It sure seems I got the spring cleaning bug early this year! This week it’s been the turn to go through files, sort out documents, take inventory, and in general put things in order in my studio/office.
I also rearranged furniture a bit. Once again, these are activities that obligate moving furniture away from the wall and therefore assure some deep cleaning. Here’s my computer desk, minus the computer (had to take advantage and open the system case to vacuum). It’s nice and big, and a good place to spread out while sorting.
It always feels good to have all my desk drawers in order… easy to find things! This is my gadget drawer:
Recognize the Quilter’s Fabric Calculator? And my P-touch labeler?
The rest of the week has all been about work. Of course, my work is fun… I get to draw to my heart’s content. Still trying to make time for non-work-related sewing, but I won’t complain.
For different family-related reasons, I have been on a teaching hiatus for the last year or so. But come February I will be teaching again, at the request of a local store. This will also give me the opportunity of sharing what quilting in Ecuador is like… more about that soon.
In the meantime, I decided to make some a new sample for my beginner’s appliqué class. I get tired after a while teaching the same pattern. This class follows the same process as the appliqué tutorial on this website: I teach them 6 basic techniques, plus a project with multiple pieces to get started. So I drew up a quick design and have been sewing it the last couple of evenings. In class I also teach them how to use a block like this one (still unfinished) for a cushion cover:
I usually give all my beginner students a little bottle-cap pincushion – they love them! And then a while ago I saw an idea for fabric covered floss bobbins, and thought “how cool!” Can’t for the life of me find that blog, but I got to thinking about making smaller ones (half the width of a regular floss bobbin) for small amounts of thread to share with students. What a great scrap busting idea! I think I need to add a short tutorial for our recycling section…
I am a self-learner. I taught myself to sew and to quilt. And I taught myself how to draw. I am learning how to dye my own fabrics and am dabbling with mixed media. I am a quilt designer and teacher, and design and publish my own line of quilt patterns. With this blog I would like to share the bits and pieces of my life.