2017 – Page 3 – Jinny Beyer Studio

Posted on April 27, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer

Having Some Fun This Spring!

We are starting to gear up for our Quilters’ Quest Shop Hop in November. All of the shops are taking sign-ups for their buses, so if you want to leave the driving to us, be sure to get your name on one of the lists. Check out the website at http://www.quiltersquest.org/

Do you want to see a little fun? Become acquainted with the shop owners who take part in the Quest and learn more about this fun-filled event by watching our video. We had great fun filming it and hope you have as much fun watching it!

Our staff had even more fun this past weekend. Elaine, one of our staffers, taught us all about boro-style needlework. “Boro” simply refers to a traditional Japanese method of mending, as well as the mended pieces themselves. The photos shown here are before and after shots of a piece that Elaine did for a bag she made. The boro stitch is essentially a running stitch but it creates wonderful texture.

Elaine's Boro project - before and after — Elaine’s Boro project – before and after

Carole and Judy enjoying the process of Boro style stitching. — Carole and Judy enjoying the process of Boro-style needlework.

There was also classroom fun on Saturday when I taught a wonderful group of students hand quilting. I set up my large quilting frame and they had the experience of quilting on both a large frame and a hoop. I have been excited about the resurgence of hand quilting and love teaching the class.

Spring is so beautiful! It is hard to stay inside. This year the conditions are perfect for a nice crop of morel mushrooms. I made up a recipe for stuffing for them and it turned out so good that I want to share it with you. It would be good for any stuffed mushrooms.

Enjoy the recipe and get out and enjoy the spring!

Stuffed Morel Mushrooms

3/4 cup non-fat yogurt
½ lb. Bob Evans “hot” sausage browned and crumbled
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
½ cup grated Swiss cheese
2 spring onions, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, finely crushed

Mix all ingredients together. Remove the stems of the mushrooms and carefully wash them, leaving them whole. Using a small spoon or narrow knife, push the filling into the mushrooms, filling them as full as possible. Bake for 10 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

Posted on April 19, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 8 Comments

Quilting Questions

I will be teaching hand quilting at the Studio this weekend. I love teaching this class because I only hand quilt my quilts and I love passing this skill along to others. In preparing for the class, I was reminded of the questions I am frequently asked about the topic. In an earlier blog, I talked about my favorite products but there were a few other areas I didn’t address. What color quilting thread should I use? Do I change the thread color when quilting over different fabrics or do I just use one? And then there is the most frequently asked question at the Studio concerning quilting: how should I quilt my quilt?

Let’s start with the last question first. My absolute favorite way to quilt and what I use most often is outline quilting which is to quilt a little bit more than a quarter of an inch around every patch. Why “a little more” than a quarter of an inch? That’s because if I try to do exactly a quarter of an inch I would probably be hitting the bulk from the seam allowances which would make my job much more difficult. By quilting a little bit more than a quarter of an inch from the seam line, I will miss those extra layers of fabric. I eyeball the quarter-inch but, if you prefer, you can use a quarter-inch masking tape made for quilters as a guide.

When I get to the borders or in areas with large-scale prints, the design decision is easy. I let the printed design on the fabric dictate my quilting design.

Now, concerning thread color and whether or not to change thread, I would have to give the very unpopular answer of “it depends.” First of all, I don’t like to use bright colors. I like the look of more muted thread colors. Here are the colors I use most: a grey-blue or teal being my favorite plus ecru, black and rust.

I try to use the same thread throughout but I do sometimes change. An easy decision is using black on black, tan on tan, etc. When choosing a thread color, I tend to go a little darker than the fabric I will be stitching on. I pick up the darker lines in the fabric.

For more information, you can refer to my book, Quiltmaking by Hand. But above all, remember that this is your quilt. There are so many possibilities. Experiment, try new colors and products and find what works best for you.

Posted on April 13, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 4 Comments

Never a Dull Moment

This is one of my favorite times of the year. The Virginia bluebells are in full bloom along the Potomac River in Great Falls National Park. Our native redbuds are announcing spring with their brilliant violet flowers, the onions, potatoes and early vegetables are planted in my garden and we are already enjoying the early spring greens and winter onions in salads.

That is not to say we don’t get surprises. Last week, I was teaching my Diamonds class at my shop. We had just begun the class when all of a sudden our shop phone rang, I received one of those alerts on my cell phone and I received an urgent text message from my son-in-law in Oregon (who works on mapping at the U. S. Geological Survey)…all of these simultaneous alerts (including alerts on phones of the students) were telling us that there was a tornado warning for Great Falls and we were to seek immediate shelter.

Now we were all on the second floor of our building and could see the suddenly ominous black sky. We all hastily retreated to the basement of our building which houses the utilities. Space was crowded and we got to know each other up close and personal. It was amazing how, not only calm, but jovial the students and staff were in this cramped and dusty place.

Basement Hiding Two — It was definitely cozy!

Student Karen made me laugh at the essentials she brought with her--her fabric and sewing supplies. — Student Karen made me laugh at the essentials she brought with her–her fabric and sewing supplies.

Within 15 minutes the danger was over and we resumed the class. The two Canadian ladies, two from West Virginia, and one from California who had traveled here for the class along with the locals were quite excited to let all their friends know about our little adventure. We did learn that several small tornados did touch down not too far from us.

Malloy from Maryland — Mally from Maryland

Working with diamonds is one of my favorite classes to teach and they all made great progress. It is a wonderful opportunity to work on both design and color. Here are some photos of them hard at work and some of the results.

Student Work One — Susan has come from California several times to take classes from Jinny and this is at least the second (or third) time she’s taken Diamonds. The quilt is the result of what she learn from Jinny before. Isn’t it beautiful?

Posted on April 5, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 3 Comments

Half Square Triangles

The half square triangle is certainly one of the most used shapes in patchwork. Have you ever thought about how many different arrangements you can make by simply putting a light half square triangle next to a dark one and then arranging them in as many ways as possible?

Here are just a few examples that are in my book, The Quilter’s Album of Patchwork Patterns.

With my interest in all things patchwork, imagine my delight when during my recent visit to the International Patchwork Festival in Sitges, Spain, I encountered 55 benches with decorative patchwork tile designs, all made with half square triangle tiles.

I was walking with my son, Sean, along the promenade that runs along the beach when I saw the first bench. I remarked on how neat that was. Then sixty steps later there was another one and another after sixty more steps. Before long I realized that each bench was different, with a different design.

We walked for about a mile and a half and altogether I counted 55 benches, all made with half square tiles. Each dark triangle was paired with a light one to create a square and then those squares were arranged in a variety of ways—48 squares (96 half square triangles) along the back of each of the benches.

Some of the benches appeared to be newer than others. Each bench had decorative tiles on the sides that corresponded to the designs on the backs of the benches. The older benches had spaces for 10 squares (20 triangles) and the newer ones had spaces for 6 squares (12 triangles).

So far I have not been able to find any two benches exactly the same. Some had duplicate designs on the back of the bench, but maybe the colors were reversed or the design was upside down on one of them. Also I found benches with the same design on the back, but one was an older style with places for 10 squares on sides of the bench and the other was the newer style with a spot for only 6 squares. A few were the same design but with different colored tiles.

I only made the discovery of these benches on our last day in Sitges. I wish I had had time to study them more carefully. I photographed most all of them and show 30 of them here.

I would like to know the history about these benches, who came up with the idea, how old they are, etc. If anyone knows, please let me know.

Meanwhile, how many other arrangements can you come up with using the same configuration of 10 square tiles across and three down?

Posted on March 29, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 5 Comments

Studio Staff Projects, Part II

As we left you last week, we still had projects from about half the staff to share with you. One of our favorite things in the Studio is when customers stop in to share their work with us or send us photos through email and Facebook. Here then, with Jinny just back from Spain and probably still jetlagged, we are turning the tables and sharing our projects with you.

Linda quilted up a storm and now has lots of binding to do with more handwork involved on this lovely soft-edge piecing. (Jinny has a great video tutorial on this technique on our website.) But her more important job these days is completing an Elizabeth Hartman pattern called “Fancy Forest” for a special request “Boho” baby quilt for her new granddaughter who is due next month.

Just need to add the binding and then all done!

You may not be surprised to learn this but, yes, even our accountant is a quilter. Julia is piecing blocks for an on-line mystery quilt. The name of the mystery is Meadow Mystery by Cheryl Brickey. She chose fabrics from her stash and the completed quilt will go to a military patient at Fort Belvoir Hospital.

Dana sent her photos and her story. We decided to let her tell it: “When I married Alen, I knew in my mind that for our 10-year anniversary I wanted to make him a double wedding ring quilt in our wedding colors- red and purple. I have had the Judy Neimeyer pattern for ages along with the fabrics, many of which are Jinny’s. So, we celebrated our 10-year anniversary last October and do you know what he got…a picture of the pattern and an IOU. I felt guilty and decided I better start working on it. I was a bit intimidated as I had never paper pieced before and it just didn’t sink in with me but I decided to give it a try. This pattern is written so well, I am now hooked and am quite enjoying the process. Now every time Alen comes into my work room and sees me working on something that is not red or purple, he’s like “hey what about my quilt?” I told him let’s shoot for 20 years!!!”

In addition to the quilt, Dana saw a high-end designer jacket with cats that was well out of her price range. She purchased upholstery material, broke out an embroidery machine that she’s had forever and added her own personal touch to the back to make this chic jacket.

Rebecca proudly boasts of making progress on her UFO pile. She says she “finally” quilted this one and is sewing the binding on. It is pieced with batiks using a pattern by Carrie Nelson, from the Another Bite of Schnibbles book.

Judy is trying to finish the quilt from a Kaffe Fassett workshop back in October. She had all the squares up on the design board and kept rearranging them, finally deciding how to put it together. The border also changed three times until she decided the big flowers worked best. She’s also working on a BOM from an online blog using Kaffe stash fabrics.

Judy's BOM using Kaffe Fasset fabrics. — Judy’s BOM using Kaffe Fassett fabrics.

And, finally, Cathy recently finished this top framing it perfectly with a Milan border print. Along with that, she put the finishing touches on this Midi Bag which was a Weekly Web Special last fall.

Cathy's Midi bag will surely come in handy! — Cathy’s Midi Bag will surely come in handy!

Thanks for letting us share our projects with you and don’t forget that we always love to see yours.

Posted on March 22, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 2 Comments

Studio Staff Projects, Part I

While Jinny catches up after teaching in Spain, we, the staff, are taking over her blog. This past weekend, we celebrated National Quilting Day, a day to “appreciate and to recognize quilt makers, along with all of their long labor, love and skill that goes into the making of each quilt.”

We also hope that you take the time to celebrate the camaraderie of quilters. For generations, quilters have come together to share more than stitching…but, oh, how we love our stitching. Here at the Studio, we share our projects, give praise, offer advice and learn from each other. Here, then, is a look at what we have under our needles.

Elaine purchased an incomplete quilt top on eBay a few years ago. She calls it “Scrapple” because so many of the pieces are SO tiny! Fabrics range from the 1890s to the 1930s. She completed the top using antique fabric from her stash. She didn’t like her first attempt at machine quilting so she removed all of it. It took her several hours! It was then re-basted and quilted using a home-made spiral stencil. Now, she says, “I love it!” That’s quite a lesson of sticking with something until you think it’s right.

Close-up of Elaine's Scrapple — Close-up of Elaine’s Scrapple

Diane has been furiously stitching away on her La Passacaglia from Willyne Hammerstein’s Millefiori Quilts book. This amazing quilt contains only Jinny’s fabric. Diane and her quilt will appear on The Quilt Show later this year.

Our newest staff member, Elizabeth, is almost all done with this one. The pattern is called Rock Candy by Jaybird Quilts. The fabric was from a scrap bag of Jinny’s batiks. It is hand pieced and quilted.

Some of us like to have both machine and hand work projects going at the same time. Nancy made this this cute little table topper as a carry-around project. Does it look familiar? Check out Elizabeth’s project above. It’s hand pieced and made with Jinny’s Malam batiks and 60° diamond template. She’s about to machine quilt it while hand stitching the binding on a baby quilt.

Many of you saw the staff tuffet class on our Facebook page. Lura just finished hers. Nice! She’s hand piecing these rose star blocks for a wall hanging for her sister using vintage Jinny borders. She also continues to make pie trivets/potholders which are great gifts. She’s discovered the perfect “crust” fabric is Jinny’s Palette #112.

We are sad to say that Marion will be leaving us this summer to return to the Netherlands. Before she goes she’d like to finish her toothbrush rug started in a Studio class last fall.

Marion's Toothbrush Rug — Marion’s Toothbrush Rug

Kelley has three projects going. As a member of a pincushion club with a group of quilting friends from Virginia, Arizona, Texas, and California, she learns new skills on one small project each month. She is also taking part in the “Primitive Triangles Sew Along” with Lisa Bongean using Jinny’s Casablanca collection. The blocks finish at 4”. And then, of course, there’s her Farm Girl Vintage from Lori Holt which just needs the binding completed. Her quilt has 56 blocks that finish at 6”. She asks, “Can you tell I like small pieces?”

Kelley's Farm Girl Vintage — Kelley’s Farm Girl Vintage

Well, when we started this it seemed like a nice little blog post but we soon became aware that we, as a group, have a lot of unfinished projects that we are currently trying to finish up. Can any of you identify with that? Check back next week for Studio Staff Projects, Part 2.

Posted on March 15, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 2 Comments

Sitges International Patchwork Festival

What a wonderful week I had. I just returned from the Sitges International Patchwork Festival put on by the Association Espana de Patchwork.

Sitches itself is a gem of a city about 20 kilometers south of Barcelona, on the Mediterranean, with narrow cobblestone streets, beautiful old architecture, seaside cafes, wide promenades along the water and extremely friendly people. The weather was perfect every day with highs in the 60’s and lows in the 50’s.

I was invited to be one of the guest artists and to have an exhibition of my quilts at the show.

Since I did not want to ship the quilts or check them, my son, Sean, accompanied me and we packed all 12 quilts in carry-ons. It was quite a feat getting them all in the small-enough bags that we would be allowed to take on the plane.

The hall that held my exhibit was in an old building right on the water. Large windows looked out onto the sea so the lighting was excellent. Once the show opened, I was amazed at the crowds of people. The organizers expected more than 10,000 people to attend.

Other artists with exhibits included Anna Dolanyi, Katie Pasquini, Danny Amazonas, Maoli Lozaano and Willyne Hammerstein. Unfortunately, because of the classes I was teaching and the time spent in my exhibit greeting people, there was not time to visit all of the exhibits which were scattered around the old part of the city.

Danny's horse art quilt — Danny’s horse art quilt

The eye of the horse - spectacular! — The eye of the horse – spectacular!

In the room next to my exhibit was an exhibit of work by children and I was so pleased to see the effort the patchwork association was making to encourage quiltmaking by children.

When we arrived at our seaside hotel we were a little sorry to see giant tents being put up along the promenade opposite our hotel. We thought what a shame it would spoil our view, but then we saw a large “Bernina” sign being put up and realized that this series of tents was the vendors area! The tents were full with people the entire time.

We had a fabulous time and I’m so grateful that we had the opportunity to take part in it.

Posted on March 7, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 2 Comments

Lights, Camera, Action!

Many of you are familiar with our annual shop hop we call Quilters’ Quest. What you may not know is that we start the planning for it as soon as the previous year’s Quest ends, meeting at least once a month throughout the year. We are always looking for new ideas and ways to make it even more fun for you.

Last week our meeting took place here at the Studio. Besides normal business, we decided to put together a little video for you about us and the Quest. More on that after I tell you a bit about the Quest itself.

Every November our ten shops, located in Maryland and Northern Virginia, join together and open our doors for ten days of fun, fabric and friendship. This year’s theme is “Lights, Camera, Action.” We have each selected a movie and will transform our shops so you can experience the magic of Hollywood!

From November 9th through the 18th, 2017, you will be able to participate in this FREE event that sends you on an adventure to explore each of our shops. You also have the opportunity to win fabulous prizes. If driving from shop to shop seems a bit daunting, you can leave the driving to us and take one of the buses leaving from various shops.

Tote Bag One — Every finisher gets a cool mesh bag and more!

Hosting the shop owners at the Studio and preparing for the video involved meeting with the videographer, set design (aka, rearranging the classroom) and preparing lunch where I proceeded to nearly cut off my finger. (Don’t worry—it was only a pinkie finger and not needed for sewing.) Thankfully, I did not bleed on lunch.

Filming began inside with a script written by Amy from Material Girls and Kelly Ann from Kelly Ann’s Quilting. It can be intimidating sitting under the lights with cameras on you, text to read aloud with others watching but soon silliness erupted from our many flubs and miscues.

After lunch, we moved outside for more filming. I don’t know if it was the fresh air and bracing wind or that we had full tummies but everyone relaxed and the silliness increased.

Our color Palette is fresh and new and each of our shops has put together a unique set of eight 6” squares in the Quest colors. Collect them all and all 10 of our FREE quilt patterns. I think it is safe to brag a little and say that our shops design beautiful quilts each reflecting its own style.

Here are the Colors of the 2017 Quest. Each shop will choose their own fabrics.

Sign up for the Quilters’ Quest newsletter! In addition to staying up to date on our breaking Quilters’ Quest news (such as the premier of our video), bus schedules and sign ups and fun previews, you will also gain access to the monthly Quest Block of the Month quilt pattern. Stay tuned, the results of our fun day will be ready soon and we will share the video with you!

We are looking forward to seeing all of you soon!

Posted on February 27, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 1 Comment

Building Art One Piece at a Time

I just returned from a visit with my grandchildren and their parents. One of the things we did was to go to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry to see their new exhibit “The Art of the Brick.” We had to wait in line for more than an hour to get into the exhibit, but it was worth the wait.

This exhibit features the work of Nathan Sawaya, an Oregon artist who builds his amazing art with Legos! I have to say that I was just as in awe as the children were. We as quilters build our art with fabric and thread, one piece at a time and it was easy to see some of the parallels in the creation of the Lego art.

Polly hugging the Lego tree. — Polly joined the Lego people and hugged the tree.

Emmett and the glowing skulls made of Legos.

I took several photos with the children to put into perspective the size of some of the pieces.

If you ever get a chance to see an exhibit of Mr. Sawaya’s in person you should go. It is truly inspiring.

Lego Ten — Polly, Emmett and my son-in-law Rob

Opening your heart to art and loving what you do!

You can see examples of his art on his website: http://www.nathansawaya.com

Posted on February 16, 2017July 29, 2022 by Jinny Beyer — 6 Comments

Travel Delay Excuses

What a better way to spend Valentine’s Day than with the grandchildren. My husband and I flew out on February 13th and almost missed Valentine’s Day altogether.

Our flight arrangements included a one hour layover in San Francisco. That would give us enough time to make our connection and arrive at our destination just as the kids were getting out of school.

Well, we boarded our plane and then sat and sat and sat and after about a half hour the pilot came on and said they they were waiting for a part for the cockpit. Fifteen minutes later he said they got the part which was a new oxygen mask for the pilot’s seat and we would be on our way soon. I immediately wondered what happened on the last flight that now required a new oxygen mask for the pilot. We were not enlightened on that point.

Ten minutes later we were informed that oxygen masks are specific to each aircraft and the one they brought didn’t fit this plane, but they found one on a plane in a hangar away from the airport. They were sending someone for it. We were updated on when the person picked up the part and that he would be back right away. Half hour later we were informed they they finally arrived with the correct part, but the reason it took so long was that the person bringing the part got a speeding ticket on the way back.

Now I have traveled a LOT. I have heard all kinds of reasons for delays, but this was a first for me. Good thing the San Francisco plane was also delayed by a little and we made our connection with only three minutes to spare. If we had missed that plane we would have had to spend the night in San Francisco.

The kids immediately started cutting fabric I brought them to make some items for their animals......Polly sewed a hat for her bear and Emmett made a scarf for his dog. — The kids immediately started cutting fabric I brought them to make some items for their animals……Polly sewed a hat for her bear and Emmett made a scarf for his dog.

As is always the case when I visit, the kids immediately ask when we can sew something. They also bring out all the clothes and animals that need a little repair work done.

Emmett brought out a pair of socks with holes in them and I told him I hadn’t brought my darning egg. He said “That’s okay Grandma, we have some maracas. You can use one of those!”