The Uncommon Quilter at the International Quilt Festival in Houston

I am at the International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas, this evening through November 4, 2007. I will be selling and signing The Uncommon Quilter, and helping to sell the Creative Quilting book.

Look for me next to the Journal Quilt retrospective in the Special Exhibits area, Aisle E on the red carpet, diagonally across from the Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) exhibit. View a map.

I look forward to meeting everyone who stops by.

Boston Red Sox and Socks I'd Like to Quilt

All Red Sox fans keep up with their team while traveling, especially during the World Series, so I'm writing from the International Quilt Market and Festivalin Houston, Texas. These are the socks my husband likes to wear when he goes to Red Sox games. It's a good thing for him that I'm not making a a quilt a week any more because I'd be really tempted to use these socks in a quilt, now that the World Series is over!

You can also see a socks quilt in the The Uncommon Quilter on page 140, and another that is not in my book here on my blog. 

Many many congrats to the Boston Red Sox for winning the World Series!

The Uncommon Quilter at the International Quilt Market

The International Quilt Market, in Houston Texas, opened today through October 29, 2007. I am selling and signing The Uncommon Quilter, and helping to sell the Creative Quilting book, next to the Journal Quilt retrospective in the Special Exhibits area. Since this is a trade only show, I also have wholesale ordering information.

View a map of where I am in Special Exhibits.

Art with Fiber - on exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston

I ran around Houston Texas today with a friend, since the International Quilt Market isn't opening until tomorrow October 27th. One stop was the Ornament as Art: Avant-Garde Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection, on view at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston through January 21, 2008.

I took a class taught by Helen Drutt when I was in studying "fibers" at the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts) in the late 1970's. I remember some of the jewelry in this show from her class, and when I briefly worked for her in her gallery.

This show highlights more than just gold and silver jewelry. I was very excited to see jewelry created with paper, cut books, sticks, fabric, and more. If you are in Houston with a little extra time, I highly recommend this show.

The Uncommon Quilter in Houston, Texas

I am going to be at the International Quilt Market in Houston Texas, from October 27 - 29, 2007. This is a trade only show, and it is not open to the general public. I will have wholesale ordering information for the The Uncommon Quilter for quilt stores and other businesses. I will also be selling and signing The Uncommon Quilter, and helping to sell the Creative Quilting book. You can find me next to the Journal Quilt retrospective in the Special Exhibits area.

From October 31 - November 4, 2007 I will be at the International Quilt Festival in Houston. I will be selling and signing The Uncommon Quilter, and helping to sell the Creative Quilting book. Look for me next to the Journal Quilt retrospective in the Special Exhibits area.

View a map of where I will be in Special Exhibits, for both Market and Festival. I look forward to meeting everyone who stops by.

Rubberband Ball

This is an update of my family's rubberband ball. I wanted to post and update before I leave for the International Quilt Market and Festival in Houston, where I'll be selling and signing The Uncommon Quilter.

The picture above is the front and below is the back. My last rubberband ball post was ten days ago, and I don't see any major changes. I'll post new pictures after I return home.

Boston Red Sox and Quilted Socks

The Boston Red Sox won the American League pennant, and they're going to the World Series! Just for fun and to celebrate, I tweaked (in Photoshop) a picture of one of the two weekly quilts I made with socks.


After a very hard New England winter in 2003, I confiscated quite a few pairs of socks with holes in them when I was doing the laundry. In the The Uncommon Quilter there is a quilt I made with my son's socks on page 140. The quilt (above) was made from my husband's socks, and is not in my book.

Most of the World Series games are going to be played while I'm at the International Quilt Market and Festival in Houston, but I'll do my best to root for my home team while I'm there. Go Red Sox!

Creating and Sharing

It always feels very strange when I see my art work hanging in a exhibit. It's is hard to describe my feelings about the transition from the process of creating something on your own, and then sharing it with others. It's not too different than feelings about seeing one's child out in the world, as someone independent from yourself. A few days ago I went to a local Barnes & Noble to see if my book, The Uncommon Quilter, was on the bookshelves. Seeing it there was similar to the feelings I have about seeing my work or my son, but it was also very exciting to see it on the shelves along with the other wonderful quilting books available at this time.

Quilts=Art=Quilts

My piece, "Orange Construction Fence Series #52" is going to be on exhibit at Quilts=Art=Quits, at the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center in Auburn NY, from November 4, 2007 – January 6, 2008. If you're nearby, go see the show!

12 x 12 x 12 October

From 1999-2005 I made a small quilt a week, which I discuss in my book The Uncommon Quilter. This year I am making one 12" x 12" piece a month.

For my October piece, I tried a different technique than usual. Instead of using fabric paint, I used discharge paste to make prints of some construction fences on black fabric. Then I did something else that I almost never do, I hand stitched the entire piece instead of sewing it by machine. I LOVE the look of hand stitching, but usually don't do it because of how long it takes and how sore my fingers get while doing it. Because this piece is small, and the black fabric is softer than the white fabric I usually use, it didn't take that long hand sew it and it didn't hurt that much. I am very happy with how this turned out.

You can read more about my 12 x 12 x 12 project on my website and here on my blog.

This 12 x 12 x 12 piece is not the piece I blogged yesterday when I discussed hand stitching and my football pool yesterday. That piece is similar, but will be larger when completed.

Football Pool and Hand Sewing!

I've found a good time to do some creative hand sewing. It's during televised football games. I got a lot accomplished when I joined my husband and friends who were watching as the New England Patriots played the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night.
I have tried and tried, but I just don't "get" football. I've had the game explained to me dozens of times but i just don't understand it. It's very confusing to me.

My lack of knowledge about football was my reason for joining a local football pool. I have some friends who LOVE football, and they've had a pool for years. I wanted to give it a try. Each week for the past six weeks, I've been making my "picks". How would someone who doesn't like or understand football pick? I had considered choosing by which team had the nicest uniforms but I don't have the time right now to do the research.


Instead, I pick which city I like the best between each match-up, each week. Sometimes it's hard to choose, and sometimes it's not. It's only week six (out of 17 I think), but guess who's winning the pool right now?!?!? This is fun. I'll report back in a couple of weeks about how it's going (with the pool and the hand sewing).

Making small quilts by reusing plastic produce netting bags

It's Blog Action Day, and the theme is the environment.

Netting from produce bags is one of my favorite materials to work with. It is commonly found in the kitchen, holding onions, potatoes, oranges and grapefruit, and garlic. My absolute favorite is the red netting that covers boxes of clementines. It's like a plastic fabric, with holes in it.


The picture above is of four small quilts made with recycled plastic netting. My book, The Uncommon Quilter, has illustrated instructions about how to create them. Most of the materials used in my book can be found around your home or neighborhood, including items you would usually throw away. Before you put something in the trash, ask yourself if it can be used in your art work, and if it can be, hold on to it.

Below is a selection of some different colors and types of netting I've collected. I challenge you to start collecting different household items and see what creative ideas you can come up with about how to use them in your art work.


Since today's blog entry is focused on the environment, I'd like to say congratulations to former Vice President Al Gore for winning the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on educating us about man-made climate change!

Rubberband Ball

I've been so busy this week with my book's release, and watching Red Sox games on TV, that I forgot to post an update about my family's rubberband ball. There have been many changes since my post from two weeks ago. The picture above is the front side, and below is the back. The yellow piece broke off on the front (you can see it laying there on the tray), and the whole thing is starting to look rather unkempt. Also, the rubberbands are really stiff, and are cracking and breaking. The black band still looks OK, but underneath it, it looks like it's going to fall apart. I'll try to post it again before I leave for the International Quilt Festival in Houston Texas, at the end of the month.

Inside The Uncommon Quilter

On August 20th, I posted an entry on this blog about a small quilt that is in my book, that was inspired by seed pods hanging on a neighbor's tree. The quilt is called "Seed pods and Lint", and it is on page 106 in my book The Uncommon Quilter. It was created by using crayon rubbings of the seedpods, and there is a layer of dryer lint behind them.

Inside The Uncommon Quilter

The Uncommon Quilter, is divided in to four material/technique chapters, Plastic, Paper, Surface Design and Fiber. At the beginning of each chapter, there is an introduction to the materials and techniques being discussed.

Each of the quilts have illustrated instructions, and a text that describes the inspiration for each creation. There is no need to buy expensive materials when creating the 52 quilts. Most of the materials used can be found around your home or neighborhood.

A third peak inside The Uncommon Quilter will be posted tomorrow.

Inside The Uncommon Quilter

The first chapter of my book, The Uncommon Quilter, is "Getting Started." This chapter discusses the basics of creating small quilts, setting up your supplies and workspace so your materials are ready when you have time to start working, guidelines in choosing different kinds of materials that are not commonly used in quilt-making, and how to use a template when deciding the placement or angle of your design.

Another peak inside The Uncommon Quilter will be posted tomorrow.

The Uncommon Quilter

I am pleased to announce the publication my new book, The Uncommon Quilter, published by Potter Craft (Random House).  An accessible combination of how-to and journal, The Uncommon Quilter is for quilters, sewers, paper- and mixed-media artists, as well as for anyone who appreciates contemporary visual art. 
 
The book is based on my experience creating one small art quilt every week from 1999 through 2005.  There are 52 quilts featured with illustrated instructions, and a text that describes the inspiration for each creation.  The book shows how to create unique artwork using everyday materials and found objects.

There is a review of my book in the October/November 2007 issue of Quilting Arts magazine, or you can read it by clicking here.
 
I am pleased to also announce the following event this Sunday:
 
DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park 
Store @ DeCordova 
51 Sandy Pond Rd
Lincoln, MA 01773 
Book signing: Sunday, October 14, 2007, 2 - 4 p.m.

All book signing events will be listed on TheUncommonQuilter.com, and here on my blog. 
 
To all my friends and family who have been supportive and encouraging through this process of conceiving, writing and publishing this book, I am so thankful - and also relieved that this day has arrived! I especially want to thank Karey Bresenhan, the Director of the International Quilt Festival, and the Author of Creative Quilting; The Journal Quilt Project, for writing the Foreword for my book.

Comments are not turned on on this blog, but I do want to hear from you. If you have questions or comments about my book, or if you create one of the projects in the book, or made your own variation and want to share it with me, please don't hesitate to write to me. My email address is jeanne@jeannewilliamson.com.
 
I hope you enjoy The Uncommon Quilter!

Sincerely, Jeanne Williamson

Books published tomorrow by Stephen Colbert, Jeanne Williamson, Eric Clapton, and Ken Follett

Tomorrow, October 9th, is the release date of many new books. Four of them are Stephen Colbert's "I Am America (And So Can You!)," my book "The Uncommon Quilter: Small Art Quilts Created with Paper, Plastic, Fiber, and Surface Design," Ken Follett's "World Without End," and Eric Clapton's "Clapton: The Autobiography."

The chart above shows how these four books fit in ten important categories. Curiously enough, The Uncommon Quilter covers them all very nicely.

Color!

My husband and I drove his 1972 Volvo 1800ES to the Foreign Auto Festival & Antique Aeroplane Show at the Owls Head Transportation Museum today. We had a very nice drive to and from Natick Massachusetts to Owls Head Maine, where the museum is. There were hundreds of antique and newer cars there. I know nothing about restoring old cars, horsepower, transmissions, and etc, so I spent some of my time taking pictures of the beautiful color that surrounded us. This is a very small taste of what we saw.

Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger to Stephen Colbert!

Tip of the Hat to Stephen Colbert for choosing October 9th as the release date of his book "I Am America (And So Can You!)." Colbert gets to enjoy the bump in recognition publicity generated from the surge of can't-miss bestsellers by famous American authors also scheduled for 10/9 release, including Jeanne Williamson's "The Uncommon Quilter," Ken Follett's "World Without End," and Eric Clapton's "Clapton: The Autobiography."


A Wag of the Finger to Stephen Colbert trying to monopolize all of the media attention on this historic book release date. If Stephen was a true American, he'd be working harder to increase the sales of all October 9th books, which in turn would strengthen the dollar, defend American values, protect our jobs and create prosperity.

Art with Fiber - on exhibit at the DeCordova Museum

There's a wonderful new exhibit a the DeCordova Museum, in Lincoln, Massachusetts. It's called "Trainscape: Installation Art for Model Railroads", and it's on view until Jan 13, 2008. There are a number of pieces in this show that use fiber a main element.

My most favorite piece is by Ralph Helmick. It's called "Fourteenth Way", and it's shows the illusion of snow covered mountains, that are actually made of cut white paper letters suspended by nylon thread. No matter where you stand, as the train runs through the mountains, it's as if it's going through a snow storm. I LOVE it!

Also on exhibit in a different gallery in the museum, are two pieces by Samantha Fields. One is "Wallpapered Space II", 2007, created with vinyl siding, yarn, afghans, and wall paper patterns stitched with yarn. The other piece is "Curtain Mother", which fills a sixteen-by-sixteen foot window with layers and layers of curtains. There isn't an image of this piece on the Museum's website.

Lenore Tawney, 1907-2007

When I was in studying "fibers" at the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts) in the late 1970's, I took a class taught by Helen Drutt, called the History of Crafts. Lenore Tawney was one of the few artists working in fiber at that time. She was creating huge sculptural weavings, and showing them in major art galleries and museums. I want to thank her and the other artists who helped bring attention to fiber art back then. Art created with fiber has become very interesting and exciting. Artists like Lenore Tawney helped blur the line between art vs. craft. That, in my opinion, that is a very good thing.

October 9th books - Stephen Colbert's and mine

Last night, when talking to Jon Stewart during the toss from The Daily Show to The Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert plugged the October 9th release of his book by saying, "If you buy twenty-three books this year, then make sure that fourteen of them are my book I Am America (And So Can You!)."

Fortunately for the book-buying public, another book is also being released on October 9th. I hope that one of the nine remaining books on your shopping list is The Uncommon Quilter.
 
And maybe you'll also buy Ken Follett's and Eric Clapton's books, also scheduled for release on October 9th. That leaves you with six more choices.

Dryer lint

I'm posting dryer lint once a week for the countdown to the October 9th publication date of my book The Uncommon Quilter.

Dryer safety is very important. I clean my lint trap out after a few loads, not every one. If it is about to get thick and dense, I clean it immediately. Some would argue that not cleaning it after every dryer load is dangerous, but my understanding is what is most dangerous is the lint that accumulates in the vent. (To learn about dyer safety click here.)


If you clean your trap after each load, you can still have fun with your dryer lint. Carefully remove the lint from the trap. Lay it on a flat surface, and add layers of different colored lint on top of each other as you accumulate them. In The Uncommon Quilter, I have a project called "Dryer Lint Sandwich" (shown above) on page 133. The instructions explain how to cut through the different layers, and make a quilt with it. This quilt is made of three very thin layers of lint. Light grey is on the bottom, bright blue in the middle, and black is on top.

You can read more dryer lint posts on my blog by clicking here.