Long Beach International Quilt Show–Part 1

On Friday I went to the last Long Beach International Quilt Show with my friend Tiffany from  Needle in a Hayes Stack.



It is moving to Oregon next year and won’t be as easy to get to, so we went on a R & D road trip. Ticket in hand we entered the venue. Be forewarned this post  and the following parts will be filled with lots of pictures.



Hoffman Challenge Quilts:



“Twenty-five Roses – Happy Anniversary”by Nancy Lou Mc Allister



Rows of pleating with hand stitched beading and an origami like border.



“Five Sentinels in the Garden”
by Charlotte Jackson



Pictures don’t do justice to this quilt.



“Pearls and Swirls”
by Linda Coleman



The challenge fabric is used as the base for the circles. Do you recognize it in the other quilts?



“Tidal Pool”
by Rachel Robinov



I loved these shells, their shimmer was more evident in person.



“Cherry Blossoms”
by Gayle Shelton



Amazing quilting.



“A Rose for Jo”
by Joanne Foote



The leaves looked as if they were real.




“Migraine”
by Laurena Blair



I don’t know about you, but this is a perfect example of the ice pick I feel when I have a migraine.



“Reflections”
by Susan Trindle



Beautiful serenity.



More to come later tonight.
Stitch at you Soon,

Dawna

Partying with:
The Tablescaper - Seasonal Sundays
The Dedicated House – Make it Pretty Monday

Supper with the Seahorses

The weather in the Antelope Valley has felt a little beach like in the last couple of weeks. Not to say that it hasn’t been hot, it has been in the low 100’s . But we have also have had clouds and rain so it hasn’t been as dry. Last week it poured as I was up late reading.



So I decided that a beach themed table was in order.



Plus I found some great pieces when we were vacationing in Boise earlier in the month.



I was at Cost Plus and fell in love with these seahorse napkin rings and seahorse spreaders.



My next stop was Home Goods. Some seahorses & friends on a sea of coral and visions of a tablescape danced in my head.



I layered my ruffle edge chargers on aqua placemats.



Striped salad plates from Tuesday Morning in Boise. 



They were on sale for $1.99. Plus 80% off that price! 32 cents each!!! Of course, I got a dozen – in two color ways. And a dozen of the blue for my friend Peggy. 36 plates for less than $13. Major happy dance.



Akcam Turkish glass organically shaped starfish plates for appetizers,



with orange napkins to pop the coral of the dishes.



There are four different bread plates designs each featuring a different scene. The spreaders were the ones I found at Cost Plus. 



I visited a Cost Plus in California when we got home to pick up the coral spoons. Pretty funny as I am not an orange person.

 

I centered my large aqua gazing ball in a sea of orange “coral “ shredding. I used the gazing ball last year for my Dreaming of Coastal Breezes tablescape.



I floated other bubbles on the table.



The candlesticks were in Lamplighter Candles window display down the street from Bolts.



They are a little whimsical holding the coral candles from last years Martinique - Coral & Geraniums tablescape.



The martini glass holds a orange cream meringue. Hopefully it will float to the top of the glass when the martini fills the glass.





Thanks for joining me at my table as I truly enjoy setting them for you. I was honored a couple of weeks ago by Kathryn at The Dedicated House as she crowned me the Tablescape Queen for the week with my America - Est. 1776 table. Thanks Kathryn it meant a lot to me.



Stitch at you Soon,
Dawna

Partying with :
The Dedicated House – Make it Pretty Monday
Confessions of a Plate Addict - The Scoop
 A Stroll Thru Life – Inspire Me Tuesday
Worthing Court - Home(work) Wednesday
Savvy Southern Style - Wow Us Wednesdays 
Between Naps on the Porch – Tablescape Thursday

America–Est. 1776

Happy belated 4th of July.

We actually celebrated a day late. My husbands family was finally all together to celebrate New Years. I know it doesn’t seem to make sense, but it involves the family cooking and eating special food together. 



To make things even more confusing, I’m sharing the table I set for Memorial Day. 
Luckily, red , white and blue work perfectly for the entire summer.



The tablecloth is Moda yardage from years ago that was in the fabric closet.




The centerpiece floral is a silk arrangement that I picked up years ago in Dresden, Ohio: home of Longaberger baskets. I add the flags to make it more patriotic.



The blue stemware is a recent purchase from Dollar Tree and the red based stemware is one on my antiques that I have had for eons. I love mixing vintage and dollar finds.






Red M&M’s are in take home containers rest inside Longaberger star dishes. The napkins were really chosen for Memorial Day…



as the Marcus Bros fabric features logos from WWII.



No matter what the occasion, we are blessed to live in the USA. Long may our flag wave.



Stitch at You Soon,
Dawna

Partying with:
Between Naps on the Porch - Tablescape Thursday 
The Dedicated House - Make it Pretty Monday

Bernina University 2013 – New Products

I’m in the beautiful city of San Francisco for the annual Bernina convention.



At the opening ceremony the emcee was a Joan Rivers impersonator. She introduced the presenters of products in starring roles.



Introduced first was the new Bernette Chicago 7. A computerized combo machine, for sewing and embroidery. It has 200 stitch patterns, 100 built –in embroidery designs and with an MSRP of $1399 will enable those interested in embroidery to join the club. Plus it’s Cutwork Software and Accessory compatible!



New to the 5 Series line-up is the 560. It has the same interface as the 580 (color screen  and ease of use) and the embroidery module is optional. Start sewing now and embroider in the future.



If you missed Purchasing the Special Edition 350 from last year, there are two new beautiful editions to choose from starting in January of 2014. (Drop into Bolts in the Bathtub is you would like to see the 2013 Special Editions). 

These designs are gorgeous.








The butterflies are a raised relief.



After five years the 8 Series is getting a new family member. The BERNINA 880 has all the feature we loved in the 830 with a bunch of new fabulous features. Create unique embroidery arrangements with shaping, colorize with the Color Wheel, creatively distort stitches , plus create your own stitches with the Stitch designer.



V7 Software comes out in the Fall, we were asked not to share the screen as it is in Beta mode. But I can tell you that it is definitely the next step.



Imagine using your embroidery module for Stumpwork,



Trapunto



and Felting.



Something else many have been asking waiting for is finally here. Switch from metric to inches inside the software. No more changing your computer settings and restarting your computer. Yeahhhhhhhh!

Last but for me definitely not least is are new BERNINA Overlocker/Sergers slated for release in 2014. Both are equipped with LED lights and BERNINA’s exclusive MTC (Micro Thread Control). Ultimate control is at hand foot. The sergers use the same foot pedal as your sewing machine. Imagine taking one stitch at a time with a serger.



Drumroll please! The L 460 is equipped with the BERNINA FHS (Free Hand System). That’s right. No more swinging your leg to the right and feeling silly as there is nothing there. With the L 460 you can raise & lower the pressure foot without taking your hands off your project. How sweet is that?





The L 460 also has needle threaders. Additionally, the L460 has a patent pending lower looper threader, a larger waste collector and a extension table to give you more working space.

The perfect partner to  the L450 & L 460 - the L 220 – for professional cover & chainstitch finishes. 





















There's more to share from the Merchant's Gallery so stay tuned.  

Stitch at you Soon,

Dawna