Uncategorized – Page 38 – Amherst Quilters Guild

January 20, 2013

getting craftsy

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Have you visited the Craftsy site? You really ought to. Although it is free to join, you don’t have to be a member to visit much of the site. There are all sorts of goodies to explore. As a crafting addict I have supplies for more crafts than I’ll ever be able to complete in several life times. I’ve tried so many things. I think I can name the crafts I have NOT tried in a shorter list–stained glass making, pen and ink drawing, sculpting, glass blowing … Right now at Craftsy I am taking an online class taught by Anita Grossman Solomon, who was our national seminar teacher last fall. I was only able to take one class of hers during seminar and I really enjoyed it. Haven’t finished the project of course. The block I made in seminar, the pineapple block, is one […]

January 16, 2013

a classy HST

Hello all, ME again. The half square triangle is really a quilting work horse. So many designs, from simple to complex, incorporate the HST. I ran across this idea today for taking your HSTs up a notch. It’s kind of like putting a piping or flange along that diagonal seam. This definitely is an idea to file away for future reference, but if you’re like me… don’t forget where you filed it! Here’s another classy HST. She calls it a cathedral window remix–let’s say it’s a hybrid of the two. Again an idea to remember for those times when you want to make a basic block look snazzy. It’s time for me to get off the computer and go get some work done. TTFN!

January 15, 2013

See the USA…

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Wouldn’t a quilt like this be a fun group project? The next raffle quilt? No, I don’t think so! Read all about it at this blog. (Jan. 11 entry) I think this rainbow idea is very nice, but wouldn’t it also be fun to try to choose a fabric to represent each state? What would be good for NY? First thought was apples, or Statue of Liberty but those are more for New York City rather than the entire state. I suppose this idea might also be difficult to execute–getting enough contrast between bordering states. So many of the comments at the original blog post talked about making the quilt for kids-maybe this could become a quilt for courage kind of thing. Anyway, I love this quilt.

January 13, 2013

color of the year for 2013

Hello again, Mary Ellen back. As quilters we are surely in tune with the newest fabric colors each year. Even if we don’t buy a lot of new yardage, we enjoy going into the shops and looking at the latest fabrics. Here’s the color of the year for 2013: Emerald. “Lively. Radiant. Lush… A color of elegance and beauty that enhances our sense of well-being, balance and harmony.” Whether you’ll see emerald in our stores soon probably depends on the store’s buyers and their inclination to jump in before the public reaction can be gauged. Those of you who frequently travel to the “big city”, like Toronto or NYC, have perhaps already seen Pantone’s influence. You might enjoy the slideshow at the Pantone site, which will show you all kinds of consumer goods in this new shade. If you visit other parts of their site, you will see how much […]

January 13, 2013

Quilting on TV

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Do you watch the PBS show Sewing with Nancy? I used to be a true follower, never missing or skipping an episode. I find that now I sometimes delete them from the DVR if I am not intrigued by the title. I’m glad I didn’t do that this week. Tula Pink is a self described hippie quilter. She’s one of those younger women who has, shall we say, a very free fashion sense. Kind of like the kids you see on Project Runway. Well Tula is the guest on Nancy’s show this week, and was in the first episode of the series last week. Her quilts are very modern looking, but are based on traditional blocks and techniques, granted very loosely based on them. As I watched the episode, I became intrigued with her houndstooth quilt and thought how tremendous it would look as a […]

January 12, 2013

a little of this, a little of that

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Odds and ends found while blog hopping: Pat Sloan, our 2013 seminar national teacher visits a NYC group: click right here. If you are a knitter and a Downton Abbey fan as well, you may enjoy these free knitting patterns: click here. Stopped at Wegman’s today for a few items not to be found at my small neighborhood tops and almost fell prey to all of that extra “stuff” in the seasonal aisle. That’s why I’ve pretty much sworn off Wegman’s for the basics. I did pick up a new magazine from the Fons and Porter group called Quilting Quickly. It is full of patterns from Jenny Doan and the crew at the Missouri Star Quilting Company. If you are an avid fan of Jenny’s videos on YouTube, be forewarned that many of the patterns in the magazine have already been featured on Jenny’s channel. […]

January 6, 2013

finding the time

Hello all, Mary Ellen again. How do we find the time to quilt? I do it by neglecting my housework! (LOL, no I’m not kidding. There are surfaces in my house that haven’t felt a dust cloth in months! I should be ashamed to admit that I guess, but…I’m not. The important, frequently used, rooms are clean and clutter free, but don’t go in the spare bedroom!) Here’s my philosophy-If you drop in unannounced you get what you get. If I know you’re coming, I’ll make a decision. For friends and family I do my best. For acquaintances I may or may not. For strangers-who cares? One of my other vices is an addiction to paper crafting . I love to use scissors, tape, glue, markers, paper… This blog is one that I visit nearly everyday. I thought her post about finding time for stamping could perfectly work for us, […]

January 5, 2013

free motion quilting project

Hello again. Mary Ellen back. When talking with quilters at the demos and classes I present, the topic of free motion quilting often comes up. I consider myself proficient at FMQ but certainly not an expert. As I tell those who ask, the concept of free motion quilting is very simple but the practice of it is not. There is a long learning curve for most of us, requiring lots of time spent stitching to build muscle memory. I have never met a quilter who mastered FMQ right away. One of the websites I visit frequently, when in FMQ mode, is the one maintained by Leah Day. Lots of ideas for designs, well explained. Her blog gives guidance and encouragement. I’m sure many of you have visited her at one time or another, if FMQ is a goal of yours. This year Leah will be approaching FMQ from a different […]

January 4, 2013

totally not quilting

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. I never thought I would get hooked on a soap opera. Resisted watching this one until pressure from friends forced me to check out an episode. Got hooked right away. You know which one I’m speaking of, I’ll bet. Yep, Downton Abbey. Can’t wait for the new season to begin, and it’s almost upon us. If you’re a fan as well, there are so many videos all over YouTube lately leading up to the first episode. Here’s one I found fun. So how about you? Are you hooked too? (Keep an eye out, but I’m fairly certain there will be no quilt sightings in any of the episodes. Quilts are probably too common-not posh enough!) If I find that there are lots of Downton Abbey addicts among us, I can add a category to this blog for us to use this season to make “discussion” […]

December 29, 2012

resolutions

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. It’s approaching that time again-the time for goals for the new year. In addition to the old standards-more exercise, less food, finish UFO’s, buy less fabric (actually this goal might be INSTEAD of the old standards!) I’m thinking about adding some new ones to my list. One of them is going to be to start diving into my increasing collections of selvages and make a few projects. I love every project I’ve ever made with selvages and I always get such nice comments when folks see them. Perhaps I’ll take some photos of a couple of them to show you (the ones I still have in my possession). I want to make another big tote bag-I find that I organize my “stuff” for classes and demos by the totebag system (each class or demo gets its own bag) and I could use a few more […]