Daily Blog

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See what was happening during the filming of Episode 1001: Precision Made Easy with Susan Cleveland at the Miramont Castle in Manitou Springs, Co.  Susan is a designer, author, and teach known for her precision work.  In this episode she demonstrates how making miters can be fun and how to create perfect prairie points.

Susan's book, Marvelous Miters is published by C&T Publishing and can be found on her website.

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It's that time of year when New Year's resolutions begin to form.

What will it be for you this year?  Finish all your UFOs? Donate your extra fabric? Work for Project Linus? Make a Priority quilt? Enter your first contest or show? Start the TQS 2012 BOM?

Submit a comment and let us know, What do you have in store for 2012?

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Reminder: You may have Gift Certificates for Past Shows you haven't used! Check in your "My Account" section.

Did you renew and get a code for a Free Spool of Thread? Hurry and redeem it by Jan 3, 2012. Look in your "My Account" section for the special code and get $8.99 off.

Star Members can print out the 2011 (and 2010) Block of the Month patterns until Dec 31, 2011.

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Over the course of several years, Alex's cat, Sparrow, has seen lots of tips come across her desk. This was an especially good year for ideas on machine quilting, organizing, taking photos, music to work by, and so much more. In case you missed any of them, here are Sparrow's Top 10 Tips for 2011. Pencil ready?

• Parchment paper, intended for nonstick backing and cooking, does not have a silicone coating.  It will not melt under an iron.  Use parchment paper as a placement guide when when building an fusible appliqué block.

• Take lots of photos for quilt inspiration.  With digital cameras, there's no film or processing charge.  Remember, if you are lucky, you get one good shot in a hundred.  Have prints made of your best photographs, the ones you might want to use in the future, and put them in an album.

• Use different types of music for different stages of the quiltmaking process. Music with no lyrics works well for the design period; pleasing rhythms allow the right side of the brain (the creative side) to function. For the construction stage, use music with a beat that keeps you motivated.

• Make a mock-up- Be sure to create a mock-up before you sew.  To create a good proportion, always cut, fold, or scrunch the unblocks to your envisioned size and shape and place them on a background fabric that is also cut to your desired finished size.

•  Using a single hole throat plate will go a long way to help improve stitch quality.  The single hole helps guide the thread straight up and down as you move the fabric in all different directions.  Don't lift your hands while the machine is still running.  Let the machine stop before moving your hands to avoid off track stitches.

• Did you know that you can run fusible web through your printer?  That's right, if you have an ink-jet printer, you can put an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of fusible through the printer.  This way you can copy your designs right onto the fusible.  No more tracing!  The trick is to attach the sheet to a regular piece of paper using double- sided tape.  You don't need much, just tack down the corners.  Then, go ahead and print away. DO NOT DO THIS IF YOU HAVE A LASER  OR THERMAL PRINTER. YOU'LL GET A GLUEY MESS!

• Acrylic drafting triangles - especially the big right triangle make "truing up" cross fabric cuts a breeze.

• An electric mustache trimmer to un-sew long seams. Runs fast, never nicks the fabric. I use my pressure foot on the machine to hold one side of the seam, and hold the other side in my left hand. then I run the trimmer along the inside of the seam, and voila!

• Keep a record of your work in a file.  The file should include notes on inspiration, technique, and the date you completed the piece.  This will make it easy to fill out forms and answer requests when entering your work in shows or for publications.

• Make your own "heavy-duty" starch. Mix 2/3 concentrated liquid starch such as Sta-flo with 1/3 water in an empty spray bottle.

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Photo by Gregory Case Photography

TQS is always on the hunt to bring you the "best of the best" the quilting world has to offer, and 2012--with its knock-your-socks-off line-up--is no exception. The new year promises to be jam-packed with learning, and includes shows focusing on paper piecing, color-shuffled quilt blocks, spectacular garments that feature folded fabric, machine-quilting tips from major award-winning artists, art quilts that venture outside the box, perfecting your handwork skills...and so much more. We know you're going to love these shows as much as we do! 

Here are the stars--leading off with quilting teacher extraordinaire, Susan Cleveland in Episode 1001 on January 2--that we will be bringing you in the first half of the new year. 

Jan 16-Michelle Jackson
Jan 30- RaNae Merrill
Feb 13-Nancy Prince
Feb 27-Pat Yamin
Mar 12- Linda Thielfoldt
Mar 26- TBA
Apr 9- Robbi Joy Eklow
Apr 23-Laura Wasilowski
May 7-Debbie Caffrey/Charlotte Angotti
May 21-Carol Ann Waugh
Jun-5-TBA
Jun 18-Susan Shie

Don't miss a moment of this fun-filled learning.  Now is the time to jump in and join or renew.

Get a discount, free Past Series, a $8.99 discount at Superior Threads (ends Jan 3), a free online of the February The Quilt Life magazine, and a 6 month membership to give to a friend.

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This is your last chance to acquire the complete, exclusive TQS Block-of-the-Month quilt pattern that Sue Garman created for us for 2011, and that is available to you FREE as a Star Member through Saturday, December 31. (After that date, the free pattern "goes away" and you will need to purchase it.). 

Even if you weren't able to make our beautiful quilt this year, you may want to have the pattern on hand to make at a later date...so, don't delay! 

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Let's keep giving!  You can now send any show in your library to a friend for free.  In fact, you can send them to as many friends as you want.  However, each person receiving the gift will only be able to see one Free show. 

Have your non quilting friends watch the first 15 minutes of the story of Eleanor Burns. Does you friend need to see the art of David Taylor (406)?  Do they love applique by Susan Marshall (203) or the quilts of Jinny Beyer (601)?  If it's in your library, you can send it.

When watching a show, click the button that looks like this:

(This button is for show only)

You will then send a quick email to your friend. They will sign in and watch the show.  If they are already a Basic Member, they just login.

That's It!  Give it a try.  The Free gift is scheduled to end January 31, 2012.

A Special Thank you to Webmaster Bob for making this happen.

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A message from Ami Simms:

Volunteers from the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) presented a check for $30,000 to Dr. Sylvie Garneau-Tsodikova at the Life Sciences Institute of the University of Michigan. Dr. Garneau-Tsodikova and her research team will be using the money raised predominantly through the sale of donated quilts to develop multifunctional drugs for Alzheimer's disease.

Pictured above (from left to right) are: Jacob L. Houghton, Todd J. Eckroat, Wenjing Chen, Keith D. Green, Rebecca A. Reed (kneeling), Joshua J. Bornstein, Dr. Sylvie Garneau-Tsodikova, Ami Simms, Pat Holly (kneeling), Sue Nickels, Debbie Chenail, and Ruth Langdon.

It is unusual for researchers and those who fund them to ever meet. AAQI volunteers have had this opportunity three times. It is an extremely rewarding experience.

We bring quilts to explain our mission of raising awareness and funding research through art. Dr Garneau-Tsodikova's grandmother and aunt have Alzheimer's. She is motivated by their struggles with AD to work towards a cure.

We also bring Priority: Alzheimer's Quilts to sell. They become tangible reminders of the hope we all share that some day there will be a cure for this horrible disease.

It was truly amazing how science and art came together as Dr. Garneau-Tsodikova explained the work of her research team to quilters Pat Holly and Sue Nickels using a quilt from the AAQI traveling exhibit ("Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope") made by Mary Andrews. In the background are exhibit quilts by Mona Fallis and Gay Young Ousley.

For everyone who sews for the AAQI, I know you do so because you care deeply about finding a cure for Alzheimer's. Let me assure you that what you do matters.  Every single stitch counts. Your art touches people in a most special way. 

Together we CAN make a difference.

To everyone who supports the AAQI by making quilts, buying quilts, and through financial contributions to our nonprofit, please accept my personal and heartfelt thanks for the work you do to make the AAQI a reality.

Together we have raised more than $679,000 since the AAQI began in 2006. This is the 10th research project we have funded.