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Sunday, September 18th, 2011

Anyone who understands psychology knows that it is much easier for anyone to answer a question that has just two possible choice answers. In other words, do not ask your child or spouse “What do you want for breakfast?” Instead, say something like this: “Would you like cold cereal with blueberries or a bagel with cream cheese?” By limiting choices available, it streamlines the answer and zeroes in on a target.

In relating this premise to the greater world of quilting, it seems that today, particularly with all of the Internet patterns, fabrics and publications available, one can get bogged down when trying to make decisions. Often I am asked for advice in sorting out which quilt book is the best for a beginner, which pattern book is most helpful in identifying traditional block names, and which magazine is the one best to choose if one has only the financial means to buy one or two subscriptions.

The truth of the matter is an overload of everything today in the quilting world. Choosing just one blog to follow, one fabric line to purchase, or one time period of quilting from which to reproduce selected patterns is like being a kid in a penny candy shop asked to select just one piece of candy when he’d like to bring home the whole shop! Don’t get me wrong! It is wonderful to have such a wide variety of options but the choices can be mindboggling!

Never before has quilting taken a place so prominent worldwide nor been such a lucrative pursuit for so many individuals and corporations.

Traditionally, quilts have been created for fundraisers. Many organizations today solicit quilts for raffles and many quilt guilds rely on funds raised by group-made quilts to finance their monthly programs. One thing is clear. None of us can support every “good cause” among a sea of good efforts.

In my own personal life as a quilter, I find that I have collected fabrics, books, magazines and patterns for close to 30 years now. If I had ten more lifetimes, I would not complete all of the possible projects I already have lined up. And then, of course, as I progressed in skill levels from a beginner to an advanced level quilter, instead of relying on established patterns, I wanted to design my own. Sometimes, it is difficult to think about making a quilt at all due to increasing arthritis and intermittent hand numbness. The golden years would be so, if physical ailments did not color one’s day with constant pain. Yet, I try to continue to be as creative as time permits and as physical abilities allow but with limitations that make quilting difficult, choosing a worthy project becomes even more of a daunting task.

These days, I like to think “small” and make quilts that I know I’ll have an opportunity to finish. Struggling with making large bed quilts from start to finish is not even on my radar at the moment. In the meantime, my plan is to poke away and try to finish some of the needlework and quilt projects I have already started. I wonder how many people who have been quilting for awhile now are in the same “boat.”

Patricia Cummings

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Saturday, September 10th, 2011

The ingenuity and creative vision of quilters is always amazing, an example of which is a purple pieced quilt made by Charlotte Croft of Vermont in 2010. The quilter calls the quilt “Sheily’s “Green” Quilt.” I always look for Charlotte’s quilts at the Billings Farm and Museum’s annual quilt show as she exhibits there annually. In describing her quilt entry this year, she says:

“People may question the title of this quilt since it’s primarily purple. It seems appropriate though since most of the top was made from three pairs of granddaughter Shiela’s flannel pajamas. This is her 21st birthday quilt. She chose the fabrics that join the squares together.”

Charlotte's quilt
The top of this quilt includes pieces of flannel from used pajamas, a “green” effort, indeed!

In an e-mail, Charlotte tells me: “People seemed to like Sheily’s “Green” quilt. They were especially fascinated with the pockets I included in a couple blocks. When I gave it to her for her 21st birthday, I tucked little notes in the pockets. I love that it’s hung by the stairs [in the Billings Farm & Museum's current quilt exhibit] so the back can be seen.”

Charlotte appliquéd a tee-shirt onto the center of the back of the quilt because Sheila loves butterflies and some were featured on the shirt. To us, this quilt represents the best of the Yankee frugality mentality that encompasses using what one has to make something else that is very special. Congratulations to Charlotte for being tuned in to the current recycling trend and for making a memorable keepsake for her granddaughter.

Patricia Cummings

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Thursday, September 8th, 2011

Half the fun of making a quilt is its planning! Of course, the colors have to be decided upon, first of all. Sometimes, the colors choices are dictated by the overall design. One can choose a traditional pattern or can spend a little time and come up with an original quilt design. Two color quilts are a “no-brainer” that seem to communicate an aesthetic of simplicity as a value held by the quiltmaker. Quilts can be as complex as anyone wants to them to be. A myriad selection of embellishments can be readily purchased today. Personally, I love to stand in front of an art quilt hung vertically and enjoy its overall effect. Only then do I zero in on specific techniques sometimes saying to myself, “What techniques or materials were used to achieve this effect?”.

Today, there are many artists who choose quilts and fiber art as mediums of expression, often using their skills in painting to create one-of-a-kind pieces. The result is terrific! In the world of quilting, there are the common, drag-around quilts enjoyed by children and then there are master quilts only handled with white gloves. In between those two categories, other quilts are made for many different reasons! Is there a wedding coming up? It’s likely that a quilt will be given. Quilts are often used to raise money… for guilds, for charitable causes, to raise awareness, to celebrate a success, to comfort the sick and the dying, to cover the neo-natal units in hospitals and to decorate for special religious holidays, among other reasons. Some people even make quilts for the sole use of their pets! I have seen photos of quilted horse “blankets.” Some of those are embroidered Crazy Quilts!

No matter what the reason for making it quilt, the process can elevate one’s mood and provide a sense of connection to other quilters who have gone before and to other people who currently make quilts and understand the enchantment of them. It’s hard to explain why but when one meets quilters, one knows they are “good people.” Quilting takes time, perseverance, skill, determination and like anything that is worthwhile, a willingness to work and to pay attention to details. The end product is fun to see but also means an end to a journey but also signal that it is time to begin another project. Quilts can mark where we are emotionally at any given time, and in seeing them later, we may recall specific circumstances surrounding us at the time of their making. Eventually, the more quilting we do, the better skills we hone. Make quilst for 30 years and you will look upon your first quilt with embarrassment, thinking it child’s play and you will realize how far you have come.

Quilting is still a growing hobby that more and more people want to learn. Homemade gifts, made by hand, seem to come from the heart. Think of the familiar antique design of “heart and hand.” Whenever I see that image, I recall the Shaker motto, “Hands to work, hearts to God.” To satisfy an urge to be creative, to do something that can be simple or challenging, or even to calm your nerves, take up the art of quilting. You will never look back!

Patricia Cummings

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Monday, August 29th, 2011

Quilting

a poem by Patricia Cummings

August 29, 2011

With wild abandon I still stitch away,
While piles of fabric lay in sheer disarray.
I cannot be neat in the midst of a project
My method of working defies any logic.

A block is too large? I shall just cut it down.
A block is too small? I shall have to add on.
This quilt won’t be perfect, it’s not meant to be,
But when all’s said and done, it’s an expression of me.

So I shall not fuss and I shall not fume.
I am told that for everyone, there always is room.
If not here on earth, then at heavenly gates;
With that goal in mind, I shall toil till it’s late.

Better times are awaiting, I can’t linger here.
But meanwhile my quilting will fill final years.
As beauty surrounds me, stitch upon stitch,
I shall conjure a pattern with which to bewitch.

Content to be busy, with no idle hands,
I shall think of my forebears from faraway lands.
Perhaps they made quilts; perhaps they did not,
I shall never know, exactly their lot.

I envision their lives; some working on looms
or serving as mule spinners in factory doom.
And without much aplomb –
Their dreams quickly were – forever entombed.

And so we continue, their spirits and mine,
Like brambles of roses interwoven in time.
Each day we press on and so it shall be…
each day we are closer – to ETERNITY.

May threads of discordance ever be few
And may all of your quilts contain “patches of blue.”
For Nature surrounds us to always admire
and guarantee joy, as we strive to inspire.

crazy quilt by Pat Cummings - 2007
“Busy” Crazy Quilt by Pat Cummings

Copyright 2011. Patricia Cummings. Quilter’s Muse Publications, Concord, NH. All rights reserved.
Questions? Write to pat@quiltersmuse.com

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Friday, July 29th, 2011

The United States Department of State, on behalf of the U.S. Embassy Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, is seeking a “female” candidate to present a comprehensive program to groups of economically-challenged and often illiterate women in Saudi Arabia and craft group organizers who wish to work as “enablers.”

The applicant for this short-term position should be an expert in quilting techniques, the history of American quilts, and know about the preservation of textiles. The program is an attempt to reach out to under-served women of that country. Ideally, the person seeking this teaching position would speak Arabic, although translators can be arranged. The work week in that country is Saturday to Wednesday. The time-frame for the five day program is late August, September, or early October 2011. Travel expenses will be reimbursed and an honorarium paid.

The Embassy would like to have a list of the candidate’s publications, previous (recent) speaking/teaching engagements and contacts for same, and a biography. If more lead time were involved and my circumstances were a bit different, this is something I would have loved to pursue. If any other quilt professional is interested in this opportunity, please contact me and I will forward additional details and contact information.

Patricia Cummings, quilt historian, teacher, author

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Sunday, June 26th, 2011

small-qlt-19th-century
This small 19th century scrap quilt may have been made for a child’s doll. It is polychromatic (many colors) and features stripes, plaids and other print fabrics left over from other projects.

Some of the most charming quilts that I have collected are made entirely of “scraps,” those inevitable pieces of leftover fabrics from projects. Every quilter has them. Only the foolish throw scraps away. Although quilting did not begin as a “thrifty” art, as is commonly thought by those who have no concept of quilting’s true beginnings, it has evolved into an art form that can use small pieces of cloth to advantage in many a project. Even the smallest of squares, rectangles, and even odd-shaped pieces can find new life in the construction of doll quilts, small quilts and crazy quilts.

a miniature quilt I made
This small quilt is based on an antique one collected in Maine. I’ve converted the original size blocks (3 1/2″) to 1/2 inches, trying to use the same colors as in the original and the same type of print motifs. I added one bright green lime color fabric, just to ensure that folks in the future would realize that the quilt was made in the 20th century.

A few years ago, I created the miniature reproduction quilt shown above that has 1,039 pieces. When my supply of suitable reproduction fabrics (and a few authentic scraps) from the nineteenth century (1800s) ran out, while making this “charm” quilt (no two pieces alike), I had to start buying fabrics. In this case, the quilter did use one fabric, twice! The minimum cut at the fabric store is 1/8 yard. The project became costly to finish! I only needed enough fabric to make a hexagon that measures 1/2 inch, finished size, so in the process, I accumulated another stash of “scrap” fabric! It has come in handy!

In today’s economy, it is becoming even more important to have a ready “stash” of fabric. Recently, someone mentioned that she has decided to pull back on giving away older fabrics in her stash. If you want to make a quilt that is truly unique and yours alone, use fabrics that are now no longer available to purchase. That won’t be difficult. The usual shelf life of fabric is anywhere from three to six months. Manufacturers are ordering smaller amounts of fabric from their overseas suppliers who print the cloth. They want to be sure of selling out each new line. For that reason, make sure that you always buy more than enough fabric for any quilt you plan to make, especially if making a quilt that requires matching fabrics.

Have fun with your scrap bag and if you get tired of your own scraps, consider trading scraps with your friends. I guarantee that you’ll have lots of fun!

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Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

Here are a few more quilt photos of quilts we truly enjoyed seeing at the quilt show in Chester, Vermont last week. The first is a quilt owned by a local resident who inherited it from someone whose mother lived in Durham County, United Kingdom. The label that describes the quilt says that it is believed to have been made in the late 1800s. It is completely hand-quilted in typical quilting line patterns of the area. “Amy Em” is a much celebrated quilter whom I often think about when looking at a quilt like this one. At the same time, I recall the many studies by Dorothy Osler, a quilt historian who has written books and taught for the University of Nebraska graduate program in quilt studies in Lincoln, NE, where I studied quilt history via a long-distance learning class (their first class in 2001). These kinds of quilts also represent the Welsh wholecloth tradition. It is not that the whole top is composed on only one piece of fabric. They did not have looms that large to make such a cloth in those days. Long pieces of cloth are conjoined. See our many files on our main website that show examples of wholecloth quilts and explain their traditions. Just key in “Wholecloth North Country Quilts” in the search bar at .

Durham, UK quilt
North Country quilt from UK

Another exceptionally rare type of quilt, most often seen in Maine and Massachusetts, is this example. It is a Log Cabin quilt that is finished by completing each block with a separate binding and then conjoining them by whipstitching from the back. This Log Cabin has red center blocks, sometimes thought to represent the “hearth” of the home in current folklore. Pam Weeks of New Hampshire presented a paper at the 2010 Seminar about these unusual quilts and at the present time, she has curated an exhibit of collected “potholder” quilts, as they are sometimes called, and these can be viewed at the New England Quilt Museum until July 2011.
Potholder Log Cabin quilt
Log Cabin Quilt, “potholder” style

Another treasure is a Civil War quilt thought to have been made in the 1860s. Two members of Ellen Rowe-Levesque’s family who lived on Main St., Chester, VT served in the Civil War: Levesque’s great grandfather and his father (born in 1814). A chance meeting with the person who bought this quilt at auction has led to a long term friendship between the two women, both avid fans of quilts.

Civil War quilt
Looks like the “Streak of Lightening” pattern, if turned in another direction. Double pink fabrics bespeak of the 19th century. This is actually a “tied” comfort or comforter. I did not see any actual quilt stitches on this quilt, although I did not view it at great length, only in passing.

Another quilt was located on a clothes drying rack in the hallway of the building. I recognized as a quilt block that I have reproduced myself. It is called “Caesar’s Crown” and I made an example of a similar block to publish in an article about the many I have discovered. There is a very large file about this topic on our main website: .

Caesar's Crown quilt
Caesar’s Crown Quilt seen in Chester, Vermont, May 2011

All of the quilts in this show were an inspiration and a total delight. I have published some exceptional examples and I am so thankful that owners of old quilts continue to bring them before the public eye. This increases awareness of their importance and calls to mind the work of our ancestors within a context. Thanks again to all who participated in this event. By no means have I published all the photos I might have shared, but did want you to see a smattering of them. Perhaps you will plan on attending this great event next year!

Patricia Cummings, quilt historian,
Photos courtesy of James Cummings, copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved.

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Sunday, April 3rd, 2011

If you do not like any mention of religion or politics, do yourself a favor. Stop reading this post which will touch on both subjects.

You know, I mainly stay in my little corner of the universe and am perfectly content to read, write, research, make quilts, and play the happy housewife (that I am). Occasionally, I turn on the television news or listen to NPR for updates on what is happening in the world. Usually, there is little good news to offer and the past month has brought word of astounding and terrifying events. Some of them have been inflicted on humankind by Mother Nature. If I were her, I’d be pretty upset, too, with people littering the world with their trash, poisoning the fish, spilling oil in the oceans and polluting the liquid that is at the very root of health and well-being: water!

The environment and repercussions that are a result of its misuse are one thing. Throw into the equation political “servants” who seek their own aggrandizement, first and foremost. “Getting ahead” seems to be the goal; not doing what they can to honestly represent the people who elected them or albeit, in truth, the majority of the people in their state or district who by NOT VOTING elected them by default in the mid-term elections. Next, we have religious pundits. To them, their way is the ONLY way; their brand of religion the only valid one. If they could get you to stand still long enough, they’d fill your head with so much gibberish, it would spin. In the name of GOD himself, they want to redirect people’s lives. Why is there so much of a need to control others?

Ever since hearing about one governor’s suggestion to fine “obese” people and smokers, I have been wondering just how such laws would be implemented. Would it be on the honor system? People would turn themselves in to be subjected to a penalty? Would there be a required weigh-in? Or would doctors be asked to violate confidentiality laws to expose people who might be eligible for this fine? This is all too bizarre! Some days I wake up and wonder if I am still living in the same United States that I have enjoyed for six decades.

It seems that the weakest are the ones picked on. The cry is to cut Planned Parenthood funding, cut funds for autistic kids, cut pensions, Medicaid and Medicare – as if all of the people receiving those services are rich and really are just “exploiting the system.” The homelessness problem in America is another big issue and one that is easy for politicians to avoid and not address. God forbid if a person is middle class and wants to send a child to college. The average amount of loans taken to make it through a four year program is now $100,000., as revealed today. Fifty thousand dollars per year for an undergraduate program is very common. There is money for some students, if their families are poor enough.

The middle class is falling through the cracks. Society is failing in many regards. There is a break down of morality and ethics. The general public, religious leaders and legislators all seem to be very short-sighted and some have proven that they do not think about the ramifications of their actions before committing them. They are too self-serving for that. As we have seen, death is sometimes the result of that kind of thinking. At last count, twenty-four people have been killed by angry mobs in Afghanistan in retribution for a U.S. cleric burning the Koran and calling the book “evil.” Of course, the murders of innocent people were not evil? Go figure.

We are asked to pull in our belts, to pray and to wait for a better day. It seems that we are being taken over by those who would govern but who are as ideologically-warped as Hitler was and that scares the devil out of me. While the every-day Joe or Jane is busy trying to make a living or struggling to somehow make ends meet, our culture is undergoing a radical change, and the public is not even noticing. When will we wake up, America? What can we do to put an end to this nonsense? Next election, vote your conscience.

The answer to our problems is to turn all the leaders of this country into quilters. They would be so busy buying “fat quarters,” they would spend less time “observing them,” and tend to their own business. Actually, quilting has been found to be quite therapeutic and deemed very good for “nervous” ladies (and presumably others) by Dr. Dunton in the nineteenth century. Quilting is a panacea that creates happiness in the making and joy in the giving!

Shaker motto on Christmas decoration

“Hands to Work, Hearts to God” is a Shaker motto that I incorporated in this Christmas ornament in 1991. To read more about the Shakers, visit our file about Sabbathday Lake Shakers of Maine on our .

“” = a Shaker song. We can learn a lot from the simplicity and cooperative spirit of the Shakers.

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Saturday, March 19th, 2011

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Rhodendron and bee. Quilter’s are always busier than bees, as you may know! Photo by James Cummings

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a poem by Patricia Cummings

You know that you’re a quilter
When your home could be a shop
So filled it is with notions
and cloth from Fabric Hops.

You know that you’re a quilter
When you need a live-in chef
To remind you of the need to eat
When you’d rather just be left…

To mark and cut and piece and quilt
And sing the whole day through.
You know you are a quilter
AND the things you like to do!

Your children sleep under quilts
That you have made with care.
Your husband wears a quilted vest
Even though others stare.

Your toaster sports a cover,
Quilted with your two hands.
As you work on finishing a quilt
yet another one you plan.

The world is prettier still
Due to quilts that you have made.
They adorn every surface
in homes that are humble or grand.

Doll quilts, wall quilts
And bed quilts, too,
Greet visitors and loved ones
And they’re all made by you.

To all quilters now we say:

May your blessing be many,
And your troubles be few.
Take time today to celebrate
All that you do!

Today, in honor of National Quilter’s Day, Quilter’s Muse Publications is offering 20% off on our e-book on CD that explores the life and work of Ellen Webster, New Hampshire’s Early Quilt Historian. No special equipment is needed to read the book, just your own computer.

book cover

Page to view more information:

Ellen’s life is inspirational. She was an accomplished musician, teacher, college instructor, woman’s club member, and dedicated historian and quilt lecturer who was very much a public figure in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. No research was done on her life until I conducted a massive research project in 2008. Read more about the product on our website. The price of the book is $19.95 (March 19-22 only) and I will even waive shipping. If interested, please contact me to arrange payment:

Patricia Cummings

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Tuesday, March 15th, 2011

Yesterday, after I realized that I needed a new rotary cutter, we ventured out to the nearest JoAnn Fabrics. I spotted two that had 60 mm cutting blades. The deciding factor was price: $28.99 sounded a lot better than $45.99. When I reached the checkout counter, I was pleased to learn that a sale was going on and I happily brought home the new item for about $16.00. I was gleeful until I looked at the back of the package. In small print, there is a warning that the product may cause cancer or be harmful to women and reproductive health. Alarmed, I called the company to ask just how this benign looking object can cause cancer. The representative’s response is that the warning was necessary because of the law in California that requires manufacturers to divulge potential danger of any product. He added that one would have to grind up 50,000 cutters and eat them and yet, the person might not die or even get sick from the product.

One of my friends pointed me in the direction of a video on YouTube. Seems that some folks set out to determine the gullibility of the American public. A woman with a petition in hand to ban Dihydrogen monoxide asked dozens of individuals to sign it. She explained that this substance could be found everywhere: in ponds, lakes, used to make fertilizer…and it had health effects like excessive urination if taken in quantity. What is this harmful substance? H20, in other words, water! Yet, the general (unknowingly) public were happily signing their names until a man stepped in and asked one signer if he was against water. The respondent said, “No, of course not! That’s crazy!” No doubt, you would say the same!

Dihydrogen monoxide is another scientific name for water, a term that is hardly ever used, but handy for a hoax situation like the one just described. The Federal Government mandates descriptions of products used in the workplace and requires a list of physical properties and precautions for use. Someone has a funny bone. There is a Material Safety Data Sheet for Dihydrogen monoxide!

There is an old saying: “Believe half of what you see and none of what you hear.” I have come to the conclusion that life itself should come with a warning: “This condition online pharmacy cvs be fatal.” Now, it’s time for breakfast. I can assure you that I will find better use for my new rotary cutter than grinding it up and sprinkling it on my oatmeal!

With many thanks to my Facebook friends who always “keep me in stitches!”

Patricia Cummings

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Monday, January 17th, 2011

Recently, my friend Betty Wilson designed a unique quilt on her computer and then made it for her son, Alex, who teaches English to Japanese people in Japan. His girlfriend loves Native American designs and that was the inspiration for the quilt.

computer design

Computer design

Alex asked for “subtle” colors but Betty wanted to add the color turquoise to give the quilt some brightness.

Alex's quilt

Vance Wilson, Betty’s husband who is currently a visiting professor in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Alex, their son, hold up the finished quilt in this photo.

Betty is fairly new to quilting. She has written four books, the latest of which is online pharmacy cvs which I reviewed on my website when it was first published by Schiffer in 2003. One of Betty’s hobbies is collecting and selling old handkerchiefs. She and Vance live on a farm in Wisconsin, when they are not traveling. She makes terrific apple butter and jellies and at one point, raised pheasants. In November, I finally had the chance to meet her, after being an Internet friend for what seems like forever. Now that she has taken up quilting and seems to enjoy it, we hope to see many more quilts! Be sure to read the review of her book: and to visit her website: She’s a fun gal to know!

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

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Saturday, January 8th, 2011

Quilters are extraordinary people, if you haven’t yet noticed yet. Quilters meet in groups called guilds which are always wishing to support local causes like the Make A Wish Foundation, C.A.S.A., the Ronald McDonald House and so many other worthy causes it is impossible to name them all. In times of war, quilters join together to make quilts for the families of the fallen, as well as for veterans in hospitals. To honor those who have died from AIDS, a quilt composed of many individual panels was constructed. The quilt is now so large, there is no flat space left on earth to display it flat.

After 9-11, quilters made quilts for family members and to acknowledge their own horror at the unbelievable events of the day. In times past, quilters responded to hard times by recycling fibers from garments to make warm bed coverings, although that is online pharmacy cvs, and this practice was a more limited occurrence than most people realize. Like today, those who would think of making a quilt would have preferred to do so with brand new cotton fabrics. As the TV commercial says, “Cotton is the fabric of our lives.”

Many quilters today strive to gain the recognition of their peers and to win prize money by entering shows. It’s big business, often involving long arm machines that cost more than your vehicle. Other quilters are bent on social causes like helping the folks in Haiti, although that effort was discouraged because in a very warm country, there is little need for warm quilts. Some people who sew have stepped up to the plate to make cotton dresses for little girls in Third World countries who, according to last night’s “Nightly News” broadcast, are given a dress that may be the only brand new item they will ever own.

If there is one word to describe quilters, it would be “generous.” From time immemorial, they gathered at quilting bees to share designs and the task of transforming a quilt top into a quilt. Often, they made quilts for sick church members or for a departing minister. Through their stitches, they could comment on political causes of the day, as well. While quilters enjoy color, there is no color barrier between them. They only need three words, “Quilting Spoken Here.”

Quilting proves that we all have something to offer. I am happy to be part of a greater Sisterhood and Brotherhood of those who quilt. We certainly differ individually but we all understand what it feels like to be creative and to produce something from the heart, the work of our hands and spirit, and that is our common ground.

The following link is for the new book published by The Museum of Folk Art in New York, in conjunction with their “Year of the Quilt” and various quilt exhibits.

Pat

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Saturday, January 1st, 2011

Inasmuch as the sun was shining this morning, and inasmuch as Jim and I have not been “up that way” since last summer, I proposed a trip to Keepsake Quilting. Always game for an outing in which he can take along his camera to catch local scenes, Jim agreed. When we left, the sun was so bright we needed sunglasses. There is little snow on the ground and the bright rays were helping what remains to continue melting. Many new businesses have sprung up along the roads we traveled to reach Centre Harbor, home of one of the country’s finest quilt shops, now part of the New Track Media Group, a big corporate conglomerate that bought up most every quilt magazine, as well as other quilt businesses in 2006.

Upon entering the shop, there were bolts of Christmas fabric in the entry way, most of them with large scale poinsettia designs. The shop has lots of “gifty” items like condiment plates, little stuffed animals, gift cards, mouse pads, and other items. The first thing I noticed were the long lines of quilters wanting to have fabric cut, but how eerily quiet the store was, considering the number of people present. A clerk’s voice could be heard, announcing that everything in the store was discounted, except for the consignment quilts.

I wandered around. They have some interesting “medleys” but in none of them did all the fabrics have appeal to me. They had jelly rolls galore. I have not quite figured out the advantage of buying fabric in that manner so walked right past them. In the “bolts” department, the only consistent price I was seeing was $10.26 per yard. Even with the so-called discount, this seems to be a higher price than I paid just a few months ago at the store. However, I was not so much concerned about price but in finding a fabric that could be inspirational, a take-off point for a new project. Unfortunately, I came away empty-handed.

I felt overwhelmed by the number of bolts of fabric. In some instances, less is more, particularly when one can’t see the forest for the trees, or the potential of cloth because one’s senses are so bombarded with designs of all kinds, all of which could stand on their own, none of which you’d want to be “matchy-matchy,” but also none of which seem to form an integral theme with any other. When I got in the car and Jim remarked that he thought I’d come out with a big bag of fabric, I said, “I must not be a real quilter, after all. I didn’t see anything I had to own.”

Like many quilters who have been quilting for a long time, I don’t need the glam, I don’t need the hype, and I certainly DO need to use the fabrics I already have in my stash. My goal is to make more quilts in 2011. Make it a great year for quilting!

Pat

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Sunday, December 26th, 2010

When I get to thinking that I haven’t “done much,” I only have to look at my own list of articles and books to know that is not true. Just in the last year, I have done research for “for-print” articles (in online pharmacy cvs magazine) on the following topics:

1) “The Lobster Claw Quilt”
2) “Feedsack Treasures”
3) “Pincushions and Needle Holders”
4) (I provided an excerpt of my book, Straight Talk About Quilt Care II”
5 & 6) “Vintage Embroideries to Warm the Spriit, Part 1 and Part II”

In addition, I engaged in writing a comprehensive article about Susan B. Anthony and her quilts (January 2011 issue); and one about the quilts of the New London Historical Society (Feb/March 2011 issue, soon to be delivered to your mailbox, if you are a subscriber).

I wrote an article requested by online pharmacy cvs (February issue).

I prepared learning materials for the Quilt Canada conference (about Sashiko and Trapunto).

I answered many Quilter’s Muse reader questions about textiles and quilts.

I wrote some buyer’s guides for e-Bay.

I researched and wrote a huge new book, now submitted for publication, title to be announced.

I have already prepared most all of the special feature articles for online pharmacy cvs magazine for 2011.

I started a second blog.

Sampler Quilt

I put this quilt together with quilt block reproductions I’d created of antique quilt (blocks) in my collection or some I have made to illustrate articles. I hope to finish quilting and binding it, within the next few months.

I presented a talk. I met new people and online friends. We attended many quilt shows and lectures and visited many museums. I guess I accomplished a few things, after all!

Oh, to be as productive in 2011! Cheers! Patricia Cummings

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online pharmacy cvs

Wednesday, December 8th, 2010

Yesterday’s mail brought a greeting of “online pharmacy cvs” from my friend in Germany. She is a very talented quilter! When I first “met” her, she was living in Ukraine but has since emigrated to Germany where she teaches quilting classes for a group of women in Chemnitz. Tamara Shpolyanska is certified as a “master quilter” by the International Quilters Association (IQA). I always enjoy seeing her latest quilts and thought I would share several photos she sent!

mystery quilt

Tamara enjoyed making this mystery quilt that was designed by Mona Follis. The colors are quite compelling and it is always fun to see appliqué added to a pieced quilt.

Christmas quilt

Tamara calls this quilt “Wintry Fantasy.” It measures 62 inches by 59 inches. Here is it seen hanging at the tenth annual quilt exhibition at Burgerzentrum Leipziger Strasse 39 in Chemnitz.

I am always happy to hear from Tamara and learn that she is well, enjoying her grandson, and quilting up a storm! I met her through online pharmacy cvs which used to offer a “find a penpal” column, a nice feature that was discontinued. We have been good friends for years now.

Patricia Cummings

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