Ricky Tims Seminar - Rochester NY

I attended the Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar in Rochester NY from July 12 - 14. This was my second time, the first was almost 2 years ago in Cape Cod. My friend Sue from Long Island who went with me to the one in Cape Cod also came to this one. We were both fairly new quilters at that time, really enjoyed ourselves but also found some of the stuff over our heads. We thought this would be a nice get away, a chance to see each other, doing something quilty and hopefully pick up on stuff that the first time wasn't all that clear.

Let me tell you we had a blast, learned some new things and reinforced some old stuff. Ricky, Alex and Libby were great teachers as well as very entertaining.  This was their biggest turn out ever with 740 in attendance. The only downside to the event was the stadium seating which either caused issues for those with back/hip problems due to the stiff seats and/or issues with knees/legs due to limited leg room.

I have to say if Ricky's seminar comes to a city near you, you may want to consider going just from an inspirational perspective this seminar really packs a bang. You can check out the details here:
http://www.rickytims.com/seminars/seminar-main

Ricky also had some quilts on display that he, Alex and Libby have made as well as some from his private collection. This quilt is one of Ricky's newest ones and is called "Lifelines 3: Can Something Come From Nothing".

Here is a close up of some of the detail work.

This quilt was done by Alex Anderson but unfortunately there wasn't a label on it so I don't have a name. It is hand quilted.

This quilt was done by Libby Lehman and is called "Pinata".

Finally this quilt is from Ricky's private collection and it is called "The Man From Snowy River" and it is by Helen Godden from Australia.  It is a very large quilt and where it was hung I couldn't get back far enough to capture the full quilt. You can get more information on Helen and her work here:
http://www.helengodden.com/index.php?option=com_imagebrowser&folder=Quilts&Itemid=75

This past week I have been busy prepping fabric for a wall hanging art quilt.  I will be putting together some posts on the progress of this project so that you can see what I am currently working on. I need to have this ready for a birthday in mid August.

Recovery, New Quilt Oriental Odyssey & Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar

So what have I been up to this past month.  I have spent some time recovering from the thyroid surgery. It was a good thing that it was removed since they did find cancer in both the lump and the thyroid but it was in the very early stages and completely contained. Also nothing had spread to the lymph nodes and that was really good news. 

When I felt up to things I was working on a new quilt called Oriental Odyssey.  This quilt I was making it for my Tao Shiatsu therapist Alex. He is currently working on renovating a building that he purchased at the beginning of this year and the hopes is to open a new healing center by the end of this year.  He was having his first fund raising event this past Friday and it was held at the new place so people could see where the new center will be and what his vision for the place is. I'm very thankful to Alex for his treatments since they have been very beneficial as I have been going through my recovery from the iron deficiency anemia and then this thyroid stuff. Sometimes just plain western medicine isn't enough to get a person back on track.

I made this quilt for his silent auction that he is going to have in September in the hopes that he will be able to raise some money through my contribution since I'm not in a position at this time to make a financial one. The quilt was a big hit at the event and hopefully it has created sufficient interest for the silent auction that will be held in September and Alex will have a good turnout for that event.

Here is the front of the quilt:

Here is the back of the quilt:

So tomorrow I'm actually going away on a mini vacation to Buffalo & Rochester NY. I'm going to do some shopping, visit some quilt shops and then it's on to the Ricky Tims quilt seminar. If you have been a follower of my blog for a few years you will likely say but wait a minute you've already been to the Ricky Tims quilt seminar in Cape Cod a couple of years ago.  Yes that's right, I was. I went with my friend Sue from Long Island and yes she is coming to this one as well.  We had so much fun that we decided to take it a second time. The first time we went to the Ricky Tims quilt seminar we were both quite new quilters and now that we both have a few more years of experience we figured we would get a different take from it.  Also it gives us a chance to see each other and have some fun.  I'll be back on Sunday and will give you a review of what I think the second time around.

Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar - Part 2

A couple of folks have asked me if I could give a few more details on the Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar and what I learned from it. So here goes. First of all we got a history of how Ricky got into quilting and his story of the process of how he went from your basic pieced block sampler (which I think most of us is where we likely started our quilting experience) to where he is now.

One of the main themes along the way was Ricky was willing to take a chance, take a risk and try something new. So what if it didn't work out the way he hoped it would, he still learned from the experience. Too many of us are afraid of taking that risk because it might not work. As Ricky said, you still learn from the experience, you improve your skills and in taking that risk you may also figure out a way of doing what it was that you wanted to do. As Ricky would say "Whoo Hoo!!! Below is a picture of Ricky's first landscape quilt that was done not knowing the so called "rules" of needing to add a seam allowance to the pieces that he cut. He experimented with different shapes and methods and when two pieces were giving him extra trouble he just steam ironed them to death LOL. After a good steaming the fabric fell into place. (sorry about the photo it's a bit crooked, but it was hanging crooked)

One other key philosophy that Ricky has is that time is your most important resource and you only have a finite amount of time so use it wisely. From this philosophy emerged the concept of when you have to be precise then you be precise, but where you don't have to be precise why worry about that 1/4" seam. Ricky is a master of figuring out ways of doing things that give amazing results yet you don't have to fret over every little detail. His "Caveman" quilting emerged from this and the use of paper piecing to get precision without the headaches. Oh did I just say an evil word to some of you, paper piecing. Don't fret, Ricky shows an easy method for paper piecing as well. Below is one of Ricky's Caveman quilts.

In addition Ricky shows you how to make his Convergence quilts, Kaleidoscope quilts and Rhapsody quilts (see samples of these quilts below). He also goes over design elements, as well as shows tips and tricks including how to piece curves without pins, setting in corners to make great looking borders, machine appliqué, machine quilting, piped bindings that save you time and look great, and some bobbin work. In  case you are wondering you get a wonderful workbook that has all the key information and instructions that are taught in the seminar so you are not taking a pile of notes.

Libby Lehman teaches two sessions.  She is a master quilter and one of the sessions she shows how she developed her Sheer Ribbon Illusion quilts.  It looks amazing even complex, but once you know the secrets you are going to want to try it for yourself.

Alex Anderson is a renowned hand quilter and teacher and she demonstrates hand quilting techniques and she talks about quilting design.  Here is one of Alex's hand quilted quilts.

I hope this gives everyone a better sense of what the 2 1/2 days are all about.  They are packed full of great information, learnings and wonderful stories.  I really hope that you all can get a chance to attend one of Ricky's seminars in the future.  It is time and money well worth spent.

Whoo Hoo!!! Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar Two Thumbs Up!!!

I'm back from a fabulous time at the Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar in Hyannis MA. This has got to be one of the most memorable quilting seminars/retreats/events whatever you want to call it available.  It was a jam packed 2 1/2 days of information, demonstrations, tips, tricks, stories, laughs, and all around good times. I highly recommend this to anyone who is thinking about taking it and for everyone who hasn't to really look into it, because it truly is an amazing time to get away and have a great quilting experience. Ricky, Libby Lehman and Alex Anderson have created an awsome seminar and their skills and talents complement each other.

Here are just a few pictures from the event.  Here is Ricky at the sewing machine, yes he really does sew his own quilts.

They had an area of samples and some of Ricky's design ideas on display which gave you a sense of the process he goes through in designing a quilt.

In addition there were lots of quilts on display, done by Ricky as well as others.  What is interesting is that not only does Ricky do contemporary quilts but he also does traditional designs.

You also get to see the quilts up close and see the actual quilting. Ricky has some lovely quilting designs on his quilts. Yes he also quilts his own quilts.

So now I wish I had another week off so I can start trying out some of the new things that I learned.  But it's off to work tomorrow and I still need to finish the orange quilt for the 75th birthday.  I've got a few ideas brewing so stay tuned and once the 2nd 75th birthday quilt is finished (Cherish Nature), I'm thinking I'm going to tackle a Kaleidoscope quilt.

Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar

WOW, I can't believe that it is almost here.  The last time I posted about the Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar http://www.rickytims.com/seminars/ was back in April when my friend Sue from Long Island and I decided to attend Ricky's seminar in Cape Cod.  So I'm leaving tomorrow around lunch time from work so that  I can take it easy travelling to the Cape.  I will stop over night in Rochester NY.  Then Wednesday it's onto Hyannis, MA. The seminar starts on Thursday and goes through to Saturday.  I will then head home on Sunday, again a stop over in Rochester NY and home on Monday, Labour Day. 

So obviously no quilting while I'm gone.  I did make some more progress on the orange quilt and got another column of flowers done but I didn't get to the butterflies yet.  So that will be waiting for me when I get home. 

I hope everyone has a great week and enjoys the Labour Day weekend. I'll let everyone know what I think of the seminar when I get back since I don't have a laptop and likely won't have access to a computer until I get back.

Bird of Paradise Convergence Quilt - Part 1

I've made my decision for my next quilting project. Two years ago this spring I was in Hawaii and I got some wonderful fabrics. Last year I used some of the fabrics in a wonky star quilt for the Bushfire project in Australia for the relief efforts for those affected by the bush fires.

I also had plans to make a wall hanging for myself and have yet to do ever do it. So I'm taking the advise of a dear quilting friend Donna (aka Quilt Pixie) who said that this year I really should make something for myself and not keep pushing this project to the back burner. So I have pulled out my fabrics for my Bird of Paradise Convergence Quilt. I'm leaning on going with the brighter orange fabric but I may end up cutting both orange fabrics and testing both in the design to see which one really is the best.

In addition I have this lovely Bird of Paradise fabric that I will likely use for the back. I'm also planning on doing some applique work on the front with the Bird of Paradise as the main theme so I may actually use some of this fabric for that purpose if my other applique design of a Bird of Paradise doesn't quite do it for the front.

I likely won't actually get started on cutting fabric until the weekend, but will do the prep work (ironing and starching) before.

Another long time friend and recent quilter Sue from Long Island and I have decided to attend the Ricky Tims Quilt Seminar being held in Hyannis, MA at the beginning of Sept. The seminar also includes Alex Anderson from HGTV's Simply Quilts and Libby Lehman a well known machine quilter and author of Threadplay. http://www.rickytims.com/seminars/

I did a blog search to see what other people had to say about these seminars especially after my disasters last fall and it sounds like these were a good hit. I didn't find any negative comments and I think it will be a nice change just to be able to go and listen to 3 experts and not have to buy a ton of fabric, then drag a sewing machine and a ton of supplies. It will be a refreshing change from the regular quilting seminars/conferences and fun to get together with a friend that I haven't seen in awhile.