Do Something Good

 

Here's my sweet little Bailey. She doesn't think she's a dog, probably because of the way that I spoil her. She is the best companion and is always by my side, especially here in Key West. There are very few places that I can't take her. There are no dogs allowed in the Post Office, and thanks to many of you I have had to make a lot of trips there. She's not allowed in the grocery store, but I don't go there very often. That's my husband's domain. And she's not allowed in the Dollar Store. I was asked to leave when I went shopping there. Most other places, dogs are welcome including most restaurants with outdoor seating. At Home Depot, the sales people walk around with dog biscuits in their aprons.

But there are lots of dogs and cats that aren't as lucky as Bailey and are living in shelters. As quilters, it's wonderful that we can use our talents and heart to create items to help others. My quilt guild, Calico Cutters, as well as many others make quilts for Veterans and donate children's quilts to local women's shelters. It's so satisfying to help others doing something that we love.

As an Island Batik Ambassador, a February project was to create Kennel Quilts, or pet mats, for animal shelters in conjunction with The Quilt Pattern Magazine and Petfinder. They measure 12" x18".

This is a project that has been sponsored by lots of our favorite companies including Aurifil, Bernina, Benartex as well as Island Batik. Some local shelters would be happy to have the small quilts or they can be sent to Petfinders or specific places in need.

I chose to make simple Kennel quilts to show off the beautiful Island Batik fabric. They don't take long to make and there are guidelines and free patterns on The Quilt Pattern Magazine website. There's even tips for the most economical way to ship them. I sent mine to the SPCA in Louisiana, as they were listed as a special needs. If you want to join in, click on this link for directions. I know I plan on making more as soon as I finish the quilt show circuit and return to PA.

As I finish these Kennel quilts, I am getting ready to leave Key West. It has been a very productive 2 months with wonderful weather and lots of visits by family and friends. The time has flown by. We are heading North and will be itinerant vendors for 3 weeks. We've loaded up the car and there's just enough room for clothes, quilts and fabric!

Our first stop is Quiltcon in Savannah.

Will you be there? Stop by my booth #443 to see my newest Curvalicious quilt, Funkytown and get a free keychain and tattoo!

And to see the debut of my Mini Mosic Kits.

For my monthly newsletter video, I'll be sharing my favorite quilts from Quiltcon. I am amazed by how these quilters think outside of the box. If you haven't signed up for my newsletter yet, here's the link: http://eepurl.com/bx1BbH

After Quiltcon, I'll be visiting All Star Quilters Guild in Jacksonville, Daytona Beach for the AQS Quilt Show and then on to Atlanta where I will be vending and teaching 3 classes at the Original Sewing and Quilt Show. My Mini Mosaic class is already full!

If you are visiting any of the shows, stop by and say hi. It should be quite an adventure for Don, zbaikey and me. I'm hoping that Winter will be gone by the time we arrive home.

 

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Syracuse Wrap Up

The show is over and I am decompressing at home. I had no time to post photos while I was there, so I have a buch to share. AQS did a wonderful job of advertising the show on TV and through quilt shops. There were a bunch of buses each day. The ebb and flow of quilters was unpredictable. Some days I didn't make a sale until 10:30 and the show opened at 9:00AM. It took a while for people to migrate down to aisle 600. I connected with a few shop owners and met so many wonderful quilters, lots of Canadians, who were willing to watch my demo. Curvalicious peeked out of lots of bags as my customers walked around that I developed a reputation as the woman selling those green rulers!

Quilters that I've met other places and some friends stopped by to say hi. Cheryl took one of my silk dupioni workshops in Delaware. Instead of making a wallhanging, she made a bag. How clever is that?

There were 10 longarm dealers. Companies are jumping on this bandwagon. It was a good place for comparison. Believe it or not, I had almost no time for shopping. All I bought was three 1/2 yard pieces of fabric. A couple of pieces for Curvalicious backgrounds and I just loved the one with the Adirondack chairs. 

The competition quilts were top notch. Some of them were just so brilliant that it made my jaw drop. Here are some of my favorites, although maybe not the top winners. 

Best of show. 

Kathy McNeil

Susannah Kipp created my favorite. Can you guess why?

I love every quilt that Janet Stone creates. 

I just love anything cake related and the quilting was amazing. Linda Neal and Jackie Brown from Texas must have so much fun making this together. 

My friend Terry Kramzar had a beautiful quilt in the show. 

There was also lots of special exhibits. Thomas Knauer, who hopefully will be coming to our guild in 2017, shared a bunch of quilts with the title, "The Message is the Medium" or was it "The Medium is the Message". 

This quilt was the gay pride flag quilted with the traditional wedding ring pattern. Lisa Sipes quilted almost all of Thomas' quilts. 

Dresden plates representing pie charts. 

We tried to have some fun dinners, even when we were exhausted. After Dinosaur BBQ, we ate at Funk N Waffles and Wegmans!

The waffles were a bit strange and the paintings on the wall matched. 

I think it was a college dive. 

By the time the show ended on Saturday at 5 PM, the hall was quiet and the vendors were chomping at the bit to start packing up. 

It took one hour to pack all my stuff and we hit the road. It felt so good to sleep in my own bed. 

From PA to Syracuse

We were able to pack everything in the car without resorting to strapping stuff to the roof. And there was even room for my favorite diet soda. Syracuse, here we come!

It took about 4 hours of traffic free driving.  This was my first look at my booth, #620. 

A bit daunting, but after moving stuff here no there and back again, this was my final arrangement. 

Curvalicious nudged out most of my dupioni silk. 

Ready to begin demoing. 

Trying to sell a few copies of my book, Sew Embellished with a small display. 

And a delicious dinner with enough leftovers maybe for an exhausted dine in evening. 

AQS has done an amazing job. It looks like it is going to be a great show. 

Lancaster Quilt Show Wrap-Up

Open for business. 

 This is a photo of my booth at the Lancaster quilt show at The Continental. 

The nervousness disappeared as soon as I started my demos and I had a blast! It was 4 days of sharing Curvalicious and how it came to be.  The reception was over the top.  People were surprised at the process.  My favorite moments were when I saw the light bulb moments and the oohs and ahs when I shared the batik Curvalicious quilt top.  But, my absolute best was when a quilter came by at the end of the demo, declaring it was too difficult for her and the other quilters told her in no uncertain terms that it was not difficult at all.  They got it!  131 quilters are converts.  Thank you.  Thank you for believing in my product.

I met so many new people and I have to say that quilters are the best.  You asked about my teaching schedule and that prompted me to get myself organized.  Click on the header above if you're interested in taking a class or hearing a lecture.  I also have to thank all the people I know that stopped by to cheer me on.  I couldn't always chat, but our eyes met and I knew you were there. 

And of course I couldn't do it without my helpers. 

 I love you all.

What's next for Curvalicious after this debut? Stay tuned!