It's Time to Enter the AQS Quilt Contest in Paducah!

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After you’ve eaten your turkey and dressing, and you are having a rest, think about which quilt you might be able to enter in the Paducah quilt contest. With 15 categories and $120,000 in cash awards, there is no reason not to enter.

The deadline is January 3rd, but you don’t have to wait till the last minute – save that for your Christmas shopping! Go ahead and send your Paducah contest entry today.

We can’t wait to see what you have been quilting!

Demolition of the Big E Begins

Last week the exterior demolition of the Executive Inn started with the cutting of a beam and removing the Big E from the top of the building.

Here's a pictorial view of what happened: (you can make the photos larger by clicking on them)

The crane lifts the "E" from the top of the Executive Inn. The E's were auctioned off during the 54th Telethon of Stars produced by WPSD and the Lion's Club of Paducah this past weekend..

And it came down all in one piece. What a piece of history!

Ready to begin...

Taking the first bite....

And then a bigger bite...

Making a big hole in this section of the hotel.

Bonnie Browning took this photo on Saturday showing how they have demolished the side walls of the Silver Saddle (view from where the Pavilion site).

Caryl Bryer Fallert was at the celebration of the demolition of the exterior of the Executive Inn on Tuesday. Thanks Caryl for sharing your photos.



The demolition will take from 90 to 120 days and will be completed prior to the AQS Quilt Show in April.,

Lancaster Instructor Sue Nickels: In Her Own Words

I started quilting in 1978 after my daughter was born because I wanted to make a baby quilt for her.

Sewing, knitting, cross stitch and other crafty things have always been part of my life. My major in college was art, so quilting seemed like the perfect thing for me. I have been quilting for 32 years!

I do have a designated sewing room/office. My favorite feature about my workspace is my sewing table and my BERNINA sewing machine. I have a table that is very deep behind my machine so I can quilt even very large quilts on my home sewing machine. The sewing machine also sits down in the table and the slide-on tray is flush with the table for easy movement of the quilt. I also have a nice design wall and good lighting. Next will be better storage space for my fabrics and supplies!

My quilting specialty is creating quilts using machine techniques. I teach machine quilting and machine appliqué for the traditional quilter. My classes are nice for beginners as well as experienced machine quilters. I am always striving to keep growing and to use my machine to achieve the best quality results. I am teaching mostly machine quilting workshops at Lancaster. I absolutely love to teach beginners because machine quilting seems very intimidating to most quilters. I love to show that anyone can be a good machine quilter with some good basics and practice.

My favorite story from a class (this was a 5-day retreat) was a student who forgot her power cord for her sewing machine and was so upset that she wouldn't be able to use her machine all week. She called her husband and asked if he could ship it to next day UPS. He could not find the cord at home so he went and bought one at the local shop and said he would ship it to her to arrive the next day. At about 6pm that same day- in walks her husband with the power cord -- he drove 5 hours to bring it to her! We dubbed him the best husband ever and a lot cuter than any UPS driver! (The kicker was when he asked where her original cord might be as he couldn't find it at home, she said she couldn't imagine where it had gone -- he went to sewing machine travel bag, dug around a bit and pulled out the original power cord and he wasn't even mad -- just said he was happy to see her!)

On a more personal note, I am a new grandma! Stella Holly Kavanagh was born May 21st and is now five months old. They live in Philadelphia and we live in Michigan, so we don't get to see her enough, but I will be a little closer while I am in Lancaster!

Sue is teaching the following classes at the AQS Quilt Show and Contest in Lancaster, March 16 - 19, 2011.

#42809 Machine Quilting Tips and Tricks (lecture)

#43503 Stitched Raw-Edge Applique – Tulips and Heart

 # 45501 Drawing Fabulous Feathers

#48101 Machine Quilting: Feathers and Stippling

#48502 Machine Quilting Basics; #48514 Machine Quilting Basics
This is the same class offered twice.



Click here to register for the Lancaster show and to sign up for one of Sue's awesome classes.

Lancaster AQS Quilt Contest Deadline Extended to November 19

When it comes to planning quilt contests, we here at AQS like to think we are old pros. But every now and then something gets past us. We tried to set the deadline to enter the AQS Lancaster Quilt Contest so that we would have plenty of time to process all your entries before the holidays. But it looks like we set it too far in advance and gave ourselves two weeks more than we really need.

We know you work hard to finish your quilts in time and these extra two weeks might be just what you need to finish your quilt! So in order to be fair to all you hard-working quilters, AQS has officially extended the deadline for Lancaster contest entries to November 19, 2010. That means you have two additional weeks to get your entry forms to us! Click here for the rules and entry form. 

Good luck!

Erin Ulrich
Contest Coordinator

Copyrights Getting You Down?

Do you like to attend quilt shows… and see lots of quilts? Shows across the country are seeing fewer entries in their shows. One show has put their contest for 2011 on hold due to lack of entries so they can consider other possibilities. Are you not entering your quilts because you don’t know how to get copyright permission for a pattern you used?

If you have a quilt that you want to enter in a show but don’t know what to do about getting permission from a pattern maker or designer, AQS Contest Coordinator Erin Ulrich will be happy to help you. We work with copyrights every day and it is nothing to be afraid of. E-mail Erin at erinulrich@AQSquilt.com or call her at 270-898-7903, ext. 174, with your questions.

From the beginning, the American Quilter’s Society has produced quilt shows for you to be able to exhibit your quilts and be recognized for your artistry. When you enter the AQS Quilt Shows, you are vying for thousands of dollars in cash awards; we are giving $252,750 in 2011. The deadlines are approaching for the Lancaster (November 5 extended to November 19) and Paducah (January 3) shows.

The contest quilts let us show the variety of quilts being made today, from very traditional to those made from unique materials and designs. These contest quilts are what everyone wants to see when they attend shows. So why not enter one of your quilts today… and don’t hesitate to give Erin a call. We are here to assist you. If you need a copy of the rules, just click here and then choose Contests for the show you want to enter.

Bonnie Browning
Executive Show Director