Loose ends, free classes, Quilt Candy and a new Quilt-along

Fellow Quilters,

How are you doing?  Are you hanging in there?  In my neck of the woods further restrictions have been mandated to limit almost all movement outside our homes – travel only to the grocery store or pharmacy and only when necessary, and basically stay at home or away from other people.  This kind of redefines cocooning, doesn’t it?  Let’s put a positive spin on this.  Has your sewing/quilting space become a place of refuge?  Mine has!  I sewed a dozen masks the other day for an occupational therapist friend who had run out of her regular supply of masks.  I used batik for the mask part and non-batik quilting fabric for the ties.  My friend was thrilled, reporting that they worked very well.  Unfortunately I forgot to snap a photo before I dropped them off at her door.  Fortunately I have several containers of batik fat quarters so I have ample fabric for more masks.

This blog post is to tidy up some loose ends and to share a couple of newsy items with you.  Did you enjoy the #stayathomeandhop event?  Me too.  Did you find some new designers to follow?  Me too!  I subscribed to StitchedbySusan’s newsletter.  Today she shared that Bluprint (formerly Craftsy) classes are FREE until April 16 – yay!  I’m gonna have to check out what they’ve got, both quilt-wise and non-quilty.  I hear tell they have cooking classes too – yum!  The other uber-cool event that some of these designers have organized is the Quilt Candy live virtual trunk show – what?!?  How?!? Every hour on the hour from noon till 8pm EST from April 1 – 10 a different designer is doing a Facebook live 15-minute trunk show.  How sweet is that?  We can still get our quilt show fix without leaving home.  Here is the full schedule:

April 1 – All Times EST

12pm Andi Stanfield facebook.com/Anditruebluequilts
1pm Nancy Scott facebook.com/MasterpieceQ
2pm Becky Jorgensen https://www.facebook.com/patchworkposse/
3pm Carolina Moore facebook.com/alwaysexpectmoore
4pm Jackie Kunkel https://www.facebook.com/cantonvillagequiltworks/
5pm Connie Jonson Sayler https://www.facebook.com/PacificRimQuiltCompany/
6pm Laura Piland/Slice of Pi Quilts  https://www.facebook.com/sliceofpiquilts/
7pm Sandra Starley https://www.facebook.com/TextileTimeTravels 
8pm Swan Sheridan www.facebook.com/swanamitystudios

April 2 – All Times EST

12pm Lisa Ruble https://www.facebook.com/LoveToColorMyWorld/
1pm Beth Helfter https://www.facebook.com/EvaPaigeQuiltDesigns/
2pm Diane Bohn/From Blank Pages
3pm Deb Eggers/the cottage rose https://www.facebook.com/cottagerosequilt/
4pm Heidi Pridemore https:/www.facebook.com/thewhimsicalworkshop
5pm Kate Colleran https://www.facebook.com/SeamsLikeaDreamQuilts/
6pm Tammy Silvers/Tamarinis https://www.facebook.com/tamarinis/

April 3 – All Times EST

12pm Darcy Hunter www.facebook.com/darcydoodlequilts
1pm Teresa Weaver www.facebook.com/yoursewingfriend
2pm Annette Ornelas https://www.facebook.com/southwind.designs/
3pm Jo Westfoot – The Crafty Nomad www.facebook.com/thecraftynomad
4pm Lynn Kane https://facebook.com/puppygirllynn
5pm Geeky Bobbin https://facebook.com/geekybobbin
7pm Laura Strickland https://m.facebook.com/orangeblossomquilt/
8pm Jen Frost https://www.facebook.com/FaithAndFabric/

April 4 – All Times EST

12pm Sherry Shish – Powered By Quilting facebook.com/poweredbyquilting
1pm Bill Locke – Bill Locke Designs https://www.facebook.com/bill.locke.96
2pm Toni Smith/Quiltoni https://www.facebook.com/Quiltoni/
3pm Tammy Silvers/Tamarinis https://www.facebook.com/tamarinis/
4pm Jennifer Fulton https://www.facebook.com/inquiringquilter/
5pm Jessica Caldwell https://www.facebook.com/desertbloomquilting/
6pm Monique Kleinhans https://www.facebook.com/ladybugscabin/
7pm EST Heather Long https://m.facebook.com/Coffee-and-Quilts 
8pm EST Marija Vujcic https://www.facebook.com/MaraQuiltDesigns/

April 5 – All Times EST

12pm Ebony Love https://www.facebook.com/LoveBugStudios/
1pm Bill Locke https://www.facebook.com/bill.locke.96
2pm Marlene Oddie https://www.facebook.com/kissedquilts/
3pm Sandy Fitzpatrick https://www.facebook.com/HissyfitzDesigns
4pm Reed Johnson https://www.facebook.com/BlueBearQuilts/
5pm Diane Harris https://www.facebook.com/stashbandit/
7pm Kathryn LeBlanc https://www.facebook.com/dragonflysquiltingdesignstudio

April 6 – All Times EST

12pm Becca Fenstermaker https://www.facebook.com/prettypiney/
1pm Cherry Guidry https://www.facebook.com/CherryBlossomsQuiltingStudio
2pm Cheryl Lynch www.facebook.com/CherylLynchFiberArts
3pm Annie Smith https://www.facebook.com/anniesmithqs
5pm Reeze Hanson https://www.facebook.com/Morningglorydesigns/
7pm EST Melissa Marginet https://www.facebook.com/melissa.marginet.quilter/

April 7 – All Times EST

12pm Margaret Willingham https://www.facebook.com/EyeoftheBeholderQuilt/
1pm Kate Colleran https://www.facebook.com/SeamsLikeaDreamQuilts/
2pm Barbara Cline https://www.facebook.com/barbara.cline.520
3pm Barbara Persing https://www.facebook.com/bpquilts/
4pm Sharon Andersen https://www.facebook.com/MsPDesignsUSA/
6pm Sandra Starley https://www.facebook.com/TextileTimeTravels
7pm Diane Harris https://www.facebook.com/stashbandit/
8pm Christa Watson https://www.facebook.com/groups/christaquilts/

April 8 – All Times EST

12pm Tina Dillard Designs https://www.facebook.com/quiltingaffectiondesigns/
1pm Raija Salomaa https://www.facebook.com/quilterstreasurechest/
2pm Robin Koehler https://www.facebook.com/NestlingsbyRobin/
3pm Terri Vanden Bosch https://www.facebook.com/lizardcreekquilting/
4pm Jackie Kunkel https://www.facebook.com/cantonvillagequiltworks/
5pm Leanne Parsons https://www.facebook.com/devotedquilterdesigns
6pm Laura Piland/Slice of Pi Quilts  https://www.facebook.com/sliceofpiquilts/
7pm Ebony Love https://www.facebook.com/LoveBugStudios/
8pm EST Tammy Silvers/Tamarinis https://www.facebook.com/tamarinis/

April 9 – All Times EST

1pm Nancy Scott facebook.com/MasterpieceQ 
2pm Jayme Crow https://www.facebook.com/bellanonnadesignstudio/
4pm Jen Frost https://www.facebook.com/FaithAndFabric/
5pm Annie Smith https://www.facebook.com/anniesmithqs/ 
6pm Karen L. Miller / Redbird Quilt Co. https://www.facebook.com/RedbirdQuiltCo/
7pm Kathryn LeBlanc https://www.facebook.com/dragonflysquiltingdesignstudio
8pm Monique Kleinhans https://www.facebook.com/ladybugscabin/

April 10 – All Times EST

12pm Sarah Maxwell https://www.facebook.com/DesignsSarahJMaxwell
1pm Teresa Weaver www.facebook.com/yoursewingfriend
2pm  Karen Overton https://www.facebook.com/TheQuiltRambler 
3pm Alison Stothard https://www.facebook.com/hexadoodlequilts 
5pm Pat Sloan https://www.facebook.com/groups/QuiltWithPatSloan/  
6pm Cherry Guidry https://www.facebook.com/CherryBlossomsQuiltingStudio 
7pm Toni Smith/Quiltoni https://www.facebook.com/Quiltoni/ 
8pm Marija Vujcic https://www.facebook.com/MaraQuiltDesigns/

You can even watch the earlier ones that have already happened by clicking on the links.

Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts and comments on my blog posts during the blog tour a week ago.  Time to give out some prizes!  In my first post I asked for feedback on workshops, and the responses were as varied as the workshops I teach.  Sashiko seemed to draw the most votes.

Sashiko close-up

Here is a close-up photo of a project I’m working on.  I can’t reveal any details right now but I will in a future post.  I’m doing Sashiko with some luscious variegated Eleganza thread from Wonderfil. I find handwork very therapeutic, particularly Sashiko.  It becomes rhythmic.  The prize up for grabs for this post is a packet of beautiful Botanica fabrics and the winner is Vivian L – congrats!

In the second post I asked what size of quilt you usually make whether it’s for a bed or not.  Queen-size seems to be the most popular for beds even though a number of you have king-size beds.  Hubby is 6’4” so it’s king-size for me, though I tend to make more queen-size, just like you.  Lap-size won out overall, however, as the most popular size.  In this post I also shared pics of my Covered Buttons quilt on the cover of McCall’s Quilting magazine.  I had numerous emails about it this week so I thought I’d whip up some alternate color options to whet your appetite in case turquoise doesn’t fit your décor.

Covered Buttons options

I’m rather smitten with the charcoal/magenta option combining Dream Weaver with Northcott’s Dublin linen-look texture, though the charcoal/acid is a close second.  Which one do you prefer?  So, the recipient of the packet of Dream Weaver fabrics is Gloria M – congrats!

In the third post you told me which style of quilts you like to make.  For the most part you are traditional however you are being tempted by modern – yay!  Me too!!  Maybe we’re all sisters from another mister.  And you tend to be intermediate skill-wise – good for you!  You should have no problem with some of the modern designs I see out there – some of them definitely require an intermediate skill level.  So, a packet of ethereal Swept Away fabrics will shortly be on its way to Cathy B – congrats!

In the final post you shared your favorite sewing/quilting tips, and there were some great tips.  If you haven’t had a chance to read them, take a look here.  I take quilting classes every chance I get because there is always something new to learn, a better way to do something, or an idea I hadn’t thought of before.  If I can learn one thing from a class, in my mind it was worth the price of admission.  One of my favorite parts of my Taste of Napa Valley book is the “A Few Notes” section where I share 4 pages of tips and suggestions.

A Taste of Napa Valley and tempranillo fabrics

A copy of the book and a packet of Vino tempranillo is going out to Delaine – congrats!

So, what’s on my agenda for the next week?  Ohhh… I’m super-excited to share that Northcott has organized a Time to Quilt quilt-along designed by Northcott sales manager Stephanie Prescott.

It runs for 24 days from April 8 through May 1 so I will be posting every day with my versions of blocks from Northcott, Banyan Batiks and FIGO Fabrics.  I’d love for you to join me as we create a 48-block quilt with fabrics of our choice.  You can use your stash, though of course I’ll be using Northcott/Banyan/FIGO.  Some fellow Northcott/Banyan/FIGO staffers will be joining me.  We’ll need about 1/8yd of 48 fabrics (or 1/4yd of 24 fabrics). If you run out of fabrics (hahahahahaha – that’s your husband/dog/cat laughing hysterically) I bet your local quilt shop can arrange a delivery.  Mine can – a shout-out to Michelle at Simcoe Sew & Quilt, Sue at Thimbles & Things, John at All About Sewing, and Shannon & Cynthia at Country Concessions.  I’ll give you a couple days to clean off your cutting table, finish up your current project and gather your fabrics, then I’ll see you back here on Wednesday.  PS.  There are weekly prizes. Let’s do it together!

Cheers,

Patti