Seaside Stitchers 2011

I've recently returned from the annual Seaside Stitchers gathering in Cambria, CA.  I was fortunate last year to be invited to join the group as they relax and sew and shop for a week in a lovely area of California.

The weather was gorgeous this year.  Sharon and I arrived first and had time to unload our gear, get the sewing room set up, and sit out on the patio where we saw a pod of whales playing in the ocean.  The house we rent is located near the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve, a large tract that has several walking paths, lots of wildlife and a wonderful view of the south end of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.  It's perfectly situated for oceanside walks and we went on several walks.  Sea otters were seen later in the week, playing in the surf near the shore.

Carol enjoyed knitting on the patio - so relaxing to hear the waves - and although the sun took away some of the chilliness, it was still cool.

 The first person to complete a quilt was ME!  Of course, I cheated by having it almost completed by the time I arrived.  I made this fracture, again using the technique from Brenda Esslinger's book Fabulous Fractures, before arriving.  The binding was sewn to the front and all I had to do was hand sew it to the back.

Here's the fracture completed this year.  It will be auctioned at the South Pasadena Foundation's annual fundraising event.

 I think Wendy probably completed the first project.  She was working on quilted books this year for new granddaughter Chloe.  She brought several panels with her and found several more at the local quilt shops.  Wendy also brought a book with instructions for making cute and cuddly little animals, again for Chloe.



Here's Wendy reading to Harriet Hedgehog.

 Harriet had a blast at the retreat, checking out different places around the house...


Harriet helps press material for the next project.



Harriet gets a ride in the hood of Carol's sweatshirt.



Harriet enjoyed reading the quilted books.

 We were able to welcome Loris, our Cambria quilting friend, to our retreat site.  She knew about when we were going to arrive but I hadn't remembered to send her a note with our exact arrival dates.  So...



Interfacing worked well as a sign.  She found us!



Loris stopped by another day with her Labs - aren't they a good looking group?  Check out her blog (http://www.luckypupquilter.blogspot.com/) to see more of their antics.

After shopping on Wednesday, it was time for a soak in the hot tub.  The soak was repeated later in the week after more shopping.

Sharon, Sherri and Margaret enjoying the relaxing jets of hot water while listening to the waves behind us.

  In addition to shopping, we really did work on sewing projects.

Marj with her Dear Jane blocks.  She's working on getting 42 done for her Dear Jane group's exchange later this year.  You can see another of her blocks, slightly larger, in the lower left hand corner of the picture.

Carol went as far as she could on one project (not pictured) and then sewed up a storm.  She completed 36 of the blocks that will go into this quilt.  The fabrics were chosen to coordinate with the beautiful border fabric.  It gave me an idea for the wonderful border fabric I puchased last year on my Shipshewana trip.

Sharon worked on several different projects, including Mayo the Wonder Dog.  She completed Mayo's mouth, nose, eyes and the hair of her forehead.  This quilt design is the product of a David Taylor retreat held last year.  She thinks she can get the remainder of the work done before David returns in May for part 2 of the retreat.

It really helps when you include all of the pieces - there are close to 100 - as you are putting them together.  Sometimes working late at night causes us to miss what is obvious in the light of day!

Sherri finished her 42 Dear Jane blocks.  She just sewed and sewed and sewed on those blocks.  She even got them all trimmed.  Now for the fun task of removing the paper from the backs but she has several months to get that completed.

I forgot to upload the picture of my completed quilt top - have to catch it on the next post!

Cheers!
Margaret