Never Forget!

Placemat - Testing the Sashed Effect

 This is a test of a placemat idea I found while visiting the Quilt Show in Westcliffe the end of August.

The fabric used in this one was purchased at Nuts and Bolts earlier this summer.

This one will get used as a tray liner for me. I have adjusted my "recipe" for future ones that I intend to make with the black and white prints that I saw them in at the show.

I used the quilt as you go method to create this one. I like the way it turns out. For now, off to use the scraps for a little gift for a friend.

Potluck Tablerunners - Fast and Handy

These are things that you cannot have just one; just like potato chips.

This pattern/recipe is called 10 minute table runner. I can say that it is true if you do not do any of the fancy stitch work that I find myself doing.

I just think it looks more polished. In the picture, the leaf one has a line of leaves embroidery stitch from my machine along the seam line in the gold area and the red and white one has the added strip of black fabric to define the two prints better.

Mom and I are in negotiations about embroidery pieces for the point ends. More on that later. I am sure we will  be testing this idea soon.

Until then, happy crafting to all~!

Road Trip: To the Salida Fiber Festival

It was a beautiful mountain morning when we left for Salida to go to the 2nd Annual Fiber Fest. This time we took the high road over from Florissant to Hwy 9 and south to the Royal Gorge area.

The river road (aka Hwy 50) was busy with fisherfolk enjoying the warm and quiet morning. The picture of the river is taken from the Lone Pine rest area that is just west of Cotopaxi.

We discovered that word has gotten out about this fiber festival, parking was difficult to find and the park was full by the time we got there around 10:30 a.m. And there are lots more vendors and demonstrations plus more fabric projects. It was great.

We found other folks that we knew, which is always fun. After spending time ogling the offerings and seeing what the vendors had to offer, we headed over to the River's Edge for a late lunch. It was marvelous to sit on the patio, riverside and enjoy the company of the extraordinary women that are fellow knitters, quilters and related fiber fans.

After lunch part of the group waded in the river to cool feet, then we headed back up "F" Street to see the other shops and go to Fringe. Along the way, we found the men of a wedding party having their pictures taken in front of the wall of kayaks. This picture can match the one I took last year of the bride's wedding party wading into the river in their Wellingtons to have pictures taken. Too fun.

All in all it was a great day~! Thanks, ladies, for joining me on this road trip. Let's mark our calendars for next year - the dates are set for September 6&7, 2014.

Road Trip: To Westcliffe with Other Fiber Fiends

Had a great trip to Westcliffe today to the annual Quilt Show. We also visited the Fiber Arts Festival which was mostly about weaving, beautiful stuff and a visit to Grammie Tammie's Quilt Shop which was so much fun.

They were very busy because of all the quilt show goers, and it was fun to sit in the store and wait for our turn in line, just soaking up the ambiance and great customer service.

We had late lunch at the Wine Mine, it was yummy and felt a little like vacation to sit outside under an umbrella and share a plate of cheeses, fruit, meat, and marcona almonds with a glass of Moscato.

It was a gorgeous end-of-summer day and we did not hit rainstorms until we got back to Highway 50 and the Arkansas River.

Charm School #3 - Learning QAYG (Quilt As You Go)

I learned a lot today about Quilt As You Go projects. This one was probably an intermediate level, however I had done my homework (cut everything ahead of time and was ready to sew when the class started) and I was a class of one so had all the attention of the instructor.

At the end of class, I was ready to prep and sew the binding on which I did when I got home.

Had only one little mistake in it that I corrected with a little snip and stitch, otherwise it is a done project and I think I will be making more for gifts in the future.

Can't wait for my next Charm School that comes up again in November. Until then, on to learn more and new things~!

Preparing for Charm School #3

While I have yet to finish my Charm School #2 project, it is time to prepare for the third one. They do these classes one a quarter and for the price you can't beat it, $25 gets you three hours of help on your project, the charm pack and the pattern. For me, the best part is three hours with like minded folks, so much fun.

I picked out my charm pack and extra fabric for the pattern Which Way. The pattern shows it with bright colored charms with a white background, I chose a neutral patterned for background and think it will turn out really nice. Time will tell.

Here is how the preparation went:

 

First, I spread out all the charms in the pack, which is Tidal Pool Batiks by Moda. Now I have to pick 32 charms from the 40 in the pack.

 

Of course, I cannot do this complicated task without my helper. He settled on the ones he liked and let me look at the rest for about 20 minutes. Then he got bored  tired and went to take a nap.

 

I chose the ones I liked the most and laid them out on the background that I am using to see if they all will work. I made a couple of adjustments and took the chosen charms to the ironing board for the next step.

I pressed all the charms into points and cut the background fabric as instructed. I am ready for class. More on this project later.