Autumn Inspiration

The landscape is washed with oranges. They sparkle in the sunshine and become fluorescent in the rain. The weekend was divinely dark, wet and windy. I hibernated in the studio and finished my big quilt... bound and rod pocket attached. All I have to do now is embroider the name and date on the back!

Preparations for Houston Market are underway and there are lots of little details to wrap up. Even so, there is a feeling of anticipation as the list gets checked off. Looking for that next quilt idea... here are

a few possibilities....

Second Wind

Well, I'm back. It has been a busy year. The large landmarks are writing a book, a month teaching in Australia, attending the Festival of Quilts and visiting the Victoria and Albert Museum. In September I had three teaching jobs. This quilter needed some quiet time. Plus autumn is a natural season for reflection.

This fall has been particularly sublime. The colors are exceptional and the mood changes by the hour. Greg has been covering the plants for the past two nights and yesterday he harvested the remaining peppers and tomatoes. Our kitchen counter is overwhelmed... so chili for supper tonight.

For a little extra excitement our furnace has died, so we have electric heaters running and are waiting for the repairman to get back from vacation. It's almost like camping out. My studio is still cozy, though, so no progress will be interrupted here.

I have been steadily adding quilted leaves to my quilt. I can do a row a day, both sewing and burying threads. Just five more rows to go. This is very therapeutic for a quiet quilter, who is easily overwhelmed by too much chatter and activity. So I'm beginning to resurface for the finishing events of the year.

I am anxious to get back to work, so I'll leave you with some more nice photos taken this week. And I promise to be more communicative in the future.

Festival of Quilts 2012

I am back from my first visit to the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham followed by two fabulous days at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. There were so many beautiful sights to remember that I have given myself the gift of a weeks peace and quiet to digest it all. So I have been hibernating in the studio and doing some meditative quilting on the Illinois Album quilt.

I have been working on this piece off and on for two years... more off. But my goal is to have it finished by the end of the year. As I stitch leaf after leaf and bury every thread a therapeutic calm envelopes me... my ideal summer vacation. And I think how lucky I am to be part of this exciting world of art and design.

The Festival of Quilts lived up to all my expectations. The exhibits featured some of my all time favorite fiber artists. Pauline Burbidge and Anne Woringer had breath taking displays of their work.
In fact, most of the inner galleries showed very exceptional and contemporary work. But the competition quilts were a sampling of traditional to modern. I spent a lot of time signing books, Patchwork Sassaman Style, in the busy Lady Sew & Sew booth.

While at the Festival we stayed in a nearby town called Solihull. One evening after the show I went for a stroll to look at all the quintessential English houses... just like the ones on the BBC Mysteries that I love so much. When I came upon this house I was floored!! Any other Inspector Morse fan will understand why. The red Jaguar is the clue.

After the Festival we took the train to London. Our hotel was in walking distance to our object of desire, the Victoria and Albert Museum!! This is a place I've wanted to visit since my college days so my anticipation was peaked. My heart palpitations were audible. Here is the dramatic front entrance. Safety cones, believe it or not.

This is the courtyard in the center of the museum, a very popular place to have coffee (in a William Morris paper cup, ahhh) and cool off by the wading pool. The cafe had wonderful food, which just enhanced the special atmosphere. The weather was warmer than expected and by the end of the day we were ready for a pint and a pub meal.

Between the museum and our hotel there were lots of high end boutiques and shops. One of the best surprises was that the Conran Shop was just down the block! It is built around an old Michelin tire building. I have been a fan of Sir Terence Conran since working at the Crate and Barrel 35 years ago.  He is one of this centuries grand guru's of design. In fact, his famous The House Book was one of the initial books in my extensive design library and has influenced my own adventures in design.

So you can see that I was in "designers heaven" for the entire trip! But this month brings several teaching jobs, which lead up to Houston Market. It's hard to believe the year is three quarters over.
Time to start sewing and crafting for the autumn season, so stay tuned.

A Rainy Day At Last!

It is a delightfully dark and rainy day as I do the countdown for the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham, England next week. The forecast predicts that it may be raining there, too. If so, I will be prepared because my wonderful Susan has whipped up this fabulous raincoat!

It is made, of course, with the Early Birds laminated plum Curlicues fabric and lined inside and under the collar with refreshing plum Prairie Poppies. The pattern, McCall's 7204, is another that has been in my collection for years.

Sewing with laminated fabrics can be tricky because the plastic laminate can stick to itself and to your sewing machine. To overcome this dilemma you can purchase a Teflon coated sewing foot or try using painters tape on the bottom of your existing foot.

Susan even made the perfect hat for an exhilarating ensemble from Vogue Accessories pattern V8405. The hat band repeats the Prairie Poppies and is finished with a rosette topped with a felt bead.

I love this photograph! Susan looks very mysterious... like a character in a Miss Marple story! It started to rain just as we finished shooting.

Don't forget to stop by the Lady Sew and Sew Booth, attend the Designer's Dinner or drop in for my Fabric Design lecture if you are at the Festival of Quilts.

New Dress & Birmingham Exclusive!!

It seems as if the deadlines are a constant dilemma here in the Sassaman studio! But I love to design and stitch, so any excuse to spend quality time in the studio works for me.

Happily the new fabric designs are beginning to gel and I hope to have them submitted before I leave for my first visit to the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham, England.

I am so excited about this adventure and I am especially pleased that my fabrics will be sold for the first time in the UK. Lady Sew and Sew will be the exclusive vendor for the Early Birds fabric which will be featured in their festival booth. They also carry it in their stores and on their website.

I get letters from fabric fondles from aboard looking for Sassaman fabrics, so I am hoping that the introduction of Early Birds will open the door to a further exchange of creativity with my European fabric friends.

I will also be doing book signings at Lady Sew and Sew and a lecture about designing fabric at 4 pm on Thursday, Aug 18. If you have European quilting buddies attending the festival, please encourage them to come to the lecture. They can pre-book lecture tickets at the Twisted Thread site.

Hope to see you there!

My super helper, Susan, has been busy, too! I'm a fan of the fashion designer Claire McCardell, so this wonderful pattern adapted from a McCardell halter dress has been patiently waiting in my collection for several years. It is Folkwear pattern #258. Susan is a skilled dress maker and she did a beautiful job.

This design features a gathered skirt, a beautiful fitted bodice with tucks at the neckline and topped with a sassy white collar. It has pearl buttons, side pockets and a zipper under the arm. Doesn't the poka dotted bow and white belt finish it off perfectly? White pumps or red?

Such a beautiful fit! The perfect summer dress. The fabric is, of course, from the Early Birds fabric line. The dress is made with the Strawberry Serenade design in the blueberry colorway. The classic poka dots are from the Strawberry group.

The coordinating bag is one of Melissa Peda's timeless designs. The wooden handles and green ball fringe place it in the same romantic fashion era as it's counterpart.

Back to the Drawing Board

The hot weather and a tight deadline have added incentive to spend lots of time in the studio this month.
Since Westminster has requested two lines of new fabric per year I now have until September 1 to complete some new designs. I love to immerse myself in designing, but I'm not fast so it's a bit frantic.

Here is our latest quilt from the Early Birds line. It is the Fancy Nine Patch recipe from the new book, Patchwork Sassaman Style. It is made with just four fabrics. The blocks are made with four fussy cut squares from two different colorways of the Prairie Poppy fabric. The blue and black border is a selvedge to selvedge cut of the blueberry Cheeky Checks. The border is  the blueberry Prairie Poppies again. Solid black squares anchor the corners.

Above is the fabric in it's original form. Below you can see the wonderful swirl that was formed by fussy cutting and stitching. The graduated greens really radiate nicely.

Just a reminder... tomorrow is the last day of our wonderful Blog Tour to celebrate the new book. Don't forget to check into Nancy Zieman's blog for your last chance of winning a copy for yourself.
In any case, you can find it at your local quilt store or online. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to visit our generous blogging friends.

July 6th Blog Tour Winner!

I have drawn the fortunate winner for my day of the Patchwork Sassaman Style Blog Tour!
It is Caryn, who says she is a new quilter. Hopefully this prize will encourage her to join this devoted
bunch of fabric fondlers and become a dedicated quilter. Congratulation, Caryn!

Don't forget to follow the rest of the tour. Today, July 8, our blogger is Gloria Hansen, extraordinary quilter and computer wizard. Her digitally designed and printed creations are unique in the quilting world. She has a regular column Professional Quilter Magazine to help us all better understand the technical side of our business. Her book, Digital Essentials, is a constant companion next to my computer. She also has a successful business, GloDerWorks, designing user friendly websites. Learn more about her on her blog and try your chances of winning again.