2023 Fun Things I did

 

 We started attending a monthly card making class. These are the January cards.

We also took a class at Sugarbakers on making cookies. 

February card making class:

Board and Brush with Pickleball girls:

This was a class we took at Pellissippi at the Blount County campus with Lydia Harman.

This is my beginning quilting class at Pellissippi minus Mary who was not there the last night. It was a great class! I had the best time and I think my students did too.

Marian and I took a class at Creative Spark in Maryville on blacksmithing. Marian only got partly finished with her leaf because she burned her hand. I finished up hers and did mine. I had the best time!!!!

I attended the Tennessee Basket Association's convention at the Airport Hilton with my friend, Tone Haugen-Cogburn. We took 4 classes. Had a great time and made 5 baskets.

 This was so much fun and I loved learning about Nantucket baskets. I want to make more of them.

Marian and I took a class at the Appalachian Arts and Craft Center in Cyanotype printing. 

You treat fabric with chemicals and then place items on them and place them in the sun for 10 minutes.  It was a fun class and we learned a lot.

I've always wanted to see Wayne Newton in person. Since I saw him on the I Love Lucy show when I was a kid. He finally came to Knoxville on September 14th. I went all by myself and I had the best time!!!!

My Beginning and Quilting 2 class students - all my classes were fabulous

I participated in a tournament in support of an orphanage in Ukraine at my Pickleball club. We lost horribly, but it was a fun day.

I was lecturing at a guild in Athens and a woman came up to me. At the SMQ 2021 Quilt Show, she won the ribbon I made for the traditional quilt. Her son made her a coffee cup with the quilt on one side and my ribbon on the other. It was amazing that she shared it with me.

2023 Quilting/Sewing finishes

 

 This is the table runner I designed for students to make in my Beginning Quilting class. I will teach this for the first time beginning the first Monday in February at Pellissippi Community College for their adult learning classes.

Table runner and table topper for my improv classses:

Hoodie made from the throw Carol Idol gave me before she passed away.

In April, we had our 2nd Annual Quilt Retreat in Murrell's Inlet, SC. Attending this year were: me, Marian, Karen Pharr, Ginny Storm, Kathy Dittmaier and Wendy Paskus. Sally Sante was supposed to join us, but was unable to attend due to family matters. We arrived on Tuesday and started with dinner at Drunken Jack's. It was recommended by my pickleball friend, Teri because of the hush puppies. They were delicious. After dinner we headed to the grocery store and then back to the retreat center. I began working on this quilt top for Taylor's best friend, Jessica. She is expecting a baby this summer.

 It is a simple chevron using a black and white animal print and a soft blue. 

Finished picture of Jessica's quilt:

Karen purchased enough materials for all of us to make these bags. Ginny and I finished ours first. Then Karen made hers and Ginny made another one. No one else made one.

This is Garden City Beach. We walked there on Wednesday and Friday mornings. On Thursday, we went to Surfside Beach because we got lost. Wonderful way to begin each day.

 This is my national park quilt. Took me 2 days to get it put together. I'm going to add some small fabric replicas of the Anderson Company national park post cards. (Quilted by Ginny Storm in 2024 and completely finished.)

 This was a panel Karen and I purchased at Beginnings Quilt Shop in North Caroline. We wanted to see how different each one would turn out to be. She didn't get hers finished, but hers is going to be black and gold.

We ate one night at J. Peters and another at the Dead Dog Saloon. Everyone agreed the Saloon was the best. We visited Sew Accent Quilt shop twice and Quilting by the Sea in Myrtle Beach once. We also went to a local artist gallery that was amazing and Two Brothers' Wood shop. I purchased a beautiful print of a window looking out on the beach and a beautiful rolling pin.

I participated in a puzzle quilt challenge with my guild. I finally got the whole quilt finished.

The other guild members who worked on it were: Jennifer Wilkerson, Sandy Kambic, Sally Sante, Mali Glazer, Janet Wambach and Dee West. 

This was a pin cushion I made using the Ten Sisters Grid. It is for Mountain Creek Quilt Shop. All the employees of the shop were asked to make one. I believe they are using it for the Quiltfest in Pigeon Forge.

I finished this cute little baby quilt for my friend Kathy's daughter, McKenzie. It was a simple pattern, but I loved how it turned out.

 The material in the middle and the borders and binding were purchased in South Carolina during my retreat there.

This quilt is made up of 12" blocks I made in my Quilting 2 class I taught at Pellissippi State Community College. I made each of the 12 different blocks 3 times and then pieced them together into a huge churn dash.

Now for the bowl frenzy. I discovered a shop in Blowing Rock, NC called Mountain Thread Company. They make the rope to make rope bowls. I love this rope and have made many new bowls.

This is the first one I made.

This bowl was made to give as a gift at my Pickleball group holiday party:

This one I made for the Wildi sisters for letting us have stitch night at their house.

Final bowl of this year, I think. It was for Marian to use as a gift for her new knitting group.

2023 Cross Stitch Finishes

 

This will become a Quilt Show ribbon for my guild's 2023 Show in June. It is for the Best in Hand Quilting ribbon.

The finished ribbon.