I’ve been dying to tell you about our donations for this month’s online auction of small quilts by the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI), spearheaded by Ami Simms. And now that it’s January 1, I can finally spill the beans!
Summer Bloom by QM Graphic Designer Denise Starck
A while back, Ami made a trip to Colorado and stopped by our offices with several of her friends, who are also volunteers with AAQI. We spent a late afternoon beginning small quilts with the goal of donating them to this auction. Our sister magazines, McCall’s Quilting and Quilters Newsletter, also took part.
We had great fun playing! It’s completely energizing to join a room full of highly creative people with quilt supplies and enthusiasm. Eventually we all finished our little quilts and shipped them off to Ami for this month’s auction.
Beauty in the Midst of Chaos by QM Creative Editor Carolyn Beam
Carolyn Beam is Creative Editor at QM; her quilt (above) has a lovely traditional feel in soft pastels. She added three-dimensional flowers and matching buttons. Her piece is hand quilted; its title is Beauty in the Midst of Chaos.
Turning Over a New Leaf by QM Associate Editor Eileen Fowler
Associate Editor Eileen Fowler also added three-dimensional elements to her piece, Turning Over a New Leaf (above). It features hand-painted fabrics, beading and machine quilting. Eileen’s quilts are always perfectly executed.
Little Snowman Farm by QM Editor-in-Chief June Dudley
As Editor-in-Chief, June Dudley steers the ship here at Quiltmaker. Her Little Snowman Farm (above) uses an idea from her block for Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Volume 2. It features a gorgeous hand-painted velvet background and paper-doll-style trees and snowmen. Kind of makes you want to play in the fluffy white stuff, doesn’t it?!
Smalltown by QM Interactive Editor Diane Harris
My piece, Smalltown (above), generated the most laughter during our creative session. See the little house on the far left? When I first made it and had yet to add the door and windows, the first thing someone said was “It’s a milkshake!” And indeed it DID look like a milkshake. The door and windows did help, along with the context of two other houses, but I will forever think “milkshake” when I see this little quilt. The improvisational piecing was so much fun–I was turned on to this kind of patchwork by Gwen Marston and Tonya Ricucci among others.
The quilt at the top of the post is Summer Bloom by QM Graphic Designer Denise Starck. It features piecing and machine applique. Denise used a leftover from a previous project as the beginning of this little quilt.
It seems almost everyone has been touched by Alzheimer’s in some way. It’s a cruel disease that robs families of their loved ones for years at a time. If you’d like to support AAQI and the search for a cure for Alzheimer’s, we’d invite you to bid on our little quilts. The auction ends on January 10, 2011 at 10 p.m. (22:00 military time) Central Daylight Time.
Beautiful pieces and such a wonderful cause.
Debbie
This is a great cause- I hope that you get many bids on your quilts. My mother in law is a victim of this challenging illness- it has been said that it is forgetting in inches and the pain that loved ones feel is palpable. I applaud Ami’s efforts and commend all of those who have created quilts to help raise money for Alzheimer’s research.
Regards,
Anna
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Having been at this session as an Ami Simms “roadie”, it’s a blast to see the finished projects! Great work ladies, and I especially love the hand dyed velvet! What fun we had!