Art and Life with Laura

I have to share..

2012-01-27T20:48:00.000-08:00

I have been so blessed I have a part time job doing what I love for a wonderful shop owner, Laura ..she opened a fabric/sewing/ quilt shop called Sew With Me. It's in Waukesha WI. I will also be teaching...this is something I have only been dreaming about..I love teaching... AND.. I will be vending at some of the local quilt shows, selling my favorite patterns...Bigfork Bay Cotton Co. I will also be vending in Green Bay in March ( home of the famous Packers)...God has been blessing me daily in so many ways...I hope that my ventures turn out to be good ones. I'm so excited to get started I can hardly wait.. Check out all my teaching and vending at my new blog...
http://laurakrasinskisartontherun.blogspot.com
My next step is to turn some of my quilts into patterns..

From Heartbreak to Hope

2012-01-10T17:20:00.000-08:00

This is very cool.. I have a quilt in this exhibit that is traveling to raise money for Alzheimer's.
"Heartbreak to Hope"
Hampton, VA
"Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope" continues its five-year journey across the United States with a stop at the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival XXII, February 23-26, 2012.

The exhibit will hang at the Hampton Roads Convention Center (Greater Chesapeake Bay / Williamsburg Area).

Show hours are 10 am to 6 pm Thursday - Saturday; 10 am to 4 pm on Sunday.

"Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope" is an exhibit of quilts about Alzheimer's sponsored by the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI). Fifty-four small format art quilts (9" x 12") illustrate the disease from a variety of perspectives. They hang among 182 "Name Quilts," each 6 inches wide and 7 feet tall, which carry the names of more than 10,000 individuals who have/had Alzheimer's or a related dementia. The names of loved ones, written on fabric patches by family members and friends, honor the 5.4 million Americans in the United States struggling with Alzheimer's disease.

Blog Hop

2011-12-09T14:56:00.000-08:00

There is a blog hop starting tomorrow. including mine....
http://laurakrasinskisartontherun.blogspot.com
all blogs will have a giveaway..
Go here tomorrow for a list of all the blogs......
http://quiltinggallery.com/quilters-fun/quilters-blog-hop-party/

Wendy Butler Berns on Craftsy

2011-12-08T16:46:00.000-08:00

Hi all I want to tell you about Wendy's class on Craftsy... She has 3 classes on Craftsy. The one I am watching is on Machine Quilting.. and I cannot say enough about the class. It is a "movie" and once you purchase it you can view it forever.. stop and start and go back...if you want to check it out.. and I know you will you can go here..
http://www.craftsy.com/ext/WBMBlog4

Her second course is The art of Quilting 101 .. you can see that here
http://www.craftsy.com/class/Art-Quilting-101-Design-Basics/40

Her third course is Pictorial quilts.. this is the technique that I simply love!! I made so many of my quilts with this technique...
http://www.craftsy.com/class/Art-Quilting-Pictorial-Techniques/38

Great News... for you

2011-10-22T14:24:00.000-07:00

Autumn Lady ready to quilt ..Isn't she beautiful...?

Hi all.. it has been awhile since I have posted. I have some good news.. I have hooked up with Bigfork Bay Cotton Co. and I will be teaching and doing some lecturing on their patterns. There has been some exciting news with BFBCC. They have Pat Sloan on their team and they are soon to release her quilt patterns. They will be at Houston for all to see. They have many other new patterns too.. I am working on Autumn Lady ( which I am making into a lecture/tutorial) Three Wise Guys ( which I think would make a great class) and On the Prowl. They will be launching their new website on Monday. Also if you are in Houston please visit their booth #1544....I would love to teach or lecture on these patterns if you are interested just email me. I am also teaching some of my own classes.
http://www.bigforkbaycottonco.com

Three Wise Guys ready to sandwich and quilt.

SAQA Auction Piece

2011-10-02T16:43:00.000-07:00

I was so happy that my quilt for the aution sold.. I received this very sweet note from the gal, Sally who bought it..
Hi Laura... I just received your beautiful quilt from the SAQA Auction today. It is so much more wonderful than either of the photos. I love the holographic threads and the sparkly bubble fabric. Your free motion stitching is wonderful. I love the turtle backing fabric and the label stamping! I am truly delighted and fortunate to have your beautiful piece. Thank you again for making and donating it. It has a very happy home now..... Sally Signore
I thought that was very sweet... Now I'm ready to tackle another one for next year!!

SAQA Reverse Auction My Piece !!

2011-09-19T16:55:00.000-07:00

http://www.saqa.com/news.php?ID=1818Hi all... my piece is up for auction at the SAQA auction.. as you know today the price is $750 but, each day the price goes down. The last day they are $75. But, if you wait too long the quilt you want may be already bought.. keep a close eye on the auction.

SAQA Reverse Auction Starts Sept. 12

2011-09-01T08:34:00.000-07:00

The SAQA 2011 Benefit Auction will begin on Monday, September 12th at 2:00 PM Eastern Time and conclude on Sunday, October 2 at 2:00 PM Eastern.
Last year's Benefit Auction raised $52,450. The funds raised through the Auction are critical to supporting SAQA's exhibitions, catalogs and outreach programs.
For more information on the quilts for auction please go here http://www.saqa.com/

This is my quilt "First Dive" that
will be auctioned off.

First Dive by Laura Krasinski

Vacation...and Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative

2011-08-21T16:48:00.000-07:00

Vacation....

I just got home to Menomonee Falls from our vacation in Upper Michigan. We stopped off up north for a couple days. I had stopped at a few quilt shops..picked up 3 fabrics.. 2 of which were fat quarters.. I just figure I need to be a bit more frugal when it comes to buying fabric.. I need to use what I have. At the last quilt shop i picked up 3 small spools of variegated thread. Sooo.. I had my sewing machine, these fabrics some old wonder under and a terrible scissors. I have a cutting mat and ruler but, no rotary cutter up north. I decided to try and whip up a quilt for AAQI.... so I put the wonder under on the fabric with the huge flowers. When I tried to take it off it didn't come off.. so I had to soak it in water.. then the paper came off.. and the fusible actually stayed on the fabric. I fused the fabric flower to the yellow and black fabric. I happen to have some batting up north too.. so I made a sandwich and started to thread paint the inside of the flower... and quilt the rest of the piece. Since I have my old machine up north my quilting is not really up to par. I want to add some bling to it.. or at least some beads.. this is it without the binding sewn on yet. It was an interesting project...

And speaking of the Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative...the traveling show Heartbreak to Hope will be coming to Quilt Expo in Madison the second week of Sept. I have a quilt called THe Unknown Spirit traveling in the exhibit. And AAQI are in need of more quilts... to take to Houston.. so please if you can help them out and make a quilt or two.. they only take a few hours... 8"x10".... for more info please go here.. http://www.alzquilts.org/

Another Gallery Show...and My Blue Heeler "Rosie"

2011-08-10T18:25:00.001-07:00

I have had a very busy summer. Not much time for posting about quilting or quilting. But, now I can tell you about my quilt that was in Knoxville in the ultimate guild challenge. It is called My Blue Heeler "Rosie" .... I'm telling you about it because it along with the other Blues challenge quilts from Milwaukee Art Quilters is going to be in a gallery show in Plymouth, WI. which begins this friday, August 12. Here is what the gallery press release read:

Gallery 110 North is pleased to announce the opening of a new exhibit on the same night, and in the same spirit, as the Cheese Capital Jazz Crawl for the Arts. Milwaukee Art Quilters ‘Sing the Blues’ opens to the public on Friday, August 12, with a reception from 5-8 pm. The art quilts will be on display through Friday, September 30^th.

The public is invited to meet the artists during the opening reception on Friday, August 12th from 5 to 8 PM. Stay the evening and enjoy the Cheese Capital Jazz Crawl for the Arts throughout historic downtown Plymouth.

Gallery hours are Tuesday-Saturday, Noon-4 PM and Sunday, 1-4 PM. Admission is always free. For more information contact The Plymouth Arts Center, 920-892-8409 or visit us at www.plymoutharts.org.

I'm going to start teaching

2011-07-17T14:01:00.000-07:00

I am teaming up with Big Fork Bay Cotton Co. and will be teaching how to make up their fused appliqued patterns. Traci from BFBCC has been helping me to get ready to start teaching. I'm going to teach at Wisconsin Quilt and Fiber Museum. I don't have any dates right now but, will keep my blog updated as to where and when. I would love to have you take a look at the patterns at Big Fork Bay. You can see them here..
http://www.bigforkbaycottonco.com/

A Day at the Zoo..

2011-06-05T14:44:00.000-07:00

We are very lucky to have a wonderful zoo here in Milwaukee. The kids asked me last week what I wanted to do for my birthday and I decided I wanted to go to the zoo... It was a beautiful day today. Not tooo hot.. just perfect. So I wanted to share some of the photos I took... and maybe you can guess which ones might end up being a quilt... :) This last photo of the bears foot was actually the bear laying on his back in the water with his feet up. So his head is behind the foot.
I took the photos with my Canon A720... Yesterday Mike bought me a Canon Rebel camera for me for my birthday. I couldn't take it today because I have to learn how to use it.. I know I will love it and have to take another trip back to the zoo...

Great Rummage Sale Finds...

2011-05-24T17:06:00.000-07:00

Last week Tues. I was checking Craigslist for good things at rummage sales...you know ones mans trash is another mans treasure.. Most of the rummages start on Thurs and run through Sat. But, there was this one rummage that was only on Sat. And it said QUILTS. Ok.. no big deal.. Bedding..you know what many people think are quilts are just blankets or the quilts you buy at the big box stores.. Soooo I waiting and waited for Saturday to come.. Thinking I would not get up in time because it is my day to sleep in... Well, actually almost all of last week were my days to sleep in.. Oh boy did I sleep in ... till 7am.. Back to the story. I got up at 6:30.. had some coffee.. My husband was going out to look at a possible barn job so I decided to go with him... And we decided to stop at the rummage sale with the QUILTS... I browsed through the garage and then my eyes gazed on them... Bright Yellow, Pink and White with beautiful little colors.. My hands started to shake..I grabbed Mike and said.. check it out.. I asked the lady if she had any history on them.. there were 3... she said they were up in her grandmothers attic.. The woman was about 65... I took each one out of the plastic bag ( which I'm sure was not good for them to be in) and opened them up...One by one.. falling in love with all of them I decided I had to have them... She was asking $50 each...at that I thought it was a steal but, I'm a wheeler and dealer and offered her less for all three.. and she agreed.. I paid her the money and shook with excitement all the way to the car. I wanted to share them with you.. They are in very good shape and the Grandmother's Flower Garden is soooo pretty... They are all hand pieced and quilted. The two Dresden plates have beard protectors on them.. The yellow one is 82x164. The pink one is 82x48. The grandmothers flower garden is 61x40.
Now I am going to dream about the people who stayed warm with these quilts many years ago.. Amazing to think that they have held up this long... I'm thinking they are from the thirties..

My Donation quilt for the SAQA auction

2011-04-22T14:15:00.001-07:00

Last year I joined Studio Art Quilters Association. SAQA is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote the art quilt through education, exhibitions, professional development and documentation.
Donations of one foot square quilts are auctioned off to support SAQA and all that they do. You can find out more information about the auction here http://tiny.cc/sb8v7

I am naming my quilt "First Dive" because this is my first time donating a quilt for the auction and this is the first dive into the water for this little turtle.. I used cotton fabrics with metallic, polyester and king tut cotton thread for the quilting. And a bit of fibers for some texture. The whole quilt is under a piece of greenish color tulle. I used that to hold all the little pieces of the turtle down even though I did quite a bit of quilting on him..

Mother's Day is just around the Corner.

2011-04-14T13:03:00.000-07:00

I finished adding the buttons, and embellishments to this little quilt I made for my mom. It is 15"x18". The photo is her and her parents with their car. When I first started quilting I took a class from Lesley Riley. I love her quilts. Finally I had a chance to use her techniques in a quilt. Happy Mother's Day mom...!!

Working on some UFO's

2011-04-14T07:38:00.000-07:00

I finished a small McKenna Ryan quilt last week... I really love her patterns.. The most fun I have is picking out the fabrics.
I also love Bigfork Bay patterns.. I have made one and have another one to make.. check them out.. http://www.bigforkbaycottonco.com

I just met Traci from BFB in a chat room yesterday during Creative Mojo... what a nice gal..

I call it "Mrs. B loves cats and kids"

2011-04-13T11:46:00.000-07:00

My son has had the same LD teacher in high school for all 4 years.. She is an amazing women.. My son has done so well in school because of her. She and I have a special bond. She loves cats so I decided to dig out all the Laurel Burch fabric I have been collecting over the years and make her a quilt. So here it is.. and I will be presenting it to her tomorrow at school... the other cool thing is that I am judging the kids art at the high school for 2 scholarships...along with the art teachers

Our Cats..

2011-03-26T12:41:00.000-07:00

Hi all....2 weeks ago our kitty Mr. Snuggles suddenly died at the vet. His body was not producing red blood cells. We found out later he had Lymphoma and it went into his bone marrow. We were just beside ourselves sad. Until Thursday when we brought home David...that was his name at the house where he lived. My daughter Jessi is going to change his name. He is sooo cute and fun to play with. Even though we still miss Mr. Snuggles at least some of that void is filled with David. Mr. Snuggles is the siamese. RIP Mr. Snuggles..

One Door Opens and Another Door Closes

2011-01-16T17:46:00.000-08:00

It is with great sadness to tell you that the gallery in Delafield will be closing. It was called the Surrey House. I will be picking up my quilts on Feb. 5th. It was a really nice gallery in a cute little town. The economy is really getting tough right now for these galleries.. Thanks Joseph for giving me the opportunity to show my quilts to the world.. I'll be anxious to get these quilts home. I am hoping to start lecturing at guilds about my art and quilting experiences which will include a trunk show. This is my goal for 2011.. So if you are reading this and belong to a guild please pass my name on to the programs chair. Happy 2011...

Another Gallery Show

2011-01-16T17:39:00.000-08:00

Hi all, I took a trip up north this past weekend to drop off some quilts for a gallery show. The gallery is wonderful and the people running it are really doing a good job. The show starts next Sat. and runs thru February 25. I took 4 of my quilts and 4 of my girlfriends. If you would like more information please go here
http://wallsofwittenberg.com/attractions/CurrentEvents/2010quilter.html

At the webpage there is a photo of my quilt Triple Trillium that I had in the gallery last spring. I stayed for part of the judging and they quilts were really impressive.. Mostly traditional but, a few art quilts. There were also clothing. I fell in love with a jacket this one gal made.. now I have to go back up in a couple weeks to see if it fits and possibly buy it.. I know my husband loved it so good chance he might buy it for me... These are the quilts I have in the show..

Snow Dyeing.

2010-12-30T18:00:00.000-08:00

There was some chatter on the quiltart list about snow dyeing ... thought I would share a few photos of how I took advantage of the first snowfall about a month or so ago.. I love how the linens turned out. Can't wait to use just plain white muslin and make a few batches of different colors..

More On Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative.. Awesome News..

2010-12-13T15:48:00.000-08:00

I copied and am pasting this from AAQI Blog...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

(Burton, MI)-- December 14, 2010 -- A $30,000 research grant awarded by the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) to the University of Michigan has yielded positive results! The award helped finance research led by U-M Life Sciences Institute assistant professor Mi Hee Lim which was published online in the December 3rd edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.

Dr Lim and her team created new molecular tools that show promise for cleansing the brain of amyloid plaques. These plaques, a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, are clumps of misfolded proteins thought to cause cell death leading to devastating memory loss and cognitive decline.

The mechanisms responsible for the formation of these misfolded proteins, and their associations with Alzheimer's disease, are not entirely understood. It is thought that copper and zinc ions are somehow involved. Funding of Dr. Lim's study which explored the roles of metal ions in Alzheimer's disease was the third grant made by the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative since it became a nonprofit three years ago.

In earlier work, Lim and her team developed dual-purpose molecular tools that both grab metal ions and interact with amyloid-beta. The researchers went on to show that in solutions with or without living cells, the molecules were able to regulate copper-induced amyloid-beta aggregation, not only disrupting the formation of clumps, but also breaking up clumps that already had formed.

Building upon that first generation of compounds, Lim and lab members Jung-Suk Choi (postdoctoral scholar) and Joseph Braymer (graduate student) now report a second generation of compounds that are more stable in biological environments. The researchers tested one of those compounds, described in the PNAS paper, in homogenized brain tissue samples from Alzheimer's disease patients.

"We found that our compound is capable of disassembling the misfolded amyloid clumps to form smaller amyloid pieces, which might be 'cleansed' from the brain more easily, demonstrating a therapeutic application of our compound," said Lim, who has joint appointments in the Life Sciences Institute and the Department of Chemistry. In addition, preliminary tests show that the bi-functional small molecules have a strong potential to cross the blood-brain barrier, the barricade of cells that separates brain tissue from circulating blood, protecting the brain from harmful substances in the bloodstream."

"Crossing this barrier is essential for any treatment like this to be successful," Lim said.

Next steps include more intensive testing of the new compounds for diagnostic and therapeutic properties.

The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (www.AlzQuilts.org) is a national, grassroots organization whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research. It auctions and sells donated quilts through the Priority: Alzheimer's Quilt project and sponsors a nationally touring exhibition of quilts about Alzheimer's called “Alzheimer’s Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope.” The AAQI has raised almost $500,000 since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of the AAQI, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation operated entirely by volunteers. She is a quilter. Her mother had Alzheimer's.

For more information on the AAQI or to make a donation, contact Ami Simms at 810-637-5586 (9 a.m – 3 p.m. Eastern), ami@alzquilt.org or www.alzquilts.org.

Read more: http://www.alzquilts.org/limgrant.html#ixzz182SOw4lo

Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative..

2010-12-08T16:24:00.000-08:00

I want to share this with all of you...I am very lucky to have had a quilt picked to go on the new traveling exhibit. Alzheimer’s Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope.

Posted on December 6, 2010 by AAQI Volunteer

Alex Anderson, Ami Simms, Ricky Tims

One in 10 people reading this knows someone with Alzheimer’s. For one in three, the person with Alzheimer’s is a family member.
Today, The Quilt Show premiers program #712. It features the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative, our grassroots effort to raise awareness and fund research. If Alzheimer’s has touched your life, please watch this important show and join our fight against Alzheimer’s.
The Quilt Show, hosted by Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims, is a fully produced “television” show filmed in front of a studio audience. It is available on the Internet, 24/7. Click here, to be taken directly to the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative show.
Please share this news with your friends. Thousands of quilters, perhaps someone you know, have written the name(s) of a family member or friend who has/had Alzheimer’s on a purple patch of fabric. Those patches have been stitched into 182 “Name Quilts” honoring more than 10,000 individuals. The”Name Quilts,” along with 53 small format art quilts, make up the AAQI’s new traveling exhibit called “Alzheimer’s Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope.” A portion of “Alzheimer’s Illustrated” exhibit is shown on program #712 for the first time anywhere. The AAQI is looking for quilting groups to bring this poignant exhibit to their communities. Learn more here.
This is my quilt that will be in the traveling exhibit and this is what inspired me to make it

The Unknown Spirit

Laura Krasinski

Menomonee Falls, WI.

I was sitting in the waiting area of a mental health facility

reading my quilting magazine. As I was sitting there a man

and his mother came in. She was there ( I found out later)

for her check up. She has Alzheimers. She had asked her

son very timidly," how old am I ? " He replied," 80 years old."

She continued in disbelief on how the time has gone

by so quickly. After she took a very short walk down

memory lane she asked again," how old am I?"...

her son replied," 80."The women was so sweet and

it just seemed so sad to me. I'm naming my quilt

THE UNKNOWN SPIRIT... for these unknown people

who are dealing with this disease we call Alzheimers

Snowmen

2010-12-06T18:41:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to share a few of the snowmen I made a few weeks ago I still have 2 hats to put on the little ones.... these are fast and fun.. The 2 I donated to my guild for an auction.. They are snow quilters..

International Quilt Festival in Houston

2010-11-08T17:54:00.000-08:00

I have to say that this was one of the best trips I have ever taken. I was happy and smiling all the time. I would suggest everyone to experience this at least once in their lifetime.. I hope to go a few more times. I wanted to share a photo of my quilt that was in the show. I literally cried when I turned the corner and saw the quilt. Thanks to Wendy Butler Berns for inviting me to be a part of her exhibit called "Out on a Limb'...

And then there was the loud pants luncheon... and yes with some help from a few friends I did make my pants..

Milwaukee Art Quilters Challenge "Estranged Love"

2010-10-05T16:30:00.000-07:00

Months ago a challenge was proposed. We each put a common object in a brown paper bag and put them in the middle of the room.. Then each of us picked a bag. Whatever was in the bag was to be used to create a quilt. It didn't have to be on the quilt.. And the quilt had to be mixed media. I received a Lotus Pod. I just loved it.. There were many different things like cotton balls, sequenced flowers, pen and paper, votive candle just to name a few. I was in home group one night and sketched out my design. Blocks, and rectangles.. and I knew I wanted to put a lotus flower somewhere in the middle.. Well, the Lotus Flower turned into a Lotus pod.. Three of them. I bought a few more at the store and my husband cut them for me.. I used the original one to stamp paint on the fabrics. And I used the ends of the cut ones to stamp too. I put in silk taffeta, dyed silk, cotton and made stems out of raffia, printed words on Lutradur and my snow dyed fabrics along with Wendy Richardson's over dyes.. This was a fun quilt to make.. There is no piecing in this quilt it is done by using Wendy Butler Berns technique of using freezer paper templates. I love her technique...!! All of the quilts that the girls made were pretty incredible. Amazing how you can take and object and use it for inspiration for a quilt.

I WON!! Second place!!!

2010-09-29T15:31:00.000-07:00

This quilt was made for the Ben Franklin Challenge. Above you can see the fabrics that we had to work with. I have always wanted to make a quilt of giraffes. So I thought this would be a perfect opportunity given the fabrics I had to work with. While I was working on this quilt there was a giraffe having a calf in a zoo near Green Bay, WI. Her name is Zuri. The calf was born weak and died 36 hours after birth. In tribute to that strong mother giraffe I named this quilt Zuri. It is sad to think of what happened to this beautiful giraffe but, we have to remember that God has a plan for us and for all animals.

These fabrics are all cotton. All the fabrics are fused down. A layer of tulle was placed over the entire quilt. The quilt was layered and free motion quilting was done throughout using cotton and polyester threads.

The show starts on Friday and runs through Sunday. I'm soooo excited.. here is a photo of the fabrics I had to use and my finished quilt.

Don't ever have surgery...

2010-08-11T17:45:00.000-07:00

2 weeks ago I went under the knife... wish I wouldn't have.. not because the surgery was bad or anything like that.. it was because I was what my sister, Cheryl and I refer to as "BAD KITTY"... now what gal doesn't love a deal...especially when shopping on ebay...
I had a lot of fun shopping.. I bought 5 books, 5 mind you...for 10 bucks... yep I said 10 bucks.. and my good and dear friend Chris Kirsch has quilts in 2 of them.. The Monkey Wrench..which I already have and will give to someone.. or maybe have a blog giveaway.... and Bear Paws... she loves doing those challenges and has done quit well in them... I bought a pattern of a Christmas tree made of log cabin blocks for 2 bucks. I also bought already cut up logs for a log cabin quilt.. with jewel tones and black.. it is high quality fabric and I just went on Ebay and ordered another one.. I needed to make a bigger quilt.. Ha!! Oh and that was $12.95. I ordered some fabric yo yo's.. don't ask me why.. I thought I might use them sometime in an artquilt.. or maybe my sister will inherit them.. OH and like my husband always says," A Girls Gotta Have A Hobby!!".... and I do...

Soooooo I am not planning on having anymore surgery anytime soon... and I promised myself to stay off of ebay for a long long time.. ( Yeah Right!!)... See ya...

My Birthday Present.. alittle late

2010-08-02T08:47:00.000-07:00

Sorry I am posting this way after I received this beautiful handmade backpack from my friend Chris Kirsch.. She is an amazing creative gal.. It started last June when Chris and I went to the bead and button show. We both bought a bead that we decided to use for inspiration to make a quilt. I actually had my inspiration drawn out but, that is as far as it went. We also challenged ourselves that we could only go back to the bead show next year if we used at least 3 of our purchases. It didn't take me too long to do that.. Chris in turn followed suit.. but, as it will Chris was teaching a workshop that weekend up north and she wasn't able to go with me.. I went.. for 1 hour... seriously.. it is like going to the Houston quilt show and staying 1 hour... how did I do that you ask? Simply.. I knew what I needed and my kids were across the street at the mall. Waiting for me to drop them off at their dads. Then.. I would mosey on home to QUILT!! And at that time I was still working on my Jessi quilt..
Anyway.. back to the story of the inspiration bead and my birthday. I saw Chris a few weeks after my birthday and previously on the phone she said she used her "bead" to create something.. I was a bit skeptical as I always am.. She was working on a birthday present for me.. And the bead became an intricate part of my present.. So here I will share with you the backpack that Chris made for me with 2 ties, 2 placemats, a handdyed linen ( from Wendy Richardson, who's hand dyes I loath after) and some batik fabric and the BEAD.... 2 silk tyes were dyed in Rit to match. And after she did a few she found that the rit dye doesn't work with polyester ties.. There is a clip for my keys and draw strings to close.
If you look closely you can see she used the batik fabric to make the swirl on the purse as it looks on the BEAD...

I really love my back pack... Thanks Chris for your wonderful gift not only of the back pack but, your friendship also.. it means the world to me.

The Quilt Show

2010-07-29T17:56:00.000-07:00

Hi all.. I have to share that my quilt.. Laura's Flower Garden will be the quilt of the day on The Quilt Show on Aug. 6... so go and check it out..It is a take off of Laura Wasilowski's flower quilts.. I took a workshop from her and actually finished the quilt right after the workshop.. that has to be a first.... Ha!!
http://www.thequiltshow.com

He Loves Me He Loves Me Not

2010-07-14T15:59:00.000-07:00

This is one of the best days of my life.. I have finished my all time favorite quilt ( so far). This has been a labor of love for about 7 months. I will be handing it off to Wendy next week and the next time I will see it will be in Houston in Nov. I'm so excited to be a part of her exhibit and to get the chance
( God Willing) to go to Houston this year. My daughter and her cat have never looked better...
The binding looks funny because I tried to get the background out in photoshop and it kind of made the binding look funny. This quilt is 51x63".

My feet are barely touching the ground.

2010-07-11T18:09:00.000-07:00

Wow.. wow... wow.... so many good things have been happening to me lately. God has truly blessed me. Last week I found out that 4 of my quilts will be in the Milwaukee Machine Quilting Show the first week of August. Then I was asked to send a photo of my Triple Trillium to Olbrich Botanical Gardens because I sent a photo of my quilt and they wanted a better photo for their newsletter. My quilt Triple Trillium was accepted in the show. That is is Madison WI. in Sept. to Oct.. you can see more about the show here

http://www.olbrich.org/events/quilts.cfm

I found out today that my quilt The Unknown Spirit that I made for Alzheimer's

( AAQI ) was picked as one of the 53 to travel in an exhibit called
"Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak
to Hope" I am soooo honored to be a part of that exhibit.. more details here..
http://www.alzquilts.org/exhibit.html

Drazil........

I found out today was accepted by Ellen Anne Eddy to use in her lecture in which she show slides and tells the stories of why someone
makes a quilt. I'm really honored.. Her work is incredible.. SHe has been one of my most admired quilters/teachers since I started quilting. I was very lucky to have met her last year in Rosemont.. what a wonderful women... witty and soooo talented..

http://threadmagicevents.blogspot.com/2010/07/some-beautiful-beast-quilts.html

What a week.. I am so happy... I feel like I am walking on air..

I couldn't resist this

2010-06-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

Award of Excellence!!

2010-06-21T15:35:00.000-07:00

Sooo Sunday Mike and I took a drive to the
WOW gallery in Wittenberg, Wi. I entered a quilt into a art show and
they were all being displayed. What great artwork.. painting,
photography... and my quilt... with a award of excellence on it... which
means I won a monetary award..!!!! I am soooo doing the happy dance...
So I just had to share...it was my Triple Trillium quilt.
And how about that.. the check came in the mail today... do I frame it or cash it?

Please vote...

2010-06-06T17:21:00.000-07:00

Please vote for my recipe, O-Love Bleu Burger, and help name it champion of Culver's Ultimate ButterBurger Build-Off contest.
I love this burger... you have to try it...

http://contest.culvers.com/entries#54477

Guess who's coming to bloglife...

2010-06-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

I have been bugging my dear friend Chris to start a blog for a few years.. the problem was that she lives in the boonies and always only had dial up... but, thanks to technology lo and behold she has high speed now... Sooooo YEAH!!! She started a blog.. 6 years ago I took my first art quilt class from Chris. We sparked almost an instant friendship. We have grown to be best friends through the years. We have so many things in common. And our husbands are like twin sons from different mothers... that is the scary part. I want to welcome Chris to Bloglife... and if you want to keep tabs on her too you can see her first post here http://clkquilt.wordpress.com/
Chris is a wonderful mentor and her blog is going to be really cool.. I don't want to spoil anything so that is all I am going to say... so check on her now.. and check back again soon... You can also see Chris on Facebook... Congrat's Chris.. my dear friend..!!!

Oh I almost forgot..Chris teaches all over the country, and has written 2 books.. She is the best darn quilter I know...

My last 2 classes..

2010-05-31T17:32:00.000-07:00

I have had a busy couple of weeks.. Anne Lullie came to our quilt guild 2 weeks ago for a lecture and a workshop.. it was wonderful.. you know me and all the bright colors... This is what I came up with so far.. but, I have more ideas in my brain for maybe more fabrics and embellishments. This is a pattern of Anne's that you can get from Anne. I believe you just have to email her from her website.
http://www.annelullie.com/

Last thursday I took a class from Isabella Hoffman. We did some needle felting. I had gotten a felting machine in the winter last year but, haven't had the time to experiment with it.. it was a great class and I feel pretty comfortable at what I am doing now.. She had some wonderful tips and her show and tell was out of this world.. She even told me she could repair my over 75 year teddy bear. She is a great gal.. here is her website and patterns. http://www.isabellahoffmann.com/Book---Patterns.html
And this is what we made in her class...

Now to get back to my project for Wendy... I will begin to machine quilt hopefully tomorrow.. I need to do some basting and then I will practice my free motion for at least an hour and then jump into the quilt.. I have ideas of what I want to quilt and I think it is going to be a lot of fun...

My Teaching Debut

2010-05-23T18:39:00.000-07:00

Wow.. what a great time I had teaching yesterday. We were in this over one hundred year old barn. Which is where Wisconsin Quilt Museum is going to be hopefully built in the very near future. I taught fusible applique. The gals were great.. it was a great setting... I loved everything about it after I got over being nervous... Thanks to all who made Quilt University Days in Cedarburg such a success...

Jessi is coming along..

2010-05-14T12:53:00.000-07:00

I'm almost ready to sandwich this quilt and start quilting.. I worked for 2 days on her face...especially her eyes.. they were blue.. but, then I made them brown.. she has brown eyes in real life.. I thread painted eyebrows and lashes and use a colored pencil for some of the facial lines... Can't wait to get quilting on this..

My teaching Debut...

2010-05-11T17:04:00.000-07:00

Hi all.. I just wanted to invite you to the QUILT UNIVERSITY DAYS at the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts. 2 days packed with fun.. May 21 and 22.. $25 gets you 4 classes each day and a potluck lunch with a guest speaker during the lunch.. It is going to be really fun.. I'm nervous as heck but, anxious to get my feet wet.. I'm teaching Fusible Applique. "Curious About Fusibles?" And here is my mascot. Sooo hope you can join in the fun... go here to get all the information. http://www.wiquiltmuseum.com

What I'm working on

2010-04-09T16:11:00.000-07:00

This is a quilt that I am working on. Using a technique I learned from Wendy Butler Berns. It is now fused to decor bond and ready for the monofilament zigzag stitching to hold the pieces together. I decided to add Jessi's kitty Mr. Snuggles into the quilt. It is 52"x63" This isn't the best photo but, you get the idea...I should mention that she will have a flower on a stem in her hand and some of the petals will be missing and on the ground. You can see more of this quilt a few posts back..

Another Hero and Friend

2010-03-22T15:19:00.000-07:00

I'm sure by now most of you know what Quilts of Valor are... I have posted about them a few times. Last Thursday at Oconomowoc quilt guild I was given a QOV to give to one of my soldiers. We write down the information and get the quilts for them as they become available. My friend Jim's dad was in World War II. Mr. Edward Mies. He is also a member at my church. He and his wife are the most caring people in the world. I was very happy to present Mr. Mies with a QOV yesterday at his home. It was very emotional for all of us.

I have to tell you how I came about to know that Mr. Mies was a Vet. We were making up food packs for Feed My Starving Children at church one day. Mr. Mies and I sat at a table and put labels on the packages. He started to talk about his time in the War. I moved me so much to listen to his stories. He is a true Hero. And just about that time our quilt guild started to make QOV, or maybe they were making them before that time... it was just that I was a fairly new member. I knew I had to put Mr. Mies name in to receive a quilt. So yesterday was the day. He was so happy.. he said he didn't deserve it and that there were many other soldiers who should get a quilt before him. I said nonsense... he is a very humble person. I visited with them for about an hour.. He showed me on a map where he was stationed. We looked at photos and he told me all about his time in the War. It was very moving to me... I hated to say good bye but, lucky for me they live very close and I promised I would come back and chat again... I think it is going to be another chapter for Tuesdays with Morrie... at least I hope so...

Going Green..

2010-03-09T18:14:00.000-08:00

Thought I would do a little change up with my blog.. Hopefully I won't loose everything this time.. I made the title photo using my snow dyed fabric in photoshop. Soooo we will be going green until I decide to change it again... HEre is a photo of my kitty "Mr. Snuggles" reading up on Katie Pasquini expert advice... Ha!!! Have a great week!!

My Beatles Quilt

2010-03-05T15:04:00.000-08:00

This was a fun project.. thanks to Terri Kirchner for quilting it for me.. I pieced the back with a panel and it almost looks better than the front.. Ha!!

More Snow Dyes

2010-03-05T14:55:00.000-08:00

I did some more snow dyeing last weekend.. I also dyed some socks and a tshirt.. This last photo is a rayon shirt and I love how it turned out.

My Milwaukee Art Challenge Quilt.

2010-03-02T16:13:00.000-08:00

The challenge was called The Line of Design..Here is my quilt and the rules... We had 20 quilts and 8 were picked to try and get in the ultimate guild challenge in Knoxville. Mine was not one of the 8. All of the girls quilts were really unbelievable and I sure wouldn't want to have been that judge.. Oh and funny thing.. my quilt was 1 1/4 inch short to get into knoxville show if it was picked so I put the organic looking trim on the bottom.. Now that the judging is over I think I will take it off..

A thread of red, rayon, rat tail cording must 
run through each quilt to tie them together and 
will literally connect them when displayed. The 
rat tail must enter the quilt along the left side 
either 12 from the top or 12 from the bottom 
(your choice) and exit the quilt on the right either
 12 from the top or 12 from the bottom 
(your choice once again). This variety will 
allow the quilts to be displayed in a staggered 
set that will add interest to the exhibit 
(see diagram below).

Any length of rat tail may be used and it 
can do anything while within the quilt: stretch 
straight across and be only 36 long, loop and 
spiral over the entire surface, outline an object 
or border the main subject. It can be the focus of 
the piece or fade into obscurity, but it cannot be broken.

I know art quilters hate technical details, but 
if these quilts are to be hung easily and look 
great, it cant be avoided:

A 24 piece of the rat tail must hang off the 
right side of the quilt (when looking at it) to 
be used in connecting them. Dip the end of the 
rat tail in glue or fray check to keep it from 
fraying. This side must have a 3 square pocket
 on the back to hold the excess rat tail in case
 your quilt is hung on the far right of the exhibit 
and to contain the tail while in transit. Just a 
thought - you could make the pocket your label!

On the left side of the quilt (looking at it) the
 end of the rat tail should be secured neatly 
around the edge of the quilt.

Buttons! The back of the left side of the quilt 
will need to have two 1 diameter buttons attached 
next to each other horizontally with their centers 
even with the rat tail end. The neighboring quilts 
rat tail will attach to these buttons. Buttons with
 shanks the thickness of the rat tail may be sewn 
tightly to the quilt (with no stitching showing on 
the front). Buttons without shanks may be used also: 
sew to the quilt using a piece of rat tail between 
the button and the quilt to act as a spacer. When
 this piece of rat tail is removed there will be 
room for wrapping. The last 6 (approximately) of 
the next quilts tail will wrap, figure 8 style,
 around these buttons.

What I am working on..

2010-02-27T08:06:00.000-08:00

Well, you know me.. I always love a challenge. The challenge here is that this is the largest quilt I have every made. On paper right now it ia 52"x63"... it has to end up with the smallest side 50". I have to use a technique I learned from Wendy Butler Berns. I have used her technique in quite a few of my quilts. So I took a photo of my daughter and this is what I am coming up with. In the third photo I have the freezer paper templates ironed on the fabric. So the fabric is behind the paper. At the top I segmented 2 of the rays coming down on the paper but, then decided not to do that.. so the top 2 rays are just that.. If you hold it up to the light you can get a feel as to how it is looking.. When it is all assembled you take the freezer paper off... Wendy has a book that details this technique. You can see the book on her website here http://www.wendybutlerberns.com/ Of all the books I have this is the easiest book to understand. The photos are incredible and the step by step directions couldn't be better..

My dad's 90th birthday

2010-02-13T18:23:00.000-08:00

My sister posted about my dad's birthday last night.. today he is 90... He is an amazing man. I am so thankful to still have him and my mom in my life.. Please visit her blog to see her post.

Cheryl's Chatelaine: A Defining moment for the family

More snow dyeing...

2010-02-10T20:51:00.000-08:00

Some of these pieces I show a white on white piece of fabric and what if looks like on the front and on the back.. both sides are fun..

TOTE TUESDAY!!

2010-02-01T17:45:00.000-08:00

ToteTuesday, a Fiberart For A Cause fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, will open Tuesday, February 2 and continue through March. It’s a fundraiser AND a showcase for everything that is fun and creative about the fiber arts.
ToteTuesday will feature themed totes filled with unique, beautiful, and inspiring items from the worlds of fiber arts, knitting, art quilting, mixed media and surface design.
You can expect totes offering original artwork, autographed books, hand-dyed fabrics, discharged, rust-dyed and painted fabrics, beads, gorgeous yarns, handmade journals, fun and useful materials/tools for mixed-media and surface design, certificates for online classes and much, much more.
Themed totes will include either a nifty purple Relay For Life (the ACS’s biggest grassroots fundraiser) tote or a custom-made one.
There will be an auction from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. every Tuesday with a required opening bid with additional bids requested in $10 increments. There will also be a Go for the Gold! price if you can’t wait to own the tote AND want to be a champion supporter of the ACS.

A list of the 24 themed totes now in progress are listed on Virginia’s website. The auction of the totes will take place Tuesdays in February and March on Virginia's blog.
http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/blog/archives/tag/totetuesday

One hundred percent of the funds raised by TOTE TUESDAY will be donated directly to the American Cancer Society.

My adopted soldier

2010-01-29T09:04:00.000-08:00

Hi all.... I want to share something with you. Awhile back my quilt guild got involved in a project called Quilts of Valor. (for more information on quilts of valor go here http://www.qovf.org/) I'm not a good traditional quilter so I wasn't involved much. I made a pillowcase that one of the quilts would be stored in until it found a home. The homes are soldiers and vets who fought in the war and were touched by war. I was watching the news one night and there was a moving story about a soldier named Ben. Ben is from Menomonee Falls, where I live. I don't have any close connections to a soldier and Ben's story really moved me. I wanted to help him. He had been through so much. I will post his story as written on his caring bridge at the end of this post.
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/spcbenjaminbreckheimer/mystory
I asked the Oconomowoc Quilt Guild if I could get a quilt to give to Ben. He was coming home for Christmas (09). They had a quilt to me within a few days for me to give to Ben. The quilt was one of the most beautiful quilts I have seen. It was made by Jean Higleman from Brookfield Wi. Ben received the quilt on Christmas at his parents home. His sister wrapped it for him. I had dropped the quilt off at his fundraiser a few weeks before. Ben really liked it.. as you can see by the smile on his face. As the story goes on I sent photos to the guild and to Quilts of Valor. And it so happens that they want to use the photo of Ben and his quilt in American Patchwork and Quilting magazine. This is pretty exciting. Ben is going to be having a lot of Physical Therapy and is in a lot of pain.. if you could please keep him in your prayers that would be wonderful. He needs all the prayers he can get. Now.. drumroll please... here is Ben and his Quilt of Valor.. he is a true hero... and my adopted soldier. Hang in there Ben.. We all are pulling for you....

Background Story

On July 2, 2009 Ben left for his second tour of duty, serving with the Blackhawk 8-1 Cavalry in Afghanistan. He was scheduled for a year long tour of duty.

On the morning of Sunday, September 13, 2009 we received word that the vehicle that Ben had been driving hit an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) and that Ben had been severely injured. All that we knew at that time was that Ben had sustained a head injury and severe injuries to both of his legs. We were told that we would receive updates on Ben's status every eight to ten hours. The next few hours were very stressful for all of us, filled with anger, tears and heavy hearts. Later that afternoon a phone call came in bringing great news! Ben's injuries, although serious, were not as bad as initially thought. He had sustained a laceration to the back of his head and had compound fractures to both of his legs. We now knew that the injury to his head did not involve his brain, but were unsure of the full extent of his leg injuries.

We learned that the blast occurred when Ben's squadron was in route to pay a farmer for damage that they had done to his watering system while completing a mission on the previous day when the vehicle encountered an IED. Ben was driving a Stryker Armored Vehicle, one of the newer kinds of military vehicles containing a double layer of armor, when he drove over the IED that produced, in Ben's words, "one hell of a blast!" There were five other soldiers on duty with Ben that day, one including a medic. They pulled Ben from the vehicle, and a Blackhawk helicopter was on the ground to airlift Ben to safety within minutes.

Ben was stabilized in Afghanistan and had some surgeries done. He was scheduled to be airlifted to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany. In Germany, Ben would have any additional surgeries that he required, and his wife, Tara, would be able to be with him while he began on his long road to recovery. On Monday, September 14 we received news that Ben had been honored with a purple heart!

After being boarded onto the first plane that was scheduled to leave Afghanistan for Germany and getting in the air, Ben's plane caught on fire and had to make an emergency landing. Finally, on Wednesday, September 16 Ben arrived SAFELY in Germany. Since being in Germany, we have learned many things about the extent of Ben's injuries. Even with all the damage to Ben's legs, there was NO damage to the nerves in his legs. He is able to wiggle his toes on both feet. In addition, fractures were found in Ben's pelvis and vertebrae (thankfully

, these fractures will heal on their own and do not require surgery). Best of all, we learned that Ben should recover 100% from all of the injuries he sustained while serving our country!

More snow dyes..

2010-01-23T11:15:00.000-08:00

I like how these turned out. I am going to try and use some other colors next time and maybe only use 2 or 1 on a piece. The photo does not do justice to the colors.. they are very vibrant!! I love the one with the words on it..

West Suburban Quilt SHow..

2010-01-15T14:39:00.000-08:00

My guild is having a quilt show March 19th and 20th...Please go here for more info www.wsqg.net We are having 300 quilts.. raffles.. and much more. We have sewing notions for sale for $5.... these are my scissors fobs that I donated for the sale. I hope to make some more....

Rust Tex Collection- Look to the Cross

2010-01-11T12:14:00.000-08:00

Thought I would post my piece... since I got the o.k. from Lois. I entered this piece into the rust tex collection. I will know hopefully in a month or so if it was accepted... even if it isn't I still really like how it turned out. I used a technique I learned from Cynthia Corbin. There are 2 layers of tulle over the middle of the cross and beads around the outside piece of tulle. I rusted my fabrics and used leaf tea on them. ( the gray comes from the tannin in the tea). In this call for entries you had to use some rusted fabric in your piece. Rusting the fabric is a very neat technique. I really had fun quilting this quilt.

SNOW DAY (DYE)

2010-01-10T07:58:00.000-08:00

We had a great snowstorm here on Thurs and Friday.. which gave me an opportunity to try my hand at snow dyeing. I had a old tye dye kit here that I thought I would use. Nancy and Mary Ellen who are in Milwaukee Art quilters with me showed off their snow dyed fabrics at the last meeting and they were to DYE for... I am happy with my first results.. I had yellow, blue and red dye. Since doing these I have ordered more dyes and am hoping for another snow storm ( not really... we have enough snow.. ) THis is a very cool technique and easy... You can get prepared for dyeing fabric or prepare it yourself.. I used muslin and a muslin that had little stars on it. I soaked it in soda ash. Squeezed out the excess liquid and put it in a plastic tub and placed it outside..THe fabric froze quite quickly.. I scooped snow over the fabric. Squirted the dyes over the top of the snow and then brought the tub in the house.. THe snow melt. I left it overnight and rinsed it till the water was clear. Used synthropol in the washing machine and washed and dried the fabric... and this is what I got... and I love them.. can't wait to use some colors that I really love.... !!!

My second place win...DRAZIL

2009-12-11T06:56:00.000-08:00

Back in Sept. I did a challenge with a pack of fabrics for a store near my home. The fabrics were bright and cheery and I just loved the colors. I knew that the brown fabric needed to be a reptile. So I decided to make it a gecko. I named him Drazil.. which is lizard spelled backwards.. Gecko would not work... Okceg... not so good... Ha!! He is 25" x 20".

I love this...

2009-12-08T18:19:00.001-08:00

All the Kings Men..

2009-12-06T12:44:00.000-08:00

This is one of the projects I have been working on so diligently. An ornament swap... This idea popped into my head in the beginning of November and I ran with it... I love how they turned out..I used bobbins for hats on some and old little bells for hats on the others.. lots of glitter and fake snow..

Finally some new art...

2009-11-18T17:06:00.000-08:00

Hey... I'm finally creating a bit.. after being sick..having a sick son and having a sick daughter..Oh and a sick cat.. we are all almost healthy... Last weekend I didn't feel good enough to pack my sewing machine to take up north but, I took some beading along. I am making scissors fobs to sell at our quilt show. And a couple for gifts for friends. The West Suburban Quilt Guild Show is March 19 and 20. The show is called The Art of Quilting. It was one of the first shows I think I ever went to when I first started quilting. I was blown away but, the talent. Now to think I will have some quilts in the show...that is kickass... We have over 200 quilts, vendors, antique quilt presentation, demos, appraisals, raffles and a gift boutique..where my scissors fobs will be for sale. There will be plenty of pin cushions from what I heard. I'm not too good at making little fabric items so I thought scissors fobs would be good.. Hope to see you there..

Awake in the night..

2009-10-30T12:17:00.000-07:00

Last night as I was trying to fall asleep this picture of a whimsical kitty came to mind.. I was thinking about Laura Wasilowski and her beautiful quilts when I thought... geeeezzz... I don't think she ever did a cat.. so I jumped out of bed and grabbed a pencil and some paper and drew my kitty on the paper... After a few drawings I got tired and went to bed. Knowing this morning exactly what I wanted to do I went downstairs and started to construct this kitty... I really love it... This is just the top.. Isn't she adorable? I think I will donate this quilt to Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative... for the stay at home challenge...OK.. this is now 30 minutes since I posted this...Quilting Arts just posted a challenge called Quilting Arts Animal Challenge.... Well, you know my obsession with Cats.. I have always loved them.. This may just be a quilt for that challenge.. then if it comes home I will send it off to Ami... I guess I will have to see.. Maybe I will make another one... that is more fitting to me...Since this photo I have added more to this piece.. It needed more flowers etc... Keep in touch I hope to have it finished in the very near future..

Purse Class

2009-10-10T17:50:00.000-07:00

When I first saw these fabrics I feel in love with them. They are just my style. I started to collect them. I didn't know what I was going to do with them. My sister and I were taking a class to make a purse and I thought they would make a really nice looking purse. This is my first side of my purse. I need to add some finishing touches.. Maybe some rat tail cord or ???? We learned a very cool curved piecing technique too. I really love it.. Thanks Nancy for the class. I'll post more when I finish it..

Art Now For Autism

2009-10-01T06:30:00.000-07:00

Wow, Wow, Wow... I was just viewing all the art that is going to be for sale in a few days.. Today starts the preview of the art.. Claudine did a incredible job.. You will be amazed at the beautiful art... Please go here and check it out..
http://artnowforautism.com/shop/
Please support the cause...

Quilt Expo

2009-09-27T07:39:00.000-07:00

Finally I am getting a chance to post on Quilt Expo. I believe there were more quilts there this year than last. The show leans more toward traditional quilts than art quilts. I love to see them all. I went 2 days.. On Sat. when I went with Patti we were like a fine comb checking out all the stitching, quilting, applique.. I learn so much by looking at others work. I was excited to see my quilt in the show. And many of my friends had quilts in the show too. Milwaukee Art Quilters had their portals quilts in the show.. I still have to quilt mine.. ( love/hate thing.. ) So here I am in all my glory with my quilt "Gloria's Magic"....

Have you Hugged Your Cat Today?

2009-09-14T19:46:00.000-07:00

THis is my quilt that I am donating for auction for my quilt guild this thurs. Why do I want to keep all the quilts I make when I am done?

Quilt Expo..

2009-09-11T09:01:00.000-07:00

My sister and I had a good time at the show yesterday. I was shocked when we entered the area to see the quilts. Right in plain view was my quilt. It looked really nice. I was so happy. The quilts were beautiful and amazing as always. I will post a few of my favorites, some that my friends did. What works of art these pieces are. It was a long day for me because my friend Chris and I went to a SAQA (Studio art quilters association) dinner after the show. The gals were really nice and their work was incredible. It was good to see Wendy Butler Berns she has always been such an inspiration to me. If you click on the photo you can see it a bit bigger. Or you can go here to see this and other photos http://twitpic.com/h7fev

Everyone loves Quilts...

2009-09-03T08:32:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to remind everyone that SAQA is having their quilt auction I believe starting next week... There are incredible quilts.... please go here and help out SAQA by bidding on your favorite quilt...

http://www.saqa.com/hotnews.aspx?id=190

Hugs.. Laura

Tanin on the fabric

2009-08-26T17:41:00.000-07:00

Some of you have asked me about the tea (tanin) here is a photo of what I did..

Rusting fabric

2009-08-26T14:57:00.000-07:00

Thought I would get a bit of fabric rusted.. I used obviously rusted stuff and where the black is I used leaf tea... alittle vinegar and water and sun and a few days it was done..

All Birds Can Sing

2009-08-15T12:58:00.000-07:00

Here is my art piece for the Art Now for Autism sale. The sale begins Oct. 1, 2009 For more information go here
http://artnowforautism.com/

Is used fabric paper that I had made with some friends.. I adhered it to a 11x14 stretched canvas. And ... I think I found the perfect quote...

The Mad Hatter's Tea Party

2009-08-09T18:05:00.000-07:00

This is my quilt for the Tea challenge. The quilt will be displayed with the other members of Milwaukee Art Quilters at the Anaba Tea Room in Shorewood. Sept.3rd to Nov. 1st. This is soooo exciting...This quilt is 20" x 23".

A fun place to swap books..

2009-07-29T07:02:00.000-07:00

My sister turned me onto this website where you can swap books. It is basically free except for the postage to send your books to the person who has requested it.. you can go here and see my homepage..
http://barngirl.paperbackswap.com

"Tea" Challenge

2009-07-26T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hi all I am almost done with my quilt for the "tea" challenge. I just have to hand sew ( GRRRRRRRR) the binding and sleeve on it.. I decided to also make a small piece to take to the gallery.. I used the fabric paper we made in New Hampshire last fall. I call this piece Mad Hatter and Friends....

Art quilt initiative quilt...

2009-07-23T15:20:00.000-07:00

Just finished my quilt for Ami... The quiltart group was asked to make some for Ami to take to Houston. This is called Heart Broken Tears.
I used some of my rusted satin and it has a nice sheen. I added tulle over the top to hold all the fused pieces down. Freemotioned the heck out of the heart. And more coming from the heart. This is dedicated to all the families who shed many tears over losing their loved ones ... mentally not physically....

Great Mail Day

2009-07-21T16:06:00.000-07:00

I am sooooooo excited.. My quilt made it into Quilt Expo in Madison Sept. 10-12..... it is my first quilt in a big show ( not including my journal quilt in Chicago and Houston and that was cool but, not a cool as this)!!!! I'm sooooo excited... Here is a photo of it..These are not pieced New York beauties... it is a whole cloth middle ( one large piece of batik fabric ) with the piano key border.. and my dear friend Gloria Anderson did the quilting .. which I'm sure made it make it in the show...

My Garden...

2009-07-15T17:30:00.000-07:00

Is really starting to bloom...the day lillies are incredible...

WHoooo Hoooo.

2009-07-05T09:15:00.002-07:00

I finished up another ufo.. again I just have to sew the binding to the back.. This was a fun quilt to make... It is about 15x15" I call it Tree of Life.. I used one of Carol Fallerts black/grey gradation fabric for the binding..

Breaking Traditions Art Quilt

2009-07-03T18:58:00.000-07:00

This is my quilt for the breaking traditions show. All the proceeds go to A Place To Bark animal rescue... My good friend Bernie Berlin...The name of my quilt is "As For Me and My House".... Joshua 24:15
The theme was "home"... In my home I like to try and put God first. And I have always wanted to do a stained glass type quilt. I used wonder under to fuse the colorful pieces which were all from one piece of hand dyed fabric. I did stippling in the cross and larger stippling on the hill. The rest of the quilt was quilted with lines coming out from the cross. After I quilted it I added a piece of purple tulle over the top. I did this to hold down the fused pieces since I didn't sew down each piece. Then I added a bit of quilting to hold the tulle in place. Added the binding and now my piece is almost done. I just have to sew the binding to the back of the quilt and it will be ready to send off to Lynn. And soon my piece from last years show will be home.. I did my cat Abner and dedicated it to my awesome vet.. Betsy Miller..
I'm glad I finally got a piece done to share on my blog.. seems like I haven't posted forever.. For more info on supporting this quilt show or to contribute to it go here..
http://www.fibraartysta.com
THere is also more information on the right side of my blog.

Cynthia Corbin class

2009-05-25T16:56:00.000-07:00

I had a great time at this class last Thurs.. we did 3 different "sketches" she calls them. It was a very interesting technique that I could see taking a liking to very quickly... She is a no frills teacher.. anything goes.. and easy... keep it simple... Her quilts were beautiful... I posted a photo of my favorite one below on my other post but, I will post it again here... I can't wait to start quilting it.. after I get my portals quilt done. I started quilting that and decided to unsew everything I quilted.. I know now what it is that I need to do differently...

Wow.. I have a lot to post... where do I begin..

2009-05-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

I guess I will go backwards and start with my trip up north.. Mike had the canoe leaning up against the lean to on the house for the winter. As we were unpacking the truck I noticed that there was a nest in it.. with 6 eggs.. I saw the bird and I think she was a sparrow.. so that took care of our canoeing that we had planned for the weekend.. No biggy.. I took my sewing machine and worked on projects. I made a few birds. And finished my quilt top from the Cynthia Corbin class I took on Thursday. I also made a few birds with the pattern and instructions from http://nelliedurand.blogspot.com/ I just love these little birds.. The Trilliums were in full bloom and I just love them. We had a great time. On the way home MIke put out a car fire for a women who's ash from her cigarette ended up in her back seat. The back seat was fully engulfed when we got there. Luckily he carries his fire extinguisher with him and had it out in no time.. he also had the back seat out and some of the stuff in the trunk.. The jumper cables were melted.. After all that the fire dept. arrived... Mike is really good at helping out people like that.. We brought gas to a gal who ran out yesterday.. she had 2 small kids in the car and was in kind of a panic. And she had no money... So we did our good deeds for the weekend... I guess..
It is nice to be home.. but, I'm not looking forward to going to work tomorrow.. at least it is only 2 days this week.. Oh....and my best find this weekend was a rusted long underwear shirt of Mikes that was in a barrel with some other rusted stuff that I also brought home... I am hoping to use it in a quilt for Rust Tex.... Anyway.. I hope you all had a great weekend.. and a Happy and Blessed Memorial Day.

YEAH!! Rummage is over..

2009-05-15T08:25:00.000-07:00

I just closed the rummage.. the rain is coming and I took a load to Goodwill.. My sister and I are saving our crafts stuff to have a rummage out at her house in the fall.. So all my stamps and scrapbooking stuff is put away back in their boxes.. it almost doesn't even look like a any stamps sold.. but, they did. I had many unmounted stamps sell which I was really surprised of. Anyway.. I'm glad it is over and now I can concentrate on doing some quilting the rest of this weekend.. Hopefully I will get one of my projects done.. I just have so many to finish... This is one of my future projects.. wouldn't Kit look good as a quilt????

Collage Mania.... My collages I acquired

2009-05-11T14:08:00.000-07:00

I was like a kid in a candy store.. How do you pick your favorites out of soooo many...Over 300... These are the 3... The third photo was made by Fiona Liberatore and is called 2 cats sleeping on a leaf. You can see her website here... http://www.fionaliberatore.com/
The second piece is from Melissa Snyder and it is called Speeder Cat goes Pink for the Cure.. Melissa is a cancer survivor.
And the first photo which was the first collage I purchased is by Leslie Tucker Jenison and is called Garden Pathway. I saw some of Leslie's work in Rosemont and became a fan.. You can see more about her here http://leslietuckerjenison.blogspot.com/
I'm very excited... My piece sold also... It was a great fund raiser with over $18,000 made for American Cancer Society... thanks to all the gals who did all the work for this event..!!! And there were many but, especially Virginia Spiegel and Karen Stiehl Osborn... but so many others also ......

COLLAGE MANIA... CHECK IT OUT...!!!

2009-04-30T06:09:00.000-07:00

The collages this year just like last year are amazing.. I can't decide which one I want so I may have to buy them all... I wish... they are sooo beautiful...please check this out... This is my collage for this years sale...

Collage Mania, a Fiberart For A Cause fundraiser for the American Cancer
Society, is May 5 -7.

It's great art for a great cause with 383 collages donated by 161 artists
from around the world. You can preview all the artwork here:

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/CM2009Collages1.html

Of course 100% of the proceeds are donated directly to the ACS with an
immediate electronic receipt. All collages are available on a
first-come/first-serve basis, so be sure to read over the directions before
Tuesday, May 5:

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/CollageMania09Directions.html

Any questions, just ask now as May 5 - 7 will be wild and crazy!

Warm regards,
V.
--
Virginia A. Spiegel
Website: http://www.virginiaspiegel.com
Blog: http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/blog/
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/vspiegel

Fiberart For A Cause, fundraising for the American Cancer Society.
COLLAGE MANIA May 5 - 7, 2009
http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACSFundraiser.html

Bird Atcs

2009-04-27T18:37:00.002-07:00

I joined an atc swap for something different.. Of course I couldn't do them just with paper. First I put fabric ( bird eggs) over cardstock and used gel medium to adhere it. While that was wet I added some paint and schminke powder. I burned some Lutradur and layered that with handdyed cheesecloth ( Laura Wasilowski special) and a piece of ribbon. I had a bird cigarette card so I copied it and printed it out on fabric paper and added that with a small zig zag stitch. Then I stitched down the feather and added a silver letter. And used Tsukineko inks on the edges. Everything was stitched and not glued. These small pieces were really fun to create..

Bird Atc

2009-04-27T18:37:00.001-07:00

Fun Day!!!

2009-04-25T19:26:00.000-07:00

So I had some time today to work on some art... I started to quilt my portals quilt.. but, I ended up unsewing a bit more than I liked.. and I still don't like some of it and may just do some more unsewing... I joined an atc swap... so I am experimenting with fabric and paint and lutrader... more about that later.. So after my unsewing I decided to try a pattern I saw in a kids quilts magazine... it is to make a pillowcase.. I had some turtle fabric that I bought thinking I would make something for Luke out of it..... so I made him this pillowcase...
Also I want to remind you that Collage Mania starts soon.. May 5 and 6th... don't forget to check this out.. http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/CollageMania081.html
ITS' GOING TO BE A GREAT SALE.!!!

Gloria's Magic

2009-04-13T17:10:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share with you my latest and I must say greatest quilt. I did all the piecing ( the inside piece that looks pieces is not.. it is a whole clothe piece of batik) but, the quilting magic was done by Gloria Anderson. She is just incredible and I give her all the credit for making this quilt sooooo beautiful..Each one of the circle's has different quilting in it.. I took a few close ups.. and one from the back. So I decided to name the quilt " Gloria's Magic"
My sister has also done a quilt like this with different quilting and Gloria did a beatiful job on hers also... Cheryl's is a king size and mine is a twin or a bit bigger... You can see her quilt on her blog. http://cheryls-chatelaine.blogspot.com/ She has more detailed info there too regarding the quilts.
I wanted to post this before I took off to the Rosemont show. I am soooo excited to go I am practically jumping out of my skin...
So the sister show will be leaving for Rosemont early thurs morning.. we are both taking a fabric painting class with Judy Coates Perez.... I'm thrilled.. On Sat. I will be taking a class from Katie Pasquini Masopaust. She is incredible.. I took a class from her last winter in Racine... Loved it..
I am gearing up for Breaking traditions exhibit (fundraiser) and the Art Now for Autism fund raiser. You can read about these on the right side of my blog... Also Collage Mania is coming up... many many collages to choose from and all the proceeds going to American Cancer Society... And the monthly quilt auction for Alzheimers....you gotta give it up for the gals who run all of these... they donate hours and hours of their time for these causes... I truly appreciate each and everyone of them... Thanks.....

Quick Project..

2009-03-21T13:21:00.000-07:00

I made this fabric postcard for a swap on my FPC group... if you are interested in joining in we only do one card a month.. We have new partners each month and sometimes a theme. Email me if you are interested... we are looking for new members.

My collage for Collage Mania

2009-03-12T19:01:00.000-07:00

This collage will be for sale at the Collage Mania sale. See the link on the right side of my blog for more information. This was done on fabric paper that I made when I was visiting my dear friend Patti in New Hampshire.. I call it Eyes of the Beholder

2009-03-12T15:22:00.000-07:00

My sister and I had a quilting retreat at her house last weekend. We worked on these African fabric quilts.. you can see more on her blog.
http://cheryls-chatelaine.blogspot.com/
I'm trying to decide how big I want to make mine. The original pattern has 5 colorful strips, 3 black strips and one larger black strip with a flower appliqued on it..

Tree of Life

2009-03-08T07:56:00.000-07:00

This is a fast friday piece I did this week.. I am still going to add a binding and possibly some beads.. We had to use an S shape curve in the piece and split complimentary colors. I love doing these fast smaller quilts so that I can try out different techniques. This quilt is 14"x 14"....

Suckow Family Gallery in Hartford, Wi.

2009-03-08T07:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the show came down. My quilts are back at home now getting ready to put in some local shows.. I had the opportunity to get out there a few weeks ago and took this photo of my quilts on the wall. The quilt on the left is the one that won the state award.

A Call for art entries... Breaking Traditions Art Quilt Exhibition

2009-03-08T07:38:00.000-07:00

I was involved in this last year and it was a great project.. A small 12"x 12" quilt was made and sent to Lynn... She put together ( hanging together ) over 100 quilts for this show. It turned out incredible..here are all the details.

Call for entries: Breaking Traditions Art Quilt Exhibit to benefit “A Place to Bark”

Breaking Traditions Art Quilt Exhibit has become a community effort, helping to support the fundraising projects of fellow fiber/mixed media artists.

The 2009 exhibit will benefit Bernie Berlin’s animal rescue, “A Place to Bark”. In honor of Bernie’s efforts to find orphaned and abused dogs permanent loving homes, the theme for the 2009 exhibit is “Home.”

From “A Place to Bark’s” mission statement: “Our mission is to provide assistance and care to animals in need. Working together with other animal welfare agencies to help end the needless killing of adoptable animals. Proactively working to save lives – through spaying and neutering – eliminates needless deaths. By building bridges and networking together, we hope to see a future of ending the unnecessary killing of animals. We receive no government assistance. We are funded through private donations and the proceeds of Bernie Berlin’s art sales.”

Breaking Traditions is proud to team up with Bernie to help raise funds to support all her incredible work. As part of the entry fee for the exhibit, artists are asked to donate $10 to “A Place to Bark”.

The exhibit features 12”x12” art quilts. Participants for the 2009 show will express those things, memories or emotions that define home to them. (Your art quilt may be about an animal family member or anything else that expresses what Home means to you. It is not limited to pet artwork only.) This is an open call exhibit, everyone is encouraged to participate. There are many opportunities to win prizes that have been donated by many generous artists and businesses.

Breaking Traditions debuts at The American Sewing Expo in Novi, Michigan at The Rock Financial Showplace the weekend of September 25-27, 2009. After that, the exhibit will travel to various venues during 2010.
You can learn more about Bernie’s rescue here: http://www.aplacetobark.com/

All the information on how to participate in Breaking Traditions can be found here:
http://www.fibraartysta.com/breakingtraditionsmain.htm

I hope you will join us in creating a beautiful exhibit as well as raising funds for this excellent cause! If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at breakingtraditions@earthlink.net .

Speaking of Copyrights..

2009-02-28T09:49:00.001-08:00

A little quilt I made when my head was exploding a week ago.

Hi all, March is educate the public on copyrights month... There is so much going on with the internet and people stealing images and what not.. I would love it if you could read this brief article on copyrights.... please go here
http://inspire.creative-textile-and-quilting-arts.com/?p=114 for part I
http://inspire.creative-textile-and-quilting-arts.com/?p=117 for part II

Thanks... Laura

Portals

2009-02-26T14:09:00.000-08:00

This is my portals quilt. I haven't had the time to quilt it yet. It is actually suppose to be done on Monday. Mine will obviously be late. My husband took the photo that I used to create this quilt. He was dismantling this barn and was on his scaffolding when he took the photo out of the second story window. Holy Hill was a bit more to the left but, I wanted to include it on my quilt. I took a drive out to Holy Hill to capture a photo of it to print on fabric to add to my hill. This quilt has been driving me crazy. But, finally it is to the point that I like it.. I hope to get some quilting done this weekend.

Breaking Traditions Exhibit..

2009-02-26T07:24:00.000-08:00

The information for this years exhibit is up on the website... This is a fun and exciting exhibit.. this year going to raise money for Bernie Berlin's A Place To Bark.. for more information go here
http://www.fibraartysta.com/breakingtraditionsmain.htm

A drive in the Country

2009-02-11T13:37:00.000-08:00

I was out in taking a drive in the country to take some photos of Holy Hill.. I came across these 2 beautiful horses.. I had to take a few photos of them..

My Batik Quilt

2009-01-21T05:58:00.000-08:00

My sister and I belong to a Batik club at Patched Works in Elm Grove. We have been anticipating making this quilt. So since I am off of work this week she came over on Monday and we worked on them. You can see hers on her blog.
http://cheryls-chatelaine.blogspot.com/ They are similar but, we both used different fabrics for the piano key border.
All I have to do yet is put the top and the sides on. I think I will have this quilt professionally quilted with a long arm. I love quilting art quilts but, bed quilts to me are a pain. THis is a twin size quilt... I can't wait to snuggle up under it...

Bonnie McCaffrey's Vidcasts

2009-01-12T17:35:00.000-08:00

I don't know how many of you are aware of Bonnie's vidcasts but, they are the best. I download them onto my ipod from itunes. But, you can go to her website and see them too. The last one she had Larkin Van Horn showing her beading skills and that was #30. I was having a bit of a problem downloading some of them so Bonnie and I have been emailing back and forth because she was trying to fix the ones that didn't work.. And I have to say that they are all working great.. Thanks Bonnie for continuing to bring us these great vidcasts.
http://www.bonniemccaffery.com/wordpress1/

Check out Quilting Arts Blog..

2009-01-12T17:31:00.000-08:00

Pokey was kind enough to post on her blog about the boy who lives near me that is fighting cancer. I posted a photo of my postcard for him below. Here is her blog to check it out.. just scroll down a bit...Thanks Pokey...
http://www.quiltingartsblog.com/quilting_arts_blog/

Having Fun In The Snow..

2009-01-12T17:27:00.000-08:00

My neighbor and I spent part of the weekend working on these snowmen.. they were in the Cloth Paper Scissors magazine... I have a few more in the making..
Sorry I haven't posted much lately.. I have been soooo busy..I'm working on a portals quilt for MArQ, a couple pillows for a gift and numerous other fun projects.. Oh and organizing my sewing room...