All-day Mystery

Holy cow! My last post was the Wasatch Front Shop Hop quilt - 4 months ago!   So much for my resolution to post regularly.  Where did the summer go?

Anna & I taught the September "Mystery" class last Saturday.  I can't name the mystery because the amazing technology of google search could accidentally ruin the mystery for hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people across the country - I would hate to be responsible for that!

We started at 10:00 a.m.ish and sewed through the day with breaks for lunch and dinner.  By 9:30 p.m.ish everyone had a complete block to refer to as they finished at home and most were well on their way to finishing.

Andria

Dianne

Jenny

Glenda
For some reason known only to Microsoft,
this picture keeps uploading sideways
 so you'll have to tilt your head to the right to view it - sorry!

Marge

Tami

Linda

Cathie

And Anna with her finished quilt top!

Our next mystery is scheduled for October 28th - hope to see you there!

And the finished quilt.....

Hercule Poirot's Library - Wasatch Front Shop Hop 2011 - Thimbles & Threads

The journey of our shop hop quilt.

   Once the theme "The Best Quilt I Ever Read" was chosen, the challenge began - what direction to take our shop's quilt.  As a newbee to the Wasatch Front Shop Hop the pressure is on to come up with something amazing.  I have always wanted to make a "bookshelf" quilt and have been saving pictures and patterns for several years. It seems like a good fit for our theme this year. I tentatively check with my tallented staffers and get mixed feedback.  I was starting to think it was a terrible idea when I discovere that Sandi has actually made a bookshelf quilt (her husband deals in rare books and she had made one for his partner)  Sandi has pictures of her quilt, her original freezer paper pattern, and a fabulous book full of ideas and techniques.  The book is no longer in print, but I found it on Amazon.com (I love the internet - you can find anything imaginable) as well as a second pattern book by the same author, Wendy Etzel

  Sandi and I spent a morning working up a rough draft.  It was really rough!  I spent the weekend surfing the net for pictures and ideas and drawing up the actual layout.  The bowl and assorted lids are my low budget version of the circle template. 

  On Saturday, Janet and Rosann helped me select fabrics for the book spines.  I shipped the selection off to my friend Marilyn who embroidered the 15 Wasatch Front Shop Hop shop's novel/book titles.  Marilyn got them done right away and delivered them just  3 days after I sent the fabric!  Marilyn is amazing - I know she worked into the wee hours of the morning to get them all done.  They are fabulous! 

  On Tuesday Teresa, Marcy and Nancy spent the afternoon selecting fabrics for the other items I've selected to fill the shelves.   By the end of the day they have neatly wrapped and labled packages of fabrics for each item.  I take everything we've put together to my annual quilt retreat at Teton Patchworks Quilter's Retreat and spend three days working on the quilt.  Silly me, I really thought I would finish the entire quilt during the retreat!   I have really good friends - they all take time out of their retreat projects to help get the tiny 3-inch  blocks finished. The Treasure Island block was a particular challenge - be sure to look at it when you visit us during the shop hop.  It took me almost 8 hours to get this little guy pieced!  In 3 days I completed the spines of all 15 books and nothing else.  Then I discover that I have the wrong book for Whimsey Cottage. They changed after our initial selection and I was using the original list.  Doh!  I made an emergency phone call to Ann and she embroidered the most adorable Green Eggs & Ham book spine for me.  Again - I have terrific friends! 

   When I arrived home from retreat, I began putting the shelves together.

    My furry friends were ready and willing to help, always right in the middle of the  project. 

  Scattered among the shelves are clues and red herrings from the book. 

   This was the progress I made last week.  Doesn't look like a week's work does it?  You really have to see the little blocks to appreciate the time they took.

    As of 4:00 a.m. this morning, I have one more shelf to complete and the borders to add and will be ready for the longarm quilting to begin!  Hopefully I will be able to post a photo of the pieced top tomorrow. 

   

Countdown to Shop Hop.....

Countdown to Shop Hop....

The year has flown by and it is already time for the Wasatch Front Shop Hop! This year will be so much fun - each shop has selected a novel/book for their theme and I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with...the books chosen span the gammet from children's stories to urban fantasy.

Join us at Thimbles as we journey with Hercule Perroit on the Orient Express and solve the mystery of who killed Mr. Ratchett. Twelve suspects, all with motives, all with alibis. Who could the murderer be?

I first read this book in high school. When I selected our Shop Hop novel, I had visions of fabulous oriental fabrics and motifs. Then I read the book again....THEY NEVER GO TO THE ORIENT!!!! The novel begins in Contantinople (modern day Istanbul) Turkey and heads WEST to England. Quick revision of fabric selection/theme.  Now I have visions of beautiful Turkish tiles, an English library, a smokey dining car...


  - OK, I'm at home (it is after midnight) and I have just realized my photos of "the journey of a shop hop quilt" are on my lap top.....at the shop!  Doh!  I'll add them to the post tomorrow.

    I spent last weekend at Teton Patchworks Quilter's Retreat in beautiful Tetonia, Idaho, working on our shop hop quilt. Spectacular scenery, fabulous friends, quantimous (OK, maybe that's not a word) quilting! You can follow the progress of our quilt on my blog http://tandtquiltshop.blogspot.com/ With a little help from my wonderful friends I pieced tiny blocks (3 inches square - not too daunting until you get to Treasure Island which took an amazing 8 hours to paper piece in miniature!) for each shop and began the assembly of our shop's take on this year's theme. I'm loving it so far...I promise a sneak peak before shop hop (I have never been one to wait til Christmas to open the pesents!)

  Photos to be added tomorrow - I promise!

My First Market

As some of you may know, the spring International Quilt Market was at the Salt Palace this week.  Very fun, very exciting.  Vendors from all over the country and the world were in town to display their latest and greatest.  Of course, I forgot my camera!  For an idea of what goes on, I am linking photos from various blogs, facebook posts & twitter.  This is one of those events you have to see to believe.  For the complete scoop, check out http://www.facebook.com/QuiltMarket 

This was my very first quilt market and, as someone who avoids the shopping mall because of the crowds, I have to admit it was a little overwhelming. Lots and lots and lots of booths jam- packed with patterns, notions, fabrics, wools (I am falling in love with wools and am hoping to start carrying a nice variety this summer...)  

My whole crew went and checked out the venue on Friday.  That meant I got to man (or woman) the shop that day.  And I'm so glad I was in the shop to meet fellow shop owners and pattern designers who were checking out the local shops.  We had visitors from Maine to California and everywhere in between as well as Belgium, Australia, Canada! I enjoyed meeting everyone and sharing ideas and thoughts.  I hope we gave them a favorable impression of the quilting community in Utah.

I finally made it over to the market today.  I picked up a lot of terrific new patterns and ideas.  I came home with several new block of the month patterns, some terrific gifts for quilting pals, and a slew of ideas for the coming year and beyond....in fact, I think I could start a new block of the month every month for the next several years with the fabulous patterns I brought home or grabbed fliers for.  Is there such a thing as too many block of the month clubs?

I know that the market being in Salt Lake City made it much easier for local designers to display their wares, but I can not get over the tremendous talent for pattern and fabric design that springs from our beautiful valley! To name a few....

Jililly Studios - Jill highlighted her up-coming fabric line from Henry Glass with an ice cream parlor complete with cute little sherbet cones she gave out to visitors.  Yes, real little sherbet cones - it was a lovely treat to find her booth!  I think she recruited her entire family to help scoop and serve sherbet for the week! 
http://www.facebook.com/QuiltMarket#!/photo.php?fbid=198679443508492&set=pu.137770392932731&type=1&theater 

Chitter Chatter Designs - Cori Blunt set up a boardwalk to display her wonderful new Sunset Beach pattern.  Hopefully she will post a shot of the booth on her site so you can see how wonderful it was (mind like a steel sieve - how did the camera slip through?)
 
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SzWVn9FaW40/Tbg51spUJbI/AAAAAAAABKs/aaHZDKg4g9o/s1600/SUNSET%2BBEACH%252CSEA%2BBREEZE%2B002.JPG

My favorite new designers, Meags and Me, whipped up a fabulous display for their new patterns.  Wish them luck with their first quilt market experience!

http://meagsandme.blogspot.com/p/quilt-patterns.html
Kristi & Meagan had lots of fun ways to display thier work including the most adorable framed blocks from Duck, Duck,Goose!

Oh My Bloomin' Threads!  http://ohmybloominthreads.com/products/product/60.html  Ronene has designed a wonderful Halloween pattern - you have to see it in person to appreciate the the tiny details she has incorporated in the stitchery.  if you loved her Ooh La La! pattern you won't be able to resist this one.  I'm getting it for all of my ghoul friends this year!


There are so many more that it will take several posts to cover them all.  I'll keep adding more this week. 

Before I close, the designers/distributors from Riley Blake Designs/Christiansen Wholesalers outdid themselves this show.  Their booth (I need to say booths because they took up a good-size chunk of several rows) was fabulous.  From the fabric tree at the entrance

to to the sections highlighting each of their fabric designers and pattern makers - all of them fun, fresh, and exciting!