| | Dec. 26, 2008, Vol. 5 No. 18 | | | Dear Quilting lover,
In the Quilting World
We ask a survey question every week on our Web site Quilters-World.com. We recently asked the question, "How many sewing machines do you own?" The choices were 1, 2, 3 and more than 3. I was totally surprised that 43 percent of those responding said they had more than three sewing machines! Only 13 percent had one machine, 24 percent had two machines, and 20 percent had three machines. I have more than three machines myself, but I thought I was in the minority. I feel so much better to know that there are others out there like me. I have kept my old machines as I got newer ones. If you have never participated in our surveys, please do. The more responses we get, the better our information is. I ask questions to help me make Quilter's World more useful to our readers. I have learned that 86 percent of our readers make quilts for charity. Fifty percent like to make changes to the patterns we share to make them all their own -- this is exactly what we had hoped to find. Surveys take time, but they are so useful. Most companies send out surveys to try to find out how they can serve you better. So please, take the time right now to go to Quilter'sWorld.com and answer our survey question of this week. Back to top. A World of Beauty
 For many years now Quilter's World has sponsored the awards in the Group Quilt category at the International Quilt Festival. Although I was sad not to be able to attend and give our awards in person this year, I agreed with the judges' choices. I was extremely excited to find out that one of the entrants in our category won one of the big awards. I introduced you to these gals last year when they won the first prize in the category. When I saw their entry this year, I was sure they would win again. I was shocked not to find their names in the list of winners in the category until I found out that they won the A World of Beauty Award of $7,500 sponsored by The Quilt Show. Their quilt, Seasonal Sisters, made by Gail Thomas, Annette M. Hendricks and Helen Godden, is all the more miraculous when you realize that these ladies are geographically separated -- one lives in Australia, one in Canada and one in the United States! They are shown here in a photo taken with them in front of their fantastic quilt.
 | Seasonal Sisters by Gail Thomas, Annette M. Hendricks and Helen Godden was the winner of the A World of Beauty Award of $7,500 at the International Quilt Association's competition in Houston, Texas. | If you would like to see a larger photo of their quilt and the other winners in the Group Quilt and all other categories, go to Quilts.org. You will be amazed at the talent represented there. I am sharing the photos I took of the winners in the Group Quilt category; please forgive the fact that these were just snapshots I took myself and are not professional photographs.
 |  |  | First prize in the Group Quilt category went to Arena Farms, Concord, Massachusetts, by Bobbie Sullivan and Coastal Quilt Artists of Scituate, Mass. | Second prize in the Group Quilt category was claimed by Kathleen Murphy, Jane Lowell, Gail Niland, Suzanne Thibeault, Linda Ramrath, Carol Middleton, June Peckingham and Louise Redding of Mendon, Mass., for A Slice of Life. | Jackine Evans, Kathy Millspaugh and Ami Krenzel of Albuquerque, N.M., won third prize in the Group Quilt category with Oregon Shores. | Back to top. International Quilt Festival
I heard from the folks in Houston that there were attendees from 49 U.S. states and 32 countries who visited 2008's recent International Quilt Festival, in spite of concerns raised by an earlier visit to the city from Hurricane Ike. According to a statement from Bob Ruggiero, director of Publications & Public Information Quilts Inc., 52,542 visitors with 5,000 enrolled in classes proved that interest in quilting is still high. A total of 556 exhibitors were both strong indicators of the popularity of quilting, among dedicated quilters, and the retailers who come from all over the world to serve them with specialty supplies. Bob shared more information about the show. "In addition to shopping and classes, Festival had dozens of unique special exhibits in which more than 2,000 quilts, art garments and original textile dolls were on display. Perhaps the exhibit receiving the most attention was the DAR Museum Collection: Quilts From a Young Country, sponsored by the Texas Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. "It featured more than 30 quilts, none of which had ever traveled outside of the Society's Washington, D.C., headquarters. Two stars of the exhibit were an 18th-century indigo-resist print quilt, and a quilt made by Mary Lloyd Key, wife of Francis Scott Key, author of The Star-Spangled Banner.
"Festival producers Quilts Inc. President Karey Bresenhan and Executive Vice President Nancy O'Bryant were honored with the National Historic Preservation Medal, presented on behalf of the DAR during a special ceremony on Festival's opening night by NSDAR President General Linda Gist Calvin, who traveled from D.C. for the occasion." The dates for next year's International Quilt Festival/Houston are Oct. 15-18, 2009 (with classes beginning on Oct. 12). Please note that this is two weeks earlier than normal. Back to top.
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| Upcoming Quilting Events | Jan. 15, 2009 - Jan. 18, 2009
Road to California Quilters Conference & Showcase
Ontario Convention Center
Ontario, Calif.
road2ca.com Jan. 24, 2009 - Jan. 25, 2009
Heart of the Valley Quilt & Textile Arts Show
Modesto Centre Plaza
Modesto, Calif.
CountryCrossroadsQuilters.com Feb. 6, 2009 - Feb. 7, 2009
Sunshine & Sisterhood Quilt Show
Salvation Army Community Worship Center
Tampa, Fla.
QuiltersWorkshop.org | Feb. 13, 2009 - Feb. 14, 2009
Valley Quilters 29th Annual Show
Valley Wide Recreation Center
San Jacinto, Calif.
troublecomes10@yahoo.com (Gayle Asebedo) Feb. 20, 2009 - Feb. 21, 2009
Quilting From the Heart IV
Brevard Community College
Titusville, Fla.
anng@cfl.rr.com(Ann Giles) Feb. 27, 2009 - Feb. 28, 2009
Peace River Quilters Southwest Florida Quilt Festival Pieces of Paradise
Charlotte Harbor Event and Conference Center
Punta Gorda, Fla.
peaceriverquilters.org | Send in your events!
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 | | | | As this newsletter reaches you, you will be cleaning up from the holidays and preparing for the New Year. 2009 promises many challenges for us as we struggle with the realities of our economy and welcome a new president to the White House. The one thing I know for sure is that I will still be quilting. How about you? |  Insurance for Quilts | | Carole writes:
"Your article about entering a quilt show was very informative, but left out one very important detail -- insurance. Be sure to insure your quilt for loss of any kind -- losing it in the mail, getting ruined by mishandling, and everything else that may go wrong. I have been there, so I know. Thank you so much for your newsletters. I enjoy every one of them." Carole is right about insurance, but it is not as easy as it sounds. When getting insurance for shipping, often the only amount of money you can get is the cost of the materials to make the quilt. It won't matter if you pay a lot of money to insure it for $1,000, unless you have an appraisal from a certified quilt appraiser, it will be hard to prove the worth of your quilt except for the receipts you may have for the materials you bought to make it. Be sure to ask questions about the insurance before you pay your money.
Back to top of section. | | | Help Needed | Candy writes:
"I live in one of the hardest-hit areas from Hurricane Ike, and a lot of my material has mold and mildew on it. Is there any way to remove this without damaging the fabric?" Does anyone have any ideas? I had a similar problem recently with a wool rug I left outside over my porch railing. I was able to get rid of the smell, but not the black spots.
Back to top of section. | | Small Rotary Cutter for Curves | Cindy has a problem.
"I have a quilt pattern that I have been wanting to try for a long time now. It's called Robbing Peter to Pay Paul. The thing holding me back is cutting out those curved pieces. I was wondering if a rotary cutter would work for cutting on curves. I have only made straight cuts with my rotary cutter because I am a little intimidated and worried that I will destroy fabric.
"Do rotary cutters come in small sizes? It seems like that might work better than the size I already have. I haven't seen anything smaller, though. What do you think?" There is a small rotary cutter that was developed for cutting pieces for miniature quilts. Olfa's 18mm rotary cutter is perfect for cutting circles, tight corners and curves on fabric, paper, vinyl, film and leather. It retails for approximately $12. Search for it at a local shop or online. Another perfect tool for this type of cutting is the EZ circle cutter; this cutter works with the circle-cutting template as shown in the photo. These tools are available at Clotilde.com.
 |  | Olfa's 18mm rotary cutter. | EZ circle cutting template and 18mm rotary cutter. |
Back to top of section. | | Die-Cutting System | Kay writes:
"I read your article about cutting scraps into 2 1/2-inch-wide strips, and it taking hours. Are you familiar with the AccuQuilt die cutting?
"The Studio fabric cutter cuts up to 10 layers at a time and can cut 25 perfect 2 1/2-inch width-of-fabric strips in seconds. This cutter works great for scraps -- just cover the cutting blades and roll through the cutter.
"I design some of the dies and market almost 70 patterns that can be cut using dies designed for quilters. The dies are even designed to cut off dog ears or have matching notches on dies like those needed for the Apple Core pattern with curved seams.
"Go to Clotilde.com to find some of our dies and to accuquilt.com for more information about die cutting. We have just introduced a portable die cutter called GO! that will be available in January 2009. It is designed for home quilters and to take to retreats and classes." Yes, I am familiar with the AccuQuilt die cutter -- I actually have one. I don't have the die for cutting fabric-width strips, but have seen it demonstrated and thought that one day I might need to purchase that die! It is amazing how many strips can be cut all at once. It sure would save wear and tear on my hands. Thanks for sharing this information, Kay. The GO! cutter sounds perfect for quilters on a leaner budget, and for those who don't have room for the larger cutter in their sewing areas.
 | The Go! cutter from AccuQuilt. | Back to top of section. | |  | | | | | Removing Silly Putty From Fabric | | Rebecca shares:
"I just had to share this experience. WD-40 really does get Silly Putty (and its knock-off versions) from fabric.
"Somehow, this week, fake Silly-Putty got all over the very first quilt I ever made before I took classes or even owned a machine. It is a tied purple bandanna quilt that I gave to my daughter, now 8. We were both devastated when we saw how much goop was on the quilt, and how extensively it was spread out.
"I went online and read that WD-40 gets it out. I sat for about an hour and rubbed out all the putty. It worked! I only had to change two of the ties that held the layers together, but everything else came out.
"The new problem was to get out the WD-40 odor, so my daughter's bed wouldn't smell like a mechanic's shop. Regular washing didn't do it. I soaked the quilt overnight in my washer in hot water and dish soap (for hand-washing dishes) -- a lot of it. In the morning I ran the machine to wash out the soap, did a light fluffing in the dryer, and put the quilt outside in the shade for a few hours, and it worked. The quilt is almost as good as new." There are products similar to WD-40 that are made for fabric. I have tried several. Go to Crayola.com for more stain-removal tips for children's products. Back to top of section. |  | | Sewing Machine Needle Disposal | | Theresa has a tip:
"Another method of disposing of used needles is to use an empty Tic Tac plastic dispenser. The lid closes easily, and the contents are visible. I printed 'used needles' on the box and keep it next to my machine." Pat has another needle-disposal tip.
"I just read about Cora who uses an old salt shaker to dispose of her used needles and broken needles. I came up with the idea to use an old disposable pill bottle with a child-proof screw-on cap to dispose of my old needles. Not only are the needles out of the way, but if a small child should get hold of it, it can't be opened. When the container is full, I just toss it out. This is cost-free use for the container the second time around before it goes in the trash!" Back to top of section. |  | | Pressing Seams | | Tillie writes:
"When pressing seams in your quilt blocks, press the seam flat first, the way it was sewn, to sink the thread into the fabric." Back to top of section. | | Removing Marks | | Shelly writes:
"I keep a toothbrush and mug in my sewing room. I place water in the cup and use the brush to dab and remove blue-marker marks on my fabric." Back to top of section. | | | | Staying in Stitches
If you are one of those people who make resolutions for the New Year, don't forget to add quilting to the list. Whether you choose to quilt for 15 minutes a day or an hour a week, you should make time for quilting on a regular basis. Maybe you can take the time right after your resolution to exercise more -- take a walk, think about what you plan to work on right after you get back. That will give you an incentive to walk faster so you can be done in a shorter time! Back to top. Whatever you do, be sure to stay in stitches until next time. 
Sandra L. Hatch editor, Quilter's World magazine Send feedback!
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| |  | Quilt a Warm & Friendly Winter Friend This charming table topper is simply irresistible!
Perfect for any snowman lover, you'll be the hit of the party when you give this easy-to-make topper as a gift. Plus -- it features a dimensional scarf and nose.
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