A visit from Philippa Naylor

Philippa came from England to the States to teach in OK and TX for ten days. She had a 3 day break before teaching in NC so she stopped at her home away from home.....my house! She thought she would get some rest and relaxation. No way. I kept her moving. We had a packed schedule, but oh, did we have fun.

First day—jet lag be damned--we got up early to the big gem and jewelry show.  You can find everything at this show, from beads and costume jewelry to antiques and fabulous custom jewelry (way over budget). Philippa was looking for a special piece for her milestone birthday that would be a gift from her husband and boys. We went with a neighbor and spent hours walking and looking at all the pretty, shiny things. We bought nothing major.

Next stop, lunch. Then it was off to our favorite costume jewelry store that is LOADED--I mean LOADED--with vintage items. It's overwhelming: so much packed in showcases! In the end Philippa persevered and found the perfect pin made of grayish 'diamonds' in a bow design. Good retail soldiers, we just had to be sure we didn't miss anything at the new antique jewelry store up the street.

After some extravagance it was only right that we used some coupons. Off we sped to Joann’s Fabrics. Then it was home to rest before dinner.

Is there anything more fun than Korean BBQ with friends? My book designer/graphic designer extraordinaire and some other dear friends joined us. It was delicious and different, a treat for all. We talked and laughed for hours. By the end of the day we were exhausted (and full).

Obviously the next stop on our retail whirlwind tour was Target. We hit Kohl's too for gifts for Philippa’s boys.

If you know me then you know that I ah, collect fabrics (“collect” is an understatement). Philippa and I hit my studio to “shop” my stash of fabrics and patterns. This was my favorite part of the whole weekend. Philippa doesn’t just quilt. She’s an amazing garment sewer. We had a ball bouncing ideas off each other.I picked her brain and good grief, the ideas!

After dinner my husband thought we were going out shopping again. Where would he get that idea? Alas, no, we hit the streets in the morning for in search of the rare and elusive iPad2. I guess we should have planned to camp at the Apple store for a week because we struck out everywhere. I do believe the entire country is sold out, but hope does spring eternal…. Sooner or later I have no doubt Philippa will get her iPad.

Then it was one more lunch and off to the airport. I’ll see Philippa again in Houston in November. It's always great to see her. Next time she comes we'll have to have a dyeing party with friends. And probably more retail.

Next month Noriko Endo is supposed to visit. Given recent events in Japan it will be especially wonderful to see her. 

Beth Schillig & Philippa Naylor

Phillipa Naylor, author of Quilting in the Limelight and a recent winner in Paducah came from her home in the U.K. to teach two classes this April at Nancy Crow's barn retreat. Wow! What a fabulous barn set up Nancy created-a wonderful environment for art and quilting including dyeing labs and a big kitchen area with a gourmet chef!

Philippa has received several awards for her fantastic quilts (scroll through here and here for examples) for the past few years at the International Quilt Festival in Houston and at AQS in Paducah, so when she announced that she would teach two 5-days classes here in Ohio, my quilting friends here were all excited.

Kim, my graphic designer, and Beth Schillig took her class and learned from concept to completion how Philippa designs and uses trapunto and applique. Beth is a retired local Bernina dealer who has taken up quilting in a serious way. If you don't know Beth, I'm shocked. Beth knows everybody! She emailed me a few days ago with pictures of the project from the class she just finished. Although she is new to art quilting, she has already won some awards and has had her quilts selected for some big quilt shows across the country.

Here is what Beth has to say about Philippa, in Beth's own words:

Three years ago I went to Paducah for the first time. I stood in the National Quilt Museum and was so mesmerized by this one quilt that I made some quick sketches of the fabulous quilting. At that time, I was not familiar with the name of the quilter, but I kept those sketches in a safe spot. She had made such an impression on me. When Dragon Threads introduced Quilting in the Limelight, by Philippa Naylor, I could finally put a name and a face to that fantastic quilting I had remembered from the Quilt Museum! This is one of my favorite books ever!! So, imagine my thrill when I got to spend a week with Philippa at Nancy Crow's Barn!! She is a gracious and giving teacher. And so much fun and inspiring to be around! It was great to have her help and push me a little out of my comfort zone in creating my latest piece.

Thanks for the shout out, Beth! My experience with Philippa was the same. I saw her quilts at the National Quilt Museum a few years ago and was blown away. They really are incredible. At the time Philippa was living far away (in Saudi Arabia) and I had a full docket of books in various stages of publication. Then, a miracle! My dear friend Jane Sassaman mentioned that she and Philippa would be rooming together and would ask her if she was interested in writing a book with me. The timing was perfect. I couldn't wait to get a book from Philippa started. Working with her was, from beginning to end, a joy. She is as amazing as her quilts.

But back to Beth's terrific quilt, called Cosmic Confetti. The applique pieces have a row of black satin stitch and are embellished with two rows of machine buttonhole stitch. She used a double layer of Hobbs 80/20 and Hobbs wool and which gives the quilting a really intense, cool look when you see it in person. She used a very old fashioned/traditional stencil and marked the clamshell quilt design and embellished it here and there. Finally, she used Philippa's squiggle lines to fill in the rest of the background. She even added a few "yo-yo's" in the flowers using the very smallest of those yo-yo makers. They add a fun little touch.

Look at Philippa's site for her teaching schedule. I guarantee that if you can take a class from her, it'll be the best one of your life!