didn’t go outside for 3 solid days! It was my first visit to Branson and I really enjoyed the vibe and my students. My students arrived EARLY for class; I knew I was not in California😊 I truly had just wonderful students. I received stellar comments, many “best class ever” and high compliments from a long time teacher and Principal. I love…
NOTE: There will be no blog post or newsletter next week as I will be in Branson, Mo for the American Quilter’s Society show. This is my third year to teach at Empty Spools and each year has been uniquely spectacular! I was so delighted by my students – 10 quilters with free motion experience ranging from zero to very experienced, with one student flying in from Florida. And it worked out so well with that mix! There was a moment on the last full day of class when I was getting ready to do a short presentation on…
My trip to Omaha, Nebraska to see the Cottonwood Quilters Guild turned out to have several adventures in one trip and it was a blast! Right out of the gate, I ran into fellow friend and quilter Mary Kay Davis at the Phoenix airport; how cool is that? I arrived in Omaha to a big hug and welcome from Dawwn who put up with me for a few days. We instantly bonded and formed a friendship. She and Hubby took me to my hotel…..which had canceled my reservation, without notification. Long story that I won’t go into. It was…