Preview Night 2009

Excitement as the count-down ends...

... and the shopping begins ....

This is a view down Vendor Aisle #1400. Look carefully all the way to the end of the row ... oops, too far ... come back about 2 or 3 booths and Surprise! On the left is Graywood Designs.

Danielle and Wanda are ready to answer all your questions about quilting and/or knitting. I can answer some questions too, but I'm just beginning to knit (after a long siesta away of many years). It is rather fun, but more news on my knitting another day.

At the other end of the vendors, in the first aisle, you will find the "It's A Party" gang, including Thangles. Spend $25.00 in any of the participating booths to earn a chance to win a wonderful quilt (or other prizes too). While you are in the area, stop by the Thangles booth to see ....


... a demonstration by Mary Beth or Patrick of how to sew half-square triangle blocks the Thangles way. Other fun, sponsored by Pokey Bolton and her Quilting Arts team, includes raffle chances for classes at the Make It University or swapping ATCs with other attendees. To find this group, look for the Make It University sign on aisle 1200.




Of course be sure to go and admire the prize-winning quilts in the 35th annual International Quilt Association juried show. Here is the 2009 IQA World of Beauty Award winning quilt.

Hearts and Garlands
by Liz Jones of Leominster, Herefordshire, United Kingdom

Another top prize-winner is this quilt, winner of the 2009 IQA Founder's Award.

Garden of Dream
by Fusako Takido of Shizuoka Shi, Shizuoka Ken, Japan

Be sure to see the exquisite workmanship of this quilt, winner of the IQA Best of Show Award for 2009.

On the Wings of a Dream
by Caryl Bryer Fallert of Paducah, Kentucky

To see full views of these quilts as well as all the winning quilts in the 2009 IQA Show, click here for the official Prize Winners of the 35th International Quilt Festival.

Quilt Market 2009

Quilt Market is my annual Quilt Family Reunion held every year, same time, same place. This family dates back 14 years ago to an internet Round Robin group I was in with Mary Beth Hayes. We met at Market that year, then Mary returned the very next year to launch her invention: Thangles, which I believe to be the easiest way to make 1/2 square triangles.

Above is Mary with my guys and hers at last year's Quilt Festival. I met her sister Wanda Hayes Eichler long ago, too. Below you can see me with Wanda in her Graywood Designs booth at this year's Quilt Market.


Wanda comes all the way from Pigeon, Michigan (in the thumb region) to show her quilt books and knitting patterns. If you are in Michigan, check out her studio shop Pigeon River Mercantile (note: she is online too).


Quilt Market continues to be a time to meet online friends face-to-face. This photo shows me with Robin Koehler who I met recently via the QuiltArt list.

Robin is another friendly multi-talented person (aren't all quilters?). Check out her website Nestlings by Robin to see if you agree. Of course now I am wishing that I had taken more photos at Market to share here .... maybe I will remember next year .....

You can find me during Festival in either the Thangles booth (#124 or so) or the Graywood Designs booth (#1452) ... unless I am wandering among the wonderful quilt exhibits .....

Eye of the Quilter: Inspiration

One of the newest exhibits for the International Quilt Festival has opened at the Quilt Market.

The Eye of the Quilter: Inspiration

Please enjoy this tiny, tempting peek into the exhibit ....

Look carefully as my photo is just around the corner....

Here is the original ...

An Ideal Day

Flowers, mountains and a lake
perfect for skipping stones
and daydreaming on a cool and sunny day.

I snapped this in the Colorado Rocky Mountains National Park during a family vacation in July 2007 using my brand-new Nikon DSLR, which I love even as I continue to learn to use its many built-in treats ....


My Beyond the Borders friends Sara Sissenwein Norris and Nancy Dickey also have photos in this exhibit. Congratulations to both of you!
Thank-you Willie for selecting our photos from the many entries you received!

a West U quilt

Welcome to my post for the fall Blogger's Quilt Festival hosted by Amy of Park City Girl. The quilt I wish to feature is one that was made especially for the 80th anniversary of ...

West University Elementary School.

This is a T-shirt quilt featuring t-shirts from school spirit shirts as well as many school activities (book fair, auction, carnival, etc.) My challenging task was to assemble this diverse collection into one cohesive quilt, and finish it in time for the PTO's fundraising auction (nothing like a firm deadline to crunch then rush one's creative energy).


After much struggling with a uniform block size, I chose to trim each item, leaving a 1" - 2" border framing the individual logos. Next stumbling block was to add borders to these trimmed blocks. Could I find one fabric to use for all the blocks, uniting the quilt? No. Instead I opted to frame each logo with a themed print in colors to match. This required shopping for fabrics such as hot-air balloon, jungle, & golf prints (a delightful task). With school colors of red, white and blue, the spirit shirts were the easiest to frame. As I pieced the fabrics around the t-shirt logos, the blocks grew larger, still keeping their different sizes and shapes. Sewing the blocks together into one quilt top required more puzzling and thinking. Look closely to spy the spacer bars of school-themed prints I added to fill in gaps. The final outer border, an alphabet print, unified the diverse blocks into one quilt.

Curious note: Some of the blocks are not t-shirts. They are scanned and printed images from an original item loaned for this copying purpose. One logo was actually cut-out from a baseball cap ... can you guess which one that is?

I must extend special Thank you's to:
Kay for printing the computer transfers;
Carrell for donating many of her own t-shirts;
Avril and Catherine who worked tirelessly remembering which events were missing and hunting down someone with the logo to share.
and last but not least, Thank you to Mike Walton of Astro Quilting Systems (713-522-7876) for the custom machine quilting that finishes this school quilt.

For all my friends and acquaintances .... no, I do not make t-shirt quilts, but fear not ... I have not one, but two friends that do. If you are interested in turning your child's keepsake t-shirts into a one-of-a-kind memory quilt please contact either of these friends:

Sharon Dixon's Katy T-shirt Quilts
and
Betty Baker's T-Shirt Quilts of Texas

Last note: the quilt was not complete at the time of the school auction (Hurricane Katrina and a broken arm interrupted the progress that fall). Nevertheless, the quilt-top was a hot item at the auction that attracted many, until the bidders united to purchase the quilt and donate it back to the school! I could not be more pleased! My quilt now hangs in the front entry of West University Elementary School.

Anticipation ....

I wandered over to the George R. Brown Convention Center today,
in anticipation of the upcoming Quilt Market and
35th International Quilt Festival (IQF).

This is what I found ....

Empty walls waiting for quilts.

The IQF Grand Prize Winners will be displayed here a week from today.
Imagine throngs crowding for a closer look and a chance to speak with the winning quilters


"The Eye of the Quilter: Inspiration" will be on display here. I am proud to have an photo in this new exhibit of digital photographs.

Imagine more caverns of emptiness (and plenty of parking outside) .... waiting silently for the excitement that is just around the corner.

I can hardly wait, can you?

P.S. For friends, quilters and fellow fiber enthusiasts who are coming to town....
while you're here, be sure to stop by Second Seating to enjoy fun and quirky Houston. For a look inside, click here.

Unique Centerpieces

The Texas Federation of Fiber Artists began their biennial conference this past week-end with the opening of Celebrating Our Creative Spirit, an exhibit of their work at the Houston Contemporary Craft Center (HCCC). Fiber enthusiasts came from across the state: from far (Alpine) and wide (the Rio Grande Valley) and from Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and surrounding smaller towns for this show and to mingle with their fellow fiber artists at the biennial conference.

During the conference, at each of Saturday's meals, table centerpieces featured colorful necklaces. Curiously each had a small number nearby. We were told that everyone would receive one of their table's necklaces as a keepsake of the day. We learned that trading was allowed, but perhaps more interesting was to see artists scouting out centerpieces before sitting down at the next two meals. I do not think that I was the only one to do this, or am I mistaken?


Breakfast featured funky necklaces made of clothespins, bobbins, paintbottles, etc.

This is my new treasure, and yes, the whistle really works. The assorted doo-dads include luggage keys, buttons, needle case, paper clips and more. This necklace reminds me of the old game show Let's Make a Deal. Remember when Monty Hall would challenge the audience to come up with something crazy from their pockets or purses?


Lunch featured fun necklaces.

This one is long and brightly colored (and lightweight when compared to my first). I must have traded three or four times before I ended up with this necklace. I saw that it is easiest to trade with the closer table-mates. As soon as that first trade happens, everyone comments on which necklaces they like, leading to the next trade. It was quite entertaining. I am pleased to own this necklace, even though I liked the ones I traded away. Perhaps the fun was in making the trade?


The evening banquet necklaces were fancy and quite simply, fantastic!

I fell instantly in love with the one that I originally drew, so I traded with no one. The knot is wonderful and appeals to the scout leader that lives within me. To learn who made each my three necklaces is now my goal ... perhaps I will find out at our next HAFA meeting which is this week (yea! I can hardly wait.)

These centerpieces were a wonderfully fun, unique decorating idea. First - the necklaces made colorful centerpieces, yet each was different from every other one. Second - giving away the necklaces before the meal's end provided an easy ice-breaker. You met everyone at your table to admire the necklace they received. Third - all the necklaces made wonderful keepsakes of this great conference.


Kudos to the Houston Area of Fiber Artists (HAFA) who organized this biennial conference. Kudos to Iva Jensen and her fabulous team who spent many hours making necklaces as well as planning the many activities of the week-end.

Save the date now:
The next Texas Federation of Fiber Artists Conference will be co-hosted by
San Antonio Fiber Artists (SAFA)
&
Austin Fiber Artists (AFA)

February 24-26, 2012
Kerrville, Texas

Art Now for Autism

Announcing the Opening of

Art Now for Autism 2009

An online exhibit and reverse auction benefitting autism awareness and research.

October 1-10, 2009

http://www.artnowforautism.com

October 1-4 : Preview of Art.
Opens at 9am EST on October 1.
Art exhibit will be open online at www.artnowforautism.com.
All work will be viewable but not on sale.

October 5 & 6
Reverse Auction Opens AT 9AM EST.
All Art is $90

October 7 & 8
Unsold art drops to $60 at 9AM EST on Oct. 7.

October 9 & 10
Final two days
Final price starts at 9AM EST on Oct. 9.
Any remaining art is $30

This year's exhibit includes the work of 89 artists from around the USA, Canada, France, Italy, Australia, Brazil, and the Netherlands. Included in this amazing list of artists are a number of artists with autism spectrum disorders. 160 pieces of fine art and craft are included in the exhibit. There is something for everyone!

100% of art sales will go to Autism Speaks through their National Walk Now for Autism Speaks event.

Any questions? Please email Claudine Intner, the organizer of Art Now for Autism at artnow@artnowforautism.com

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Art Now for Autism

Support the cause and get some great art, too!

Exhibit and Reverse Auction: October 1-10, 2009