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Last week I shared photos of some of my favorite quilts from the Madison show. I also talked about how my classes and lectures kept me very busy. The 3 hour workshop I taught this year was “Quilt, Slash, Create”. It’s a very playful, creative class, and I think I can safely say we all had a good time. Here are some of the student’s works in progress:

I had one morning free and I couldn’t wait to take a class. It was a serging workshop and Pam Mashie, the Bernina instructor who taught it, was excellent! I had my winter runner finished before class was over and I learned so much. Pam teaches at Sew Much More and I highly recommend her! (and don’t you love the way I coordinated my outfit with the class project? 😂)

Prior to the show I decided to experiment a bit more with my serger, and I created something to wear at the show (and anytime I teach a Seminole class 😊). Here’s the story:

After having a good time making a pair of pants a few weeks ago, I decided to go with an idea that had been brewing for a while. My Seminole Sampler classes have been very well attended, and wearing a garment with Seminole piecing would make teaching it even more fun. So I purchased a beautiful dark blue batik at Madison’s Crafts and Fabrics here in Watertown (it was actually an extra wide backing fabric ~ which worked great). Then I chose a fun Seminole design and began piecing a strip to go down the sides of a pair of wide leg pants.

I love the Seminole strip piecing techniques and followed the measurements in a book I have ~ which was published in the 1980s.

It resulted in a pretty strip, but it was quite narrow and I wasn’t pleased with the low value difference between the two gold fabrics I’d chosen.

Hmm… maybe this narrow row should be used in a vest, and a wider one could be made for the pants. The instructions for the piecing were only in one size, so I grabbed my 1/4″ graph paper and came up with amounts for a larger strip of the same design.

It looked much more proportional!

Making the pants was easy because it was the same pattern I’d made previously. And I’m getting better at serging 😊.

Then came the vest. I found a pattern that I thought would work, but where would the Seminole piecing go? I stared at the fabric and pattern for quite a while and decided to walk away until inspiration struck. That happened the next day when I took photos of the fabrics and leftover chunks of Seminole from the pants, and played with designs in Affinity Photo on my computer. This is what I came up with:

It really is handy to know how to work in a photo editing program. I took a ten week class in Photoshop™ 20 years ago and it was one of the most useful classes I’ve ever taken. Now it was time to stitch what’s pictured above for the back of the vest. Here’s an “in progress” photo . The colors aren’t good in this photo, but by the time I realized it the piece was already sewn together.

The colors are closer to the actual piece in this photo of the completed block:

Next I added fabric around the piece and cut out the back of my vest. Then I asked myself “should I piece a motif for the front? I wasn’t sure, and so I took a photo of the pattern piece (on the left) and a leftover strip of the Seminole piecing (laid out on a piece of the background fabric to the right). I opened them in Affinity photo again and tried something I hadn’t done before. Using a selection tool in my computer program, I selected the inner part of the pattern on the first photo and deleted it. That made the “hole” where the pattern was turn into a “tiny gray/white checkerboard”. This is what happens in photo editing software. My idea was to then copy the middle image (with the hole) and paste it over the one on the right.

And this is what happened!!!

Yup ~ the image on the bottom showed through the hole! Just like I’d hoped. And I liked it! That was fun 😁! You may have noticed I added a small gold square in the center of the Seminole strip prior to taking the photo above. I was happy with that too. But all this was only done on the computer once again. It was time to have some fun piecing it and putting it all together.

I think the entire outfit is fun ~ but is it a little clown-ish? Mike said kind words, but I’m not sure he wants to be seen with me wearing it in public 😂. The strip down the legs looks a bit like it came from a band leader uniform. Even in the 70s, Seminole pieced outfits were a little out there. It will however be a hit in my Seminole classes. ~ and I had to wear it at the Madison quilt show, because quilters get it! I wore it to my first class of the show and received many nice comments. Here are a few selfies I took in the hotel room mirror.

I think this serging of garments could become a new addiction!

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And one more (completely unrelated) thing…

I recieved an email from Debbie with this message:

“I have a vintage crib quilt with appliquéd Beatrix Potter characters that I would like to sell. It is in very good condition and has no stains or tears. It is 53″ x 35″.”

What a sweet quilt! I would love to own it, but I’m at a point where I need to start downsizing my collection, not adding to it. If you are interested in Debbie’s quilt, please comment or email me at , and I’ll send you her phone number.

As always ~ there was so much to do and see at this year’s show that I can’t fit it all into one post. So, I’ll start with my favorite part of any show ~ the QUILTS! As most of you know, I like to share photos of some of my favorites. I’m not doing this with my judges hat on, I just pick the ones that intrigue me, whether they’ve won a ribbon or not. So here goes…

I was teaching quite a bit again this year, thus the time I had available to see the quilts was precious. I decided to start at the back of the exhibit and the first quilt I saw really grabbed me. It’s orange! I love orange! And then there was teal, yellow, intricate piecing, appliqué, and it was topped off with hand embroidery and embellishments. How could I not love it? I soon discovered it was made by my friend Eileen. I think I feature one of her quilts every year, and with good reason.

And that was just the beginning. I’ve talked to many people about the show and the general consensus was that the quality of the quilts was really fabulous this year. I would agree.

I have a warm spot in my heart for quilts that do something innovative with traditional patterns, and I’ve done a few of my own variations of the Dresden Plate, but this one took it to a new level because Mary Jane embroidered the petals in some of the plates. Every aspect was well done.

When I think of Laurie Landree’s work, faces usually come to mind – not mushrooms. And just look at all those wonderful hand stitches! What fun.

Sampler quilts are another favorite of mine. In fact, my lecture this year included my first quilt and it was a sampler. Placing all the different blocks in a heart created a bright, cheerful, happy quilt.

And for a rather unusual twist on a sampler – placing the blocks in cows fits the bill. I’ve never added googly eyes to a quilt, but in this one it works!

I want to include one more sampler. The many bright scrappy blocks are fun, but what I liked was the way Brian pieced the four pointed compass into it all. What a fascinating design concept.

Next are a pair of lovely wholecloth quilts. The combination of a vintage linen tablecloth with modern machine quilting worked beautifully in “Antique Irish Linen”.

And “Antique Blush” was incredibly elegant and well done.

Plus, did you notice that Megan lives in Canada? Our Madison show is definately international.

The appliquéd rings in Lorraine’s “Circular Cosmos” are completely hand stitched, and the quilting is non-computerized. Wow!

The following pictorial quilt has such depth, and the children are so lifelike. What wonderful use of fabrics and values!

This next quilt is very special to me. As you’ll read, it all started in one of my Mariner’s Compass workshops. Glennes used it as the jumping off point for this spectacular quilt, and I was so pleased to run into her and get to talk about it.

I’m not usually very interested in still life art, but this one grabbed me. I especially like Sara’s color choices and her piecing of the background and table.

Each show I have to pick one landscape – and this one was hands-down my favorite. Susan’s attention to detail is fantastic!

A month or two ago I did a post about lace. It was inspired by things I saw on my trip to the UK last May, and included some quilts of my own that were embellished with lace. So, Pamela’s combining of vintage looking lace with a very contemporary bright center was photo worthy.

And speaking of lace, Tia Otto’s “Lace of the Northwinds” used the term lace in a very different way. To begin with, I loved her fabric choices that overlapped with wonderful transparent effects. And the inclusion of the snowflake fabric that looks like lace was the perfect touch.

I’m often fascinated by Linda Fleschner’s work, so it was not surprising that “Unconstrained” appealed to me. “Color Catcher™” dots??? I wonder if she cut them out with a hole punch? How very creative!

Unique art quilts often get my attention. And I’ve made a number of quilts that are made up of more than one quilt. Jane’s was quite original and very well done.

Ruby had quite a journey making “Lura”, but it was well worth it. Just look at all those raw-edged feathers.

Here’s a new take on temperature quilts. The trees and quilting were a perfect fit with the houses.

Cindy and I have traveled together. She is a very adventurous globe trotter and I always enjoy seeing what she does with the fabrics she purchases on her trips around the world. This has to be one of my favorties!

And as long as we’re looking at great piecing, I just had to share Donna’s delightful quilt.

I think what grabbed me about Kelly’s quilt was when I noticed that there were only 3 fabrics in the entire work. She had quite a vision for what to do with the “striped turquoise” fabric, and the quilted stars are unexpected and just the right fit.

Sadly, I just didn’t have time to really examine the extra exhibits. But I did hang the ThreadBender’s Achromatic challenge on Wednesday, and we were blessed to have a wonderful space right near the front entrance.

And I loved all of Victoria Findley Wolfe’s exhibit (her lecture was excellent too!). What’s going on with that wedding ring quilt hung way up high?

I zoomed in with my camera. Too cool! Her combining of piecing and photos on fabric is truly amazing!

There’s more to share, but it will just have to wait for a future post.

Oh, and if you’re wondering why the view out our hotel window at the show is at the top of this post, it’s because we usually are on the 4th floor and only get to see the buildings and parking lot. This year we were on the 8th floor and we could actually see the Capital! Beautiful!

I’ve just returned from the Great Wisconsin Quilt Show in Madison (which was definitely not the “dark side” of anything!). It was fabulous, and I have a lot of thoughts and photos to search through, so I will be posting about it next week. In the meantime I hope you enjoy this week’s post about fabric and garments:

I’ve mentioned Madison’s Crafts and Fabrics in previous posts. Haley opened her shop in Watertown a few years ago (Her last name is Madison, so it has nothing to do with our State capital 😊). Her shop is great, and it’s growing! She is still selling vintage fabrics at great prices from the sewing stores she purchased in Iowa. But she has new things coming in everyday, and her quilting cottons area keeps getting better and better.

The last time I stopped in I was thrilled to see that she is now carrying Gutermann thread. I know many quilters who like this basic thread – and now there’s a place to get it again! She also has boxes full of garment patterns.

Last Christmas our granddaughter Hanna wanted me to make her a jacket, which I did.

Finding a pattern was not easy. The pattern companies of the past are gone and I ended up having to order one online. It was just what she wanted, but it required me to tape 51 sheets of computer paper together to make the pattern. Oh how I longed for the tissue paper pieces in those old pattern packets pictured above. And did you read the signs? Free!!! I couldn’t control myself. I now have patterns for every garment I might ever want to sew. Plus – I’ve been itching to play with my new serger! So I purchased some of Haley’s vintage fabrics (at $2.99/yard) and started in on a pair of pants (don’t you love that wide leg pants are back in style?)!

Did you notice the pattern weights? I’ve had them for years and they work great ~

~ especially when you want to cut out garments with a rotary cutter! Sadly, these weights are no longer manufactured by Olfa. I did find a variety on Amazon by other manufacturers, along with the vintage ones I own ~ at “antique store” prices (ugh).

I had the pants sewn in a few hours and I LOVED using the serger (even with the learning curve 😊). I decided to take a mirror selfie like my granddaughters do.

The next day I met a friend for lunch at a very eclectic restaurant in Waukesha. They have oodles of fun things hanging all over the walls, and I couldn’t believe the large poster near the front door ~ of a vintage bit of Americana:

Can you believe the price ~ 75¢ ~ those were the good old days. Wait ~ mine was free 🤣. God is good!

So, is anyone wondering why I entitled this post “Returning From the Dark Side”? It refers to one of my lectures ~ “Gone to the Dark Side”, and has to do with my background in garment sewing that led to my love for quilting.

To read a post about that lecture, please click here. I’m grateful I can’t be “pigeonholed.” I think all aspects of sewing are bright and exciting!

PS I was back at Madison’s store recently and the patterns are going fast. It looked like the amount on the table is less than half, so hurry in if you want to check it out. (717 W Main St, Watertown)

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As I was preparing to share this post my friend Ruth brought a jacket she’d made to one of our Fiberista’s meetings. She designed it on a child’s sweatshirt and will be gifting it to a granddaughter at Christmas. Isn’t is delightful!?! Well done Ruth!

A few weeks ago I took you along with me to Iron River, MI. In that post I mentioned that I would be returning to teach at a quilt show in the UP in October. The Wild Rivers Quilt Guild is putting on the show, and here’s the link for anyone who is interested: https://wildriversquiltguild.org/quilt-show/.

It’s going to be a wonderful show. Maybe I’ll see some of you there!

And now for something completely different 😁:

While in the Scottish Islands last May I picked up some shells along the shore of the North Sea. They were a pretty periwinkle blue and I later found out they were simply mussel shells.

One of them was especially interesting. It had a hole in it and it looked like something had been growing on it. I did a bit of online searching and I think it’s some sort of barnacle. Whatever it is, I found it fascinating and decided to put a cord through it and wear it as a necklace that might spark some fun conversation. Before I could do that I needed to coat it with a clear finish. This caused the blue areas to darken in an interesting way. Now to thread a cord through the hole and wear it!

Working with a shell I picked up while traveling took me back to a necklace made from a rock I picked up in Rostock, Germany in 2014.

This took place while on our Sew We Go cruise on the Baltic Sea . During a walking tour through the city our guide showed us some local rocks that had natural holes in them. She recommended we each take one and even had the strings to make the necklaces.

From there we went to the Blaudruck and Handdruck shop ~ and it was a memorable visit. I wrote a post about our visit and the dear man who didn’t speak a word of English, yet demonstrated his craft beautifully while making us all laugh.

His name is Reinhardt Haase, and this is his family’s shop (please click here to read the post).

Do you have any jewelry you’ve made from found rocks, shells, or ??? Please email me photos at

And then… Mike and I recently attended the:

We like to go every year and it is a very classy show with some unique and creative artists. I found two of them particularly interesting. Stacey Stewartson is a leather mosaic artist from Milwaukee.

She told us that she cuts her leather pieces using a rotary cutter and ruler – and then glues them to a base. She uses value well, and her work is beautiful.

Click here to visit Stacey’s website!

The next booth that intrigued me was filled with fascinating weavings by another local artist named Julia Keuler.

What really attracted me to her work was that she leaves areas open with the warp threads showing so that the wall behind is visible. It reminded me of my Crossings quilts where the different parts of my quilts are held together with beads, buttons, etc., and the wall can be seen through the gaps. Her pieces are finished with the base threads as part of the design. Some are woven into frames while others are on the looms she creates to weave them.

I couldn’t help myself. I had to have one of them. The nails that hold the threads are visible, as are the threads and wood behind the opening under the left arm of the copper cross.

It looks lovely hanging next to a beautiful macramé piece my daughter-in-law Betsy made for my mom ~ and that now belongs to us.

It’s such fun to meet and learn about the work of other artists ~ especially fiber artists!

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And one more thing… after last week’s post about puzzle quilts Lorraine sent me this email and photo.

“Here is my version of a Sudoku quilt. Each fabric represents a number from 1-9 so the quilt represents a complete Sudoku grid. All you need is a stack of fat quarters. It was such fun to make!”

Being a sudoku fan – I love it! – Thanks Lorraine!

I unintentionally sent out my post announcement for this week with the title “Shells, Rocks and Fibers”, and yet – this week’s post is about puzzles ~ and the other “Shells, Rocks and Fibers” will appear next week. Sorry for the confusion. I guess I wanted to make this week’s email really puzzling 🤔.

Here is “Puzzling Quilts”:

I recently taught for a guild in Illinois and this crossword puzzle quilt was shared during show and tell. I loved it and had to snap a picture. In going through my photos recently I decided many of you would enjoy it too. Sadly, I didn’t get the name of the maker. If anyone knows who she is, please add it to the comments.

I am a puzzler at heart and love all types of puzzles. So I’ve made a few puzzle quilts myself. Way back during Wisconsin’s Sesquicentennial, I entered a guild challenge with that as the theme. Each of the words in the puzzle had something to do with our wonderful State, and the fabric squares (which all came from my stash) did too. I was so pleased with the puzzle part that I decided to border it with the four seasons in Wisconsin, and added buttons and embellishments. The book buttoned to the top right corner contains the clues to the puzzle. It was great fun to make and a winner at the State Fair that year.

In June of 2020 I made a quilt for a challenge in the ThreadBenders group entitled “Puzzled No More” (Click here to read that post). This one focuses on jigsaw puzzle pieces rather than a crossword puzzle theme. There are jigsaw puzzle pieces in the appliqués and the quilting too.

And while writing about jigsaw puzzles, 2020 was a puzzling year for me because I also made a baby quilt for my niece’s baby boy Remington. Remmy’s is an “I spy” puzzle quilt (Click here to read the post).

I even love jigsaw puzzles with a quilty theme.

In 2024 one of the miniature quilts entered in the AQS Paducah show was a sudoku quilt. I have to admit ~ I’m hooked on sudoku also. So I was really intrigued by Charles Cameron’s work. His design of the numbers is fascinating.

And for a really crazy puzzle quilt that I haven’t shared in a long time… this is “Puzzling Spumoni”.

If you want to hear that story, please come to my lecture at the Great Wisconsin Quilt Show. I’ll be sharing it’s story and you can see it there “in the cloth”.

Have you made any type of puzzle quilt?

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And one more thing…

Diane sent me photos of three quilts she’s made in response to a post I did last month about a “Gray Quilt”. Here’s what she said:

“Gray seems to be the color of the day! I have made these three quilts recently all using grays and beiges.”

Gray is very in right now – and these quilts use it beautifully! I especially love all the curves! Thanks Diane!

Lakeland Baptist in Iron River, MI is a small church pastored by Paul and his sweet wife Joann. Joann attended my talk at a Christian women’s retreat 2 years ago (click here for a post about it) and she felt that my talk would be a good outreach to the quilters in her area. There is an old high school building in Iron River that has been repurposed for a number of interesting uses and the church rented the “cafeteria” for our gathering because of the large space and good lighting. It was perfect ~ and of course I forgot to take any photos of the talk 😞. But here’s the building we were in.

We had a nice sized group and they were all so kind and interested. The attendees took many of my Mom’s tracts afterwards, and I actually sold quite a few books too ~ an unexpected bonus! Joann said that very few speakers and teachers are willing to make the long drive up to the U.P. because of the distance. I think they’re missing out. The trip up was beautiful and the people were so welcoming. What a blessing!

After speaking and then chatting with everyone, another Joanne engaged me in a conversation about the quilt guild that met in the same building. Part of the Windsor Center is an art and entertainment venue, but other areas are rented out to various businesses and groups. What a great idea! So many of these old buildings are torn down, but this one lives on. There were an eclectic mix of rentees, but my favorite by far was the Carrie Jacobs-Bond Quilters. They rent 3 “science” rooms ~ and what a perfect fit! Here’s their front entrance, lockers and all!

Joanne told me that she wanted to hang the spool quilt she made for the group (on the left) out in the hall, but some of the members thought it might be “taken”. So she painted it on the wall. After a while she couldn’t stand the emptiness around it and began to bring in other items. They’ve never been bothered. What a sweet entryway!

In the first room each member has their own table and machine that they are able to leave set up and ready to go year round! Joanne and Michaeline were pleased to give me the grand tour.

Just look at those gorgeous oak cabinets in each room ~ perfect for storing fabric and quilting supplies.

Daniel, one of their members, was at my talk. He was very interested in some of the techniques I use and asked great questions. I found out later that quilting isn’t his only talent. He made the cutting tables for the guild.

The third room not only has another of Daniel’s tables, but a long arm for the members to use!

And did you notice the roll of batting at the end of the cutting table? Yup ~ They’ve made cutting large batting pieces easy. Brilliant! Wish I had room for that in my studio.

The ladies told me that their rent is very reasonable and is covered by the guild member dues. With the long winters they have up in the UP I can see that this space would be heavenly for each and every member.

Thank you to everyone at Lakeland Baptist Church, and to all who came and made that day so special. I actually will be heading back up to Michigan, Iron Mountain this time, to teach at a quilt show in October. I can’t wait!

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And one more thing…

A few days after my visit to the UP, I was heading north again to lecture and teach for the Evergreen Quilters in Green Bay. What a fun group. I presented my Tradition With a Twist lecture on a Tuesday evening, and the next day my Seminole Sampler workshop. The class was a joy and I did get a few photos this time.

I think it’s safe to say that a good time was had by all! Thanks ladies!

And a special thank you to Kathy who hosted me in her beautiful “quilt filled” home.

In 2022 my friend Cathy and I visited a quilt show in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (the UP). It was a great trip (click here to read about it). Last week I was invited to present a talk for a church in Iron River ~ so I was able to return to that beautiful area. And what a great trip it was! I arrived on Friday night and members of Lakeland Baptist Church invited me to their home for a delicious, really home made dinner. They raise their own beef, grow their own vegetables and are both wonderful cooks.

If that weren’t enough ~ Jan is a “hooker” (rug hooker that is 🤣). She told me that she’s made a few quilts, but she didn’t really enjoy cutting up larger pieces of fabric and then trying to get all the tiny corners to match. She actually thinks hand-quilting the finished tops is more fun. That’s not something I hear very often. Then she said that a friend introduced her to rug hooking and she found her niche. Her home was covered with hooked rugs ~ like mine is covered with quilts. And John was more than happy to give me a tour of her work! As I began to take photos I discovered I couldn’t choose a favorite. They were all wonderful. I was impressed by the very first one. This long runner that laid atop their shoes was designed by Jan. She and John are on the right, along with all their animals on Sunset Farm.

You read that right ~ she creates her own personal designs! This one is in honor of their two donkeys who have passed.

Another floor rug was made from a traditional quilt pattern.

And this one is based on a Scripture verse.

Aren’t her designs delightful!!!

She also does “penny rugs”, and the way she displays them is charming.

The following are some of the hooked rugs hanging on the walls. Jan made the “partridge in a pear tree” as a Christmas hanging she could leave up year round.

And once again, her artistic flair is evident in the way she displays each one.

She even dabbles in Russian Punch Needle.

Thank you Jan and John for a memorable evening. As it was coming to a close I was able to get a photo of Jan with her wool stash. Even that is displayed in a beautiful way. The wool is in the cupboard, and the “worms” (cut strings of wool) are in the bins on top.

It was a delicious and delightful visit! And the next day I presented my quilting/faith journey talk to some of the church members as well as quilters from around the area whom they’d invited. What a joyful event! But I think I’ll save the details, along with the special quilting group in Iron River, for next week.

PS As I was writing this week’s post it reminded me of another friend who designs her own hooked rugs. Julie is a “hooker” and a “stripper” (quilt maker 😂). Her rugs are quite different from Jan’s, and just as amazing. To read that post click here.

PPS After adding the above PS I reread my post about Julie and realized it was written before her second journey with cancer. I think I should add “the rest of the story”: After a long, hard battle, Julie beat stage 4 uterine cancer. Since then she’s had some additional health issues, as has her husband. The Lord has gotten them through a lot, and she is still active and filled with joy. God bless you Julie!

After having grandkids here most of the summer, along with mom’s home-going, I realized I hadn’t sat down to sew for months. And I NEEDED to. My friends Ann and Ryan had a wedding approaching, so I gave myself permission to sew for a whole day!

The pattern I used to make this quilt is by Ruth Ann Berry (click here to visit her site). She owns the Quilter’s Clinic in Michigan, and she vends at many shows. I love her 3-D style of piecing. I took her class on Zen Doodling a few years ago in Madison. She’s a very good teacher and I enjoyed the class but I found that, even though I was a pretty good doodler in my college notebooks and I love to free-motion “doodle” on my quilts, Zen doodling isn’t really my thing. I did however really like the pattern she included in our kit for using the doodled fabric blocks we made in class. While my granddaughter Rainee was here we visited Ann, and I noticed her living room was decorated in neutral grays and beige. So I picked these favorites from my stash.

Ryan’s last name is Gray, and Ann said she likes that color ~ so my palette was decided. I had to adjust the pattern a bit, but was pleased with the results when the piecing was complete (please note – the gray border fabric is bluer in the photo than in reality).

You might have noticed that I used two different fabrics for the sashing and borders. That’s because I didn’t have enough of the gray or the brown to do it all 🤣.

After piecing the top I came to the realization that my life had gotten back to some semblance of “normal”, and I’ve been able to find more time to quilt – praise the Lord! So I was able to quilt and finish this piece in time for the wedding (whew).

For the back I chose a soft Shannon gray and loved the quilting process. When I teach classes on quilting I often tell my students that I don’t have the entire quilting design in mind when I begin. I pick an area that looks like a fun place to start – and I start. This time I decided to straight line quilt all the sashing around the blocks using a ruler and my Sweet 16.

Then I noodled on what to quilt in each square. A “G” was a must, along with a heart or two (free motion quilting around a freezer paper heart made that block a breeze).

I also wanted to include a cross:

and an appropriate Scripture verse:

When done I had quite a sampler of quilting designs, and the back was as interesting

as the front:

Now to get a photo of the newlyweds with their quilt!