Another Retreat

I spent the past weekend retreating at Bed of Roses with one of my all-time favorite applique teachers & designers, Dinah Jeffries of Garden City Gateworks. I have been trying to get her to come to the St. Louis area to teach for years, and finally my persistence paid off! We spent the weekend working on various "body parts" for dimensional flowers. Her quilts are absolutely gorgeous and her work is incredible! I was really shocked to learn that she doesn't trace her pattern onto her background, nor does she trace her pattern onto her fabric - she wings it! We had a wonderful weekend and learned a lot. I am so excited to work on her "Botanicals" quilt. I nearly finished the first block at the retreat. I'll have to take it with me to New York so I can stitch the rest of my flowers down.

I also made a little progress on my first "My Garden Album" block. The new BOM started last week. It's a great pattern and the fabrics are fun - lots of different colors and prints - but it pales in comparison to the Botanicals blocks. I am really, really hoping to keep up with this one. I lost that battle on "Applique Affair" - I'm hopelessly behind on that one. I always start with such good intentions!

I'm off to New York for the rest of the week. I plan to pack plenty of applique to work on but probably won't get much done. I am hoping to get over to the garment district if my work schedule allows. I've heard that it's really something to see!