I know they say you can’t go home again, but sometimes I have the privilege of returning to visit a quilt guild that I have visited before. That was the case this January when I returned to McAllen, TX to visit the Rio Grande Quilt Guild for a second time. Since the weather here in New Hampshire was very cold with snow and ice, visiting the balmy temperatures of southwest was a bonus I was eagerly anticipating. 

I taught the Sunrise Mariner’s Compass workshop the first day and the Perfect Points workshop on the second day. We all had lots of fun and several students completed their projects.

Everyone was smiling and ready for a good time.

Then on Saturday, the meeting of the guild took place and I brought my trusty camera along. The large room was overflowing with several hundred quilters. I was impressed so I snapped a picture of the audience. I presented my lecture, Paper Piecing: When, Why and What if? for the morning program. I was sincerely touched to receive a loud and happy standing ovation from the guild members.

Look at all those perfect points!

Then it was time for Show and Tell. My students all came up on stage to show off the projects from our two days of workshops. Wow, it was really impressive to see all those perfect points and and Sunrise Quilts.

A group of students got together prior to my visit and made paper piecing tool caddies to use at the workshops. (This is a free pattern here on my web page.)

Just a stunning quilt!

And then…..I was treated to a stunning medallion quilt that was shown by one of the members featuring a border of star blocks from my book, 50 Fabulous Paper-Pieced Stars.  In my excitement to snap a photo of this quilt, I neglected to write down the name of the maker. If anyone knows, please post it in a comment so we can give credit.

Lunch time giggles

After the meeting, about 25 of us went to a darling Tea House for lunch. We had a ball playing with all the hats hanging around and trying to decide which one was our perfect hat.

I returned home the next day to single digit temperatures here in NH and so many fond memories of my trip. Thank you Rio Grande quilters for your warm hospitality and the fun. And many thanks to Susan Flarity for your friendship and wonderful organization. I look forward to returning to the Rio Grande in 2012!

Until next time, all the best,

Carol

This is the first post of my new blog at my website, so it truly is a new beginning using an entirely new system. There are lots of neat options, I just need to figure out how to use them all. The only way to learn is to jump in and start. I am also writing this on New Year’s Eve day, with a brand new year starting tomorrow.

The block above was made by Mary D. from the Carol Doak Yahoo Group. I started a Block of the Month for the group last September, so the beginning of the month means a new block is uploaded for the group. Members make the blocks using their creative ideas and upload their pictures. Each block represents a scene and living in New Hampshire, a snow-covered mountain scene is perfect. This block is also a pretty plain block so it offers lots of creative options for embellishment.

4500 Member Celebration Block

I started the practice of uploading a Celebration Block each time we hit a milestone membership. Well, we just reach 4500 Members!!! Trust me, when I started this group a couple of years ago, I had no clue it would grow so quickly to thousands of members from around the world. I just uploaded a couple of days ago, our 4500 Member Celebration Block. I provide the design and the members provide the creativity as no fabric or color suggestions are given. This block was made by Karen. I will show more of these blocks in future blogs.

New Zealand Block from Mariner's Compass Stars

I am also beginning my 2009 travel schedule. I leave next week for Texas and then am home just a few days before heading to New Zealand for a couple of weeks. I will be helping Beth Hayes lead a group of quilters on this exciting and fun trip. I have traveled to New Zealand to teach many years ago, so I am looking forward to returning to this lovely island. When I wrote the Mariner’s Compass Stars book, I named each of the blocks in the book for different countries and areas of the world. When I designed the New Zealand block I was reminded of the beautiful gardens represented by the reds and pinks, the color of the water in the harbors, the gorgeous green and snow-capped mountains.

Speaking of snow, we got several more inches yesterday. Heading south is looking really good.

Until next time, all the best,

Carol