TED

Do you know about this site?
  
TED.

Judy Coates Perez first tuned me into it. It is a fabulous place to visit.

Recently my sister-in-law sent me this link. I think it is so marvelous I want to share it with you too.

Eric Whitacre a Virtual Choir.

Quilts in public places

I love to see quilts displayed in public places.

I have a few of my works displayed in health centers. I like to think that is makes  people happy to view them.

Art made with fabric is often warm and inviting, as so many woman are.

When I was in NC recently, my two hostess took me to The First Citizens Bank in Hendersonville, NC. Hanging on the walls of this impressive building where quilts made by local quilt artists that had been commissioned by the Architect for this building . There were also several beautiful and striking antique quilts.

Each of the pieces of art was displayed behind Plexiglas and mounted on linen boards. The displays were stunning.

Here are just a few of the pieces.

“Golden Threads and Silver Needles made by Georgia Bonesteel, 1988


I saw Georgia at the quilt guild and we had a nice chat. I didn’t realize that she once lived in the Chicago land area, and worked at Marshall Fields, as did I.


“Stormy Sea” made by Barbara Swinea 1988. This is beautifully crafted and HAND quilted.



“Love Apple Variation” made by Linda Cantrell, 1988. This is a very different piece for Linda who makes fun and whimsical pieces that often tell a story. Notice Linda is talking, as she often is, as she is always telling a fun story.



Antique 1 1/2” squares





I believe this was made of wool. All of the quilts did not have their “name” tags with them as they had recently been rehung and moved.



This piece was behind the tellers at the bank. “Mirage” by Ellen Kochansky, 1988




Also by Ellen,”Form-Content”

What a great way to view quilts and what a wonderful setting for them. I hope the people of Hendersonville enjoy this great art.

Jane Sassaman

PATCHWORK SASSAMAN STYLE
EXTRAORDINARY BLOG TOUR

My friend Jane Sassaman has a new book.

I think Jane’s work is spectacular.


I am wonderstruck with the awesomeness and gorgeousness of Jane's work and this book.

Jane’s fabrics are a lot like Jane’s quilts with large graphic imagery.


But she also makes many blender fabrics to go with these large scale prints.


In this book Jane shows you many techniques for using those large scale prints to perfect effect.


Here are just two of the projects from the book.


I hope you will stop by and leave your comments for a chance to win.


I will draw a name on Friday July 20. So be sure and enter a comment.
Please share this with your quilt friends.


If you haven’t already joined this blog, just click on the link at the top of this page that says “join this site”.


If you email you have done that I will send you a free PDF pattern.

17	http://patsloan.typepad.com/	Pat Sloan
18	http://www.jankrentz.com/weblog/	Jan Krentz
19	http://makeitsimpler.blogspot.com/
20	http://lyrickinard.com/blog/	Lyric Kindard
21	thequiltshow.com/os/blog.php	The Quilt Show
22	http://janeville.blogspot.com/	Jane LaFazio
23 24	www.freespiritfabric.blogspot.com/ www.nancyzieman.blogspot.comhttp://www.nancyzieman.com/blog/	Nancy Zieman

Susan Cleveland and WonderFil Spagetti

Susan Cleveland is one of the happiest quilters I have ever meet. She exudes bubbly. Susan has shared with us some of her latest tips for using WonderFil Spagetti thread. I KNOW you will enjoy this.
One of the projects in my newest book, Precision & Panache, includes bright, hand-dyed fabric and stitching with 12wt cotton thread (WonderFil Spagetti  12wt cotton) by hand and by machine.

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• Hippie Daisies by Susan K Cleveland, 2010, 11”x20”; This piece was made with hand-dyed fabric and it gives a groovy vibe to the piece. This little quilt makes me smile.

• Glowing applique... First, to keep the white flowers white with no background showing through, I used Pellon Décor-Bond rather than traditional fusible web. This product is a heavy non-woven interfacing and it masks color under the flowers. I then stitched machine applique with WonderFil Spagetti 12wt cotton thread to give a bold blanket stitch around appliques. For a glow, I quilted around the daisies by machine also with WonderFil Spagetti 12wt cotton thread but in another color. Trippy, huh?

• The white background piece is linen gauze. I starched it to keep its shape, frayed the edges and pinned it to the hand-dyed background before appliqueing daisies. Since I couldn’t think of how to quilt the linen section, I sprinkled square sequins throughout stitching through all layers. It seems just right.

• I love hand quilting and especially with heavy thread. This technique was a new idea for me! With 2 strands of WonderFil Spagetti 12wt cotton thread and a 7 or 8 between needle, I hand quilted with large stitches and intermittently inserted French knots into the lines of quilting! fyi ... there is no message.

• Life is too short for plain bindings. Large white ric rac seemed like the logical choice for me.

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Quilt on!
Susan
Susan K Cleveland
www.PiecesBeWithYou.com

Wendy Butler Berns

Wendy and I became friends many years ago and we run into each other often out there in the quilt world. Wendy teaches and lectures around the world and does so much with thread in her quilts.

Wendy you have machine quilted all of your wonderful quilts. What threads have you used that you really like to work with? And why.

I create mostly wall quilts, so the threads I like working with are the beautiful Sulky rayons with great sheen to them…. If a rayon thread is not available I also enjoy the Superior Threads trilobal polyester threads as well-Highlights… they also have a wonderful sheen that spark up my quilting designs. These threads are 40 weight and easy to adjust my tension as I work along.

What is your favorite type of needle to use with these threads and why?

I use Superior Thread monopoly clear thread in

my bobbin for all of my quilting.

The needle I stitch with the most with my favorite threads is the microtex 80/12 needle

You create your own quilting designs where do you get your inspiration from?

Can you tell us about that?

Inspirations and designs are all around us… most often I am inspired by organic shapes and lines from nature…. Leaves, vines, the texture in tree bark or the wave lines left on shore…. We just need to look more closely around us. I see shapes that appeal to me, then I spend time with my paper and pencil to doodle those shapes to figure out how I can turn them into continuous quilting designs.

What kind of problems have you encountered with machine quilting on your quilts?

Explain.

The problem I encounter most deciding what quilting designs to combine with each other and getting myself jump started to choose which ones I want to work with…. Spending time viewing the quilt, studying the fabrics I used and pouring over designs I keep in my notebook, help me formulate my plans and get me going!

Wendy Butler Berns
textile artist, teacher, lecturer
Look for my workshops and gallery-  http://www.wendybutlerberns.com
Vidcast of "Out on a Limb Exhibition" http://www.bonniemccaffery.

Thank you so much Wendy for sharing with us the threads you like to use and the sources of your inspiration. You are an inspiration to us all.

Quilts from Houston part 3

Joanne came into the booth. It was very nice to meet her. She bought some fabric from us. Yea.

I loved the treatment of hair in this quilt.

I am always attracted to the traditional album quilts. This one had a particularly stunning border.

Singing in the rain.

I am home from Houston and so excited to be here. George and I went to the lake to walk in the RAIN! It was beautiful, refreshing and the colors in the landscape looked so crisp. We were in doggy heaven.

I thought I would share with those of you who were not able to make it this year some of the quilts that caught my eye. Remember, there is no rhythm or reason why I like something, I just do and I like to take pictures to look at over and over again.

This is the Artist Village that Kathy York organized. It was so wonderful to see it in person. So many of the houses were bigger than mine.

My house. It had trilliums growing around the base of the house and copper electroplated windows and doors with an oak leaf tile roof.

My friend Lois Podolny made this fabulous quilt. I loved the way she used the different fabrics and the decorative stitches from her sewing machine. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

Fermilab Art Quilts Exhibit–Artist Monday

I am part of the SAQAIL/WI group that has put on an exhibit that will run at the famous Fermilab in Batavia IL. If you live in the area this is a wonderful opportunity to visit the facility and then see some great art pieces. That’s my piece in the lower bottom right – Shimmering Foliage. I hope you can make the artist reception on November 18 from 5-7. I have to work and will miss the chance to drink wine and eat cheese with all of you.

Wendy Butler Berns on line classes

The first two Wendy Butler Berns online courses have now been launched on the Craftsy.com website..... the third course "Art Quilting 101" will be available in early November.
Here is a link to the promos for the first two courses and each have several segments one can watch online
http://www.craftsy.com/class/Art-Quilting-Pictorial-Techniques/38?d=34255
http://www.craftsy.com/class/Machine-Quilting-Free-Motion-More/37?d=34158
please pass on the information to everyone you know!!!!! thanks!
Wendy Butler Berns
Look for her workshops and gallery- http://www.wendybutlerberns.com
Vidcast of "Out on a Limb Exhibition" http://www.bonniemccaffery.com/vidcasts/057.html

Mark Lipinski

Hey check it out. I am going to be on the phone tomorrow with Mark Lipinski.

Tune in to www.toginet.com and click on the listen live button on the page and you will be able to hear the show as it takes place.

Who knows what will happen with Mark, you don’t want to miss this.

See you on the Radio.

Artist Monday

My good friend Tommy Fitzsimmons has been working on a series that I think is just amazing. I love these pieces.

The LineUp

The Queue 28” x 30”

Here is what she says about the inspiration for these pieces;

The inspiration was just using the Elmers gel glue as a resist and freehand
drawing with it.  I have been making these resist pieces and then their larger
pieced counterparts since January and LOVE the freedom of the process.  I have
not made a piece this way that I haven't liked and therefore none have been rejected.
I can't say that about all my work.  To date, starting this past January, I have made 11 resist
whole cloth quilts and completed 9 and one half of the reproduced pieced work.  It seems
to make me work more than in the past.

 

Candy land smaller resist piece.

Larger pieced version.

Lorena Bobbitt

Lorena Lorena

The eyes have it.

What big eyes the larger pieced version.

smaller hill and dale

and larger Mountian and Roy 33 1/2 x35