1
Do you avoid projects that require that you put in a zipper? Let Sonya Lee Barrington show you how easy it is to whip through the process--with flawless results.
0
Best of World - Dawn Prayers on the Ganges my Meri Henriques Vahl, USA
Coming August 16-19, 2012 - The World Quilt Show - New England X at the Radisson Center of New Hampshire, Manchester, New Hampshire.
Here's what Mancuso Show Management has to say:
The World Quilt Show - New England is one of the most internationally diverse events of its kind in the world of quilting and the textile arts. This year’s faculty will be offering a fabulous variety of workshops and lectures. In addition, Mancuso Show Management is hosting the World Quilt Panel and Forum Ice Cream Social; this special event is included with your festival registration. Also returning to the Festival for another year will be the special Saturday luncheon presentation.
There is still time for US quilt entries - the deadline is July 9th, 2012. For international entry information, click here.
0
Photo by Gregory Case Photography
It's almost time for our next round of great shows! Check out the fabulous line-up of artists we've got on tap for Series 1100. Painting, working with beads and buttons, curved piecing-- this is just a hint of the outstanding level (and variety) of talent, creativity, and learning we've got coming your way. In this new series, we'll take you not only to our studio in Boulder, CO, but also to exciting locations in Santa Fe, NM, and Montana, too!
We start off with a bang on July 2, when Tom Russell shows Ricky just how exciting it can be to add beads, sequins, and buttons to your quilt project. Then enjoy these great new shows:
July 16 - Luke Haynes
July 30 - Jan Krentz
Aug 13 - Tommy Romano
Aug 27 - Cara Gulati
Sep10 - Brian Haggard
Sep 24 - Tami Pfeil/Kim Klein
Oct 8 - Barbara Persing/Mary Hoover
Oct 22 - Karen Eckmeier
Nov 5 - TBA
Nov 19 - Cindy Walter
Dec 3 - Edyta Sitar
Dec 17 - TQS Legend
If your membership is expiring soon, this is the perfect time to renew. If you've been thinking about joining, now's the time. You don't want to miss a minute of the fun!
0
Are you looking for something to do with the family this summer? Why not plan a trip to the National Mall in Washington, DC, for the annual (and FREE) Smithsonian Folklife Festival? This year's festival dates are June 27 - July 1 and July 4 - July 8. Along with hands-on exhibits, food, and music, you'll be able to view portions of the AIDS quilt, which will be exhibited to mark the 25th anniversary of this moving fabric memorial.
Here are some facts about the AIDS Memorial Quilt:
0
Continue your trip to Italy with the Rovaris sisters, whom we met at the International Quilt Festival in Houston a couple of years ago. Their charming booth, filled with wonderful handwork, was irresistible and quickly drew us in. It wasn't until we began chatting that we realized there was more to this sister team than meets the eye.
0
Join Esterita Austin (Episode 506) as she shares images from her annual workshop held at a 12th-century villa in the heart of Tuscany. Along with the wonderful surrounding scenery, view some of the work created by Esterita's students based on photographs from daytrips and the villa itself.
Check out last week's tour to Russia here
0
QuiltCon presented by the Modern Quilt Guild is having a block challenge. You are to use the colors of the QuiltCon logo to make a quilt block that reflects what modern quilting means to you. The deadline is August 15, 2012.
Many of the blocks will be featured in The Modern Quilt Guild's blog.
If you'd like to see some of the blocks they've already received, click here.
For rules and guidelines, click here.
5
It's All in the (Minute) Details by Lilo Bowman
Every so often, as I walked through the rows of outstanding quilts at this year's International Quilt Festival in Houston, I had the feeling that a certain quilt was calling out to me for closer inspection. Such was the case with Mission Impeccable by Kumiko Frydl (shown above). This astounding miniature (16 3/4" x 16 3/4"!) quilt required 10 - 12 hours of work a day over a four-month period, but it was not the first time Kumiko created this design. In fact, this diminutive beauty is the third quilt in a series, each one tinier than the last. No doubt, Kumiko is a quilter who loves to challenge herself!
While working with miniature quilts is not where Kumiko began, working with fine details is something that has attracted her for a long time. As a graduate student studying commercial arts at Tokyo University, Kumiko spent many hours at her drafting table. When not studying for her degree, she enjoyed sewing many of her own clothes. With a father in the textile industry, she had a great opportunity to utilize the fabrics available to her. As fate would have it, when she met and married her husband, his job required a move to England, and Kumiko naturally came along.
England, she quickly discovered, was a bit limited in fabric selection, and the price of those available fabrics was very high. Also, the couple's small apartment did not include space for working on large sewing projects. It was time for Kumiko to reassess her situation. She began to study quilting on her own, but later joined a guild where she was taught many new skills by the members. It was also during this time that she began making bobbin lace.
Bobbin lace making. Courtesy of Wikipedia.org
Bobbin lace is made by tacking a paper pattern to a small, firm pillow. Each thin bobbin is wound with a length of thread, and the lace is created by twisting and winding the individual threads around pre-placed pins to follow the pattern. Depending upon the design, as many as several dozen bobbins may be required. While this particular craft may not appeal to those who don't care for intricate, detailed work, it was perfect for Kumiko.
Following several more moves, Kumiko found herself in Houston, TX. By this time, she had become quite proficient in quilting and wanted to try her hand at making even more challenging pieces. In 2007, she fell in love with a quilt she saw on the cover of Quilter's Newsletter Magazine. The quilt, made by Kathy Nakajima, was called Sunshine Rose Garden, and while Kumiko was drawn to it, she did not simply want to copy Kathy's original design. Instead, Kumiko decided to make her version in miniature, replacing the appliqued elements with silk-ribbon embroidery. This smaller version became Mission Impossible? and measured a tiny 20" x 20" in size. To her surprise, the quilt won a First Place ribbon in the miniature category. 
Now Kumiko was challenged make even smaller quilts. Two more versions have been completed with Mission Impeccable, measuring a mere 16 3/4" x 16 3/4", the smallest to date...and another First Place winner in the miniature category in Houston in 2010.
The central Mariner's Compass in this tiny quilt is made up of 128 individual spokes. At 1/20th the size of the original, there was no room for error in the paper-piecing process, Kumiko explains. With such a small project, she generally sews with 18 - 23 stitches per inch. She describes herself as stubborn, and says that she does not give up until she has perfected each element. Such dedication means that she often works 10 -12 hours every day without fail when a deadline is looming.
Notice the clusters of hand-embroidered silk-ribbon flowers that surround the central compass. Kumiko designed the flowers to represent the appliqued ones in the original inspiration quilt.
All of the free-motion quilting in this quilt was done with YLI 100% silk thread in the top and Superior Masterpiece thread in the bobbin. For this detailed work, Kumiko likes to use a Microtex 60 needle. The quilt is made from100% pre-washed cotton and hand-dyed cotton, and Kumiko drafted the entire design on Golden Threads paper. Not surprisingly, given her background, she finds the drafting the most enjoyable part of the entire process.
As she designs mostly for competition, Kumiko doesn't have a great deal of time for other projects. While you might think that a miniature quilt takes less time, that is not necessarily the case. You might be surprised to know this piece alone took around four months to complete, and chances are that it required just as much patience and stubborness to complete as its larger counterpart.
So the next time you walk through a gallery of miniature quilts, step in for a closer look. Better yet, bring a magnifying glass. You just might be surprised at what you discover.
0
Hearts Alive #2 is one of Sonya Lee Barrington's latest pieces of silk work. It is a small piece measuring only 12" x 12." It is made of dupioni silk, machine pieced, and hand appliqued. Sonya hand quilted it with copper metallic thread and embellished it with Mother of Pearl vintage buttons, glass beads and other objects. It hangs freely from a stand created from copper tubing.
To see more of Sonya's work, please visit her website or watch her in Episode 1012: Beyond Cotton: Working with Wool and Silk.
Hearts Alive #2 - 36 pieces non-rotating
Hearts Alive #2 - 100 pieces non-rotating
Hearts Alive #2 - 100 pieces rotating
Hearts Alive #2 - 289 pieces non-rotating
Hearts Alive #2 - 289 pieces rotating
0
(Capt'n John) - "As the executor of an estate, I have a '74 Pontiac Lemans to sell. So I went to a car show for the first time. I wondered how our audience could benefit from this experience. There was a lot of art there, but most of it was on people's bodies.
Then I became amazed at all the colors. Here is a fast look at the range of colors. I hope it can lead to some great decisions for your next quilt."
 |
Gift Memberships
Give a Full Year of Quilting
.jpg "2019 Sponsor - BERNINA Q 24")
Learn about
Apliquick appliqué tools!
Watch Show 1912
with Rosa Rojas (free!)
Apliquick - 3 Holes Microserrated Scissors
