Joan Lintault Book Winners; Nick of Time Sale

Our first contest was such a great success. Thank you to everybody who commented; who emailed me; who "poked" me on Facebook; and who signed up for the Dragon Threads newsletter.

And now...Drum Roll please....

THE WINNERS OF SIGNED JOAN LINTAULT BOOK

Eugenie.qs, Li Hertzi, and Vickie Clontz

Congratulations!

Our month full of giveaways continues Wednesday. Stay tuned to this station! (Better yet, subscribe to our feed.)

If you didn't win the Joan Lintault book, I bring you tidings of great joy. Head on over to Dragon Threads where Joan's spectacular book is on sale. Lots of other books are on sale, too. They make great gifts for your quilting friends....or for you!

Dragon Threads Giveaway: Joan Lintault in your Mailbox

Last Friday, my dear friend Candace and I went to have lunch with Joan Lintault, one of my authors. Joan’s sister, Jaimee Uhlenbrock came, too. Joan's house is in a beautiful wooded setting in new Paltz, NY. Joan’s studio is large, fully equipped with everything one could want or need to make fiber art. She even has a full kitchen for dyeing (indigo dyeing in the summer) and silk screen printing!

While we were there, I got a peek at the quilt Joan is making for me. Gorgeous. Check out a few of the silk-screened pieces:

I can’t wait for the finished product.

When I visit studios, I always love to see what is on artists’ inspirations walls. It’s always interesting, and well, inspiring. Joan’s, of course, is no exception:

This is what is in her sewing machine now…

Joan has a Japanese tea house on a small pond in her backyard. I can just imagine how it must look in the summer with everything in full bloom!

I can’t say enough about Joan’s quilts. She’s been creating amazing fiber art pieces since 1965. Her works has been exhibited at the Smithsonian, the American Crafts Museum, the American Museum of Quilts and Textiles. (And soon my house!) Her quilts are masterpieces: exquisite, dimensional, sculptural, deeply personal. Take these, for example:

Quilt #1

Quilt #2

Quilt #3

Quilt #4

Working with Joan was a delight from beginning to end. She is delightful and as unique as her quilts. Her book is a tour of sorts demonstrating how a talented, experienced, creative master craftsman and artist translates an idea into art. Joan’s warm, clear guidance, instruction, and ideas will have you anxious to fire up your inner artist.

THE GIVEAWAY!
To get those creative juices going for the holidays, Dragon Threads is having a giveaway! Three lucky winners will bring Joan right into their homes/studios via her wonderful book. Everybody has up to three chances to win a signed copy of Joan's book:

1. Leave a comment below letting me know which of the pictures above is your favorite and why.
2. Head over to the Dragon Threads newsletter signup page and sign-up. In the “How can we help you” field, type “Joan sent me”.
3. Go to the Dragon Threads Facebook page and post “Joan sent me” on the wall.

I'll put all the entries into a big virtual hat, and 3 winners, randomly chosen, will be announced this weekend. Lots more contests and giveaways coming up in the next few weeks! Stay tuned.

Thanksgiving in New York

Last week for Thanksgiving we drove to upstate New York to visit our best friends, Candace and Derek James.  Candace, Derek, and I were all together at the Pratt Institute a few years ago. Okay, a few decades ago but who’s counting? (Hint: I am NOT.)

Derek is a fine artist/painter. His work is many private collections including those of Tom Hanks and Bruce Springsteen...and that’s right, my house.

Dinner this year was a formal sit-down affair for 37 in his barn studio. China, stemware, sterling silver, twinkling lights, great friends, and great art! It was fabulous from soup to salad, to buffet turkey and trimmings.

Here’s the barn:

 

Inside, before dinner:

 

 

And after the transformation:

 

 

The day after Thanksgiving I went snooping in the barn. I can’t help myself! I opened a flat file drawer; my jaw dropped. Another drawer; another jaw-drop. Derek has hundreds of beautiful drawings and amazing small paintings.

 

 

 

While in the neighborhood, I couldn’t pass up a chance to visit my dear friend and author, the amazing Joan Lintault. Details about the visit, pictures of a work in progress and (drum roll please) a giveaway coming up this week.