June Workshop

Because I have never quilted, Priscilla has been our teacher and advisor the past three and a half years.  But Priscilla has not been able to come to Cambodia for awhile, so she mentored me to teach the ladies.  This past month we had a one week workshop where we tried some radically new designs that required input.  They were more work than just looking in a book and figuring out how to make them.  Here are some photos from our week:

Learning to make a "kaleidoscope" quilt

This was great for using lots of scraps of fabrics that we had.

Do you see the pile of dirt just outside the door?  The dirt road into Sompovloun is in the process of being paved.  Huge mounds of dirt are everywhere as they dig the road.  Can you imagine trying to make quilts with the wind blowing in dirt constantly?  What a challenge.  These ladies are amazing.

Here are the final quilt tops.  Aren't they pretty?

....and then we worked on learning the "lone star"  

Here is Rein's star that she will make into a quilt this month.

Quilts made June 2011

The sewing ladies are preparing for fall sales here in Bangkok.  It's a popular time for women's groups to meet together - and a good time for sales.  So we continue to make a lot of the old standbys that continue to be very popular - especially the Jim Thompson fabric quilts.  We try to always have them on hand.  The "Americana" quilt was very popular this summer and we've had several special orders for this quilt. 

Here are some new looks from this past month:

This is a large king sized quilt that is very pretty.  These ladies have become such experts at quilting that I can show them a new design and they can just figure out how to make it and how much fabric to cut and sew.  They can't read English patterns so they have learned to adapt....and have done a great job.  Sophoan made this quilt.

Someone recently mentioned "watercolor" quilts to me so I started researching them and fell in love with that look.  This quilt is not the typical watercolor quilt, but was an easy beginning step to try.  It is pretty and something unique for a baby quilt.

Here is the Americana quilt that has been very popular this summer.

Thanks so much for your interest, your purchases, and your prayers.  This livelihood is very important for the lives of these women.  Please contact me if you are interested in something you see here on the blogsite.

Blessings,

Gayle