Classes (Day 3)

It's already saturday, and we're going to move our Sewing Centre from 43 Ave Seattle to Everett (north of Seattle). Marne signed us up for three classes at Pacific Fabric. We start at 9.30 a.m. and will be ready around 3.00 p.m.

- Needle Turned Applique

- Texture Magic

- Raw Edge Applique

Tonight we have a " churchdinner". Tell you more about it later.

Port Gamble & Poulsbo (Day 2)

It was a very cold (I think -6C) and windy, but sunny day. The last days the north part of Seattle was covered with snow, we weren't sure the ways would be free from ice and snow. So before would leave for this trip we called the general store in Port Gamble, and they assured us, no problems. To reach Port Gamble you have to take the Ferry to Kingston, then you drive through the hills and along the bay to Port Gamble, wich really is lovely sweet town (with a quiltshop). It was so cold and windy outside, we really needed a good, long, warm lunch. Port Gamble is on the Kitsap Peninsula, it's the only surviving company town. It's traces its roots back back to the arrival of San Francisco timber enterpreneurs Keller, Talbot, Pope and foster in 1853. From there we went to Poulsbo wich is on the same Peninsula.

Poulsbo has a strong Norwegian heritage that began over 100 years with the Eliason Family. For many years Norwegian was the only language spoken by the citizens of Poulsbo.

Beside the Quiltshop, it got Marne's favorite shop: Marina Market, here you can buy all kind of European food.

Meet our new friends ... (Day 2)

Harry and Billy. We still haven't know idea who they're, but they came along when Elaine was making a picture of us. Strange and funny things happen along the way.

Update (day 1)

What did we do? The morning the three of us spend with a walk to Grateful Bread, it's just a 10-minutes walk and they have great coffee, cookies, bread and pizza's. And you know, walking makes hungry. The coffeeshop feels a little bit like the '60 '/ 70's. The afternoon Marne and I made fun at Pacific Fabrics. We really needed a few quilt things.

Snow in Seattle (day 1)

After 10 hours I arrived at 12.30 (local time) in Seattle. I had a very comfortable flight, there were just a few passengers so I had 4 seats on my own. It feels good to be back with Marne and Elaine. My suitcase will be filled with quiltstuff (as Marne told on her blog I got a few things waiting here), but now I got rid of 5 kilo Allerhande (Marne's favorite magazijn from AH) I will manage.

Well Marne and I didn't want to waiste any time so in the evening we started our first quiltbee. It's fun, quilting together, discuss colours and patterns. The project I'm working on one of my antique quiltsblocks (around 1860's) I bought them earlier this year and they were send to Marne. I think they're perfect just with muslin and a red with white dots binding. Did you notice that every blocks got a red with white dots triangle in the middle and a dark red on the top. I didn't notice it, but Marne is always try to discover patterns. Does anybody know the name of this pattern? I thought it was " lady of the lake" but we're not sure.

Programm today: Coffee at Grateful bread, visit Pacific Fabric. Tomorrow, depending the weather we will visit Port Gamble. Saturday we will follow some quiltclasses.

More about our adventures tomorrow!

Mug Rug Swap

My mug rugs arrived in Portugal. My partners was Helen, you can see the pictures and description on her blog.

By the way: still 16 hours to go before flying to Seattle. Although it's the 4th time I'm going to visit Marne and Elaine, it's still exciting.

Finished

The last weeks I did a lot of quilting. Quilting is so relaxing, especially when you watch "Little house on the prairie". I wanted to finish those quilts before I go to Marne, and I did. Sunday I sewed the last binding and now they're temporarily hanging at my bookshelves. The tops are both antique, they dated somewhere around 1900. I really had to finish them because new antique projects are waiting for me at Marne. The last months I bought several things and let them send them to Marne, much cheaper. She and Elaine are teasing me that I got so much stuff at their home, that the whole bed (double bed) will be covered. It will be very interesting to see how I get everything home.

Good memories

I grew up in the small town Epse near Deventer. My parents still live in Epse in same the house where I grew up. When I was 19 years old I left home to go study in Amsterdam. That's where I met my DH Rob. We still live in the west part of the Netherlands, but I love to go to the east. Yesterday we visited my parents (we often do, to have dinner) and we made a walk on the estate "Joppe". Good memories came back. When I was a teenager, we (the whole family) joined a kind of recreative running/jogging group. Each saturday from 8.30 - 10.00 a.m. we walked through the little hills, ran over the paths, jumped over ditches, and played games on the Estate Joppe. My mum and I weren't very good runners, but it was especially the "gezelligheid" (cosyness) we loved. It felt good to walk here again, and I must say: nothing changed in 26 years.

Quiltexpo

It rained all night, very comfortable and warm in my bed, I could hear the rain falling down on our roof. In the morning it was still raining. Well what's the best thing to do on a grey and rainy day. Of course, visit a Quiltexpo with granny. After our lunch we drove to Vijfhuizen (near Haarlem), for granny that's just around the corner. It was a very interesting quiltexpo (PHOTOS) lucky they had a lot of traditional quilts (my favorites), but some of the art quilts I also liked. Most of the art quilts were made by Ukrain quilters, it was very interesting to see, the techniques and colours they choosed. And yes, I did some quiltshopping, just a few fat quarters for my doggie quilts. Each time I enter a quiltshop I try to buy some doggie fabrics. I have quite a collection now, but they're not very matching. So this quilts will be probably turn out in the most awful doggie quilt you can imagine.

Wisconsin

The last weeks I have been "busy" preparing my trip to Seattle. That means sewing little gifts, buying gifts, making a shoppinglist ; ), and study the 12-day schedule Marne sent me with our activities. Today I made a start to fill my suitcase, see if I can fit everything in it. And how much clothes I can take with me.

Mug rugs

I have made several mug rugs, of course for the mug rug swap, but also for some friends. I think they're really fun, we didn't know mug rugs at all in the Netherlands.

But with all the excitment going on, I just forgot that somebody would sent me mug rugs as well. So it was a really nice suprise, when I came home from running (with Paco) to find a message from the mailman: "a package is waiting for you at the neighbours".

Thank you so much Debbie from Wisconsin, thanks for the lovely mug rugs, the little gifts (we will use, drink and eat them for certain) and your very nice letter. A fantastic suprise on a grey and rainy friday.

Work in progress

Well I can't show you all, what I've been working on the last weeks, because some things I made are for Seattle, so I keep it a suprise. I'm very busy with quilting my two antique quilttops, I hope to finish them before I fly to Marne and Elaine, less then two weeks, because new antique quilttops are waiting there for me. One of them is a schoolhouse quilt from around 1900. It's so easy I buy an antique quilttop, send it to Marne, and the only thing I have to do is pick it up. Last week I made this little dollquilt top with the scraps of my Spakenburger Quilt, one more little quilt to add at my antique collection.

China

As you probably know, my brother and sister-in-law are living in the south of China (Yanthai), with their three kids Nathaniel (almost 4), Promise (just 2) and Christian (4 months). Well as he wrote me it's rather cold there at the moment.