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Hey everyone - do not forget to check out our member blogs (or perhaps start one of your own).  Look and see what what TQS member Mary Kay reported on regarding the chat room - And the best part?? It was caught on tape and as you can see,  it got a little wild the other night. Go here!

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Hey Lynn - John was saying the same thing - I guess great minds to think alike. Here is a picture that gives us a better understanding of the size of the quilts.

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At Houston TQS members Margarita and Joe slipped an envelope into my hands. I didn't open it there for fear I would not give the contents the attention it might deserve. And WOW is all I can say. This is an incredible piece that was a cooperative project with many hands. The original design is by Sr. Paulette Kirschensteiner, design and fabric selection by Joe, Fabric approval and applique by Margarita and quilted by Shari Bahr. This is an incredible piece - thank you for taking the time to get the envelope with the picture to me! and also take a minute to check out Margaritas profile - wow!

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Let's just face it- threading a needle can be a pain in the neck - so check out what we found! To learn more go here.

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We welcome our new members.  From Houston to Mesa to Ireland we have had a lot of new members joining the community.  The pictures below are recent additions to our Quilt Gallery.  Here members show their quilts, quilts they own or quilts from their families.  Whether you are a Star member or a Basic member, we encourage you to go to your Profile page and put up your quilts.  Show off or just share, everyone loves to see them.  Click "My Profile" on the purple bar and upload your pictures.  It's easy.

 

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Hey! Hey! We just found out that TQS got a booth at this next years Road to California in Ontario CA (January 14 - 18). Both John and Alex will be manning the booth during this beloved quiltie event! Also, the TQS shoppe will be there and last but not least Sue Garman's 2009 BOM! Meeting time will be every day in the booth at 1:00 - a great place to connect with other TQS members. Raise your hand if you are attending - and be sure to wear your TQS badge.

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I just received an email from my good friend Elly Sienkiewicz, the Baltimore Beauty Queen of all times (and she will be in season 4!) - anyway, she had this great quote about our friendship and so it goes, "There is a joy to have "philodendron friends" who survive, like the plant, with little care, but with perennial crossed paths .. a great life we have!" . This is so true - especially in the business both Ricky and I are in. Do you have a quote that wraps up friendship in your mind? If so, please share........photo by Gregory Case

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I LOVE getting my hands on my new fabric collections! This round it is called Whisperings - the fabrics are wonderful blenders to up date your stash. At the same time I am trying to clean out the garage so John can wiggle into his car - So, I had a brain storm, go to my personal site here and order three items (books, patterns in any combination) and you will receive a fat quarter of my new line, a 1/2 yard from an older one and the free pattern that comes from P&B. If you want to have a certain color of the new line, please put that in the comments line ON YOU ORDER FORM (not here) and please give me a few choices. I am so super excited about my new fabric - Tongue out

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It snowed almost 20 inches in La Veta last night and today. Justin and I took a drive to capture the wintery scenes. This photo was taken just as the clouds left and the sun started shining. This photo almost looks like a painting, but I assure you it is not. It's not even Photoshop enhanced!

The winter inspiration reminded me of the Remember December challenge going on in our Challenge link. You've still got time to submit an quilt entry. Take a peek at what is already there - it's amazing!

Finally, I should say WOW! You are on the right track helping me with photos for my video. If your on a roll, don't hesitate to post as many as you like. If you think your photo looks like a Christmas card - post it here! If you are unsure about what this is all about - click here.

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David and Annie Enke restored this 1957 toy piano.

When I was 20 months old (1957) Santa brought me a rocking horse. Santa, however, brought my cousin Carolyn a toy piano. Needless to say I was MUCH more interested in her toy piano than I was my rocking horse.

Growing up I would always play that little piano when I would go to visit my cousin. Well, after my Christmas concert last year I decided to find out where that piano was. We found it in her garage. The cabinet had severe water damage, the tines were rusty, and several keys were broken - but I took it anyway and told her that finally, it was mine!

Our neighbors are music instrument gurus and I had David and Annie completely restore it. They totally rebuilt the cabinet (from solid rock maple), but it was the insides that needed a lot of re-fabricating. Also, I asked for the 'new' version to be red. So here it is. My new red toy piano - and yes, I'll be performing on it in concerts in the future.

By the way, the company still makes toy pianos, and I could have bought three new ones for what it cost to have this one restored. But this one is THE one. Does this story bring any thoughts about your childhood holiday memories?