Mini Sewing Retreat

Thanks to my ever-generous quilty friend A I got to spend several lovely, kid-free hours sewing a couple of Saturdays ago. She offered her home and a few of us came. Unfortunately C had to abandon us for her Nan (when your grandma calls to help at the church bazaar you don't say no!) but CW and K were both able to attend. K made a delicious chili, I brought goodies (including mini Haagen Dazs ice cream...yum) and we sewed and sewed!

K recently bought herself a base-level Janome and it is adorable and wonderful. I could see myself buying one to use as a travel machine because I hauled my big ol' girl and she is HEAVY.

I wanted to work on a few things (and I did) but my main focus was to get the experience and advice of A with a pattern for a yoga mat bag that I wanted to make for a friend at work. She had all these little bits and bobs that I needed (the woven webbing material that I had never heard of, for example, and she was incredibly generous in letting me steal everything I needed). The pattern came from One Yard Wonders which is a great book if you are newer to sewing.

What I wanted to share specifically was that we got to use this cool new circle-cutting tool that she had picked up after attending a quilt show talk that involved a quilt with lots of circles (I think it was Zen Chic she went to see?). She bought this and I was the perfect excuse to break it out and try it together. A and I worked the tool and K took the pictures. Teamwork!

This is the tool. It is very much like the compass you would use in high school math to draw circle, except instead of a place to hold your pencil it has a tiny circular blade.

A held the fabric and I worked the cutter. We did it on a scrap piece first to make sure it would work. The circles were for the bottom of the yoga mat bag. Getting used to how much pressure was necessary was the trickiest part.

Ta da! Two pretty darn perfect- and pretty darn easy circles! The fabric is from my stash, purchased from the discount room at Sew Sisters some time last year.

The bag came together really well (thanks to A's help!!) and I got CW to model it for you here:

Cute, right? (The bag and CW).

I didn't end up using the D-ring that they suggested because I thought this worked really well. A was an amazing help, and CW and K were in awe that I finished something in one short sewing session. They are the newer sewers/quilters and I can only imagine what they will be able to accomplish as their skills grow!

I was so pleased to have a day with wonderful people while sewing. I'm lucky!

Lynn

Sewing Retreat Sanity

Thanks to my quilty friend A, I got to have a bit of a sewing retreat this past weekend. She hosted at her house and A, K, C and I had hours to sew and gossip and eat. A made delicious homemade red pepper soup and there were baguettes with yummy cheese and the rest of us brought tons of sweets and snacks. It felt soooooo good to be out of the house- on my own!- and doing something I love.

I did discover a few things about this kind of sewing day, to file away for next time. 

1. It is so fun to be quilting with others who totally get why you're doing what you're doing.
2. Make sure you bring everything you mean to bring. I forgot the fabric I had precut to do some paper piecing (under the more experienced and watchful eyes of C and A) and I was disappointed.
3. You take your supplies for granted. I didn't bring my cutting mat because A and K brought/had theirs. Unfortunately, both use a tiny little cutting mat and I missed mine terribly. I even stopped cutting at one point because the small size was frustrating me. Lesson learned! I also missed my Oliso iron, but A's was pretty good so I got over it.

Here are some pictures from the day.

Lily came and visited us occasionally.

A worked mostly on some crib shoes and on being a fab hostess

K worked studiously on a pillowcase using fabric she bought on our last (her first) quilt shop hop. She is still learning and was so concentrated and open to ideas and help. She is going to be a great quilter/sewer!

C, who blogs over at The Edgy Perfectionist, was working on a tiny little bathing suit/costume for her friend who competes in body building competitions. The fabric was very loud, slippery and shiny. C's attention to detail means the end result will be awesome. I sure couldn't sew it.

I did manage to get a bunch of chain piecing on my dad's Architextures quilt done before I ran out of Kona White. I really need to invest in a bolt of that stuff.

I also made binding for the Ann Kelle quilt from the kit that I was going to use to make my work friend's quilt.

Binding all made!

And I played with my friend A's design wall a bit. I need one, seriously.

Quilt top finished. Those are A's Dear Jane blocks at the top. She amazes me. Look how tiny those pieces are!

I also did some cutting for a red and white quilt (and gave up because I hated the cutting mat) and cut out some paper piecing pieces. K commented on how many things I seem to have on the go. I showed her my little book that I use to keep all the projects and ideas straight in my head. I am always thinking about quilting and sometimes I have to get the ideas out and on paper so I won't lose the idea, and so I can concentrate on things in the order I need them. I'll have to add a new one because I found out on Saturday that some of our lovely neighbours are expecting this August. Hooray for another excuse for a baby quilt!

I can't wait to have another day like this with the ladies. A is awesome for having hosted us!

Lynn