bernie goes to camp

after a sweaty day of sales on saturday, this chickadee packed up bernie, some scraps and assorted scissors and headed north to emmitsburg, maryland where the mid-appalachian quilt guild was holding their annual quilting camp. yes friends, quilting camp! this amazing annual event begins on friday night and runs through sunday afternoon offering classes for all sorts of sewers in everything from piecing patches to bias binding. this year, my mom and i were day trippers, taking but one class on sunday and oh how we enjoyed it. we set up shop in our assigned classroom to learn how to construct coasters and bowls out of fabric and clothesline. the morning was full of nervous moments as we weren't sure we could make it work on our machines. but by the end of the day, we walked out ready to head straight to the hardware store to buy up all of the clothesline we could find. after an initial struggle, it turned out to be so much fun.

here's a look at the day in pictures:

bernie takes a seat at the front of the classroom, ready to learn!


mama d makes progress on her first project.


we did it! our completed coasters showcase the difference that fabric and stitch selection make in the finished product.


no, bernie isn't being bashful. she's almost finished her first ever fiber bowl.


a close-up look at the coils.


holy cannoli! the mother/daughter duo of team chickadee completes a couple of beautiful bowls.

it is too bad that i didn't think to take a class picture. there was so much variety in the fabrics used and the finished products. and not a boring one in the bunch! you'd better watch out. this chickadee has the fever for the fiber bowl. and the brainstorming began before our class was dismissed for the day. here's what became of the remains of the clothesline and fabric remnants found on the floor just before the bell:

this bangle might be the start of something beautiful and you just might be seeing some more of them down the road. speaking of, work is currently in progress on the first dandelion blu/this chickadee collaboration. we're keeping it under wraps for now as we further customize our prototype and conduct secret consumer research...and consider a name for our joint venture. this dandelion? chickadee blu? dandedee?