Pacific International Quilt Festival 2021 and more!

I really do need to get back in the swing of posting more regularly?

I have been home from California for a week and my bags are very nearly packed to go away again tomorrow morning. It’s time to catch up. 😀

I have to say it was more than a little bit strange packing for a major national show after all this time, but I did it. We set off for the airport just as the sun was rising.My flight was delayed for being overweight (could it have been my bags that were the problem?) but we arrived soon enough in San Jose and my luggage came through without an issue.

By the time I got situated in my room the sun was setting!I could see water off in the distance. Where exactly was I?I guess I really was quite close to the Bay.

The good folks at BERNINA had agreed to loan me a machine for my Walking Foot class and I was there before the show opened to collect it. I needed a picture of all those balloons. Party time?We had a nice sized class for my first real life machine quilting class in 19 months. Yes. it was that long since I taught in Orange County!

Everyone worked hard.You can get a lot done in six hours!There was wide range of experience but I think all the students took a few more steps…

On Friday I taught an Exploration of Folk Art Embroidery class. Everyone traced their choice of design and could then stitch on it, or on a piece of gridded fabric if they preferred.

Here’s some beautiful embellished chain stitch in progress.Saturday was a full day of buttons. We started with Dorset buttons in the morning and moved on to Shirtlace buttons in the afternoon. I managed to get a picture of a selection of students’ work.We used Sue Spargo’s 3 weight Eleganza perle cotton with the 1 1/2″ rings. It makes a great combination!

And that was that!

I did spend a little time on the show floor. I bought a stack of the Cherrywood Graffiti challenge fabric and a new dress! Sheila flew up to join me and was an excellent friend as always. We had dinner out with Gina that I met at the SAQA conference back in 2019, and it was good to connect with a few of the other faculty members. I came home tired but very happy to be back out in the world again 😀

I returned home Sunday and set to work unpacking and getting ready for my next adventure… Quilt Festival in Houston. Julia came over and helped me record some video to use in the Machine Quilting Forum. She took lots of process pics and taught me how to insert video in a Keynote presentation.

I’m teaching five classes, presenting at two Forums and doing three Open Studio slots.

I’m taking part in the Creativity Forum showing people how to make buttons. I am always getting asked what they can be used for… well, you can always use buttons as closures but they also make super dimensional embellishments.

I made a little quilt to show some off.It’s 1 1/2″ strips of silk woven together and adorned with 1″ shirtlace buttons, made with 5 weight hand dyed threads from House of Embroidery.But really, I just make buttons because I like making them!

My little quilt is safely packed in one of the three 50 pound bags I am going to check curbside in the morning. I still need to add a few clothes and maybe a second pair of shoes. I will be ready to fly at 10.05!

Just one more thing.

How about a picture of Teddy on his grandma made quilt?
I’m looking forward to seeing him and his sisters again after my trip. Isn’t life wonderful?