Class in St. George, Utah and A Discount

John's last teaching engagements for 2009 were in warm St. George, Utah.  Heather at Superior Threads took great pictures and here is the link to her blog Mother Superior's Blog  Check out the pictures.  It looks like there were some happy students.

I will have some pictures of John's current projects in the next day or two - we are BUSY today because of the special that just started- $5 off an order of $25 or more plus two spools of So Fine Thread with a Frame, Frame Kit or Frame Stand.  And I also am making a $5 donation for every order to Heifer, International, one of our favorite organizations.  Heifer International  There is something so appealing about giving someone a way to feed their family and make a living.  Oh, the Discount code is 5 and our web address is Flynn Catalog  The discount started today and lasts through 12/31/09.

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving; we had a houseful and enjoyed ourselves very much!

Brooke
Flynn Quilt Frame Company

Stressed?

I'm not particularly stressed, right now, anyway, but this silly sign appealed to me. Actually, I don't drink coffee, don't drink vodka and no valium unless surgery is involved BUT it is nice to know that such a mixture is available.

Chill dudes

Brooke

More Fall Planting

Wow, treasure these unseasonably warm days! We are looking at the mid sixties today and just a little colder tomorrow. There are still more bulbs to plant. John adapted some kind of motorized drill to plant daffodils last weekend and now I spy a big long piece of metal pipe going in the van for the crocus planting this weekend. Gotta love an engineer!

John leaves Tuesday to teach at Superior Threads School of Threadology in beautiful St. George, Utah followed by two classes and a lecture at the local guild. We have all his kits cut and most everything ready to pack in to the van. We are using Superior Threads' new handquilting thread, which is called "Treasure", and really enjoying it. It has gotten hard to find quilting thread in colors anymore, and "Treasure" comes in quite a few.

Keep an eye on the Quilt Smackdown - you don't want one of the little quilts to get away too cheaply, and there are T Shirts and sweatshirts in addition to voting for the Viewers' Choice. Lots of opportunities to help defeat Alzheimer's disease, that thief.

Have a wonderful weekend, wherever you are!

Brooke

Winning Quilts from PIQF

I wandered in awe through the quilts at the Pacific International Quilt Festival in Santa Clara. Here are pictures of the three top winners, all were machine quilted. Marilyn Badger won Best of Show - I missed the name of her quilt, it is the orange and green wonder on the left. Jean Jorgenson did "Hong Kong Taxi" in the bottom row here and Terri Doyle won a prize for "Enchanted", the medallion quilt on the right. WOW! I love the taxi quilt.

Well, I'm headed home for a quiet evening because I think I'm getting sick. Don't know if it the flu or just adjusting to the cooler weather but I'm whining anyway.

Don't forget to visit AAQI to watch the progress on the World Quilt Federation Smackdown; Hollis is way ahead but it's not over until it's over, right?

Brooke

More Tiny Quilts

The marathon vending sessions in Houston and in Santa Clara are now behind us. I still have a ton of email to answer and John and Kate are keeping the lasers busy catching up with custom cut projects. Oh, and we still need to finish unpacking both vans - the quilts are inside but there are bits and pieces of booth accessories still out there. Kate and John had fun in Houston with the crew at the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative booth AAQI showing off the four quilts involved in the "Smackdown" fundraiser.

My booth helper and I had dinner in Santa Clara with Jackie Robinson and Sue Nickels. Sue explained to Jackie about the "Smackdown" quilts and added that she thought John should be disqualified because his quilt arrived after the deadline; nice try! Hope the quilts raise a ton of money for Alzheimer's research.

John and I took advantage of the cool, breezy but snow-free weather in Red Lodge to plant about 200 bulbs. It is notoriously rocky in our area but we had pretty good luck. In the afternoon, we sat visiting in the living room, enjoying the sunlight glinting off the native grasses in our "yard". The grasses absolutely sparkled as the wind moved through them.

Then John pieced these two little quilts, an Arabic Lattice Variation and another miniature Storm at Sea. They both measure 15" x 18". The little Storm at Sea will be in the catalog soon.

And here's my opinionated book review of a fairly recent book, "The Kite Runner". I am glad I read it. It is a first novel and there are some places where a reader can tell that. But I was fascinated about the look at Afghanistan and Kabul before the Russians invaded and the sad aftermath which includes the Taliban's rise to power. Again, I'm glad I read it; even a little insight into another culture is important these days.

Back to work

Brooke

Quilt Smackdown!

Here is a news release and the whole scoop on the Quilters' Challenge we have been telling you about. The event starts at International Quilt Festival on Wednesday. And, even if you can't make it to Houston this year, you can vote for your favorite online. John shamelessly solicits your vote!

Please visit the AAQI Website to see images of the quilts - I can't figure out how to get them copied from Ami's email and they are Beautiful! And so is the Championship Belt!

Brooke

World Quilt Federation Smackdown

Four Quilting Heavyweights Face Off to Fight Alzheimer's



(Burton, MI)--October 12, 2009 In honor of National Alzheimer's Awareness Month four small quilts by world renowned quilters Hollis Chatelain, John Flynn, Becky Goldsmith, and Sue Nickels will be auctioned to benefit the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI). The no-holds-barred, knock-down, drag-out, head-to-head, quilt-to-the-death (not really), grudge match will be held November 1-10 in the AAQI "Smackdown Auction Arena."




The 10-day online silent auction is all about bragging rights—and raising awareness and money to fight Alzheimer's disease.


Chatelain, Flynn, Goldsmith, and Nickels created miniature masterpieces representative of their quilting style specifically for this head-to-head challenge. The quilts range in size from 16" x 16" to 18" x 18".


The World Quilt Federation Smackdown quilts will be shown prior to the auction, for the first time anywhere, at the International Quilt Festival (IQF), Booth #4660, in Houston, October 14-18. In a gutsy move Smackdown promoter Ami Simms (a.k.a. Founder and Executive Director of the AAQI) will allow the Smackdown quilts to be purchased at the IQF. Each quilt carries a price tag of $10,000.


"I'm fully expecting all four quilts to be available for the November 1st auction," said Simms, "but I'm pretty sure the George R. Brown has a defibrillator on site just in case."




A Viewers' Choice component to the “Smackdown” will also be offered. Anyone wishing to support the work of the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative can make online donations to the nonprofit in amounts as little as $5 beginning immediately, assigning their donation to one of the four quilts. One dollar equals one vote. The quilt amassing the most votes will win the Viewer's Choice Award. The Viewer's Choice Award donations have no bearing on the sale/auction outcome whatsoever.




About the AAQI


The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (http://www.alzquilts.org/) is a national, grassroots charity whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research. It auctions and sells donated quilts sponsors a nationally touring exhibit of quilts about Alzheimer's. The AAQI has raised more than $316,000 since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of the AAQI, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation operated entirely by volunteers. She is a quilter. Her mother had Alzheimer's.




The World Quilt Federation is totally fictitious. Any similarity to professional wrestling is obviously intentional and all in good fun, although the winning quilter will receive this cute belt.


WQF Smackdown Champion Belt made by John Flynn.

Contact:Ami SimmsFounder and Executive DirectorAlzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative1200 Creekwood Trail Burton, MI 48509(810) 637-5586http://www.alzquilts.org/
Read more: http://www.alzquilts.org/smackdown.html#ixzz0TTftxSF9

Insect Visitor

We were working peacefully (piecefully?) when this huge dragonfly came in the open door of the office. I know he was just as distressed as we were and he finally went away after we turned out the lights and sort of left the room. We don't have dragonflies too often here in arid Montana so to see such a huge one, wow. Incredible laciness on his wings.

It is important that you know that September 19 is Talk Like a Pirate Day. We have been celebrating this for some years; we also have had Talk Like Someone from Gone With the Wind Day, Talk Like a Valley Girl Day, etc. Here is the official website if you need inspiration TLAP Arrrrrrr, maties!

There are still threatening emails going back and forth about the Smackdown to raise funds for Alzheimer's research. Who knew quilters could be so feisty!

Have a great weekend!

Brooke