Cartwheels Class With Tula Pink

you all know by now that i took a class from Tula Pink when i was at Sisters this year for their Outdoor Quilt Show. i have been wanting to get this post up but time & issues with Blogger it has taken me longer then i wanted it to. but here it is.

the class that i took was her Cartwheels quilt pattern. she brought her quilt with her. not only is the pattern amazing but the quilting on it is amazing as well. it was quilted by Angela Walters. the detail in the quilting is wonderful & it really accents the pattern.

the back of one of Tula's quilts that has her Parisville Hair Spray Can label on it. Love It!!!

one of the quilts that Tula brought to share with us was this one that she had played around with removing color from the fabric. as you can see above the pink/red has been removed from the flowers. this was done with Rit Color Remover. Rite Color Remover removes the red dye from the fabric 1st.

this whole quilt has had the fabric altered either one way or another. Tula told us that she also uses bleach to change the coloring of fabric. we all gasped when we heard that. she said that she starts with 2 cups of bleach in a medium to full washer. bleach removes yellow dye from the fabric 1st.

again, here is a pic showing the normal fabric on the left with the pink feathers & then the color removed fabric on the right with the neutral colored feathers.

another quilt that Tula brought to share is her Spiked Punch pattern. she said that this quilt was made mostly from scraps & that it is her most popular pattern.

Tula also shared her Modern Alphabet quilt with us. she was teaching that class the next day. she showed us the fabric that she was going to be using & she had picked a navy for the background. i wonder how that quilt turned out?

taking a class from her is great. i learned a lot from her. one of the greatest things i learned from her is how she pins her fabric. yes. she pins her fabric. Tula said that she is a traditionalist when it comes to the sewing part of making quilts. anyways, back to pinning. most people pin their fabric like i have the pins on the top half. Tula pins her fabric like i have the pins on the bottom half. i asked her why & she told me that they are easier to take out as she is sewing. she just uses her right hand & flicks the pins out as they go by before the needle. i tried it in class & its now how i pin. it really saves time because you don't have to stop & remove pins. you just keep sewing & flicking them out as you go. i then used my magnetic pin holder to gather them all up.

a few other sewing things that i learned from Tula during the class is that she sews most everything with grey thread.

she also sews standing up. yep. we talked a lot about that one because i have back issues & that is the reason she sews standing up. its easier on her back. she just uses bed risers to raise up her sewing table.

oh, she also has 3 machines that each have a project on them at all times. that way if she gets board with one she can move onto something else. brilliant idea. now i just need a couple more machines.

Tula is great to take a class from. she helped me put my fabrics together for my Cartwheel quilt. Tula has a great story of how she got into the business & you can tell how passionate she is about what she does. she cranks out the quilts as well each year. i think she told us anywhere from 80 to 100 each year.

i know i already shared these but this is what i got done in class with her.

i am getting caught back up on some sewing stuff & hoping to get back to this quilt soon. i really would like to get it finished because i love Prince Charming & i want to get it done to see it all together.

if you ever have the chance to take a class from Tula Pink don't think twice about it. do it. it is well worth the time. she is a wealth of knowledge & a blast to spend a day with.

thanks Tula for the education, the fun & the memories.