“Unwind” What to make on a retreat? Grab a pattern and some scraps. Using the preprinted FPP patterns, I made color wave curves. Kathy White suggested linking the curves which created the wavy lines. I then drafted the connecting light blue background sections and the circle endings. Challenging project. It will be a perfect floor quilt for a kid to run matchbox cars on (Heather Poole’s idea!).

I picked up this pattern book (see Resource List below) with the idea to make quilts for my grandkids. The tiny paper piecing was challenging but used up scrappy fabric pieces. I am pleased with how they turned out. Quilted by Maria Egoroff.

Retreat class from a 2009 book ‘Strips that Sizzle’. Instructor/coach Delia. I wanted to learn the technique as I had liked to see that style especially since visiting Italy where dimension is created in stone (both ancient and not so ancient). The technique uses a system of a sequence of darker to lighter color strips, then layered dark to light in sets, and cut and sewn into blocks, then arranged multiple ways. Quilted by Sharon at Sharon’s Attic, Hillsboro, Oregon.

This was the pattern and fabric selection as part of the retreat project with Patchwork & Pints. Our niece is getting married in October, with a Western themed wedding, which the style fits. Quilted using a western flower theme called ‘Cowboy Roundup’. Also made decorative pillow cases to compliment. Quilted by Laurie Hopper.

In another quilt group I belong to we occasionally make charity quilts. One member brings orphan blocks, we choose blocks and then we design a quilt. I received the dog block and one black and white square block. This quilt will go to a child from the Linus project.

“Spirals in the Garden” At Inspirations last month I won the flower fabric on the border and the two fabrics on the back. I made this table runner with my winnings! One of the photos shows how I marked the quilting lines with small pieces of tape and a hera marker.

“Fractured Ferns and Flowers” A UFO vanquished! I started this quilt in 2019 to use as an example for a class I was teaching at Montavilla. I unearthed it recently and decided to finish it. I love the ripples-in-a-pond effect created by cutting four repeats into squares (some trimming of repeats involved) and reassembling them.

“Hawaiian Memories” This was made for my brother and his wife’s 50th wedding anniversary. They honeymooned in Kauai and have been back several times including this summer. I actually had them go to the quilt store on Kauai and they brought back some fat quarters for me. Some of the fabric came from Hawaiian fabric I had and some from Cydney. I actually got the idea from a mini-quilt Cydney made for a MPS challenge. Quilted by Teresa Koster–TKos Quilting, LLC.

This quilt was inspired by our new-build Craftsman. We bought a few Stickley pieces when we moved in 3 1/2 years ago but there was a large blank wall in the living space that screamed QUILT. The William Morris fabric comes from fabric shops around the country. Quilted by Robin Hill.

“Mr. Sylvester” This is one of the 17 Halloween projects that I have set aside in 2 totes. I started with 2.5″ squares and the finished squares are 0.5″. I love full pillows that are very squishy.

“A Quilter’s Journey” I began the hand embroidery in 2015 and then pieced the blocks in 2017-18 and packed them away to prepare for our move back to KC. In 2021, I pieced the blocks together and finally finished quilting in 2025. Its message says what quilting and friends mean to me!

This is my first quilt, or at the very least, one of my first. I am showing this to encourage all new quilters to remember everyone has their first quilt that should be loved and shown. It is after all, the beginning of the journey!

“Rainy Day in Aloha” This is my most recent quilt. The pattern was free on the McCall’s Quilting website. I purchased the fabrics at Jordan Fabrics in Grants Pass. Thanks to all my quilting friends at the last retreat who helped me measure the borders! Quilted by Elisa Corcoran.

“My Quilter” My wife, Jean , wrote me this beautiful poem for my 60 th birthday. I thought it fitting to make it part of a quilted wall hanging. The pattern was loosely copied from a pattern I saw in a magazine. I enjoyed the different techniques ( applique, hand quilting ) as well as figuring out how to copy the poem onto fabric using the printer.