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My college motto, which got me through many tough exam seasons, was ‘work hard, party hard.’ And apparently these words of wisdom still apply. You see, even though we’ve been rather busy at the Quilting Arts office, we managed to find the time this week for a hands-on, artsy evening...
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Looking for an easy, no-stitch holiday decorating idea? Why not make fabric fortune cookies? They're a great way to use up those precious scraps of hand-dyed or commercial fabrics you can't bear to throw out, and you can slip artful wishes for the New Year inside them. This past weekend, I made...
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Over the Thanksgiving Day holiday, I knew I needed to do something with my bin of fabric runts. You know what I'm referring to: those fabrics you made that didn't dye or screen successfully, but you just can't bear to throw them out. I decided with a little holiday love, my fabric runts might...
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Make Quick Work of Last-minute Gifts with our Small Quilting Projects eBook: Free Quilt Patterns: 5 Small Quilting Projects from Quilting Arts Just when I think I have everyone on my gift list covered, it hits me: What about the dog sitter? And I have nothing for Friday's dinner party hostess. And...
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As the holiday season approaches and everyone gets so busy, I have to remind myself to keep it simple. Simple gifts, simple decorations, simple fabric art projects. For example, instead of doing all the baking and cooking for Thanksgiving plus making all the decorations and crafting personalized napkin...
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If you ever get the chance to take a class with Jan Beaney and Jean Littlejohn (a.k.a. Double Trouble Enterprises), jump at it. They are two of the most innovative people I know when it comes to creative embroidery and textile art. Plus, they are just a hoot to be with! J an and Jean are fearless when...
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One of my favorite holidays is Halloween, and because International Quilt Festival/Houston was early this year, I'm excited to report that I will be at home and giving out candy to costumed witches, vampires, and assorted Jedi this Saturday. This weekend also marks the beginning of El Dia de los...
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Brace yourselves! I think I'm about to set a world record in the Blogosphere for the number of photos in a single blog entry. I took nearly 250 shots at International Quilt Festival/Houston, but I cut the lot down to 49. (The ones I don’t post in this blog entry, I’ll put in the photo...
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While I was at the International Quilt Festival/Houston last week, enjoying the climate-controlled environment of the George R. Brown Convention Center, it snowed back home in Massachusetts. Yep, snow in October. It didn't last, but while the fat flakes came down, there was enough accumulation in...
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So it’s been about two months (and five days, to be exact) since I’ve started working at Quilting Arts magazine. I’m officially settled in—evidenced by the gradual accumulation of stuff all over my desk. Fortunately, it’s pretty lovely stuff, including some of the latest...
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Who's joining me in making 35 ATCs (artist trading cards) to celebrate the 35th anniversary of International Quilt Festival/ Houston next week ? Last night I packed all of my Open Studios supplies and discovered I had gotten just a tad carried away in making ATCs recently... Don't they look like...
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The Make It University!(TM) workshop schedule and list of events have now been posted. Click the link below to get the dish on what we've got planned. (And I hope you'll join me in making 35 ATCs to celebrate 35 years of Festival!) Make It University! at International Quilt Festival/Houston "Surviving...
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Oh, I am so sad. Someone slip me a happy pill, please . It's actually over. 2009 International Quilt Festival/ Long Beach is now past, but what an indelible memory it left! International Quilt Festival/Long Beach, second year in the running, is, well, perfect . It has a lot of things going for it...
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I have completed the forth I2Q Vid Prompt: Soy Wax!!! I dyed and surface designed my peasant blouse. And, well. I don't like my results. I like the shirt better in white. That is the bummer about blogging, you have reference of before and after. My dyes aren't up to full strength, they are a...
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So here is my latest I2Q VidPrompt #3: ATC's Use techniques found in the my book Inspired to Quilt to create Artist Trading Cards to trade with me and fellow readers at the International Quilt Festival in Long Beach. I used the heart motif in 4 different ways to create these super quick Artist Trading...