Handi Quilter National Educator, Superior Threads Certified Educator
Author: Lana
I learned to sew at age 11 at my local Singer store. I was so intrigued by all of the supplies in my friend's sewing tote box I spotted while playing at her house that I rode my bicycle home and told my mom I wanted to take sewing lessons. I found my niche. I made most of my clothes through high school and even made room for my sewing machine (in cabinet) in my tiny college dorm room. I bought my first quilt book when in my early 20"s at the St. Louis arch gift shop. It was a book about the Cathedral Window and I was intrigued with how that was put together. I played around with it, but continued to sew garments for my kids while they were young. I got back into quilting when my son and daughter were in middle school, feeding my need for continued creativity. I took various classes locally, and eventually made my way to Syracuse, NY for Quilting by the Lake, and Carmel, CA for Empty Spools. It wasn't until I took Betty Cotton's Cotton Theory Class at Camp Cotton in Osseo, WI, in July, 2012, that I found what I was looking for. Everything just clicked for me and I felt like I now knew this "secret" that made everything so much easier and more fun and had to share it with other quilters. "Quilt first, then assemble" means no more getting down on my hands and knees on the living room floor and pinning the quilt back, batting and pieced quilt top together and then trying to get it through my machine's throat area or, worse, paying someone big bucks to do it for you. And no handwork. I'm in.
Hello! Super busy week, but managed a finish: my Bossa Nova cotton theory quilt. I wanted to complete this so I could have a complete step by step tutorial ready for my Cotton Theory quilting presentation for the south side Indianapolis quilt guild Thursday. I’ll post the same tutorial here in its entirety very soon, but next week is Houston! YAY! First time for me! I look forward to reporting on that experience, too! But, first things, first – my finished Bossa Nova…
I loved meeting the ladies from the south side guild!! What a fun group! Super friendly! My husband even commented that they were as friendly as Airstreamers! We meet the nicest people camping and now that he is helping me set up for my presentations, he will see first hand how friendly quilters are. We enjoyed meeting and talking with them so much that we both forgot to take pictures! Next time…
This summer the Indiana State Museum had a quilt exhibit entitled 19 Stars. Here’s their description of the exhibit:
“Indiana is the 19th state to join the Union; the state flag depicts nineteen stars. In anticipation of the state’s Bicentennial, this exhibit presents 19 historic star-patterned quilts selected from the Indiana State Museum’s collection along with 19 contemporary star-themed quilts created by some of Indiana’s outstanding quilters.
Stars were favored patterns in the 19th and 20th centuries and appear in many variations. The historic quilts in this exhibit span a hundred and fifty years of Indiana quilt-making, from the 1830s to the 1980s. In contrast, most of the contemporary works were created specifically for this exhibit, and incorporate the star theme in any number of ways, from overt to illusory. The artists’ techniques vary widely, from traditional piecework and appliqué to improvisational collage, layering, or richly textural thread painting.”
The Quilt Guild of Indianapolis, of which I am a member, thought it would be nice to have some members sit outside the exhibit quilting and available to answer any questions visitors might have about quilting or our guild. My friend, Bev, and I enjoyed this so much the first time we did this that we signed up for double duty. Here I am working on a Cotton Theory Charity Quilt.
Cold weather is on its way and I’m already thinking Spring! I need something to look forward to, and if you do, too, plan to join me at The Cornerstone Inn in Nashville, IN from Sunday, March 20 – Thursday, March 24. Bring your sewing machine, knitting, crocheting, scrapbooking, books for reading and relaxing, and / or $$ for shopping. It’s a beautiful area perfect for a getaway. I have been dreaming of having a retreat here for a few years. I have reserved the 5 Upper Rooms that share a living area and kitchen that is separate from our work area. That allows you to bring your own food if you desire. There will not be any shortage of food, however, as a hot breakfast with 2 or 3 entrees, fresh fruit, cheese, bagels, bread, pastries, coffee, hot tea, hot cocoa, etc, etc, etc is included along with with freshly made afternoon snacks put out at 4 pm and homemade desserts at 7 pm. I have been here many times and it is so peaceful. I only have 4 spaces left because of the reasonable price (half price weekly rate), so let me know if you are interested. The nightly rate is $60 and a $50 deposit will hold your spot.
Check out the link above and plan to join me. You won’t regret it!
{Sorry to keep you waiting, but I’ve had some major technical difficulties which required a full backup, restore, and reload. Hopefully, I’m back up and running again. This post is from the week of August 14. I’ll get you caught up asap. Thanks, Lana.}
TWIST ~ This Week In Studio Time
I completed Step 2 of my current Cotton Theory project, the piecing.
If I miss a blog post, we are probably out camping with our friends. We have met the nicest people camping! We share the love of the outdoors. Here are some pics from our summer:
My friends’ nephew went to China to teach English. While there he fell in love and got married. My friends visited China this summer to meet the new family members and wanted to take some gifts along for the newlyweds, Mom and Dad (in laws), and grandmothers. We decided placemats and table toppers would be easy to pack, so I used my PJ’s In the HoopHoliday Hostess pattern and made these.
I love this pattern. It’s amazing how it all gets sewn together while in the hoop on your embroidery machine.
Here are the recipients in China:
Thanks, Kim and Eric, for giving me the opportunity to make these gifts for your new family members in China. I’m so happy you had a wonderful trip. It’s good to have you back home.
When I retired, I decided 20% of my sewing time would be spent on charity quilting. I just needed to decide on the organization or cause I wanted to support. I have a heavy heart for those who suffer from domestic violence, even though I don’t know anyone personally. I guess I’ve just experienced enough of the male dominated society I’ve grown up in that it touches me in that way. We don’t have a women’s shelter in our county, but there are plans for a 30 bed unit to open in 3 years. I thought I could make 10 simple twin size quilts a year and have 30 ready in 3 years. I knew it was a lofty goal, but I set forth. However, retiring allowed me the freedom to travel quite a bit and I fell farther and farther behind in that goal. But, I retired, so we could travel. I needed to reassess.
I had a friend who had mentioned she had organized a sewing group that supports Healthy Families and invited me to sew with them. They make items that support members can take with them on home visits and leave them at the home as a gift. I researched Healthy Families and liked what I found.
“Healthy Families Indiana is a voluntary home visitation program designed to promote healthy families and healthy children through a variety of services, including child development, access to health care and parent education.
By working closely with hospital maternity wards, prenatal clinics and other local agencies, Healthy Families Indiana systematically identifies families that could benefit from education and support services either before or immediately after birth. The program is designed to strengthen families by reducing child abuse and neglect, childhood health problems and juvenile delinquency.”
I ran it by my friend, who is in social worker, to give me a personal account of Healthy Families and she gave it a two thumbs up.
Mary Alice’s group is very well organized (they’ve been at this for 12 years!) and each person has their station, be it, cutting out, ironing, sewing, quilting, sandwiching batting, etc.
I absolutely love the finished project, but I had the darndest time trying to locate a 2″ metal ring for the front of the bag. I ended up at the hardware store searching and searching. I ended up with a conduit locknut washer from the electrical department, but it works!! Crazy!
I also finished Caleb’s quilt this week. It enjoyed the process…
and then the finish this week. I made scrappy binding – one strip of each of the fabrics in the quilt and that was kinda fun to do! I hope he enjoys it so much as he grows up that it gets worn out. I love to think that the quilts I give will be enjoyed. Looking forward to beginning a new project next week. Stay tuned! Have a great week!