Daily Blog

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Since it is Valentine's Day and red is the color of the day, we thought we would share a redwork quiz with you.  See how good your memory is.  No cheating and asking Alex.  Her lips are sealed.

After dinner, while everyone was busy visiting, we had another chance to sneak off to discover more about Alex.  We stumbled upon her bedroom-wow is she neat!  No dust bunnies hiding under this bed. She did have lots beautiful things to admire.  There were quilts on a rack in the corner, on the bed and LOTS more in a nearby closet.  We also discovered some redwork pieces on the bed.  We wondered who made the large piece with the wheat.  Do you know?  We will give you a hint.  A recent show guest gave this piece to Alex as a gift.

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As you know, TQS was started as a home for our new internet TV show. However, the bonus has been the developement of the website which has created the worldwide TQS community. TQS is no longer just a place to watch a show every couple of weeks. It has become YOUR go-to-daily quilting website. We encourage you to set TQS as your home page and spend at least 5 minutes with us EVERYDAY! Here's a short list of things you can do in five minutes - pick just one:

• Read the Daily Blog - and comment if you feel so inclined!

• Browse the most recent quilts in the Quilt Gallery. Then, email someone, letting them know you liked their quilt - it will make their day!

• Visit Alex's Clasroom or Ricky's Rhapsody Reality Blog

• Read a few Member Blogs - and post a comment.

• Read two or three topics in the forum.

As technology grows and the internet becomes more and more a part of our lives, we are committed to making TQS your daily website. Now, it's not just a New Day - It's a New Day, Everyday!

How would you like to win the chance to come to La Veta for a taping of the quilt show? - Not just you, but you AND a friend!

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Remember in show 108 when Mary Fisher shared her O bracelets? The proceeds were to aid women in Africa. At the time, Mary was looking for another venue to sell the African women's work. By the looks of things she has succeeded. Great job Mary - may your efforts continue to aid others worldwide. Go here for more information.

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                                          Applique' Quilt ca. 1900 by unknown Sioux quilt maker

Even people who know about the nonprofit Alliance for American Quilts aren't always aware of the full range of its projects.  You can click here to view thousands of eye-popping examples of vintage and current quilts, but the AAQ also funds and produces multimedia presentations called Quilt Treasures,  assisted by its partner Michigan State University (funded by individual donors, guilds, and Alliance members).  These celebrate some of the individuals most responsible for the country's quilt renaissance.  Although some Quilt Treasures are pioneering quilt makers like Yvonne Porcella and Jinny Beyer, others include historians, collectors and others who were no less pivotal in bringing quilts to the forefront of the culture.

Give yourself a treat and check out the most recently posted Quilt Treasure that of legendary quilt collectors and dealers Thomas K. Woodard and Blanche Greenstein.  You can read their bios, watch a mini-documentary about them, and feast your eyes on a photo gallery showing 35 of the most beautiful and significant quilts in their collection. Click here to view the gallery of quilts.

The quilt featured above is an applique quilt made around 1900 on the Crow Creek Reservation of South Dakota.  It tells a story about Indian hunting and family life, and was deemed such an extraordinary piece that it was chosen as on the 100 Best American Quilts of the Twentieth Century.

While at the Quilt Treasure project, be sure to browse the profiles of such significant quilt world figures as the late historian Cuesta Benberry and Bonnie Leman, founder of Quilter's Newsletter magazine.  If you are interested in getting details about the AAQ's 15th anniversary quilt contest you can download the rules and entry forms form the Alliance homepage.

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Paducah, Kentucky. April 20-22, 2008

The American Quilter's Society experience is one that quilters never forget! The Ricky Tims Super Quilt Seminar is the only event of it's kind in the world. What happens when these two events converge in one place? Perhaps, quilting heaven.

This year, for the first time, AQS is including the Ricky Tims Super Quilt Seminar as a special pre-show event. The seminar will be held in tthe magnificent Luther F. Carson Four Rivers Center for the Performing Arts. The seminar is diverse and rich with information. The topics are designed to benefit, traditional, contemporary, beginning and experienced quilters alike.

This particular seminar is registered directly through AQS and they are offering a special incentive for groups of four or more. Click here to access to a pdf document describing this event, registration information, lodging questions and more. Just follow the link and download the pdf for all the details.

Glens Falls, NY. May 1-3, 2008

For northeasterners who cannot make the trek to Paducah, the seminar is being presented at the Glens Falls Civic Center, in Glens Falls, NY. For registration and details about the Glen's Falls seminar, click here.

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                                       "Buzz Saw" work in progress by TQSWizard 

How many times has this happened to you?  You begin working on a quilt only to get side-tracked by other projects.  Over time the original quilt and pattern directions find their way into the UFO black hole, but not necessarily together.  As the New Year comes around you vow to finish those UFO's.  But.....where are those darn directions to the pattern?  You search high and low to no avail.  So, you have to tough it out by figuring out the pattern block on your own.  Many needless hours are spent re-learning the pattern.

I began this quilt two years ago, but had to set it aside due to other projects.  In January I decided that this would be the year I would finish it.  Unfortunately I cannot find the pattern anywhere in my studio; and I consider myself a very organized person!!  In the future I will put the pattern in a zip-lock bag and pin it to a quilt in progress.  That way the directions don't get lost.  Do you have any good ideas for avoiding this frustration?

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After consuming several of Alex's TAB's (Tasty Adult Beverages) we had to make a quick stop by the restroom.  Of course we took our camera with us-doesn't everyone?  Her guest bath has just recently been renovated.  Actually Alex and John are renovating the entire house room by room.  While washing our hands we checked out the soap dish, which really was a baby's cereal (porridge) bowl.  Who knew Peter Rabbit would be lurking under the guest soaps?

Looking for a towel to dry our hands -NOT- we peeked in the linen closet.  Instead of towels, toilet paper and other junk the rest of us store out of sight, Alex has stacks of quilts!  This lady is ready for company or maybe a California cold snap. 

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All of us at TQS are concerned about quilt shops and quitlers in the tornado striken areas from Tuesday's outbreak of storms. Do you know of any particular shop or individaul that was affected? If so, please let us know. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and all of their friends and neighbors.

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As the wife of an Alabama sharecropper during the Jim Crow South, Susana Hunter, created striking quilted works of art through creativity and resourcefulness.  Scraps of family clothing and even mule-feed sacks were often used to make quilts characterized by bold colors, large shapes and asymmetrical designs.  What began as a way to "make do" with what was available now illustrates the remarkable eye of a truly gifted artist.

30 quilts, dating from 1930's to 1970's, by this extraordinary woman are on exhibit at the Henry Ford Museum from February 15-April 27, 2008.  "I love the story behind them," says curator of domestic life Jeanine Miller.  "It's one of resourcefulness, creativity in lessened circumstances, and creating beauty no matter what your resources."  For more information on the Henry Ford Museum click here.

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On the last evening of our recent trip to Livermore, CA, Alex treated everyone to a wonderful formal meal (notice the paper bowls and napkins).  While Alex was busy in the kitchen entertaining we had a chance to sneak a peek around her house. 

We first ventured into her studio to see how it REALLY looks when the camera isn't rolling.  We opened the closets to check out her fabric stash.  Well, so far so good.  Pretty organized, but a lot less fabric than we were expecting.  She certainly needs to catch up to some of us that pride ourselves on collecting the biggest stash.