WONDERFUL SEWING FUN AT THE SASKATCHEWAN STITCHES CONFERENCE 2015

My students hard at work, having fun in one of the lovely large college classrooms.

We shine the spotlight on the Saskatchewan Stitches Conference which is an annual sewing, knitting, bra making, quilting (and more) retreat held in Muenster, a tiny town about 1  1/2 hours from Saskatoon.  Each Year, Wendy Toye, owner of Haus of Stitches, Humboldt, Saskatchewan, hosts the Saskatchewan Stitches Conference at St Peter’s Abbey & College so the surroundings are well equipped, peaceful and wonderfully wholesome. Meals are served in the Abbey diningroom  – so wonderful to just sew and learn and not have to worry about mundane things like meal prep!

There is just something very special about drawing aside from everyday life to meet and share our passion for sewing, quilting, bra making, knitting etc together. The ladies (and the occasional man) laugh a lot, share stories about what they have been doing since the last conference and they sew & quilt & knit until it is time for bed! And then they do it all again the next day in day 2 of their class or they move on to another topic and teacher.

More free motion fun

I have often been heard to say that my visit to the Conference each year to represent Janome & Elna and to teach a few classes is really one of the highlights of my year. I find the people friendly, hospitable, down to earth and very talented sewers. Saskatchewan may be tucked away in the central part of Canada, on those wind swept Prairies which are so very cold in winter, but I think Saskatchewan is one of my favourite provinces due to the rolling farmlands which remind me very much of parts of South Africa. But most of all, it is because of the warm hearts of the people I get to see each year: we chat, we laugh and we sew together and I usually get to answer several hundred sewing related queries from our growing group of happy Janome & Elna customers in this region.

Most evenings after dinner, there is a casual presentation “Meet the teacher”. Here Wendy (right) holds up a Border design quilt made by Elaine (left). This was a class taught by Diane Janzen at the Conference in 2014 – Elaine was showing her finished project which was a sampler quilt made up of various different designs that can be used for borders on quilts. Many of these were completed and shown so it was a class very well received. Diane is a popular teacher.

Well done, Wendy, the Saskatchewan Stitches Conference 2015 was another very good one and I look forward greatly to coming again in 2016.  Thank you. I know it is a lot of work to arrange this conference and to keep the 100’s of ladies attending happy thoroughout the 10 day conference……but it is SO worth it.

An excited and proud, Linda shows off her quilt which was quilted using our Janome Acufil quilting system on her Janome MC15000

This is the black cross over top one of my students made in the Serging with knits class. The class attendees were encouraged to bring and use Jalie patterns to make a garment of their choice during this class. We covered more than 35 hints & tips for sewing knit fabrics and most of the ladies went away with a completed garment. I have this pattern but had not yet made it up…..guess who is now inspired to do so!

JANOME 1200D SERGER: ALL SET UP & READY TO MAKE A KNIT FABRIC GARMENT IN MY CLASS.