Birds, Butterflies and Flowers... Oh, My!

What a wonderful, whirlwind weekend  I have to report on today. Mr. Goodneedle, Hannes and I left our home before dawn on Friday morning and drove north, to New Hampshire, before the day was done!  Yes, we put another 2000 miles on the car... but you know I like to make the miles count*. My parents,  sister and brother-in-law live in New Hampshire; we were able to squeeze in a quick visit with them as well as a quilt class for Mom and me on Saturday! She and I drove to Quilted Threads in Henniker, NH; about an hour away from my parent's home, to spend the day with Lynne Tyler and learn her free-piecing method for birds, butterflies, asterisk flowers and hearts. I have followed Lynne through her Patchery Menagerie blog for years and always wanted an opportunity to learn how she created some of her masterpieces... she is just as much fun as I had imagined. We had a blast, I had to pinch myself a few times to make sure I was really there!  The class sample is on the right, above. I can't say enough good things about the class experience at Quilted Threads, this is one shop that bends over backwards to accommodate their customers! The classroom is on the second floor and my Mom has some mobility issues... no problem whatsoever, they have an electric chair lift! Have you ever been in a quilt class where poor lighting, low chairs, not enough electrical outlets or small tables were a hindrance to your learning experience? You won't have to worry about that at QT. The lighting is superior, the chairs (for every student) are padded, swiveling, office chairs and there are power strips at every large table! I was in heaven with so much space in which to spread out. Students also had access to a kitchen with a full-sized refrigerator and a spotless bathroom too. This is one top-notch shop!

Lynne (standing) and a classmate hard at work!  Lynne did a wonderful job leading us through a technique that really doesn't have a lot of rules... she helped us by guiding our vision and expanding our horizons; not an easy job at all, but she was up to the task! 

Lynne treated us to a inspiring quilt show of her works while we sewed and created.
This is my Mom, busy at work on a wonky, free-pieced heart.

Mom and me with our twin birds, we got a LOT done in class; we each came home with four creations from the class, plus some "wing" fabric to make more birds... as well as happy memories of a great day spent together! We've already asked Lynne what she'll teach us next time; this may just become an annual event for us!

Sunday was spent making up for lost time. A year ago while visiting my parents we went to my favorite little lakeside seafood restaurant specifically for a fried clam roll. Unfortunately we picked the wrong day to do that, his fryolater was out of commission. This year, thankfully, was not a repeat of that calamity; my lunch was well worth the two+ year wait! 

We arrived home very late last night. When I walked back to the bedroom this morning to unpack the laundry this is what I found! Hannes likes his road trips as much as we do... in fact this is his way of saying if we're going on another one he's ready and eager to go!

Life is Good!

* You'll see what I did while riding, and read, in a future post.