Quilt Camp

I once again joined friends Mary & Sharon in Solon Springs for quilt camp over last weekend.  This year, I decided to arrive on Thursday, set up and sew but come home to sleep that night and then stay at the motel on Friday and Saturday nights.  That way, I didn't need to arrange for cat care at home but could have an extra day of sewing.  

It worked out perfectly.  

Our new sewing friend Sandy had arranged for us to have a nice sewing spot near the window and we had plenty of room.  She had arrived on Wednesday so had the pick of the real estate, which was very nice for us.  Sandy used to have a sewing pal that came with her, but with life changes, her friend no longer was able to come, so we are happy to have Sandy as our 4th.

I arrived on Thursday just after noon, and what a view of the lake.

My first project was to complete a flannel quilt top that I had cut last fall.

This pattern, Block by Block, was a kit I purchased at Pins and Needles, my favorite quilt store.

The fabrics have a vintage wool look.

Since there are no seams to line up, it looked to be an easy project.

Here's the view from my machine.

It's nice to have the light from the window and the ability to open the window for a little ventilation as well.  The window sill worked out nicely too as I could stash some of my supplies.

The quilt (seen here sideways) went together quickly to start with.

Later, I decided I had cut that dark border 1/2" too narrow, and down the road that caused me some angst.

But, I'm probably the only one that will every notice.

Mine doesn't exactly match the pattern provided, but it will be a nice quilt.

The finished quilt will be very snuggly and cozy as the backing is a wool-look plaid brown flannel.

I think I have a home for this quilt once it is done.

***

So, one quilt top finished and on to the next project.

My next project was to finish a quilt I had started at a class in August.

In August, I met Mary and Sharon at Cornucopia for a 'mystery quilt' class taught by our friend Myrna.  We were given instructions on the type of fabric to bring.

'large print'

'coordinated fat quarters'

'blender fabric'

Once we started revealing the mystery, I wasn't very pleased with my choice of fabrics.

But I did get 9 squares sewed up and I had brought them along to Solon.

Mary and Sharon urged me to finish the quilt so I set to adding the sashing.

Once I got that far, I could see there was a fun quilt emerging.

I ended up with a nice quilt top and learned a couple of new techniques along the way.

This will have a sunflower backing on it and will likely end up in my living room.

***

Last fall, Sharon brought some hardware to quilt camp for us to make a clutch bag.

We never got around to making it, and decided to get to it early this camp to be sure we finished it.

She also brought some fabric that looked like cork for us to use.

My cork was blue.

 I had scraps of fabric for the interior from this year's Shop Hop.  These coordinating fabrics were all about Wisconsin, showing wildflowers.  I love this fabric.

This was really a fun project and it was much easier than I expected.

Even setting the zipper was a breeze.

We each made one, and each were so nice.

It was fun to do a group project.

***

I also sewed up binding for a quilt that is ready to be bound and then used, as well as binding for the 2 new quilts I sewed.  This is a tedious step so it is nice to do it at camp where there are some distractions.

I sewed up a bow tie for great nephew Ivan.

He's interested in dressing sharp, so will add this to his collection of ties.

My last project will be shown later.

I did do lots of cutting and am planning on getting the sewing done this next week.

***

It was a lovely Sunday morning on Lake St. Croix.

Packing up the car after camp is never the fun part.

This time, as I was reaching to unplug my machine, I leaned a little too hard on my acrylic sewing platform.  The one arm broke right off.  I have it taped for now, but hope I can glue it back to usefulness.  Ugh.

 Just after this mishap, I dropped one of my acrylic rulers and it shattered, so that went in the garbage.

It was good I got away without anything else happening I guess.

****

My car was packed full for the ride home on Sunday afternoon.

I swung by the Sandcastle on my way home.

I needed to pick up the hot-water-on-demand unit to replace the battery.

I had just enough room in the car for that big unit.

All was well at the castle.

 A quick stop at the Nelson's in Gordon to wish Craig well on his new hip and I headed for home.

By the time the car was unloaded at home, I was pooped.

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