A Christmas thread...

We're winding down the year - how many of you are still working on Christmas quilts and other gifts?  I'm done!  Delivered the last of them on Friday.  Then had a fun birthday weekend and now I'm updating my spreadsheet (!) with projects finished for 2015 and planned for 2016.  I'm going to hunker down and QUILT until my first show in February with the Kitsap Quilters.

Thanks to all of you who shopped with me and got some great THREAD for your quilts this year.  Use it up!  And make a resolution to try some new threads in the New Year.  There are so many great products and options for quilting.  I have some ideas and some surprises for you in 2016.

And, if you're still frantic, THREAD makes a great Christmas gift for your quilting friends!  I'm here for you!

Let's have some quilting adventures!

Block Party Quilters Issaquah show - Nov. 13-14-15 at the Issaquah Community Center!

We're coming to the end of the "guild quilt show season" here in Western Washington and the very best way to wrap it up is with the Block Party Quilters in Issaquah!  They have a beautiful show planned, in a beautiful location.  The Issaquah Community Center must have been designed with quilt shows in mind!

Always a great show with TALENTED quilters, BPQ will host featured quilt artist Janet Steadman, harpist David Michael, a tea room for your snacking needs, and 20 STELLAR vendors such as - wait for it - THREADMONGERS!!

So come on down and enjoy the last guild show before your winter quilting marathon begins.  I know you are most productive during the cold months...especially leading up to Christmas!  And guess what?  You'll need THREAD! 

Bring your list of needs and any fabric you want to find that special thread for.  Many of my customers now carry a list of threads they need or threads they have in their smart phones.  There's an app for that!

BPQ members are waiting for you!  Here's the link - see you in Issaquah!

http://www.bpquilters.org/images/QS_2015_BPQ_Flyer.pdf

Columbia River Gorge Quilters' Guild show - October 23-24! Hood River Armory.

Deep in the Columbia River Gorge, where Lewis and Clark first spotted spectacular Mount Hood, quilters on both sides of the river make spectacular quilts!

This weekend, they have prepared a wonderful quilt show for you at the Hood River Armory in Hood River, Oregon.  This is the place to be!  Fabulous fall weather, fall harvest produce, amazing views, and QUILTS!  All just a quick drive upriver from Portland and Vancouver WA. 

Right on the famous "Fruit Loop", Hood River is a great destination, anyway.  Bring your friends! 

Threadmongers will be there!  Winter is coming...you need thread!  Time to stock up!  When that snow/ice storm/torrential rain comes, and you are inside your cozy quilting space, with lots of fabric and hot coffee/tea/hot chocolate, will you have enough thread???  Don't take a chance - get the threads in colors you need NOW, at one of the last quilt shows of the year. 

Here's the link:

http://www.gorgequiltersguild.org/quiltshow.html

Be SURE to read their quilt show newsletter at the link.  So much information!!

Crystal Quilters of Enumclaw - putting on their best for you! October 9-10

Tucked away in a sweet spot valley in Western Washington is the happy town of Enumclaw, which is full of quilters!  They are planning a lovely show for you this weekend at the fairgrounds.  Be sure to come and see the work of this talented group!  Lots of inspiration for quilters and quilt-appreciators alike.

Threadmongers will be there!  Winter is coming...you need thread!!

Here's the link:

http://crystalquiltersofenumclaw.blogspot.com/

La Conner Quilt Festival - October 2-3-4 - you have waited all year for this!

One of the biggest and most prestigious shows in the state of Washington begins October 2!  The La Conner Quilt Festival is a juried show, sponsored by the La Conner Quilt and Textile Museum in that very scenic location. 

Threadmongers will be there!  Plus other great vendors, classes, and a whole lot of inspiration.  Are you ready? 

Winter is coming!  You need thread!!

Here's the link:

http://www.laconnerquilts.org/

Sea Pals of Ocean Shores - annual "Whale of a Quilt Show" Sept. 18-19-20!!

I'm sure there is no guild quilt show that is MORE FUN than the annual Whale of a Quilt Show in Ocean Shores!  Ok, that's probably because I don't have to do any of the work of putting on this GREAT, BIG SHOW!  I just get to enjoy the results!

Ocean Shores is an enclave of amazing quilters.  They show off their talent and productivity every fall in the Ocean Shores Convention Center.  A super, central venue for the show and so easy to find!

LOTS of vendors, lunch in the café, and shopping at the Sea Pals' member boutique should be on your schedule in addition to viewing the quilts.  Ocean Shores is an easy and beautiful drive so come on out and immerse yourself in ocean air and QUILTS!

Threadmongers will be there!  Winter is coming...you need thread!

Here's the link:

http://www.seapalsquilters.org/pals3.htm

2014 view from my booth:

 



Top quilt:  "Catch of the Day" by Judith Rosenberg, 2014

2015 Skagit County Fair - I won ribbons!

What fun to say that the two pieces I entered in our local Skagit County Fair were well-received by a judge and won ribbons!  here they are:

This miniature pineapple is about 10 inches square and foundation pieced on paper.  I had always wanted to make a red and white quilt and to make a pineapple - so I thought that combining those two objectives was a great idea!  Well, at 61 pieces per block...it took me a LONG time to complete it!! 

The whites and reds are all scrappy.  Foundation piecing on paper for pineapples is a sew-and-flip method, but you MUST sew them in the numbered order! 

I used white Invisafil as the top thread and prewound Deco-Bob bobbins.  Invisafil is a 100 weight poly and Deco-Bob is the 80 weight poly, both from Wonderfil.  With these tiny pieces I wanted to use the thinnest thread possible to make sure I wasn't bulking up the seams with thread.  I also quilted it, minimally, with the same combination.  Judge loved it!  Best of Class. 

Here's my other winner:

 

This table runner pattern is "The Sun Bathers" by Letitia Hutchings.  I took a little artistic license with the ends, because I liked a clean finish. 

 

I had fun using lots of thread on this one!

 

Walruses are quilted and blanket stitched (by machine) with Invisafil (purple) and Bottom Line 60 weight poly (gold). The eyes are beads.  The "whiskers" are a result of fussy cutting the batik fabric. 

 

The water is quilted in ripples with a beautiful turquoise metallic thread from Hemmingworth.

 

Invisafil or Deco-Bob in the bobbin for all.

 

 

 

Finally, the tusks were the most fun - the fabric is a white Fairy Frost!  So they sparkle a little.  But wait, there's more!  I laid down Razzle Dazzle #8 weight metallic thread (Superior) in the Icicles color around the edges of the tusks.  Then couched it with a light zig zag stitch with white Invisafil.  That gives the edges of the tusks a little dimensional ridge and more sparkle. 

 

The judge mentioned the variety of thread in their comments on the piece and awarded it Reserve Best of Class! 

 

I tell people all of the time - have fun with all these great threads!!  If you're only using one thing, you're missing a lot of the creativity of quilting!