Busy Days

So yes, I guess I have to admit to working on lots of things (too many?) at the same time.  Here's what ended up on my work table by the end of the day on Saturday:

Clockwise from upper left:

Across the top:  Two baggies of sheer fabrics for textile conservation.  They are soon to be pressed and cut into square swatches be included in the supplies samples kit for my upcoming workshop.  (Preserving Our Quilt Legacy Virtual Workshop)

These are mostly covering up a little quilt, nearly completed, a wedding gift.  You can see just a bit of blue sky and wood grain fabric frame.  I can’t reveal it yet, but once it’s been given, I will blog about it.

Bottom right corner:  Box of threads.

To the left of that:  Little cardboard box with more supplies for the samples kit.

Prepped supplies:  needles and pins on a piece of labeled muslin, thick threads wrapped on sticks.  My round tins of straight pins and safety pins.  Eraser.  Little basket of scraps.

Bottom left corner.  Two fabrics chosen for the current repair job.  Two papers - one with the workshop class list - one with notes taken from a very useful conversation I had on Saturday.

Left edge center.  Fabric samples that will be used in the lecture about supplies that I’ll give during the workshop.

Sundays are my no-quilt-biz days.  I made a new jar of almond butter - it's soooooo good when it's fresh.  And I did some house cleaning, far from my favorite thing to do.  But this time, somehow it seemed the right thing to do and was actually not so onerous.  I wish those moments came around more often!  I made my weekly diary, a compilation of photos taken during the week, photos of what I'm doing and any pretty or curious things that come along.  I watched videos, lounged, mused. 

Monday, I did some more workshop kits prep, this time samples of sewing threads I use.  Packed repaired quilts to send back to two customers and a box of my books going to Martha Spark who kindly offers them for sale at her lectures and workshops.  Answered quilt repair emails.  Drafted this post.  And lots of this and that.

So yes, just a few things going on at once.  Sometimes it seems too much and the logistics of it all get annoying, but then again, I just can't say no to new ideas as they come along, and I really love having quilts and quilting be the center of my life.

Ta-da!!!!

 

Virtual Preserving Our Quilt Legacy Workshop

My next virtual workshop on quilt restoration and conservation is coming up in 2023 - Saturdays from Jan 18 - Feb 23 to be precise. Here's a little holiday fun for you.

 

What do these things have to do with taking care of vintage and antique quilts?

 

Two-step greens?

https://www.vecteezy.com/free-vector/tap-dance" Tap Dance Vectors by Vecteezy

 

Straw needles?

Insect pins?

Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Come to the workshop and find out! 

 

There will be lectures, triage sessions for participants' quilts, how-to videos, samples of repair supplies, etc., etc.

 

There are several ways to register depending on your interests and needs.

All the details are at: https://www.annquilts.com/POQL_Workshop.html

Email me if you have questions.   

 

My next workshop! ..... Winter 2023

 I've set the dates for my next Preserving Our Quilt Legacy Virtual Workshop!

 *** January 28 - February 25, 2023 ***

The sessions will be held on five consecutive Saturdays, 3.25 hours per day, via Zoom.  Various shorter "alá carte" options are also available.  

I started working with old quilts, when my love of "old things" joined up with the discovery of the wonderful world of quilts.  I have met wonderful quilt owners, historians, and restorers, and I feel I have also met wonderful quilters of the past through their quilts.  I have learned all sorts of fascinating new knowledge and had several amazing coincidental experiences.  

And now I have 40 years experience to share. 

Lectures include "How Old Is It?" 
Perks include samples of fabrics and threads used for this work. 
Activities include triage sessions for participants' quilts - find out how to put all the class information to use. 

Full info and registration are on my website.

There are several ways to register, depending on your needs. 

Come learn ”how to make your old quilts sing again!"
And they do, indeed, sing when they are loved, cared for, neatened up, and brought back to life. 

Please share this info with your quilting buddies!

 

 

 

Improved 9-Patch - New Video

 

I've got a new quilt repair video up on YouTube!  This one looks at an Improved 9-Patch brought to me for repair by my friend Pat.  

(You'll find a few other videos there, as well as an interview with me on the Just Wanna Quilt podcast.)  

It's a lovely quilt, in both design and stitchery skills.  The video highlights the decision process I went through in picking the patching fabrics.

New Little Flowers

 

Here's one of my favorite summer dresses.  It's so bright and cheery!

A week or so ago, I had it on, glanced down, and noticed two little stained spots.  Oh no!  I soaked and rubbed a bit, to no avail.  Oh no, again!

 

So, there was nothing for it but to head on over to visible mending and find a way to cover up the stains.  Since the stains are so perfectly the same size and shape as the flowers, it didn't take long for me to decide to add a couple of new flowers and leaves.

A Stellar Quilt

 

I fell in love with this quilt while rebinding it and patching a few torn pieces.  

It's a great set of blocks, each one different, totally fun.

The Exact Match - One More

Just a little while ago, I wrote about how exciting it is to find an exactly matching fabric when patching vintage and antique quilts.  I told the stories of 6 times that has happened for me in nearly 40 years of repairing quilts.  

And lo and behold, number 7 just happened!  

The quilt in question is a 1930s Dresden Plate with what today is known as an ice cream cone border.  

Not only is the fabric exact, but it is a piece taken out of an old quilt and very nearly the same shape as well.  

And there is also a piece of the same print in blue on the quilt.

 

 Such fun!