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Story Submitted by: KathySamson

My DH grandmaw gave me a call and asked me if I would quilt one of her cross stitch sunbonnet sue quilt tops for her great granddaughter's birthday. I quilted her quilt top and she was very pleased; it was a real pretty quilt. She got out another old bag with a old quilt top in it and says to me, "you can take this home with you and quilt it if you want and have it. And, if you don't want to quilt it thats okay too." She told me stories about the different fabrics. I brought this quilt top home. A few weeks later I took the quilt top out of its bag and thought it's an ugly quilt top and the workmanship was horrible, so I stuck it back into its bag and tossed it to the side. Another week passes by, I take it out of its bag I feel the same way and toss it off to the side. A month goes by I take it out of its bag the same thing and I toss it off to its side. One morning I got up and 'thought about all the stories grandmaw told' about the different fabrics in this quilt and I thought "What a Beautiful quilt"; she had many loving memories put into this quilt top. How did I not see this beauty to begin with and why did I not remember her stories? A Huge lesson learned. Every hour I spent quilting this quilt I though of grandmaw's fragile poor eye sight and her weakened hands of arthritis and all the memories that she has cheerished of her Mothers aprons, hospital gowns, curtains from her home. I really enjoyed quilting this quilt because this quilt by far has the best story through Loving memories that I have ever worked on. I look at quilts now and I think of all the beauty that's within and not just its outside beauty. The quilt had two stories: a big lesson learned and many Loving memories. I told my story to grandmaw and her children standing by her side and then she told her story about her mothers fabrics in the quilt. In the end she says there is only one thing: "Who do I leave it to when I'm gone?" She says: "Kathy I would like to leave it to you", she giggled and says, "since you think its an ugly quilt!" She Loved her quilt and It was Beautiful.

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A few years ago, Simply Quilts visited the home of quilter and author, Joan Colvin, in Bow, Washington.  Sadly, Joan passed away in September 2007 after a brave battle with Lymphoma. Joan's husband has generously donated her quilt, Diatoms and Wrinkled Whelks, to Friendship House, a local non-profit agency that provides temporary housing for the homeless.  The quilt will be auctioned on eBay, open from November 11 - 18, 2008. An autographed copy of Joan's book, Nature's Studio, is included with the quilt in the auction.

Joan's quilt will be displayed at two different venues prior to the eBay auction.  It is currently on display through September 28th at the LaConner Quilt and Textile Museum in LaConner, WA, and then will be displayed at QuiltWorks Northwest in Bellevue, WA. 

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Story Submitted by: Nanelas

This summer I lost a friend to melanoma cancer. Not an unusual statement as many people lose friends and family to this dreaded disease every day. My story is not the loss of my friend but the pleasure she received in the gift of a quilt from an organization called Victoria's Quilts Canada. I requested the quilt for her after hearing about their work while participating as a Guild delegate at the Gathering of the Guilds in New Brunswick, Canada. Victoria's Quilts Canada is a national non-profit charitable organization with headquarters in Ottawa, Canada. They have no paid staff but are completely run by volunteers. It was formed in the United States by Deb Rogers as a tribute to Victoria, her sister-in-law. The Canadian organization was formed by Betty Griffin with Deb's blessing. Their mandate is to provide comfort quilts to cancer sufferers when requested by loved ones or family. My friend received the quilt 2 months before she died. It traveled to doctors and hospital visits and finally to hospice care. Everyone who visited commented on the cheery fushia and pink quilt which brought a smile to my friend's face. Her last pictures are of her with the quilt. She felt wrapped in love. I am now making a quilt to donate for someone else to enjoy as she did.

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(Capt'n John)--The taping of Series 4 went wonderfully. You are going to learn a variety of techniques and be astounded by some great artists. But 7 straight days is hard even on a Pirate quilter. So if you get a chance and there are seats open (and there is a big fat lap 2 seats away), you lay down and take a nap.

Sometimes I really like getting the window seat. Usually I get an aisle seat, because 6' 2" is hard to fit in airplane seats. I am always amazed by how much land is unpopulated between Colorado and California. I also wore my sunglasses to see all the clouds. So I even took some pictures holding my sunglasses over the lens. We had a great surprise when we saw Photoman and Elena on the same flight to San Jose, CA.

Tomorrow I will pull together some of my pictures of the shows and get them up on the blog. There's no place like home.

 

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That's right. We are listening to you and we have made your favorite "Articles" easier to find on TQS. When you click on "Articles" in the tab above, you will see a condensed version of each article posted along with a photo. This way, you can scroll down and find fun, interesting articles, videos and features that are new or that you may have missed before. Did you catch all of the daily blog installments last June when the Three Sisters went to La Veta to make their new quilt? What about the videos by Pam Holland as she traveled through Mexico? Go to "articles" to find all of these in one place! Pretty cool!

Our latest article links you to a profile in the Ventura County Star that tells the bittersweet story behind Jake Finch's new book, Comfort Quilts from the Heart. (Published by C&T Publishing). Jake wanted to make a quilt for her niece, who was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer at age 18. The difficulty of finding appropriate projects to make for someone who was sick inspired Jake to write her book. You have to read this poignant story. Just click on the link to read it.

So keep visiting the "Articles" tab for new submissions. You never know what what you will find. But we know you will enjoy what you see!

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One of my great joys of being associated with Bernina is the opportunity to visit Bernina dealers across this country. Through this process I have become very good friends with many of them and in addition have had the opportunity to meet YOU! If you live in the following areas, please mark your calendar for my September Road Trip  - I will be presenting a virtual trunk show about my quilting life journey, from stay at home mom to TV host to executive producer and co-host of thequiltshow.com, who would have guessed?! -  Inspiration and a laugh or two is guaranteed.  Come see me! 

Dallas, TX - September 16th

St. Louis, MO - September 18th

Denver, CO - September 20th

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Pam Holland, the traveling quilter, has a new video.  Watch closely to see if it's a picture of flowers or a picture of a quilt.  It's not always easy to tell as Pam is a marvelous quilter.  It's clear how nature influences her quilting.  So take a stroll through Monet's Garden with Pam and The Quilt Show. 

If you have not seen Pam's previous videos, be sure to scroll down the new table of contents on the Articles page to see her Mexico video and The Lights of Adelaide video.

Be sure to visit Pam's website.  Her blog is great and she discusses quilts in progress and her travels.  Click Here.

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A profile in the Ventura County Star tells the bittersweet story behind Jake Finch's new book, Comfort Quilts from the Heart.  Jake wanted to make a quilt for her niece, who was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer at age 18.  The difficulty of finding appropriate projects to make for someone who was sick inspired Jake to write her book. 

To read the article click here.  To read an excerpt  from this book or to order a copy for yourself, visit the C&T Publishing website.

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So Paige and I have shopped, and shopped and we THINK we have everything we need to get started on our first quilt.  We have our plan, we have our pattern, we have our fabric and we have our notions.  So let the cutting begin...  What's the saying "Measure twice, cut once?"  or is it "Measure once, cut twice?"  Just kidding!  So tell us, as we get started, how do you like to quilt?  Alone, or with a friend?  With music or without?  And should we let the dog stay? I'll keep you posted...Ruth

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It is safe to say that if you have had the opportunity to be a part of a TQS taping, you KNOW we are family. Everyone gives 110%, and then some more. In fact Beverly Price (one of our producers) is willing to give the shirt off her back! That's right, for Pirate Day  she scored this shirt from Jeanette at Neal's Sewing Center in Davenport, Iowa - knowing Alex's growing pirate collection, Beverly is handing her goods over to Alex - And that is without walking the plank! AARRRRRR

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