Celebrate National Quilting Day

Come celebrate with me. On Saturday, March 19, 2016, I'll be teaching a workshop at the Kenosha Public Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin, as part of a National Quilting Day event. We'll be making one of my favorite simple and scrappy quilts - the Orange Peel quilt from my book Remembering Adelia. This happens to be one of the most popular classes I teach and I never get tired of seeing all of the different variations quilters come up with for their quilts. It's a very relaxing workshop and a lot of fun.

You're welcome to join me and the Southport Quilters of Kenosha, Wisconsin, who are sponsoring the class in conjunction with the museum for a National Quilting Day event. The theme is "Scrappy Days are Here Again."  For details, click here.  (Scroll down the page to see the National Quilting Day events.)

It'll be a full day of quilting fun. In addition to the morning class, I'll be giving a presentation in the afternoon. In between, you can browse the quilt show with  beautiful quilts on display and lots of quilting demonstrations by guild members. Sound like fun? Then come on over. Wisconsin's beautiful in March. (More info about the workshop here. Contact the Southport Quilters Guild to sign up.)

It's one of my favorite classes - 

The orange peel (melon, pumpkin seed) pattern has been around a long time but when I made my quilt they weren't really very popular at all. If you did see any they were almost always two-color quilts. It's nice to see sooo many quilters making orange peels now and incorporating them into their different designs.

Back when I was writing Remembering Adelia and a few years before I began my Dear Jane quilt, I noticed that Jane Stickle had used a lot of peels in her famous quilt. Since Adelia also lived and sewed during the Civil War, I decided to include orange peels in the book and weave this quilt into Adelia's story. It was fun poking through my reproduction scraps, making the peels and then hand appliqueing them over that summer. I made them a few at a time in between working on the other quilts and when I had made enough blocks I put them together into my quilt.

We'll talk about Adelia's Civil War diary as you make your peels and sew them together by hand or machine -  your choice. I'll give you some tips on making the peels using a simple starch and template method. Or, you can use your own favorite method of applique to construct the quilt. Some make their quilt with reproduction prints from the Civil War and others use their favorite bright prints. They all end up looking great. 

Don't be afraid of the applique part. I'll hold your hand, I promise. It won't be that bad. You'll do great. 

Here's a pretty blue and white orange peel quilt runner I made. 

Have I convinced you yet?

MARCH 19 -  ORANGE PEELS - Let's do this. (Bring scraps . . . )

http://www.kenosha.org/wp-museumstore/qsot-event/quilt-workshop-with-kathy-tracy/

Hope to see some of you  there.

                                          

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[It's always an awful lot of fun to make a quilt like this in a group with like-minded quilters. If you can't make it this time but belong to a guild and would like me to come and talk a little bit about my quilts and teach this one (or any other) in a workshop to your group, contact me for details. I'm always up for making Orange Peels!]