Backwards in Time-to No.CA Quilt Council Meeting

Follow that truck!

I'm spinning back to just before LB... my good friend and fellow quilt artist, Cindy Rinne, take an annual trek to CA-No.Council of Quilt Guilds to present ourselves as teachers. We have a great time on this trip -hours&hours&hours of talking, catching up... we really look forward to it. This time around we made our normal stop for lunch in Livermore, CA and I got to introduce Cindy to my new friend BariJ (who I met in Sisters). Then we headed out in search of foam -- that is foam so I could try some experiments with some wool roving... what we found?!? Well, we did finally find some usable foam without pulling over the truck driver-- we also found some fun masks... perfect for craft night.
After a full day of travel we were ready for crafting-- and we both had big plans for our masks. Next day we were off to council-- where these photos were taken while the hoards of guild reps were held back -- after the doors opened there certainly was no time for picture taking.

We ended our time there with a great lunch with a huge group of teachers -- then we had to tear ourselves away for the hours, & hours of driving to get us home.

All in all another fabulous trip!!! Thank you Cindy, and everyone else along this little trail.

Northern California Quilt Council

It is always a treat to travel up to the Northern California Quilt Council (ncqc) and present to their member guilds' reps. More than anything it's the travelling up and back with my friend and fellow quilt artist Cindy Rinne. She and I have been on the road of quilt artist together since 1996 when we met at the first meeting of Quilts On The Wall: Fiber Artists, www. quiltsonthewall.com; though at that time the group had no name.

We have been travelling to NCQC together for a number of years now, and it really is a great time of catching up, sharing ideas and finding new haunts.

This time was no different, and we went looking for an arts recylcling center in Oakland. It is a favorite place of another of our friends, Joanell. We were equipped with a map and had plenty of time to run our hands through the 4,000 sq ft of stuff. We got there and Cindy started right in at the front of the store. I headed for the back... we both met in the middle at a huge laundy bin filled, brimming over with tie silks. There were traditional patterns and the more fun contemporary designs. There were packages of samples still rolled and unopened and there were BIG, big pieces not even cut up. Everyone stopping by the bin was amazingly willing to help find 'what you're looking for'. There were those that sifted through the pieces at the top, and those like me that dived deep in search of those pieces that may not have seen the light of day.

We had a great time and the prices were not to be beat.

The pictures we took of us inside the store diving for silk did not come out well, but you can see Cindy here as we arrived at our destination. After this we headed to the hotel where we have a great time sharing the facilities with the refinery workers. This hotel certainly takes good care of these guys, and we reap the benefits.

At the meeting the next day we had a great time chatting with everyone, see all the teachers there present. A great time as usual. In a very chance moment we had our photo snapped together.

We then had a fun time having lunch with a group of reps and teacher before heading south. It was a quick trip, but filled with fun, laughter and figuring out just what it is we're going to jump into when we get home....right??!!!

We both agree sewing is what we want to do. A bit of studio time is what we're hoping for.

Look for more about studio time soon. I'm holding out hope! ~R