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Amy Stewart Winsor's
News Letter
Oct. 13, 2005Dear Quilting Friends, Every month I try to send out an email newsletter with a new "Amy's Tip of the Month". I also include announcements of quilting events in the Raleigh/Cary/Durham area. Please send me an email if you do not wish to receive these newsletters. AMY'S TIP OF THE MONTH: Why Do Quilters Love a Good Quilt Challenge? Picture this: Your guild or bee announces a quilt challenge. The rules are set, such as "use a half yard of the challenge fabric in your quilt" or "include a handkerchief in your quilt". Suddenly the ideas start flowing and you end up locking yourself in your sewing room working at breakneck speed. You have rarely felt so alive with new ideas, and you are thrilled to be so creative. How does this happen? "Having too many choices is paralyzing", says Barry Schwartz, Ph.D., author of The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less. And the flip side of that would be, "Having fewer choices is freeing." Once you find out what the challenge is, suddenly you can focus on that one requirement. You are freed from the desire to make all those other wonderful quilts that are in your head, and you can eliminate all the fabrics which are not suitable. The choices that remain can be mulled over, and magically can come together into a lovely quilt, all because so many choices were eliminated previously. Your brain didn't have to deal with them, so was free to deal with what was available. Some of my most enjoyable quilts came out of challenges. Therefore, my advice to you is to find a quilting group or someone you can join with to start a challenge, and watch the ideas pour out of your brain. NEWS FROM AMY: I've had a whirlwind of a summer and fall. Our whole family went on a long summer vacation to Palmyra, New York, and then we were all busy will my son's wedding. I went on teaching trips to Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza, and the Greater Hartford Connecticticut Quilt Guild, and will soon be teaching in Saginaw, Michigan, Shelby, North Carolina, Lawton, Oklahoma, and Wytheville, Virginia. So that is my pitiful excuse for not getting a newsletter out since June (Sorry about that!). My quilt, "Magic Carpet Ride" will be published in the fall in the book, "I Remember Mama", by Karey Bresenhan. You can see the quilt on my website, click on "Gallery". This uses my "Frazzled Fancies" technique, over the top of my mother's old satin quilt top. "Decadence" was accepted into "Small Wonders VII", which was shown at the Spring International Quilt Festival in Rosemont, Illinois, and also at the International Quilt Festival Houston in Oct-Nov 2005. This is also one of my "Frazzled Fancies" series of quilts. I curated a special exhibit entitled, "Logging On", which featured log cabin quilts, made by me and five other quilters (Jane Hall, Flavin Glover, Lyric Kinard, Lynne Harrill, and Karen Zeher). This exhibit was seen at both venues of "World Quilt and Textiles" in August 2005, and at Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza, in Sept. 2005. "My Family Crazy Quilt" will be included in the special exhibit "Nearness of You: Memory and Commemoration in Quiltmaking", to be shown at the MidAtlantic Quilt Festival, Hampton, VA, Feb. 23-26, 2006. Curated by Keisha Roberts. SURVEY QUESTION: Which of my quilts would you be interested in seeing as a pattern? Please vote by sending me an email. I am about to produce a few patterns and would like to hear your opinions. CALENDAR ITEMS: Now until Nov. 2, 2005 Art Quilts: Contemporary Traditions Page-Walker Arts and History Center, 119 Ambassador Loop, Cary, NC 27512, 919-460-4963. See more about the exhibition on www.artquiltersouth.org Now until Aug. 2, 2006 "Stitched from the Soul: The Farmer-James Collection of African-American Quilts" NC Museum of History, Raleigh, NC, 919-807-7900, www.ncmuseumofhistory.org Thurs.Oct. 13,2005 Pinetree Quilter's Guild: (second Thursdays) social time beginning at 11:30, the program begins at 12:30. Woodhaven Baptist Church, 4000 Kildaire Farm Road, Apex, NC. The group has regular meetings September through May and, they hold workshops in June, July and August for the purpose of working on charity quilts. $10 per year. This month: Round Robin-demonstrations of knitting, crocheting, tatting and Russian Needle Punch.Future meetings: Nov. 10- Kathy Sullivan to discuss antique quilts, Dec. 8- X-mas Party Jan 12, 2006- Marlene Royse to discuss vintage fabrics -bring in your antique quilts & she'll help date them. Feb 9- Jane Hall-foundation piecing, Mar 9- Sharon Reilly will demonstrate wool applique, Apr 13- Silent Auction, May 11- Year End Potluck, June 8- Comfort Quilt Workshops. Contact Jean Conklin at jsiegel1@nc.rr.com. Thurs. October 13, 2005 Capital Quilt Guild (Note that this mtg is a week earlier than the usual third Thursday.) 7:00pm social, 7:30 pm. Business. Wake County Office Park, Commons Bldg, 4011 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC. (off Poole Road just outside I-440 beltline). Future dates: Nov. 17, Dec. 15- Holiday Blocks, Jan. 19, 2006-Quilto, Feb. 16, 2006, Mar. 16, 2006, Apr. 20, 2006, May 18, 2006, June 15, 2006. Oct. 14-16, 2005 "Harvest of Quilts", Hendersonville, NC. quiltshow@westernncquilters.org Monday, Oct. 17, 2005 Durham Orange Quilt Guild (Third Mondays) 7:30 pm, Grace Church, 200 Sage Road, Chapel Hill, NC. DOQ, PO Box 51152, Durham, NC 27717-1152. www.durhamorangequilters.com. "Ask the Experts" panel, and Annual Business meeting- we will vote on the slate of officers. Future meetings: Anita Shackleford will present two three-hour workshops on Nov. 20, and a lecture/program for guild mtg on Nov. 21. Dec. 14- Christmas party. Holiday blocks and boxes. Mar. 31-Apr. 2, 2006 "Its a Jungle Out there" Quilt Show, Charlotte, NC, acevanscoy@att.net June 1-4, 2006 North Carolina Quilt Symposium 2006 Benton Convention Center and the Adams Mark Hotel in Winston-Salem, NC. For info, send $3 to NCQSI 2006, PO Box 15334, Winston-Salem, NC 27113. (Amy will be teaching at Symposium.) MY TRAVELLING AND TEACHING SCHEDULE The next guilds where I will be the featured teacher are: Piecemakers Quilt Guild Saginaw, Michigan Foothills Quilters Guild Shelby, NC Hands All Around Quilt Guild Wytheville, VA Wichita Mountains Quilt Guild Lawton, OK Salt Creek Quilt Guild LaGrange, IL Piedmont Quilt Guild Greensboro, NC Durham-Orange Quilters Chapel Hill, NC Friendship Quilters Baltimore, MD Eternal Quilters Glen Burnie, MD Foothill Quilters Guild Auburn, CA NC Quilt Symposium 2006 Winston-Salem, NC Colonial Quilters Guild Bethlehem, PA Where I have taught quilting in the past: Peace College Raleigh, NC Pinetree Quilt Guild Apex, NC Gifted Hands Guild Cary, NC Venice Quilt Guild Venice, FL Tidewater Quilt Guild Norfolk, VA Capital Quilters Guild Raleigh, NC Annapolis Quilt Guild Annapolis, MD Quilters by the Sea Wilmington, NC Minnesota Quilt Guild Minneapolis, MN Belle Point Quilters Guild Fort Smith, AR Tar River Piecemakers Rocky Mount, NC Asheville Quilt Guild Asheville, NC Wilkes County Quilters Wilkesboro, NC Durham-Orange Quilt Guild Chapel Hill, NC Smoky Mountain Quilters Knoxville, TN Quilter's Guild of Dallas Dallas, TX Capital Quilters Guild Raleigh, NC Tarheel Quilter's Guild Fayetteville, NC Foothills Piecemakers Q G Greenville, SC 2004 Internat'l Quilt Festival Houston, TX Greenville Quilters' Guild Greenville, NC Capitol City Quilt Guild Lansing, MI Peninsula Piecemakers Q G Newport News, VA Edmond Quilt Guild Edmond, OK Green Country Quilters Tulsa, OK Heart of the Triad Quilt Guild Kernersville, NC 2005 Penn Natl Quilt Extrav. Fort Washington, PA Greater Hartford Quilt Guild Hartford, CT NEWS ABOUT ME My quilt, "Magic Carpet Ride" will be published in fall 2005 in the book, "I Remember Mama", by Karey Bresenhan. You can see the quilt on my website, click on "Gallery". It was made from a satin quilt top which was made by my mother in the 1980's. It was included in the "I Remember Mama" travelling exhibit, which was shown at the International Quilt Festival 2004. My quilt, "Missing Ingredient" was accepted into the National Quilting Association show 2005, in Columbus, OH and in the "Art Quilts: Journeys" exhibit. "Groovy Basket of Blessings" and "Book of Mormon Stories" were accepted into Quilters Heritage Celebration March 2005 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. "In the Limelight"is one of my series of Crooked Log Cabins, and was juried into the MidAtlantic Quilt Festival, in Hampton, VA, Feb. 24-27, 2005. "Sunday Morning" is featured on the cover of a regional quilting publication, "Southeast Showtime Quilters' Guide and Directory", Southeast edition, 2005. Many of my quilts were in a two-person exhibit entitled, "On the Bright Side: Art Quilts by Mickey Depre and Amy Stewart Winsor". The exhibit was displayed at the Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza" Sept. 2004, and "Pacific International Quilt Festival", in Oct. 2004. "Make an Appointment" won Second Place, Professional, at the 2004 Rockome Gardens quilt competition, in Arcola, Illinois. I won five ribbons at the N.C.Quilt Symposium held at Peace College in May 2004. First Place on "Make an Appointment", Third Place on "Mystery of the Seven Stars", Third Place on "Mother Nature's Son", Honorable Mention on "Crazy in Black", and Judge's Choice on "Mother Nature's Son". "Creations of a Precision Impaired Quilter", Quilts by Amy Stewart Winsor. Twenty-five of my quilts were featured in a special exhibit at the MidAtlantic Quilt Festival in Williamsburg, Virginia Feb.26-29, 2004. "Groovy Basket of Blessings" and "Book of Mormon Stories" were exhibited in the National Quilting Association Show in Peoria, IL, June 2004. A photo of "The Opera Quilt" was featured in the Journal of the International Quilt Association, Winter 2004, p. 16. Two pictures of me were in "Quilting Arts" magazine, Spring 2004, p. 46. I am the one in the long sleeve black lace blouse with a black crown with bright colored yoyos. "Hurricane Party" won a Judge's Choice ribbon from judge Roberta Horton at the Pacific International Quilt Festival in October 2003. It was also shown in the "Elements" exhibit, held at the Page-Walker in Cary, NC April-May 2004. "Elements" is also travelling to the Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza 2004 in Fort Washington, PA, and to the Pacific International Quilt Festival 2004 in Santa Clara, CA. Three of my quilts are featured on the cover of a book which came out Oct. 2003. The book, "Spray Fun", contains instructions for quilts made using temporary spray adhesive. My quilts, "Child's Play","Squiggly", and "Meditation in Green" are on the cover. It is published by Sewcraft Inc. Those same three quilts were displayed at the Kagaoshima (Japan) Quilter's Association "International Friendship Quilt Show" in Japan, November 2003. "In the Beginning" is featured on the cover of a regional quilting publication, "Showtime Quilters' Guide and Directory", Southwest edition. I sold this quilt in April 2003 to Dr. William Gurley. "The Flame of Hope", my quilt about the terrorist attacks of 9-11, is on display at the Knoxville Museum of Art through April 18, 2004. An image of "The Flame of Hope" was featured in the museum newsletter, and in City View magazine, a local Knoxville publication, and in a column from the Knoxville News-Sentinel, Feb.26, 2004. In addition, "The Flame of Hope" was chosen as one of only 40 from the international travelling exhibit "AMERICA: From the Heart"to be exhibited in the Dairy Barn cultural Arts Center in Athens, Ohio, Oct. 7-Nov. 9, 2003. Jan. 2002-June 2004: "The Flame of Hope" toured internationally in the "America: From the Heart" exhibit. The quilts were all made in response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. As of June 2003, the collection had travelled to 14 venues, including Barcelona, Spain, and the Spring International Quilt Festival in Chicago, being seen by an estimated combined total of 150,000 people. (See below under "Publications" for information about the book.) "Weekend Getaway" won a blue ribbon in the small pieced category at the 2003 North Carolina Quilt Symposium. It was exhibited in the PAQA-South Members Only show, "Art Quilts: Layers of Meaning" at the Page-Walker in Cary Oct.2003. My quilt "My Stars and Yoyos", was purchased Jan. 2003 by Karey Bresenhan for the collection of the International Quilt Festival and Quilts, Inc. This is one of the biggest honors I have had. (The quilt she purchased just prior to mine was Ricky Tims' "Songe d' Automne", which is my favorite quilt of all time.) My commissioned quilt, "The Opera Quilt", was installed in the stairwell of the A.J. Fletcher Opera Theater at the BTI Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh on Jan. 29, 2003. The Cary News ran a story about it on Feb. 6,2003 and the Raleigh News and Observer ran a story on March 5, 2003. See photos on my website, click on "Gallery". Here is the link to the News and Observer story. http://newsobserver.com/features/story/2284947p-2149374c.html Two issues of The Journal of the International Quilt Association, "Quilts: A World of Beauty", Winter 2003 and Fall 2003, had articles about the bleach damage done to my quilt, "Make an Appointment", and to Arlene Blackburn's quilt, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Elvis". Karey Bresenhan, IQA co-founder and director of the International Quilt Festival, wrote of Arlene and me, and two other quilters, "they are all truly a credit to the quilt world" (Cool!) The Winter 2003 magazine featured photos of two of my quilts: "Make an Appointment" and "Book of Mormon Stories". (Note: the man who threw the bleach was sentenced to 6 months in the Texas prison system, starting June 2, 2003.) PUBLICATIONS "Magic Carpet Ride" is included in the book, "I Remember Mama", 2005. "Sunday Morning" is featured on the cover of a regional quilting publication, "Southeast Showtime Quilters' Guide and Directory", Southeast edition. "In the Beginning" is on the cover of the "Showtime Quilters Guide and Directory" Jan-June 2004, Southwest edition. The 2003 American Quilters' Society Quilt Art Engagement Calendar had a picture of "Make An Appointment" on the week of Sept. 1, 2003. America: From the Heart: Quilters Remember September 11, 2001 features "The Flame of Hope" on page 39. C & T Publishing is donating all profits to the "Families of Freedom" Fund. Great American Quilts 2003 includes "Make An Appointment" on page 138. It is published by Oxmoor House. Three of my quilts are featured on the cover of "Spray Fun", which contains instructions for quilts made using temporary spray adhesive. It is published by Sewcraft Inc.. amywinsor@juno.com To receive my monthly email newsletter, or to be taken off my mailing list, please send a request by email. |
