International Quilting Day - March 15th!

International Quilt Day is just around the corner, and as a featured artist on a past episode of The Quilt Show, (www.thequiltshow.com) I wanted to let you know about a gift that Alex and Ricky have put together for quilters around the world.  

Beginning on Friday, March 16 through Sunday, March 18, everyone who signs on to The Quilt Show will have free access to over 140 of their internet shows, including my episode #309.  You can watch the shows, check out the great tutorials, browse the gallery of over 19,900 member quilts, visit the forum for answers to the most burning quilt questions and lots, lots more. And if you missed my show, you can see it now.

You can also enter the TQS prize drawing with fantastic prizes from companies we know and love like Bernina, Gammill, Superior Threads, AccuQuilt, C&T Publishing, RJR Fabric, and Ricky and Alex will have gift baskets to give away too.  The grand prize is a new Bernina 550QE sewing machine!

I wanted to make you aware of this amazing event so you can take advantage of everything this exciting weekend has to offer without leaving home and all for free.

Don’t hesitate to share this email with your quilting friends, fellow guild members, social networking friends and local quilt shops so that they don’t miss out on this fun weekend.  And feel free to post an abbreviated version of the details on your Facebook page.  I want everyone to know about this amazing 3-day celebration of all things quilting.

So check in at www.thequiltshow.com on Friday, March 15, and enjoy the shows and exploring The Quilt Show website and all it has to offer! 

And I’d love to have you view my show, episode #309.

Planning, Planning, Planning

Today I spent $32.00 and four hours of my time to fetch my planner and journal that I had left behind. As I was waiting in the ferry line up I posted on Facebook about this and asked how many people had moved to using all digital to keep their calendar and planning or did they still like to use paper.

I had some interesting responses and it led me to think that most people younger than me are far more comfortable with digital record keeping than I am. Or if they have used technology in their workplace, it's easier to transition that into their everyday record keeping.

Now with the ability to keep everything "cloud based"  and synced between devices, it makes less and less sense to have it all on paper. However I like to have it all spread before me, there's an undeniable feeling of liking to turn pages, scratching things in the margins and the feel of the pens or pencils in my hand. 

 But, and this is a big BUT, I am very particular about the kind of paper planner I use, it has to have a two page spread for each month, plus two pages per week for writing plans, notes and lists. It has to be large enough to write comfortably, none of those 5"x8" ones are for me, I like the 9" x 12" ones and they often run to $30.00 or more. I usually buy them twice a year so now I'm looking at $60.00 or more.....

Then there's the challenge of having enough months in the planner. Do I use the academic year September - August or the calendar year January - December and what happens when I need to make notes for 2015 but I'm still working in 2013? Oh my, the decisions!!!!

And then what about shared calendars? Last Christmas we actually organized a Google Calendar for the family for who was going to be where and when as we had four children, three spouses and two grand kids all with different schedules.  My husband who admits to being a bit of a Luddite, uses an Outlook Calendar for his work schedule but asks to refer to my calendar for family appointments and such. I'm thinking of moving back to something simple to stick on the fridge for easy reference.

Well, for now I need to add all the notes into my planner that I've missed over the last few days and catch up with my lists. But since I have either my phone or tablet with me almost all the time, I'm thinking that I might try embracing my "inner geek" and move into this century!

How about you? Which options appeal to you? What do you use to keep you on track?

My 2013 Quilting Retreat

Sadly, I've finished a wonderfully restful time with seven of my quilting buddies.

What makes a great quilt retreat? Food, of course is important. We've eaten very well as you might imagine. Breakfast was on our own, since we all have different appetites in the morning. Lunch was often eaten out as there are many good restaurants in the area. But dinner was always a wonderful treat especially when it isn't your turn to cook. We've enjoyed Bouef Bourginon, sumptuous desserts and salads, special little afternoon snacks and an occasional bottle of wine.

Location is important too, we have been fortunate over the years to stay in lovely accommodations. This year we found a place on www.vrbo.com that suits us perfectly. A lovely view, walking trails nearby and great sewing space.

Being quilters we all want to work on our projects during out time away. Some of us are starting something new, some are working on UFOs, and some are quietly knitting or reading. At this retreat its about the journey, not the destination. We often look back at previous years and see many happy memories stitched into our quilts.

 

Each evening we'd gather together to watch a couple of "chick flicks" and on our last night we had a sing a long with Cathy Miller, our famous "Singing Quilter" and Carol as her accompanist.

 

 

Sadly all good things must come to an end, but we're thinking about our plans for next year!