Doing Good
Valerie makes blocks every month for charity via Kat’s blog, Kat & Cat Quilts. If you are looking for an organized way to contribute to something good this might be an opportunity for you.
I found another update on the Pulse quilts in Orlando. This one has a slide show of a variety of the quilts.
Creativity
Need some easy color work? Need to relax? Nerdy Mama has 20 free coloring pages for you.
My pal, Jill (Quilt Rat) has found another IoS creativity tool. I am so sad it doesn’t work on Android devices! It is called Amaziograph. With this app, you can create amazing kaleidoscopic designs a la color pages and La Passacaglia (without the color). Jill has written a blog post and created a basic video tutorial.
Projects, Patterns & Tutorials
Wanda, over at Exhuberent Color posted these sunflower blocks. I didn’t know these were in the Farm Girl Vintage book. I have that book and have looked at it, but must have missed this block.
Aren’t these monsters great? I love them and want to make one.
As per usual, Bonnie Hunter has released the first clue to her 2016 mystery quilt, En Provence. Download it now (she has a printer friendly version I save to my computer) as the clues go away in about 6 months. She has some excellent cutting tips in the first clue. It is always good to check in on our sewing technique.
Media
Sara, over at Sew Sweetness, has posted a list of Cool Tools. Which do you use?
Definitely check out the sincere and lovely thank you from EQ.
Other Artists
My sister shared Christine Peloquin’s website with me. She commented that the art looked like ours would look if we were one person. I think it is true. I am not much of a face-in-quilt-form person (to each his own), but I do like the face painted over the quilt top. The imagery I saw on the day I looked (11/11/2016) was dominated by images of women. I thought the images were profound given the current discussions on the status of women. Christine is located in Florida.
This subsection will be called the Judy Martin section. I know many modern quiltmakers have never heard of Judy Martin, but I love her work and especially her block designs. She also has a very friendly newsletter. They are not high tech, but cheerful, upbeat and entertaining. They are archived on her website. Judy, seriously, makes me want to visit Iowa again. It sounds much more interesting that I found it to be when I visited my great grandparents for summers as a kid.
In the November issue of her newsletter, she mentions that the Electric Quilt Company has a new download product that originated as her book, Knockout Blocks & Sampler Quilts (now out of print).
She also has a quilt at the Iowa Quilt Museum, which I mentioned previously. Judy writes “Nestled in an old J.C. Penney storefront on the picturesque courthouse square of historic Winterset, Iowa is the new Iowa Quilt Museum. It’s not a huge space with a large permanent collection. Rather it’s a small, nimble space given over to interesting exhibits curated especially for the museum. Through January 24, 2017 the exhibit of star quilts features “State Fair Star,” a Feathered Star variation I made for Patchwork Among Friends. The quilt shares the airy, well-lit space with 29 other star quilts. If you’re traveling to Des Moines or simply passing through on I-80 or I-35, the Iowa Quilt Museum is worth stopping for.”
Judy also mentions “a web site for a socially minded company that is making fabric from empty plastic bottles! They are trying to create opportunities for people in Haiti and Honduras while reducing the ecological impact of littered plastic bottles.” She says that she hasn’t “sampled any of their products, but” that she is “intrigued by the whole thing and certainly support[s] their goals. Take a look and see what you think.”
[end of Judy Martin subsection]
Quilt World News
Christen Daniels has resigned from the MQG board due to time constraints. The Nominating Committee put out a call to assist with the task of filling the volunteer board elected seat. They sought candidates with strong strategic planning skills and knowledge for nomination by November 12.
Not Quilt Related
From the Doing Good-NQR Department comes an article about the Native Sons and their donation to the Craniofacial Center at UCSF. Much of this money comes from $1 raffle tickets, $5 chances on gift baskets and $10 dinner tickets rather than $10,000 donations from rich people. You can make a difference by making a donation.
