The Ricky Tims’ Seminar

I wanted to show a little about the seminar that came to town.  I really learned how to quilt from watching Alex Anderson and stopping by the LQS and talking to a seamstress that would hold classes periodically.  She would conduct business in the shop but doesn’t work in the LQS.  So to have Alex Anderson come to town was BIG for me.  I had made a Convergence Quilt by converting a Ricky Tims’ pattern for my dad.  I loved how fast it went together.  Mine was throw size and had 4 fabrics.  Libby Lehman…didn’t know much about her before going into the seminar…just that she was a machine quilter.

I am not one to be awestruck, I was when I saw Alex.  It was in very early the 1st day.  I could talk to her it was so slow…I just couldn’t think of anything really to say.  A quilter not having much to say?  Me not talking?  Who is this dumbfounded girl?  I did manage to ask if I could get my picture taken with her.  Yes, of course.  (I have to decide now to show you the pic or just leave it up to your imagination.  As I have 12 & 16 year old girls…I have to make sure that I make the same choices that I would like them to make. Facebook and sharing isn’t always good.  For this reason I think that I will not put the pic in.)  :{

It was soo cool to see some of the quilts that we see around.

I sat right in front of this Lonestar quilt.  It was neat to look at this quilt over the 3 day seminar.  Ricky and his father made this quilt together.  The Rhapsody quilt was also up front.  I love how such a bright red is the neutral color is this quilt.  Ricky also mentioned how 10 spools of thread was not enough to machine applique down of the pieces.

I also love the way Libby has moved from her thread play to the color variations and reverse applique of her more current quilts.  These quilts are generally simple piecing.  She will draw a line and then stitch and cut out the outside or the inside.  She then will satin stitch around the raw edge to cover it up.  This is done before the layering.  She uses a LOT of stabilizer. 

This is Alex’s latest BOM.  This is the brighter color variation.  My pic with Alex is in front of the beige and brown variation.  If you ever get the opportunity to go to something like this, do it.  I am not sure that I learned many new things.   I will try some of Ricky’s techniques and maybe Libby’s.  Alex’s stuff…I would never sign up to make a quilt that looked like this one.  My KING was intricate…but I did not see the final project until I was done.  I would not have sign up to make that quilt if I had seen the finished project.  I do thnik getting all those quilters in one place is fun.  I have been to many retreats and classes.  You just need to have quilters sharing ideas.  Even if you don't think that you will use the technique...it may just be what the person sitting next to you needs to know to open them up and share that trick you is just what you need to know.  I really am glad that I went.  I enjoyed meeting new people (I ate with people I didn't know and even got to show them the Chocolate Manor.)

Hope you enjoy the pics.
Just Another Quilter

The Dahlia

This Dahlia, as I stated before is from a long time ago.  The top was the greatest colors, back in the day.  Now I still like the design and I do like the colors, but I don’t have any drive to finish this quilt.  I have taken this quilt to retreat so many times.  It is a standing joke just to ask if it is done.  I might actually have it done by the time retreat rolls around.  I don’t think this will make the monthly goal.  The quilt needs to have the outside triangles put on it and a large green border (this is where I thought some gentle Ricky Tims’ curves) sewn on.  A back needs to be found, layered and quilting completed.  The girls go back to school this month, but we have one more traveling adventure before that happens. I will be excited if the quilting is underway.  I have been working on the small “crazy” triangles for about 2 years.  I hate this technique, I only have 4 left to go.  I am so glad that this quilt will have a whole month dedicated to it. 

On another note,  this is fabric that DH brought me back from Nebraska last fall.  The design is in one of the newer Turning Twenty books.  I have been using this as a leader and ender project for the last 6 months.  It is starting to shape up. 

Here is also the knitting project that I have been working on.  It is the standard “dishcloth”  pattern…yo after 1st and knit to the end, turn and repeat. I think that I may want it to be larger.  I am out of yarn.

I may see if I can find some, but think that I will start a new project or pull out the celtic knot (applique) for the trip.  I just need to make a decision.  I borrowed the knitting needles.  I know that I shouldn't have problems traveling with them, but am not sure that I want to take the chance.

Hope you are all having a great summer. 

Just Another Quilter

The Latest Rollercoaster and July UFO

I can’t believe it was 2 weeks ago that I was sitting watching Alex Anderson, Ricky Tims and Libby Lehman.  I will get the pics of the seminar up soon.  DH has been traveling for work.  He was gone during the week of the seminar.  The girls had a couple of long days, while I was at the seminar and Dad was out of town.  We had 2 days together before the family all went different ways.  Lola went to Journalism camp (south) for 3 days, DH headed off for more training (west) and MJJR and I headed off to visit with family and hang out at the beach on Lake Michigan (east).  We all returned home Thursday night.  I managed to get some time and finished the July UFO done late Sunday night.  I still might put another brown strip around the outside.
I can’t wait to work on the next UFO.  For August, the UFO is #7.  This is my Dahlia quilt.  The top is one that has gentle curves.  I took the class before I was ready to try curves.  I finished the dahlia several years ago.  I find it funny that this quilt was chosen at this time.  I struggle to find excitement in this quilt.  It is a lovely top.  It has very little left to finish the top.  After watching how Ricky Tims’ achieves his gentle curves, I thought during the seminar that my dahlia quilt might accept this technique quite well.  Now this quilt has been drawn for finishing, and so close to learning the technique and dreaming of the techniques on this quilt.  I believe that it is the way it was meant to be. . . this quilt couldn’t have been drawn until I learned the technique.  I don't have any pics of the dahlia quilt.  I will get some soon.

I got my picture taken with my. idol...

 I have spent my wad, 4 pieces of   Ricky  Tims fabric, a book by Ricky, a book by Alex, and some machine embroidery needles.  I did get my picture taken with Alex, didn't even think to take it with the cell phone. I will post all the pics of the quilts tonight.  Things start in about 10 minutes.

Just Another (very excited) Quilter

It’s Finally Here

I don’t think that I happened to mention that I am going to the Ricky Tims Seminar.  This Extravaganza also includes Alex Anderson and Libby Lehman.  It starts in our area…….tomorrow!  It has been a 2 year wait.  Our local quilt guild has been working to bring us this show for….ever!  One of my buddies called today asking if I was going.  I am looking forward to seeing her there.  I can’t believe that we are going to get to spend almost 3 days together.

I really learned how to quilt from watching Alex for so many years.  My children would go out to the bus stop and could watch them get on the bus from my seat in front of the show.  I was very consistent about watching it.   I learned more from her than any other quilter.  I have at least 2 VCR tapes of her shows.  I still put them in occasionally.  The techniques still are pertinent even years later.

Check in is at 2:30 pm tomorrow and the programs run until Saturday afternoon.  The church ladies are coming to the house in the morning to start the “Christmas Traditions” quilt.  I have been frantically cleaning.  Usually we meet at the church to work, but I didn’t want to have to haul the sewing machines in and then unload the car before I head into town to go to the quilt show.  So the house needs to be picked up.  DH is out of town until Friday night, so I better do the cleaning now so that I don’t have so much to do later.  He should arrive home while I am at the seminar.

It will be a weekend of quilting fun!  OOOHHHH.  I better get the camera out in the car now!  Thanks you all for reminding me.

Just Another Quilter having some fun….quilting.

Two Color Binding

I love this technique.  It allows you the have the binding match both the front and the back of the quilt.  It also lets  you stretch some of your fabric.  For the 3-D Mariner’s Compass Quilt, I had very little for the paisley print left.  I could get by with the 1 inch strip for the perimeter of the quilt.  I also could cut up whatever for the back of the binding.  I didn't have a lot of choices as I was at retreat.  This white on muslin print I thought was pretty safe.  I finished the binding in the traditional way by hand tacking it. 

For the table runner, I had plenty of fabric but I wanted it to match either the batik side or the Christmas side. 

The paperwork I have is from Dorothy Hook, photographs by Marcia Cameron.
This link is a visual of the technique.  I am sure there are other links.  This link has good pictures.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Two-Tone-Quilt-Binding/
7 Easy Steps
1. Cut strips according to the table.
2. Sew the strips together if necessary for proper length around the perimeter.
3. Sew the 2 different colored strips together w/ right sides together. Try not to have the above seams line up.
4. Press (I pressed mine toward the front binding fabric, it gives the binding some good body.  Some talk about pressing open.)
5. Press in half lengthwise wrong sides together, matching raw edges, as you would any other french binding.
6. Sew on binding (w/appropriate seam allowance--see table) being sure to miter corners at the beginning and end as in other french bindings.
7. Roll to the back and finish sewing binding down (by hand or machine).
The paperwork I have includes the following table:

Seam Allowance for sewing binding on	Finished Front Binding	Finished Back Binding	Cut Front Binding	Cut Back Binding
1/4" Seam Allowance	3/8"	1/2"	1"	2"
1/4" Seam Allowance	3/8"	3/8"	7/8"	1   5/8"
1/4" Seam Allowance	1/2"	3/8"	1"	1   5/8"
1/4" Seam Allowance	3/8"	1/2"	7/8"	1   7/8"
3/8" Seam Allowance	3/8" +	3/8" +	1   1/8"	2"
3/8" Seam Allowance	3/8"	3/8"	1"	1   7/8"

I like to choose the back binding larger than the front binding, if I am finishing the quilt by machine.  The extra 1/8” lets you top stitch the back binding nicely, and not stitch through your binding on the "front side".  Also keep in mind front and back are relative terms.  You choose what side you want to role the binding onto for the final sewing.  This might be the front.  (I kinda think of the batik side as the front of the table runner, even though, when I was layering it, I pretended it was the back--bottom of the sandwich.)  Sooo, if I am going to machine sew the binding down, I like the back of the quilt to be the front binding (in the table), and to roll that (back) binding to the front of the quilt and topstitch it down.  This topstitching will just look like a row of quilting on the back of the just 1/4" around the perimeter of the quilt.  NOW, if you understand that you have had your coffee for the morning!

I think a sit n sew group put all the information together and did a little class one day.  I missed the class, but a friend grabbed me a set of the paperwork.  I keep just such stuff in a 3 ring binder with clear sheet protectors.  I keep different patterns or techniques in there that I will or just might need in the future.  I like to be able to pull out the information get the binding done and slide the paperwork back into the sheet protector when I am done.  I am terrible about sitting the paperwork for something like this down and then it getting shuffled into some other stack of papers.

Enjoy the family this holiday weekend!  More about the day with my brothers' family on the next post.

Just Another Quilter

Another Completed UFO!

Yeah!  I completed another UFO.  I have checked off 4 projects this year now.   This is the latest completed projects.  The table runner is on my cedar chest under the television.  I usually have the pictures of the girls on either side of the box.  This box was a gift quite a few years ago.  It holds many votive candles.  It is the inspiration for the Hoffman diamond quilt (it is the challenge for July).

I really like how it turned out.  The bonus part….it is two sided.  It has a Christmas runner on the other side.I made 2-sided binding.   I will have to find the site my directions are from.  I printed them out several years ago.  I like the directions I have because it gives cutting directions for several different versions and includes pictures.

Next….#2 was drawn (Hoffman Turquoise Diamond Quilt).  That is the quilt that was inspired by the box above.  I work on this quilt back in February at retreat.  I have the quilt sewn into rows already.  It shouldn’t take much to finish up the top.  That is the goal.  I may see if I can get it layered.  This is an old picture of the quilt.

My brother and his family arrive tonight….actually tomorrow morning very early.  We will enjoy a day on the lake tomorrow.  The temps are well into the 90’s and the humidity is high.  Only real place to be is in the water.
I also had an old quilting friend come over today.  She moved a couple towns away about 5 yrs. ago.  We had a great time, just it was too short.  We vowed to make it happen again.  It was almost 3 years from the last time we saw each other.
Have a Happy 4th of July. 
Just Another Quilter