Surprise Delivery

The delivery itself was not such a surprise, as I was expecting my Farrago quilt back from IQF Houston.  What was surprising though was that the parcel was delivered just a few moments ago...on a Sunday, in Nova Scotia.  I don't recall that ever happening before, but I suspect the volume of Christmas mail at present has Canada Post working overtime.

I was thrilled to see they had included the books from all three shows:  Cincinnati, Long Beach and Houston.  The biggest thrill of course is seeing my name on the page with so many quilting celebrities.   There I am, in the column next to Caryl Bryer Fallert and Anna Faustino! :)  (yes, Mary -Karen Eckmeier is there also.)

Farrago has had a stellar run of shows and I am happy to have it back home now for a bit.  It's one of my favourite quilts.

 

IQF - Houston

You know life is too hectic when...it totally slips your mind that you have a quilt in an exhibit at International Quilt Festival, Houston!!  If anyone reading is attending the show, I'd dearly love to have some pictures taken of "Farrago" which will be in the O Canada exhibit.  I know there are regular readers of this blog from the Houston area who have sent photos before;  I hope you will again.

International Quilt Festival, November 1-4, 2012, George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, Texas

IQF 2012- Long Beach

My long-distance friend Marilyn has come through again, with pictures from International Quilt Festival held this weekend in Long Beach California.
My quilt "Farrago" is part of the travelling O Canada exhibit.

Marilyn is very dedicated to quilting and is involved in lots of quilt-related activities. If you've been to the Long Beach show, you may have seen her there. Last year she worked at IQF "white-gloving" the O Canada exhibit; this year she was back selling raffle tickets on an opportunity quilt. Here's Marilyn (on the right) and her friend Sandara enjoying some California sunshine.
Thanks so much for sharing the pictures, Marilyn; it takes the sting out of not being there in person.

From My Friends At Festival

International Quilt Festival was held this past weekend at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati. I was not there to see my quilt hang, but am so lucky to have received pictures from two attendees at the show. Here are some shots taken by Carol Fulgate. Can you see Farrago in this picture?! :)
Here it is! That's a lot of quilts, and a lot of people!

Last year, fellow blogger Katie Wiseman sent me pictures of the "O Canada" exhibit, and I am so pleased she did the same again this year. Here's Farrago hanging with its neighbours.


And here's Katie, who looks like she is having a wonderful time!
Sincere thanks to both Carol and Katie for sharing these images. It's so wonderful when friends have your back.

Deadlines and Commitments

"...what to leave in, what to leave out..." (Bob Seeger, Against The Wind). The past few weeks have certainly felt like running against the wind...or the clock. Work on the antependiums progresses - the first was delivered this week actually (more on that later)- and now the deadline for mailing the Farrago quilt to the O Canada exhibit in Houston is here.

I went over and over and over the checklist many times to make certain everything is there, and then sent it on its way. It needs to arrive in Houston by next Friday and even though it went 3 day delivery, my confidence was shaken last week by another parcel that went the same way...and took 5 days. Like raising kids, you send them on their way and hope for the best. With Farrago out the door, next up is the Trend Tex Challenge. This annual fundraiser for the Canadian Quilter's Association is one I have been doing for many years. It's fun to do (when there's time). This year's fabrics present a real challenge in that they are watery, pale pastels...so not me. The theme is, At Home In My Garden By The Sea.

I won't show the whole quilt until the deadline passes but here's a sneak peak for Mary who is working on the same challenge with similar enthusiasm for the fabrics.
Where's the bright red or green when you need it? My sea garden needs lobsters...!

Farrago A Go

It was with great delight that I received the news earlier today from IQF (International Quilt Festival): Farrago has been juried into the 2012 O Canada traveling exhibit! It is one of 26 quilts selected from across Canada to be shown in Cincinnati, Long Beach and Houston before returning home in November.
This is the same quilt which made it to the semi-finals last year at the AQS show in Paducah, KY and to the finals at the New York State of Mind exhibit at the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York. (Always a bridesmaid :) This makes three times that one of my quilts has been selected to be part of this O Canada special exhibit, now in its 4th year. It's an incredible honour to have your quilts shown so far from home, with a little tag attached proudly reading "Amherst, Nova Scotia".

You're Invited!

Thanksgiving

The turkey is in the oven and family is on the way. There are just enough minutes to share the first of the pictures from this year's Nova Scotia Fibre Arts Festival. The store windows downtown are decked out with fibre art; these shops are located on Victoria Street in the block between Acadia and Havelock. It is really difficult to take pictures of windows because of the reflection, so look past that. This is Bella's Café.

Next is the window at Shear Impressions. These are stitcheries by Mary Farrow-Sinclair.

I am really pleased to have some pieces in the window of dayle's again. Über-talented store decorator Jackie Estabrooks always displays things so beautifully.

The vintage machine is a nice touch.

I am so pleased to have this stunning batik Farrago, sewn by dear friend Jeanne Huntley.

My posting will be sporadic (and erratic !) this week as the busy week of Fibre Festival begins. Be sure to check the Fibre Arts Festival blog regularly for updates. Happy Thanksgiving!

Life On This Small Planet

...is busy! This week has been off in a myriad of directions, with w-a-a-a-a-y too much going on to fit everything in properly. On Tuesday evening, I "attended" the Awards Presentation at Paducah through the online webcast and it was an awesome experience. It was really just like being at the live show and I enjoyed it so much. If time permits, I hope to watch more webcasts this week; you can subscribe to them here for a modest fee.
Farrago did not win anything, but that doesn't take a tad away from my pleasure at having it included as part of this show. I'm thrilled to pieces about it all. Despite having to rearrange for flooding at the last minute, the organizers at the AQS Paducah Quilt Show are doing a spectacular job. The list of winners is posted here. It's wonderful to see a Canadian name among the big winners, Kathy Wylie of Ontario. Congrats, Kathy! If I am reading the reports correctly, I believe my Farrago has been moved to The First Baptist Church of Paducah in the Wall Quilts Exhibit.
And speaking of churches...hubby and I and the girls (and by this I mean the bees) have been invited to be part of Earth Expo at Trinity St. Stephens United Church in Amherst on Saturday, April 30.
If things go as planned (do they ever?!) we will have a display including honey and beeswax, a Power Point show on beekeeping AND a glass observation hive of live bees. We will go out in the wee small hours Saturday morning to try to find a frame which includes a queen and bring her along to show. There are all kinds of "green" displays scheduled as part of this expo, so if you are in the Amherst, N.S. area on Saturday between 1-4 pm, please drop by.
If you happen to be looking for a quilt show on the weekend, check out The Fredericton Quilter's Guild "Thoughts Of Spring" Show. I am sorry to be missing this show as there are so many talented quilters in the Fredericton area. I do look forward to seeing lots of pictures on the Guild blog afterwards.
On Monday, Tempus Fugit will be shipped off to Quilt Canada. I need yet to affix the hanging sleeve on the back but other than that it's good to go. With so much else going on, I have nightmares I will forget to post the parcel. Also next week is the release on May 2 of Volume 3 of The Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks From Today's Top Designers. As I have a block selected to be in this issue, I will be part of the big blog tour which will be taking place. There is a ginormous prize package that tourists can win at the end of the week so make sure you stop back here next week for details on how to enter.

Houston, Paducah, Quilt Canada: Somebody Pinch Me!

This has been some week...First, With Glowing Hearts was shipped off to Houston where it will join the travelling exhibit "O Canada". This show opens at Spring International Quilt Festival in Cincinnati. With Glowing Hearts is also currently part of a fun online exhibit through The Canadian Quilter's Association. If you feel inclined to vote, my "With Glowing Hearts" is #22, you can scroll to the bottom to click "yes" and keep scrolling to click "submit". Voting continues to March 20 and is just for fun. Yesterday, my copy of Quilter's Connection magazine arrived with a really lovely presentation of my quilt Fandango. Today...the mailman brought two large, manila envelopes which contained more good news than I ever dared hope for. I have a quilt accepted into the National Juried Show at Quilt Canada in London Ontario and also one which is a semi-finalist at the AQS show in PADUCAH!

Houston, Paducah, Quilt Canada... I feel like I'm running the Triple Crown :)

Farrago Blossoms Underwater

I just love when folks send in pictures of quilts they've made from my patterns; I learn and grow each time. These pictures of Farrago came from online quilt friend Joanne Colleaux from Armstrong, British Columbia, Canada.

Here's what Joanne wrote about her quilt:

"In the last 10 days, I had time to make my Farrago project. I'm very pleased - a lot of work, but worth it. I liked the blue-green palette that you and Carol Griffin used, and the fabric placements that she used to get the star points. My goal was to feature several fabrics that I'd purchased to commemorate great visits to the Atlanta and Newport Aquariums. Only the turtles didn't make the cut. Rather than try and piece those really deep arcs (which I was sure was beyond my skill level) I machine appliquéd the dark value narrow bands. I used freezer paper templates for pressing over the starched edges. I was pleased that I'd purchased your arc foundations - the paper was very easy to remove. In terms of the quilting, I took my cues from photos you posted of your work with various NYB pieces. Why mess with success?"

It really is beautiful, Joanne; thank you so much for sharing pictures as well as your process.

Linda's Farrago

...or should we say "Linda's Masterpiece"? Fellow blogger Linda has finished her Farrago done in Christmas prints. Linda made this for a gift...but I think it's ok for me to post the picture (don't tell!) I had the pleasure of meeting Linda for the first time during the N.S. Fibre Arts Festival in October, but I have been enjoying looking at the lovely quilts on her blog for some time. She used red Invisifil for her quilting and a needle punched batting, as this will be used on a table.

I look forward to seeing what Linda makes next.

If you'd like to make your own Farrago, ask for the pattern at your local quilt shop, or find it online here, #409.

New York State of Mind

While the Fibre Arts Festival was taking place in Amherst, N.S. further down the east coast, Cooperstown, N.Y. was hosting a quilt exhibit entitled A New York State of Mind. I blogged about this earlier when my quilt Tropical Farrago was juried in as a finalist. Sponsored by the New York Historical Society, the exhibition held at the Fenimore Art Museum/Farmer's Museum was made up of quilts from traditional blocks...such as the New York Beauty. The list of finalists is posted on the museum website; I appear to be the only Canadian in the group.

2010 Quilt Contest Finalists:

Madeleine Appell - Brooklyn, NY

Dianna Callahan - Morrisville, MO

Barbara Christen - Chittenango, NY

Rae Consigli - Cooperstown, NY

Judy Curry - Hartwick, NY

Lee Doyle - Saratoga Springs, NY

Heather M. Elliott - Johnson City, NY

Susan Frisbee - Greenwich, NY

Nancy Goodman - New City, NY

Donna Hastings - North Bangor, NY

Mureen L. Johnson - Cooperstown, NY

Flo Loomis - Mt. Vision, NY

Karen Neary - Amherst, Nova Scotia

Jackie O'Brien - Virginia Beach, VA

Mary O'Keefe - Endicott, NY

Betty Pillsbury - Middleburgh, NY

Rita Salo - Oneonta, NY

Barbara Shields - Richfield Springs, NY

Winona Slaughter - Gilbertsville, NY

Malke Yablonsky - Brooklyn, NY

Students of Rochester City School District - Rochester, NY

Ellen Knapp - Lowman, NY

If any readers of this blog were in attendance at the show, I'd love to have copies of any pictures you may have taken. You can email me here.

Christmas Farrago

Oh my goodness...look what Linda has done now: "Gorgeous" doesn't seem a large enough word... I love how the gold bands frame the spikes. Please click the link to Linda's blog and leave a comment there for her. If you'd like to try your hand at creating your own Farrago masterpiece, the pattern is available from my website.

A New York State Of Mind

I'm both honoured and humbled to learn that my Tropical Farrago has been chosen as a finalist in the New York State of Mind quilt competition. Sponsored by the New York Historical Society, this exhibition is made up of quilts from traditional blocks...such as the New York Beauty. A New York State of Mind will be held at the Fenimore Art Museum/Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. October 15-17, 2010. Most think of the Baseball Hall of Fame when they hear Cooperstown, but as a former English teacher I am reminded of the name James Fenimore Cooper, whose father founded this town. You may recall Natty Bumpo in The Leatherstocking Tales, or The Last of The Mohicans. Murphy's Law being in full effect, I am presenting workshops at our Fibre Arts Festival that week and unable to attend the show. :( If any readers in the area are planning to go, I'd be very grateful for some pictures. It will be a fabulous show.