Saturday, March 25, 2023

March One Monthly Goal Finish

Ready to link up your finishes?
Don't panic - this link-up is open until March 31 at 11:55 pm ET.


I'm pleased to be sharing hosting duties with Anne-Marie from Stories From the Sewing Room.  You can link up at either of our blogs and your OMG project will show up in the same link party!  

My goal for March is to quilt my Mobius Radial quilt. Read more about it here.


Now it's your turn to link up!  Please add a link to this OMG post so others can follow where you are linking.   Let's make that easy -  just paste this into your post:  

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
Have a wonderful day! Patty

Monday, March 20, 2023

A Quilted Mobius


I love a good foundation paper piecing project and am a major fan of Audrey @cottonandburbon. She has several patterns available and this one - the Mobius Radial pattern - is my favorite.

The pattern instructions are very clear - complex but clear. I spread the construction out over several days and used lots of pins during the assembly process. (Read more about my experiences when piecing.)

For the quilting, I had originally planned straight line quilting running top to bottom, regardless of the piecing. But once two lines were sewn, I decided that I wanted quilting that would encourage the white bits to pop which meant just quilting the blue.


Fabrics used are both Painters Palette solids and the blue is Colonial Blue. I had Aurifil  1310 Medium Blue Gray matched nicely. The quilt finished 30" x 30".

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Friday, March 17, 2023

QuiltCon Recap Part 4 - Final reflections


A few weeks have gone by since QuiltCon - interestingly it actually feels like it was longer ago than that - but the good energy I carried away from the show is staying with me. (This is my fourth (and final) post. The others were QuiltCon Recap My Quilts, QuiltCon Recap The Quilt Show, and QuiltCon Recap The Best Bits.)

For me, the one word which describes the whole experience is joyful. The big feels of community, inclusion, and kindness are top of mind even a few weeks later. The time spent with good friends, inspiration overload, and the overall kindness and cheerfulness of everyone is like a warm hug.

So what are my fondest memories as I reflect a few weeks later? 

Seeing my quilt Patent Pending in the show and grabbing a fun photo with as many of the contributors at once whose schedules supported. There was so much laughter and joy, it made me so happy. These folks are the best and it made me so happy when they agreed to collaborate. (Read more about my quilt in the show on this post.)

Six of the seven friends who contributed were at the show and we had great fun grabbing photos. Linda @florishingpalms, Kitty @nightquilter, Charles @feltlikesweets, Val @valbetweenquilts, and Me (kneeling). Not pictured in this group photo are Pat @peacockcreekdesigns and Sarah @saroy but I grabbed individual shots. Sadly Yvonne @quiltingjetgirl wasn't able to attend.

Sharing an Airbnb with three friends - so many laughs, great quilt discussions, and just general discussion about life and family. It was amazing to actually see Kristin in real life after doing three QALs together.  (Note to future self - make sure to get a group picture of all roommates together.)

Walking the show floor, inspired by all the quilts and techniques, moved by some of the writeups, meeting friends, fellow guild members or random people and talking about what we liked about the quilt we were standing in front of.


Chawne Kimber's keynote - funny, warm, thought provoking - and the emotional impact of her quilts. (See my Instagram post.) Chawne is an amazing person and I'm glad I've had the opportunity to meet her several years ago and enjoy her quilts again at this show.

Things I would like to try after seeing the show (in no particular order) -
  • a two color improv quilt (my Dance Like No One is Watching mini was a trial piece)
  • experiment with larger shapes and bold colors
  • incorporate more hand quilting into my finish quilts - one of my favorite bits on quilts was a mix of hand quilting and machine quilting
  • another group quilt (although perhaps one that isn't quilt as complicated!)
Notes to my future self (in no particular order) -
  • Shop the vendor floor late in the day to avoid the crowds and the noise
  • Volunteer again during registration - it is fun and exhausting all mixed together
  • However, think twice about signing up for a 7 am volunteer slot (that was an early wake-up time!)
  • Take a break for a cup of tea and a chat with a friend every day
  • Grab more photos with friends (those are the ones I cherish, not the show quilt photos)
QuiltCon is so much more than the show itself. It is about the people - those who create the art and the story behind theirs quilts and every person you share the experience with.

Counting down the days to QuiltCon 2024 in Raleigh!

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Monday, March 13, 2023

My New Haralson Bag


Anna @noodlehead released a new pattern last month for a belt bag called Haralson Belt Bag. I've made other of her patterns and love each of those bags so I was ready to jump right in. It was perfect timing since I wanted a new bag for QuiltCon - it was sized perfectly to carry my wallet and phone so they were always within reach.


The pocket on the back was just perfect for my phone.

The canvas used is a Ruby Star fabric. The fabric took the looonnnngggg route through the mail and didn't actually arrive until early afternoon Tuesday, the day before I was leaving for QuiltCon.

There are some wonderful videos out there to support the making of the bag and the only struggle was installing the turn lock primarily due to not having sharp enough scissors to cut out the hole in the fabric! (Turn lock was purchased from Noodlehead.)

The lining and inside pocket use a fun print from Zen Chick. Substituting cork for the flap instead of canvas was a very easy change.


I got many complements on my bag (plus some amazement that I'd made it so quickly given the pattern was brand new). People also really liked my Range Backpack, another Noodlehead pattern. I had people ask to take a photo and others wanted to look at the bag up close. (Never before was I such a fashion 'icon'.)

During QuiltCon, I mainly wore the bag crossbody style. However, when I was volunteering, I wore it as an actual waist belt and it worked fine.

This was such a fun pattern that I am certain I will make another one someday!

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Friday, March 10, 2023

QuiltCon Recap - Part 3 : The Best Bits


QuiltCon took place in Atlanta from February 23 - 26. I attended the show, volunteered, took a class, saw some many friends and made new ones. It was awesome. Since there is so much to share, I'm splitting my QuiltCon recap into several posts including: Recap Part 1 - My Quilts and Recap Part 2 - Quilt Show Favorites.

This is my third blog post documenting my QuiltCon experience. I anticipate one final post on overall reflections hopefully next week.

I've briefly been to Atlanta multiple times before either on business or to attend concerts. Other then a trip to the aquarium on a prior trip (it's awesome!) and a quick walk-by the Olympic Park (above), all I've ever seen is the inside of the venue where an event is being held and the airport plus (on this trip) a ride up the scariest, incredibly tall escalator after taking the Marta from the airport to Peachtree Station.)

I was Covid cautious on the trip and wore a mask inside the venue. I was not the only masked attendee but we were certainly in the minority. I did remove the mask for photos. This was the first time I had a mask on for so many hours and found it wasn't a problem.

Now the best bits...

Volunteering!

This year, there were new tee shirts for volunteers, a pretty peachy color with the words 'volunteer' on the sleeve instead of big letters across the front. I volunteered twice - Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning. I love volunteering and would encourage everyone to give it a try. You get to meet the nicest people, hang out a bit with the MQG staff, and get some behind the scenes peaks at the show. Most of my time was spent helping with registration along with Jen @aquiltingjewel but I also spent time steaming quilts and some last minute clean up of the show floor Thursday morning. (And yes, I did sneak down to find my own quilt!)


The Quilts!

I walked the Show Floor each day and saw every quilt at least twice and many several times more. Part of the time, I was by myself which gave me time to study the quilt, read the writeups and also strike up conversations with random people. (Some of my favorite quilts.)

I also walked the floor with several friends, primary fellow guild member Pat @peacockcreekdesigns. Turns out we were drawn to similar things in quilts - especially where there is a mix of hand quilting and machine quilting. Our color palette likes and dislikes were also quite similar. I did keep bumping into Charles @feltlikesweets, a friend and fellow guild member, who had two quilts in the show, was teaching a few classes and was one of the contributors to my Patent Pending quilt.

Probably the most fun was had in quilt stalking my Patent Pending quilt. Pat and I spent about 10 minutes watching at one point and the reactions went the gamut from delight, mild interest, to no interest at all.  (Read more about Patent Pending.)


Meeting Friends IRL!

There were also plenty of laughs and great discussions as I would bump into my Airbnb roommates or other friends on the floor. In this photo, Sarah @sarahgoerquilts and I share the photos of our Ruby+Bee quilts that were not juried into the show.



I stayed in a hotel Wednesday night (a block away from the show) and spent time sharing a glass of wine with Linda @florishingpalms - we enjoyed talking quilts.

Then, I moved to a Airbnb, sharing with three friends for Thursday through Sunday. One of these wonderful women was Kristin @kristin_esser - she is a very good friend, we've run three QALs together and we just met in person for the first time. (Read more QuiltCon perspectives from Kristin and Frances, two of my roommates.)

It was such a cute house, decorated well and filled with several sitting areas. The house was about 10-15 away from QuiltCon so we just used Uber to go back and forth each day. (One cool fact - the house was part of the movie set for  not yet release movie The Idea of You, staring Anne Hathaway. The movie was filmed in Atlanta and Savanah.) We took full advantage of the options for food and wine delivery each evening! We shared stories about our families and discussed quilts in the show - such fun!

My Workshop!

I greatly enjoyed my Friday morning class with Youngmin Lee @youngminlee_bojagi. She was just a wonderful teacher and very passionate about  Jagakbo with Ssamsol technique, a form of wrapping seams so the piece is usable from either side. 

For my piece (still a work in process), I used solid colored scraps plus a contrasting 50 wt. cotton thread. (I'll share more about the process when my piece is finished.) I love any kind of handwork - and find that (for me) stitching makes me feel calmer and gives my brain a chance to rest or to dream. Youngmin said when you sit and stitch, you are stitching for someone's else's happiness. I really liked that thought.

My Guild!

Our Triangle MQG guild had a really nice presence at the show and it was quite fun to bump into guild members.

We did a group picture in front of our guild quilt and slightly more than half of the guild members in attendance were able to join.

QuiltCon is in Raleigh, NC next year and we are all so excited to host QuiltCon in our beautiful state.


The Keynote!

I am a major fan of Chawne Kimber. I vividly remember seeing some of her work at my very first QuiltCon (Savanah 2017) and being in complete awe. Several years ago, she came to our guild to teach a class (see that post) so I had the good fortune of spending some time with her. 

Her keynote messages of inclusion and community and encouragement were strong and I felt myself close to tears more than once. She is such a warm and amazing person - I am such a fan.


Shopping and Swag!

There were two floors of vendors at the show but my purchases were limited to some cork and some solid FQs.

I am always into collecting swag - I was lucky enough to get the QuiltCon swag bag and found some free stuff from vendors which I appreciated. Friends were handing out stickers this year and I love my collection. (I gifted stickers to my friends who contributed to Patent Pending and think perhaps I'll try to hand out stickers next year.)


Thank you for reading through my very long post. I promise one more with overall reflections of the show with some recommendations for future me for the next show.




Have a wonderful day! Patty

Tuesday, March 7, 2023

Dance Like No One is Watching


One of my take-aways from my QuiltCon trip was to experiment with two color improv. This week's Project Quilt challenge was Sew Not A Square.

When I've made improv in the past, I'd make a bunch of improv blocks and then join them together. For this piece, I wanted it to evolve organically. I didn't set out to make a dancer but once I saw the triangle (head) and long ponytail, I saw a dancer and decided it was done!

I used a 40 wt variegated thread for interest. Many quilts in the show used faced bindings. While I've done them before, I tried a new method for this mini. It shows promise - although I definitely need more practice. That said, I really admired the crispness of Audrey @cottonandburbon finishes and discovered her tutorial which I will try next.

This is the second time I've participated in the Project Quilting challenges. The first was to create a project inspired by a book. I made a postcard from Three Pines, the fictional town of the Louise Penny novels, and gifted to a friend.


Have a wonderful day! Patty

Friday, March 3, 2023

QuiltCon Recap Part 2 - The Quilts




QuiltCon took place in Atlanta from February 23 - 26. I attended the show, volunteered, took a class, saw some many friends and made new ones. It was awesome. Since there is so much to share, I'm splitting my QuiltCon recap into several posts. Part 1 was about my two show quilts.

There was so much inspiration! As a disclaimer, photographs taken in convention floor lighting do not do these amazing works of art justice. Please search out the makes on Instagram for better photos of their quilts. Sadly, I didn't manage to catch a photo of the Best in Show - I really loved it. See photos of all the winning quilts here.

Modern Traditionalism - Bright colors were everywhere. (There were 53 quilts in this category.)
(top) Spool Dash by Peter Bryne @petersquilts; Breaking All the Rules by Heather Joyce @creatingquilts   (bottom) Watermelon Eyelashes by JoeAvery @joeverystich; Ripple Effect by Nancy Messuri @nancymessuri


Use Of Negative Space - Quilts with a limited color palette really appealed to me. One takeaway for me was to try to make a quilt with just 2 colors. (There were 23 quilts in this category.)
(top)  Covid - It's all Greek to Me by Phillipa Porter; Crisp Wasabi by Petra Kolkhof @sewingp @mizrini; (bottom) Charlie's Fulcrum by Beth Clifton @studiobquilt


Improvisational  - I enjoyed all the color - either lots of it or just two colors - and was intrigued by the quilts with large shapes. These are just some of my favorites. (There were 67 quilts in this category.)


(top) Turnip by Susan Lapham @susanlapham; Mr Mustachio Toothington by Patti Coppock @patticoppock; The Short Arsed Masked Quilter with Platforms and Royal Connections by Altona Meadows @colorcoddedreams; (middle) On Fire by Robin Oneil @Robinoneilquilts; POP by Jamie Pemberton @jamezetta; Oppsy Daisy by Debbie Kid @dkidd67;  (bottom) Along came a Rabbit by Patti Coppock@patticoppock; Hash Tags and Top hats by Irene Roderick @hixsonir; One in Every Four by Carolina Oneto @carolina_oneto


Small Quilts - So many wonderful designs in this category. (There were 38 quilts in total.)


Color Riot by Stephanie Ruyle @spontaneousthreads won first prize!; Exploring the Cosmos: Space Junk by Nancy Powell @napmath3 was also an award winner; Highs and Lows: Year 1 by Cifaldi Morrill @wholecirclestuio (These are 1/4" hexis in this quilt!)


Piecing - Some incredible quilts in this category and I'm surprised I've only got photos of five of them. (There were 45 quilts in Piecing.) 



Joan of Arc by Veruschka Zarate @prideandjoyquilting; Ottoman Rings by Tighe Flanagan @tigheflanagan; Storm in the Mountains by Robert Lowe @rbtlowedesigns; Sunshine Daydream by Karen Stone @karenkstone;  Heartwall by Diana Fox


Ruby+Bee Fabric Challenge - The color palette for the challenge quilts was an absolute favorite and I loved many of these quilts. (I'd entered my quilt Sea of Tranquility into this category.) There were 45 quilts in this category in the show.


Vote by Patricia Amburgy; Encircled Darkness by Julie Limbach Jones @limbachjones; Pop Up by Sophie Thomas @softnquilt

Minimalist Design  (There were 46 quilts in this category.)


Lipstick by Susan Baverman @wildpoppyquilts; [....] Clara Stoikaw @bimbambuki_blog; Blood Orange by Margaret Kitchen; Tang martini by Anne Marie Cowley @runandsew


Finally, this last quilt Do I Contradict Myself by Melissa de Leon Mason @quiltallthethings was quite unique. It was in the Ruby+Bee category and the piece was quilted with reflective thread. See what happens when you take a photo with a flash? Awesome!


Apparently I captured zero photos in the Applique category (there were 25 quilts), in the Log Cabin Challenge (there were 27 quilts), or in Handwork (there were 25 quilts).  I do have a few photos in the Youth category (30 quilts there) that I'll share in the future.

Thank you if you've read through my very long post! There were so many amazing quilts and I'm certain I missed taking photos of some favorites that belong in this post. I did preorder the show catalog so I look forward to studying the quilts with a cup of tea and revisiting them from time to time.

Next post I'll share some overall impressions of the show!


Have a wonderful day! Patty

Thursday, March 2, 2023

QuiltCon Recap Part 1 - My Quilts


QuiltCon took place in Atlanta from February 23 - 26. I attended the show, volunteered, took a class, saw some many friends and made new ones. It was awesome. Since there is so much to share, I'm splitting my QuiltCon recap into several posts. 

I feel incredibly fortunate to have had two quilts juried into QuiltCon.

My quilt Patent Pending was one of twenty quilts in the Group or Bee category. The goal behind the Patent Pending group quilt was to create a playful quilt that people would stop and look at. I hoped that many would follow the path of the ball through the quilt and be amazed by all the wonderful blocks created by my friends. (Read more about Patent Pending.)

So, yes, I quilt stalked. I stood in the main aisle and watched people approach the quilt. Many took photos and some definitely stopped, studied and looked at the details. I happened to overhear a few people shout with delight as they recognized it was a Rube Goldberg or referenced it as the board game Mouse Trap. One little girl stood in front of the quilt and had her mom take a photo since it was her favorite. (sigh.)


Six of the seven friends who contributed were at the show and we had great fun grabbing photos. Linda @florishingpalms, Kitty @nightquilter, Charles @feltlikesweets, Val @valbetweenquilts, and Me (kneeling).


I also grabbed 'ta-da' individual photos with each friend. Pat @peacockcreekdesigns and Sarah @saroy missed the group shot but their smiling faces are captured in these photos. (Check out Sarah's quilted sneakers!) Sadly Yvonne @quiltingjetgirl was unable to be at the show.


As a thank you to those who contributed, I made little notebooks using scraps of fabric and the seam ripper pattern.


My quilt Decade was part of the Modern X special exhibit in honor of the tenth anniversary of the very first QuiltCon. (Read more about the Decade quilt.) The QuiltCon show was spread over 3 floors this year - vendors were on floors 1 and 2 while the primary quilt show was on floor 3. The Modern X exhibit - there were 37 quilts in total - was on floor 2.

While I didn't snap any other photos from this category, there were some really amazing quilts. (While this category was juried, there was no judging or prizes awarded.)

I didn't stalk this quilt much at all but I did go visit it several times and got a thrill each time I walked around the corner and saw it hanging in the show.


So cool to see my name hanging up in the show!

Finally, I did contribute a single block to another group quilt - The Myriad Interpretations of Language - a Collaborative Embroidery Project by Sam Hunter.


In tomorrow's post, I'll share photos of the quilts that caught my attention during the show.

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Wednesday, March 1, 2023

March One Monthly Goal

Happy March!



New to One Monthly Goal?  Welcome!  To join, share a photo of your project plus, some words about what you want to accomplish in a blog post or  and add that photo to the link-up.  Return at the end of the month and share your results.  (Results link-up opens for the last 7 days of the month.)

I'm pleased to be sharing hosting duties with Anne-Marie from Stories From the Sewing Room.  You can link up at either of our blogs and your OMG project will show up in the same link party!  

My goal for March is to quilt my Mobius Radial quilt. Read more about it here.


Now it is your turn to link up - what is your goal for this month?   The One Monthly Goal accomplishment linkup will be available on March 25.  Make sure you add a link to this OMG post so others can find the OMG link-up from your blog.  Let's make that easy -  just paste this into your post:  

Take a few minutes to visit others and make new friends!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Have a wonderful day! Patty