November 7,8, and 9 was the annual fall quilt retreat. I look forward to my Spring and Fall get aways mostly because I need uninterupted time to create - time I never seem to get at home. Both retreats are held out of town, and for the Fall 2008 retreat, we stayed at the Radisson in Lacrosee. This is the view from my room.
I worked on a ton of projects. One is a gift for my mother - a reverse applique, celtic cable jacket. Here is a close-up of the applique.
There were about 50-60 women present during the retreat (Stitchers and quilters), and everyone was working on different things. I loved to peak over shoulders and see what others were working on.
Cathy (my roomate) was working on this pinwheel table runner. I love the colors.
No retreat would be complete without the delightful Joan. Here she is displaying the White elephant prize she got stuck with. Sorry Joan, you couldn't pay someone to take that off your hands.
I used these charm squares to make a tote/purse. I'm pretty sure someone will be happy to find it under their tree this year.
This fabric was designed by Mark Lipinski of Quilter's Home.
My delightful friend and roommate, Kathy.
Lorraine kept me smiling all weekend. What an angel!
Annette is always working on projects to give to others.
On August 2nd, my friend Pam and I took a quilting cruise on the Mississippi river. We heard quilter, historian, and fabric designer, Darlene Zimmerman; share her vast knowledge of antique quilts. While Zimmerman’s specialty is quilts from the 1930s, she did share with us some civil war era quilts as well as contemporary quilts made with reproduction fabric.
The scenery outside the boat was as beautiful as the quilts inside.
Most early quilters used fabric from whatever sources they could find. Many articles of clothing were recycled into utilitarian quilts. This dress survived simply because it was a maternity dress. No woman would ever cut up a maternity dress – you never know when you might need it again!
The above quilt is a sampler of blocks. Many women created sample blocks in order to hone their skills and to try out a particular pattern before committing to it.
