Peaks 8 Recap – Into the Birches with Improv

Opening Day at Peaks
Opening Day at Peaks
  Could you ever get tired of seeing this view? I don’t think so either but as I still have a day job down in Geneva, I’ll have to be happy with getting a little holiday break a couple of times a year. Might as well get yourself a tall latté because this post has oodles of pictures. 🙂 Patchwork in the Peaks 8 did not disappoint! Our format is pretty predictable, which is a good thing. There were a few hiccups for our travelers via train so they arrived a couple of hours later than expected but all in good form. This is why Thursday is a relax day so that we have some wiggle room and no one feels like they’re missing anything. Show & Tell was punctuated by many ooooh’s & ahhhh’s. What beauties everyone brought! Every time I find another project that someone has done that I feel I MUST add to my own lengthy list of want-to-do’s.
Clare's Halloween Bargello
Clare’s Halloween Bargello
 
Clare's Halloween Dresden table topper
Clare’s Halloween Dresden table topper
 
Clare's 3 Dudes pattern in red
Clare’s 3 Dudes pattern in red
 
Helen's Pink Economy blocks
Helen’s Pretty in Pink Economy blocks
 
Juliet's Chicken quilt
Juliet’s Chicken quilt
One of Lee's sweet bags
One of Lee’s sweet bags
Francine's Improv Wonky Stars
Francine’s Improv Wonky Stars
Francine's friendship stars
Francine’s friendship stars
Paula's first quilt
Paula’s first quilt – her style has changed so much!
Paula & a bit of EPP
Paula & a bit of EPP
Suze with a swap quilt
Suze with a swap quilt
Carolina & her hexies
Carolina & her hexies
Lynne’s perfect points
The back of Perfect Points
The back of Perfect Points
Lynne's EPP
Lynne’s EPP
Faith's Uni Quilt
Elita’s  Uni Quilt for DD
As I do every October, I hand over the reins to our guest blogger. This time it was the very capable Francine Taylor of mochawildchild.blogspot fame. She is very good at making the Improv techniques sound so much less scary and it was a delight to have her leading us.
Francine's Improv Peaks Birches
Francine’s Improv Peaks Birches
Francine's Improv Peaks Birches Version 2
Francine’s Improv Peaks Birches Version 2
Frannie teaching
Francine gearing us up for Improv
Explaining more detail of construction
Explaining more detail of construction
Aaaa-ha moment of Improv
The A-ha moment of Improv
Juliet's first slice of Improv
Juliet’s first slice of Improv
Juliet's birches with the sun
Juliet’s birches with the sun
Francine helping Lee
Francine helping Lee
Every day was beautiful enough to have lunch eaten outside on the terrace and it brightened the whole sewing room all day. The sunshine was quite tempting and ladies could often be found using the table outside.
Carolina working outside
Carolina working outside
Enjoying a bit of sunshine
Enjoying a bit of sunshine
Jackies birches coming together
Jackie’s birches coming together
Paulas Birches a Minion
Paula’s Birches & a Minion
The format was changed slightly as Saturday night coincided with the England v. Wales rugby match on so we adjusted and had the Fat Quarter Dice Swap on Friday and the Stash Attack project on Sunday morning. Dice Swap, as always, had some pretty serious contenders.
On the Left Side, Jackie, Helen Paula
On the Left Side, Jackie, Helen Paula
And to the Right, Clare, Juliet Carolina
And to the Right, Carolina, Juliet & Clare!
Juliet is already happy with her chicken fabric
Juliet is already happy with her chicken fabric
Ginas Borders Bag
Gina’s Borders Bag
  The ever faithful Quilt Fairy Gina could not join us this time as she was hosting an exchange student who was arriving on the Friday. Would have been bad form not to be there, even though we’re sure the student would have understood! 😀 Nevertheless, I was happy to lead the group in making her Borders Messenger Bag which was an exercise in being a little creative with borders while making a cool bag.  
Elita with the bags
Showing the original piecing
Elita with the Prairie Points
Showing an alternate border effect
A Geographer & her fabric
A Geographer & her fabric
Juliet's Around the World bag
Juliet’s Around the World bag
Rebel Paula does a clutch
Rebel Paula does a clutch
That evening, there was some disappointment that England wasn’t the victor but there was plenty of sewing going on in the meantime as there were bags to finish!
Clare says birthing a bag is harder than it looks
Clare says birthing a bag is harder than it looks…
But you get there in the end!
…but you get there in the end. Well done!
Carolina’s turn
Suze's Picnic Bag
Suze’s Picnic Bag
  We even had a bit of machine maintenance going on with some machines & other items needing a little TLC.
Maintenance
Maintenance
Because sometimes pressing pads need new covers
Because sometimes pressing pads need new covers
There were two cases of missing dust bunnies, found in machines that, on the surface, appeared to be clean.
She thought it was clean
She thought it was clean! The bobbin case was…
The injured bobbin
The injured bobbin
    And the Bobbin Case incident whereby a wayward needle caused a hole & notch in a bobbin case! This was actually a blessing in disguise, says Lynne, as it forced her to do a different quilting pattern than she originally planned for her Birches. She loved the final result, of course done with the gorgeous, ever present, Aurifil.  
Lynne's Birches
Lynne’s Birches
Close-up of Lynne's Birches
Close-up of Lynne’s Birches
My own Liberty Birches Mug Rug
My own Liberty Birches Mug Rug, with a lovely 40wt Aurifil
Back of Liberty Birches
Back of Liberty Birches
 
Phone Charging Station
Phone Charging Station
      We had moved the Scrap Stash Attack project to Sunday morning so amidst the bags & other frenzied sewing, there was some time to create this exercise in Grown-Up Binding (aka bias binding), a fabric phone charger station:      
A safe spot-Yay!
A safe spot-Yay!
And one from Helen
And one from Helen
  Just in time to get in photos before lunch:
Picture time!
Picture time!
Lots of finishes
Lots of finishes
Bags & More!
Bags & More!
So many pretties!
So many pretties!
Elita & Francine
Elita & Francine
All of the Ladies
All of the Ladies
  It’s always amazing to see what can be accomplished when someone else is making dinner. 🙂   I hope you’ve enjoyed the pictures of the gorgeous works of art these ladies have created over the weekend. We had loads of fun and are already looking forward to Peaks 9. Registration opens 1 December. Hope you’ll come join us!! 🙂 Hearts 1st Sig White-sm     Follow on Bloglovin   Peaks 9-dates  

REGISTRATION OPENS DECEMBER 1! Patchwork in the PEAKS 9 has two weekends to choose from!

 

21 – 24 April 2016

28 April – 1 May 2016

 

1 thoughts on “Peaks 8 Recap – Into the Birches with Improv

  1. Gina says:

    Wonderful photos! I’m so sorry that I couldn’t be there — but on the upside, I see some nicely mitred corners on some of those border bags!

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