Forever Quilting 4 You

Well let’s start with the last week in 2024 – Christmas day after my daughter opened her gifts and was happily in her room looking at everything she received. I was on the couch watching some mindless stuff on TV and I started to feel a sharp pain in my lower left abdomen. I brushed it off and started thinking about getting Christmas dinner ready. A few minutes later another sharp pain and then another. As it turned out, I had a UTI, and a cyst on one of my ovaries had ruptured. One week later I finally had a telehealth appointment with a doctor and was prescribed some meds to get back on track. As you might imagine, the pain was unbelievable and not something I would want to have to go through again.

I spent a week in my pj’s resting and not doing much at all. When I woke up New Year’s Day, I felt great, so I put on “real clothes” (not my jamms) and planned to grab the dog and walk across the street to get the mail that had been sitting there for a week, then drive to my “favorite coffee place ever,” Dutch Bros., to get a much needed protein coffee, which I love and missed so very much when I was sick.

Leading up to what happened next, I’ve always said that “what I do on New Year’s Day is an indication of what I will be doing the rest of the year.” So, I grabbed Koa, my 80-pound black lab, and I headed to the mailbox. Koa was so excited to be on the leash and going outside, knowing that when I take her outside it’s usually because I’m going to Dutch Bros where, in addition to a coffee for me, I also get her a pup-a-chino. To say she gets excited is truly a monumental understatement. She frantically spins in circles, at the same time jumping around like a mad woman who’s lost control of all senses! As we passed the car, she realized we are going for a walk instead, and her excitement intensified. She picked up speed, the leash started to get tight, so I shouted with stern authority, “Koa! No! DO NOT PULL ME!!!” (She has the strength of a high-speed train, like the ones all over Europe.) I stepped off the curb and the next thing I knew I was lying in the street, face down, splayed out like a spread eagle! As I gathered my wits about me, I looked up to see if any cars were coming, concerned that they would run me over. I was relieved when I saw that the coast was clear. Now I had to figure out how to get back on my feet. I had lost my slippers in the excitement and realized that no one was around to help me up. Surprisingly I was able to get myself up, find my slippers, and did a body check during which I realized that I had landed on my right knee and the palms of my hands. Yes, the pain was beginning to set in. As I continued on my way to the mailbox, limping all the way, I again yelled at Koa to NOT PULL ME. It seemed as if she knew I was hurt because she listened and proceeded to walk gingerly, matching my speed.

After getting the mail I noticed there was nothing of importance in it, so Koa and I headed off to Dutch Bros to get the coffee I desperately needed then. And yes, Koa had already forgotten about dragging me into the street and was focused on getting her pup-a-chino! After getting home, I gave myself some time to recover and then called my sissy to share my “New Year’s Day” experience, explaining what that meant about the rest of my year. After she made sure I was okay and that nothing was broken, I started to laugh as I began telling her what had happened. At first, she didn’t think it was very funny but rather very serious. However, as I continued to tell her what had happened, she started laughing when I told her “All I needed was someone to draw a chalk line around me as I was lying face down in the street.” That’s all it took; the flood gates opened! We laughed so hard as I continued to tell her all about what had happened. Who else but my sissy would think me falling was so much fun? Guess that’s why I love her so much!!

Now on to the current quilting news for 2025. I have started working  on the new version of the ‘Catch Me… If You Can’ pattern by Jacqueline de Jonge of BeColourful from the Netherlands. My friend Carol Stanek and I have a plan to get this new version of ‘Catch Me’ done before we head off to Tennessee at the beginning of June to attend the very first ‘Catch Me Masterclass” that Jacqueline is teaching. Our plan is to work on each chapter for a month – there are 6 chapters and 6 months in which to get them done. Carol is a master at creating schedules when needing to meet deadlines. We are very excited about attending this class because we will be part of the first group to take this class being taught by Jacqueline, and second, this will be our first class attending as Authorized Instructors!

If you don’t already know about the revised Catch Me quilt, it is spectacular! The original quilt was designed with vivid, bright colored pieces set on a background of black, made from Anthology Fabrics designed by Jacqueline. The redesigned version is set on a white background with beautiful pastel solids, also designed by Jacqueline for Anthology.

Catch Me is a Level 7 in difficulty, being the first Level 7 in Jacqueline’s line up of patterns. If you are new to BeColourful patterns I suggest that you start with a beginning level, Level 1, and work your way up to higher levels, building your confidence along the way. Please learn from my experience and don’t do like I did – I started with a Level 5 difficulty – Dream Flight only to become frustrated halfway through it, leaving it unfinished and still on my design wall after several years. What I learned from starting with a Level 5 pattern is that there are many techniques I didn’t know about that were needed to complete this pattern. Had I started with a Level 1, I would have learned those techniques along the way to Level 5 and would have saved myself from the frustration.

I have since gone back to the beginning – Level 1 – and  worked my way up to level 6. Making each quilt in the order of difficulty gave me the tools to be able to complete each level with confidence. To date I have made and completed 14 of the BeColourful quilts and have 4 more in the process.

If you haven’t tried a BeColourful quilt yet, I highly recommend that you do. I have scheduled a 3-day class at Sew Katie Jean in Lincoln, CA starting on May 1, 2025, continuing on the 8^th and 15^th. I will be teaching Happiness 2.0 which is a great starter quilt to get your feet wet. In preparation for this class, I’m also offering a free-of-charge “color class” on April 19^th to anyone who would like help picking out their fabrics and colors for this project.

On the first day of class (May 1^st) we will be going over the cutting of the fabrics and start sewing. You will go home with homework and come back to the second class (May 8^th) ready to start on another section of Happiness 2.0. The second and third classes will be all about sewing and assembly. You should be able to finish this quilt in the classroom, and go home with a finished wall hanging, being proud of your accomplishment.

I would love to see you there and to introduce you to the wonderful world of BeColourful.

Please call the store to sign up for the Happiness 2.0 class on May 1^st, and if you are interested, the color class on April 19^th. Registration for each of these classes is on a “first come first served” basis. Here is the information for where the class will take place.

Sew Katie Jean

Located in Full Stop Market #2

561 5^th Street Suite 100

Lincoln, CA 95648

(530) 450-5462

So, what did I learn this month?

Getting sick and missing my surgery date was a good thing. It allowed me to take my daughter to appointments she needed to go to, which otherwise I would not have been able to do.

Although falling in the street wasn’t funny at the time, it is funny now when I think about it. Need not worry, it doesn’t mean that it will be falling at the paws of Koa for the rest of the year.

Not having deadlines this year, except for the ones I set for myself, is a relief and very freeing.

Waiting another 30 days to have surgery has been a blessing in disguise.

Moving forward, sewing at a slower pace has been a dream come true.

Until next time what is on your sewing table today?

Victoria aka Tori