Sylvia's Bridal Quilt

I have started a new quilt. So what's new?
I have this book since last December. It is the "Sylvia's Bridal Sampler" by Jennifer Chiaverini. From the Elm Creek series.
The sampler has 140- 61/2 inches blocks. I will be making the quilt with a friend, so we each will be making half of the blocks. Maybe. We tried to convince others to make it with us; but no takers.
Since I quilt for fun, I will do what is fun for me. But I see the whole thing completed sometime in the future. I am kind of OCD and will probably finish all the blocks.
I am making them in batiks.
There is a web site for people doing this quilt. If you go to http://sylviasbridalsampler.org you will see a gallery of quilts with blocks from this book. But you also will see that there is a BOW- block of the week- session. The deal is: you make the block featured, send it to Lynda with a photo and your information by the end of that week. At the end of the month, she will pick a lucky person from all the e-mails and this quilter wins a pin.
Of course, I want the pin. So I guess I have to get busy and learn how to send the JPEG at 480X480 pixels.
This is a great opportunity to learn this stuff on the Mac, I hope.

Kona Charm Challenge/quilts to Japan

Bonnie and I belong to the Triangle Modern quilt in NC. We had a challenge organized by John Adams. For this challenge we received a package of Kona solids, a nice donation from Robert Kaufman fabrics.  One could only add one more fabric to the top; but could buy more Kona fabric as needed to make a larger quilt. Bonnie and I added the background fabric.
Bonnie is the designer of this original quilt. We divided the sewing between us. Diane did the gorgeous quilting.
Now the best part, this quilt will be donated to Japan. Hopefully it will bring comfort to someone very soon.
PS. the gorgeous lay out is by the talented Bonnie.

Puerto Rico and quilt

The last week of June and first week of July was spent in Puerto Rico helping DS to move in for the next 4 years of grad. school. We stayed in a nice resort hotel in Humacao called Palmas del Mar; and traveled daily under heavy rain to Caguas the new home to DS. Driving in Puerto Rico is an experience on its own. Lots and lots of pot holes; and drivers that make their own crazy rules. And you pay toll for all this fun. I have never seeing less civil drivers, and I have been around some.
The food is very good there. "Mofongos" are a must try if you go.  Be prepared to add a few pounds/kilos to your frame.
I found a small but nice quilt store in Caguas. It is on Hwy 1 and next to a large supermarket called Ralph's. They have yarns, fabrics, and sewing machines. They also have supplies for heirloom sewing. The name is Heirloom Sewing Studio and the address can be found here: www.heirloomsewingstudio.com/
The site is in Spanish; but they speak English also. I just got a couple of fabrics for work in progress. Prices are not a lot higher than the continental US. (Everything else is more expensive since they have to be brought in to the island.)
I did not have time to check stores in San Juan or other cities. It is always warm in Puerto Rico, so I assume that most quilts are for children and for decoration; not necessarily to keep warm.
I continue to work on my appliqué; but not much to show yet. Photos soon.

Korea in June- Pojagi

I have been to Seoul Korea for 2 weeks in June. It is my second trip there and I love to go there and visit my friend and learn more about this great place.
Korea has a rich tradition of fiber arts. I love a pieced work called "Pojagi." It is made with either silk or ramie fabric. It is all hand made and only one layer of fabric. The seam is a variation of the "french seam." One doesn't see a raw edge. I tried to get someone to teach me how to do it. But the only class I found in English required several weeks and I was there for only 2 weeks. So to the web I went and found a great tutorial at momssewingroom.wordpress.com/2010/09/28/pojagi-tutorial/ .

I bought some of the ramie fabric and did a trial sample so far because more trips were planned and I have not been around home much.
Pojagi may also be made by sewing machine; but is more recent work.
In the past I have been able to buy great cotton fabrics in various markets in Korea for less than the US prices. This is not true anymore. The cotton fabric was about US$2.00 more per yard than here. Still less than fabrics in Australia; but not the US.
If you want to check it out, the Dongdemun market has Moda, Batik and other great fabrics. Take the subway lines 1 or 4 to exit 9. Go to 5th floor of building B. I bought some fabrics at "Happy Quilt" which is on stall 5215-16.
There are also Japanese fabrics for sale. But it is also more expensive than I can find here in the US.
The Pojagi fabric varies in price depending on the quality of the ramie, expect to pay US$5.00 to US$7.00 per yard. It is only about 14 inches wide. Look around, there is a difference in price from one stall to the next.
I also visited a quilt museum. It is small but nice. It was featured on the European magazine "Quiltmania." The lady that was there the day I visited is the one featured in the article. It is called "Chojun Textile and Quilt Museum."  Take line 4 of the subway to Seoul Station. It is the same exit to Namsan mountain. Can't remember the exit number. It is open from 10:00 to 5:00 and there is a charge of W$ 5,000.00 which is about US$5.00 in 2011.
I took some applique with me and I did some sewing time on various parks. Many people stopped to see what I was doing. I managed to show 2 ladies how to do it without speaking a single word of Korean and they did not speak English. Where there is a will...

Editor Note:
The Quilt Show aired on August 3, 2015 features Youngmin Lee and her Bojagi/Pojagi. If you want more info, try her site: youngminlee.com