Piecing Frenzy…

I’m back in NJ, after a wonderful weekend in the south.  I missed the azaleas in Savannah, but they were profuse in Atlanta.  After the first couple of days in Savannah where the weather was in the 80’s, the temps dropped back down about 20 degrees and it felt more like home.

I had a wonderful time with my Savannah ladies, each region I travel to has such a color palette and flavor all its own.  I’ve already written about my grand adventures in Savannah, so this is about the grand adventures in the classroom, with my eager students and their boxes of fabric “scraps”. The participants were from the Fiber Guild of the Savannahs.  Most of the participants brought quilt fabrics, it is easy to grab a bunch of “fat quarters”.  One participant did weave some small squares and used fabrics from her stash to “accent”.  One participant Suzy Hokanson had a pile of gorgeous kimono scraps, from a long ago trip to Japan, gifted to her by a Japanese doll maker who proclaimed that her own children had no talent.  Suzy has taken this class before and made a spectacular vest from these scraps, and probably has enough for at least one more.  I’m voting for long next time.  Or a full jacket!

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Wendy had a bushel of silk ties, the wide kind from the 70’s with lovely woven patterns.  She cut squares and arranged them thoughtfully and then sewed like the wind.  She is a costumer by trade, and sewed with such speed and accuracy she even put me to shame.

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One generous soul, not part of the class, brought in boxes of decorator fabric remnants and some of the participants dove into those boxes and completely changed directions.  What I love about this class is the thoughtfulness of each participant and the struggle to narrow down the possibilities and finally commit to something in a reasonable period of time.  At home we have all the time in the world.  In a classroom setting there is a lot of pressure to stay on schedule.

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I never really get to see the finished vests unless someone sends me photos later.  They usually leave with pieced fronts and backs, many have begun to apply the bridge binding, and of course there is always the speedy one who zooms way ahead of everyone else!  That’s you Wendy!

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We all had fun, and Sunday night, it was a mad pack-up and a different Suzi, picked me up for the trip up to Atlanta.  We went half way Sunday night, had a great dinner in Dublin, and continued on to her house, finishing the trip Monday lunchtime.

I gave a lecture on Color and Inspiration to a large gathering of the Southeast Fiber Arts Alliance in Atlanta Monday night.  They were all so enthusiastic and receptive to my presentation.  I will be giving this lecture again for the American Sewing Guild in Washington DC in August, and one of the women at the lecture, from an ASG chapter, told me afterward, that she intended to take it again she felt so inspired.  Those kind of responses make what I do and all the misery of travel totally worth it.

As it turned out, my trip home yesterday from Atlanta was uneventful and easy, once I landed in Newark things got dicey (not to mention it was freezing cold), but everything worked out and I’m home, reclaiming my house, hugging my doggies and family, and preparing to return to the airport shortly to pick up two fiber friends from Michigan.  We’ll be spending the next couple of days on a fabric shopping extravaganza in NYC with Peggy Sagers.  I am so looking forward to this.

Not that I need anymore fabric.

Just saying…

Stay tuned…

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Elizabeth E
Elizabeth E
April 24, 2013 11:18 am

Wow, these pictures are inspiring. LOVE the fat quarter idea too, thanks!

Nancy Weber
Nancy Weber
April 24, 2013 11:23 am

The Savannah ladies did a great job with their fabrics. Oooh, a fabric shopping trip to NYC with Daryl — what fun! I would love to be a butterfly on someone’s shoulder (better than a fly on the wall) to see and hear all that will be going on. Have a great time and come home with some new inspiration for your stash!

Jenny
Jenny
April 24, 2013 5:52 pm

I believe in STASH. If you are drawn to something, it needs to be in your life.

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