Heather Brighton’s “Take It Anytime” Class Work

Heather has done most of the online classes being offered at my web store and has sent photos of her beautiful renditions of several of them for me to share with you. Here are three along with her comments about them.

I enjoyed a wonderful afternoon yesterday working on the "Twisted Waffle Flower". The directions were very good and I am delighted with the final result.

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I just wanted to say thank you for sharing the pattern for the butterfly on your April CQJP Block. I copied your pattern and used a Caron Wildflowers thread, I am really happy with how it turned out.

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I just wanted to let you know that I enjoyed this Take It Anytime class. The instructions were clear and easy to follow. I chose to use it as a CQ seam treatment instead of a bookmark.

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Finally – A Paint for Metal that Works!!!

Over the years I have tried several brands and types of paint to do charms. Never being satisfied, I continued to purchase Susan Clark’s charms at considerable cost. Her charms are still the best on the market as they look like cloisonné so I would never say to do this as their replacement. However, using the newly released Vintaj Patinas, I can easily paint my own charms, have them look wonderful, and have a larger variety to choose from. Here are a few of the charms I’ve painted and a little about the paint. I am now selling the Vintaj Patinas and Glaze but only after I purchased my own and have had such success with them. I thought you might like them too.

Charms

The following are my experiences with the paint, not part of the manufacturers sales pitch:

Opaque Vintaj Patinas are permanent on metal and they dry very, very quickly (I’m talking minutes here.) I use only a small dot that I’ve squeezed out on a piece of plastic. Use a brush and dab it on instead of brushing it out for more thorough coverage or apply a 2nd coat. The paints can be mixed to make other colors. Adding a drop of Glaze will extend them. Clean your brush often with water. You can gently sand the paints off in high spots if you want the brass to show through here and there.

You are finished after painting or you can antique the piece after it’s dry by mixing 3-4 drops of water with 1 drop of the patina color you want. Paint over the entire piece and immediately wipe off the excess with a paper towel. I love using “onyx” for this step (as seen on the fan, the owl, and the key) but, as in the leaves pictured, I used “moss” as the base and “clay” for antiquing. Neither of the bows were antiqued and both were sanded to show some of the brass. The little filigree is just painted with no other steps taken.

Paint over the entire charm if you like with a coat of the Glaze. This also prevents any of the metal you want to have stay it’s true color from changing over time.

“Acquisitions” from Vintage Textile Show

Shirlee and I spent a few hours in Sturbridge MA at the Host Hotel yesterday. The show wasn’t as satisfying as it has been in the past because of the addition of so many costume jewelry booths, but I still had a nice time and came away with some things for my crazy quilts.

Show Purchases

There is a piece of “motif” lace that I cut apart and am selling on my website to share with you.

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It’s getting hard to find antique laces in quantity but it’s a fun pursuit and gives me an excuse to go antiquing. I more than hate any other type of shopping.

Below is my May Crazy Quilt Journal Project square.

CQJP May 2012