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TQS wanted to share some loving memories of their friend, Tom Russell.
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Tom Russell - Remembering a Friend
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TQS wanted to share some loving memories of their friend, Tom Russell.
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Tom Russell
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It is with heavy heart we announce the passing of Mary Ellen Hopkins.
Mary Ellen was full of life and certainly marched to her own drummer when it came to quilting.
Mary Ellen opened the Crazy Ladies and Friends Quilt Shop in Santa Monica, California in 1977. "The customers came in more for the fabric than for the sewing," remembers Mary Ellen. "Classes were more lectures than hands-on. Students did the work at home. From that point on, I began receiving invitations to do lectures. Getting up on a stage and talking without interruptions was great."
After 20 years she sold the shop and devoted all her time to teaching and lectures. She later started her own publishing company. Her first book was one many of you probably have, "It's Okay If You Sit on My Quilt Book."
Mary Ellen is probably best known for creating the connector and perfect piecing triangles concepts and the PPM - Personal Private Measurement.
Thoughts and sympathy cards for Mary Ellen Hopkins can be sent to her son:
David Hopkins
946 woodgrove drive
Cardiff by the Sea, Ca 92007
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Jeffrey Gutcheon - Inducted into the Quilter's Hall of Fame - 1990
Composer, arranger, songwriter, author, designer and architect, died in New York on June 23d following a long struggle with Lewy body dementia. Born in New York City in 1941, Jeffrey was Phi Beta Kappa at Amherst College, then earned a B. Arch from MIT. He played piano and organ in many styles (rock, country, gospel), and performed and recorded with, among others, Gladys Knight, Willie Nelson, Steve Goodman, Ringo Starr, Great Speckled Bird, and Geoff and Maria Muldaur. The album he released with his band Hungry Chuck (Bearsville records, 1972) has achieved cult status, the subject of numerous bootlegs and re-issues. He designed recording studios, most notably the Hit Factory on 48th St. He was one of the great stride piano players of his generation, and the original musical director of Ain't Misbehavin' the first hit non-book musical, which won the Tony award for Best Musical 1978. A polymath, he was also a force in the American art quilt movement, and authored or co-authored several iconic books on the subject. Jeffrey designed and distributed innovative fabric patterns for two decades through his company, Gutcheon Patchworks, and taught quilting and fabric arts to fans around the world. He served as president of the board of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine and is a member of the Quilters' Hall of Fame. He recorded four albums with the Texas band Lost Country before declining health forced his retirement. He is survived by his son David Gutcheon, his sister Peppi Graves, Ed Graves and his niece Lucy Graves, and is mourned by extended family and friends from the many worlds in which he lived his life. A memorial will be held in New York in the fall, and donations may be made in his honor to The Jeffrey D. Gutcheon 1962 Music Fund by contacting the Amherst College Development Office.
Published in The New York Times on June 30, 2013
You can visit Jeffrey's website here.
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The quilting world in the UK has recently lost one of it's finest advocates. Quietly, without fuss or fanfare, Dianne Huck has been one of the least recognised but most influential quilt makers and facilitators of her generation.
In the late 1970s/early 80's, quilters in the UK only had access through subscription to magazines like Quilters Newsletter Magazine, which were eagerly awaited by mail. A chance remark that, ‘It's a pity there isn't a British magazine' lead Di and her friend Elaine Hammond to start Patchwork & Quilting in 1985. (It became British Patchwork & Quilting only when other countries started using the title!). When Elaine retired due to ill health, Di continued the mantle of Editor until her death at the end of February and to this day it remains one of the leading magazines of its genre in this country.
In 1988 after visiting Houston they started Quilts UK, a quilt show that has long been one of the major events in the British quilting calendar. Held every May in Malvern, surrounded by the beautiful countryside of Worcestershire, it attracts thousands of visitors and still retains its reputation as ‘the friendly show'. This year Quilts UK celebrates its 25th year - a fitting tribute to the risks involved in starting it all those years ago.
Not content with encouraging and enabling quilters to enjoy patchwork and quilting here in the UK, Di also started P&Q Tours and has taken many quilters on tours, principally to the US to shows like Houston and Paducah. Other tours have included Australia, New Zealand, Tanzania, China and Japan as well as other parts of the States. The most recent tour, which sadly she was not well enough to join, was the hugely successful tour of forty quilters to Colorado where the highlight was a two day seminar in La Veta with Ricky Tims. It was a quite unbelievably brilliant tour for everyone. It seems a bit remarkable now, but when Di started the tours, women would cook for weeks in advance to fill freezers for the husbands and families left behind! But actually what she did was make travel possible, often for single women and it opened and changed many lives.
In her time in the magazine, Di's remarkable facility was not only to introduce thousands to the craft, but to nurture and encourage many a burgeoning talent. There are numerous quiltmakers, teachers and authors who owe their careers to Di's early recognition and willingness to give them opportunities, which might never have come their way without her.
At Quilts UK, the Amy Emms Award was introduced (I confess no one seems to remember exactly which year this started!). It is given each year to someone in recognition of their, ‘services to quilting'. Some of the UK's most well known and revered quilters have been the recipients but there are also many unsung heroes who have won this prestigious award. I often used to say that the person who deserved it most was Di herself.
In all the tributes that have been sent to the magazine, to the family, to friends and colleagues one of the most apposite was, ‘I so admire people who start something. It's so easy just to follow isn't it?' As I said at the beginning, without fuss and fanfare, Di simply instigated what turned out to be momentous occurrences for many of us and we owe her a huge debt of gratitude for enriching our lives. She will be hugely missed but she has left such a strong and vibrant legacy.
Judi Mendelssohn
Assistant Editor
British Patchwork & Quilting Magazine
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Patricia B. Campbell, of Dallas, Texas was a quilt artist, teacher, lecturer and author known for her unique style of Jacobean applique. She was known for non-traditional style appliqué patterns and bold colors. Her effervescent personality and sharing spirit are what change students from fearing the "A word " to appliqué lovers.
Pat did not grow up in a family of quilt makers. She did not take her first quilting class until 1984. But she soon learned that the precision of piecing was just too confining. Living in Florida at the time, appliqué allowed her to create the botanical designs that she loved. She had done theorem painting, so adapting those designs of baskets filled with fruits and flowers to fabric seemed only natural. But realistic flowers were not that appealing to her. She had always been drawn to the fantasy botanicals of the Jacobean style crewel embroidery designs. Adapting these graceful curves and stylized leaves to appliqué designs won Pat many awards over the years. Pat was the recipient of 3 Best of Show awards, one in Lancaster, Louisville, KY, Dallas, 2 Founders Awards in Houston, and 2 Pride of Dallas awards at Dallas Quilt Celebration.
Not only was Pat an award-winning quilter and pattern designer, and author of seven books on appliqué, but she had developed two fabric lines, Fossil Fern and Impressions for Benartex. When asked about her use of bright colors and how she puts the bold colors together, she laughed and replied "When magenta is your neutral, what else CAN you do?" Pat's first nationally recognized quilt, Jacobean Arbor, taught the world that all backgrounds don't have to be white or pale. Pats daring use of bright electric colors on a black background helped break the mold for "standard quiltmaking," allowing us all to be more creative with colors.
Pat's generous spirit along with her zeal for life was evident in every design she created. From the fabric lines to the theorem designs to stylized Texas wildflowers, her unique sense for color and balance were felt in every stitch. She never hesitated to take a few extra minutes with a student that might be having difficulty getting that tiny point just so, or that circle really round.
The quilt world has lost a shining star.
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I Dreamed I Was a Flower by fiberwoman
It is with a heavy heart that we share with you the news that Richard "Rick" Billings, husband of TQS member fiberwoman, passed away peacefully at hospice on Tuesday, June 12, 2012, just three months after being diagnosed with cancer.
Rick was a golf enthusiast and woodworker, turning out one-of-a-kind pens. Now he is perfecting his putt on Heaven's greens. He was a kind soul with a streak of spunk, reveling in teasing his family and friends even to his final days. He will be missed tremendously. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Jan and her entire family.
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"Quilts of Valor," a 73-minute documentary starring national quilters Eleanor Burns, Alex Anderson, and Mark Lipinski and hosted by Marianne Fons, has just been made available to all public television stations nationwide by its producer, Iowa Public Television.
Three novice quilters were matched with three professionals to help them make quilts for the Quilts of Valor program which has awarded 61,458 quilts to veterans since it began in 2003. The novices were Dan Gable, wrestling legend, Mary Lou Metzger of Lawrence Welk fame, and Heather Stephenson whose husband is a member of the Iowa National Guard.
To make sure this unique and compelling program is aired on your local station, contact your station's programming department and ask it to schedule the show.
For help in finding your local station, go to http://www.pbs.org. Contact your station via email, phone message, or personal note to let them know you want to watch "Quilts of Valor."
To learn more about the Quilts of Valor program, click here.
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Sadly Mary Kay Davis' (TQS web-reporter and beloved team member) husband Eric passed away Saturday, Feb 11 after collapsing while training for a marathon. He was a great support to Mary Kay with technical behind the scene contributions to TQS, and our hearts grieve for both Mary Kay and her beautiful sons.
Message from Mary Kay:
Eric could build just about anything from furniture and buildings to networks and circuit boards. He loved his children and spent hours playing catch and helping with homework. He loved to run and he encouraged his wife in all her endeavors, recently helping her complete a 5K in Disneyland. He enjoyed going to San Jose Sharks games, was happy when the Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl, and loved watching his Wisconsin Badgers in the Rose Bowl.
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It is with a heavy heart that we share with you the news that Alvin Fred Clabo, husband of TQS member Margo, passed away peacefully at home on Monday, Jan. 30, 2012, after a long, difficult battle with cancer. Alvin was an avid supporter of Margo's quilt work. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Margo and her entire family.
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