The Quilt Show Quilt

While browsing blogs a few weeks ago, I came across the most incredible quilt and I knew right away I wanted to share it with all of you. It was made by Laura Peterson of Bigfork Montana. Bigfork is a small town on the eastern shore of Flathead Lake - I drove right by there a few summers ago... but I digress. I emailed Laura to ask if she would mind my sharing the photo and website with you and she was happy to oblige. Her quilt is 108" by 30" and is called "The Quilt Show". Here it is...

If you click here, you will be taken to the website she created to tell viewers all about the quilt- how the idea percolated in her mind after attending Quilt Shows and "people watching" or should that be "quilter watching"....??? You can view each individual quilt and read it's story... and read about how she created the "quilter people"... Amazing... Thank you Laura, for allowing me to share this with our members and other readers.

I kept thinking I would LOVE to see this quilt "in person"... well guess what? It is coming to Houlton Maine in August!! The Friends and Needles Guild in Houlton will be featuring it at their annual Show, August 20-22, 2010. This show is held at the Elks Club on Main Street, hours are 10a.m. to 4p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Admissioon is $5.00. I'll happily pay $5.00 just to see Laura Peterson's The Quilt Show quilt!! Will I see you there?

Let's get physical..Geophysical...

Are you ready for another armchair Quilt Show tour? I explained to you earlier that there were a number of Shows at Quilt Canada in Calgary, but I did not show you photographs from them all. Many had numerous signs posted throughout their displays about copyright and asking viewers to respect it, using any photos only for their personal use. I'm not sure if everyone would agree that a blog is "personal use" but I chose to not post photos of other artists' work when I could not give proper credit with names, titles, etc.

But today I can take you via a link to one of the Shows- Geophysical by FAN - Fibre Art Network which is a group of fibre artists from Western Canada. "Geophysical" pays tribute to Geology, and the scenic and economic riches it provides to western Canada. FAN members were challenged to interpret, in cloth and thread, "the earth and the forces that shape it". Click here to see all 46 pieces which made up this Show. If you click on each individual quilt, you will be able to read the artists' explanation. Other FAN exhibitions can be viewed by clicking on "Exhibitions" on the left sidebar. Be warned, you could spend a lot of time here a-lookin'... but what a great way to travel to a number of shows- all in the comfort of your own chair!! No airfare, no luggage, no hassle!!

The four photos I have included with this post were some of my favourites (in no particular order) and are just a sample to whet your appetite- do look at the entire show- it's well worth the visit. The uppermost photo (top left) is Sea Floor Spreading Centre by Gay Walker; the next photo (on the right) is The Pressures of Time by Vivian Kapusta, our CQA Secretary; the third photo (above left) is Eruption by Kathryn Botsford and the bottom photo (on right) is Layers of Creation by Judith Panson. (You can click on each of my 4 photos here and get a larger view).

Threadworks 2010 Show

A while back I promised to take you on some "armchair tours" of Shows that I have found on various blogs that I follow. Today I'll take you to the Wellington Co. Museum in Fergus Ontario (near Guelph) for the Threadworks Show. It showcases exceptional needlework, by both hand and machine, by artists across Canada. This show is a special project of ONN - the Ontario Network of Needleworkers and the theme this year was Trees. Threadworks is a juried exhibition that is mounted every three years, and then travels around Ontario to various galleries and museums. All pieces must be original, and must be "substantially worked" with a hand or machine needle. FQG member Kathy Tidswell has a piece in this show.
I found this "review" on a Blog I follow, called True Blue Canadian. You can see her photos and read her comments about the Show by clicking here and here. You can see all the show pieces by viewing the catalogue here. The Threadworks website can be viewed here.
So go get a cuppa, sit back and enjoy the show.... for free!

Quilt Canada 2010 in Calgary

I was fortunate to be able to attend Quilt Canada 2010 in Calgary Alberta last month. It was an inspiring week and a wonderful experience- all except for the snowstorm which I could have done without. (I was SO glad that, in preparation for my trip, I had had a pedicure and packed my sandals! lol) Although I didn't register as a Full Conference delegate, I did spend two full days taking in the Shows (13 in total!) and yes I did manage to wander through the large Merchants Mall more than once.

I had a lovely chat with Pippa Moore and she asked me to say Hello to all her FQG friends. My buddy Sue had a chat with Gail Hunt and I'm sure she too would want to be remembered to all her former students at FQG.

If you would like to read more about Quilt Canada 2010 and see a sampling of the many wonderful quilts from several of the Shows, you can skip over to my personal Blog and see them here, here, here, here and here. Photography was not allowed in the National Juried Show but you can view the NJS Winners on the CQA website by clicking here. (You can click on each image there for a larger view.)

Next year's conference will be in London Ontario and the following year, Quilt Canada 2012 is coming east! It will be held at Dalhousie University in Halifax. Woohooooo!! This is an opportunity every Maritime quilter should take advantage of! It is not to be missed! Start planning now to attend - the dates are May 28-June 2, 2012.

Pot Luck Favorite

At our recent pot luck meeting, I was restricted to eating soft foods only because of some dental work I had the day before. I was browsing the great buffet and saw this beautiful pan of soft-looking cornbread. It was very moist, almost pudding like in consistency, but it was cornbread with a lovely flavor. I went back for seconds and smacked my lips the whole time I ate the second piece too. It was so good.

I asked around, and it was super-cook Gail Butts who brought it. The Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread recipe comes from the food networks Ina Garten - the Barefoot Contessa. I should have known. She is such a good cook and I regularly use her cookbooks.

Want to give it a try? The recipe from the Food Network can be found here.

Did you have a favorite food at the Pot Luck? Let us know, and we'll see if we can get you the recipe.

Final FQG Show and Tell of the year

Have a look at many of the spectacular quilts at our final meeting of the year. I didn't get photos of all the quilts, but I got a good representation. We'll try to get other pictures from the Show and Tell from some of the other cameras that were in the room. We'll add them to the members gallery on the sidebar.
Marieke made this quilt with her grandmother Sally L. and came to the pot luck to show us her work. Everyone gave her a big round of applause. What a great job she did and we're so pleased that she came to show it. (Our apologies- we've had trouble with the formatting of this post. The spacing between photos and text seems to want to "do it's own thing"; I've tried several times to edit and fix it but it seems to have a mind of it's own. Our apologies for the gaps... LH.)

Dawn S. made this wallhanging from a kit. That single piece of fabric in the center just sparkles with all those complimentary colours around it.


















Lois made this little quilt from a picture of a larger quilt. Those little houses that were paper pieced, are lit up so nicely and the stars are twinkling in the night sky. It's so sweet Lois!















Paula M. made these bags and some of the materials were recycled. The green bag was made using a charm square pattern, but used regular non-cut fabric instead. Great work.
















Charlotte M's is wowing us this year with all the work she's been doing. This is her shuffle style quilt. It is a tall quilt, but not quite as tall as Charlotte who you see peeking over the top.
















LaVerne's granddaughter Rian is the lucky girl who will get this custom creation. The Sunflower has dimensional leaves.
















This quilt by Robyn A. is mostly done from left over fabrics from other projects. If you look closely you can see the beautiful feathers that were quilted in the side setting triangles. Isn't it beautiful!













Joan Whelpley, one of our members who was awarded a lifetime membership for her contributions to the community, is amazing. She comes to guild each month with a collection of childrens quilts that she has made. Here are three that she brought with her this month.





Lee and the Friday girls took a challenge earlier this year. She practiced various machine quilting styles and this finished challenge was quite impressive.
















Linda G. and Jean K. made these bags in the February workshop. Linda shows it closed and Jean is showing it open. It's a really neat bag that you can flip over your arms and wear backpack style or carry over your shoulder like a regular purse. Great job girls.

Marijke H. confessed that she didn't like doing prarie

points, but didn't she do a great job on this sweet little quilt.

Sandy Mac. made this Karen Henry inspired dragonfly wallhanging. It was made using non-traditional quilting fabrics like organza so that parts of it are "see-through".

It was stunning.

Doesn't Tracy H's bali batik Strip Cocktail quilt look stunning? Love those batiks!

Valerie M. finished this lovely landscape with dimensional leaves.

Stay tuned for more Show and Tell quilts!

Reminder - Pot Luck and AGM - Tues May 18

The May meeting is our Annual General Meeting (and Election of Officers) and also a Pot Luck dinner - Tuesday May 18th.

The Pot Luck will be held at the Johnson Avenue Senior Center starting at 6:30 PM SHARP. Please bring foods ready to serve-Hot foods Hot and Cold foods Cold! (to save the dishwashing committee some work, please bring your own plate, utencils and cutlery. You can bring them home with your casserole dishes and wash them at home)

Spring Themed Blocks - Remember, all members interested in participating in the "Spring-themed" block draw, bring them along. Make an 8 ½ “(finished 8”) spring themed block on a cream background. Every block will give you a ballot for the draw(s) depending on the number of entries. Are you looking for a little inspiration. Go here to Quilters Cache and scroll through the 8" block section. Be sure to check the measurements to ensure it is an 8.5" block that finishes to 8".

Membership Renewal: You will be able to renew your membership at the potluck. Be sure to complete the form that was delivered in your April Newsletter. Dues are $30.00 for regular members; $15.00 for associate members.

Embroidery Floss - Pippa Moore is collecting un-wanted embroidery flosses again this year for her teaching trip to Africa next winter. If you have any flosses that you would like to donate to Pippa, please pass them on to Gail Mitchell. She will be sending them to Pippa in October.

Show and Tell - Bring show and tell, be it new or old. Let's get new inspiration, even from older projects. The more the merrier.

Have you had your first feed yet?

Of fiddleheads that is. Sometimes in the excitement of the first fiddleheads of the year, one might cook too many. Why not use up those leftovers in this delicious Fiddlehead Soup.


This recipe comes from Monica Washburn when she submitted it to our Guild's year 2000 cookbook, "Put This on Your Dresden Plate" Too. This recipe book was a sequel to our first cookbook "Put This on Your Dresden Plate".


Fiddlehead Soup

1/2 cup chopped cooked fiddleheads
1/4 cup butter
1 tbsp chopped onion
2 chicken bouillon cubes
3 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp dry mustard
2 cups milk
2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt.

Cook and chop fiddleheads. Dissolve chicken cubes in boiling water. Melt butter and saute onions until tender. Blend in flour, paprika, mustard and salt. Gradually stir in milk and chicken bouillon water and cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from heat and stir in cheese until melted. Add fiddleheads. You can also add a cubed potato to the soup.


Leave us a comment if you try it. We know you'll love it. We'll forward all comments to Monica.

PS: Did you know that the word fiddlehead is not in the blogger's dictionary?

Quilt Show Change of Venue

Quilt ShowFor anyone planning to attend the Keswick Ridge Quilters Quilt Show this weekend, please note there is a change of venue. It will NOT be held at the United Church as previously planned due to a church emergency. The new location is the Keswick Baptist Church at Mouth of Keswick. The address is 59 Route 104, just up from Keswick Landing, at the turn off to Burtts Corner. This is pretty much at the juncture of Routes 104 and 105. Please spread the word of this change...