Quilting and Gardening Fun
Finally Friday arrived and I was off to a quilting class with a friend. The class was part of Alden Lane Nursery’s annual Quilting in the Garden show.
We got up much too early to drive across the bay and into Livermore. Upon arrival we saw this board, and I for one cannot resist these. A very nice employee took a picture for us.
The garden was beautiful. They had window box displays filled with flowers. Also, they had taken pallets of flowers and arranged the colors to make quilt block designs. As usual there were really neat things for sale and I could not resist. A wire pumpkin and a button Christmas ornament came home with me along with 50 daffodil bulbs.
For the workshop we had the option of choosing one of four patterns. I chose the French Kiss design.
However, it wasn’t the quick and easy pattern I was hoping for. While people who had chosen the other designs were merrily sewing along, us French Kiss people were cutting. Cutting and cutting and cutting until after lunch.
Here are my rather tall stacks of pieces. Who knows how long it would have taken if the printed ones weren’t already pre-cut strips. Yikes! But eventually I got everything cut out and could join the rest of the class in sewing.
It was really nice to see four different patterns being made. All of them were made up of angled pieces with either 45 or 60 degree cuts in them. Some people were really fast and had entire rows assembled.
Me? I’m not so quick.
I only managed to finish two blocks during class. They turned out really nice, and I’m happy with the fabrics I chose. I think I’ll be working on this quilt for a long time though! It’s not a zippy fast strip pieced pattern, but it is straightforward. Hopefully I can find a day (or 12) to sit and just assemble (the 48! more) blocks.
On the way home we just happened to drive past a quilt shop and the parking fairy nicely provided a spot for us to park right in front and in the shade. Fortunately I was feeling some restraint or I would have come home with a great many things. As it was, I did buy two new patterns and some purl cotton. I think I now have enough quilt patterns to last me for the next 40 years.
– marcella
