Virtual Retreat July 2015 - Join Anytime

[Lotti D.]

Fabulous quilts, ladies.
Love that quilting, Dorothy!
But i totally love Lilly! Looking forward to seeing more of her, Rosemary, am joining Lois in wanting to know and see more! Fabulous project.

[Marianne G.]

I think Lotti is so right when she suggested that we use this retreat to keep in touch about anything and everything. Thanks, Lotti (PS got quite nostalgic seeing the photo of the stork - they used to be abundant in the small town where I lived when I was a child. There were nest on the post office roof, on the Co-Op Diary roof as well as the pub roof and a couple of private houses. It used to be a big event when the stork arrived in spring. By the time I was a teenager there were none left nesting and we hardly ever saw them due to polluted waterways and increased agricultural spraying. Thanks for sharing this)
Love your idea, Luann exchanging the bucket with a giant pin cushion. Great fun. Your book cover is lovely - I'm sure the Pastor's wife was thrilled.
Rosemary, you've done a great job with all those small pieces and the wonderful crane fabric and your DH is making good use of our retreat too - how fun is that. Do we all get to try it? :silly:
Dorothy - what an amazing quilt! The ladies are so beautiful and your quilting is fabulous!
Agree with Artmomma that a BSR is decidedly not necessary for FMQ - I had nothing but problems with mine so set about just practising and have become much better at it and now enjoy it very much.
I've finished my embroidery machine cover! YES! Pleased how it has turned out so will now continue down my Want-to-do-list.

detail
I was dyeing to do some FMQ in the petals but knew I would get frustrated with the very thick seams in these blocks so will save my energy for another project.
Now both the machines are nicely covered - here's the sewing machine "coat"

Need to catch up on the quil-ket blocks; 2 behind now and got family coming to stay from tomorrow so will have to get up very early each morning to make one before breakfast duty calls :blink: .
Marianne

[Marianne G.]

Love the machine covers Marianne! Beautiful!!!

[Nancy R.]

Lovely machine covers, Marianne! I'm sure your machines will stay warm and snuggly when not in use.

[wendy w.]

So pretty Marianne they're so happy.

I love my BSR but perhaps need to check I can still quilt without it. Nothing to show for this weekend as I've been making curtains for the living room.

This afternoon I've been walking by the canal in the rain seeing all the young water birds, swans, mallards, moorhens, coots, dab chicks , plus some frogs grasshoppers and assorted birds. No bears though Lotti :cheer:

[wendy w.]

Beautiful machine covers Marianne.

I've finally got started quilting Maxiature. The silk thread you recommended is lovely to use and disappears beautifully. I have ended up quilting it on my Gran's old handcrank singer - it makes much more sense seeing as I was cranking around the areas anyway (stitch 1/8", turn 90degrees, stitch 1/2", or as it works out stitch 3 stitches, turn stitch 6 stitches turn _{just don't ask about the strange discrepancy that is just how it is} :S Things were not helped when the tension plates threw a hissy fit and I ended up taking it completely apart and then had fun trying to get it back together again properly :blink: I've know for years that the tension was a bit cranky, but I think I have discovered part of the reason now. The screw thread that sticks out is not at right angles to the machine, rather it bends slightly downwards and it is a slotted post and the two pieces are no longer parallel either. Needs a proper machine engineer to really fix her, but she seems to be behaving ok for the time being. _{touch wood}

[Lois B.]

Nice work Marianne. Rosemary, Keep at it! No more hissy fits from that cranky :whistle: machine. Love the pictures Lotti. Thanks.

[Lois B.]

I haven't been quilting but I have been making gifts for new family I'll be meeting at my daughters wedding next week. I made make-up (Sew Together Bag) cases for my daughter and my soon to be teenage granddaughter.





And one for my daughter.





For my new teenage grandson who just won the state championship in cabinet making I made a job bag.


It unfolds into a completely flat circle. Load it up with tools, hardware & supplies needed for a job pull strings on opposite sides and they are in a pouch. Keep the stuff on it at the work site and everything is together when you are ready to go.



I have more and it looks like the website is letting me load this up. I made a picnic basket for my daughters new mother-in-law.





I made one just like it for my new SIL. It's dark gray. He requested it and picked out the fabric. It's just like his mother's but ugly and boring. So I'll let you use you imagination.

Today I am trying to figure out how I am going to get all this stuff in my luggage.

[wendy w.]

Lovely Lois how kind you are. They'll be thrilled.

I'm getting excited for you now the weddings so close xx

[wendy w.]

Keep cranking Rosemary I'm looking forward to seeing the end result at Birmingham

[Nancy R.]

Lovely gifts, Lois! Your new family is very lucky!!

[Susan S.]

Lois, you are very thoughtful. Each person should get good use out of their gift.

Marianne, I agree that your machine covers are beautiful!

Cranky tension is no fun! But silk thread is yummy!

[Lotti D.]

Great machine Covers, Marianne, your machines now all snugly and cozy, B)
Fabulous prezzies, Lois, your new family members are some lucky folk! Pack everything inside your SIL's picknick-basket and use it as your carry-on :evil: :cheer: :evil:
Rosemary, wow, quilting with a hand-cranking machine - I'm totally in awe of you! And looking forward to seeing pictures - of machine & quilt
Seems like you had a great wildlife-walk, Wendy. Here's the bear you missed, I think he was lurking in the corner with the snails ...

[Marianne G.]

Thank you everybody for your kind words re my machine covers!
Wendy, surely curtain making is retreat worthy - hope you got your hand in the MM bowl now and again while doing those looooooong seams :lol:
Quilting on a hand-cranked machine is awe-inspiring, Rosemary. My first machine was a hand-cranked machine and I can't imagine how you manage to do quilting with only one hand on the quilt. How tightly did you baste?
Oh Lois! your pressies are so nice. The make-up bags are great. What pattern did you use? The pic-nic bag is so cute. How on earth did you manage to get such neat top-stitching on what looks like laminated fabric? You have been very, very busy :cheer:
Marianne

[wendy w.]

I have Marriane all by hand, I did them properly. Pass some more :lol: