A Chat with Pat (the Where's Poppyprint? edition)

Earlier this week I had another opportunity to chat with the one and only Pat Sloan on her weekly podcast. This is the third time that I've been a guest on Pat's show. She is such a supportive force in the quilting industry, always interested in what everyone is doing and sharing, sharing, sharing. I love that!

 2018 is whizzing by and I've hardly been home to tell you about it. You've likely noticed that I've seriously lost my blogging rhythm. I'm not sure I'll get it back anytime soon as it really takes discipline and hours of time at the computer (which are rare for me these days). If you want to hear a bit about what I've been doing in the first 4 months of the year as well as some upcoming excitement, tune in and listen to the my interview with Pat here.

A quick calculation tells me that I've been out of town 50 days since the first of the year.  This actually suits me just fine because I love to travel, do fun stuff and meet nice people. There was a once in a lifetime back country ski trip in the deep, deep bottomless powder of western Japan followed by a day at the Tokyo International Quilt Festival:

That's me! You can't see it, but there's a massive grin on my face, like this one (below)

If you listen to the podcast, this is what I was talking about! Elbows out!

After Japan, I flew down to Pasadena for QuiltCon, which was busy, fun and exciting. I didn't take any workshops this time as I delayed registration for too long and missed out, but I caught some great lectures, thoroughly enjoyed the show, volunteered 1 day, visited the Getty, the Arboretum and caught up with an old high school friend and many quilting buddies.

Having fun with Lorena Uriarte (as usual)!

All in all, I've taught 14 workshops and delivered 5 trunk shows in various places including Vancouver Island, North Vancouver, Edmonton and 5 locations in Scotland and England.  I feel incredibly fortunate to have these experiences and I don't take any of these opportunities for granted, but I do kind of miss my sewing machine (and my own bed...ok, and my husband) at times.

Somewhere in all of that, I was able to actually TAKE a workshop! I love spending the day with my guild-mates and trying new things. I made this quilt that I call Sakura Towers with teacher Barb Mortell in her "Door Jam" workshop.

Next up, a break from teaching and focus on volunteer activities for my 3 guilds. First, the Canadian Quilters Association is holding the National Juried Show right here in Vancouver (my quilt Pop Stars, pictured above in Pat's advert, is a finalist in the Modern category) on May 31 - June 2 at the Vancouver Convention Centre. The following weekend (June 8-9), my  Lions Gate Quilter's Guild will present our bi-annual show at Capilano University Sportsplex. I just love this show because the talent in my guild is off the charts (traditional, contemporary, art and modern quilting style will all be very well-represented!). Plus, I coordinate our member's boutique, which is always beautifully stocked with fabulous handmade quilts and sewn items for sale.  Then finally at the end of summer, I'm coordinating the Vancouver Modern Quilt Guild's second Modern Quilt Showcase, again featuring modern quilts in an industrial setting of a restored shipbuilding warehouse on the harbour in North Vancouver. Phew!  I'm starting to think it's time to take a little step back from all of this volunteering, but I do really enjoy being involved, especially when it involves sharing quilts with the public.

Click on any of the links in the above paragraph for more show information! I hope to see you at one or all 3 of the shows.