Time for another show and tell! I’ve actually had this finished for a while now, I just didn’t get the pictures taken right away. I made this quilt as an example of what can be done with the postcard size accessory appliqué patterns for the Silken Stitches workshop. I love the way the quilt turned out, which is probably not surprising since I’m a little addicted to the shoe, bag and hat accessory motifs, and I suppose the same could be said for the fun Michael Miller prints that I used in the quilt.
I’m not sure that I’ve had my fill yet either, and I still have some yardage left, so at some point there may be another coordinating project coming. A lap quilt or pillows perhaps? Of course, none of this really fits into my house with it’s current decor, so any more quilts in this style or colorway might require some major redecorating…and shaking of the head and rolling of the eyes on ITMan’s part…
Here’s the crisp, colorful, summery-looking goodness (just in time for fall?): Continue reading →
This weekend, I’m deep in preparations for my trip to the US in October, as well as a couple of events that are on the calendar for September. Next weekend, I’ll be in Schönaich (near Stuttgart, about an hour south of where I live) for Patchcom’s 9th Annual Quiltfestle on Saturday. Birgit asked me to come to the Quiltfestle and bring my Inchie Quilts, talk about my book, and present some Inchie demos (more on the Quiltfestle later in the week!). I’m also scheduled to demo in the AQS booth at Quilt Market, and will probably need all of these step-by-step materials for workshops, lectures, etc.
So today I prepared step-by-step samples for making Inchies to use for demos, and then as I was edge stitching the Inchies, I got this crazy idea to make a video tutorial of the process! Talk about a complete derailment! Shooting the video was a piece of cake that took less time than writing this post will (despite the fact that it’s a brand new camcorder that I’d never used before), but the whole “how do I put this video on the web” thing took five hours! Seriously! Sheesh! Continue reading →
Woohoo! A finish for me! I’ve finished this project with the linen border that I’ve shown peeks of here and here. I’m really, really pleased with the end result! I’ll mostly let the pictures tell the story, otherwise I’ll be here all day writing enthusiastic commentary and I have some other stuff I need to work on. So without too many more words, here is Zen Dimension: Continue reading →
On a day to day basis, what I do here at DreamWeaver’s Quilts is not going to save anyone’s life directly, I know that. But today, I want to share a story with you about how I saved a life through this blog. In March, 2008, I took Shadow and Patches (for new readers: these are the family cats) to have their vaccinations. When I got them home, Shadow was presenting odd symptoms that eventually led me to believe he was having a severe reaction to the vaccinations. I rushed him to the vet, and she confirmed that yes, he was going into anaphylactic shock because of the vaccinations, and if I had not taken him back for emergency treatment, he would have died.
Bear with me, I know you’re wondering where I’m going with this. After Shadow recovered, I wrote about this on my blog, as I often do when it’s something like this that I think people should know about. Over the next few months, I noticed that that blog post was receiving many hits from search engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN. People were searching for “cat reactions to vaccinations”, “severe cat reaction shots” and other similar phrases. I edited the post, and added the following in bold lettering at the top:
NOTE: If you have found this post through a search for “cat reactions to vaccinations” or something similar, STOP!
If your cat (or dog) is experiencing any of the following symptoms after a vaccination, take your pet back to the vet IMMEDIATELY:
* vomiting
* diarrhea
* whitish or pale gums in the mouth
* facial swelling or hives
* rapid or difficult breathing
* restlessness or difficulty settling down
The above symptoms may mean that your pet is going in to anaphylactic shock and needs IMMEDIATE medical attention to survive!
Severe reactions to vaccinations can be life threatening and are a medical emergency! Don’t wait and wonder, have your pet checked by a veterinarian ASAP!
I wanted people to have the most important information that they needed to save their pet’s life if necessary without having to read through my entire story of Shadow’s reaction. Even the few minutes it could take to read the whole post could make a difference to their pet. This morning, I received a comment on that blog post from Ann: Continue reading →
Here’s a timely quilt news bite that serves very well as an addendum to my last post, Quilting for Show—Just Do It! From the AQS Quilt News Blog:
Congratulations to Linda French, the Best of Show winner. This is the first contest that Linda has every entered. Just like playing the lottery, you can’t win if you don’t enter. I bet we see more quilts from this talented quilter in future AQS shows now that she knows that her work is that good!
YES! See, Linda’s very first entry into a quilt contest or show, and her quilt takes Best of Show! I’ll bet she’s walking on air right now. Entering your quilts into shows is one of the best ways to improve your quilting and take it to the next level, but you never know—your quilt just might win an award! Visit the AQS Quilt News Blog to see a picture of Linda with her winning quilt, and see more great pictures from the Knoxville show.
Congratulations to Linda and all the other winners and entrants at Knoxville!
Shall We Meet in Des Moines for the AQS Quilt Expo?
Are you planning to attend the AQS Quilt Expo in Des Moines, Iowa this year in October? I am, and I’ll be teaching my newest techniques and projects there October 28-31! Check out the workshop descriptions here on the Workshops page, and then head over to the AQS site to download the Registration Guide for the show.
On the workshop menu are Inchie projects and a lecture, as well as workshops on embellishments, machine appliqué and there’s even a class for bloggers and those that would like to start blogging online. Online registration for the Des Moines Quilt Expo is coming soon I’m told, but if you want first dibs on limited class space, you can fill out the form in the Registration Guide, and fax it in to AQS! See you there!
