Tasting Table Tuesday - Trip Report

I don't know about you, but it seems like I've been running full speed throughout the holidays, and things are just now starting to feel normal again.  I found the perfect cure for my annual PHS disorder (that's Post Holiday Stress).  It's called RETREAT - and it's WONDERFUL!

As I mentioned earlier, I had never been to a retreat before.  It always seemed like it was a lot of work to pack everything up and set up somewhere else to sew.  I didn't get it...  But now I understand.  I'm sure those of you who go to retreats know what I mean.  Yes - it's a lot of work to pack, but there's just something about spending four days with a group of great women who share common interests.  And I mean it when I say "great women".  Everyone got along beautifully and we thoroughly enjoyed each other's company.  Thanks for including me, ladies - I love each and every one of you!

Here's the whole gang, with each of us holding something we were working on.  Isn't Leisa's quilt in the background gorgeous?
We had oodles of great food (and are now in the process of sharing all our recipes), had lots of fun and interesting conversations, watched a great movie, and we sewed - and sewed - and sewed...  then sewed some more - with lots of laughter thrown in, of course!

 Here are two more beauties on the design walls, ready to be assembled - Megan's on the right and Ann's on the left.  Stunning!
And here are the projects that I worked on...

I still have to add gray borders around the sides of this quilt.  It was so much fun to have everyone's input while we played around with the color placement!  I'm really happy with our final decision.  I know the picture is a little fuzzy, but it looks better in person.  I used some Andover Frippery charm squares and paired them with dark gray.  I hope to do some special quilting in the gray whirlygigs in the center.

This one is also made from Andover Lucky Penny charm squares, paired with a medium gray this time.  All half-square triangles, arranged in a chevron pattern.  Not sure if I'll put a border on this one or not - I'll see how it looks after the blocks are all sewn together.

Next up is a little AAQI quilt.  My regular readers will remember that I made a personal commitment to make and donate a matching mini AAQI quilt each time I sold a quilt in my Etsy Shop.  I sold two quilts in November and I thought that Retreat would be the perfect place to work on these mini quilts.  This first one is made with Tula Pink's Neptune collection.

And here is a picture of the original quilt that was sold.

And this is the second mini-quilt, made with Bunny Hill's Puttin' On The Ritz fabrics, in gray and cream.  I like how the words "Baby" and "Dream" appear in some of the cream squares.  That was lucky, because I have absolutely none of this cream fabric left - only scraps of the gray - it was close!

And here is the quilt that inspired it.

Last up is yet MORE blocks made using Tula Pink's Neptune fabrics.  I've made two quilts, a huge patchwork duffle bag, several purses, the mini quilt above, and other little odds and ends with this fabric and I still have lots MORE!  I still love it though, so I'm sure I'll keep on using it.

So that's it for my trip report.  Now I have to unpack all my sewing stuff and settle back in to my Cotton Cellar to get some work done.  And I don't care how much work is involved - retreat was FANTASTIC!

Edited to add:  Thanks for all your recipe suggestions!  They all sounded great.  I finally settled on two recipes I found on Pinterest - an egg, sausage & cheese casserole, and a yummie fruit salad.

Cheers!

Coasting

I finished quilting this yesterday and thought I'd show you the end result. I kept the quilting very simple, just stitching 1/2" away from each block, keeping the quilt very soft and drapey. This quilt has a calming effect on me. I think the gradual increase of negative space around the blocks slows me down - thus the name "Coasting". Sometimes we all need to take our foot off the gas pedal and enjoy life a little more, don't you think?
This quilt will be listed in my upcoming Etsy Shop - opening VERY SOON! Stay tuned for my grand-opening announcement!

Let the Quilting Begin!

All pin-basted and ready to go! I need a serene and tranquil name for this one - something "spa-like". Any suggestions?

Tasting Table Tuesday

Here's a peek at what's on my "Tasting Table" today. Neptune and Kona Ash are blending well together, don't you think? I've been looking forward to making this quilt for so long now and I'm really enjoying getting into it - finally!
I'll try and give you a "taste" of what I'm working on every Tuesday, whenever possible.
Cheers!

Christmas Secrets Revealed

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you enjoyed your Christmas Holiday as much as I did. We had four generations here on Christmas Eve and it was wonderful. Our little house was filled to the brim with laughter, good conversation, plenty of food & wine and the most wonderful memories. And lots of wrapping paper and boxes, of course!
In previous posts, I referred to the secret Christmas projects I was working on, so I thought I'd share some pictures of them now that they've all been delivered.
This first one is a runner made of Dupioni Silk for my mother. I was inspired by this pattern for a knitted "Modern Quilt Wrap", but I'm a beginner knitter and have to admit that I was a little intimidated by the number of color changes and was afraid that if I started it, I would never finish. So I traded the knitting needles for a rotary cutter and sewed it in silk. But it ended up too stiff for a wrap, so it morphed into a runner instead. I think it would look great as a bed runner on a plain white bedspread! But wherever Mom ends up using it, I think the colors are just plain glorious. Next are some crocheted neck warmers. I don't have a lot of crocheting experience either, but this pattern was super easy and I love how they turned out. All four of these were gifts, and since then I've also made one for myself, and I have a list of requests for next Christmas! So it's certainly a "do-again" project.

I finished piecing this quilt quite a while ago, but it took me some time to get around to adding the coral applique (pattern from Oh,Frannson! at Sew,Mama,Sew but doubled in size) then quilt it and bind it. My daughter loved it, since she loves anything beach/ocean related. Link back here to see what I'm planning on doing with the scraps left over from this quilt. The fabrics are from the Neptune collection by Tula Pink for Moda.

There were lots of other hand-made things for my new grandbabies, but in the rush of the holidays, I didn't get pictures of them all.

Now it's time to get my thoughts together and start planning my on-line store... purses & bags, quilts, and more!

Neptune & Kona Ash – a new blend is fermenting…

First of all, a huge “Thank You” for the warm welcome you’ve all given me in blog-land! Word is getting out and I’m starting to meet people from all over – what fun this will be!
I promised a quilt in my next post, so here goes.
This one has been rolling around in my mind (a little fermenting going on here in my Cotton Cellar!) for several months now, and with the end of my Christmas project list in sight, I’m getting anxious to start working on this one – hopefully soon! Last year I made a quilt using fabrics from Moda’s Neptune collection by Tula Pink that called for really large flying geese. I used the “squares-in-the-corners” construction method, which normally creates a lot of wasted fabric. So before I trimmed off the excess triangles, I sewed a second diagonal seam a half-inch away from the first one, then cut between the seams, creating a half-square triangle that’s all ready to use in another quilt.
Then I sewed the HST’s together in pairs to create hourglass blocks. Voila – instant quilt blocks and I only had to cut for one quilt!
I’ve drawn the layout on my computer and done all the math, so now I just need to cut all the solid Kona Ash that I’ve chosen for my background. I’m really excited about the layout! If it turns out the way I hope, it should look awesome. I even have enough blocks to make two quilts about 48” square (twins anyone?) but I’ll start with one and see how it looks… It might be a while before I get to this, but I’ll keep you posted on my progress…