Hey Quilters —

In keeping with the Give-Away-A-Day tradition, I have something else to talk about today.

I have been deluged with email and requests for when the Quilting Stash Classroom will be open for business again. You see, it suffered along with my absence and we had a lot of this:

to do…

Now, the Classroom is

!!

And, two classes are available!

Just in case you’ve forgotten…

Both classes are Sampler quilts. The first one is a great class for beginners, those who want to brush up on their skills and learn some new techniques, or make a sampler. it is truly a sampler of techniques — both hand and machine. Class begins May 14th.

Here’s the quilt for QuiltMaking 101:

The class is ten lessons and you can login whenever it’s convenient for YOU, as is the case with all my classes. I want to make it easy for you.

Here is the Quilter’s Palette:

This class is 11 lessons. It’s a sampler of machine techniques, and is the next “step” after QuiltMaking 101, if you’ve already taken that class with me. There are no prerequisites for this class, except that you have to be a confident beginner. Some of the blocks look really simple, (and they start out that way…) but they can be deceivingly simple too ; ) Class begins May 1st.

So….

on over to the Classroom site (click on the word CLASSROOM at the top of this blog page) and have a

Both of the classes come with

LIVE online chat sessions where you can meet the other students and I can answer your questions in real time and demo anything you need to see again.

The Give-Away for today…?

Yep, you guessed it…

another opportunity to win a seat in the online class, and YOU get to pick which one you want. Here’s another idea — if you can’t take the class, or have already taken it, you can name someone else to gift it to…

So, when you comment, please let me know which class you would like – if chosen, and if you’d like to gift it – who the person is that you’ll gift it to, and why. The winner will be drawn at midnight, April 12th — today, so don’t delay!

I hope you’ll join us in the classroom!! It’s loads of fun — and it doesn’t make any difference where you live! The first time I ever ran the class, I had 8 students from outside the U.S. — and the majority of students didn’t have a quilt shop within 1-2 hours from their homes, so never had the chance to take a quilt class.

Online classes just make sense.

And, it’s the only place you’ll be able to take the Quilter’s Palette — it’s not available in pattern, book or quilt shop format.

 

P.S.

©2011  Annie Smith  All Rights Reserved

Program #190 — Quilting Stash Podcast 6th Birthday!!
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Running time: 00:58:09 Size: 55.9 MB

Thank you so much for making this birthday so significant. If it weren’t for YOU, listeners, I wouldn’t be podcasting.

How Technology is influencing how we Quilt:

I don’t know about you, but the Rotary Cutter saved my life as a quilter! It IS the most innovative tool that we have.

Machine quilting in all of it’s forms, has made our life easier, and gives us more time to make new quilts. It also helps us to finish our quilts quicker, as opposed to hand quilting.

Art Quilters have abounded in the last 30 years. They’ve been given permission to play AND enter their quilts in competition. This was not always the case.

The “Personal” computer. That’s what they called the first little device back in 1979 when I worked for Atari. But it was a game unit, not the one pictured above. In 1984, when we saw the first Macintosh commercial, WebGuy said “oooh (drooling) I have to get one of those!”. Almost $3000 back in the day — a king’s ransom. How would it change our lives…? Well, can YOU live without it?! I’m sure I can’t ; ) Especially after a two-hour iChat with my bud, Mark Lipinski, last week. It’s like living in George Jetson’s house!

Podcasts and blogs, how have they reached you? My former bookmarks of Blogs was unmanageable. Now I can put them into categories which I love to do. I have quilt categories, foodie category, friends, family, missionary blogs and I check into them all weekly. I still wish the LOST podcast was still around with new info. It was my favorite.

So cool, huh? One of these days, I’m gonna get me one of those. And, I’m going to design for them too!

Quilt Retreats. If you haven’t been on one, you don’t know what you’re missing and you should treat yourself to one. If you have been to one, you do know what you’re missing — and how it fills you with warm friendships, good memories and quilt inspiration. I have GOT to find a good facility for a new one…

Well, do you?

Ah, yes — the cadillac of sewing machines. (I do not own this model ; ) But I am a Bernina girl, tried and true. The answer is 3.

Online classes and

Internet TV shows.

What is NEXT??!!  I don’t know, but I’m sure we’ll find out soon!

Here is the link to Elder Robin Smith’s blog, if you’re interested. Isn’t he handsome?

Here are the guidelines for comments for this podcast blog:

Leave a comment on my blog and let me know what you have learned by listening to the podcast, even if this one is your very first one!  I also need to know if you are interested in being put in the drawing for one of the classes – because I want to make sure that the persons who win the classes are actually interested in taking it and completing it.

I will draw the lucky winners at midnight on April 12^th, so you have more time to enter, thanks to the glitch with our Host Server.

Because of YOU, my listening friends, I have cause to celebrate!!

© 2011 Annie Smith   All Rights Reserved

 

Just as I was finishing the blog for Podcast #190, our main server decided to quit. This isn’t our computers but the host we use.

Heck!!

So, the podcast will be up shortly!!

…

Linda Patrick! Congratulations, Linda!! And thanks to all of you for your wonderful comments.

Sorry to be posting so late today — this Sunday turned out to be busier than usual.

i’m rushing off to record Podcast #189, so stay tuned!!

And Linda — email me your mailing address!!

Oh, so I didn’t want the podcast to be extra long, and I wanted let Diane and Helen speak for themselves — so there was a lot that I didn’t say. I don’t think I gave the book an adequate enough review, nor gave you enough time to comment for the opportunity to win the book, because the podcast went up late.

So, the winner will be drawn at midnight tonight, april 9th. There’s also another reason… I’m going to do a special podcast that will be released tomorrow, Sunday with a new Give-Away.

about Twelve by Twelve…

When I was scrambling to edit and do the intro to the podcast, I could not find my copy of the book!! How can I speak about it just from memory? Last evening, before hunkering down to knit, I found the book in a pile of other books for review. I sat down with the book instead of knitting and began reading it from cover to cover.

(I wish I could have super-imposed the cover of Twelve by Twelve here, but alas, I’m not that clever ; )

The thing about this book is that you MUST read it cover to cover.

It’s not just about the quilts…

(Quilts from top to bottom:

Dandelion by Terri, Chocolate by Diane, and Passion by Gerrie)

although it is a lot about the quilts.

But it’s also about the techniques, which is are wide and varied, as are the styles in which each of the Quilt Artists worked.

It’s also about their commitment to the project, their support systems at home that helped them accomplish their goals, but it’s most about:

The Art Quilters…

(Quilts from top to bottom:

Community by Terry, Twelve by Karen, and Twelve by Gerrie)

Incredible, ALL.

This is a coffee table book, I realized.

Deserving a viewing place so others who visit your home can see the beautiful photography, read the profiles and be inspired. And, you can pick it up and resume reading…

Here are some other photos:

Annie And Helen

Two clever quilters…

Annie and Diane

There are a couple of comments that I want to share with you that came in yesterday’s podcast:

“Nice interview ladies! And now we can add that in addition to being at Midsommer Quilting and then Festival of Quilts in Birmingham, England, our quilts will also be shown at Quilt Festival in Houston, USA! (Annie, no need to put me in a drawing for the book — I’ve already got one!)”     Kristin La Flamme

I have to say HOORAY!!! We’ll all be able to see them in October!!! And I can bet more than one of these ladies will be there, too. Hmmm, I can I suggest a meet-up, so the fans of the book can meet you all??!! I think that would be a stellar idea ; )

Then… this comment…

“Hi Annie — HAPPY BIRTHDAY to your podcast!! I think I read your home page correctly and your podcast is now 6 years old! Congratulations!”     Diane Loomis

Yes, it’s that time again….

April 9th was the day that I first started to podcast — 6 years ago today!

I’ve talked about a lot of quilty goodness since then and will continue to talk about quilting for a long time to come. Quilting has seen a renaissance in 1976, continued to ride the swell thanks to…

our Quilting Embassador, Alex Anderson, and her legacy of bringing quilting into homes everywhere and inspiring us to quilt, quilt, quilt…

and technology is giving us more ways to enjoy our craft. Quilting will continue to warm our hearts and our homes long after we are gone and our posterity continues to quilt.

Nonnie asked me, “Future podcast you might want to explore…. THE NEW MODERN QUILT GUILDS that are popping up all over the country. Young women coming together to learn how to quilt but with a different sense of style and sensiblity. Their projects are different, their colors are different, their patterns and the way they are learning to quilt is different… yes they are forming their own guilds but they are also learning form the internet.”

I heard ya! It’s on my list!

Ok, since you have til midnight tonight, I want to hear from you — and I’ll pick the winner after midnight tonight. Don’t forget!

Happy Quilting!!

©2011 Annie Smith   All Rights Reserved

 

 

Program #189 — Twelve by Twelve
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Running time: 00:46:16 Size: 42.5 MB

Quilters! I found an interview for the podcast that I thought was lost!! I interviewed Helen Conway and Diane Perin Hock at Pacific International Quilt Festival last October just before I left for Quilt Market. I am OVERJOYED to have found this interview, so I can share it with you!

Unfortunately, the pictures we took the day of the interview are gone with the wind, as they say – but you’ll find some great pictures of Diane and Helen and their quilts on the following links:

twelveby12.org

Helen Conway’s website

Helen’s blog

Diane’s blog

And, in keeping with the Give-Away-A-Day theme, here’s today’s Give-Away:

YOUR very own copy of the book, Twelve by Twelve!

So don’t forget to leave a comment, and please – when you leave a comment, please comment about the podcast/blog content, not simply that you’d love to win. I want your feedback ; )

And here is the winner of yesterday’s blog, for the Aurifil thread assortment:

Lucky you, Barb!! Email me your address so I can send your beautiful prize to you!

I really hope you’ll enjoy the interview.

©2011 Annie Smith   All Rights Reserved

Thread can make or (literally) break your quilt. Many antique quilts have fraying fabrics but the stitches are secure. Consider the picture below:

The fabric is disintegrated but the outline of the applique is held secure by the thread.

I’m so glad that we have choices for different types of threads! I remember sewing in the 1970’s and having one choice, Coats and Clarks. Not that it was bad thread, it was just the only choice in the fabric stores.

Today, I love to have beautiful threads to choose from for my quilts — and there’s really only one that I use anymore. Aurifil. Even the name is beautiful. Here’s a little sample of their colors:

Here’s a larger sample of their colors:

Molto Bene!! (Aurifil is located in Italy)

It comes in this tidy little package:

If you notice the fine print on the cover, you’ll see that Aurifil thread comes in a variety of thicknesses, 12, 28, 40 and 50. If you want to know what the difference is, hop over to Aurifil and they’ll tell you all about their threads. You’ll even see some cool videos featuring Pat Sloan ; )

This is what my Aurifil threads collection looks like:

You’ll notice that thread spool colors are orange — for 50 weight, and gray — for 28 weight. What’s the difference? 50 weight is finer and I use that for piecing, machine quilting and hand applique. 28 weight is thicker and more lustrous and I use that for fine machine applique and free motion thread play.

The colors of Aurifil thread are scrumptious, are they not?!

This is how I “tote” my threads when I teach. I can see all of the colors clearly from the outside. And, it’s double-sided! Each cubby will hold one large spool or three small spools. Seen this carrier before?

You may have at a Quilt Show, where they sell for $12 – $20.

Will you laugh if I tell you that this carrier is actually a generic Hot Wheels box?

Yeah, it really is. I talked about this box about 5 years ago on the podcast. It’s one of my favorite things, especially for quilty get-aways.

I noticed the functionality of this box after I bought one for the Boy Wonder when he was into Hot Wheels. He still has his collection is his box…

Now, Aurifil is doing this very cool thing… Designers of the Month

and guess what? I AM ONE! I will be designing the June Project, which will be previewed at Quilt Market in Salt Lake City in May, and will be released in June on the Aurifil website. I promise it will be fun and worth the wait. There will be threads given away as prizes and a super prize for those who make the project and enter it into the contest on the Aurifil website.

So… this is a Give-Away-A-Day, right?

So, what’s the prize?

First, I have to announce yesterday’s winner of Lyric Kinard’s Art+Quilt book…. drum roll please….

(I do things the old-fashioned way. It’s not very scientific but it takes a prettier picture.)

Congratulations, Debbie! Email me your address and I will get the book in the mail to you pronto, as they say in Italy.

Ok, enough waiting — here it is:

A sweet assortment of Aurifil threads, just for YOU! Three spools of 28 weight, three spools of 50 weight and a 5-pack of the assorted weights.

How cool is that?!

I love the label on the assorted weights, It says “Feeling the Thread of Your Passion”. That’s what it is alright!!

So, leave me a comment and the winner will be chosen at midnight, April 8th. Tomorrow there will be a new podcast and another chance to win a fabulous prize. And guess what, if you’ve already won, you can win again! I’m not taking winners names out of the drawing.

Here’s a little “Happy Spring!” picture that makes me happy, even though it’s a rainy day:

Beautiful flowers, inspiring colors

Here’s a photo of my hand applique quilt sample, finished and ready to be delivered to my LQS so quilters can sign up for class

It turned out pretty good — and it’s a super simple sample of hand applique

Just in case you want to see a close-up of the focus fabric, it IS a beauty!

and one last picture, because  the blog is telling me that it’s not quite done yet… and it’s raining, again, today…

better get prepared!!

Happy Quilting!!

Annie

 

©2011 Annie Smith  All Rights Reserved

Program #188 — The Quilt Will Tell You What It Wants
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Running time: 00:32:18 Size: 29.7 MB

And Give-Away-A-Day starts today!! Leave a comment for a chance to win your very own copy of Lyric Kinard’s book, Art+Quilt. The winner will be drawn and announced in tomorrow’s blog. Good luck!!

I learned a looooong time ago, and after a few painful lessons, that the Quilt will tell you what it wants. And I listen, even when I groan under the additional work that it’s going to cost me. But — I am never unhappy with the outcome. On the contrary, if I didn’t listen, I would look at that finished quilt and remember what I COULD have done with it – and that I just really wanted “good enough” after all, which never is.

Here is the quilt that I created for a beginning Hand Applique class at my LQS:

Pretty simple, yes?

Then, because I can never leave well-enoough alone, here is the additional way they can make their quilt:

Also very pretty. I actually really love the hearts on-point and to add a plain square to set off the hearts.

So the more I looked at this quilt on the design board, the more it kept calling me… “make this little change”

Oooh, look how the turquoise fabric I purchased for the other quilt sets off the coral hearts!

Then, and here’s the BIG then, I saw the possibility of this:

Which transformed into this:

And just sets off the hearts in the quilt in this very pretty little way:

So now, I’m embroidering those four squares and eight inset-triangles like there is no tomorrow. Man, it takes time. So I’m entertaining myself with this:

And oh my, how I love it! (available on Netflix instant streaming)

Lastly here is a recent picture of the “little peanut”, Cambria:

and now, don’t forget to leave a comment for a chance to win Art+Quilt… and then come back tomorrow to see if you’ve won, and what the next Give-Away will be!

©2011 Annie Smith   All Rights Reserved

Recently I was going through the closet by the front door, to find out where my projector was that I take with me when I do lectures. We couldn’t find the dang thing anywhere.

But this is not a coat closet, or a closet where we keep the vacuum or the Swiffer — it’s the closet where I keep my quilting stuff, silly. I hang quilt tops, pieces of quilt tops, lengths of yardage on hangers, along with bags with recent purchases that I want to hide. Usually they’re gifts for snoopy family members and they never think to look in there. Why would they — nothing in there belongs to them.  Ok, so after shopping for Kirsten’s birthday  — a really cool book of fashion trends from the turn of the century — I found the empty bag with tissue paper in it.

Pulled it out off the hanger, and as I was preparing to stuff it into the recycle bin, I spied something black in the bottom. Hmmm, what could this be?

This is what I found:

three fat quarters, all the same fabric.

none of them had the selvage labeling on them, so I have no idea what collection they’re from or who the manufacturer is.

Even more curious is WHY I bought them! and WHERE did I buy them? I have no recollection of these fabrics, although I remember that I was shopping in Pacific Grove two years ago, which is when I bought the book for Kirsten. (I even forgot to give it to her for THAT birthday, so she got it last year)

ok, so this is a cute little print, looks like fireworks, good colors for a focus fabric color palette…

So what to do with this fabric…?  hmmm….

I really like playing with a selection of fat quarters, like the quilts in the previous post (podcast #187), so I went to my studio and looked in my fat quarter shelves:

(My fat quarter shelves are recycled CD racks that we no longer use in our house. They’re from Mexico and we got them back before Y2k. If you fold your fabric just right, they are the size of a CD and fit perfectly on those shelves. I like re-purposing home items that we no longer care to use in the house. My studio is filled with items like this. They work really well)

And this is how I started:

I like this red with black… but I think I like the next one  better:

Yeah, I do like the second one better.

Then, I chose the rest:

Tone on tone white, black and white print, a splash of yellow for an eye-catcher, orange, red, green and blue. Those are all of the colors in the fireworks fabric, which I am going to use as the background fabric in all of the blocks so the colors can really come forward.

And here they are in value order:

So now I think I’ll have some fun playing with these fabrics. I busted my stash — no new fabric will be used. Even the fireworks fabric isn’t new — it’s two years old, for peet’s sake!

I’ll show you the blocks after I get all the fabrics cut and I start designing the blocks.

On another note, I want to congratulate Lyric Montgomery Kinard of Cary, NC for being selected as Teacher of the Year!!

To celebrate, I’m going to review her book in tomorrow’s podcast and then give it away to a lucky winner.

This is going to kick off a series of podcasts and blogs that have a give-away-a-day. I have a treasure box filled with the coolest give-away items and it’s about time to give them away, to YOU! So, starting tomorrow, there will be a give-away each day and you need to leave a comment before midnight each day because the lucky winners will be announced in the next day’s post.

Stay tuned!!

©2011  Annie Smith   All Rights Reserved

 

Right-Click or Ctrl-Click on the icon below and select “save link as…” to download the podcast to your computer.
Of course, you can also download this podcast to your iPod/iPhone/iPad through iTunes.

Running time: 00:41:30 Size: 40 MB

Yep, it really happened. No pictures, no saved emails, no email addresses — so that means I lost your’s. If you sent me a picture in an email in the past, please resend it to me so I have it.

My Boy Wonder, off to see the world:

and here he is in Cuernavaca, Mexico with his Mission President and Sister Spannaus:

He’s doing well, battling spiders and dogs — and is as happy as a clam. No quilts… it’s too hot there!

Exploring Fabric Choices Quilt series. All of the blocks in these quilts is the same — only one block design used. Only the layouts are different.

Red and Black Quilt

This one will be familiar to you. This is the first one that I did, where I learned how to use fork pins for perfectly butted seams and created batting boards. I love the drama of the red and black.

#2 – Metro Blue Summer

Created from Marcus Brothers’ Metro Blue fabric line and made the summer that I visited them in NYC. I love turquoise and chocolate!

#3 — Low Tide

Made with Marcus Brothers Surf and Sand collection. Low contrast, no real true dark fabric is used here. Perfect for a nap at a beach cottage.

#4 – The Quilt Show quilt

Here are the blocks that I used for Episode 209 of The Quilt Show. I had these blocks for the last three years and finally decided to make the quilt top. This is a very special quilt for me — a memento of a dream fulfilled. I made 6″ versions of the block for Alex And Ricky’s keepsake quilts that each of their guests make for them.

#5 — Picnic with Sue

I used Susan Branch’s Martha’s Vineyard fabric collection for this one. I got the fabric when I interviewed her. I love the bright colors and Sue’s style. I hand appliqued the Grandmother’s Flower Garden hexagon flowers.

#6 — Pink and Chocolate

Civil War reproduction fabrics. Loads of fun. Instead of using 10 fat quarters to make a 9-block quilt, I decided to make a bed-sized version and used 20 fabrics to make the 20-block quilt. It works! Kirsten has decided that she needs this one ; )

#7 — Black and Bright

It never fails when I teach this class that I end up finding another fat quarter collection to make a new version of the quilt. I love using solid black as a canvas and then allowing my quilter to create beautiful quilting detail.

#8 — Williamsburg quilt

I bought these fabulous Revolutionary War reproduction fabrics when I visited the Champlain Valley Quilt Guild just before Cambria was born and used them for the online class instruction. I love this collection of fabrics!

There are still more quilts in the series to come. I have two that are waiting to be sewn into a quilt top and one that will be cut up to sewn into blocks this week. There is just “something” about this block, this quilt, that I love to work on. Don’t know why — except maybe that it has something to do with the changing nature of ONE block and where you put the light- medium- and- dark that changes these quilts so dramatically.

And speaking of Cambria, here she is now — 16 months old and as precious as ever: