Turkey Red

Yup, I'm still here—so is Pearl. As a matter of fact, I've got some ideas for reviving Pearl the Squirrel. But as the business of life intercedes, these remain mostly ideas.

One thing I'd like to do with this blog is share some of the intriguing textile-related things that pop up in my view. Today is an interesting video about Turkey Red. If you're at all interested in textile history or quilt history, Turkey Red is a term that you've heard, but if you're like me you don't know much about it. Thanks to Karen Alexander's post on the American Quilt Study Group Facebook page, I know a little more. She shared a link from the University of Glasgow's Textile Conservation program, about PhD student Julie Wertz, who is applying her chemistry background to the study of Turkey Red.

The process to create Turkey Red fabrics was used in Glasgow (where Julie is studying) from the late 1700s to the 1930s. No one apparently knows how the process works chemically, just that it does. She's created a lovely, super-short video to explain it simply, for those of us who glaze over at the word "chemistry." Make sure to watch it til the end, where the magic happens.

(If you're into it, she's got two more videos, one about Prussian Blue and one about Chrome Yellow.)

And thanks for reading. 

Feed Sacks for the Holidays

Christmas and Chanukah are less than a week away, and like everyone else, I'm in the throes of preparation for family and guests to arrive. Menu-planning is at the top of the list, along with holiday decorating, because to be honest, I haven't done much more than plop our Christmas tree in its holder in the living room—no lights, no ornaments, not yet.

But it'll all come together, it always does. And however it turns out is fine, because both my daughters will be back in the nest soon (along with Maggie's fiancé EJ and dog Lily) and that is what really matters. Such a treat!

Before the holidays take over, I wanted to share the video Janine made for the feed sack book—it provides a little peek into the book's contents for a quick browse.
Feed Sacks: The Colourful History of a Frugal Fabric from uppercasemag on Vimeo.

The book has also gotten two lovely reviews—one by Rita of Red Pepper Quilts (how does she do all the incredible sewing she does and find time to blog, too?) and another lovely one by Patricia of Okan Arts (Patricia has promised to unveil the wonders of yukata and share her expertise with me). Thank you!

On the Horizon: A Feed Sack Book with UPPERCASE

Why yes, it HAS been four months since I posted...and while many things have happened in that span of time, probably the thing I've concentrated most of my energy on has been on a book about feed sacks. I'm working with Janine Vangool of UPPERCASE and as if you know her work, you won't be surprised to learn that this book is going to be an absolute stunner.

Getting Back At It

I've neglected Pearl the Squirrel for so long that it's become kind of an ominous creature for me, lurking in the background, leaving me feeling bad. I decided it's time to revitalize this beast, but in a way that's much easier to cope with. I won't always have things I've made to share—it's been a long time since I've completed a quilt, for example—and so I've decided to share small things. They may be things I've sewn or knitted or they may simply be interesting textile tidbits. And that is what today's post is—I saw this in the November issue of House Beautiful and it combines two of my favorite things: textiles and words. Scroop. Who knew?

Sew Together Bag

Sometime this fall, I managed to make a Sew Together bag. The design is so clever and I've seen lots of them on Instagram, so when I stumbled upon the SewDemented booth at Quilt Market, I bought a pattern. I thought it might be a good class project, but truth be told, it's pretty darned labor-intensive.

I used fabrics I'd had in my stash for a long while—Echino prints and Cloud 9 Geocentric canvas—all on heavier substrates, which I thought would make for a nice, sturdy bag. And indeed it did, although I think it made the layers a little thicker and more challenging to sew through.

I didn't wind up having enough of the exterior Echino fabric and so pieced in some Cloud 9, and I'm pleased with the result and will definitely make the bag again, although doing some batch sewing (making several at once) would be more efficient.

I also highly recommend the Quilt Barn sew-along tutorial from last March. It broke steps down even further than the instructions and was super helpful.

Pincushion Presents

A few years ago Kathy C. made me a bottle cap pincushion as a Lake Tahoe quilt retreat gift. I thought it was adorable, but it took me awhile to realize

how useful it is. I wound up keeping it in my binding box (a former stationary box in which I keep needles, thread, Thread Heaven, clips, and now, this pin cushion, all in preparation for binding quilts at a moment's notice). It's so useful that I decided to make them for my bookgroup and a few other friends for Christmas. 

Here's how many I've made so far (minus one, which I gave to a quilting friend in Berkeley). I started working on them this summer at the lake and really enjoyed combining the wool felt colors (small pieces purchased from Wooly Lady) with learning new stitches. I used Valdani thread for the embroidery. 

I wish I could get the tops to be a little smoother and less "cupcake-like," but they function as they were designed to do, so I guess I shouldn't worry too much. My bookgroup seemed to like them—I also included a pack of my favorite pins with each one. 

Our bookgroup holiday party is always so much fun and a true tradition at this point—our group has been together for more than 20 years. We exchange gifts—some handmade and some not, depending on how busy we've been—and cookies. This year Anne also made us a lovely soup and salad supper. 

Happy Holidays to you and yours!

Setting a record

Yes, I've set one all right...but it's for length of time between blog posts. Not such a good thing! So herein is a quick rundown of what's been up since mid-October.

Finished some backs and took quilts to Linda Duncan for long arming!

I was thrilled to finally get three quilts off my stair railing and to the quilters. One is back, another is ready for pick up. Here's the first (used the six Farmer's Wife blocks I made on the back).

Interviewing authors for my upcoming book!

Yup, I'm working on a book about art quilts and have had the great pleasure of talking with some of the  artists whose work was selected for inclusion. Can't say too much about that just yet, but it's an exciting project that you'll hear more about in coming months.

Quilt Market!

Had my usual wonderfully-inspiring-and-thoroughly-overwhelming-time. All the usual suspects, plus Cotton and Steel's debut, a stroll through Market with my Stitch editor Amber Eden, quick meet-ups with Lisa, Jennifer, and my other wonderful Meredith editors, dinner with my friends Mel and Mary Lou, a hug from Carolyn Friedlander, a quick chat with Lissa from Moda, and travel with Codi and Greta.

Brigitte Heitland for Moda

Anna Maria Horner's booth (Free Spirit)

Carolyn Friedlander's booth (Robert Kaufman)

Lakehouse's Holly Holderman and PamKitty Morning, with @szyhomemaker, @frecklemama, and Greta Songe

Laurie Simpson of Moda's Minick and Simpson demoing big stitching

Smilin' Vanessa Christenson and her booth for Moda

Austin!

A quick visit with my wonderful daughter Maggie and her beau, EJ. We took walks, bought boots, saw adorable babies, and ate great food.

Maggie and EJ's backyard grotto

Coolio chair at Austin's Nannie Inez

Coolio daughter

Surgery!

Had a small skin cancer removed from my nose. 18 stitches. Kind of a shock at first, but a month later it doesn't look half-bad. And they got all the skin cancer in one fell swoop, so hooray! (Reserving photos of this one)

California!

Went with my husband, who had a meeting. Saw old friends in Sonoma and Berkeley, a hike across SF that ended in dim sum, and Thanksgiving with my folks in southern Cal. A highlight was my first  face-to-face meeting with fellow Etsy contributor Karen Brown, with whom I've corresponded for a few years. Wish we lived closer...there's a kinship there, for sure.

Karen in her alpaca jacket

Bay view from the Presidio

My awesome dad, his awesome pumpkin pie, and Paul

Santa Barbara pelican

And now home, where I made a few bibs for a baby shower.

One other thing I did was work on a story for a new (to me, but you'll know it) publication that will be out in January. Looking forward to sharing that exciting news soon!

Happy Holidays...hope things are going well for you and yours.

Days for Girls Sew-In

So sorry that Pearl the Squirrel has been so neglected. Life has been busy...some writing, some sewing, a bit of travel. Today was an event that's been awhile in the making: our Days for Girls Sew-In at Home Ec.

My neighbors Pam and Molly are the ones who've sewn the shields, liners, and bags previously. I made my first one just last night, so their expertise was essential (along with their time, fabric, machine know-how, and general good spirits).

We had a great afternoon with around 15 folks showing up to cut, layer, and sew. We finished around 140 liners, 20 bags, and 25 shields (we have a lot more of these that just need to be top-stitched).

Here are some photos from the afternoon. Thanks to Codi for letting us use Home Ec's workshop, and to all who stitched with us! We're hoping to do it again, sometime this winter.

No, Pearl, No!

Pearl feigning nonchalance

When I was visiting my folks in Southern California, my mom and I happened upon a great shop in Laguna Hills: Sewing Party. They had some fantastic samples and their classroom was buzzing with activity. My mom was so inspired that she had my dad take her back the next day and she bought the Harlequin pillow pattern (which also includes this smaller, pin cushion version).

She asked me to clarify the instructions on the pin cushion portion of the pattern and so I ended up making one while we were at our cabin. (Pearl was convinced it was a dog toy and would snatch it whenever I looked away.) I made two using Vanessa Christensen's Simply Style and when I got home I made another with Carolyn Friedlander's Architextures fabrics. I've also marked the quarter-inch stopping points on two more sets of squares (the most fiddly part of the process) in preparation for sewing them. If you're in possession of any of those mini-charm packs (2.5" squares), they work perfectly for this project. Making something three-dimensional was really a revelation.

(If you'd like to try your hand at the Harlequin pin cushion and live in the area, I'll be teaching a class at Home Ec on Oct. 19. They'd make great holiday gifts, and wouldn't you feel so smug having a head start on those! )

Stitching Up a Storm

My vacation sewing seemed to inspire me to keep at it and since I've returned I've finished another Sorbetto top (my favorite yet), worked on the back for my recently finished quilt top, and stitched up a Sew and Stow bag from the latest Quilts and More, designed by none other than my friend Mel McFarland.

Quilt tops await backs at the top of the stairs

I've also started working an afternoon a week at Home Ec Workshop. As always with a new job, it's that combination of fun (Fabric! Yarn! Nice people!) and terror (Why is the cash register beeping? How much milk goes in a latte? How do I help someone pick up a dropped stitch?). I've gone in three times now and Codi and Anna have been infinitely patient.

I stitched the Sew and Stow bag as a shop sample—whipped it up after dinner one night, and it was a great excuse to combine three lovely fabrics. The instructions were super simple to follow and it seriously took less than two hours. I might make the tabs that keep it rolled up slightly longer—just an inch, really—when using fabric that's a little heavier than quilting cotton—I used Anna Maria Horner's lovely linen/cotton Ghost Wing for the body of the bag, Vanessa Christensen's Simply Style for the top exterior (and an orange solid you can't see to line the top). These would be great gifts, because they're not just tschotkes, but really useful. Yay, Mel!

My Sorbetto top is made of...the fabric name is escaping me, but I've admired it for some time. Anyone remember? The bias tape was made from a Kaffe shot cotton fat quarter: all of it actually only required a 10"square of fabric. I used this great method from Collette: took me awhile to get it the first time, but once I did it works like a charm.

Finally, I had some very exciting news this week related to my "real" job...writing. Can't share it for awhile, but you'll definitely be hearing about it later this year. 

Who me? Sew clothing?

The fabric from my kettle cloth shift

I took home ec in school and learned the basics of sewing. I remember well the blue floral kettle cloth I used to stitch a shift in 8th grade. My mom still had a scrap left and I snapped it up. It's amazing how a piece of fabric can bring back memories (even if junior high memories aren't always the best, I did enjoy making and wearing this dress).

My mom was a fabulous sewer, and a very patient one, at that. She took couture classes at our local community college in the evenings and sewed complete, wool suits for herself. I, on the other hand, was impatient and didn't understand why things needed to be "just so." When it turned out that I'm not the same size and shape as most patterns, I took it very personally (as in, there was something wrong with me). The idea of meticulously manipulating a pattern so it would fit was too nitpicky for my personality, and so I quit sewing garments. Though I sewed simple outfits for my girls when they were little and easy to fit, it wasn't until I discovered quilting that my passion for sewing was rekindled.

Sorbetto "muslin" from 2002 Alexander Henry fabric

Still, the desire to make clothing was lurking. Probably getting to know Jenny Gordy and see the hundreds of Wiksten tanks and Tovas on Flickr and at Quilt Market had a little something to do with it. So when Home Ec offered a class on making the Colette Sorbetto top, I jumped. I used a fabric that had 2003 on the selvedge and stitched a tank. It was fast and fun, but didn't quite fit—there was gaping at the armholes. My online searches (because there's an amazing amount of information out there about this top—I'm guessing it's been made thousands of times) revealed that to fix it I needed to do a full bust adjustment (FBA). It sounded terrifying.

After weeks of noodling around online, I realized that Creativebug offered a FBA class with Liesl Gibson, of Oliver & S. The instruction was clear and accurate and I loved being able to stop and start it as I worked through the process. I managed not only to complete the FBA, but I hacked the sleeve I found here, adding an extra inch to make it fit better. I added a couple mother of pearl buttons from a secondhand shop and voila! Just like the old days, I hung my shirt up so it was the first thing I saw in the morning. I remember the thrill of doing that as a kid. I still felt it.

Sorbetto from Amy Butler voile

Then I used that pattern to make a second top out of some Amy Butler Cameo voile. I've now got fabric for a third top...and I'm excited to know that I can use those skills to sew other things, as well.  So excited to have overcome my junior high impatience ...finally! Just goes to show, it's never too late.

Double-cross Quilt

My 8 small cross blocks

I'll hold off on sharing my shirt, because it needs some size adjustment (just learned the acronym FBA—full bust adjustment—which is what apparently I need to do to take in the excess under the arms while still making it fit across my chest).

Erick "squaring up" my blocks—a relative term for this quilt

But I'm happy to share the finished quilt top I made for my class with Erick Wolfmeyer at Home Ec. I was having one of those days when my brain just wasn't firing on all cylinders and Erick helped me out—cutting and ripping.

Emily and her scrap quilt—she's wearing a skirt stitched from one of the quilt fabrics

We all arrived in class with our 8 small crosses (and a few of us had 9 and had to decide which one to omit). Then it was time to decide on fabrics for the big crosses and how to arrange the 8 small ones. All of this required a lot of shifting and standing back and squinting. But each of us (save one person who had to leave early) finished our tops. It was a great lesson in color and in loosening up, as the quilt's so wonky. I love how differently they all turned out! And once again Erick was terrific—and even stayed late so we could go home with finished tops.

Maureen and her butterscotch and blue quilt

Lisa and her neutrals—she's going to make 4 more for a queen-sized quilt

I still feel a little like I've made a quilt for a clown (baby), but Erick said it reminded him of the alebrijes I have all over my house, and that made me feel that perhaps I have a consistent (highly colorful) aesthetic.

My finished top