It's Here

It's here.  The best package came in the mail. 

 An advance copy of MY NEW BOOK! 

The name?

Sew Embellished! 

artistic little quilts, personalized with easy techniques

Click Here To Order

It's beautiful.  Martingale did a wonderful job with the photography. 

The focus of this book is the type of quilting I have been doing since 2004, when I made my first art quilt. It 's about infusing your personality into your pieces with words and photographs and embellishments.  Half of the book details the techniques that I have used to add whimsy and heartfelt sentiments to my quilts. The other half of the book provides small projects that can be used as a jumping off point to make your quilts unique.  Most of the pieces are small and can be finished in a day.  You can stitch by hand or stitch by machine or use a combination of both.

This is the perfect book to learn how to:

•  Add embellishments to your quilts
• print photos on fabric
• put words on your quilts
• create your own embellishments from polymer clay
• create small personalized art quilts
• recycle orphan quilt blocks
• add excitement to your projects by creating unusual edge treatments

If you are new to embellishing, you'll find encouragement to take the first steps.  If you have experience with embellishing, you'll find some new techniques.

The book will be available  April 17th. You can be one of the first people to own the book. Pre-order your copy by clicking below the photo of the cover of the book.  I will sign it and either hand deliver it to you (if you are a local guild member) or ship it to you free of charge in the U.S..  (Contact me for international shipping costs.)  I can't wait to share it.

Wednesday's Wanderings #14 - SPRING

Spring has sprung in Pennsylvania! 

 I drove into my neighborhood the other day

 and WOW! all of a sudden there was this profusion of color.

After quilting the background, I fused the tree and free motion stitched up the trunk and branches
 and formed the smaller branches with a free motion foot.

 

I used a decorative thread (Wonderfil's Dazzle) to add the colorful flowers
 to the branches using french knots.

 

The other day I was driving down my street and I saw the strangest sight.  There were 3 crows walking single file down the cross street.  I wished I had my camera, but I didn't.  So I had to put the crows on this block.

I used rubber stamps to add  "Spring".  I wished I had used another color ink, other than black.  So I washed them out and made my own letters from polymer clay.  They looked much better.
 I inserted a headpin that jewelry makers use so that I could tie the letters onto the block before I baked it.

And here's a very special photo.

This photo was taken at the bridal shower (a tea party) for my future daughter-in-law.  I couldn't resist buying her a sewing machine.  A gently used Bernina.  Welcome to the club Loren.  I hope we spend many hours of quilting together.

A New Book: Art Quilt Portfolio, The Natural World

I was away for a few days, and when I got home there was a package on my doorstep addressed to me.  What could it be?  I didn't remember ordering anything.  It felt like a book and the return address was Lark Books.  Inside was an amazingly gogeous book:

I could not put this book down.  The quilts are organized in two different formats.  Interspersed with grouping of quilts by artists,  there are quilts organized by themes, such as water, leaves or animals. In the chapters devoted to a particular artist, there are 6 pages jam packed with quilts and words from the artist about inspiration, growth and technique.  Many of the quilts in the book I have not seen before which makes it so fresh and exciting to me.  I even made my husband look through the book to see all of the awesome quilts.

Usually when I receive a book to review, I give it away via my blog or I give it to a friend that I think would enjoy it.  But not this time.  I am keeping this book for myself.  If you want your own copy, you'll have to order it for yourself.  You can get it from Amazon, by clicking the link below.

to order from Amazon

Golden Quilter Award

I am so very excited and honored that I have been nominated for a Golden Quilter Award. 

I have been nominated in the best author category for my book. !Quilt Fiesta!. I am in awe of of most of the other nominees. This is so very hard for me to do, but I am asking  for all of my readers' help.  Please, please, please go to the SewCalGal's website and vote for me.  Voting closes on March 31st.

Here's the link for voting:
http://www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com/2012/03/vote-for-your-favorite-nominees-for.html

Thanking you advance.

Cheryl

Wednesday's Wanderings #13 - Couching in Lancaster

After spending 4 days sitting at my sewing machine, demonstrating couching at The AQS Lancaster quilt show, I came up with a few ideas about how I could use this technique to fit quilting. (You can read more about that here.) Many people use couching to add decorative thread to fabric that can then be used to create clothing.  That's really not my style.  

I spent a lot of the time using one of my hand dyed fabrics with Wonderfil's Dazzle as the decorative thread. I couched it down with a green rayon thread.  I backed the fabric with batting so that it was quilted at the same time as I was couching.  (Alternatively, back the fabric with interfacing.)

 These green wavy lines stitched on this turquoise hand dyed fabric made me think  of  both the ocean with seaweed and a field filled with flowers.  I decided to go with the flower idea.

I created fusible appliques from silk dupioni and using a Wonderfil 12 weight cotton thread called Spagetti (Where do they get these names?) stitched it down using a blanket stitch by machine

and a primitive stitch by hand.

Wonderfil Specialty Threads at The Lancaster Quilt Show

I just spent 4 days at the AQS quilt show in Lancaster, PA.  Wonderfil Specialty Threads asked me to demonstrate how to use some of their gorgeous threads.  I was to focus on their decorative threads, Razzle, Dazzle and Sizzle.

 They are 8 weight rayon threads that are not meant to be threaded through a sewing machine needle.  You can use them for bobbin work, couching or the way I use them - for handstitching.

My job was to demo couching.  I learned how to couch a few days before the show.  I went to Steve's Sewing Vacuum and Quilting in King of Prussia to buy a couching foot for my sewing machine and learn how to couch.  A wonderful woman named Gail helped me.  We must have spent an hour playing with all the different feet that could be used for couching and in the process, I learned how to couch. The possibilities were endless.  Basically you stitch down a decorative thread or threads with a zig zag stitch.

Couching with a couching foot

Green Dazzle thread couched with a green rayon thread called Mirage

Close-up

Here I am with one of the owners, Fiona Fung.

Almost 2 years ago, I flew to Boulder, Colorado to be the featured quilter on an episode of The Quilt Show. It was a surreal experience for me to be talking quilts with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims. They helped to promote my book, Quilt Fiesta, and invited me to be a part of their family.

So I am very excited to share big news! In honor of International Quilt Day (March 17, 2012), The Quilt Show (www.thequiltshow.com), the web TV show hosted by Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims, will "open" all of its shows from the first nine series--that is, from show 100 through show 913--for the entire weekend of March 16 –18. This means that—for three special days—everyone will have the chance to view these 117 shows, featuring some of the quilting world’s leading artists, for FREE.

As you may already know, I appeared as the featured artist on TQS in show 811. If you didn't have the opportunity to see this show first time around, now you'll have the chance to see it—and so many other terrific shows—at no cost in this unprecedented three-day offer.

I hope that you'll share this information with all of your quilting friends. It's a fantastic opportunity
to enjoy three days of learning and fun without leaving your home…all for free.

Enjoy the shows, and thanks for helping to spread the word!

Wednesday's Wanderings #12 - Brownstone Quilters Guild Mexican Tile Quilt

This week, I spent 2 delightful days with The Brownstone Quilters Guild in Paramus, NJ. 2 Lectures in one day and then a 6 hour workshop the next day would have been exhausting except for the energy and warmth of this wonderful group of women.
Paramus used to be my old stomping ground right after graduate school. But no matter where I drove, I felt so disoriented. So much has changed in 25 years, that I recognized very little. The one thing that brought back lots of memories was the confusion of the jug handles and Rtes 4 and 17.

My workshop, "Secondary Designs From Mexican Tiles", was taught solely as a design workshop. It was wonderful to see the blocks that evolved from everyone's creative place.

So to celebrate all my new friends, I decided to create a tiny Mexican tile quilt with an embellished twist.

My 3" block.



Finished block

Quilt's caption, digitally printed on fabric

As you are reading this I am working at the Wonderfil Thread booth at the Lancaster Quilt Show. I will be there from Wednesday until Saturday. My job is to demo couching. That is the thread couching type, not the butt on the couch type. Stop by and visit me if you make it to the show.

Wednesday's Wanderings #11 - Bitty Kinna's

It is hard to believe that this is the first Wednesday  in 2012 that I have been at home in Pennsylvania.  I have to say that it is so much easier to find a theme for my block of the week while I am on the road.  I still could do a bunch of blocks from visiting Israel, but my goal has been to "be in the moment".  The block should represent my week.

This week I headed out to Intercourse in Lancaster County.  I must have been a farmer in a former life.  I certainly wasn't Amish.  I love the farmland and seeing the Amish travelling the roads in their buggies and plowing their fields with their team of horses.  It is soothing and relaxing and mitigates some of life's stresses. 

A horse and buggy parked outside of Zooks - a great fabric store.

A shop with many beautiful hand made Amish quilts.

Farm country road

An Amish farm up ahead

A ram ready for a Spring haircut

I visited a few quilt shops and my favorite quilt shop owner.  Gina of Bitty Kinna's is one of the sweetest and generous women that I know. She greets many of her customers with a big hug.   I do have to say that I am quite biased.  She carries most of my Judaic patterns, OyVey! Quilt Designs.  She hangs the sample of each pattern and they sell like blockbusters.  It is always a wonderful excuse to replenish her stock for a trip to Lancaster.

So I chose to showcase her shop, Bitty Kinna's - Where Quilters Gather and an Amish buggy for my Wednesday's Wanderings.

(Addendum - Unfortunately, Bitty Kinna is no longer in business.  I hate to see a quilt shop close.)

Sonoma Rose - New Winner

When you enter a give-a-way, remember to make sure that your e-mail is available somewhere from your comment.  many, many people do not have an e-mail address associated with their blogger signature.  Most bloggers doing a give-a-way do give a warning as I did.  Next time I will remember not to include the no-reply commenters from the drawing.  So, the first person I chose to win "Sonoma Rose" by Jennifer Chiaverini was not reachable.  I gave her a couple of days to reach me, but she hasn't.  So I have chosen another winner.
ugolfiquilt is the new winner.  I will send an e-mail right now.  Thank you everyone for participating.

Photos For My Foodie Friends and a Book Winner

I am what I call a conservative eater.  This does not connote quantity, it is about the types of food that I will eat.  I knew I would not have to worry about starving in Israel (ha ha).  Most of the restaurants are Kosher and most strange foods are not Kosher.  Here are photos of some of my favorites.

Hummus, to be eaten with the most wonderful pita bread I have ever had.

Isn't this a beautiful tomato display?

Hamentashen.  Delightful and delicious cookies.

Chocolate croissants

I met with a group of quilters and look at all of the beautiful food they served. Yum.

Shwarma - my big adventuresome meal - but not really.  It's chicken.

This is what it looks like on pita.

The winner of Jennifer Chiaverini's newest boo, Sonoma Rose, is ldlombardo.  Congratulations!  The publisher will send you a copy of the book as soon as you e-mail me your address.  If I don't hear from you in 2 days, I will have to pick a new winner since you did not leave an e-mail address:(