Upcoming Events!

There will be quilts and more quilts for the remainder of 2011, with several upcoming events in the works. In early July, I'm speaking at the Quilter's Affair in Sisters. Last year was my first time visiting Sisters during Quilt Show week. Ricky Tims took the stage, and he and Alex Anderson appeared at the evening picnic and the quilt show. When I saw Ricky's performance, I said to myself, "I'd like to do that some day, and I'd show lots of great old quilts!"

Little did I realize that "some day" would be 2011. Not long after last year's quilt show, Jean Wells Keenan and I were talking about a photography project. We were talking about how the show had come of age after 35 years running, and I asked if she would consider including old quilts in the future. She offered me the opportunity to speak and share quilts, and I'll be doing a daytime talk about eBay and an evening presentation on old quilts. The Gee's Bend Quilters will also be in town, so it should be an exciting time! To check event information and ticket availability, click here.

On August 5th, the exhibit "Beauty Secrets: 150 Years of History in One Quilt Pattern" opens at the Benton County Mueum as part of Quilt County. It is my first full-scale exhibit of quilts, and the first time the Benton County Museum will feature works from one private collection during Quilt County. This exhibit will offer a chronological view of quilt history as seen in examples of one extraordinary design. There will be a catalog, as I've mentioned in earlier blogs. It will be 40 pages, printed in full color, and hard cover. There is a new Quilt County website under development: http://www.quiltcounty.org, and the Marys River Quilt will host a presentation with me on Thursday, September 22nd at the museum.

Also in September, I will be displaying quilts and doing two talks at the Northwest Quilting Expo at the Portland Expo Center. I'm planning a display of old quilts and thinking about including quilts that are 100 years old or older. During the talks on Friday and Saturday, I'll speak about some of the rarest and most extraordinary quilts in my collection.

In the midst of all this activity, there are a few other projects. I'm trying to lead the Oregon Quilt Project in its efforts to regroup following the relocation of one of our key volunteers. We're talking about bylaws, policies, procedures, etc. During the interim, I will also help keep the Columbia-Willamette Quilt Study Group going. Mary Bywater Cross and I have been working on plans for a July 16th event, which is about to be announced. The quilt study group will meet at the Oregon Historical Society, where there will be historic and recently made quilts on display. Oh yes, and I've been involved in the behind-the-scenes activities with that, too. Mary, too!