September! Part 1!

September! It’s Fall! Back to School! Virgo birthday season!

It’s also that time again when I announce all the cool stuff going on. There’s so much, actually, that I’m dividing into two posts. Because I like sequels.

1-- I'll be heading to Palm Springs at the beginning of October for Quiltfest Oasis. I'll be teaching and lecturing, alongside some other awesome quilters, including Libs Elliott. Check out the details here or by clicking on the photo. See you in Palm Springs! (I'm so excited, by the way, I've never been to Palm Springs!)

2-- Next up! The following week, I'll be back in the Bay Area teaching for my second year at the Pacific International Quilt Festival. And this time, you'll recognize right away who else is going to be there.

There are still spots open in some of our classes, so head over to the website to sign up. See you in Santa Clara!

2-- Next up! The following week, I'll be back in the Bay Area teaching for my second year at the Pacific International Quilt Festival. And this time, you'll recognize right away who else is going to be there.

There are still spots open in some of our classes, so head over to the website to sign up. See you in Santa Clara!

Part Two of the September updates to come... including some dates for your calendars and fun projects to announce! Stay tuned.

Oh, and if you aren't already doing so, follow me over on Instagram to keep track of my comings and goings:)

See you soon,

Ashley

Golden Gate #2, check!

Oh, the diamonds! The four-point stars!

This project had it all. Geometry, measuring, and a lot of free-wheeling. You might remember that I am a self-proclaimed "triangle-phile," and well, I do believe that I'd like to officially add diamonds (rhombuses, if you will) to my list of sewing shape celebrities.

As you can see, I marked the quadrants. My philosophy on marking is to err on the side of YES. Even though it can be (or it IS) tedious, I find that it pays off, especially when geometric shapes are involved!

But wait. What started out as an exploration of these four-pointed rhombi quickly moved into a focus on what I determined to be the negative space of this quilting design... the star.

Here you can see the free-motion doodle I placed into this star-shaped area. It not only made the diamond "pop," or "puff" up, but the use of blue thread gave the star area its own stand-out design.

Thanks for all of your support!

See any gates out there you think I'd like? Let me know on Instagram with the hashtag #gatesofthesunset, or tweet me @alphabetashley!

See you soon!

-Ashley

M is for Mother-Daughter Quilting Class

May always feels like a very family-oriented month to me. My dad, my sister, my brother-in-law, and BOTH of my nieces celebrate their birthdays this month. And to top it all off, it's Mother's Day! I seem to be the only one who doesn't get some love this month. Unless you count a 1/2 birthday. But who (above the age of 13) celebrates a 1/2 birthday...?

In any case, I have a LOT of cards to send this month.

Just in time for the familial festivities... I'm excited to share a project that my mom and I have been working on... a Mother-Daughter Quilting Class!

Many of you know that my mom is a professional quilter, and travels near and far in order to spread her knowledge of quilting. Teaming up with Creativebug allows students to gain access to her classes from the comfort of their own home. To top it all off, the video workshops are stunning!

This past month, I had the pleasure of joining the Creativebug party. In our class, we explore the differences between modern (me) and traditional (my mama) quilting by making two different quilts using the same color palette. We give step-by-step instructions on how to make both quilts, and give video and PDF instructions. Yep, that's right. Two for one!

The fun part about the class is that you can not only learn how to piece together both quilt tops, but you also get the added bonus of learning several machine quilting techniques. And considering we are both from the Midwest... there's a lot of smiling!

Here is a quick look at the filming. It was oh-so-fun!

And here are the quilts!

Check out the Mother-Daughter Quilting class on Creativebug! Also, browse all of the other amazing classes, and consider a subscription or even a free trial! You can't go wrong.

Many thanks to the wonderful peeps at Cbug, and of course...

(Photos courtesy of Creativebug Inc.)

W is for Wedding

Two, well actually three really amazing events happened leading up to the letter W. First of all, Heather Ross released her new Briar Rose fabric line. You don't have to look very hard to find many a sewist GEEKING OUT on these delicious prints. Ever since I touched and felt that dark bright orange "Bee in a Bonnet" print down the street at Peapod Fabrics, it was literally wafting me it's pheromones from three blocks away. The chemistry is THAT powerful, I'm telling you. Second, two of my craftiest friends (of the Save Tuesdays persuasion) came to visit. And third, the crafty Queen of Hearts herself (who also sits on the Tuesday royal court) got married.

You know what THAT means!

That's right. Handmade wedding gifts.

One thing I think of when I think of my friend Lorien (besides Michael Jackson) is the Prismacolor colored pencil PC903, Bleu Franc (that's True Blue for you non-francophones.) You too? I know, crazy. It's just SOOO her colored pencil. So when I found out she tended towards blue and orange in her house... I let out a little yelp, grabbed my PC903, and made a beeline to buy the fabric.

You'll find below a few shots (and a bonus GIF!) of the process. The final product is either a table topper or a small wall hanging... I'll let the bride and groom decide.

Note: A few months ago, I made a zig-zag table runner. As it was my first time sewing the triangles together in this fashion, I ended up chopping off all of the tips of the triangles, creating an interesting result. It wasn't for a gift, so no big whoop, and it's imperfections have grown on me. But this time, I think I got it. Lesson learned? Respect the seam allowance, people! Respect it, or you'll get some volcano-like triangles.

See below for the other TWO handmade gifts!

And then it got better:

Susannah made (and I'm talking from scratch) his/her aprons with hand-printed fish, a hand-printed and personalized message on the inside of each apron, and appliquéd fish on the front. I am constantly awed by her talent, creativity and keen eye for style. She's an inspiration.

Faiza hand-painted and glazed this beautiful bowl. Her design was inspired by both Moroccan and Spanish tile and pottery. It's stunning, and he/she who receives an item crafted by her hands is indeed a blessed individual.

They also got the "blue and orange" memo.

Here are some shots:

Yes, I wrapped mine with a map of Portland.

And, just for fun, here are some pictures (pardon the poor quality) of the rehearsal paella dinner and actual wedding day. It was certainly an unforgettable weekend. Two beautiful people from two beautiful families, both inside and out. I'm so grateful for Lorien and Ryan, and I wish them all the happiness in the world.

Save them Tuesdays, world.

Q is for Quilt

Don't you just love when you can shout, "I made a quilt!" I know, me too!

It's here: The Alphabet Summer 2013 wall hanging quilt. You might remember the 2010 version, and I guess two makes it officially a tradition!

This little guy features four asymmetrical (a.k.a. not measured) log cabin blocks in the center, with some solid fuchsia and magenta border fabric, free motion quilting and a dark gray binding. And when I say “free motion quilting,” I actually mean “wild, unruly, and kind of sloppy motion quilting,” but that’s okay.

And, while I literally followed no rules or measurements for the quilt top... I felt like I needed to be slightly more disciplined in finishing the quilt, lest it end up a pentagon-shaped-wavy-banner wall hanging.  So, at the risk of sounding pedantic, I used my mom’s handy Creativebug tutorials, specifically the “Quilt Sandwich” and “Quilt Finishing and Binding” classes.

Some of you might be thinking, “Ashley, why don’t you just call your Actual Mom on the telephone?” To which I would say, “Why have your Actual Mom repeat herself sixteen times, when you can literally pause and rewind your Virtual Mom as many times as it takes for the binding finishing step to FINALLY sink in? I can never remember the math! 45 degree angle, 3/4 inch, 1/4 inch seam allowance...AHH!”  Cut your Actual Mom some slack, poor lady! Plus, your Virtual Mom has a nice visuals with pretty fabric.

Here's a tour through the Q:

I think I finally got it. Also, (listen carefully) I am NOT ALLOWED to use this raspberry color ANY. MORE.

Stay tuned for Chicken updates: I heard she did some shopping on the "Maude"Cloth website...

N is for Napkins

The British “serviette” sounds so much better, don’t you think?

But, alas, here in les Ètats-Unis, we use a word that also shares meaning with much grosser things. (Do you need a hint? OK, the British word for diaper, and the thing that shares its name Carmel’s beloved sidekick.)

THANKFULLY the Merriam Webster dictionary exists, otherwise we would still have our minds in the gutter (okay, probably just me, I would still have my mind in the gutter). Here is the definition:

nap-kin: n. A piece of material (as cloth or paper) used at table to wipe the lips or fingers and protect the clothes.

And so, behold, a DIY napkin tutorial, featuring some fancy free-motion quilting (oh là là!):

*In case you were wondering: The cotton-that-looks-like-linen fabric I used (pretty great, right?) comes from Satin Moon Fabrics on Clement Street.

Violà! A gift set of Alphabet Summer napkins. I do love me a good monogram. And, très green, no?

P.S...I had big plans to celebrate “N for Neighborhood.” I even took several walks and snapped over fifty pictures of my favorite spots. Then, as I looked at one gray, fog-infused photograph after another, it just seemed like this week (well, month really) was not ideal, considering it’s the foggiest, coldest season of the year. But here's one anyway, capturing my favorite event in my hood. And then somehow everything got all French.