Friday, February 19, 2010

Winter Magic! -new pattern from Patchworks Studio



Well, eventually it will be winter so be ready with our latest Give and Take Applique pattern --- Winter Magic. Its another of our popular positive/negative designs and uses the latest Stonehenge fabrics from Northcott Fabrics http://www.northcott.net/
You can order the pattern here: http://www.patchworkstudio.com/

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Haiku Charm - great stash buster quilt!

I've had a collection of Asian inspired fabrics for some time and they were bursting out of the box. I've wanted to do a simple but graphic quilt with them and came up with an easy dark/light diagonal setting for the squares and rectangles. The quilt measures 80" square, so its big and used up most of that box of scraps, fat quarters and yardage!
The quilt is appearing in the May 2010 issue of McCall's Quick Quilts and the link for ordering is below:
http://www.quickquilts.com/articles/Haiku_Charm
I think the design would be equally effective in any group of themed fabrics...think of spring florals with green rectangles, kiddy prints or batiks. Maybe I'll have a look in the studio and see what else might be ready and waiting!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Cathy Miller-the Singing Quilter!

I think I'm one of the luckiest quilters there is, because  Cathy Miller is part of my little weekly satellite group. If you have never heard her or heard of her, you really should vist her website at http://www.singingquilter.com/ and hear her wonderful songs about all aspects of the quilting realm!
From folksy tunes (she is a trained and very experienced musician) to fun and lively ditties to the most poignant and heartfelt stories about love lost and love found, Cathy treats us to a feast for the ears on her CD's.
If you every get a chance to hear her perform live, run, don't walk to the event. Cathy and husband, John, are leaving soon for a four month tour of the US, so check out her calendar and see if she's coming to a spot near you.
Cathys' latest quilt....yet unnamed.....features her "Mock Mola by Machine" technique...my gosh, she also teaches!

Thursday, February 11, 2010

There's still time!

Registration is still open for my Hand Piecing class at http://www.quiltuniversity.com/ Come and learn all the tricks and secrets for a wonderfully relaxing and creative technique.

Here's a magazine article I wrote that features a hand pieced and hand quilted vintage quilt. Come and join the fun!

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

One Word Wednesday

Falling

Monday, February 8, 2010

Association of Pacific West Quilters

If you live or love the Pacific Northwest you'll want to take part in the 2010 Summer Symposium sponsored by APWQ. The symposium workshops will expose you to new ideas and new techniques from an outstanding roster of instructors. The natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest is at its best in this wonderful venue. Surrounded by over 1,000 wooded acres, the spacious Evergreen campus will offer attendees single-occupancy dorm rooms and all meals in the cafeteria. The event will begin with a get-together on Thursday evening and conclude with closing festivities on Sunday afternoon. Plan now to join us for a weekend of fiber, friends and fun! To learn about the instructors and workshops, go to the http://apwq.org/symp-summer2010

I'll be teaching three classes and I'm looking forward to meeting old friends and making new friends. Check out the workshops being offered and I hope to see you there!

Funky Floribunda

Be a master of machine appliqué with simple floral designs on a pieced background. In this class, students will learn to use paperless fusible web and the companion transfer paper for trouble free fused shapes. There will be a choice of three appliqué patterns and layout combinations that students can mix and match to make their own unique style while practicing a variety of machine stitches.




 
 
 

Stamp It Up!
 
The creator of “Stamping Monday” uses unique and distinctive images to apply design on fabric. Students will learn some of Susan’s easy techniques of carving and creating personalized stamps with carving blocks, foam, elastic bands, corks, lace and more unusual tools. Students will be introduced to the different paints and inks available. Lots of fun and absolutely no experience necessary!










Give and Take Applique - Ti Leaves


Learn appliqué design with a surprising “two for one” twist, there’s no waste in this technique with fusible web and students choice of fabrics. Find out how to create positive and negative blocks with one design and a range of layout options for exciting design possibilities. Give and Take Appliqué will become an important design concept for future exploration.








Saturday, February 6, 2010

Come with Me to Alaska!

Imagine watching whales breach and eagles soar. Imagine being among the lucky few to spend a whole day in Glacier Bay National Park. Imagine traveling through Alaska's sublime beauty and frontier ports in unsurpassed luxury and comfort. On Holland America Line's spectacular 7-day Alaska cruise vacations - imagination meets reality. Our ship, the Zuiderdam, is a Vista-class ship with under 2000 passengers. I know you will enjoy the award-winning service that is a hallmark of Holland America!

And imagine enjoying all this excitement PLUS taking quilting classes and meeting fellow quilters from around the world! Your instructors are enthusiastic presenters and knowledgeable experts. Daphne Greig and "me" are business partners and co-authors of several books. They have travelled all over North America to present lectures and workshops at shops, for guilds and for major quilting conferences. Cathy Miller is known as the Singing Quilter and her talents have taken her, literally, around the world.

Her enthusiasm for quilting and quilters is a delight! She will be doing some musical presentations and teaching classes on our cruise. Brenda Stengel is the owner of Satin Moon Quilt Shop and she has been teaching, mentoring and enriching creative students for over 35 years.

Our coordinator, Sharon Sher, has many years' experience organizing group cruises and she takes care of all the details. Pricing for this sailing is extremely competitive and there are staterooms to suit every budget. This really is the perfect vacation!

If you have a non-quilting companion they will find many shipboard activities to enjoy while you are in class. We have had many friends, spouses and family join our Quilting Cruises since quilters are just so much fun to be around!

Our itinerary:

Depart Vancouver** on September 11th
September 12 - sail the Inside Passage (quilting classes) September 13 - Tracy Arm & Juneau (morning quilting class) September 14 - Skagway September 15 - Glacier Bay & quilting classes September 16 - Ketchikan September 17 - At Sea (quilting classes) September 18 - return to Vancouver**

** Why not spend a day or two before or after the cruise in the host city for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games!

You will find more information (and great photos from our previous cruises) on Sharon's website: http://alaskaquiltcruise2010.weebly.com/index.html

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

One Word Wednesday

Pink, Green or Blue?


Monday, February 1, 2010

Stamping Monday

I found some felt coasters in the $1 bin at Michaels and thought they would make good stamps. There were five coasters in the package so I took my small sharp scissors and begain cutting parts away from each one. You can see how they evolved into quite attractive yet distinct designs.


I brayered paint onto my palette and then pressed the stamp into the paint. This worked better than brayering onto the stamp. I'd like to mount the stamps onto plastic acrylic (maybe I can ask DH).
I used a variety of colours that went well with my fabric and managed to get a fat quarter of fabric stamped up and ready for inspiration.