Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Trip to Ann Arbor - Part One


The Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild contacted me early last year in May. The guild program director Lottie Parker did a great job staying in touch throughout the year and made sure my stay there was comfortable.

I taught two classes - Windmill class was scheduled the day before the guild meeting and Peppermint Pinwheels was scheduled on the day after the meeting. Here are some of the pictures of guild members' work from the Windmills class..


Speaking of Winmills, I also have some pictures from class at Sisters to share.

Jodena's quilt top is stunning. You can find her work on Instagram @jodenab

And this is the picture of one of my favorite students from Sisters. She is 12 years old, a terrific quilter already. You can follow her work on Instagram @mycraftyclub

Sue Nikiel wanted pop of colors on the walls of her log cabin house. I think she got that pop!

It was so nice to finally meet Lori from Humble Quilts.
She worked her magic in the class and had her top ready before even leaving the class.

As I was setting up my quilts on the stage and catching my breath before the talk (as I always do since my first experience) people were trickling in the auditorium.


I spotted those two members with Julie Sefton's book, Build A Barn!
I was thrilled to see it and had to take this picture.


 Sunday's Peppermint Pinwheel class was also as much fun and as colorful as ever.  


We had some very prolific group of quilters! They all ended up making at least four or more blocks on the day of the class. I loved the variety of fabrics in the class.

Thank you Sonya, Lottie, Judy, Carol and everyone at Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild for your warm hospitality. You made my experience memorable!

After the classes I visited a dear friend on Beaver island. I can't wait to share the story about that in a day or two. Stay tuned!

Sujata





















Monday, July 25, 2016

Amy Butler's Piece Keeping Giveaway Winners



It is 25th July and as promised, I have picked three lucky winners today. If you are just finding my blog today, check out previous post about Amy Butler's new book. I made a Charming Garland and now have decided I need to make another one with different fabrics.

 
Winner # 1 is Jamie Lee Cooley

Winner #2 is Rachaeldaisy  

Winner # 3 is Judy

Congratulations to all three of you. Please send me your mailing information so I can forward it to Chronicle books for your winnings.

Thank you all for participating in the blog tour, reading the post and leaving those wonderful comments.

Have a great week!
Sujata

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Amy Butler's Blog Tour and Giveaway

Amy Butler's Piece Keeping

20 Stylish Projects that Celebrate Patchwork


I am thrilled that San Francisco based Chronicle Books invited me to host the blog tour for Amy Butler's new book - Piece Keeping. During our recent trip to India I had first hand experienced her passion for crafts and attention to details. Needless to say I was curious to see the projects in the book and try my hand at making one or two myself.


In her book Amy explores two classic patchwork motifs - Log Cabin and Triangles. She shares 20 projects finished with hand applique, beadwork, embroidery and hand quilting for any style and design enthusiastic.

Choose sewing and patchwork projects or design your home with  headboards,  pillows or a lamp shades. For those of you who are into personal styling, there are projects including patchwork dress and scarves or statement jewelry like belt, necklace or appliqued tribal hand cuffs.

Each chapter is filled with in depth instructions, full patterns for every project and detailed information about themes and techniques that inspired the projects.

As soon as I saw the pictures of Charming Garland, I knew I had to make it. Once I started selecting fabrics and making those circles, I didn't want to stop!



Step by step instructions made it easy to follow the pattern and execute the design.  


It's all in the details! How fun are these tassels?


And here are my niece's charming six months old twins! I think the garland will look perfect in their nursery.

Check out this video on my Instagram to see it swirl. What a clever design! They will be certainly entertained by it.

Now you can make one too!

Chronicle Books is giving away a copy of the book. Also, you have a chance to win  Amy’s fabrics from FreeSpirit, and ribbons from Renaissance Ribbons. I am going to pick three winners on 25th July.  All you have to do is leave a comment in the comment section.

And that's not all! You can have multiple chances to win any of the three items in the giveaway.

Visit the blogs below to learn new ways to use your scrap fabric - also, each blog post will offer a chance for you to win a copy of the book, Amy’s fabrics from FreeSpirit, and ribbons from Renaissance Ribbons.
   

July 12, 2016 – The Root Connection

Project: Charming Garland

July 13, 2016 – Suzy Quilts

Project: Pyramid Pillows

July 14, 2016 – Rock Paper Scissors

Project: Dreamweaver Wall Art

July 15, 2016 – 100 Billion Stars

Project: Statement Necklaces

July 16, 2016 – Carrie Bloomston

Project: Talisman Necklace

July 17, 2016 – Late Night Quilter

Project: Tribal Cuffs

July 18, 2016 – Crimson Tate

July 19, 2016 – A Gathering of Stitches

Project: Embellished Infinity Scarf

July 20 – Heather Jones Studio

Project: Improv Pillows

July 21 – Make It In Design

Project: Illumined Lamp Shades

 GOOD LUCK!

Monday, July 11, 2016

Quilter's Affair and Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show

What a week it has been! My brain is saturated with colors and inspiration and filled with best of the best memories.
My classes were filled with individuals wanting to try something new. I learned so much from watching them work on freeform blocks, try different combinations of colors and share their stories and thought process as they worked each day.

Here are some collages of their work.

Students' Work - Crossroads
Students' Work - Organized Chaos
Students' Work - Hourglass Twist
Students' Work - Windmills
On the day of the show I woke up early to watch the firemen hang the quilts on the walls of The Stitching Post. It was an experience not to be missed!

On Friday, storm clouds brought a lot of rain and winds which forced the picnic to be moved to the to Sisters' high school instead of the park. Some clouds decided to linger around on Saturday to watch the hanging of the quilts too. Early morning Sun started to warm us all up and colors and textures of the quilts all around town took care of the rest.


Photo by Valori Wells
We were ready to check out every single quilt in the show. I have been posting the pictures on my facebook page since the first day in Sisters. Click on the link to see them.
www.facebook.com/TheRootConnection 

After seeing everyone working so passionately, I am eager to get back to my design wall. So happy and thankful to have experienced being part of the teaching staff at Quilter's Affair. I am specially thankful for those who signed up for my classes. I met many fb friends, teachers and artists I have  admired for many years in person for the first time.

What an amazing experience! Thank you Jean and Valori Wells!

   




   




Enter to Win Bernina 455 QE Kaffe Edition

Hey everyone! It has been a while! I have to share some great news! I have some great giveaway announcement!     Alex and Ricky at TheQuiltS...