Retreat Action

Being away for four days and three nights on a quilt retreat is the optimum amount of time to devote to sewing, socializing, and perhaps eating a little too much. But I happily did that from March 1-4 in Sebring, Florida. We stayed at Kenilworth Lodge, using one of two ballrooms for our sewing space. This was my work station.

And this is the result of sitting at that work station for numerous hours. My "Rebel" quilt top, a pattern by Libs Elliott, is finished. Kaufman Kona colors used were: charcoal, steel, shadow, brick, ruby, orange, and curry. I could gaze at this for a long time, seeing different shapes within the shapes.

Rebel is 72" X 72", and took longer to piece than I thought it would. Perhaps that's because I found it a bit boring. If you're a quilter, you know the routine: 1) cut a square; 2) sew two squares together with two diagonal seams; 3) cut them apart; 4) press open half-square triangle blocks seams; 5) trim the block to size. I did that again and again. Truth be told, I'd do it all again for this colorful outcome. For now, it's being piled onto the stack of six quilt tops I now need to quilt!

My second project was to begin making "Cartwheel Quilt," a pattern by FreshlyPieced. I sewed nine of these 12-inch blocks. The prints (Blueberry Park and Mimosa, among others) and colors (aqua) are right up my alley. Background fabric is Widescreen by Carolyn Friedlander. In September I'll be teaching this project - foundation paper piecing - through the Lifelong Learning College.

Karen and I enjoyed retreating together. Not only are we good roomies, but we enjoy the same things... including wine. Most importantly, we both like to spend as much time as possible sewing! Most nights found us as the last or near the last to go to bed, and in the morning, the first or near the first to be at our sewing machines.

Karen completed her "Curve It Up" quilt top, a pattern by SewKindofWonderful. She, along with other quilters from our Big Cypress Quilters chapter, made these blocks in 2015 as a BOM. To finish her quilt top, Karen took time to make the curved-pieced border, and in my opinion, it was time well-spent. 

Turns out that when quilters are together, the best tips come up. The one that was most amazing at our retreat was learning that peroxide will remove a scorch from fabric. One of my quilter-friends tested it on her portable ironing pad, and it worked! Just spray the scorch, cover it with a clean, dry cloth, and press. Repeat. It took about four repetitions, but look at the difference!

What a nice bunch of quilters! Fourteen of us enjoyed one another's company, and I'm happy to have gotten to know them better.  

Big Cypress Quilters, March 3, 2016

And while I'm sharing people pictures, here's what appeared on the front page of Saturday's The Mix-South, a supplement to The Villages Daily Sun. I'm terribly proud of these students! Only one quilter didn't complete the course, and that's my best completion rate ever. As an instructor, it's very rewarding knowing that these women have now picked up this addictive hobby! 

One more thing... AQS Executive Director Bonnie Browning video interviewed Lora and me when we won third place for "Ad Libbing" at the show in Daytona Beach. Here's our interview on YouTube. Linda