CQA Members use a "play day" to create unique fabrics for StashFest

CQA "station masters" explain each activity that will be available for fabric embellishment at the January "play-day" meeting

This year, as in 2013, CQA members devoted a regular monthly meeting to producing unique pieces of fabric to be sold at StashFest, an annual (so far) event benefiting the La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum in La Conner, WA. All the pieces created at this meeting, plus donations from the various members' own stashes, will form "The CQA Collection" that will be featured at the 2014 StashFest, March 29-30 in La Conner.

"Station Master" Deb Rychert shows results that can be achieved with "simple shibori"

Lisa Jenni (right) prepares her piece for shibori by "wrapping" flat marbles

Roberta Andresen, co-chair of programs for CQA, organized the play-day meeting...and, as she is a docent at the Bellevue Arts Museum, she was able to arrange for our use of a BAM classroom for all our (messy) projects. CQA is grateful both to Roberta and BAM for a fun and productive session.

"Station Master" Roslyn Duffy dons mask and gloves to prepare dye mixes for ice-dyeing

Roberta Andresen, right, watches as Roslyn Duffy describes effects achievable in ice-dyeing

Patti Bleifuss, Kris Hall and Ruth Vincent get ready to try the ice-dying

Roberta prepared the following description of the event:

"If the dark days of January ever get you down, you just need to come to the January CQA meeting and you will leave with a smile on your face.  What a fun and productive day!  We were 30 members strong with lots of enthusiasm for trying something new or revisiting a favorite method.  After a brief business meeting the 'station masters' gave a brief description of the activity  they were hosting.  There was no urging needed as people started in.  The energy was amazing as fabric was screen printed, shiboried (a new word!), layered with ice and dye, and enhanced with water soluble pencils and paint sticks, and die-cutters were working overtime.  Some of the fabric was immediately packaged up for StashFest. Other pieces, needing further processing, will be returned to Fundraising chair Carla DiPietro at the next meeting. It will be fun to see the results.

Special thanks to all the Station Masters:

Screen Printing – Colleen Wise and Debi Harney

Die Cutting – the 'Bellingham Beauties': Marilyn Dondero-Rich, Carolyn Hanson, Sally Strawn

Shibori – Deb Rychert

Water-soluble markers – Carla Stehr

Ice Dyeing – Roslyn Duffy and Ruth Vincent

Thanks to all of you for making the January meeting so terrific!"

"Station Master" Colleen Wise, left, helps Barbara Kanaya and Christine Fairley Erickson sort through available silk screens

Some hand-dyed fabric gets embellished by silk screen

The "Bellingham  Beauties," Marilyn Dondero-Rich, Carolyn Hanson and Sally Strawn, prepare die-cut pieces of fabric from pre-fused materials

Willing hands add die-cuts to existing fabrics

Coordinating die-cuts make for an interesting collection

"Station Master" Carla Stehr, left, works with Barbara Kanaya and Barbara O'Steen on projects using water-soluble crayons, pencils and paint sticks

Barbara Kanaya chose a woodgrain pattern to rub with the paint sticks...

,,,,and shows the final result.

Cameron Anne Mason prepares labels for her finished packets of donations for StashFest

For more information on StashFest, go to: http://www.laconnerquilts.com/upcoming-events/