I have a question for our blog readers. What C&T book would you like us to bring back as an ebook? And yes, this is definitely a popularity contest.

In the past year we have gotten requests for any out of print book by Elly Sienkiewicz, Symmetry and Pieced Flowers by Ruth B. McDowell and Jacobean Rhapsodies by Pat Campbell. Some of these are scheduled to be released early this year. So, if you are a wishing and hoping and praying to get your hands on an impossible to find C&T book, let me know by commenting on this post, and I’ll see what I can do!

Happy New Year!

A creative life is filled with challenges and rewards, puzzles and curiosities. This ongoing series of poems attempts to express the “Aha’s” and “What ifs”, the deep ponderings and casual observations of an inquiring mind trying to make sense of reality. May it serve, for you, as a bit of “Everyday Inspiration” along your own creative path.

A creative person
Should not be made
To choose between
Her art
And another
Commitment.

If forced
To do so,
She will chose her art—
For to NOT
Would be to
Obliterate
Her soul.

When I’m quilting, I love to listen to music. But I must admit I get in quite a rut. I listen to the same CD over and over, most likely because I’m not really listening to it at all. I just hum along and use the music to keep my groove when I’m ironing, cutting, or sewing. But that means I end up humming the songs at odd times after I’ve left my studio, not knowing where the tune came from.

Right now the song stuck in my head is fabulously appropriate for work (or for play…). I just screened Peggy Martin’s DVD (Peggy Martin Teaches you Quick Strip Paper Piecing) that was just released this November and there’s a terrific song that runs over the closing credits. A little research told me it’s “Quilting Party” performed by none-other-than Peggy Martin herself. It’s beautiful! What a talented woman.

I get songs out of my head by thinking the tune of “The Girl from Ipanema”…that gets rid of any unwanted tune and doesn’t get stuck itself. I’m usually pretty desperate to get the songs unstuck, but not this time. I think I’ll let this one stick around for awhile.

An errata is an error found in a book after publishing. And we have them. (Not with any frequency, thank goodness!) If any publisher says they never have mistakes in their books, either they’re not telling the truth or they don’t care to check.

When I started at C&T six years ago, I was a technical editor. I love the math, crunching numbers, calculating yardage. There are thousands of numbers to crunch in some project books! The key to being a good technical editor is to also try to predict how someone else might read an instruction, cut a strip of fabric, adjust the yardage requirements and edit or word the material accordingly.

We’re so serious about technical accuracy that we have two technical editors reviewing every project. But unfortunately once in a while (once in a great while), we miss the mark.

This is quite painful for us, but more painful for someone who’s trying to make a project. We often receive calls or emails from readers, mid-project, with questions about construction or cutting. The calls and emails go to our technical editors who work to figure out what’s going on. Usually it’s not a problem in the book and we are delighted to help the reader out with the answer. But sometimes we’ve missed something.

So we list our errata on our website. (Look at the bottom of the home page for Book Corrections.)

We don’t hide them. We don’t use a euphemism (such as “Book Additions”) that would make them harder for our readers to find. And we don’t take them down when a book is reprinted. Of course we fix any errors and clarify any confusing areas as soon as possible. But, unlike other publishers, we don’t take down the correction. That wouldn’t be fair to the thousands of people who purchased the original printing!

I hate errata. The best errata is one that never happens. The second best errata is one that we do absolutely everything we can to make right. We love our readers—we are our readers, quite literally—and we are committed to their success.

Paula Nadelstern’s book, Paula Nadelstern’s Kaleidoscope Quilts: An Artist’s Journey Continues, is breathtaking.

Whether you are a quilter or just a fan of beautiful art, it is hard to look through the book without oohing and ahhing. I also like that this book is a career retrospective. It is always exciting to honor an artist’s journey over the years. So here are the details about Paula’s exhibition:

Kaleidoscope Quilts: The Art of Paula Nadelstern

On View: April 21–September 6, 2009 at the American Folk Art Museum

This is the American Folk Art Museum’s first one-person exhibition highlighting the work of a contemporary quilt artist. Paula Nadelstern has achieved international recognition for her innovative and complex designs inspired by the bilateral symmetry of kaleidoscope images. Her artistic vision encompasses science, history, and tradition expressed in crystalline patterns composed of slivers of jewel-like fabric.

Needle Felted Sweater Fix

When I found holes in one of my favorite wool sweaters, I was really upset. I put it in my “need to fix it” drawer and there it sat for about two years. I knew that I should be able to do something clever to fix it, but whenever I looked at it, nothing came to mind. As I was rummaging through one of my storage bins I found needle-felting supplies and some multi-colored yarn.

I pulled out my copies of Fast, Fun & Easy ® Needle Felting and Indygo Junction’s Needle Felting to get some ideas, and realized that I could use the multi-color yarn as a vine. I cut out leaf shapes from some felted wool, but the leaves looked too plain so I needle felted roving & other shapes to add some color and texture. I arranged everything on the sweater and needle felted it in place. It didn’t feel quite secure, so I used some very fine yarn to stitch everything down. I liked the way the stitching looked, and added a little more stitching.

 Now just in time for the cold weather, I can wear my sweater again!

"...dedicated to the women in my life who inspire, support & encourage me to be the best that I can be." Beverley Todd

Beverley will indeed be missed by her many friends in the online crafting communities. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family at this time.

More tributes from her online friends can be found on these posts:
• Christmas Cards All Year Round
• Arty Girlz

“Fat Tuesday,” carved wood, oil stain & mixed media, 68″ x 23″ x 4″, 2006 (click image for larger view)

If you think it’s a challenge to create a beautiful quilt with needle, thread, and fabric, how about this wooden quilt carved by artist Fraser Smith?  Every detail is complete, right down to the dimples caused by the “stitches” in the “batting.” Click on Fraser’s name to see more of his awe-inspiring sculptures.