An Incredibly Wonderful Day!

Let me begin by telling you that I have written this post twice before, and both times my internet connection on my laptop has failed just as I was about to publish, so I lost everything. Although Sunday was one of the most wonderful days of my life, it has lost a bit in translation! But, I am now posting on C's computer, so this should be better!

I taught Cara Gulati's Radiant Suns at Intown Quilters in Decatur on Sunday afternoon. I had a great class and the time just flew by. In teaching, my hope is that my students will leave feeling very confident in their ability to complete their piece and understand the process. They all seemed overjoyed with their accomplishments, and very happy that they had taken the class. Here are a few of the first completed quilt blocks:


Didn't they do a great job!!!

This is Kate and her first block:

Kate told us that she had recently completed her very first quilt. I think that she was very ambitious to attempt curved piecing for her second quilt, but then what do I know? She is a very precise sewer and turns out beautiful work. When not quilting, Kate spends her time in Public Health, and was quick to ask if we had all had our Flu shots....have you???? (I read this morning that even my county here in Georgia has already recorded its first two confirmed cases of the season!)

This is Thelma, another precision piecer:

Thelma came all the way from South Carolina to take the class. She is using fabrics from her stash and making this quilt for one of her great granddaughters. I think Thelma's Radiant Suns will be a lot of fun to look at, and I hope she will send me a picture of her completed piece.

This is Hilda, who came all the way from Macon:

Hilda also chose to clean out her stash and was using some leftover fabrics. I think she is doing a great job. She had a very dry sense of humor and a twinkle in her eye, which were unfortunately not captured on my camera.

And this is Jan:

Jan used to own Dreamquilters, a fabulous quilt shop in Tucker, GA. I went their often, and was so disappointed when she closed the shop. Jan had asked Jean Wells of the Stitchin' Post in Sisters, Oregon to send her her fabric for her Radiant Suns quilt, so we were having a great time chosing her block layouts.

So, that was a very fun start to my day. C and I had a nice but chilly walk with Barker through our favorite Midtown neighborhood late in the afternoon and then we went out to One Midtown Kitchen for dinner. YUMMMMM!!! Tuesday was our 36th wedding anniversary, so we were getting a jump on the gun in celebrating. We shared several of their "small plates", including the griddled sourdough bread stuffed with goat cheese and the mussels, cooked in a vaporized beer, chorizo and cilantro sauce. They were the very best mussels I've ever eaten...and I've had my fair share over the past 36 years. We also shared a wonderful Caesar salad with huge curls of Parmesan cheese. For our entree, C opted for the Tuna Tartar while I splurged on the Hangar Steak with Parmesan fries. It was done perfectly and a pure delight to my taste buds!!! We never order dessert, but that night we decided to break from tradition and enjoyed their yummalicious KitKat dessert, which puts the candy bar to shame!!

To top it all off, I've got a new playmate in my sewing studio!!! WooHoo!!! I've been severely challenged in my machine quilting with my 20+ year old Horn sewing cabinet:

When C and I attended Intown Quilters' grand opening gala last summer, we noticed that Horn had come out with a new cutting table with an insert for a sewing machine. I had been looking at several sets of plans for one of these and had thought long and hard about getting one. Well, C did it for me!! Here is my new baby:

I spent a few hours yesterday afternoon setting it all up and I am pleased to announce that everything fits and it is a great new addition to my space! Several years ago, C gave me a wonderful cutting table that has drop down sides, a drawer and is on casters, so when I used to machine quilt, I would set up my machine on it and do my work. Now I won't need to, plus I have an additional large space on which to work. I am so thrilled!!! What a guy!!! Who would have known all of this 36 years ago!!!!

I spent the bulk of yesterday making a pumpkin cheesecake and cranberry sauce for our Thanksgiving. C's cousins Heather and Scott host a huge gathering, all based on tradition. So, every year I bring those two things. I hope to get the recipes posted here later today.

Best wishes to you all for a happy, healthy (get your flu shot!) and safe Thanksgiving!