Wow…. it’s hard to believe that the time is here… I can now take pre-orders (here) for my book–and yes, I’ll ship outside the US!  AQS worked like whirling dervishes I think; I had the page layout version of the manuscript to edit over Labor Day weekend, and they still got it to the printers who will have it ready in the nick of time to have at Quilt Market in Houston starting October 10th!  I’ll be at Market working to promote the book before I start teaching.  If you’d like to pre-order a copy, read on!

PRE-ORDER My book on understanding and using thread on the surface of a quilt which is now available!

You’ll learn everything you need to know about thread, from how it is made to what will make your life easier, and your quilting better!  You’ll learn how needles, tension, your workspace, sewing machine, stabilizers, and other tools all help you in using all those wonderful threads now available.  I’ll help you understand how and why certain tools and notions work best and when another option is a better choice.  And there are fun projects, from a quick and easy needle-keeper to decorative-stitch leaf appliques, free-motion quilting with fancy-fiddly threads, and a leaf-printed table-runner.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Please let me know if you would like me to autograph or add a dedication in the comments area of your order.

Please note that books will not ship until LATE OCTOBER.  The will be hot off the press in mid-October, when I am teaching at Quilt Festival in Texas.  I’ll need to get home, receive the books and process the orders (hopefully finding a little time to sleep, eat, and say hi to the family, too! )  Books will be sent in a Flat Rate Priority Mail envelope.

Price:  Book 28.95 +  US Delivery  5.00 =  33.95; prices for first class mail delivery to Canada ($11 in postage) and the Rest of the World ($13 in postage) are slightly higher due to postage.  Please make sure when you order you:

1. select the correct shipping (US, Canada, Rest of World)
2. put down correct snail mail and e-mail addresses
3. let me know if you’d like me to dedicate the book (for example:  to Denyse, Happy Quilting, Sarah); if there is no  note, I’ll just sign it on the title page.

Thanks…I can’t wait to actually hold a copy!

What fun… Quilting Arts magazine is having an online studio tour!   Here‘s a link to the QA website for information on the magazines.  On October 3rd, come back here or to Cate Prato’s blog, here, for links to all the participating artists/studios! FUN!   I’ll be back with pics on Saturday!  (and no, I’m not planning to tidy!)

This past spring, Park City Girl had a great idea:  since we can’t all go to the Quilt Festival in Chicago (spring) or Houston (fall), why not have our OWN show online!  I participated in the spring show, and am thrilled to help sponsor the fall version.  Click on the Bloggers’ Quilt Festival button in the sidebar (below left, just scroll down) or the one just below this paragraph at any time to go see what’s new.  My donation:  a copy of my book, hot of the press!  (More about that in my next post!)

Go visit the blog and join the fun…. think about what is your favorite quilt, share a link (when the fun begins on October 9th), and let’s all enjoy ANOTHER quilt festival…one we can all reach online! Great idea!

Goodness….. how time flies!   I can’t believe I have been so busy I’ve only had two posts in how long?????

Well the thing that went bump was me…yesterday…. I was printing out a photo for my younger son for his Social Studies homework, and it fell on the floor–this was up in my studio, the printer is up there and I was sitting on chair I use at the sewing machine.  I bent over to pick  up the photo and before I knew it, I was slamming my head into the corner of the fourposter bed,  and the chair pictured in this photo:  

was in TWO parts….base (still stable on the floor) and top!  Usually when the screws come loose (yes, this provided great mirth in my family, once they realized I was OK–I kept insisting it was the CHAIR that had loose screws…..I failed to convince them it was the ONLY thing that rattled), I can tell, the chair wobbles, and I get out the screwdriver.

Here’s a picture of the studio… you can see the lovely 200+ year old bed behind my worktable.  That tall post…the one with the SHARP corner…was the one that put the little cut in my head.

Basically, I’m fine, have a doozy of a bruise on the back of my leg from banging onto the front corner of the chair, and promptly returned to photo-printing and working on a sample for a “tester” workshop I’m offering to Coastal Quilters tomorrow.  I actually have photos ready to go for at least seven blogposts, and just haven’t had time to write.

One reason for my absence…I’m prepping kits and supplies for teaching in Houston.  The other main one:  my book has received its FINAL edits!     All in all, I am THRILLED!   Stay tuned… I’ve got more to share……now, back to prepping for tomorrow’s workshop.

OH MY GOSH……….. I am in near disbelief, but I have the message on my machine and I talked to Houston just now…

I HAVE WON A CASH AWARD for Fields of Gold, and you better believe I’m SHOUTING!!!!!!   And yes, I am also in orbit and gaining speed.  (PS–I forgot to mention earlier that this is absolutely my first, major, national-mega-show award!) Here’s the quilt:

Thanks of course go to Lisa Walton of Dyed and Gone to Heaven in Sydney, Australia;  she sent me the metre of her glorious fabric as a gift (AND tells me that if you join her monthly fabric club, this is the sort of delectable goodie that comes in the mail!  and yes…she ships internationally and easily to those of us in the US, Europe, wherever!).  It was on my design wall along with the center window of the quilt while I was trying to decide what to do with the latter.  Then I realized that one portion of the rust-yellow-green fabric PERFECTLY matched the sky and ground……

While deciding how to quilt it, I gave my husband “Fields of Gold” by Sting for Valentine’s on his iPod, and was listening to it…..  that led to the stalks of wheat waving in the foreground.  WOOOOHOOO!  Guess I’ll spring for a more expensive haircut than the usual $14 with no wash at the barbershop!

I won’t know until Festival what I won, but since it is cash (and not one of the top prizes), it will be 3rd, 2nd or 1st in its category.  I *think* I entered it in small art quilts (it is 18 1/4″ wide by 20 3/4″ long)…which makes this all the more astonishing as that is usually a very competitive group and size.  Who ME??????!!!!!!!!!!!!  Shaking head, thoroughly enjoying the rattling!

OK….enough talk…I’m going back to floating around the house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Please join me in a raucous, really LOUD WOOOOOOHOOOOOO!