Friday, March 12, 2021

Academy of Applique’ 2021

Hello Everyone!  I’ve just returned from teaching at the Academy of Applique’ held in Williamsburg, VA.  It was SOOOO nice to see people in person (with masks) and see the smiles in their eyes.  I absolutely love teaching and to teach at the Academy is such an honor!  I always tell my students I hope I can teach them something and love seeing them get excited about creating quilts using the methods I prefer and teach.  I’ve heard from several students who have finished all the Hexies for the center and are on their way to prepping the rest of the elements for the center.  

The class project was Nana’s Garden Club, a quilt inspired by my Mom and Memaw who loved being members of their local garden clubs in Mississippi and Georgia.  I remember my Mom being so excited to enter contests of decorating the front door.  One year she wrapped the door in gold wrapping paper with a huge ribbon and then added a beautiful winter wreath. She saved that paper and ribbon and we had gifts given for several years with that paper.  Memaw had several gardening books that I received from my mom once I started enjoying having a flower garden.  I cherish it!  I am so blessed to see her handwritten notes in that book.  Anyway, the quilt is filled with memories of my Mom and Memaw as I remembered them when I stitched.  Isn’t it wonderful how our quilts are filled with memories!  

Along with those memories, Nana’s Garden Club is filled with whimsical flowers and a few hexies as accents. 

                                              


                                          


This quilt was a joy to create!  Our new product, Ultimate Freezer Paper is an absolute game changer for quick starch prep for applique’ shapes.  Due to the wonderful stiffness when two sheets are used together, along with the mini iron and Premium Quilting Starch, the Fingertip Stiletto, which allows you to get your finger right up close to the iron without getting burned and the Starch Brush which gives you just the right amount of starch on the seam allowances, you get quick and precise results on any shape easily!  These tools make preparing appliqué and English Paper Piecing shapes a real joy.  Then once they are completed, the sewing part goes lickity split!  The pattern walks you through the process as well as gives you a lesson on drawing a big circle and setting those hexies in place on the border easily.  The pattern is now available on the home page of the website, TraditionalPrimitives.com.  While you are ordering the pattern or kit, be sure to also choose the supplies suggested to make the process easy and quick.  It all makes a huge difference in the enjoyment and success while making quilts!

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We have kits available for you and remember the pattern is free when you buy the kits for most all of my designs!  You can add on the preprinted and doubled template pages.  These pages are ready for you to cut and begin!  There is also an option for purchasing the precut hexies needed for the quilt.  There are lots of options to make everyone happy and get you going on this quilt! 

As soon as I returned from the Academy of Applique, we had a visit from all the kids and grandkids.  We have 3 grands now and boy oh boy are they fun!  Paxton is quickly becoming a little boy.  Kenzie is almost a year old now, beginning to walk and talk, and Julian is on his way to being 2 months old!  We found a moment to get a quick pic of the three of them together!  Once Kenzie discovered Julian’s mouth we couldn’t keep her finger out of there!  Haha!  Oh the fun they will have together in the future... Of course I love it when all my girls come home.  I’m so proud of each of them as they grow up.  They love finding time to be together and make great efforts now that they all live in different parts of the country.  ❤️❤️❤️

        

Thanks for stopping by today!

As always, take care, 

Missie

TraditionalPrimitives.com