Road Trip

Well, one show down and two more to go for 2008. We are going to have to really be organized the next few weeks. Important things to remember are absentee ballots and flu shots!

We always enjoy the Quilt Affair Show in Longmont, Colorado. It is small, but nicely run and nicely attended. The volunteers bring ice water around for the vendors 2 or 3 times during the day to stave off altitude sickness, I guess. It is welcome anyway. The new Janome worked really well for demonstrating the Multi-Frame.

The drive through Wyoming is long but pretty and there are always hillsides full of antelope. We followed, passed and then followed again a convoy of brand new fire trucks and haz mat trucks on the way back. We think they were headed for Lewistown, but they made a stop in Billings to have a bite at McDonalds.

Brooke

IQA Silent Auction

Well, Kate was done on time and John was done on time, but Brooke really scrambled to get her auction quilt done in time to ship today.

John's quilt is on the left, a 12" x 14 1/2" Storm at Sea. Brooke's quilt is in the middle, 10" x 20" Dresden Plate variation. Kate's quilt is on the right, a 14 1/2" square original variation of her Fifty-Four Forty or Fly series.

We are done and now it is time to pack for Quilt Affair in Longmont, Colorado. Oh, and we are having John's birthday party tonight, pizza!

Brooke

Chokecherries

It is time to pick the chokecherries in Red Lodge. John and his sisters already picked the cherries in Billings at least 3 weeks ago but Red Lodge is at a lot higher elevation so the cherries were finally ripe last week. A bear had also been snacking on the chokecherries and left some evidence.

We had a big dinner on Sunday and it was a beautiful day.

Our next show is in Longmont Colorado. It is always a pretty drive down there and it will be nice to be "back to work". We have been cutting and boxing Double Wedding Ring kits for Benartex like mad the last few weeks and still have more to go.

Brooke

Goodbye Old Stove

The stove is over 30 years old. We think the trouble started when we had it converted from propane to natural gas. The pilot light no longer works so we have to light it with kitchen matches - I realized a few mornings ago that the smell of sulphur matches reminds me of camping, pleasant memories, but not enough to redeem this stove.

The oven is an entity all its own. We haven't been able to bake in it for years; partially because a friend helping clean one afternoon scrubbed all the numbers off the oven's temperature dial with an SOS pad. But that isn't really what is wrong - we can't turn the oven on to bake but it is still on all the time at a very low temperature. Well, this is perfect for warming plates before dinner or our cocoa cups but I'm sure it isn't energy efficient. And lately, I have noticed the temperature is getting warmer. I have been worrying that one day I'll open the oven and it will be 400 degrees in there. So I will miss the warming oven, but not too much.

Because we are getting a new "range" this week. I will celebrate by baking - something. Maybe cookies. Or something wholesome like acorn squash. Probably a just a casserole, it is getting to be that kind of weather. Good bye, old stove.

Brooke

Cutting Edge

Did you love your Cutting Edge and wish we still made them? Someone is auctioning off miscellaneous rulers and a Cutting Edge on Ebay. Here is the link Ebay

Good luck

Brooke

International Quilt Festival

"It appears to me, upon reading the class schedule for the quilt festival in Houston this Oct., that John Flynn is teaching all day for the first three days of the show. Will he be demonstrating his quilt frame at any time? Will you please consider posting this on your blog in lieu of a personal email. Thank you. Ramona H."

Well, this is how it usually works at Houston. John has classes during the day, but comes down to the booth to give Kate and me a break on his lunch hour. (He does stop for a "show dog" on his way back to class) So someone will always be demonstrating in the booth and, if you come by right around lunch break, John most likely will be there.

The Houston show is one of our busiest, not just because of the large crowd, but John is also on the Board of the International Quilt Association which has it's annual meeting on Wednesday, I think. If you want to join IQA and support their beautiful annual quilt show Click Here

Well, thanks for asking Ramona and hope you get a chance to stop by and try the Frame. We just got a new Janome 6600 and are enjoying using it with the Multi-Frame.

Brooke

Everything's a Game

John and I are back from the AQS show in Nashville. It is a long drive, believe me. We were being very brave but we were only about 160 miles from home when the road construction on the two lane highway started. Pilot cars, water trucks and the whole deal and in at least six spots. We are home safe now, however and back to work. It is a little sad to know we won't be vending at the Opryland facility for the next few years. It is such a beautiful facility - really it's just a great big carefully tended greenhouse.

Kate and her friend Jaqi had fun packing batik strings in our new Chinese take out boxes this morning. They also packed boxes with strings of reproduction fabric. Very pretty - the batik take out boxes are in the web catalog already. Delicious!

John is getting ready to "tape" an episode for "The Quilt Show" with Alex Anderson and Ricky Timms. He leaves for La Veta early next week. His class will be Pickle Dish and variations - I am not sure when it will be available on the internet but we will let you know when know more.

We missed the hot weather in Tennessee and the hot weather in Montana - lucky us!

Brooke