Month: May 2026

Shows and Exhibits, Special Events

Loomis Quilt Show

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

While on a recent California road trip with friends we stopped in Loomis, California to see the Loomis Quilt & Fiber Guild Quilt Show in which one of my friends is a member.

For those of you who quilt, I thought you might like to see a sampling of some of the quilt in the show. I had a fun time wandering around the show and stopping at the vendor booths (I was well behaved and did not buy anything). Oh it was crowded so I had to work around people to take photos so they are not at the best angle…

I got a kick out this “postage stamp” style traditional quilt but with a kitty hanging from it (see red arrow):

I liked this quilt with Tim Holtz fabric – not a complex pattern but the fabric really makes the quilt spectacular:

I totally loved this Elizabeth Hartman pattern quilt!

And here is one of the quilts my friend who is a guild member, had in the show:

The also had a display of quilted garments and this quilt dog jacket made me smile:

Stopping at a quilt show was a great way to kick off our California roadtrip!

Knit and Crochet Away!

Started a New Knitted Hat

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

No it’s not a new pattern, it’s the same pattern I’ve used for the 15+ versions of the same hat (I’ve gifted about half of them and the other are in my “Cold Weather Hat Stash”.)

I’m still working on the granny square blanket I last posted about in Starting a New Granny Square Blanket but I wanted an even more portable project for my recent California roadtrip with friends (and one of my friends is a knitter and would be bringing along a knitting project).

I found a skein of black yarn with little flecks of color and figured that would work – I don’t have a hat in that color in my Hat Stash!

Here I am in the car knitting away while we drove to cool places like quilt shows, quilt shops and the Muir Woods National Monument (John Muir Woods)!

Adventures in Paper Piecing, ScrapHappy

ScrapHappy May 2026 – Moving Along on the EPP Quilt

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Well hello, it’s the 15th of the month and I’ve rejoined the monthly ScrapHappyposting group hosted by Kate ofTall Tales From Chiconia.

Here are links to the blogs of the ScrapHappy participants:

Kate,Eva,Sue,Lynda,Birthe,Turid,Tracy,Jan,
Moira,Sandra,Chris,Alys,Claire,Jean,Dawn,Gwen,
Sunny,Kjerstin,Sue L,Vera,Ann,Dawn 2,Carol,Preeti,
Viv,Karrin,Alissa,Tierney,HannahandMaggie

Update on the Scrappy English Paper Piecing (EPP) Project

So here is my update on the scrappy English Paper Piecing (EPP) hexie rosette project I’ve been working on since 2016 that I previously posted about in this post – ScrapHappy April 2026: Update on the EPP Quilt 

I made a bit of progress from April’s update and completed 16 more blocks.

Here is what the quilt in progress looked like in April 2026 with 49 blocks completed:

And here is what the quilt looks like in May 2026 with 65 blocks completed (yay!):

The quilt will be 9 by 11 for a total of 99 blocks. So I have 34 more blocks to go!

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have to finish sewing all the little paper pieced hexagons to each other for each rosette (and remove the EPP foundation paper) before I can applique the rosette to the recycled denim background. That is why I only got 16 blocks completed in the past month. Very tedious work!

Oh, you might notice that on the left side of the quilt arrangement on my design wall I have all dark background blocks:

That is because I am cutting scrap denim as I need it and I cut too much dark so now I have to make a bunch of lighter background blocks to mix in. But progress is progress and I bet before I know it I will have all 99 blocks done and sewn together!

In closing this post I thought I would share that these types of blocks, like the image below, make me smile because they remind me of just how “scrappy” this project is!

I ran out of some of the scrap fabrics and couldn’t make 6 hexagons in the same fabric to surround the center hexagon so I had to mix similar colors (I am using the word “similar” very loosely, ha!):

Independent bookstores, Special Events

A Mobile Bookstore at the Street Fair

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

I love independent bookstores and today I got to experience an adorable mobile bookstore at the RiNo (River North) Street Fair.

The mobile bookstore, the Wandering Book Company, is in a converted small school bus and creatively decorated with a well curated selection of books.

Here’s a little YouTube short I found on the Wandering Book Company:

I found a book, and even though it was full publisher’s price, I bought it as there won’t be independent bookstores if we don’t support them.

I had a nice chat with the bookstore owner who drives the mobile bookstore around and I really appreciate the concept!

tierneytravels

Mt. Dora, Florida – A Lovely Town!

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

I was going to try and just focus on my crafting adventures but I just have to sneak in some travel stories. I love travel nearly as much as crafting.

Back in mid January, before we decided to do something crazy like suddenly sell our house and buy a new house, I went on a little trip to Mt. Dora, Florida with my sister.

It is a charming little town that is not as touristy as some of the bigger tourist towns in Florida…sort of a hidden gem.

We had so much fun wandering around the beautiful downtown area filled with eateries and lots of sweet little boutique shops.

Each evening we were treated to glorious sunsets by the water:

But you do have be aware of/be careful of the alligators (we didn’t see any but we knew they were lurking somewhere!):

We ate diner one night at an awesome restaurant called The Goblin Market that was set up like you were having dinner in someone’s comfy house…with a nice library!

We also attended one of the largest indoor/outdoor flea markets in the US – Renninger’s Flea Market & Antique Center. It was quite the experience! We spent nearly an entire day there and still didn’t see all of it!

Here is a write up about the place from visitflorida.com:

“Two Separate Shopping Experiences, Located on 140 acres, just east of Mount Dora. The Antique Center has over 200 shops in an air conditioned enclosed building. Shop owners, indoors and outdoors, will answer your questions and provide you with personal attention. Most dealers accept charge cards and checks. Be sure and visit the buildings in the “Street of Shops” The Consignment Area has over 40 Cases & 30 Booths. You will find Antique Furniture, Hand made Gold and Diamond Jewelry, Paintings, Vintage Books, antique & vintage Glass, China, Porcelain, Shabby Chic & Primitive Collectibles. Eat at the Grub Hub, the best place in Mount Dora. Don’t miss the Special Shows every month.”

Yes you read that correctly – a 140 acres of flea market!!!!!

They had many quirky things at the flea market and we exhausted ourselves (but in a fun way) trying to see all of it. There was a shop that specialized in vintage televisions and radios; and related supplies to fix vintage televisions and radios. The shopkeeper was as quirky as the things he was selling.

I could have done a whole series of posts on our flea market experience but I was too engrossed in the experience to take very many photos.

To close out this post about our trip, here is a random photo from our trip that stimulated my creative muse – a section of the boardwalk deck was designed in a very cool pattern: