Fabric Maverick - Sewing Maven: April 2008 Archives

Spring is wrestling with winter to take over. There will be several days of cold followed by days in the 70's. Of course in the South, a sure sign of spring is yellow snow. Yellow snow is the term for a shower of yellow pollen which will coat everything for the next several weeks. Spring brings with it a desire to refresh our homes. Victoria has already begun a redo of a guest bedroom. It would be so much easier if she held a sewing party. You ask what is a sewing party.

A sewing party is a group of friends getting together on a Saturday or Sunday.  They will bring their sewing machines and projects to one person's home. If Victoria would have a party at her house, I believe she could get all of her projects done in record time. The sewing party is reminiscent of the quilting bee of yester year.  The last party I went to we each had our own project to work on, but in the end we seemed to end up stuffing gum drop pillows. Remember gum drop pillows? Finishing a project together is one of the benefits. Another benefit is joining with friends to share a good lunch and catch up on what is going on in each others lives. This is a great time to laugh.  Too often we are rushing around trying to complete our chores and to-do lists.  How many of you start a week wondering where the weekend went to? Take one weekend and host a sewing party.  See how you will feel refreshed and rejuvenated at the end of the day.   Start planning your party today! Maybe you can get your projects done. I'll even start you off with a recipe.

Quiche Provencal 6 servings things you'll need 1 (9-inch) baked pie shell* 1 medium onion, sliced 1/2 cup chopped green pepper 1 tablespoon cooking oil 2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges 1 cup sliced zucchini 1 tablespoon snipped fresh parsley 1 teaspoon garlic salt 1/2 teaspoon basil leaves, crushed 1/4 teaspoon pepper 6 eggs 1 1/4 cups skim or low-fat milk getting started In large omelet pan or skillet over medium heat, cook onion and green pepper in oil until tender but not brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, zucchini and seasonings. Cook uncovered an additional 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Drain well. Set aside. Beat together eggs and milk until well blended. Pour into pie shell. Spoon in reserved drained vegetable mixture. Bake in preheated 375° F oven until knife inserted near center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. *To bake pie shell: Line unbaked pie shell with 12-inch square of aluminum foil. Fill with rice or dried beans or peas. Cover rim of shell with edges of foil. Bake in preheated 450° F oven until lightly browned at edges, 10 to 15 minutes. Lift out foil and rice. Cool on wire rack. Note: If you use a frozen pie shell, it must be deep-dish style.

I can tell you people who have a passion for sewing are not the stereotypical little old lady who has nothing else to do with her time. Most of us have full time demanding jobs.  I know a CFO whose secret passion is memory quilts. When she is not balancing the books, she is creating a photo quilt. All of us secretly pray for the time to indulge our passions full time. What is more natural than wanting to plan our vacations around those hobbies? Some smart person in the travel industry recognized that there was a need for this type of vacation. Now there is a burgeoning industry to make your dream trip become a reality. Get ready to pack your bag, dust off your passport and let me show you where to go!

A company called Traveling Together has several tours planned. Traveling Together covers the gamut of needleworks. If you knit, quilt, cross-stitch, etc., they have a trip for you. Here are a few:

• Travel to Hungary (Sept.24-Oct.4, 2008) There are long lists of activities including wine tasting.
• Travel to England (Oct.8 -Oct. 16, 2008) This trip is targeted towards knitters,embroiderers and cross-stitchers.
• Travel to Hawaii (Feb.12-Feb.22, 2009) This trip features touring with Kaffe Fassett and Brian Mabry.

Both McCall's Quilting and Fons and Porter "For the Love of Quilting" sponsor trips abroad. Fons and Porter schedule a trip every year to Provence.  I am ready if they need someone to provide a review on traveling to France. No one has asked yet, but I am a patient woman.  McCall's Quilting has two trips scheduled. One trip is to New Zealand.  The second trip is to China.  This is scheduled for Nov. 10-Nov.23. 2008.

If a cruise is more your style, check out the great cruises at Quilt Cruises.com. There are cruises to Alaska, Scandinavia and Russia, even the Panama Canal and Costa Rica.  All of these cruises have expert quilting teachers and lecturers from Alex Anderson to Jane Sassman.

If you want something closer to home, plan a retreat. There is one scheduled in Montana with Sandy Bonsib and Harriet Hargrave. There is even a retreat for you and your husband at the Oasis Resort. You can attend classes while he fishes in the Deschutes River in Oregon.

 This is just the tip of the iceberg.  There are trips to anywhere that you want to go. Excuse me, I just saw a trip to Italy I want to check out!  Ciao!

The Fabric Maverick