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Saturday, May 21, 2016

A Happily Scrappily Irish Day in Illinois!

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Check out Susan’s shirt!

When I came to teach to Susan’s guild a couple of years ago, a friend gifted her this shirt as she knew what a Quiltville fanatic Susan is.  I was so happy to see her walk in the door for our workshop yesterday wearing her “Proud to be a Bonnie-fied Quilter!” shirt!

How fun is this?

I’ve been thinking long and hard about doing a line of Quiltville tshirts for cruises, retreats and guild events, and also for on the website.  Wouldn’t that be fun? I’ll keep thinking on it.  I just need to know where to go to get them going, figure out sizes and colors and what to say on them, and how many and try to keep it affordable, and how many sizes to carry, and oh my!  That is a lot to think about!

But we WILL do it!
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We sewed from simple squares yesterday!

I know most Irish chain patterns are written to be constructed from strip sets, 5 strips tall.

But then you always end up with the same thing next to the same thing – I wanted to go REALLY random in mine, so I made my blocks as Leaders & Enders and they are all so completely varied there are no two blocks alike. We made our blocks from four patches and connectors, what a fun way of doing this traditional pattern.  It is more manageable than multi-strip panels as well!

You can find this technique and pattern in my book Adventures with Leaders & Enders.

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Sections coming easily together!


A glimpse of our workshop of busy quilters!

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Look at all of this scrappy goodness!

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Great job, ladies!

Here are the rest of our photos, including more of Cheryl’s beautiful hand crank!  I love seeing her in action.  Cheryl is the one who has loaned me her 301 and the card table it sits in.  I have enjoyed spending some time here and there sewing up my own project during my spare time.


See how much they got done?

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After workshop walkabout!

At the end of our workshop day, my friend Valerie came and picked me up and we drove back to Naperville to spend the evening with a bite of dinner together, a lovely walk along the riverwalk, and the perfect finish – some frozen yogurt in beautiful old town Naperville.

One of life’s greatest pleasures has to be sitting on a bench on a beautiful evening eating fro-yo and discussing every day normal life things with a friend.  I’m so glad she could come and whisk me away for a bit!

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Beautiful along the river!

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The heady scent of lilacs in bloom!

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Not sure what these are, but lovely!

What a difference 6 weeks makes!  Remember when I was here in early April and it was SNOWING?!

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Me and the Cat & the Hat!

Thanks, Val!

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Back to my room, queen of the remote!

I was too tired to sew last night, but there is nothing wrong with tossing the “way too heavy” hotel duvet off of the bed and snuggling under the day’s workshop quilt for a bit of Criminal Minds!  Okay, this show should give me nightmares, but so far it doesn’t.  It wasn’t long before the tv and the lights went off and I was out for the count.

Today is my last workshop day with the Pride of the Prairie quilters.  Texas Tumbleweed is up on deck!

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Quiltville Quote of the Day!

I am giving a resounding yes to all of the above! Except for maybe that eating half thing - that might be difficult!

I chose this quote after the walking along the river that Val and I did last night.  After eating double.  LOL

Have a lovely Saturday, everyone!


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13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would certainly buy a Quiltville tee shirt when you have them available. Love those Irish chain quilts. I have an antique one made by my aunt in mostly feed sacks. It is lovely too. That hand crank machine was so interesting. I wouldn't be coordinated enough to guide fabric with one hand and crank with the other. I was impressed with her prowess.

Sharon K. Jack said...

would love to have a Bonnie shirt.. hope you do this soon. thanks for all you do and I will see you in Quad Cities Ill on June 4th can't wait.

Unknown said...

Love the "Bonniefied" shirt, and I would so buy one. Maybe this whole shirt thing is something you could outsource to a trusted friend who has some experience in that field. No need spreading yourself too thin by adding stuff just to please the masses of fans. Because as many fans as there are is as many suggestions for style, color, fit, cost, etc. and let's not forget the whiners and complainers.
BTW, My Happily Scrappily Irish quilt is one of my favorites!
Thanks for you.

Ellie said...

Great idea to have Bonnie shirts! T shirts are my uniform so I'm always on the look out for nice ones!

The bucket list of Bonnie quilts gets longer faster than I can sew. Now Irish Chain is added to the list!
Ellie

p.m. said...

Hi Bonnie, I would definitely buy a shirt also. I think you should put one of your favorite blocks on the shirt,( small one on the front, or a large one on the back), just my two cents. I also have an Irish chain on my to make list.

Anonymous said...

Please sell shirts through your website also. I will probably never go on one of the cruises or trips. Pretty introverted so probably wouldn't go to a retreat or class either. Just discovered you last year when I decided I had to DO SOMETHING with my fabric hoard. I'm very proud of myself since I began your cutting system. The first cut into some of these favorite fabrics is extremely difficult, but I have since begun several of your designs and I LOVE this scrappy look. Finally putting a third border on a black and red and white Scrappy Trips. My old quilts look so boring compared to the "use everything" method. I'm hooked. Thank You for sharing your wonderful ideas! Also LOVE quilt cam.

Thanks again,

Kathy Smith
rickkathy6@yahoo.com

Sandi1100 said...

Hi Bonnie,
Just wanted to say that another group I belong to, found a printer, t-shirts and what to put on them and then asked people if they wanted them. She had everyone send in the money for them and then ordered them and mailed them out when they were ready. That might be an option for you. I enjoy reading your Blog and look forward to your posts on your travels.

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

I'd love a Bonnie t-shirt. It would go with all my TOGA t-shirts. Ordering it off your site might be best, with maybe a few at classes. That would be easier for you, I'd think. PS: I stitched more scrappy blocks today, too. These quilts will be finished soon (I hope).

Elle said...

https://www.rushordertees.com/g200/

This is a high quality tshirt brand. For all the Ts we have, these last the best.

Have fun with this!

Kelly said...

Have you heard of Zazzle.com? Great place to make a t-shirt slogan and let people buy the shirt(s) from there. Can also be stickers, notecards, etc. might be worth considering as you don't have to carry any stock, but you can earn royalties on the products you create.

Kay/44katydid@gmail.com said...

Love all those scrappy qhilts, especially the one you are sleeping under. Have great fun at the show. Have a safe trip home. Best Wishes, Kay

Andrea R said...

Printful is another place that will print and ship for you. https://www.theprintful.com/

brownj6610 said...

Bonnie, check with Jinny Beyer about the printed t-shirts and even tote bags. She had them at her Hlton Head seminar/retreats every year. She can advise you on where, what sizes etc.

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