Quilting Arts Magazine December 2020/January 2021

“This issue of QUILTING ARTS provides a bit of comfort with the theme of ‘Shimmer and Shine, ’ in hopes that it brings light and joy at the end of a heavy year.” IT’S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN—TIME TO REVISIT 2020 AND PLAN FOR ’21. TIME TO REFLECT, RESOLVE, AND RE-SET. It’s been a while since I replaced the oft-discarded New Year’s resolution for a new practice—namely, setting artistic goals and choosing a ‘word of the year’ to guide my creativity. With that in mind, looking back over the past 12 months and evaluating my progress has been interesting: I’ve explored new piecing techniques, experimented with paint, and been an absolute beginner in an online drawing class. But it is clear the 2020 word I embraced—Uncomfortable—was prophetic in more ways than…

Dear QUILTING ARTS, Cindy Griselda’s article on color [“Add a Spark of Color,” August/September issue] could not have been more welcomed. As a textile artist and continuing education student in surface design, I found Cindy’s no-nonsense advice for tackling color theory refreshing and spot on. For any designer, conquering color is a first step in the process of creating pleasing palettes that reflect an artist’s personal aesthetic. By translating complicated color concepts into an easy-tofollow protocol of key steps, Cindy’s tips expertly de-mystify the process. Thank you, Cindy! Marsha Borden Guilford, Connecticut Hello! Thanks for another article about indigo dyeing by Candy Glendening in the October/November 2020 issue of Quilting Arts. I became addicted to indigo dyeing after reading Candy’s article in your June/July 2018 issue. The article made indigo dyeing sound easy so I tried…

Julie B. Booth is a surface design artist, teacher, and author of Fabric Printing at Home. She has written articles for Quilting Arts Magazine and appeared on “Quilting Arts TV.” Julie teaches numerous classes in hand stitching as an expressive art form, including telling stories and sharing memories in cloth and creating appliquéd and stitched works with a healing message. threadbornblog.com Cheryl Sleboda is a full-time, award-winning art quilter who has been featured in magazines and on “Quilting Arts TV” and “It’s Sew Easy.” Cheryl created the Quilting Arts Workshop™ video, “Heirloom Sewing Techniques for Today’s Quilter.” She started a new business focused on cosplay and costuming called Sew Much Cosplay. Cheryl also teaches and speaks to guilds and groups nationally. muppin.com For Beth Schillig fabrics, threads, and sewing machines have always been a…

textile artist Judith Martin lives on an idyllic, sparsely populated island in the Canadian waters of Lake Huron, slow stitching large-scale drawings and art quilts, for which she has received recognition across North America as well as other parts of the world. Since 2010, she has been harvesting and processing natural plant dyes from the local fields and her kitchen to use in her work. CATE COULACOS PRATO: Your artwork and your approach to it seem very calm, soft, and contemplative—yet powerful. Can you tell us about your inspiration and the message(s) you’re conveying through your art? JUDY MARTIN: My inspiration is the huge world within each of us. I think the power you feel in my work comes from the evidence of the passage of time that is held within the…

it began with an ad in QUILTERS NEWSLETTER MAGAZINE in 1980, when Karen Berkenfeld was looking to start a ‘quilting bee’ in her upper Manhattan apartment. At the start, it was as much a social gathering as anything, with members including several new moms eager for some ‘me time.’ “In those days, there was always wine and baked goods, and the meetings were a combination of quilting on our separate projects, kaffee klatsch, and book group,” recalled Katherine Knauer. Over the decades, the guild evolved into an invitation-only group of established art quilters who critique one another’s work and plan exhibitions. This year the Manhattan Quilters Guild turns 40 and its 21 current members are celebrating with a traveling exhibition of quilts that measure 40" x 40". As they reworked an…

ELEGANZA™ PERLE COTTON THREAD Alison Glass and WonderFil® have teamed up for a new collection of #8 perle cotton Eleganza thread in 48 brand new colors. Packaged in collections of 12 or available as single balls, this high-quality thread is luscious to work with and is available in solid and variegated colors. The collections of solids—Sun, Flora, and Fauna—evoke their names and the one called Stars (pictured) is a full box of variegated loveliness. Yummy! $2.60–$44.00 • alisonglass.com EXPLORING YOUR ARTISTIC VOICE IN CONTEMPORARY QUILT ART SANDRA SIDER Artist, educator, and quilt expert Sandra Sider takes readers on a personal journey in this important book. She shares, “My hope is to steer you away from some of the mistakes I have made as you strive for authenticity in your own work.” She stresses that ‘voice’…