Maine Sewing Adventures

Sewing at Lily's and More

  What a glorious day!  After a month of rain, it was so good to see the sun.  Our friend Brigitte from Houston told me she brought the sun with her.  She arrived late Wednesday night, but was too tired to unload the car.  So, she got up Thursday morning and opened the trunk and let out the sun!  Thank you Brigitte!

On Saturday, nine of us ventured out for a sewing class.  We crossed the Deer Isle-Stonington Bridge to go to Lily’s Café where we were met by Chef Kyra Stonington and fellow quilter, Carol, who summers on the island.

   We unloaded the cars, claimed our spaces in the dining room, and visited for about half an hour.  Just when we were about ready to start some serious sewing, Kathleen arrived with purchases from an enticing yard sale down by the bridge.  (I would have stopped myself but I was riding with Deanna and she was not about to be late!)  Kathleen’s finest buy was a white ceramic peacock with all its marbles!  We plugged it in and all the marbles lit.  I regret that I did not get a photo of this $3 treasure.

   We settled again and went to work on our Tidal Tote, a design by Poorhouse Quilts.  Some ladies were already cut, so they started right in sewing the 4 patches for the front and the back of the tote.  Pat was sewing an especially lovely green batik one.

  After sewing the 4 patches, we quilted the pieces for the outside of the bag. 

Nancy was the only one who did not use batiks.  She chose some watery looking blues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we appliqued.  Isn't Vivian's starfish charming?

 

  

   When everyone completed the cutting, we recessed for Kyra’s lunch extraordinaire: polenta lasagna, coconut chicken, some deep fried Indian cauliflower that was amazing, salads and sides, and enchanting desserts!

 We ate on the upstairs deck, enjoying the company, the food, and the sun! (And quite a bit of wind!) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner we continued to work on the tote.  Deanna made piping for the sides of the bag and inserted it into the seams.  Kathleen pointed out that her work was technically perfect.  Don’t you agree?

 

 

 

 

 As our sewing day was finished, the bags weren’t. This photo of a finished bag is of my sample.  (You’ll note that instead of the appliqué I embroidered a shell from Anita Goodesign.)  However, a good time was had by all!

(Click onthe photo album to see more pictures.)

Sewing Cafe

  Sewing Cafe meets 2 to 3 Monday evenings per month in the Portland store.  The main course is sewing but it is garnished with laughter and fun.  There is a small group of loyal participants and a steady stream of "one-nighters."  On any given night, I might be providing instruction in quilting, mending, decorating, and dress making.  Everyone learns from each other and I learn from my "students." I haven't yet written this up with photos because it is not really an event or a party, but a basic class.  However, Sewing Cafe is offering something special for those who are serious about learning to sew or want to further develop their skills.  To see examples of what happens at Sewing Cafe, click on the photo album for photos taken June 15, 2009.  If you'd like to join us,  check ou the website for dates and call Sew Portland (797-6700) to register for class.  If you need a sewing machine, let us know in advance and we will gladly provide one.

The Young and the Restless Pattern Makers

I have been working on items for classes and have selected some of the patterns from these new young designers. Their fabrics are wonderfully delicious and very popular.  So, to sell their fabrics, they are all coming up with patterns to use them.  And, the designs are terrific!  However, I am getting more and more impatient with their pattern making skills (or should I say "lack thereof").  Apparently, some of these young gals have never read traditional patterns, so they are "re-inventing the wheel" making up their own terminology and methods.  For example, one has redefined the word "midriff" to mean below the waist and another thinks a circle or dot is the same thing as a dart,  and seam allowance! .. just guess!  Imagine if my daughter the architect decided to redefine words for the carpenters that use her plans ..."Oh, I'd like to call the window sill a sash, and strut is a funny word, let's call it a molding..."  I guess that's why she has 5 years of intensive training and has to intern for 3 and then pass a whole battery of exams to become licensed ... no such regulation in the clothing industry .. if you can afford to print it, it can be sold without disclaimer!  My biggest concern with these patterns is that the gals who they appeal to the most are beginners and when they can't figure it out, they think it is something they are doing wrong.  Some just go for it and "make it work" which is not what a pattern is supposed to do (and I've seen some of the workmanship on those), but they are happy, so all is well in la-la land. Maybe I just expect more from someone who is selling a product.

Oh, I should add that I have found some gals who do a great job ... I have put together several of Melly and Me patterns, and except for the language barrier in a few places (I don't read Australian), their bags go together very well.  Pink Sand Beach does a nice job, but she is closer to my age, and I have heard that Penny Sturges's patterns are very good. So, I will continue to sample and pass on the info to my customers and contact the offenders and offer suggestions for improvement ... if I could only rule the world of sewing!

Teri Tea-Dye

   I am making Teri for our October Retreat.  Our theme this year is "Rustic and Ragged."  Attendees may choose from rugs, rag dolls, Christmas quilt, raggedy purse, and more.  In order to teach all these items at once, I need to make samples and troubleshoot the patterns or the ideas.  Well, I have the rugs all made (see "Rug Twining"), but the others are works in progress. 

   Teri is a typical rag doll made from muslin.  I got inspiration from a Christmas doll in one of the Austrailian  magazines.  I easily made Teri from muslin and then decided she would look more rustic and natural if she were tea dyed.  The proper method would have been to tea dye the muslin first, but then, that would be easy and not much of an adventure. So, when I realized that Teri needed a tea bath, I got out my trusty camera to photograph her along the way --- sort of a "photojournal of Teri's transformation." Maybe you and a friend can do it this way, too.  (Of course, I could have finished Teri and loaned her to a 2 year old for a week or so and the "muddied" effect would have been done for me!) Just click on Teri's photo album and follow the sequence.

Maine Quilts 2008

   I have been really amiss in not keeping up to date with my blogging!  Summer is so hectic and loading the photo takes so long.  However, I decided that I could at least write some info and then download when I have a spare minute. 

    So, I am only a month late in telling you about the quilt show held in Augusta at the end of July.  I like the Maine show because it offers a bit of everything; quilts are not juried so anyone that is a guild member may enter. However, there is also a category for judging and a category for the teachers that come to teach at the show.  And, as usual, the quilts on display ranged from simply Turning Twenty to incredible thread painted works of art by our teachers.  Not to be outdone by the display quilts, the vendors' booths also have quite an array of quilts.  I must say that I feel like the "poor country cousin" in that department.  Since we are not just a quilt shop, we do not have the time to put in to make glorious quilts for display (or otherwise).  I just try to keep ahead of my students and on top of all the innovations in the sewing machine field (but usually find myself at the bottom of the repair heap!).

   The Best of Show this year was won by Carol Perkins of Rangely.  Carol pieced her machine on a Pfaff and quilted it on her Gammill. Carol owns the Rangely Quilt Inn and has a shop next door.

   The featured quilters this year,  Lorraine and Searle Sweet,  also stitch on a Pfaff.  They also both machine quilt on a Gammill longarm. Searle incorporates embroidery  into his quilts.  You see, Lorraine made him buy a new machine a few years ago because he kept borrowing her Pfaff because he didn't like sewing on a competitor's "brand we won't mention here" machine.  So, he figured if he was going to get his own Pfaff, he would go all the way to an embroidery machine. I don't think there have been any regrets!

   You really need to see the photos album for this post to see our booth, the quilts, and our feathered friend Mary Flo the Flamingo being toted around the auditorium by none other than Barbara Herget.  If you like what you see, we have a pattern to make Mary Flo, and I can give your Barbara's phone number!

Photos of Quilts for Classes and Kits

I have been having trouble conveying photos of upcoming classes at Sewing by the Sea.  I finally realized, that even though I can not post them directly on my webpage with the class information, I can post them easily on my blog in a album!  So, I am creating 2 albums:  one for class photos and one for quilt kit or new pattern photos. Since I design so many of my own patterns,  it seems this would be a nice forum for getting this information out without making the dial-up folks wade through pictures on the website or in an e-mail.  It is clearly your choice if you wish to enlarge the thumbnails!

Rug Making from Our Stash

   We are at it again!  We seem to have gone from bed coverings to floor coverings!  Our latest rug uses a technique called twining.  We read it in a book called "Rags to Rugs" by Country Threads.

  We began our project on Friday night by assembling frames from kits provided by hubby.  We measured, nailed, screwed, and twisted to make the 27" x 36" frame on which to construct our rugs.  After the woodworking was done, we grabbed some popcorn and watched the DVD that accompanies the book.  These gals have a quilt shop on a small farm and we enjoyed the tractors and the geese during the filming.  (It made me realize that my next adventure might be film making! Brace yourself!)  After viewing the film, we connected the strips and began to wrap the warp (say that 3 times fast).  Some were able to wrap at warp speed, others dragged into the night, planning to return early with a renewed sense of purpose and fabric.

   We did return on Saturday and began the twining.  Jill, who was not able to come Friday evening, joined us on Saturday and quickly caught up (that engineering degree came in handy on this project!) Once everyone got started and learned the dreaded "turning of the corner," things went quite smoothly.  The one or two ladies who have difficulty with "right over left and left over right," changed the words to "top over bottom" and seemed to be able to keep things straight (or properly twisted).  We worked throughout the morning and then broke for lunch. It was such a gorgeous Maine day that we went down to the camp on the shore that is behind the store.  There we had sandwiches, salad, and sweet tea on the deck.  A dessert of chocolate raspeberry tart was enjoyed by all (someone enjoyed it twice ).  After lunch, we returned to the shop and worked until 4 p.m.  No one got finished with their rug, but everyone went home to cut up more fabric and continue the twining.

At the shore making floor cloths

  While sewing is a great adventure in itself, it is even more fun to travel to venues outside the sewing and craft rooms to create our art.  So, this past Saturday we motored (by car) to the "backside" of Mount Desert Island to Goose Cove.  One of the quilting gals has a lobstering husband who has a heated shop on the shore.  They cleaned an polished the shop so that we could prime, paint, and paste our rugs.

After a long spell of pretty decent weather, it was "Murphy's Law" that the rain clouds would arrive for our day at the shore.  While the ground was dampened, our spirits were not.  We all dove into our projects like eager kindergartners finger painting in their new clothes. We applied the diluted mod podge to the selected fabrics. As  the sun peeked through the clouds, we were first able to hang out the wet fabric to blow dry in the salty breeze, but sprinkles and then deluges caused us to bring the entire clothesline inside.  We broke for a delicious lunch to allow a little more drying time. With a little help from our irons, the fabrics dried adequately.  We drew the quilt design onto the utility cloth and then cut out each individual piece. In order to get a nice seal on the glued down pieces, we had to press out all the air pockets under the fabrics.  Work was slow and somewhat tedious, but the prospect of a quilt for the floor kept us going.  A variety of quilts were made:  basic floor cloths with squares, a doggy mat, a place mat, and one painted and pasted rug.  One clever artist used leftover blocks from a previous quilt class to make a floor cloth to match her bed quilt.  While we all went home with a little more work to do in applying finishing coats of sealant,  we were all satisfied with our progress.  Click on the photo album at the left to see the pictures.