Just in Time for Spring

What better way to celebrate the arrival of warmer weather and green growing things than with a sweet food treat! Ann Hazelwood has completed her trilogy of "100s" with 100 Sweet Treats by and for Quilters. The book itself is delicious with many photos of quilts by the dessert makers. When you need something more substantial, dig in to one of 100 short, yummy recipes for bars, breads, brownies, cakes, cobblers, cold desserts, cookies (are you hungry yet?), crunchies, fruit dishes, pies, puddings or sundries. Is it your turn to make treats for the guild or your sit-and-stitch group? Need a hostess gift? This book is the one!  (AQS #8156)

Now that you're all happy from eating a sweet treat (or two), it's back to the quilting with Sue Patten's latest books, Adaptable Quilting Designs.  Here are 90 pages of designs Sue created to fill those tricky spots on a quilt -- the sashings, cornerstones and setting triangles. All of them can be worked by hand or any type of machine, and reduced or enlarged as needed. Sue's designs work up beautifully as is, or use them to jump start your own ideas. If you enjoyed Sue's first book, Quilting Possibilities...Freehand Filler Patterns, you'll love this one. (AQS #8234)

The blogging program doesn't like posting pictures today, but you can see the books on our home page -- www.americanquilter.com. Call 800-626-5420 to order.

Lancaster or Bust!

If you've ever planned a birthday party, a wedding, even a potluck dinner, you know what a mad scramble it can be as the time draws near. Add hundreds of quilts, dozens of teachers, hundreds of vendors and thousands of quilters and you can imagine life at AQS this last week before we open in Lancaster on March 24!

Our first show in that lovely city will be like our other shows, only different, because each show has its own "flavor," depending on so many variables -- the city, the local volunteers, the weather (!), and most importantly, the attendees. This show we expect to have many, many more people from the East than we usually see, certainly in Knoxville and Des Moines. Be prepared to hear a wide variety of accents, y'all and you guys!

Not only is this our first event in Lancaster, the show will be the first big event in the brand new Lancaster County Convention Center. Everyone there is excited and probably a little nervous. Truth to tell, so are we, for although we've put on big quilt shows for 25 years, and have become accustomed to being in new-to-us venues, every show is different. We can only hope we've planned the best to make this a memorable time for everyone involved.

We are thrilled with the enthusiastic reception we've received from Lancaster folks and from people long accustomed to attending a quilt show in Southeastern Pennsylvania. The area is a must-visit Mecca for quilters, and we're delighted to keep the quilting spirit alive there. See you next week!

Create Masterful Quilts Based on Mosaic Tiles

Mosaic tile patterns have inspired quilters for years, and Jean Biddick is no exception. She has put clever drafting and piecing techniques in play to create visually stunning quilts based on the tiled floors of the Truro Cathedral in England.

These exceptional quilts are truly easier to make than they appear. A few of them are challenging, which many quilters find appealing. Not many books on the market today appeal to quilters looking to elevate their skills, so Masterful Machine Pieced Quilts should light up their sewing rooms.

The quilts are so beautiful, this book could almost pass as a coffee table book. There plenty of ideas here to inspire competition-level work. Call 1-800-626-5420 to order AQS #8153.

Book Proposals Welcome

If you've ever thought about writing a quilt book, consider sending a book proposal to us. We look for fresh ideas or new ways of doing things demonstrated by colorful, well-executed quilts. Book proposal guidelines are on our website under the "Authors" tab. We review proposals approximately once a month, except March, April, July and October when our shows keep us out of the office for a week at a time.

As soon as we review your proposal, I'll contact you so there's no waiting and wondering on your part. Please note that proposals should be accompanied by one or two completed representative projects.

One of the great things about quiltmaking is that there's more than one correct way to do almost everything. If you've got a great idea and want to share it with others, consider writing a quilt book. We look forward to seeing what you're thinking!

Shipping Quilts - Revised - A Long Post

The Previous Post information below was posted on June 19, 2009. So you don't have to click away to find it, it's copied here, along with additional information offered by Pat in Montana, who has 25 years of experience in shipping.

New Entry: When you ship quilts to AQS or when we return quilts to you, we strongly encourage you to request a Signature Required on the box(es).

It need not be an adult signature, but tracking undelivered boxes (which can be late, delivered to the wrong address, picked up by a well-meaning neighbor who promptly forgets to give the box to you, stacked in the shipper's overgoods department, or truly lost) is next to impossible without a signature.

Requesting Delivery Confirmation is another option, but is not as strong a tracking device. Both requests cost a little extra (at this time, UPS charges $3 for Signature Required, $2 for Delivery Confirmation; FedEx charges $3 for Signature Required, nothing for Delivery Confirmation) but are well worth the peace of mind.

Also, read again below the information about insuring your quilts, both from us and from Pat. Experience has taught us to use our company policy (a special fine arts policy) to insure every appraised quilt we send.

Once a quilt leaves our hands and is with a shipper, there is nothing we can do but hold our breath that your quilts arrive safely. And if something does go wrong, there's nothing we can do to help you if all possible precautions haven't been taken.

Encouraging you to be as careful and conservative as possible when shipping and receiving your quilts is our way of thanking you for loaning them to us for shows, books, calendars, magazine articles and marketing.

Previous Post: We know how much your quilts mean to you, so we’ve compiled this checklist of best practices when sending us (or anyone) your quilts.

Mail or ship them to:

(the contact name you were given on your entry form or email)

AQS

5801 Kentucky Dam Road

Paducah, KY 42003

(270) 898-7903

Email a tracking number as soon as you have it and let us know when we should expect your quilts to: Tracey@aqsquilt.com.

If you don't take any other measure suggested here, at least sew a label with, at a minimum, your name, the quilt’s name, and your address and phone number onto each quilt.

For quilts larger than 30" x 30", sew a 4-inch sleeve across the back at the top. Be sure the sleeve is set down far enough not to show above the quilt when hung.

Enclose each quilt in some sort of plastic bag that you can close or tape shut to prevent water damage should the box rip or tear. Ziploc makes large-quilt size bags. Do not use anything that might be mistaken for a trash bag!

Include a color photo of the quilt in the bag with your name and contact information and why you're sending the quilt to us - the name of your proposal, book or magazine article or the contest or event you're entering.

Enclose a packing list with the box that includes your name and contact information and a list of the quilts in the box. Do not include any indications of your quilts’ values.

If you are concerned about insuring your quilts, have them appraised, and use a fine arts rider on your homeowner's insurance rather than buying the shipper's insurance.

Do not pack your quilts too tightly. We have to use a sharp blade to open most boxes and the danger of damaging a quilt stuffed into a container is real. Consider adding a layer of cardboard on top of the bagged quilts as a safety barrier.

Do not indicate anywhere on the outside of the box that it includes quilts. Do not use the word “quilt” anywhere inside or outside, including the shipping label. Use “AQS,“ not “American Quilter’s Society.”

Send your quilts early in the week so they do not sit around a warehouse or loading dock over the weekend, or send them overnight so they arrive here by 2:00 pm CST on a Friday.

If you are sending multiple quilts or multiple boxes of quilts, consider packing them either one quilt to a box and sending them on subsequent days, or put two or three quilts in a box and send the several boxes on subsequent days. This prevents having all of your quilts on the one truck that gets into an accident or burns down in a warehouse fire.

If this seems like overkill, it isn’t. The condition in which many boxes reach us is terrible, and quilts have been known to get wet, become damaged or disappear in transit.

See additional good information about shipping sent in by Pat from Montana below. Thanks, Pat!

We hope you will take these precautions and we look forward to seeing your quilts.

Pat's comment: I just read your article about shipping quilts and I’d like to add some information. (I worked at a major shipping company for over 25 years, over half of which was in the package handling areas).

Do not go cheap on your packing materials, especially the boxes. Corrugated cardboard weakens with use; buy a decent box. Never, ever use masking tape; it is not strong enough to hold the package together. Again, buy some decent shipping tape. No string! It gets caught in conveyors. No brown paper wrap; again it can get caught in conveyors and ripped off.

As you stated, a label should also be inside the package, and I always put mine in a plastic baggie. If the package gets wet, the label will still be readable.

Do not ‘over stuff’ the package – use the right size box. Packages should be able to withstand a four foot drop on the corner of the box without bursting. However, the contents should not shift around in the package. Other packages will probably stacked on top of it, and empty space can cause the package to sag and break open.

Although literally millions of packages are delivered safely and on time each day, there are circumstances beyond the control of anyone that can damage or destroy a package. Remember that the ‘money back guarantee’ or ‘insurance’ will only reimburse you for the cost of shipping and the article. You will have to have proof of value. If something is not replaceable (great grandma’s wedding quilt that has been handed down from generation to generation) do not ship it. There is not a value that can be put on something like that.

Thanks for a great article,

Pat Hierl

Whitefish, MT

National Wear Red Day!

On Friday, February 5, 2010, Americans nationwide will wear red to show their support for women's heart disease awareness on National Wear Red Day®. Heart disease is the No. 1 health threat for women. Wearing red is a simple, yet powerful way to raise awareness of heart disease and stroke. Join thousands of women, companies and organizations, and cities across America to help support ongoing research and education about women and heart disease. For more information, here is a Google link that will take you to several Web sites.

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=national+wear+red+day+2010&aq=1p&aqi=n1g-p1g2g-z1g6&oq=national+wea&fp=c5aa4278f68e4a4

Anita Shackelford in the Limelight

AQS author Anita Shackelford will be the cover quilter and featured artist in the March issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited. There will be a sidebar about quilting with kids, a great tie-in for her recent book with co-author (and daughter) Jennifer Perdue: Teens 'n Tweens: Quilting Fun with Family and Friends.

In the March/April issue of Quilter's Home, Anita, Jen, and Jen's daughter, Amber, will appear in a story about multi-generational quilting. Keeping quilting alive for the future! That's great news for everyone! Rock on, ladies! AQS# 8026 at www.americanquilter.com or 1-800-626-5420.