On the Road Again!

We got up and shared one last meal together this morning before taking a final photo with our quilt tops. Notice the smiles on our faces? We said goodbye and then headed on to Kamiah, Idaho before our trip to Coeur D'Alene. Driving through the mountains and following the Lewis and Clark Northwest Passage was an amazing way to end our time in Idaho before heading over to Washington State.

Quilt Retreat Success!

Happy Quilters in Idaho!

Commercial Break... Dino Selfie!

This is the summer of Jurassic Park World.
Does the Sinclair dinosaur count?

This picture is for my students since we study about Lewis and Clark.

On the Lewis and Clark trail home of the Nez Perce.

Welcome to Washington State!

The Party is Over

Today we were challenged to complete as much of our quilt top as possible before sharing with everyone this evening. Our sewing machines were racing each other as we tried to get more and more completed. Each section was held up and everyone cheered our successes! Thank you to our hostess Elaine for the great week at the Quilt House Bed and Breakfast. Thank you to our new friends Marcia, Kim, Cindy, Kris, Pam, Delaina, Sharon, Barbara, Diana, and Janie. You filled our days with laughter and joy!

Are you having Fun Yet?

Kay's goal today was to finish her Log Cabin squares... All 16 of them. She came down to sew before breakfast and thought she had a good start but after breakfast she noticed that she had tried to sew without thread!  Now when we were learning how to sew from Grandmother Harrison she often had us sew without thread so we could get used to the machine but that was over 50 years ago! After Kay realized this error she took off and finished those squares with ease. Next came appliqué and blanket stitching. Surprising us all Kay asked for help from Shirley on the finer points of blanket stitching since she had been doing this stitch for three days! Our last day of sewing will be tomorrow and we both have goals to try to finish up certain sections of our quilts. Our father often asks " Are you having fun yet?" Yes, daddy we are having fun!

Sewing and Sewing and Sewing

Kay began the day learning how to sew Log Cabin squares in a systematic order and by the end of the day was still making Log Cabin squares.

Shirley began the day blanket stitching and by the end of the day was still blanket stitching! We are making progress while breaking for focus lessons on techniques we can use in any quilt we make. 

So... We are tired but seeing progress and sharing with new friends through our week long journey together. Time for rest.

Oh, the Places We Go!!!

Hi there!

The week is going so fast and and I wanted to tell you a little bit about where we are!

We're still at the Quilt House Bed and Breakfast participating in a quilting retreat.  Shirley has shared pictures with you of our progress on our quilts.  There are nine women quilting and we are making three different quilts.  We've been focusing on methods such as fusible appliqué, log cabin, and paper piecing.  The women are from California, New Mexico, Arizona and Kansas.  Each day has been full of sewing, laughter, good food, a daily visit from a wonderful masseuse, and great walks in nature (ok -- Shirley and I haven't done that but we could if we wanted to!  LOL)

The quilt house is actually a three story, very large log cabin.  The walk-out basement is the sewing room, quilt shop, and two bedrooms sleeping six.

The main floor has a large dining room and deck, kitchen, bedroom for the Innkeeper, and office.  The third floor has a large sleeping loft as well as two more bedrooms.  Shirley and I are in the one of the bedrooms which has a queen bed and a twin bed along with French doors out to a balcony.  The whole place is absolutely beautiful!

So where exactly are we???  We're in the mountains above Kamiah, Idaho.  Once we arrived in Kamiah (which is in the neck of Idaho) it took us about 25 minutes to drive up the mountain.  Shirley has already shown you the Friends Church located on the mountaintop.

We're learning a lot about Lewis and Clark and this is from the Kamiah Chamber of Commerce:

The homeland of the Nez Perce Tribe was located in present north central Idaho. They spent their lives roaming the grassy plateaus, hunting, fishing, gathering berries and herbs. They migrated across the Bitterroot Mountains to eastern Montana to hunt buffalo, but when winter came they returned to their lodges in the sheltered valleys. One of those winter home sites is now known as the Kamiah Valley. 

The first white men known to the Nez Perce were Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The Lewis and Clark Corp of Discovery waited with the Nez Perce in the Kamiah Valley almost a month in the spring of 1806 for the snow to melt so they could cross the Bitterroot Mountains on their return to the East. Their campsite was located on the present site of the lumber mill across the Clearwater River from the present townsite.

Stay tuned!  Kay

We earned our Gold Stars!

Today our lessons were on paper piecing and we all learned to make Gold Stars! Kay will be making four stars for the corners of her quilt while Shirley's star will be turned into a pillow. The rest of the day was spent completing other components of our quilts including appliqué which Kay is working on to blanket stitching that Shirley is working on in the pictures. It has rained here all day but tonight for a short time a full rainbow came out and four beautiful deer came out to nibble near the garden. God's countryside is so wonderful here in Idaho. We are truly blessed to be sharing it each day with a group of caring women.

Let it Snow Let it Snow

Our lesson today at the quilt retreat was how to applique Snowmen using soft fuse and learning how to sew using blanket stitch. The first picture is of the sample quilt Kay is making called " Let it Snow.....Brrr.." and then pictures of some of the steps she is completing.

The next set of pictures shows the quilt Shirley is working on with 17 different snowmen. We have learned so much today and eaten wonderful food. The amazing women on this journey with us are so helpful and the mountain thunderstorms are glorious.