Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Westside Quilter's Guild

October 17, 2011

Westside Quilter's Guild is located in Hillsboro, Oregon and currently has about 85 members.  This guild has been in existence for five years and they are very active in their community.  They donated 175 quilts to the flood victims in Vernonia last year.  They also contribute quilts on an ongoing basis to the neonatal unit at St. Vincents Hospital.  They have semi-annual quilt shows, as well as an upcoming exhibit at Glenn Walters Cultural Trust Center. 



They have asked me to come and speak to the guild about my work, so I loaded up my car with as many quilts as I could and drove to the Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church where their meetings are held.  They were a very receptive audience and I had an enjoyable time.  In fact, there was so much interest in my work that we scheduled machine quilting and thread painting classes in November and December, 2012 - and the November classes were filled within the hour!  So, I am looking forward to returning to this lively group in 2012.  Thank you everyone for such a wonderful reception!

Gals lining up for Show and Tell - I saw some great work that night!

Velda Newman Workshop

October 12, 14, 15, 2011

The tables were turned and I got the opportunity to take a class instead of teaching one.    And what a great class it was!  On Wednesday, October 12, Velda taught her Creating Realism-Techniques class.  She also calls it her Kindergarten Class because we got to play and couldn't do anything wrong.  We experimented with discharging, foiling, bleaching, and painting.  Velda supplied her paints as well as all the other tools she uses to add color to fabric - watercolor pencils, oil pastels, and permanent marking pens.  We experimented shading paint from very light to dark, blending one paint color with another, and adding shadows to add depth and dimension to an object. 



On Friday and Saturday, Velda taught her class entitled Texture & Form.  We made several samples, including a lemon, basket, cantaloupe, sea shell, several tulip petals, and leaves.  Once these were made, we spent the remaining time on Saturday applying color to these objects.  Some were painted, and on others we used pencils and even splatter brushes to add depth and dimension. 



Throughout the entire three days of classes, Velda was very gracious about telling us all her tips and tricks she uses to create her astonishing quilts. Velda brought several smaller samples for us to look at, in addition to her Baskets quilt.  Class participants also got to get up close to (and help hold) Zinnias, one of her newest quilts that is seven feet long, and see the detail in each leaf and how she achieved such realistic flower buds. 



I hope that If you ever get the chance to take a class from Velda Newman that you'll take it.  She is a marvelous teacher and has inspired me to look at my quilts and quilt making differently.  I can't wait to try out some of her techniques in my own work.  Thank you, Velda!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

SEW-Q Southeastern Washington Quilter's Guild

October 9, 2011

Today I am driving from Washougal to Kennewick, Washington, which is in the southeastern part of the state. This is my third visit since May when I first visited the SEW-Q gals and did a trunk show. I then came back a few months later and taught an introductory Art of Machine Quilting class. Tomorrow I'll be teaching a Thread Painting class.  While driving to Kennewick, I took a break at a rest stop just east of Mosier, Oregon and had to take the following pictures:





Great place to have a picnic lunch, don't you think?

I was thrilled to see a small herd of Big Horn Sheep just east of the John Day dam.  Truth be told, I've seen the sheep in that same area many times before, and so I'm always looking for them now. In fact, one time I also saw Mountain Goats in the same area!

After arriving in town, I went to Columbia Park, which is a wonderful park that runs for miles along the Columbia River. It is a great place for walking, jogging, biking, and feeding birds. They also have a baseball diamond and a frisbee golf course. I walked some of the paths and enjoyed a great sunset.

On Saturday, I taught Thread Painting to a group of very enthusiastic attendees. 





SEW-Q is a guild with about 90 members that was started in the mid-90's. The guild has an annual quilt auction with all proceeds going to Hospice House, a local support center for the dying and their family. Rickie Nichol is program chair and my wonderful hostess.  I had a terrific time getting to know these ladies and I wish all of them and their guild much success and happiness in the future!

Fibers In Motion

October 1, 2011

Fibers In Motion is a quilt shop located in Multnomah Village, which is in the southwest section of Portland, Oregon.  This contemporary quilt shop features a lot of Bali and African fabrics, along with some silks and rayons.  Owner LuAnn Rukke has created an environment that nurtures and celebrates creative fabric art of all types.  You can take a wide range of quilting, wearable art, and accessories classes that are geared toward the beginner to advanced sewer.



LuAnn has a small classroom located in her quilt shop, and I'm here today teaching a machine quilting class.  I have taught here many times in the past, and have always enjoyed my time spent here.  For lunch, two class attendees and I walked across the street and ate at O'Connors - always a good meal.  After class, LuAnn and I walk up the street to Thai Herbs for dinner.  This restaurant is another gem in Multnomah Village, along with Annie Bloom's Book Store and Northwest Wools - two other favorites of mine.

If you haven't visited it yet, Fibers In Motion is a must-see!  Check out their website at:
http://www.fibersinmotion.com/

Purple Frog Quilt Shop

September 24, 2011

The Purple Frog Quilt Shop features a large selection of bali fabrics, prints, and a limited amount of reproductions.  They also have an entire wall of tools to peruse.  They are located in the rolling hills of Jefferson, Oregon which is about two hours south of Portland.  Jefferson is a quaint community of about 3,000 people and they are the self-proclaimed "Frog Jumping Capital of Oregon".  The frog jump competition is held every 3rd Saturday in July during the Mint Festival.  Owners Mary and Kim chose the name of the quilt shop to honor the frog jump, as well as the high school colors.



I've been invited here to teach a Thread Painting class.  This is the second time I've been here; the first time was back in May when I taught a machine quilting class.  A number of gals who attended the first class are joining me again and I'm happy to see them.  A number of class attendees joined me for lunch at a local cafe just down the road from the quilt shop, and it was a treat to have Cathie (my driver) take me to the local Mexican Bakery.  I've never been to this type of bakery before, and I very much enjoyed the cookies she bought for the class for the rest of the afternoon!



The Purple Frog has a large classroom on site, as well as a long arm quilting machine.  They don't have a web page yet, but if you'd like to contact them, use this email address:
purplefrogquiltshop@gmail.com

So, if you're ever in the area, take the time to visit this charming quilt shop and say 'hi' to Mary and Kim for me.  You'll be glad you did!