Appliqué Class

 We met at the Church building again to do a little appliqué. This is known in the quilting world as the A-word. It's a love-it or hate-it process. When I taught this at the local quilt shop, I focused on 5 techniques for machine applique, but there are just as many versions by hand. 

Most of appliqué is prep. How do we turn those edges under? What if there is a sharp point? I could use 3 different techniques for these 3 pieces.

If sewing by machine, I use a tiny zig-zag with a matching thread or monofilament. And definitely add a stabilizer on the back, even if it's a scrap piece of paper. 

If you haven't tried appliqué yet, give it a try. It is like magic.

Bonfire

 Today we enjoyed a bonfire in the front yard. There is always spring cleaning after wintery weather takes down branches and trees. It's a great opportunity to have s'mores and roasted Starbursts. Pam's mother is here from Brazil and has never enjoyed a bonfire.

Marnie showing good technique.

Jim and Bonnie got to play around the fire, which their parents loved.

And Naomi chilled in her stroller.

Design Elements

 I was invited to be a featured speaker at a guild in the north. I drove to Lynden to a community hall with most of my quilts to talk about design elements. Shirley took a bunch of pictures, to my surprise, and sent them to me. Otherwise, I would have forgotten about the whole thing.

I love this picture. I'm trying to explain the ombre effect from top to bottom.

These are the four trees I made in Lorraine Torrance's class years ago. Using the color wheel, I can explain the difference between warm and cool colors, complementary and monochromatic combinations, , and harmony.

Warm and Cool colors in the same composition.

Two different album quilts. One with a dark background and one with a light. Feel the difference?

The same quilt in different colors. Cathy's Millefiori is on the left and mine is on the right. It is not yet finished, so the women are having a hard time holding it up. The papers are still in the edge pieces. There isn't a stitch of yellow, orange, or red in my quilt. Warm and Cool in one shot.

My spring quilt by Scott Hansen and a block of the fall version.

Simply Delicious proves you can use many different colors and still have a cohesive quilt.

An example of triadic color.

Polychromatic incorporates all colors.

Silk pyramids uses only a small section of the color wheel. It's a very harmonic usage of neighbors yellow, orange, red, and magenta.

Cactus rose is a Judy Niemeyer pattern that I used to play with purple and green. I included a bit of navy blue for fun. It's about half pieced--half appliqued. 

The minute Alison Glass posted this pattern, Tessellation, I was making it. Those secondary designs just pop for me. Very polychromatic.

Hillside Houses is a perfect quilt for talking about color.

Family Fun

 Church with two babies is super busy. Pam and Howard are learning how to manage it. They attend the Edmonds building and have a great choir for Howard to join.