Monday, July 7, 2008

Primitives of the Midwest

What a fun filled week we all had in Missouri. As usual Rita and her staff from Quilters Station in Lee Summit, MO went all out to make everyone feel very welcome and at home. Opening night on Wednesday evening was filled with many laughs as Jennifer Erbe Keltner from American Patchwork and Quilting entertained us with a sneak preview of many quilts that will appear in upcoming issues of the magazine. I was very fortunate to have Jennifer as one of my students in my Folklore class on Thursday along with many other creative quilters. We used many ribbons, velvets and beads to create the blocks from this quilt. The following day we created a new needle roll using many textural fabrics, making roving balls by hand and embellishing with beads and buttons. On Saturday was my Altered Textile class and I was delighted with the results. We first wrote in our journals drawing different shapes and ideas for embellishment. My students had appliqued some of the block ahead of time and then we embellished with layers learning about the use of ribbons, fabrics, velvets and wools to make each piece unique. I can't wait to see the finished result of each block. I am very excited about the possibilities of teaching this class in other locations. Here is a sneak preview of the start of some of their creative pieces. They all had different ideas to make a one of a kind block. I encouraged them to use it as a sampler to try new stitches as well as colors and textures. Jason arrived home from India on Tuesday. Rather tired but full of many entertaining stories. I have so enjoyed being home for a while. The weather in Ohio has been great. I have spent many evenings in my garden and on my new deck stitching. I am packing suitcases again and will be on my way to teach in upstate New York on Wednesday. Looking forward to some more designing time as well as new projects to stitch when I return.

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