Retreat Part 2

The next day, we picked up where we left off...a little more tired but just as enthused. Cathy showed us a piece she is working on for her couch. It's beautiful and the colors really pop!

Another piece by Cathy (above). The full quilt came out blurry but this close-up shows the wonderful hand work she is doing in each block. I love hand stitching with a heavy thread...so effective and really makes a statement.

Kate showed us some of her books/journals she's working on for Art Mob Gallery in Hendersonville, NC. All of her journals are made from fabric she created herself...mighty pretty!

Georgia's grandson who is into music is getting this wonderful beauty. Georgia came with the panel, a stack of great black and whites and ideas for a design...Wow, she is speedy and amazing. It still needs to be quilted but it looks great and will be greatly appreciated I'm sure.

Mary made a darling I Spy for her great-niece...every little kiddo needs one of these, so cute and fun to play with.

Leigh Anne brought a quilt made for her mother-in-law which also has the cutest backing of cats! I would love that.

Our last afternoon, we played a game..it was a blast....we all brought 3 fat quarters (we didn't know what for). We were then given a blank Bingo sheet and another sheet with a long list of sewing/quilting terms. We were to randomly fill in the boxes...one in each box...many on the list were not used and everyone's board was different. 

Our Bingo caller, called out terms and we checked off the ones we had. If we got Bingo we could go and take a fat quarter from someone's pile. There was more than one winner. First person to get all boxes filled ended the game and was gifted with 3 fat quarters. 

Some great fat quarters....

Barbara picking her fat quarter.

A catered lunch...

And our retreat group - L - R  Cathy, Mary, Kate, Judy, Linda, Leigh Anne, Lynne and Barbara in chair..(Georgia missing from picture)....We are missing some very special and wonderful gals...a big hi and we missed you to Mary B, Marene, Janice, Connie, Dort and Gen!💙💚💛💜
 

It's Retreat Time Again!

It's retreat time again! We lost some time due to Covid but never our enthusiasm. I think having to postpone and reschedule made us realize just how wonderful this time together is. We just came home from our 13th annual retreat; needless to say, we had the best time ever. 

Some things never change which in this case is a good thing...our usual table of goodies in the community room remains full of delicious, yummy unhealthy goodies which we feel justified in eating...only once a year right?

Our large room for working is fantastic with room to spread out.

This year, we all got double tables which gave us a lot of room for working on big pieces.

Barbara, Linda and Georgia busy at work or getting ready to.

Barbara showing us a wonky Churn Dash made for a friend...I love it and the wild colors.

Linda showing us some small pieces...

love this one.

Georgia was gifted some fantastic pieces of fabric...shown here only a couple but each was more wonderful than the one before.

Georgia had just come back from her teaching retreat she does every year...at a ranch in Montana. They always have a wonderful project created by Georgia and Charlotte Warr Anderson. Every student has a chance to study with each instructor and learn the techniques used in their section of the project. They also have a chance to take advantage of fun "ranch" things to do like horse back riding. Georgia didn't go for a ride but did get on the horse. That is a big deal! She needs to frame this picture.

Always a happy hour, the first night and looking for our goodies and wine!

Well...Wowie - Zowie...that is some spread! Since we are doing our own meals now, we decided to each bring a heavy appetizer and make that our dinner. Everything was yummy!

Great stories...

lots of laughs, un-ending bubbly....

And Barbara topped off the night with her wonderful cupcakes - Moscow Mule. They were so yummy, I cut mine in half and saved the second half for night 2.

Speaking of night 2....that will follow soon!
 

Ice Dyeing

Some of my like-minded friends from Mountain Art Quilters, who love to get down and dirty (messy) gathered at my house for a day of ice dyeing using the microwave. I learned this technique several years back and it was life changing for me.....such beautiful results in 4 minutes. You do need to have a designated microwave which I have in my studio and moved out to the deck for the day.

It was a gorgeous, glorious day and felt so good to be working outside. I did cover everything with plastic to protect some areas and everyone brought dyes they wanted to work with..we were off and running.

It's always a sharing experience with friends, using each other's dyes when we find a color in their stash we don't have and absolutely love. We start with fabric that is wet with a soda ash solution....placed in a large micro-wavable container, 

followed by a layer of ice on top, covering the fabric so none shows and then sprinkling Procion MX dye on top of the ice. It is then covered with Press and Seal or plastic wrap of your choice and nuked for 4 mins. Larger pieces may need another couple of minutes. There is no rule of thumb but I find using 3 colors to be around the right number to create fabric that is interesting and not overdone.

Bubbly is always an added treat and holds a place of honor on the table...

A pretty view from the deck is nice also.....

After rinsing, fabrics were hung outside to dry...so many luscious pieces...

It will be exciting to see what they become.

We had some wonderful sharing of work including pieces created as a result of the online workshop with Jane Dunnewold - Eco Printing with a Heat Press.

and this beauty which features an Eco printed fabric...and

this one...all foliage from the garden...I love this technique and am anxious to see what I can come up with. Absolutely such a great day...wonderful friends, food, bubbly and gorgeous fabric...AND NOT to forget the perfect weather...Thank you Mother Nature!

...Til next time.