Designing Monday

I finished the quilting on this little quilt which was the August Quilt of the Month from the Sentimental Quilter's Yahoo Group.  I had planned to hand quilt it, but I made about 3 passes across the center of the quilt and bent two needles and my stitches were not so great.  So I went back to my trusty Bernina.  I'll get the binding done this week.

Our quilt guild program for September was David Taylor.  He entertained the group in style.  He really is hilarious.  The following day I took his hand applique class.  He brought a couple of his quilts and took us through his process of turning a photo into a pattern into a quilt.  It is really quite an involved but straightforward process.  This was the pattern that we were using for the class.

We traced it out and numbered all the pieces to use as a template and a placement guide.  He gave us pre-printed freezer paper with all the pieces ready to cut out.

 Our next assignment was to cut out three of the pieces and prep them for stitching using starch.  Then we were to stitch on at least one piece to the background.  This is as far as I got and I think I may be the only one in the class who got that far.  This doesn't look too bad until you realize ...

 there is a whole sea of black that needs to be covered with pieces.  It seems a bit daunting as the pieces are kind of small.  I also have quite a few other projects ahead of this one, so it will sit awhile.

David is such a fun person and he has a million stories to tell.  ( That could be why we didn't get much sewing done.)  He is doing a 5 day workshop on Madeleine Island north of Wisconsin next summer if you happen to be headed this way.  I definitely know you would enjoy taking his class if you ever have the opportunity.

Hop on over to Judy's blog to see some beautiful designs.