Note Cards or Greeting Cards?

Which do you prefer?

I’m doing a little market research here. Let’s say there was an incredibly beautiful quilt, or part thereof, that was just begging to become a small piece of mail.

If you were going to purchase such a card, possibly in a set of 12, and in an attractive package, would you want them BLANK to write your own personal message, or would you like them to already come with a message? And what would that message be?!

To review:
Option #1: BLANK
Option #2: WITH GREETING
     a) Happy Birthday
     b) Thinking of you
     c) Get well
     d) Condolence
     e) Quilt related (give example)

Now’s your chance to change the world, or at least make your opinion known about greeting/note cards with pictures of quilts on them. Write a comment!

Thanks!
Ami :)

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Redneck Tape Measure

My friend and fellow quilting instructor Kathy Kansier showed me her “Redneck Tape Measure” when we recently taught at the same quilting conference this summer.

Apologies to Jeff Foxworthy.

She takes a few inches of 1/4″-wide masking tape and wraps it around the thumb of her dominant hand.  Instant measuring tool and literally stuck to you so you can’t misplace it.

As you pick up a piece of fabric to confirm a 1/4″ seam allowance you no longer have to hunt for a ruler or measuring tape. Just line it up with your thumb!

Is this not the slickest trick!? Just pinch and go!

Kathy Kansier is a quilting instructor from Ozark, Missouri.

Thanks, Kathy!

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My Favorite Adjective is a Town!

Sue R. from Novi, Michigan sent me two photographs from her travels through Ireland last year.  Imagine that!

If you live visit or live in a “quilty’ town, or one that conjures up images of patchwork, sewing, or other stitchy pursuits, send me a photo and I’ll add it to the blog. No “PhotoDhopping” allowed. Only pictures YOU take. ONE image per email. This offer is good until I get overwhelmed and need to move on to other things.

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Dog In Charge

Mom’s busy writing the newsletter today, so she put me in charge of the blog.  She said I should put together a BIG SALE of something I really like. So, I picked her “Dog-Yeared” calendar quilt pattern. Paws down, it is my favorite of all her patterns because, well,  it’s all about dogs!

There is a dog for every month, and they are all adorable, and they look like the month they are supposed to be. You can machine applique them or applique them by hand/paw.

The “Dog-Yeared” calendar quilt pattern comes with full-size patterns and lots of pictures and words to tell you what to do and when to do it. Everything is on a CD which is cool. You can print off only what you need.

You even get a free pattern on the CD for the back of your quilt. (It’s a fire hydrant!)

I look a little consternated in this photograph. The back of Mom’s quilt was on the disign wall, and it was so life-like, and we dogs have …urges… Should I? Shouldn’t I? Don’t worry; I didn’t.

Since we haven’t gotten to January yet, now would be a really good time to start your “Dog-Yeared” quilt. If you want to take advantage of a very special offer (even BETTER than 2-for-1) you have to order before midnight Thursday (9/3/09) or before we run out of CDs.

Don’t wait! Supplies are limited! Order now!

Plus, all orders get a free applique pattern (line drawing) for a block that looks remarkably like me! (It will be emailed to you.) After you read the directions on the CD you can take the line drawing and make a Madison Block.

And, if you’re one of the first 100 people to order Mom says I can give you a chunk of fabric from MY stash.

AND, everyone who buys a “Dog-Yeared” calendar quilt pattern gets a chance to win this “October” block that Mom sewed. Stick it in your quilt! (One down, 11 to go!)

Because I’m helping pack orders this month (part of the deal) please don’t expect our usual speedy delivery. While we will process orders all this week, they won’t ship out until next week, after the holiday. We will email and let you know when your order ships.

Please tell your friends about this special offer and I’ll get more kibble at dinner.

Love,
Madison

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Great Plates!

Readers of my last blog post have started sharing their “quilty” license plates. Hope you enjoy the selection.  They certainly are colorful and creative. (Please don’t email me any more, I’ve got to move on to other things!)

Enjoy!

 

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Quilty License Plates

Way back when Jennie was a toddler (she’s now almost 26) I saw the first vanity license plate that made any sense to me. It simply said QUILTS.  I got it. And I wanted one. Badly. I wanted the one that said QUILTS and belonged to the lady I almost rear-ended as I appreciated her license plate, first from afar, and then from dangerously up close. But, I was willing to settle for something close as waiting for her to die probably wasnt’ necessary.

I let my desires be known, casually mentioning it to Steve.  Once. That is the Simms way, something I still don’t fully understand. If he wants me to get the hint, I need significantly more repetitions, preferably in writing, with a calendar so that I remember when holiday gift giving occurs. It always sneaks up on me.

As usual, I forgot about the vanity plate until late in October. I thought I should have had a quilt-appropriate word above my bumbper by then, so I took it upon myself to dial up the department of motor vehicles. (The lady with QUILTS was still alive.) After much thought I settled on  QUILT. My message to anybody driving behind me, or in front of me (at that time plates in the front were required too), would be to go forth and …. QUILT! I love to boss people around. I asked if QUILT was available.

The lady at the DMV said QUILT was taken. I was crestfallen. “Are you sure,” I whined?

“Yes,” she said. “Someone in Genesee County has it.”

“No WAY!” said I. “I drive all over Genesee Country and I’ve never seen a car with a QUILT plate.”

“WAY!” she said.

“Can you tell me who it is?” I begged.

She said, “No, that’s against the rules. All I can tell you is it’s registered to some guy in Flint.”

That did it! Somebody in Flint driving around with MY plate on HIS rear end? I think not. I knew all the male quilters in Flint. And it wasn’t any of them. The nerve of people I don’t know absconding with MY plate.

I consoled myself with trips to every fabric shop in Genesee Country. I checked the parking lots just to hunt down the owner of my plate, but mostly I bought fabric and felt better.

Several weeks later, when my birthday rolled around and it was time to get legal with the state again, Steve presented me with my very own vanity license plates! He was the guy in Flint!  And I have been driving around telling everyone behind me to QUILT for at least two decades now.  And we’ve been paying exorbitant amounts of money annually for the privilege. But to not do so would be like giving back the sweetest birthday present ever. No way! 

Do you have a quilty license plate? Want to share? Email me a photo of your quilted license plate by the end of August. (AmiSimms@aol.com) Let’s see how creative you are. Email ONE photo, so make it a good one. Shoot it straight on.  I’ll crop out the background, size it, put it in an attractive collage and post it here on the blog. No fair shooting pictures of cars not belonging to you, I don’t care how great the plate. Quilty plates only. Tell your friends…

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Panty Party Is Sincerest Form of Flattery

Friends and fellow members of the Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild in Wellsboro, PA were inspired by the Yo-Yo Sisterhood of the Traveling Panties and did their own dye job. When I questioned their relative cleanliness in the photo I was assured by ganggroup leader Peggi Yacovissi that they wore a considerable amount of dye on their hands, arms, and toes during the event but they removed the plastic gloves and washed well before being photographed for posterity. The red and purple on their arms is hidden by their “panty pose”
.

Left to right they are Rita Pyatt, Susan McConnell, Anya Tyson, Nancy Cooledge, and Mary Fahsbender. Peggi is hiding behind the camera.

Well done, ladies!

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August “Small Quilt” Auction Ends Tonight

Monday, August 10 at 10:01 p.m. EDT the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative’s “Slow & Silent” on-line auction will be history. Don’t miss a chance to win a beautiful little quilt for you or for a friend as you  help raise money for Alzheimer’s research.

Great quilts! Good deeds! What could be better?!

Bid here: http://www.alzquilts.org/quiltauction.html

Please tell all your friends.

Thank you for your help!
Ami :)

Who Are The Best 182 Quilters In The World?

I”m looking for the top quilters on the planet? And by quilter I’m very limited  in my request for information. For my devious purposes I am NOT interested in piecing or applique skills nor color or design,  just the quilting part.  Hand or machine. I’m interested in just THE STITCH.

Who does it the best? Who is inspired? Magical? Unbelievably talented? Professional or amateur. World famous, or unknown. Domestic machine or long arm. Left-handed or right-handed. I don’t care how they do it, they just have to be phenomenal quilters!

Why? I want to hit them up to quilt a top for the AAQI’s next traveling exhibit— ”Alzheimer’s Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope.”

I have (or soon will have) 182 quilt tops emblazened with the names of 10,000 people who have or had Alzheimer’s. Friends and family have written their names to honor and remember them. The people whose names appear on these quilts represent the 5.3 million Americans (26 million worldwide) who have Alzheimer’s. They simply deserve our best effort.

These incredibly talented quilters you’re going to tell me about would only have to quilt one top, six inches wide and about seven feet long. They can quilt it any way they want. They won’t even have to do the binding. And they’ve got lots of time in which to do it. This is a totally volunteer effort; nobody gets paid. They don’t get to keep the quilt either. The quilt they stitch on will travel around the country helping to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s, and then it will be auctioned or sold outright when the exhibit is retired. All profits from the sale will fund Alzheimer’s research.

So, who should we ask?

Write down the names of quilters I should ask in the comment section. Give me their full name and contact information if you know it. If somebody already “nominated” who you were going to suggest, you can second the motion. Everybody get’s their say. Don’t just stop with one name either; we’ve got 182 quilt tops!

To make this work, I need you to tell every single quilter you know to come to this page and leave a comment sharing who they feel should be asked to quilt a top for the AAQI. I want thousands of comments. The more comments, the harder it will be for these special quilters to say ‘no.’  (Sneaky, huh?)

There’s another way you can help, and that’s by collecting names of people who have/had Alzheimer’s. Click here.  And if you want to create a quilt for “Alzheimer’s Illustrated: From Heartbreak To Hope,” click here.

Thank you for your help!
Pass it on!
Ami Simms

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Subversive Stitchers

Today I am guest blogging at Subersive Stitchers. I answered questions about the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative.

Enjoy,
Ami