Daily Blog

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We have a lot to thank our Mothers for today. Does anyone relate? Click the picture -

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The Denver National Quilt Festival had a number of unique exhibits this year.  One of these exhibits was the Secret Garden Challenge presented by the Artique Critique group of Fort Collins, CO.  This group meets monthly to critique each other's work and to provide teaching and experience in theory and techniques.  The 2010 challenge was to create a "Secret Garden" quilt that was to be 24"x 24" and it had to include something that might fly.  The quilts are quite original in design, color, and concept.  Take a peek at these lovely gardens of quilting delight.  (Our apologies to Ms. Robinson whose first name was removed by the photo flash.)

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People keep saying that someone should make a quilt of the Cosmati floor.  Well someone already has, Janet Cook.  Her Star of David quilt took Janet six years to make.  Read her amazing story below:

I started quilting in 1988 and my teacher said Mariners' Compass was a tricky block, so being the person I am (the awkward one at the back of the class) I decided to make a quilt for our bed featuring that block. I saw a sketch in the regional Quilters' Guild newsletter and decided it would be more interesting to use that layout than blocks in rows. I drafted sections of the quilt, made templates, and proceeded to make the compasses by hand in 1991.

Gradually I gained confidence and started to sew by machine. Eighteen months later, I finished the top and started hand quilting. Then I was rushed into hospital with a life-threatening problem. The quilt kept me sane during my slow recovery, and my husband David proved what a star he was by nursing me so carefully. During this time I discovered where the original design had come from and phoned Westminster Abbey to find out more. They said the Cosmati floor was kept covered, but that they revealed it once every two or three years.

In view of my particular interest they said they would phone me next time it was revealed. I visited the Abbey just to see where the floor was situated and discovered a book all about it.  I nearly missed my train stop on the way home because the book was so fascinating. I decided to include Latin quotations in the quilting design. The floor contained remains of a cryptic poem in Latin. 

It took me another 18 months to complete the quilting. I was persuaded to enter it in a quilt show - my first ever - and it won the championship at Quilts UK, a national competition, in 1994. That phone call came from the Dean himself and I set off with my quilt to have tea and a personal guided tour of the Abbey with him. Wonderful! The culmination of the tour was a visit to the Cosmati floor itself. I stood and cried as I saw my old friend for the first time. That is what that floor had become to me. 

Janet did another quilt, Opus Sectile II, which is a collage of designs based on the 700+ year old Great Pavement in Westminster Abbey, London. Janet matched the colors to those chosen by the original Cosmati artists.

This was Janet's first use of foundation paper piecing.

You can find Janet at her website.

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BERNINA is giving a $2500 BERNINA gift certificate and a $2500 gift card to The Home Depot just for sharing a story and a picture about your cluttered sewing space.  We want that winner to be a TQS member! Click on ENTER TODAY to share your story. You need to belong to Facebook to enter.

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This is a section of a larger show, but has good pictures of the floor and some interesting background.  It ends suddenly because YouTube has size limitations.

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Look who we caught driving the Gammill Vision 22 at the quilt show in Paducah, KY?  Is that dlquilter giving Ricky tips?

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Many of us saw the special floor at the Royal Wedding.  It was first installed in 1268 by an Italian Family called Cosmati.  They were well known and the style became known as "Cosmati".  

The floor was in bad repair and seldom shown.  It was covered for its protection.  On a grant from the Getty Foundation the floor was restored.  Here is a short slideshow to give you a better idea.

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When visiting NYC a trip to Mood has to be on your agenda.  The store has over 40,000 square feet of space on 37th street in New York and is chock full of the latest in designer fabrics, embellishments, and notions.  As one Mood client said, "If you can't find it (fabric) at Mood, it doesn't exist!"  This is not a "quilt shop" but a great place to explore possibilities beyond that of everyday cotton. Come and get your Mood on!

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Alex has made some really beautiful quilts using her paper-piecing method. You can learn how she does this in Episode 809 - Paper-Pieced Perfection. Many of these quilts can be found in Alex's book from C&T Publishing, Paper Piecing with Alex Anderson, 2nd Edition.

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Hey Kate and Will - our invitation obviously got lost in the mail -However, we are celebrating TQS style anyway....all the best!