• Ho, Ho, Ho!

    Posted on by HeleneKnott

    Dear readers and fellow stitchers; the year goes by so fast and once again – tis the season to be jolly… or it soon will be. I was in JoAnn’s the other day and Holy Moses, they have Christmas stuff! Guys – it’s not even Halloween yet. Remember the good old days when Christmas stuff made its appearance just before Thanksgiving?

    But seriously, there are only 61 days left before Christmas and it’s not to early to start your Holiday projects. It’s time to pull out your needles and floss and start stitching some lovely keepsake ornaments.

    A bit of history is in order here; I started my collection of Embroidered Folk Art Ornaments about 30 years ago when the first import store opened in my little hometown. They had these GORGEOUS embroidered and sequined ornaments imported from India and I wanted to get some but they were a whole $6 each. I was on a very tight budget and a flock of the ornaments would have wiped out my entire Christmas shopping purse. So – I decided to make my own. Felt was cheap, so was embroidery floss and sequins, the most expensive part was the 3-4 hours it took  me to stitch one up. In retrospect, $6 was a bargain! No way could I afford to make and sell one that cheaply. The sad reality is that if the store is selling it for $6, that means wholesale was probably about $3 and out of that, I imagine the Hindu artisan probably only made .50 (if even  that). Well, never mind I make my own and occasionally give one as a gift to a special loved one.

    You can make them too. I am offering a couple of classes at Pioneer Quilts coming up in early November; one is on Sunday November 6th and another on Friday November  11th. If you get started soon, you can make a bunch of them by Christmas.

     


    📂This entry was posted in * Latest Posts Classes

  • Day Camp Classes at Latimer Textile Center

    Posted on by HeleneKnott

    Next week I have a couple of classes scheduled at the Latimer Quilt & Textile Center in Tillamook Oregon. These are part of an annual event, an Adult Day Camp, Latimer started several years ago – a series of fiber art/stitchery classes during a week in October. Unfortunately, the week of classes this year falls right after the Tillamook County Quilt Show, another event that Latimer is involved in and in the flurry of activity preparing for the show, the Day Camp classes sort of got lost in the shuffle and have not been as well promoted as they should have been. I don’t know what the enrollment numbers are yet, the samples and printed flyers have been on display at the museum but only accessible to walk-in viewers so I’m taking the initiative to try and promote the classes on my website. I should have done this earlier but preparing for Northwest Quilting Expo absorbed my time and attention so I can well understand how Latimer managed to push the classes to the back of the ‘to do’ list, they never even got posted on their website.

    The first class I have scheduled is one on creating Stumpwork Sea Anemones, this class is going to be next Wednesday October 12. Stumpwork is a form of three dimension embroidery that originated in Europe – most popular in England and France in the 17th Century. It is a sort of combination of needlework and sculpture. Traditionally, pastoral scenes with people, animals, and flora & fauna were the subject matter created with Stumpwork, I have chosen to explore the technique and apply it to a ‘Tide Pool’ theme of sea creatures and the Sea Anemones are a beautiful subject to render in Stumpwork. For those who feel they wouldn’t have time to prepare for the class, I will have kits available.

    Tide Pool quilt - Stumpwork 'Sea Anemones'
    Tide Pool quilt – Stumpwork ‘Sea Anemones’
    Stumpwork Sea Anemones of=n hand-dyed canvas
    Stumpwork Sea Anemones of=n hand-dyed canvas

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The second class on Thursday October 13, is on a method of Reversible Machine Applique. This is not Reverse Applique which is one-sided and consists of layering, cutting and stitching the designs to expose underlying fabrics, this is truly a double sided reversible quilt that can be hung from either side. The machine technique is surprisingly easy and it fun to end up with a quilt that can be reversed for variety in the time it takes to make one quilt. The photos I have posted show the front and ‘other’ front of one quilt. To make the quilt more easy to reverse, I suspend the quilt panel from a piece of weathered driftwood – eminently suitable to the beach theme. This class will also have a kit available.

    Reversible Applique Quilt 'Rock Stars' - front side.
    Reversible Applique Quilt ‘Rock Stars’ – front side.
    Reversible Applique Quilt 'Rock Stars' the 'other' front side.
    Reversible Applique Quilt ‘Rock Stars’ the ‘other’ front side.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Tillamook is an easy day trip from Portland and the drive down the Wilson River highway in Fall is spectacular, the Fall colors should be starting about now. If you have the time and inclination to come to Tillamook next week, please consider taking one of these classes. If you need more incentive, Latimer has an exhibit right now of woven tapestry work by Natalie Olsen, The Tillamook Cheese Factory is just down the road a bit and features not only cheese but every imaginable flavor of Tillamook ice cream and the Blue Heron French Cheese Company is just down the road the opposite direction and features locally made Artisan Brie (to die for) and then there is Jane’s Fabric Patch – a delightful quilt shop crammed full of gorgeous fabrics and more at the south end of town.


    📂This entry was posted in * Latest Posts Classes Events

  • Upcoming Event

    Posted on by HeleneKnott

    Greetings on this fine (if wet and gray) Monday morning. Fall is often a busy time for me with workshops and lectures and this Fall is proving to be no different. About a week and a half ago, I taught and lectured at Northwest Quilting Expo,  some of my classes had better attendance than others but all had enough enrollment for the class to proceed – no cancelled classes YAY. My Simple Sashiko Landscapes was particularly popular and you can look for it to be offered at some of the local shops during the upcoming winter/spring class season.

    Onto the next events – on Monday October 10, I will be giving a presentation for my own guild , Northwest Quilters, on Color Theory – ‘Speaking in Colors’. This lecture is perfect for anyone who wishes to better understand color and how to use it but particularly so if you struggle with picking your own color schemes or if you have ever made a quilt from colors you love only to discover you are not satisfied with the quilt but don’t know what went wrong. The lecture is educational and includes a trunk show of quilts the use or illustrate the principles that will be covered in the lecture.

    The Guild meeting starts at 7pm, non-members are required to pay a $5 fee which is refunded if the attendant chooses to become a member of the guild that evening. I personally think the benefits membership in the guild brings is well worth the $32 dues – access to the extensive library alone would lure me not to mention other activities such as programs, workshops, UFO days and retreats… plus the camaraderie of fellow quilters passionate about this wonderful pursuit.

    A few days after that, I will be in Tillamook teaching two workshops for the Latimer Quilt and Textile Center for their Adult Day Camp; more info on that to come in the next post.

    Extended color wheel of fabric
    Extended color wheel of fabric

    📂This entry was posted in * Latest Posts Events Tips, Tricks and Techniques