Last Weekend's Classes

Last weekend I had a four day weekend!  I took off Friday and Monday.  I drove a friend and I up to Michigan to take classes with Barbara Jackson of Tristan Brooks Designs fame.  We decided to drive up on Friday and take our time getting there. 

We'd planned stops at a couple shops along the way.  First up was a stop to Tapestry Angel in Piqua, OH.  Unfortunately, they didn't open until noon.  Since we needed to be on the road before then, we traveled to the next stop just a street over in the downtown area.

I had run across a wool shop called In The Patch Designs at the big quilt show in the city weekend before last and turns out it was in Piqua too.  We hit the jackpot there!  They had wool, flannels, homespun and even some dupioni silk! Look at that sweet leather acorn fob I found there too!

My buddy had shown me the current issue of JCS and I fell in love with the cover project!  I had it in mind when we found the wool.  I'm thinking of using one of the silks for the lining instead of the called for calico!  What a score In The Patch Designs was for us.  The good part is it's not terribly far from home so I can easily go back there again.

Downtown Farmington, MI

After we had our first shopping fix, we hopped on the highway again and on to Michigan we went...next stop Farmington!  The wind was fierce and the car was tossed around like a toy all the way up there.  Now I know how those NASCAR drivers feel sometimes. 

 Here's where our next shopping fix came from at the The Rocking Horse in downtown Farmington.  This was my first time to visit this shop.  My travel buddy had been there before but she didn't tell me that until later.

Here's what greeted us in the Rocking Horse's window.  Can you even stand it?!  The inside was just as packed with models too.  They told us they do all their own framing.  It was heaven.

I fell in love with that floss wall.  Oh yes I did!  As you can see below, I was powerless to resist it.

Here's the haul from that stop.  I picked up some floss for a couple projects as well as the floss I didn't have for the JCS project.  Now I just have to find the lavender linen!

Photo snagged from Yelp

We ventured on to find the class location just up the road.  I wanted to make sure we knew where we were going in the morning so we wouldn't be late.  Then it was on to our hotel where we settled in before heading out to dinner.

We happened onto Lulu's Coney Island via a five star Yelp recommendation.  I had the best Greek salad of my entire life!!!  Seriously, it was the absolute best ever!  If I find myself in the area again, I'll definitely be going back there and if you live in the area, you need to get there!  Yes, it's that good!

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The next morning we woke to a frigid 17 degrees and snow flurries!  Yes, on Thursday it was 80 degrees at home...and we wonder why folks get sick this time of year.  Umm...yeah.

This is where we had class!  The Spicer House at Heritage Park.  Isn't it the cutest house?!  I'm told it was built in the 1920's.  It reminded me of an English cottage (not that I've ever seen one in person).

Here's the classroom full of happy stitchers!  If I counted correctly, I think there were 20 of us in attendance.  This was one of the nicest rooms for class.  I loved all the windows and the view of the woods just outside was so pretty.

Our project for the day was the "Looking for Lunch" strawberry.  I just love strawberries!  Barbara wanted to make sure everyone got the basting done, a mosaic stitch bird done and at least one queen stitch strawberry completed.

Here's my progress as of the end of class.

I have to say this guild really knows how to spoil it's members!  Just look at this sweet gift we were given.  I love the strawberry theme!  Wonder what's in that strawberry box?

Wonder what's inside that paper strawberry container?

There it is!  A strawberry shaped waxer!  Now isn't that too dang cute?!

After class, there were several of us that caravaned to the local Olive Garden for dinner.  It was so nice to get to visit with my new friends and get to know each other better.  It was the perfect way to top off a perfect class!

My travel buddy and I went back to the hotel to stitch some more before turning in for the night.  We had another big day on Sunday!

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The next morning we checked out of the hotel and headed back to the Spicer House for our second class.  When we got there one of the ladies had made a run to the local Barnes and Noble for these super cute bags!  We were all drooling over the one she had with her on Saturday.  Isn't it so pretty?!

This is Sunday's class piece.  It's called "Sweet Heart of Mine." I fell in love with that bargello heart on this project the instant I saw it!  I've not stitched bargello before.  I'm looking forward to it!

For this class there was more basting which was essential to getting the placement of things correct.  Barbara wanted us to make sure we had that in correctly and then we could start stitching the greenery and get the first row of the bargello counted in right.  I managed to get both done and started on the crown before class ended.

Scissor Case

Needlebook

There are the two sweet companion smalls that go along with the purse.  I like that Barbara gave us separate pieces of linen to stitch them on rather than trying to fit them onto one big piece.  I think they should stitch up quickly and the finishing sounds easy enough too.

Check out the cute gifts we got during this class!  A pretty container, two sweet bird shaped waxers and a custom made needle book to commemorate the class!  Thank you to the creator of these thoughtful souvenirs.

Barbara teaching on Saturday

It was a really nice weekend and I would absolutely take class from Barbara again.  She's the most laid back teacher I've ever encountered!  I enjoyed her Memphis accent too.  She's such a sweet person.

The Kindred Spirits Sampler Guild definitely knows how to make a newbie feel welcomed and they are such wonderful ladies.  I felt like a saturated sponge full of all the new things I learned not only in class but from all the sharing that was going on in the room too!

Thank you to all the ladies that had a hand in planning and pulling off a wonderful set of classes.  Everything was perfect...the room, the food, the teacher, absolutely everything!

Our trip home was uneventful and the sun was shining all the way.  It was a long drive back and I arrived home tired but it was a good kind of tired.  I can't wait until my next trip up there.  Too bad I live so far away.

Now I've got plenty of stitching to do and I can't wait to settle in with it!  I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy every stitch.  I'm looking forward to this weekend too.  I hope everyone had a great week!  Thanks for stopping by to visit with me today.


Until Next Time,


The Inspired Stitcher