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Make your puppy or kitten a great new bed to start the New Year.  Jen at Shabby Fabrics makes it easy!

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(Image from Sewing Studio)

Do you dream of a space that is both inspiring and functional? This dreamy studio is in the dining room of a home!  Be honest, when was the last time you truly enjoyed working in YOUR studio? Help is on the way! This year TQS is going to be YOUR Marathon coach!  We aren't talking about the one with the running shoes and a loud whistle. We are going to help you get that disaster of a space back in shape so you can get back to the fun of quilting.  As with any exercise program, it will take work on your part, but we will be here to cheer you on with ideas, suggestions, creative projects and inspiring studios.  Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint.  We are going to take it slowly, one step at a time.  So, are you ready for your first workout assignment?

Purging Fabric:  Part A

This week we are starting with your fabric stash.  You know what we are talking about.  Those bags of purchases, found treasures, gifts from other quilters you have stowed away in the back of the closet, under the guest room bed, or in cubbies in any spare space around the house.  That's the stuff we want to bring out into the light of day.  But, to keep a bit of order during this workout we suggest:

(Image from Old Square Inn)

1. Find a place outside of the studio that will serve as base of operation, that is fairly close to your studio.  This can be the dining room table (if the family doesn't protest too much), folding tables, or a hallway.
2. Put on some fun music and get down to business.  Depending on the amount of stash you have to go through, it might be best to do this over the course of several days, so that you are not overwhelmed.
3. Arrange assorted large laundry baskets, cardboard boxes or paper grocery bags.  These will serve as your sorting containers.
4. Label the containers by type (i.e.Keep, Donate, Gift, Consign). 
5. As you go through the fabrics, be honest with yourself.  Does it still appeal to you?  Will it fit with your current style? Is it a look you still work with?  If you answer no to most of these, the fabric should not go in the Keep pile.  You can always change your mind later, but the idea is to get a handle on what you have.  If you haven't set eyes on a piece of fabric for five years, chances are you are not going to miss it, so it should go into the Donate, Gift, or Consign area.

By the end of this workout, your baskets should look like this.  Good for you! You deserve a little break.

Next week?  We break down these sorted baskets into more manageable groups
and give you suggestions for what to do with the Donate, Gift and Consign piles.

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Is this a Grandmother's Flower Garden block?  Find out when you play Jinny's Memory Match.

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Want to learn how to design fabric? You can, at a 3-day intensive workshop presented by The Spoonflower Handbook co-author, Becka Rahn. The workshop will be held at Spoonflower’s headquarters in Durham, NC.  Spoonflower Handbook Master Class: Vectors Beyond the Book will run April 22-24, 2016.

According to Becka:

The focus of this workshop will be an introduction to working with vectors and Adobe Illustrator as a fabric design tool.  Why vectors?  Designing with vectors gives you a lot of flexibility with size and scale, options to color and edit your designs, and the ability to create smooth lines and simple repeating patterns in just a few steps. You will create three different vector-based designs in class and learn to use the basic vector drawing tools and techniques. Several of our class exercises will build on concepts presented in The Spoonflower Handbook, taking these projects “beyond the book” with more advanced tools and skills, as well as one-on-one instruction.

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Amanda Murphy shows you how to free motion a Swirl Feather at WeAllSew.com.

Star Members can watch Amanda in Show 1312.

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Even if you don't make New Year's Resolutions, you may have quotes you remember and live by.

If not, here are some to consider. Oh, and they are on beautiful quilts.

At the bottom of each slide if a magnifying glass. Click it to get closer to the quilt.

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So who are the "friends"? They are Alex Anderson, Eleanor Burns and Mark Lipinski. These top quilt teachers are pitted against each other in a competition to teach a Celebrity to sew a quilt. It's all in fun and for a good cause. 

With the permission of Iowa Public Television, the TQS audience is invited to see this inspiring quilting TV show. Just sign in. All members, Premium and Basic (Free) are invited. Not a member? Click to Join for Free below. Then click Watch>Free Shows to start the video.  

According to Marianne Fons, "All PTV member stations will have access to "Quilts of Valor II" later this month. Each one decides when to air it. As it is a 'pledge special,' they will be most likely to air it when they do their fundraising."

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 II."

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In Memoriam - Blanche Young

Blanche Young, who passed away on January 2, 2016 at the age of 96, was an internationally-known quiltmaker and author. She taught at guilds and conferences across the country and Europe and Japan. She was the author of ten books on quiltmaking, including the best-selling Tradition with a Twist. She continued to travel and teach until she was 91. She was a prolific and generous quiltmaker, having made and donated more than 100 raffle quilts among the hundreds of quilts that she made in her lifetime.

"Blanche taught quilting for decades, including many times at the International Quilt Festival, and she was well known for being a ready volunteer to make raffle quilts for good causes. She made several very successful ones for IQA. Blanche was an early friend of Festival and a dear personal friend. The quilt world is a poorer place without Blanche Young."

Karey Bresenhan ~ Founder and Director Emeritus of the International Quilt Fesitval