Happenings For 2020!

The last months for me have been relatively quiet...everywhere. My days have been filled with economizing decisions, that left me having to brush social media to the side in order to meet deadlines for some of the exciting things that I have coming up in 2020! So much of the last part of 2019 has been planning for this year!

The biggest part of 2020 for me, will be several teaching events here in Germany. A lot of time and energy went into scheduling, planning, writing class descriptions, and simply emailing other details back and forth.I will be teaching all my classes in German, which is a fun challenge since it is not my native language, but I am lucky that most Germans find an American accent to be charming. 

This will be my third year teaching at Nadelwelt in Karlsruhe, Germany, and I am really excited about the two classes that I will be offering:

    
"Reverse Applique Method” for combining Simple Piecing & Pieced Blocks.You most likely know that starch applique is one of my favorite applique methods, but reverse applique is a very close second... there are so many possibilities, and as I've mentioned before, can be a big short cut for some curved sewing quilt patterns. This technique becomes really exciting when it is combined with simple piecing or pieced blocks.

Combining Felt Applique with Quilting or Paper Projects. Adding felt applique can be a fun way to add interest and texture to a quilting project... or even mixed medium projects. Delicate and filigree cut out shapes can be achieved and highlighted with fun quilting fabrics using a reverse applique technique for that extra added surprise detail.

.. and now my full teaching schedule for 2020. I'm excited to get to cooperate with so many great shops and sewing groups... will I see you there?

  

Now, let's talk pattern releases: This spring and early summer will be a very busy pattern launch time. In March, my "Fly High, Dragonfly" and "A" Is For Apple patterns release, followed by "Purdy Bird" in June.

"Fly High, Dragonfly" will kick off the beginning of my teaching schedule in spring. I have a second version in the works to demonstrate the various steps, which has a more subtle and subdued feel than this one. This quilt is the perfect combination between traditional piecing and simple applique shapes.

Even though you've seen "A" Is For Apple before, I had to do some fine tuning and tweaking before it was ready for release. The pattern hits several techniques, including reverse applique and XXL applique... I've got another version in the works that I will be sharing soon... Granny Smith, anyone?

You may have remembered seeing "Purdy Bird" in the November 2019 issue of Love Patchwork & Quilting magazine. Purdy Bird really is a mixed bag of quilting techniques, including paper piecing, curved piecing, and a New York Beauty block. The applique shapes are super simple, and this is the perfect project for an experienced quilter who would like to dabble in applique. If I have enough quilters that are interested, I am considering a Quilt-A-Long in the fall for Purdy Bird... are you game?
 

It's exciting for me to see the quilting community in Germany getting more connected to each other. Since quilting in Germany is not as well known as in the US, sometimes it can leave you feeling like a lone wolf. But now, because of groups like Das Quilt Kollektiv and Uta Hanson's Patchwork Online-Konferenz, more efforts are being made to connect online quiltling communities in Germany to each other.

I was so flattered that Uta asked me to be a part of her online conference, especially with her line-up of experts in the German speaking community. To sign up for the conference is free, and the interviews will be available for 24 hours. If you would like to watch the interviews after that, she has put together a package that you can purchase, and watch at your leisure.

You can hear my interview tomorrow on January 9th, 2020 (in German, of course) Find all the information on her website, patchworkfragen.de

... so are you ready for 2020? I am!