Removing chalk lines…

Lorraine D. emailed recently asking me how to remove the white chalk lines that she’d used to mark her quilting design. I don’t mark tops often and when I have, the lines are usually gone by the time I’ve finished quilting so this isn’t something that I’ve had to deal with in a long time.

I do know that trying to erase the lines can mar the fabric so I wouldn’t recommend that. Washing can work but isn’t always an option. I suggested shaking it out like a rug, as long as that wouldn’t hurt the quilt. What I could picture in my head was the chalk dust flying out of the quilt. (Hanging the quilt on a line and whacking it with a broom also came to mind but that seemed extreme.)

But Lorraine came up with a better idea:

As I couldn’t sleep one night, I thought of placing it in the dryer with several bath towels, on no heat. I now have an almost perfect quilt. 

That is a trick I’m going to remember!


I think it looks perfect as it is :-).

Show and Tell…

Joanne O sent me this photo of her Fresh Picked Posies. I love it!

JoanneO-FreshPicked

Joanne says

…this was my first attempt at a full size hand appliquéd quilt…to prepare for this undertaking I watched your U- tube videos on the Piece of Cake Way for hand appliqué .  I found the pattern easy to follow & the larger pieces were great for a first go at hand stitching . It was machine quilted on a long arm by my friend Karen C. I am so pleased with how it turned out. …love love love this pattern. Thank you so much.

Joanne, you made a great quilt! Way to go, you!

It’s time to celebrate!

This weekend, March 18-20, is International Quilting Weekend and The Quilt Show is hosting a party! You can win prizes and see all of their shows (over 200!)  for free at TheQuiltShow.com. Look for me in shows 611 and 1704. Remember that all the shows are free, all weekend long.

There are $11,000 worth of prizes at The Quilt Show party! Click the image below to enter the drawing.

IQW-Giveaway-Image

And don’t forget to spend time quilting this weekend too :-).

Show and Tell…

PatriciaFayeMcLaughlin

PatriciaFayeMcLaughlin

Patricia Faye McLaughlin sent me a photo of her Backyard Birds quilt, saying:

I wanted to share my completed Backyard Birds Quilt that was our 2015 project on the Quilters Club of America Applique’ Group.
It is one of my very favorite quilts.  I did the FMQ on my domestic machine.  Thank you so much for such a fun quilt pattern.

I love it! Well done, Patricia!

Rocky Mountain highhhhhhh….

I had a completely wonderful time at the Colorado Quilting Council fall retreat. Many quilters (including me) enjoyed spectacular views of the Black Forest from the The Hideaway. The ladies were enthusiastic and excellent company, the place is great, the food is good. If you have an opportunity to go to this retreat, you should!

I taught Pickup Sticks, a pieced quilt from The Quilters Practical Guide To Color. It is both an easy and tricky quilt design. Once you get it, it’s really easy… but getting it takes concentration. Everyone in the room was up for the challenge and made progress. I didn’t take enough photos, but you can see that what was going on in the classroom.

I also taught an applique class. I don’t have time in an applique class to take pictures so you just have to imagine the fun :-).

We were above 7,000 feet. By the 3rd day I could really tell that I had to breath a whole lot more than I do at home. Morning walks were out of the question. I like air in my air! I got home this morning and I can say the Sherman, TX, may not have scenic mountains and dry, crisp air, but it has a lot more oxygen. Yay, oxygen!

 

Tune in this afternoon!

Today is the day! I will be Pat Sloan’s guest on American Patchwork & Quilting Radio today (Monday, September 28) at 4pm Eastern, 3pm Central. Click here to listen to the whole show. I’ll be on in the second half of the program.

If you can’t tune in to listen live, you can listen to the podcast later. Click APQ Radio and follow the instructions to find my podcast—and many more.

I’m looking forward to visiting with you over the internet radio waves later today :-).

American Patchwork Quilting Pocast episode 278 Becky Goldsmith