Boston Commons Quilt Class With Kitty Sorgen

This past weekend (and today (Monday 24 Feb) we have been having our first snow of the season. Yes, we have been much more lucky than anywhere else in the country this Winter! This same view today has a lot more snow to show!

Also, this weekend I took a two day class with a wonderful teacher named Kitty Sorgen. She is a wonderful, talented,  and very attentive, teacher who lives locally. She teaches locally (and in California) as well as is far flung places like Africa and the wilds of Alaska where her class sites are not reachable by any roads!

The 'Boston Commons' quilt pattern is an old one, and it is a very traditional one. I have never made one. I had considered taking this class and then, by fortune's chance, I won a spot in it at a Guild "Awful raffle". It was two day class, and we needed every minute of that time. One person, the speedy Po Powell, came close to having a finished top to take home with her, the rest of us were still placing strip sets. Kitty has developed a much more rapid method of making this quilt using strip sets.

I have never made a mystery quilt, and most likely never will, but making this quilt comes as close to making a mystery quilt as possible because with each strip set that you add the look of the quilt changes completely - so the pattern is kind of a mystery quilt! What you see is most assuredly not what you will end up with! It was great to spend time with friends too - it always makes me happy.

Each person's work was fabulous, and each quilt is so remarkable different. It was a lot of fun to watch them develop!

This one is mine. I wanted to use colors that were just a bit out of my usual 'comfort zone', but still retain my beloved 'ick' greens in at least one or two places. Many years ago I used to favor teal, turquoise and aqua colors, and I feel that I am 'cycling' back to my affection for them. You can see that I have not sewn too many of the sets together, and  I ran out of space to place all of the outside strip on the background (plus I could not reach the top!). 

Kitty suggests, and I get it, that you trim the edges AFTER the top is quilted- so my outside darkish 'strip' will actually be a half square when it all said and done.

Have any of you found that you color sense changes at all as you age? I can't say mine have changed completely, but I do feel that my preferences are swinging back just a bit.

This is a close up of the center of my quilt. The scissors and the thimbles are part of a fabric collection from Cloud 9 Fabrics, called "Mad Mend". I love the show Mad Men, so I had to have some of the fabric! 

This lush version is from Linda Cooper. The whole appearance changed dramatically when she added the green strips.

This wonderful rendition is the one that Po Powell had 

nearly completed by the end of class.

 I wish I could be that speedy!  Isn't it cool?!

Mary D'Ambrosia's 'red-alicios' variation

Barb Snider's cheerful, colorful sets made me think of Spring and Summer. She's headed to a place with warm weather this week so maybe the colors were inspired by her thoughts of warmth!

This deep, rich combination is from Beth Phillips.
It looks so warm and inviting!

This color scheme is made by Ebie Currey.
We all agreed that it looked very vintage -
which is just Ebie's style! Very nice!

This vibrant beauty is made by Kelly Hilsinger, the Guild's trusty Treasurer. It vibrates color and richness! Kelly had JUST purchased her dream sewing machine and this class was the first time that she had used it . It's a very sleek, beautiful, Berbnina 750. She was in heaven using it! Good on her!

I was really fascinated by the variation in quilts. Each one was beautiful, and each one was so different. I have a fondness for vintage patterns, and I thoroughly enjoy being able to 'modern' up a vintage pattern as I tried to do with mine. My preference has always been 'tradition with a twist', so this class really floated my personal boat.

I'd love to hear about your preferences in quilts. What types of patterns do you most enjoy making? Has the 'modern' bug bit you at all?

I am excited to have signed up for a modern quilt class in April from Katie Pedersen. It feels so good to be quilting again!