IHAN® Hits Vegas!!!

I hope you are having or have had a wonderful Valentines Day filled with Love and Fabric :)

Now, I'll back track to my trip....

I hope the title doesn't mislead you to very much.  The last time I was in Vegas I was there for a 100 mile bike ride for the Leukemia Society back in 1999.  Back then, money still came out of slot machines and  Caesars walked around Caesars Palace with his female companions.  Those were the days my friends.....I thought they'd never end.....Now Vegas is like going to Chuck E Cheese for grown ups.  You get pieces of paper out of slot machines and you turn those in for money.

 I was welcomed to Vegas by this sign.  I was feeling old until I saw the sign....ROFL.

They say, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas....unless you are from IHAN®!  You know me....I'll share the trip with all of you :)

 

 Rod Stewart at Caesars Palace....nope I didn't see that show.

But I did see this....and 

this too.  I really wanted to see Caesar walking around like I saw back in my 20's...instead...this is as close as I got to any Caesar.

Jean and I just couldn't help ourselves....

I never really noticed the size difference between Jean and I until I took this photo.  

I've got to get the co-workers on the big yellow monster....I'll post the rest of our Vegas photos in a few hours.

Smiles,

Kelly

My Decorative Quilter- Are You Ready For This?

 "Schazam!"....just like Gomer Pyle would say was my response to the My Decorative Quilter software that is new from Floriani.  I just got back from Las Vegas where the VDTA/SDTA is still going on and I went to learn about Floriani Software and Anita Goodesign's new products.  More about Anita Goodesigns coming soon.

 Because I attended the VDTA/SDTA I was one of the first to have a copy of My Decorative Quilter and I was able to see many of the cool things this software can do.

DISCLAIMER: For all of you that don't have embroidery machines.....I'm sorry and please feel free to blame me for making you want one!

Just look at these beautiful blocks all done on an embroidery machine:

I know what all of you/us quilters are thinking right now....well...those are nice designs but they are all on non-pieced fabrics.  How can I use My Decorative Quilter to fit my blocks and quilt tops (was I right?).

My Decorative Quilter can quilt pieced quilts and whole cloth quilts.  The features in the software actually make it possible to quilt each block, portion of a block and  applique design any way you choose.

I realize these are not the best examples of what I'm trying to communicate but I was not able to take pix of all of the samples that were in Vegas this weekend.  Essentially, you can select any portion of a block and choose the type of design you want in that block.   The choice is yours and the options are truly mind blowing.

Do you like to Crazy Quilt?  No problem!  Are you in love with feathers and your free motion quilting isn't as good as you'd like?  No problem!  Do you like to make your own quilt patterns?  No problem!  Do you love Applique?  No problem!

I have to say I am excited to use My Decorative Quilter now I'm home.  All of you who know me know I'm a hands on learner and a visual person....I've got to see it done or do it to really be able to learn software or any new technique.  

Check this out:

This is a copy and paste of exactly what the help screen looks like in My Decorative Quilter Software.  YES...a Video Library!  Hooray for those of us who are visual learners :)  The instructions are explicit which makes it easy to operate the software. 

Oh, and did I mention you can upload line drawings to make your own artwork?  How fun would it be to upload your children's art work and turn it into a quilt design?  YEP....you can do it with My Decorative Quilter :)  There are so many more features I have not even told you about yet....but if you keep reading you'll see there is an opportunity to learn all about My Decorative Quilter in a webinar.

Floriani has out done themselves with My Decorative Quilter.  They have leveled the playing field for those of us who's quilting has been limited to stitch in the ditch or speaking for myself now, my FMQ skills would not allow me to complete a quilt and feel good about it's appearance....until now. 

 My Decorative Quilter isn't available for purchase from any Floriani dealer until March 1st.  But those of us who attended the VDTA/SDTA, we will have 10 copies auto shipped to us and we'll receive them by  Feb. 21st.  That means if you want to be one of the first to own My Decorative Quilter, you can Pre-Order now at IHAN and I'll ship the software the same day it arrives here (unless it arrives after the post office closes...then it will be the very next morning). 

If your interest is peaked but you want to learn more....Floriani has added more Webinars that are open to anyone who is interested in learning more.  Make sure you have signed up for the IHAN newsletter (click the image on the upper right of this blog to sign up for the IHAN Newsletter)  so you'll receive your IHAN invitation to attend an My Decorative Quilter Webinar.

Big Fun Smiles,
Kelly

Back Safe and Sound After Fishing

The "Old Kelly" would have stayed up late every night to blog and share every detail of what I learned.  The "New Kelly" was way to tired and decided sleep and rest is a priority.  Suffice to say, I learned a great deal and I have lots to share.  I promise to do just that as soon as I get some sleep and get the orders I relieved while I was gone into the mail.

Thanks for your patience....promise it will be worth the wait.

Smiles,
Kelly

Golden Quilter Awards Nomination Deadline

If you have not made your nominations for the Golden Quilter Awards, make sure you get over to SewCalGal's blog.  The deadline for nominations is Feb. 9th.

Smiles,
Kelly

Going Fishin' at the VDTA in Las Vegas

 This is my first time going to VDTA/SDTA (Vacuum and Sewing Trade Association) convention.  I bet you are wondering why on earth I'd be going to a Vacuum and Sewing Machine Trade Association convention right?  I'm going for a few reasons.

The first reason is to get more training on my Floriani Total Control Machine Embroidery Software.  I really want to master this software so I can be able to teach others how to use it.  There will be training classes at the convention.  Floriani is rolling out their "My Decorative Quilter" Software and you know I want to be one of the first to learn all about this software.

 

 I can hardly wait to learn about Floriani's My Decorative Quilter Software.  I'm told it will enable us to:

Do Crazy Quilting, Echo Quilting, Trapunto, Stippling and Micro-Stippling, Applique: Create a design or open an existing design to embellish

We will be able to use scanned fabrics or add our own and upload images to trace around and add a quilting design.  We'll have up to 50 fonts plus endless borders and embellishments to create custom quilts and quilt labels

"My Decorative Quilter will bring out the creative artist in every quilter.  Over 2200 quilt blocks can be embellished with fonts, stipple, echo, trapunto or decor stitches with accuracy, speed and creativity" according to the Floriani Website.

I'm also hoping to see Floriani's brand new cotton quilting threads. So many new things to investigate!

The second reason I'm going is to meet with the folks from Anita Goodesigns and learn about their new  Quilting Essentials Software. 

For those of us with Embroidery Machines, being able to quilt our own quilts is a fun and new addition to quilting.  I should say it is new to me anyway.

I hear the weather in Vegas is 55 degrees....that sure beats the snow that is expected in Ohio tonight.

I'll keep you posted about what I learn during the trip.

Smiles,

Kelly

Who's Showin' the LOVE?

 

Now this is what I call LOVE.....a chance to win some highly desirable Island Batiks, some of my favorite thread, AURIFIL.....( I capitalized it because that's how much I love my Aurifil thread)....and  a collection of wonderful books by the American Quilt Society (AQS).     I would even do a wild dance just to win all these things...wouldn't you?  The good news is they are not requesting any wild dances...it is much easier to win these mouth watering lovelies!

Just read below and you'll know what to do to win : )  I wish you all the best of luck!  Or for those who are computer savey.,.,..I wish for you the best way to get your name to top of the list!  Oh if only I were a great computer hacker....these would be the kinds of wile hacking I'd do!  Then again, I"d be posting all my wins and folks would catch on pretty quickly!  Oh well, I'll just try to win the old fashioned way :)

What do you have to do? To enter to win, "like" the following Facebook pages and then post a comment on the Island Batik contest announcement blog post to let us know that you have entered. It's that simple. Find these Facebook pages here:   Aurifil | American Quilter's Society | Island Batik   What do you win? Two Grand Prize winners will receive: • A Collection of American Quilter's Society Books • A Springtime Roses thread collection from Aurifil • An Island Surprise fabric bundle from Island Batik There will also be be three consolation prizes drawn. Important Details The drawing will take place on February 14th, 2013. The contest is open to all countries and geographic locations. Entries are accepted February 1 - 13, 12:00pm PST. If you're already a fan of one or more of the pages above, you can still enter! Just make sure all pages are "Liked", then leave a comment on the giveaway announcement blog post telling us that you're already a fan. Make sure you leave your comments on Island Batik's Sweetheart's Giveaway blog post!

Smiles,
Kelly

Safe At MJ's

I took refuge at MJ's on Sunday afternoon.... just...in case the pending ice storm made it impossible to get off the mountain.  Didn't want to take any unnecessary risks with my sewing machine you know.

I realized I never posted photos of some of my favorite things at Ann's house....so let me digress a wee bit.  The bed I slept in made me feel like a cherished 7 or 8 year old little girl.  Check out the sheets, pillowcases and the bedspread:

The  sun was streaming in the windows at Ann's farm house, so many of my photos have the bright sun washing out some of the details. 

Chickens greeting me at the door....now I must say that is the first time in my life I've been greeted by such feathery friends.

A real bathtub too!  My grandmother had a claw footed bathtub....I thought I was in heaven the entire weekend.

Ok, back to MJ's Sunday and Monday:

We took a little nap and then got straight to "work."  I wanted to get the borders on my Hugs and Kisses quilt.   Typically it takes another person to help when you measure borders.  Not any more....

 MJ taught me one of her tricks....use a real Iron....the Iron Irons to hold down one end of the measuring tape.

 It worked perfectly and I got all my borders measured correctly so they would not be waving at the long arm quilter....yikes!

 

  I even got to sew the borders on using her 820.....ohhhhh ahhhhh....you know I loved that.

 

 The top is finally finished!  Hooray!  Hooray!  Hooray!

I also put the binding on this little piece:

 It is an Anita Goodesign that I fell in love with.  There is a series and I'll be making the others for one of my co-workers.  He wants to be an Oceanographer when he grows up...I think he'll love this series.

MJ and I made microwave oven bowels.

 No silly, you don't pour soup into them...... :)

You put the bowl into the liner so when you get it out of the microwave you don't burn your hands.  They also soak up anything that just so happens to boil over.

MJ put the borders on this baby quilt she is making for her Great-Grand Daughter.  We were very busy indeed!

We also made 5 pillowcases!  Here are the two I made for my co-workers:

 I used 3-D fabrics by Hoffman....the boys loved the pillow cases.

 Tuesday morning came way too fast.  MJ packed this little basket full of food for my trip home.  Am I loved or what?

 We hugged and said our good byes....it is always difficult leaving.

 There was fog but no ice or snow.

I hit the Ohio border in plenty of time to get home before the boys got off the school bus.

And that was the end of my 2012 Retreat.....back home to see those little monkey's :)

 

Thanks for going along with me......I can hardly wait until next January!

 

Smiles,

Kelly