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Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Getting ready for the quilt show


My local quilt guild, Lake Norman Quilters, will have its first quilt show this weekend. We will have more than 200 quilts exhibited! And we will also have 13 vendors selling great stuff for quilters.

In the photo above, National Quilting Association-accredited judges Kathy Sullivan and Scott Murkin examine and judge a quilt for the show.

Here are the details:

Sail Into Quilting
Friday, Nov. 2 and and Saturday, Nov. 3
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
East Mooresville Intermediate School
Mooresville, NC


Go to http://www.bluemoonriver.com/LNQ.html for map and directions.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

SAQA conference


I had a wonderful time this weekend meeting some talented fiber and quilt artists at the regional SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) conference in Charlotte, NC. Nancy Cook and I co-chaired this event, which was held for SAQA’s Virginia/North Carolina/South Carolina region, but open to other artists in the area. We had about 30 attendees (only some of them are in the group shot above).

We started out at the McColl Center for Visual Art. Ce Scott, director of residencies and exhibitions, (in the black top and khaki skirt) gave us a tour of the facility and answered our questions about artists residencies. The McColl Center's residency program is ranked among the top 3 percent in the country, and among the top 10 percent internationally. The McColl Center is located in what used to be a burned-out church in the middle of Charlotte’s "uptown” and is a spectacular facility.




On Friday evening, South Carolina artist Ellen Kochansky talked about her experience producing work on commission for public and private clients. We also had a slideshow of conference participants' work.

Early Saturday morning, we hung some of our work on the staircase outside our classroom at Central Piedmont Community College's Levine Campus in Matthews. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to see these artists' work up-close and talk with them about it. Here are Dottie Moore and Lucy Lustig hanging one of Dottie's pieces.





Dorothy Moye of Davis-Moye & Associates talked with us about how she represents artists to her clients. Joie Lassiter of Joie Lassiter Gallery talked about working with artists, and what she thinks about when selecting works for exhibitions for corporate clients. And Christie Taylor of Hodges Taylor Galleries gave us her perspective on building public and private collections, and gave us insight into the gallery owner-artist relationship.

After this, artists Ginny Boyd, Nancy Cook and Dottie Moore described their experiences with artists' residency programs.

Then most of us headed for the Mint Museum of Craft + Design for Fiberart International 2007, a fantastic exhibit of cutting-edge fiber art. On Tyron Street, outside the museum, we got to see the quarter-mile long string of fiber constructed as part of the McColl Center's "Threads of the Community event." It stretched between the McColl Center and the museum. A friend, local artist Janet Lasher, helped on this project.

The event was set up to coincide with Fiberart International 2007, on view at the Mint Museum of Craft + Design through Feb. 24. It was very cool to see all the different kinds of fiber in this string.



A docent walked us through the museum. Here are some photos of our tour (unfortunately, photos of the Fiberart International exhibit were not permitted).




All in all, a very educational and inspiring weekend.

Monday, October 15, 2007

Free pattern available Nov. 6!



On November 6, you can get a free pattern for my cell phone pouch if you go to the Cotton Spice blog: http://www.cottonspice.com/CSblog/

It's all part of the ”Last Minute Gift Countdown,” an event organized by Cotton Spice, which will bring you free patterns for hand-made gifts you can whip up in a jiffy – just in time for the holidays!


Here's how Karen Gass, editor of Cotton Spice, describes her publication: “Cotton Spice Quilting Magazine is a newer publication exploring a niche in the quilting world called Contemporary Fresh. Every issue is packed with regular columns such as Color 101-exploring uses of color, Creativity-which encourages creative thinking, The Q Files-which tells the backstory of the Quilt Police in a hilarious continuing column, and a quick project designed by The Diva Of Quilts - Laura Kong. We regularly publish quilt fiction along with fresh new quilt designs complete with instructions and templates when needed. Cotton Spice Quilting Magazine publishes 4 times a year - March, June, September and December on CD. Our website is interactive with a bulletin board, contests, and all back issues of Cotton Spice in PDF files. We marketed our magazine to 'quilters looking for something else' and we've been providing it every time.”

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Mystery block-of-the-month : “Bohemian Bouquet”


In 2008, I'll be launching something new and fun: a mystery block-of-the-month program called “Bohemian Bouquet.” The starting session will be Saturday, Jan. 12 from 10 a.m. to noon at Quilters Loft Company in Mooresville NC. If you think you might be interested in participating, please call the Quilters Loft Company and ask them to put you on the list to get more information. We will have more details and pricing information available soon.

If you don't live near Mooresville and would like to participate, please e-mail me and let me know to put you on the list to receive more information.

Here's a sneak peak at the first block and a look at how the rest of the 48x48" quilt will go together. You won't find out what the rest of the blocks look like until you pick up the kit each month. You could do this as needleturn appliqué or – if you want something really fast and easy — fusible appliqué with satin or blanket stitch around the appliqué pieces. The center block is 20 inches square, so even though it looks intricate in the photo, the shapes are actually large, and the corners rounded.

Winter class schedule

Once I get through a very busy fall, I'll be looking forward to teaching the following classes at Quilters Loft Company in Mooresville. As soon as we have prices and supply lists, I will post them here.

Beginning Machine Quilting
Wednesday, December 12, 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
If you are a beginning quilter who wants to learn how to machine quilt your tops, this is the class for you. You'll learn the basics of how to prepare the quilt sandwich by layering and basting, how to free-motion quilt several motifs, and lots of tips to ensure good results. Pfaff sewing machines for this class will be provided by Quilters Loft Company, so even if you don't have a machine that can do free-motion quilting, you can learn more in class before deciding if it is your cup of tea.

Beginning Threadpainting
Tuesday, January 15, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This is a freemotion machine embroidery class for those who want to learn how to “paint” with thread. Working on a dragonfly design (see photo below), you'll learn about stabilizers, thread choices, and how to adapt a design from a photo or copyright-free clipart. Pfaff sewing machines will be provided by Quilters Loft Company.


Creative Surface Design Workshop
Saturday, January 26
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Want to learn more about some of the exciting new materials you can use in (or on) your quilts? Come and play with Lumiere and Dye-na-Flow fabric paints, Shiva paintstiks, Angelina fibers, Tyvek (see photo below) and more. We will provide all the supplies; you'll pay a materials fee as part of the cost of the class. A fun, low stress way to try some new things.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Barnful of Quilts 2007


If you are in the Charlotte, NC area this Saturday, Oct. 13, don't miss the 2007 Barnful of Quilts! Several fiber and quilt artists in the area (including me, several SAQA members, and members of Fiber Art Options) will be displaying and selling their work in this benefit for Waxhaw Presbyterian Church. The event also features vendors, a bake sale and cafe, and other crafts. The show, held at Fox Farms in their spectacular horse barn in historic Waxhaw, NC, runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday only.

For directions and more information, please go to www.foxfamilyfarm.com and click on "2007 Barnful of Quilts."












Exhibitors and Vendors:
Fulvia Luciano, www.fulviastudio.homestead.com (featured artist)
Nancy G. Cook, www.nancygcook.com
Susan Brubaker Knapp, www.bluemoonriver.com
Janet Lasher, www.janetalasher.com
Willa McNeil, www.zoltanszabo.com
Overall Quilter, www.overallquilter.com
The Peace of Yarn, www.thepeaceofyarn.com
Quilters Haven, www.ncquilting.com
Random Arts, www.randomartsnow.com
Jan Smiley, www.jansmiley.com
Stewarts Village Gallery, www.stewartsvillagegallery.com
Susan Cowan Welch, www.cowanwelch.com

Also featuring quilts by
Hope Sims
Barb Castner
Nan Chandler
Robin Hawkins
Karen McWhorter
Elizabeth Miller
Linda Stegall
Joyce Walker
Sarah Woodring


Friday, October 5, 2007

Decorating for Halloween with quilts


It's October, and at my house, that can only mean one thing: It is almost Halloween, and time to decorate! I think I have more decorations for this holiday than for any other. Maybe because it is also my birthday, and lots of people have given me Halloween stuff for presents. Or maybe because I can't seem to stop buying it. Orange-black-white is one of my favorite color combinations.
I love to use the quilts I've made especially for Halloween to decorate the house at this time of year. The kitchen gets hit hardest. That is a wonderful black cat quilt pattern from a ”Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting” magazine a few years back hanging on the wall behind my kitchen table. I made the black nine patch on top of the hutch with scraps from another quilt. And on the door is ”Happy Haunting,” a quilt I designed and made about 5 years ago with a funny grey cat jumping out from behind a pumpkin.



Black Magic Cupcakes


My recipe for Black Magic Cupcakes will be featured on Tuesday, October 9 on The Armchair Chef's website, www.thearmchairchef.com! These delectable chocolate cupcakes with a creamy cheesecake-and-chocolate chip center are the perfect thing to bake for your favorite ghoulies and ghosties this Halloween.

Tink, the website owner, is featuring "Recipes and Reminiscences from Needlework and Quilt Professionals" all October in her Halloween Countdown. On the 9th, you'll find a little profile of my business with the recipe.

Halloween is my birthday, and my favorite holiday. Enjoy!