As soon as P started back to school, it seems that my brain had some space for sewing ideas. This week I designed a bunch of quilts and started cutting up scraps. I cut a whole stack of triangles for half square triangle units that would finish at one inch. When I started sewing them I realized how small that actually was. Hmmm. I put that project in a bag and scaled up my plan. I cut an even LARGER stack of triangles that will finish at one and a quarter inches. Yeah, because that's SO much bigger.
Fun times, I tell you. I may be finished with the summer blahs and be moving into full fall sewing madness!It's a good thing I have have at least FIVE quilts started and on my project table right now. I'll be able to alternate between them. When I get the crazies from tiny triangles, I can switch to tiny squares!!! Bwahahahahahahaha!!!
Productive Weekend
I went on a little sewing retreat with the Ann Arbor Modern Quilt Guild this weekend. I had a lot of fun and was very productive.I made 50 tiny stars,
and finished the Crazy Love top for Jennifer Paganelli. Thank you, Rossie, for suggesting the diagonal bands of color. The color bands help calm the chaos that was happening with all of these lively prints together.
P is back at school today so I want to keep the productivity going. I'm off to the cutting table!
37 Sketches
I'm back from my retreat up north with Gwen Marston. This year we used Gwen's 37 Sketches as inspiration for our liberated projects.Gwen's self published book, 37 Sketches is beautiful and inspirational. Each quilt has a full page photo and a short description of the inspiration or idea for it. The text is like poetry. There are no how to's in this book just the 37 sketches. It is an elegant little book that is great for studying liberated piecing and inspiring you to try your own small sketches. Working on a small scale is a great way to try new techniques and work with different colors or fabrics. Since the book is self published there are a limited number and are only available directly from Gwen.Back to the retreat recap...Gwen had her little works of art displayed so that we could study them up close.
I made these at the retreat:Sketch 1:10 x 13 inches
Sketch 2:8 x 10 inches
These little quilts were fun to do and they are even finished!!I then got side tracked by another project inspired by a quilt someone brought for show and tell.
I have a weakness for little stars.
These stars will finish at two inches. They are smaller and not liberated like the ones I did last year.I have no idea how I will set these. They may be a quilt of their own in a nine patch setting or maybe a border for a medallion style quilt. Right now I'm just having fun making them.Quilt retreat is very "grounding" for me. All of the ladies who come every year really make it special and help me put things in perspective. I love coming home and feeling like I have a focus and direction. Thanks ladies, it was a great week.
Seeing Stars
This is what I did while at my quilt retreat last week. I made tiny stars.Three inch stars.Seventy five three inch stars.I was inspired by this fabulous quilt by Gwen Marston.
It is simply stunning. The stars just sparkle in a sea of beautiful hand quilting.
I wanted to try a few other things while I was there but I just couldn't get away from the stars.
I took two suitcases of fabric because I never know what I will want to do until I am there. I didn't use much of what I took just lots of tiny pieces.My stars have print centers and solid points.I decided to use a different setting than Gwen used and calculated that I need 153 of the little stars. I am half way there!
I am having a lot of fun making them.
Retreat Ambiance
I thought I might set the stage a bit today by sharing some pictures of the location of our quilt retreat.Traverse Bay.
Shells on the beach.
The "Craft Boat"
Elk Lake.
White Birch Lodge.
Stitching by the water.
