David and I will have two pieces each in this show. If you are in the area or want a nice little day trip, come see the exhibit and let us know what you think. This is a great exhibit space at the Poway Center of the Performing Arts.
 Summer Walk - by Elizabeth Busch I am really excited about attending this upcoming workshop. It will be a week long extensive class with Elizabeth Busch. I am looking forward to learning some new techniques on using dyes and paints.
I will post pictures from the class and some of my finished projects. Not only will I be inspired by the class, but during "lunch" break I can go across the street and view the sure to be incredible Quilt Visions 2014: The Sky's the Limit exhibit THE PAINTED QUILT: CREATING SMALL WORKS, 5-DAY WORKSHOP October 13—October 17, 2014 Monday-Friday, 9:30-5:00 Using ProChem's textile paints and student's already painted or dyed fabric combined with commercial fabric, you will create two to three quilt tops about 24 x 24 inches. Elizabeth will share how she gets inspiration from within and how one piece feeds the next in a series. The focus will be on scale and impact, design, composition and use of color. You will paint half the time and sew half the time. There will be plenty of opportunities for individual instruction. There may still be some openings so you can call the museum to check, 619-546-4872. Elizabeth's quilt, Summer Walk, was juried into Quilt Visions 2014: The Sky's The Limit. October 3, 2014—January 4, 2015 Quilt Visions 2014: The Sky's the Limit 
7 inch versus 11.25 inch throat
Happy birthday to me. My wonderful husband wanted me to get a new sewing machine so... I took the plunge and after 20 years stepped off the edge and took the plunge. Oh my gosh. As much as I love my Pfaff 1475CD I had to get a machine with a larger throat for the machine quilting. I was just tired of rolling, scrunching and pushing a lot of fabric through a small area. I went from a 7 inch throat to a 11.25 inch throat. This machine is like an aircraft carrier. I can hardly wait to do my first free motion quilting on it.
I looked at several machines and thought I would get a Pfaff or Janome since I own two Pfaffs and David owns a Janome 6600. The machine I settled on was the Baby Lock Crescendo. What sold me on this machine is the massive lighting system (they call it Enhanced Stadium Lighting) that is adjustable in 5 steps, a very large throat area and the auto needle threading. This machine has a wonderful stitch and feels great when free motion quilting. I tested this machine at several dealers and it was consistent through all the tests I did. I spent a little time learning all over again how to wind a bobbin, thread the machine, adjust tension and all those things I didn't have to think about on the Pfaff. Hopefully muscle memory will kick in and I won't have to concentrate on these little details in the future. I am looking forward to learning this machine and putting it through its paces. I will be blogging about this machine and what I learn. I may decide that I do not need a mid-arm machine for the size of quilts I make. I purchased this machine at Sewing Machines Plus in San Marcos. They were fabulous and really treated me well. If you are looking for a new machine, check them out. There are several great shops in the Temecula and San Diego area so you should be able to find a machine that is perfect for your style of sewing. This is a short slide show video on how I block my quilts. I wet them in the washer on the delicate rinse/spin option. This is the best way I found to remove the excess water before pinning the piece to the design wall. I have a top and left hand line marked on the wall to get my first two sides square. I check to see if I have markings for the size I need. If not, I add those to my design wall.
I normally pin 1 -2 inches apart after I get my initial two sides pinned. Running your hands from the pinned edges can get your quilt to "stretch" if you are a little undersized. If my quilt is a little too long in either direction (not usually my problem) I will pin the corners and then ease the excess along the total distance of the edge. As a last check I use a carpenters square to verify that I have the edges pinned along a straight line and 90 degrees to each other. On our video page is a short video of the process with the same photos, but text over each step. Let me know if you use my technique or if you have a better way. David and I received exciting news this week. We were notified that we got all of the pieces that we submitted into the 2014 SAQA exhibit at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts. We are really excited to have four pieces in this show. It is a wonderful venue and a great place to display art. If you want to see these pieces up close and personal this is the perfect venue. The curator always does a wonderful job giving enough space to the art and it is well lit.
The exhibit will run from October 1- 31, 2014. If you wish to attend the artist reception it is being held on October 10, 2014. David will have "In Our Comfort We Turn a Blind Eye" and "Stolen" and I will have "First Frost" and "Turbulence" at this exhibition. |
David & PatriciaWe are fiber artists that live in Northern Arizona. We now create our art full time. Archives
April 2021
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