Pacific Northwest African American Quilters (PNWAAQ): An Exhibit in Issaquah

It was a love of fabric, design and quilts themselves that brought us to the "I Am: Pacific Northwest African American Quilters" exhibit and lecture at Blakely Hall in the Issaquah Highlands on September 12th.  

The Pacific Northwest African American Quilters exhibit showcased how in the right hands, fabric becomes art. Many of quilts were self-portraits that harnessed the power of computers to determine the light and shadow of the human face. That information allows the quilters to chose the color and pattern in fabrics to create their likeness.

The founder of the Pacific Northwest African American Quilters, Gwen Maxwell-Williams, shown in her self-portrait (above) addressed the group, thanked them for their support and spoke about her many years of quilting, connecting and expressing herself through the fabric arts.

Members of the group offered quilts for sale (above) and had a row of sewing machines set up and humming along, ready to give demonstrations.

Maker Spaces: My Patchwork Quilt Takes Shape in Seattle

I had so much fun Sewing in Seattle.  I like to make things (sew, bake, knit, buy, try) and when I knew that I would be spending a month in a hotel in Seattle, I wondered how I would adjust to having no sewing machine, serger or any of my crafting tools.  I could pack my knitting needles, but how many scarves can a girl wear? (Read my post about why I only knit scarves.)

When I had been on location about 2 weeks, I bought some beautiful stretch knit fabric and started hand-sewing it into a scarf one morning while I had coffee in the hotel lobby/dining room. 

My husband saw me making little to no progress over the course of breakfast and said, "This is ridiculous. There has to be a place where you can borrow a sewing machine."  He started Googling on his phone and sure enough, he found several places for me to contact.  Maker Spaces. Have you heard of them?

A maker space a workshop-style location filled with the machines and supplies needed for specialized creating.  In this case, I needed a maker space for sewing. I paid $10/hr to use the iron, measuring grids, rotary cutters and sewing machines.

I haven't found the perfect sewing maker space for me just yet, but I did visit a couple and was able to start making myself what I call a Reading Quilt (you can see the beginnings of it above). 

I wanted something that was: beautiful, portable, cozy and offered warmth when relaxing.  My favorite thing about a large patch quilt is that the fabrics have a chance to speak for themselves.  It isn't the tiny pieces and intricate stitches that capture your interest, it's the colors and patterns. I bought these gorgeous fabrics (from many different collections) at the Fabric Depot in Portland.  My quilt will be my souvenir from Portland, one that will last a lifetime.

As I worked on my quilt, I talked about it, and one of my new friends stepped in and loaned me her sewing machine! Can you believe it? The nicest thing a girl can do is lend her sewing machine to a friend who wants to sew. I designed this quilt to be patchwork on both sides and I will insert a blanket-style batting and finish it when I am back in Michigan.

When I return to Seattle this fall, I'll explore some other maker spaces I found. I want to take some basic sewing classes for fun and camaraderie, as well as create something unique at a high skill maker space.

I found one called Metrix Create that offers 3-D printing, heavy duty sewing machines (sturdy enough for leather and vinyl projects), large-scale knitting machines, lamination and grommeting tools, plus so much more. If you don't have the skills required to operate the machines, you can pay skilled labor by the hour to create your design. I was given a tour and it was so exciting. I have been trying to think of the perfect project to undertake. My mind whirls when I am in such a creative space. This was meant to be!

Little Patchwork Gardens

My mom had the cute idea to plant a collection of dianthus in different shades and patterns in a section of her garden.  It's a little bit blurred now from growth, but can you see how the variety of colors and patterns look like a quilt? 
She wants you to know that it is not finished; her plan is to expand it around the edges with more plants.  So cute!

I've thought about doing the same thing with herbs.  I normally plant mine in a strawberry pot, but would love to plant an area with stripes and squares of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.  The height and color variations would make a lovely pattern.

I think it is important to always be on the lookout for opportunities that delight.  I read about the Amish Quilt Gardens in Elkhart, Indiana and I'm hoping to photograph them sometime when I drive over to see my friend, Barb.  (Are you listening Barb? Put on your thinking cap!)

Have you heard about gardens designed to look like quilt blocks?  There are gardens planted in quilt patterns all over Elkhart and they are open to the public to tour and photograph for free from June - October.  I think it is a delightful way to have fun with annuals, don't you?

Shipshewana: Quilt Country

I knew that I was in the right place when I saw a wooden quilt, displayed as art, on a barn.  Isn't it fantastic?  I was in Amish country in northern Indiana with my friends last weekend and was on the hunt for fabric.  I was also looking forward to seeing some hand-crafted Amish quilts.

In my pre-trip prep, my mom told me that she had an Amish quilt! Who knew?  When she described it, I knew exactly which one she was talking about (she had been to Shipshewana with my Dad about 20 years ago) and I look forward to getting back up to the cottage soon to take a closer look at it. 

We had to fit all things Amish into one day (stores are closed on Sunday) and although I didn't get to a quilt shop, I did get to look at some wonderful fabric stores.  I bought 2 companion patterns of cotton quilting fabric at A Little Bit of Lolly's, both are by Lakehouse and have French pastries on a dreamy vintage pink background.  

This is a close up of the fabric scraps for sale at Lolly's. I thought that this would make a great puzzle!