A French Connection...

Brynwood Needleworks - French Connection Clutch

Last Friday, my girlfriend, Stacey and I went out for lunch to Pop's in Nokomis. We have  regular lunch dates to catch up and just have a nice meal together.

On our way over, we passed an antique/resale shop called Valentina's on Laurel Road. Stacey suggested that we stop in on our way back home. (She's our next door neighbor.) I love exploring shops like this, so I jumped at the suggestion.

Brynwood Needleworks - French Connection Clutch

We both took our time, as this shop is filled to the gills with jewelry, garments, handbags and all sorts of great small items. There were furniture pieces there, too, but that's not what caught my attention.

Brynwood Needleworks - French Connection Clutch

I saw many older beaded and needlepointed handbags, but tucked in a corner, this one caught my eye.

You know I make wallets, and I'm always looking to "up my game", so seeing new (to me) techniques or ideas is a good thing.

Brynwood Needleworks - French Connection Clutch

I tried to walk away (multiple times) from this bag, (made by "French Connection") but it kept calling out to me. It had never been used, evidenced by the tags that were still attached to it.

It has a zippered pocket inside, and is large enough to hold my iPhone 6 and then some. You can see that it also has a chain strap as an option to using it as a clutch. Did you notice the rows of shiny embellishments on the outside? HA! Of course, you did! How could you miss them? Believe me, they sparkle in the sun like you can't even imagine.

I did a little haggling and got the price down quite a bit (I was quite proud of myself!), so I brought it home with me. It's already inspired some new ideas for upcoming projects. I'll look at embellishments a lot differently from now on.

Brynwood Needleworks - Birds In The Pineapples

I want to tell you another happy story today. I'm going to list up the Birds In The Pineapples quilt in my Etsy shop, but I needed to launder it first to be sure that the dyes in the batiks wouldn't run and ruin the quilt. I've been a little nervous about that ever since the steam iron made one of them bleed, causing me to replace two pieces of the quilt.

Following the instructions on my bottle of Retayne, I put the quilt into the washer, added the Retayne and a little laundry soap to the dispenser, and then set the washer to the "hot" setting. For good measure, I added two Tide Color Catchers ™, too. To say I was a little nervous about the introduction of hot water would be a true understatement.

When the timer sounded, I opened the lid and took the quilt out of the washer. It was beautiful! Perfect! Thoroughly clean with no bleeding! Now that I know the dye colors are set,  I'll get it listed this afternoon.

Today, I'll be in training. I'm now a Clerk for a local precinct election board. I've already done much of the tasks I'll need to do, but every member of the election board is required to take ongoing training prior to every election. I'm in for about five hours today to prepare for the first phase of this year's Presidential election on March 15th. Doing my civic duty again. (wink)

Tag will be here tomorrow, so I'll be back on Wednesday to show you what I'm working on now. Enjoy your last day of February.

Art by Mark Johnson

Pineapples On Display...

Brynwood Needleworks - Birds In The Pineapples Quilt

 

For those of you who don't already know...I usually write my blog posts in the evening and the posts go live at midnight. It was a really looooong day, so this shall be a really short post.

This picture was taken on set-up day, after my pineapple quilt had been hung. Having been folded since Monday...and likely in the back of someone's car with a pile of other quilts waiting for Thursday - it's fairly wrinkled. I really wish we had a way to drag a steamer around the show floor to straighten out all the quilts prior to the show opening, but we don't.

This quilt received an Honorable Mention, and I was thrilled. I was very precise with the piecing and the quilting motifs turned out really nice. I'm going to list it to sell in my Etsy shop on Monday. I'll post on my Brynwood Needleworks FaceBook group page when it's up.

Day One of the show was a rousing success. The vendors were thrilled with their sales totals, and many said they'll definitely return in two years. Our attendees had gorgeous quilts to view, and quite a variety of vendors from which to choose.

As the Official Guild Photographer (OGP), I'll take two pictures of each quilt today...one of the whole quilt, and a second of the name tag (and any ribbons) to identify it. I'll be sure to take pictures of the vendor booths, too, if the shopkeeper will allow me. I'll share mosaics of all the quilts and vendors with you on Monday.

I hope you have a quiet, restful weekend, my friends. Handsome has a concert on Sunday, and I'm looking forward to sitting back and letting the music carry me away.

Wash vs No Wash...

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Repair

 

I spent Saturday tying up loose ends with my quilt show entries. Just when I thought I had everything under control...

 

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Repair

 

I'm always been of the "Do Not Prewash Fabric" school, until now. This hasn't happened to me before, but I'm sure not going to put myself in the position for it to happen again.

 

See those two sections in the photo? The red batik bled when I took my steam iron to it. It bled onto my white fabric, and try as I might, I couldn't get it out. Peroxide, Oxyclean, Dawn soap, alcohol - not all at once - but still, nothing budged it.

 

At 7 pm Saturday night, I decided to put on my big girl panties, suck it up and replace those two pieces. I carefully cut them out, and then measured new pieces to replace them.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Repair

In this picture, I've already placed the new pieces back into the quilt. Next it was time to break out my silk thread, applique' needles and my made applique' stitching skills. This was going to require my most accurate, teeny, tiny stitches to make it disappear into the block. I didn't want the repair to be visible at all...especially to the quilt judge who will give it the eagle eye today!

 

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Repair Accomplished

It's all finished here, and I think the only reason I can see the repair (other than I placed it front and center in this image) is because it's more pressed than the rest of the quilt. I ironed the whole quilt again, but this time I used a dry iron!

Brynwood Needleworks -Birds In The Pineapples Quilt Label

 

I made the label (with a border of the same backing fabric) and sewed that onto the back of the quilt. Of course, I immediately had to cover it with muslin because all show entries are judged anonymously.

I'm sure that, by now, you're no longer confused by my post title. Fact of the matter is, that from now on, I'm going to prewash those gorgeous reds (and blacks)...especially if they're batiks. I've learned my lesson on this project. I managed to save it, but I don't want to be in the position to have this issue ever again!!

Whenever I'm not sure about the colorfastness of a fabric again, I'm gonna wash that sucker fabric until the extra dye is gone...gone...gone!!! Oh, and I'm going to start working on show projects (for the next show in 2018) this year. I'm not going to be sewing on anything at 11 pm the night before turn-in day ever again. (I hope.)

Quilt Show Week has officially begun! Today is judging day for our guild's quilt entries. Judge Mary Zeisiger is returning to critique our pieces. I'll be working as a scribe, taking down everything she says onto the judging forms. There are usually two scribes taking notes for each piece. I signed up to scribe all day, and we usually get the judging finished in eight hours.

Tag will drop by with his witty repartee tomorrow. Like me, he's always got something on his mind, and he's also happy to share. I'll just have to check his work before he posts. He's always prone to TMI. lol

I Did It...

Brynwood Needleworks - Sewing Bindings

It took all afternoon, but by dinnertime, I'd finished hand sewing the binding to my Pineapple quilt.

Brynwood Needleworks - Sewing Bindings

Handsome came to check on me (and bring in fresh, hot tea) as I was about half-way. I really appreciate when he comes into the studio, and I often ask him to share his opinions on my projects. The tea is a sweet gesture, and a bonus! (Call me "Lucky Girl".)

Brynwood Needleworks - Birds In The Pineapples Quilt

 

All I have left is to make the tag for the back, sew it on and then sew a piece of fabric over it to hide it until after the quilt is judged. I'll give the quilt a good press, and it will be ready to turn in.

I'm really looking forward to quilt show week. I can't wait to see what my guild friends have created!

Almost Done...

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Quilt

I know I told you I wouldn't share photos of this quilt until it was finished, but this has taken a bit a lot longer than I expected!

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Quilt

I'm really happy with the way it's going, and all I have left to quilt is the white border that's outside the orange that you see in this photo.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Quilt

Once the white border is finished, I'll sew the final orange border to the white, and then I'll sew on the binding.

I'm leaving tomorrow for Sebring with my friend, Jamie. We're sharing a room for a three-day retreat. I can sew the binding (and add a display sleeve) on this quilt to enter in our guild quilt show on the 19th.

I'm also going to take a couple of UFOs to work on while I'm away. It will be nice to have a few more finishes. I'll share photos of our retreat from Sebring, and then get back to work here on Thursday.
 

Life Is Art...

Web Image

  I'm still quilting my Birds In The Pineapples quilt. Hoop, stitch, unhoop...repeat...a lot. I'm making art - and loving my joyful and creative life.

Thinking Ahead...

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Embroidery

As I work to complete my quilt top, I've been thinking about how I'm going to finish it. Trying to stay ahead of myself can be a little paralyzing. I get sidetracked, but in this case, I believe it's necessary. I'll explain.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Embroidery

In order to know how wide to make my borders, and which colors to choose to get to the finished size I want, I need to think ahead to how I'm going to quilt it.

I originally planned to put it on my friend, Jamie's longarm and do the finishing myself. I got stuck considering which quilting design(s) I'd use, and started thinking myself in circles again.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Embroidery

When I woke up yesterday morning, I'd apparently been problem solving in my sleep. I went through my embroidery designs (for Destiny) and found exactly what I want to use!

I have a series of designs used to quilt layered fabric, and found a pineapple pattern that will work perfectly! I stitched it out on a sample block just to be sure. Yup. This is exactly what I want!

I also found coordinating corners and borders in the same series, so I worked back from there to determine the size and number of borders I still need to add to my quilt top.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Embroidery

 

The first border is attached, so today I'll add the rest. I don't want a pieced back, so I'm going to get a batik in wide backing fabric. I heard the shop in Punta Gorda likely has what I need, so I'll get down there this morning.

 

Destiny and I have a quilting date as soon as this top is done.

 

More Playing With Pineapples...

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Block Assembly

I thought you might like to see my progress on my current quilt project. I've

 finished assembling all the blocks, so my next step is to add the (first) border.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Block Assembly

 

The first small border will be the same fabric that's in the center of each block. I think I'll add a white border next, because I want to add applique', and I think white will be the best background for those elements.

I'm drawing something up now and hope to show you some of it stitched in by the weekend. I'll share drawings tomorrow if all goes as planned. There's no time to waste if I'm going to have this (and one more project) finished to turn in for the quilt show!

Racing Toward Another Deadline...

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Blocks

I set this aside for too long as I tackled other projects. Now, it's time to get back to them. When I have the number of blocks I need - forty eight, or when I run out of block fabrics - I'll assemble  them into a quilt.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Blocks

I'm shooting for a finished size of 60" x 80", including borders. For these 10" finished blocks, that means I need six across by eight down...forty eight blocks. I already have nineteen finished. I have a few to go. (winking - or is that nervous twitching?)

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Blocks

 

I really don't think the fabric will last long enough to make forty eight blocks, but I'll keep making them and see where I end up.  I can always beef it up with a coordinating border or two to get to my target size.

Did I tell you that this will be an entry in our February quilt show? Are you laughing? It's okay. I am, too. I have one or two other projects to finish by then. Well, pull up a chair and hang on. It's going to be an exciting ride to see if I can get these finished in time.

PS. Today Mom would have been 88 years old. I miss you more than words can say. Happy Birthday in Heaven, Mom. xo

The Importance Of Consistency...

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Table Runner

You know I've been working on blocks for a bed quilt using these pineapple blocks for some time. (I'm calling it "Birds In The Pineapples" because the white on white design has birds in it.)

In fact, I made the models for my class in these blocks, thinking that I'd have eight more blocks toward my quilt goal. There was only one thing I hadn't considered.

All the previous blocks were sewn on Miss Ellie or Destiny. I had checked the needle placement on both machines prior to making the blocks when I switched from one machine to another, and all the segments sized out just fine.

Brynwood Needleworks - Janome 6500P Sewing Machine

Miss Sophie (my little Babylock) recently moved to a new home. I never used her embroidery capabilities, so I wasn't using her to her full potential. One of my friends does a lot of machine embroidery and was interested in my Sophie.

She and I sat next to each other with our respective machines at our last guild sew-in and were talking machines. Coincidentally, she had been thinking about selling her Janome 6500. It's the machine I had - and sold - when I purchased my first Babylock, and I still missed that machine. After further conversation, we worked out a trade. It was a win/win for both of us.

I tell you this because I took my "new" Janome to class last Saturday in case I needed to use it for a demonstration. She sat there at the ready until my students made their second blocks. I added a few rounds to some of the partially-made blocks, but didn't work on them again until I got back home.

Brynwood Needleworks - Pineapple Table Runner

The result was that I got home, planning to finish all the block sections I had used for class models. Once finished, I could add them to the stack for the quilt. I finished those partial blocks on my Destiny the next day.

When I went to add them to the stack, the blocks sewn on my Janome/Destiny combo did not match the blocks sewn completely on the Babylocks. The white segments were larger by about a 1/2" than the same segment on the other blocks. Four of them, to be exact.

This is a timely reminder of the importance of consistency. I'll be remembering to double check for exact 1/4" sewing from one machine to another from now on. (Or just sew them completely on a single machine in the future.)

As a result, I took those four blocks and made another table runner! I finished piecing the top on Monday afternoon, so all I have left to do is quilt and bind it. When it's finished, I'll be listing it for sale in my Etsy shop. I'll add it later this week along with the blue/yellow one I previously made as a class model.

Brynwood Needleworks Class Project - Karen's Pineapple Table Runner

I received an email from one of my students, too. Karen already finished her class project and wanted me to see it. Isn't it pretty? She has already quilted and bound it. Bravo, Karen! I think you learned this lesson well.

By the way - My Janome 6500P doesn't have a name yet. Any ideas?

Class Prep...

Brynwood Needleworks - Prepping For Pineapples

I'm teaching a class on Saturday to members of our guild, and I'm really looking forward to it. There are sixteen or seventeen ladies signed up, so I want to make sure that they have a fun experience as they learn to make Pineapple blocks with the Creative Grids™ Pineapple Trim Tool.

Brynwood Needleworks - Class Preparation

I'm a great believer in the power of visual learning, so I've been busy preparing the different stages involved in creating a single block. That way, I can show them how the tool is used as they build their individual blocks.

Brynwood Needleworks-"Birds In The Pineapples" blocks (Not sewn together yet)

I still have a few to go to finish up the class models, but I'll get them done today. The great thing is that, after the class, I'll be able to complete all the steps on each one to make more blocks for the "Birds In The Pineapples" quilt I'm making! 

My students will learn to make their Pineapple blocks, and I'll be that much closer to finishing my quilt. Win, Win, right?

Preparing For A Pineapple Class...

I've been asked by Joan, who chairs our guild education committee, to teach a class to offer to our guild members in August. Last meeting night, I took the pineapple blocks I've been working on (HERE) and made a proposal to teach a class using the Creative Grids™ Pineapple Trim Tool.

Not only was she enthused about it, six guild members signed up on the spot! I'll find out tonight at our Board Meeting what my class size will be, but I'm thinking it will be fifteen or so.

I've decided to make this same Bali™ batik fabric and colorway for the class project that I used in my niece's Birthday gift (HERE). The only thing I'm still trying to decide is which border fabric to use. I've got the dark fabric on the left and the lighter blue on the right. 

 

I'm making the entire table runner again so that I can fine tune my class plan and calculate fabric requirements for the project. I'll be handing over the supply list to Joan tonight and then completing the quilting for the runner. Once I finish that, I'll write my teaching outline and pattern for the class.

I'll also probably make one more runner in the bright colors like the queen size quilt I've been working on so my students can get an idea of it in another colorway. If I do, I'll have it finished in time for our guild meeting so my students will see the class models. It can give them an idea of what they might like to choose to make their own. 

 

I'm honored that I was asked to teach a class...but I'm really excited to share this class and technique with my guild girlfriends.