Claiming my blog

Following Lee's lead and claiming my blog with Bloglovin!  Now that Reader is going away, I wonder how long Blogger will be around too . . .

Sew South post coming today!  Stay tuned . . .

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What A Weekend! Sew South

The sign! (Thanks Lee for the photo)

Well, well well, what can I say?  I just spent an amazing weekend with 49 other talented, inspiring, dedicated women at the inaugural Sew South Retreat, in Charlotte,NC.  This was organized by the awesome Jennifer at Ellison Lane Quilts.  I must say, I don't know how she got it all done . . .in only 6 months.  Everything was seamless.  The classes, instructors, meals, social events, everything!  

I asked my mom if she would like to go with me.  Of course she said yes, but she was very nervous, because she hadn't sewn in many years.  I was confident there would be no project too over her head, because she sewed forever!! I was taught by my mom and grandmother, as a lot of us are, and I was excited to share this experience with her.  We picked the amazing Lee of May Chappell in Greensboro and headed to Charlotte.  Lee is so great and I know I've made a forever friend!  Once we arrived in Charlotte, Jennifer had arranged for a bus to take us on a field trip!  Yea for field trips, especially when they involve a fabric store and IKEA.  We went to We're So Creative in Concord, NC.  Jennifer Roycroft, the shop's owner, is awesome.  We had the run of the place for an hour and we all shopped!  She has an amazing selection of fabric.  I've never seen so many full collections in one spot!  Definitely make the trip to visit her shop.   Then there was IKEA.  I love that place.  We all raided the textile section and came away with some goodies!

After the field trip, we headed back to the hotel for cocktails and to meet everyone!  Then dinner, then we set up in the ballroom for some sewing time!  Mom and I took this time to finish our duffle bag pieces.

My pre-quited, pre-serged bag pieces

Friday was a jammed packed day.  Starting out, Jennifer Mathis taught a paper-piecing class.  I'm still not finished with mine, but will post upon completion.  

Then we started the duffle class taught by Lindsey Rhodes of LR Stitched.  Lindsey was such a great teacher and had the patience of a saint!  I mean, this was a tough bag, and there were, like 50 of us, and she took the time to go around the room and help us all.  A wonderful thing happened when we were working late into Friday/Saturday night making these bags:  when someone would finish, they would stand up, swing their completed bag into the air, and EVERYONE would stop and CHEER for them!!  I mean, how great is that!  This group was fantastic!  The pattern was donated by Cherie of Cherie Studio and is available on Craftsy.

Lindsey and Jennifer and a WALL of duffles (thanks Jen for the photo)

Saturday morning was the frame clutch purse taught by the lovely Diane.  This was so much fun!  Diane is such a great teacher and made this easy!  The pattern is available on Craftsy.  The clutch frames were generously donated by Winn of While Baby Naps.  Such a great sponsor!  This clutch is such an easy, quick project, I can see making more of these.  My sister and BFF have already claimed ours, so I guess I'll have to make them their own!

Diane with ALL the clutches (thanks Lee for the photo)

Our Clutches:  Mom's in Pezzy, Mine in Guitars

Modeling our clutches

Then the afternoon session was the pajama pants class taught by Jennifer of We're So Creative (the fabric store we had a field trip to).  I have sewn garments before, but it's been a long time.  The pattern was provide to us by Kwik-Sew (#3602).  This was an easy pattern and I love how mine turned out.  

After I finished the pjs, I went back to work on the duffle.  After MANY broken needles, borrowing thread and machine from my awesome neighbor, Alex (on a side note, Alex came with her mom too -Maria- and our moms became fast friends!), and borrowing Lee's machine, I FINALLY got my cheer on Saturday night, like at 11:45!  It was done!  Mom finished her bag a little bit before me.  We are both so proud.  My bag has a TON of flaws in it, and I skipped the zippered side pocket, but I still love it. IF I make this bag again, I'd do ALOT of things differently; for one, NOT make it out of canvas!  My machine just couldn't handle it, as I was traveling with my #2 machine.  #1 was in the shop!  Feed dogs decided to become quitters the night before SS!!

Alex and Maria

My completed duffle

Mom's competed duffle

Modeling our duffles- See how JOYFUL we are!

Oh, I forgot to mention that Saturday night, after dinner, the fantastic Leah Day gave an inspiring talk about free motion quilting.  She talked about her book, and the Goddess quilt she's working on. She showed us a sample of her amazing quilting for the Goddess project too.

Leah with a Goddess sample (thanks Jen for the photo)

The process for this is really cool.  What an awesome talent she is! Loved having the chance to be in her space.  She then took some additional time to chat with a small group about blogging, getting published and making a career of this quilty, sewing world we are in.  I love that her first advice was to have an attitude of abundance.  Meaning, put it all out there, share it with everyone.  It was quite refreshing to hear.

Sunday morning was the closing of the retreat and Jennifer surprised us all with a GIANT swag bag!  The Sew South Sponsors were so AWESOME!  I mean, they totally trusted Jennifer, new retreat and all, and sent the most fabulous stuff.  Cutters, batting, interfacing, thread, books, patterns, magazines, fabric!  Oh my!  Jennifer said she felt like Oprah on her Favorite Things shows!  Thanks to Pellon, Dritz, Stash Books, Coats & Clark, The Warm Company, Fabricworm, Andover Fabrics, Allison Glass, Wyndham, Jo-ann's, Aurifill, Michael Miller and more! 

Swag galore!  Awesome sponsors

After we all recovered from our great fortune, we had a sharing time.  Everyone got really emotional; tears flowed.  Everyone felt like they had found their tribe!  The whole weekend was such a giving, inspiring, FUN time.  I made so many friends that I know I'll continue to keep in touch with and foster that friendship.  

But the best thing about the weekend was sewing side by side with my mom.  All the nervousness she had before the retreat was long gone and she was sad to be leaving.  She told me Saturday night on our way to dinner, how much she was enjoying the ladies, the fellowship and the sewing! If you are on Instagram, check out the photos at #sewsouth.

Jennifer deserves every bit of kudos that I'm sure you've read on the many blogs you follow.  Believe the hype; it was awesome!  I sure hope you punch your ticket for next year, 'cause I know I am!

A Lovely Year of Finishes . . .March Goal

I will turn this line of fabric (in the blue colorway)

into a quilt top for my nephew!  His birthday is in May, so I gotta get started!  I'm going to make a Modern Plus quilt using Jeni of In Color Order great tutorial.

Linking up to A Lovely Year of Finishes!  

Have  a great day!

Weekend Work

Happy Monday Peeps!  The weekend was somewhat productive for me.  My parents came to Raleigh on Saturday, and my mom shopped my stash for supplies for Sew South.  I am so excited about this conference and it's only a few weeks away.  We needed to make a fabric store run to get some additional supplies, so we ventured to Hancock's.  We both needed to buy fabric to make the pajama pants we'll be making at Sew South.  I picked out some madras plaid cotton fabric and mom picked out some cute cotton knit.  Well, until she saw the price!  It was $13/yd!  Not on sale!  So she went back and grabbed a bolt of the madras, as it was on sale for $7/yd.  I knew cotton had gotten expensive . . .

I also got some sewing time in.  I made this journal cover for me.  It is from a tutorial by Stitched In Color.  My first one and I had a good time with improvisational piecing.  Loved how the "Sew" scrap ended up in just the right place!

Scrappy journal cover

I also made these baby bibs for the baby shower I am going to Sunday.  These turned out so cute!  I was inspired to make these when I saw a $7 appliqué at Joann's.  I knew I could achieve the same look with sewing supplies I had at home.  I'm very pleased with how these turned out!  I've already had requests to make these!  Winner!

Tie baby bibs

The fabric fairy came too!  I ordered a bunch of fabric from Sew Mama Sew as they were having a big ole $6 sale!  Scored some awesomeness!

I'm linking up to Plum & June's Let's Get Acquainted Monday Link-up!  You do too!

Whoot Whoot!

I've got to get on a regular posting schedule.  Geez!  But blogging takes planning and, I think, pictures, to show what you are working on.  I mean, I'll eventually get to the point that I may wax poetic on items, but right now, it's all I can do to carve out sewing time!  Which is why I'm excited to share some of the things I've been working on.

So, my friend, Kim, is having her first baby!  I was so excited to receive an invitation to her shower.  She and her husband have been trying to conceive for a long time, so this will indeed be a celebration!  I decided to make the new baby (it's a boy) a summertime "quilt", since he'll be a late spring baby.  It's not technically a quilt, because it doesn't have batting.  I used a cheater print of Safari Soiree by Birch Fabrics and backed it with snuggly flannel.  I quilted along each side of the "blocks" and bound it with a satin blanket binding.  Man, that satin binding is a b-yach!  Slippery, slippery, slippery.  But I wanted the textural difference between the cotton, flannel and the satin.  I think touch is such an important sense for babies/toddlers.

Quilting

Sewing on satin binding

Top of quilt

Front & Back

Dang, that's a cute quilt!

Whole thing

Peek-a-boo!

The Fabric Fairy came to visit me:

I saw Ms Melody Miller speak to the Triad Modern Quilt Guild (it was so awesome!):

I've completed some bee blocks too:

Block for Kim in the Simply Solids Bee

Lucky Stars BOM- Practice Block

Believe Circle of do.good.stitches
February block

Believe Circle of do.good.stitches
February block

Believe Circle of do.good.stitches
February block

Sugar Block Club BOM- January Block

I still have loads of stuff to work on, like my Sew South Swap items, gifties for my Secret Sew South sister, and my nephew's quilt!  I also have to decide what I'm going to do with the Madrona Road fabric from the Modern Quilt Guild challenge.  And get caught up on the blocks for the various BOMs I'm participating in!  Haven't even started the blocks for one . . .

Linking up with the Let's Get Acquainted Linky.

See ya soon!
Nicole

Let's Get Acquainted Monday Link up

I got a little sewing done over the weekend.  Not as much as I wanted to, but something done.  I finished January's block for the Sugar Block Club with Stichery Dickory Dock.  I'm very pleased with how this turned out.  I'm finally cutting into my FQ bundle of  Mama Said Sew!  I can't wait to see how all of these blocks turn out.

January Block for Sugar Block Club

Good news for me!  I found me a Bernina 1090 machine on Ebay and I picked it up Tuesday.  There was some shipping damage, and the case was badly damaged.  The retractable power chord had gotten wedged in it's little cubby and I couldn't get it out.  Luckily, hubby was able to coax it out, so Saturday, I cut the machine on and, yeah, it works!  Now I've got to learn what it can do.  Will start on that tonight.

I had a goal setting party for myself yesterday afternoon.  I have some things that HAVE to get done this month:

1.  House block for Sew South.
2.  Solids block for Simply Solids Bee.
3.  Cutting and sewing my nephews quilt top!
4.  Blocks for Believe Circle for do.good.stitches.

I also have lots of other things to catch up on:

1.  Blocks for Pile O' Fabric's Skill Builder BOM and FMQ these!  Eek!
2.  Blocks for Sea of Stars BOM-- I need to do 3!
3.  February block for Sugar Block Club.
4.  Swap items and Secret Sister items for Sew South.

Whew, I better get busy!  I'm going to link up with Beth at Plum & June's Let's Get Acquainted Linky!  Y'all do to!

A Lovely Year of Finishes-January

I finished my January goal for A Lovely Year of Finishes with Melissa and Shanna. Tanner's Oz quilt is done! I gave it to her as a late 13th birthday present. She was very stoked! The fabric is Beth Bruske for David Textiles for the wonky log cabin blocks, Kona snow for the field and Simply Color Leafy Stripe in Eggplant for the binding. Here it is!
I'm linking up to Melissa's blog; hope I win some prizes!!:)