My Make It University Class

I'm more than a little overdue to talk about how my awesome class that I taught at Make It University in Houston went.  I was riding that post-Houston "high" and then time just got away from me.  
That said, you can't really take pictures and stuff while you are teaching, so I am going to rely on my fab friends to fill in...
It's hard to believe it went by in an hour.  I feel like it was the fastest and slowest hour ever...  But it was so worth it.  I learned just as much as they did, I think!

The class filled up so fast! Pic by Catherine Redford

It was hard to make sure everyone heard your instructions, the microphone helped. Pic by Catherine Redford

You don't realize how hectic it can be helping 23 people with the project! Pic by Catherine Redford

Making sure everyone's project lit up was also important! We had 2 dud LEDs in the group.  OOPS! I had it covered with extras, which means "Be prepared!"  Pic by Judy Perez

A quick second to say hi.  It was a lot of fun. Pic by Judy Perez

That's Lindsey from QA/Interweave, who gave everyone in my class a free magazine!  How cool was that?  Pic by Catherine Redford

You also forget how big a crowd 23 people can be! Pic by Becky Glasby

Yup, a guy took my class!  He was super nice and emailed me after the show to say he had fun. Pic by Becky Glasby

It was important to me to make sure I helped everyone, and tried very hard to make it around to each person as much as I could.  Pic by Becky Glasby

My student's work!  So cool! Pic by Catherine Redford

This student was from Australia and clipped that little koala onto my shirt as a thank you! I had a great time teaching and hope to do it again! pic by Catherine Redford

Quilting Arts TV Season 8 Available for Pre-order

The season I am appearing in for my e-textile quilts is now available for pre-order!  You know you want to run right over and get one today!  I haven't seen it yet and I'm sure I look fine but I have no idea what I said! 

Quilting Arts TV

The cat's out of the bag, I will be taping a couple of segments for Quilting Arts TV Series 800 while on location in Cincinnati!  

I'm over the moon, of course, and I'm having a blast making my projects for the show. 


Much of this is serendipitous as a result of my fabulous Houston trip, after which I didn't think things could get much better!  


Thanks so mcuh to all of you who encourage me along the way, I truly appreciate it!

The "other" artwork for the article in QA

I did a total of 10 ATCs for the Quilting Arts article, and some (rightfully so) didn't make the cut.  I was very partial to the zombie and the robot, so those being in the article make me very happy.  The cupcake is a reworked design I did for someone online who didn't follow through on her trade and I got the card back.  
Sadly, green LEDs in this voltage do not light up too brightly.  That's why I think that though the holiday tree and the UFO are awesome, they don't work well for print.  
So, seeing all of these ideas... what design would you put lights into? 

I'm in the latest QUILTING ARTS!!!!

This was the HARDEST secret (that really ended up not being that secret) I have ever had to keep!!  Especially since subscribers got their issues a few days ago and have been emailing me, and messaging me on Facebook, and even commenting here!
My article was picked up for the 10th anniversary issue of Quilting Arts!  
I'm so excited, I can barely stand it!
It's available from quilt shops, all the major bookstores, and Quilting Art's website.  Please go out and get a copy!  
There's a few cool giveaways I'm planning this month, so get ready, because it's gonna be an awesome time here!  There's not enough exclamation points for me to express how cool this is for me! !!!  
This is literally a dream come true.  It's also one of my major art goals achieved.  Remember way back when when I said I had a dream about this?  I didn't tell you that the dream resulted in me NOT getting into the magazine.  I was so upset about the dream, and I knew that I would never know how it would really turn out unless I actually submitted the article.  I know many of you replied to my "should I or shouldn't I" blog post, and I thank you for spurring me on!  
Please let me know what you think of the article, and I will be back with lots of giveaways and fun stuff!  No, really!  Check back often!!!

Houston - Day 4

All good things must come to an end.  So it was with Houston, and I had to cram all of the crap I bought into my tiny suitcase.  Silly me.

A final look out of my hotel window and I was off to drop off my luggage with the front desk and off to the show for my final Open Studios and last minute shopping. 


Open Studios was once again a fantastic time.  I ran out of business cards right at the end.  Lots of kids, younger quilters, quilt husbands stopped by as the light up quilts caught their eye.  I was again thrilled with the response.  Some of the biggest names in quilting stopped by to say hello and see my work, and for that, I am completely honored and humbled.  I was asked often if I teach, lecture, have kits, or offer artwork for sale.  WOW... And all I have to say is "Yes, stay tuned".

This is a photo of Holly Holloway, my friend who I met in Chicago at the show this past spring.   She's a fabulous mixed media artist.   After my visit with her, my Open Studios time was over, and I was off to the SAQA booth.  I had been visited at my Open Studios table by many SAQA members who suggested I check them out and join.  Laura Wasilowski was there and she and Frieda Anderson will be out local SAQA leaders.  She said she had heard some good comments about me during the show, and that made me feel really good. 

Well, after picking up my work from the MistyFuse booth, and saying goodbye to my Quilting Arts friends, I left the Brown Convention Center with a high spirit that I haven't felt in a long time.  The show was a complete success for me, and I accomplished many things.  I'm formulating my next goals, my next quilts, my next adventure, so I hope you will come along for the ride. 

Come see me in Houston!

I will be part of Quilting Arts' MIU/Open Studios area at the International Quilt Festival in Houston!  Come and see me on November 6th from 4 to 6pm  and Sunday November 7th from 11:45 am to 1:45 pm.  
I will be demoing some pretty cool things at these times in the Open Studios area of the giant Make It University area.  I hope you will come by and say hello, take one of my new MOO cards, and enjoy yourself!  I'm completely bowled over to be part of this. Yay!
This is a photo by Helen Gregory of Quilting Arts, showing Judy Coates Perez during her Open Studios time in Chicago. 
This is just one of many things that's going on right now, so hold tight... it's gonna be a crazy ride!

Putting my best face forward

When I thought up the challenge for the Quilting Arts forum, I could not decide on a theme, but wanted to do something with "face" in it.  It could be interpreted many ways, and originally I thought I would do a self-portrait.  
Then Life got in the way, exciting opportunities popped up that I could not pass up, and there's my regular 9-5 job in there as well.  So I had to reconsider my first idea and come up with a plan B.  A fast, executable, but still excellent Plan B.
I used to draw faces all the time as a kid.  I'd read comics, and if a panel looked especially pretty, I'd try to blow it up on a regular sheet of typing paper.  They never looked like the comics, but this one was close, and it was always "my best face".  I saved it in a folder, and it's dated 1991.  I was 18.  In High School.
So, I give you my best face.  Looks a little like Marilyn from a while back, huh?
This is painted on white cotton then quilted.

What i did at CREATE... or how Cheryl got her groove back.

As you may know, this summer has been extremely busy and while I am happy to have made my sister's wedding flowers, after the initial design they were a bit monotonous to make.  I felt pretty uninspired, and because my work schedule freed up, I spent Friday 8/27 at CREATE in Rosemont.
Now, I don't have pictures of the event because I was silly and didn't bring my camera, but you can see some other great recaps and pictures here, here, here and here.
Of course, I saw all of my friends there, and that alone was incredible.  The hardest working staff I've ever run across, Pokey Bolton and Lindsay Murray were there, and Pokey says I'm going to love Houston, which is getting me super jazzed up to go.  And that's just 10 minutes into the event!
My class was thread painted art quilts with Elin Waterston.  Elin is an incredible artist and it was so wonderful to learn from a teacher like her.  Patient, kind, and extremely talented.  She really demystified the process and I had a great time working on my project (which will be in another blog post for the return of Technique of the Week!) Elin is co-author of the Art Quilts at Play and the Art Quilt Workbook, some of whose techniques I have tried this year.
I got to have dinner with some new and old friends, including Belinda Spiwak. 
CREATE also had a "store" onsite that not only showcased Bernina sewing machines, but also a wide variety of Interweave titles and other books and supplies so you can take your creative juices home and continue working.
To wrap up our evening, it was time for the Artist's Faire, and it was AMAZING. Several artists had table "booths" and you could walk and browse lots of art supplies and original art.  The art was amazing!  Beautiful stuff from Kelli Perkins, Jamie Fingal, Jane Lafazio, and many many more.  Also lots of vintage collage materials from various vendors and some amazing collage artists from the pages of Cloth Paper Scissors.  Of course, it was the place to be, and I ran into my friends Melanie Testa, Judy Coates Perez (click her link for super cool recaps of the event) and my new friends from the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild! (HI Karen! HI Sue!) 
Want to see the few things I got at Create? Commence the showing and telling!

The book and TAP (Transfer Artist Paper) are both going to be used later this year for a Technique of the Week! And of course, they had all the newest magazines, so I picked up the latest QA GIFTS.  It is such a great issue.

I loved the ephemera booths. There were lots of them, and if I were a collage artist, I'd be in heaven, but as it were, I saw a couple of things I HAD to have for my creepy victorian parlor. (You know about my year round haunted parlor, right?) So this tiny (and I mean tiny, these do not even come close to fitting around my neck) set of faux pearls and the cool eyeglasses and case only cost me $6 total! 

This is a gorgeous teapot from Altered Ever After, and is featured in an issue of a magazine this month!

These lovely brass findings were super cute on the gorgeous sample artworks by Rene, and I picked up these tiny sets for a future project. 

So, that's about it, and I have to say that I came home SUPER jazzed up to start creating again, and I wish I had allotted more than one day, but the wedding was important and that's OK.  There's going to be another one, and that's great too.  I think the folks at CPS and QA have a lot to be proud of, and I am looking forward to going again next year!
    

The New Quilting Arts Website

If you haven't noticed yet, the Quilting Arts website has had a major overhaul, and it's fanastic! Best of all, there are forums where your's truly is a moderator! Stop by and say hello!