New Work & Quilting Arts TV Series 800

Good morning!

I'd like to share a little piece I finished last week. I belong to a local group of quilt artists called Metro Threads. We're putting together a trunk show with similar parameters to those for SAQA's This is a Quilt - small quilts that will fit in a 12"x12" mat with an 8" opening. Here's a quilt that I'm going to submit.


I alluded to the year starting off with a bang in my last post. I'm *very* excited that in February I'll be headed to Cleveland to film three segments for Quilting Arts TV Series 800! Two of the segments are based on articles that have been in Quilting Arts and Quilting Arts Gifts. The third segment is a new project that's been very fun to design. I've been busy behind the scenes here trying to prepare for them all, and getting more excited by the minute!

New Year, New Series: Filler Finesse in Machine Quilting Unlimited

2011 is starting off with a bang! The wonderful folks at Machine Quilting Unlimited asked me to write a series of six articles on filler designs and the first one has made its debut in the January 2011 issue.



I love the format that they asked me to follow. With stitch outs, diagrams, and a descriptive paragraph for each fill it provides you with several ways to learn how to create each design. As always there are plenty of wonderfully informative articles in this issue, including the cover article on Freida Anderson and articles on thread painting and complex feathers. I'm always amazed at how much information they are able to pack into each issue!

It's the rare year that we attend some super festive New Year's party. Despite that our New Year's Eve was quite wonderful. We were visiting relatives in Fort Worth, Texas and spent the day at Great Wolf Lodge playing Magic Quest. Here's what it takes to slay the dragon -

Sheer Determination!

After wards we were treated to this lovely sunset

The sky really was that color - I didn't modify it at all.

Several other exciting quilting related things are in the works, so stay tuned!

Congratulations to Debra Gabel!

Many congratulations to my good friend Debra Gabel! She is an amazingly talented designer, and one of the hardest working people I know. In December her first book, Quilt Blocks Across America, was released by C&T.



The book contains applique patterns for all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. All of the patterns are included on a CD that comes with the book. The blocks can be combined to create a travelogue of where you've visited or lived. It's a wonderful resource, and of course you could pick and choose images from different blocks and combine them to make an applique design that's unique. Way to go Debra!

Happy New Year!