Monday, March 26, 2018

Classes with Betsy Morgan

Since my last post, I've had the pleasure of taking two classes from Betsy Morgan.  My EGA guild was so fortunate to have her teach as she has announced her retirement 1/1/2020.  I've never taken one of Betsy's classes and I'm so glad I had the opportunity.

One of the classes was Swan Bower - this is her newest teaching piece as of the date of this post.  She will have a new design coming out the end of the year/early next year.   Here is Betsy holding Swan Bower.  This is the same class she taught at The Attic in January.
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Our class project was to finish the stitching on this floss card and to assemble it.  It's really cute and not as quick as it would appear at first glance.  Or at least it wasn't for me.  Am I the only one that grossly under estimates how long something will take when it comes to stitching?
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The other side has our initials and the year.  This was really fun!
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We also had Maria Katarin's Stitching Reticule - this project is full of bright happy colors.  This class was also taught at The Attic in January.  I've not seen any photos that do this project justice. 
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We assembled this accessory during our class.  I was able to get it all done during class except for making the tassel and attaching it.  I did that the weekend after class.
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If you've never taken a class from Betsy, I would highly suggest it.  She has a great teaching style and has something for every level of stitcher - to include her own joining method.  

After the classes were over and after stitching a bit more on The Heritage Sampler, I was ready to stitch something else.  I thought of A Lady's Worke Box which is a class project from a class I took from Ellen Chester of With My Needle.  At the time, the assembly of the box was a little overwhelming.  I so love this project!  I realized that now it is well within my ability to assemble.  Since I'd put the stitching piece of this project on my guild Challenge List and because the project was calling to me, I've pulled it out and finished up the pin cushion and finished the stitching on the inside panel.  Here is a pic of the inside panel:
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I'm not saying I'll assemble this during this year but it is definitely my plan to stitch it all this year!  I'm trying to get a few things stitched on my challenge list to make time for something that is going on mid-year.  We also have a couple of members who are teaching a flat fold finish and I need to stitch something for that.  

Wishing you all.a great week and may all your stitches be happy ones!



15 comments:

Robin in Virginia said...

Jackie, it sounds like you had wonderful classes. Lovely projects you shared from those classes along with the one from With My Needle.

Marilyn said...

I love Betsy Morgan designs, so unique.
I've never had the opportunity to take a class though.
Pictures never do the piece justice, do they?
Great WTN project.
Have a great week!
Marilyn

Mariela Alethia said...

Beautiful!

Mary said...

I would love to take a class, these are both lovely projects and your finishing is excellent. That stitch where the floss is held looks quite interesting. I agree with you, nothing goes as quickly as you think it should. Enjoy your week. Mary

geeky Heather said...

Isn't it great when you pull out a project that previously seemed so difficult and think, NOW I can totally do this?!!! I still need to finish my floss tag, but it is on the list for after March Madness! Yours looks great. I kind of wish I'd outlined my swan, but oh well!

valerie said...

Lucky Lady! I absolutely love Swan Bower and am hoping that Betsy Morgan will come to teach this project for our guild. Beautiful stitching and finishing!

Carol said...

How nice to take now one, but two classes with Betsy Morgan, Jackie! Your projects are lovely and I can see where they would take longer to stitch than you anticipated. That always happens to me with those Prairie Schooler monthly samplers, too :)

Good luck with A Lady's Worke Box--I know that would be beyond my ability to assemble just from the sound of it!

Happy Easter to you!

Margaret said...

Betsy really is a great teacher! Your class pieces look great, and the Ellen piece is beautiful too! Finishing is not a favorite thing of mine, but Betsy's techniques are so clever!

Andrea said...

Your pieces look fantastic. I'm sure you will finished the Ellen Chester project with your newly found finishing confidence.

Penny said...

The classes sound interesting! And you have done such a lovely job of stitching and finishing your pieces! Yes, I do seriously underestimate the time to stitch and finish things. : ) The Ellen Chester piece is just beautiful -- I'm looking forward to seeing the finished box!

woolwoman said...

Jackie I am so glad you are working on A Lady's workbox again. What a wonderful piece - I always loved it so much and really should get my stitching out. I thought you did a super job on your Betsy pre-stitching pieces - you are rocking it lady! Hope you have a wonderful Easter - Hugs Mel

Daffycat said...

Great projects! The thread keeper is really clever! I’m terrible at guessing how long something will take. If I think it’s a breeze, it will end up a three-week-slog of tediousness!

Brigitte said...

These designs are so original. Lucky you that you could a class and could stitch all these projects and finish them. The thread holder and the ruler look just gorgeous. Looking forward to seeing the Ellen Chester piece finished as well.

Karoline said...

The classes sound wonderful, it's one of my regrets that I wasn't able to take a class with Betsy the few times she taught in the UK.

I'm looking forward to seeing your progress on Ellen's workbox.

Robin said...

Lucky you. Aclass with Betsy Morgan. I have had two classes with her. Isn’t she just the sweetest. I saw Swam Bower in person but don’t dare sing up considering neither of the two classes pieces are finished. Will be watching for your progress on the lady’s work box.
Robin in New Jersey