Quilt Artist, Rachel Clark, coming to Tennessee

"Utterly Blue" by Rachel Clark

Contemporary quilter and folk artist, Rachel Clark, is coming to Tennessee this fall. Rachel will be the featured presenter at the Tennessee Presents Textiles wearable art show and sale, scheduled for November 13, 2010 in Vonore, Tennessee.

Rachel Clark is a contemporary fabric artist, a teacher, lecturer and pattern designer who has been creating wearable art since 1990. Her work has been featured in many one-woman shows, in galleries, in Threads magazine, on HGTV's Simply Quilts and on The Quilt Show with Ricky Tims and Alex Anderson. She has been a five-time invited artist at the Houston International Quilt Festival fashion show, beginning with the Fairfield Show and then the Bernina Fashion Show.

Tennessee Presents Textiles, now in its seventh year, is a unique runway style show featuring the work of some of the southeast's finest fiber artists. The theme of this year's show is "The Power of the Pocket" with a special Challenge exhibit by the same name. The fashion runway show highlights one-of-a-kind wearable art pieces elegantly presented by professional models, giving viewers an up-close look at handmade jackets, accessories, bags, belts and a variety of other sensational creations.

Tickets for this full-day event are now on sale through the Monroe Area Council for the Arts. (Advance purchase is required.) The day's program will consist of a lecture and trunk show by Rachel Clark, lunch, and an afternoon runway show and sale. It will be held at Tellico West Conference Center at Grand Vista Hotel and Suites in Vonore, TN.

Plan a day of fashion, food, shopping and fun—just in time for the upcoming holiday gift-giving season. Tennessee Presents Textiles—it's art and entertainment wrapped up in one unique experience!

"Cut to Order" Cuddle Quilts: an Assembly Party

The Choo Choo Quilters September meeting will be on Saturday, September 18. This will be an "All Hands" cuddle quilt assembly party from 10 am - 1 pm to support the guild's Great Cuddle Quilt Quest. The assembly party will be held at Senior Neighbors, 250 E. 10th Street, downtown Chattanooga.

What will be provided?

  "Cut to Order" EZ quilt top kits (the pieces are already cut!) ready for sewing
    completed cuddle quilt tops ready for basting
    batting
    backing fabrics
    irons and ironing surface
    rotary cutting mat and rulers
    refreshments

Please bring the following:

    your sewing machine with neutral color thread
    extension cord
    scissors, straight pins and any sewing supplies you find helpful
    rotary cutter
    safety pins or curved basting pins for basting quilts

If you have any 12" quilt blocks, completed cuddle quilt tops, or backing fabrics you would like to contribute, please bring these along and we'll add them to the party mix. Completed cuddle quilts can also be turned in.

The Choo Choo Quilters are nearing the halfway mark toward the Goal of 51 Cuddle Quilts by January 2011. Join us for a few hours of "social sewing" as we move closer to the finish line. We can do it with everyone's help!

A Call for Quilts

Remember the 2009 Choo Choo "A Page from my Journal" Guild Challenge? It was a collection of small format quilts that portrayed a special person, place, or event in a quiltmaker's life through the use of fabric, stitches and trims. Here are two of the quilts from the Challenge.

On October 30, there is another opportunity to share these and other quilts—and their stories—in a quilt show called "Every Quilt Has a Story," sponsored by the Hixson Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Stars. Any quilt of any size will be accepted into the show. This is a non-juried and non-judged exhibit. There is no quilt entry fee to display your quilts.

Let's share our quilts and their stories!
Guild members who would like to include their 2009 Challenge quilt in a group display should send an e-mail to: choochooquilters@gmail.com.

Guild members and anyone else with other quilts they would like to have in the show should see the quilt show information below.

Quilt Show information:
   "Every Quilt Has a Story"
    Saturday, Oct. 30   10 am - 6 pm

    Hixson Masonic Lodge

    5307 Old Hixson Pike
 (near Hixson United Methodist Church)

    Hixson, Tennessee
    Admission to see the show: $5
Entries must have a label with the maker's/owner's name, address and phone number, and include a 4" x 6" index card telling the story of the quilt. Quilt drop-off is at the Hixson Masonic Lodge, Friday, October 28, from 10 am - 7 pm.  The quilts will be protected and monitored. Insurance coverage falls under the maker/owner homeowner's policy. Quilts will be returned after 6 pm. October 30. For questions, contact show organizer: Jody Burch at 842-9325 or pburch43@bellsouth.net (please include "Quilt Show" in the subject line of the e-mail).