http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/ en mike_echo@hotmail.com Copyright 2012 2012-05-18T01:45:21+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/june_presidents_message1/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/june_presidents_message1/#When:01:45:21Z This and That If you missed the May meeting, you missed an interesting presentation by Ann Hazelwood on red work through the ages.  Ann had several quilts to show exhibiting red work.  And you missed learning about “splashers”, a red work item placed behind wash stands to keep the wallpaper clean.  Ann’s were mostly from the turn of the last century with domestic scenes and sayings in either German or one of the Slavic languages. There are still a few openings for committee participation for the Quilt Show.  It’s only nine months away and there is lots to be done beforehand to make this show a success.  Please see Serena if you are able to help in any capacity. And a reminder that dues are due in June.  Debbie has more information on this and has the renewal forms.  I would like to extend an invitation to all new or relatively new members of the Guild to join us for dinner before the Guild meeting. It’s a nice way to get to meet other members of the guild.  We meet at O’Charley’s in Kirkwood Commons at 5:15 pm.  I only ask that you please let either Ted or me know that you are coming (see first page for phone number) so that we can make the correct number of reservations.  When you arrive, just ask for the quilters; the wait staff knows where we sit. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the June meeting. In the meantime, keep quilting! Susan   Guild News 2012-05-18T01:45:21+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/june_workshop/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/june_workshop/#When:20:09:01Z Miniature Pinwheel Workshop  A workshop has been scheduled for the primitive pinwheels miniature quilt that was displayed during our last guild meeting.   The workshop will be Saturday, June 16th from 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM at the church.  The cost is $25 for the class and $10 for the pattern which includes the ruler.  This is a great little stash buster project and a good project for beginners.  You can sign up at the April, May, or June guild meetings.  Serena Crisp will also have the patterns available for purchase.     Guild News 2012-04-12T20:09:01+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/2013_raffle_quilt/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/2013_raffle_quilt/#When:02:39:16Z "Wish Upon a Star" Guild Expo News 2012-02-27T02:39:16+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/quilt_expo_2013_dates/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/quilt_expo_2013_dates/#When:01:24:33Z Dates have been set for 2013!The 2013 Quilt Expo will be held at the Greensfelder Rec Complex in Queeny Park, Ballwin, MO on Saturday and Sunday, March 16 and 17, 2013. Guild Expo News 2011-04-30T01:24:33+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/the_civil_war_love_letter_quilt_by_rosemary_youngs/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/the_civil_war_love_letter_quilt_by_rosemary_youngs/#When:13:53:03Z May Book Review by Mary Ellen Adams  You don’t have to be a quilter to enjoy this book which contains 121 quilt blocks inspired by love and war. The format is similar in style to others written by this author – “The Amish Circle Quilt” and “The Civil War Diary Quilt.” Each six inch block is accompanied by a letter from a Civil War soldier and written during the war. It makes for interesting reading for the history buff and quilt fan alike. If you are a quilter, the book presents yet another challenge not unlike that of the Jane Stickle quilt. Blocks will have to be traced from the book and seam allowances added to the pieces in order to use the patterns. Although this will not pose much of a problem for the experienced quilter, it would have been nice if a CD of the patterns had been included with the book as is often done these days. A CD is available as a separate purchase at a price nearly equivalent to the book's. Electric Quilt 5 or higher is required to use the CD. Some of the blocks are very simple and others will pose a challenge, especially to the less experienced. Knowledge of paper piecing will take care of the more difficult blocks while the easier ones can be finished with straightforward piecing. For those averse to appliqué, none of the blocks require this skill. The blocks would lend themselves nicely to a group looking for a project to work on collectively over time. Civil War reproduction fabrics would preserve the look of the original while contemporary color choices would, of course, give an updated look to the whole.   Guild News 2012-05-11T13:53:03+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/silk_extravaganza/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/silk_extravaganza/#When:22:35:21Z 2013 Quilt Expo Raffle QuiltDesigned and made by Dolores Keaton, this silk beauty is expertly hand beaded with crystal beads. It is wall hanging size and is a beautiful complement to "Wish Upon a Star." Guild Expo News 2012-04-18T22:35:21+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/kaffe_fassets_quilts_in_sweden/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/kaffe_fassets_quilts_in_sweden/#When:14:54:14Z April Book Review by Mary Ellen Adams  20 designs from Rowan for patchwork and quilting   Although the forward to this book is written by Kaffe Fassett, and all the patterns in the book are made with fabrics of his design, this book is a collaborative effort. The book features quilts by Roberta Horton, Mary Mashuta, Liza Prior Lucy, Pauline Smith, Brandon Mably, Sally Davis, Corienne Kramer, and Judy Baldwin as well as Kaffe. As is typical with Kaffe’s books, the photography is spectacular. The settings for the quilts, as indicated by the title, all feature interior and exterior locations throughout Sweden. Patterns are given using templates, rather than measurements, in order to serve quilters using both U.S. and metric systems. For those who wish to reproduce the projects exactly as featured, material requirements include fabric numbers. All patterns have clear quilt assembly diagrams. As anyone familiar with Kaffe’s work already knows, the quilts are all about color. None of the patterns are particularly hard, although at first glance the instructions may seem a bit daunting due to all the information packed onto the pages. “Sunlight in the Forest”, “Rattan Squares”, and “Shells” are simple enough for beginners, while “Dark Windows” and “Imari Plate” will hold the interest of more advanced piecers. There are 20 patterns in the book, making it good value for the money. I love Kaffe’s fabrics and those of the designers that work with him at Rowan. That said, I have yet to make a quilt from his books, and I have them all. I find that I go to the books regularly for color inspiration as much as anything else. This is certainly no indictment of the book. If you are in love with his fabrics, or just love color and have wondered what to do with large prints, this is a good place to start.   Guild News 2012-04-05T14:54:14+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/bunnies_more_by_darcy_ashton/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/bunnies_more_by_darcy_ashton/#When:15:10:53Z March Book Review by Mary Ellen Adams  This book contains patterns for ten quilts and one pillow, all appliqued with bunnies. Instructions are given for both hand and machine applique using fusible web. Bunnies may be embellished with embroidery, miniature quilt blocks, buttons, beads, and crystals.  Bunnies sport bows and butterflies or may be dressed up in cowboy hats and bandanas. The bunnies are eight to nine inches in size on average and made of one large piece of fabric, although they can be made of more than one color to resemble real rabbits if you choose. This is not fiddly applique with tiny pieces unless you decide to embellish them with miniature quilt blocks, which is one option. Although it looks really cool, I probably would not make the bunnies with the tiny appliqued quilt blocks. These quilts will no doubt be  intended for a child and it would be too much work, for my taste, for an item that will loved, washed repeatedly, and dragged around. Ashton published an earlier book, “Grandma’s Bunnies”, now back in print, from which I made a quilt for a relative’s child several years ago. It was a big hit and when I saw this follow-up book of patterns, I had to grab it. If bunnies are not to your taste, Ashton also has books with butterflies, dogs, cats, horses, and aquatic creatures. The latter would be especially interesting for a young child with an interest in frogs, fish, and turtles. For the young child in your life, these patterns can’t be beat! To take a look at what Ashton has to offer, check out the web site: www.ashtonpub.com.   Guild News 2012-03-05T15:10:53+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/magnificent_sprial_mandala_quilts_by_ranae_merrill/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/magnificent_sprial_mandala_quilts_by_ranae_merrill/#When:17:24:10Z February Book Review by Mary Ellen AdamsRecently featured on an episode of TheQuiltShow.com, Merrill has published two books on this topic. The first, “Simply Amazing Spiral Quilts”, is a quilting best seller and her second book promises to follow suit. After reading the book, it comes as no surprise that Merrill’s favorite toy as a child was the Kenner Spirograph. To this day, she begins the design process with paper and pencil, doodling and sketching ideas until something gels for her.The quilts pictured in the book are stunning and look far more complicated than they actually are.  All are foundation pieced; the book includes a CD-ROM to print the templates for projects included in the book.  Experience with paper piecing is useful, but not entirely necessary as Merrill provides instructions for her method of paper piecing. The book is not for quilting beginners as joining the paper-pieced sections requires experience beyond that level in my opinion.There are lengthy and precise instructions and diagrams if you wish to draft your own spiral mandala quilt. I thought to make one of the quilts from the book “some day”, but a recent project that has large diamond shaped sections with appliqué that I don’t care for, had me thinking of an alternative to fill the space. I grabbed paper, pencil, and ruler and set to work drafting a nesting spiral in a diamond shape. It was actually quite simple to do and the result is a cool looking alternative to the block I didn’t care for.I recommend this book to anyone who likes to try new techniques and is up for a bit of a challenge. The results will be dramatic. Guild News 2012-02-07T17:24:10+00:00 http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/the_quilters_album_of_patchwork_patterns_by_jinny_beyer/ http://www.thimbleandthreadstl.org/news/the_quilters_album_of_patchwork_patterns_by_jinny_beyer/#When:13:35:20Z January Book Review by Mary Ellen AdamsIf you can own only one reference book on quilting, this is the one to have. There are more than 4050  pieced blocks featured in the book and each block is illustrated in color. The blocks are organized by style (square, hexagon, etc.) and according to grid type. There are instructions for drafting your own designs using blocks in the book and for how to draft your own blocks. The instructions are thorough, clear, and well illustrated. Each block is accompanied by the historical reference indicating its earliest documented appearance as well as alternate names for the block. Each block is shown twice – once in a larger color picture and again in a smaller line drawing that more clearly shows how the block is drafted. As an aide to finding familiar blocks, quick reference sections are scattered throughout the book. If you are looking for basket blocks they may be drafted on different grids and therefore will appear in various locations. The quick reference guide makes finding all the airplane blocks, for example, a cinch to find. Appendices at the end of the book categorize blocks further according to origin (Ladies Art Company, Laura Wheeler and Alice Brooks, Nancy Cabot, Nancy Page, Kansas City Star, Jinny Beyer) . You are able to look up a block by name in the alphabetical index at the very end of the book. And of course, sprinkled throughout are beautiful full-color photographs of Jinny’s quilts. Guild News 2012-01-11T13:35:20+00:00