Evening Star Quilters: BRAIN STORMING with BETSY KOSS


The project Betsy brought to demonstrate BIG STITCH marking and stitching.

Last night we had a great lecture and trunk show from Betsy Koss. She discussed her quilt projects she has made from antique quilt tops and antique orphan blocks. Today, five of the Evening Star Quilt Guild members, met up for workshop with Betsy Koss at Linda's Quilt Shop in Davison. We brought our problem projects so we could all brainstorm as a group, grabbing fabric from the shop to evaluate our blocks... which colors worked best, print or solids, what added to / enhanced our projects what detracted. The project ranged from finds from garage sales, estate sales and antique shops, to family UFOs or heirloom projects, to abandon blocks from early quilting classes. Each project was laid out and critiqued to evaluate the most effective methods to finish the projects.

BETSY DEMONSTRATING BIG STITCH


BRAIN STORMING the 1930 quilt top gift

This workshop was such a positive experience. Evaluating each project, considering how to best preserve the project's uniqueness, history, how to enhance what someone (often a relative) else has made; helped us the attendees to expand our knowledge and creativity. I especially enjoyed actually having the chance to look at fabrics, quilt tops, quilt blocks from 1800s and early 1900s. I enjoyed working with the other quilters and I learned from their thoughts and evaluation of the various projects.

The last hour of the workshop we learned how to do BIG STITCH to finish our projects. How to mark the project, to start the lines of stitching, burying knots and do an actual line of stitching. We had all brought a practice batt to test out the technique.

I am posting some of the pictures Alice and I took for your enjoyment.