Bonnie B's Blog

AQS Quilt Show Makes Worldwide News

2012-01-18T20:56:00.000-06:00

Hello: You all might remember the high water in Paducah during the 2011 AQS Quilt Show. Well, I certainly do remember it. After the show I sat down and wrote a story about getting the news that we had to vacate the convention and expo center buildings... and what we did about it.

My story just appeared in the Winter 2011 issue of "i.e." Magazine, the magazine of the International Festival and Events Association. The Association distributes this magazine to its members all over the world.

Here is the text of the article:
Successful Event Planning
Creating Plan B on the Fly
By Bonnie Browning

OK, event planners, what would you
do if three days out from expecting nearly
30,000 attendees at a four-and-a-half-day
event you suddenly learned that 80,000
square feet of space, 2/3 of what you
need, in addition to parking and numerous
hotel rooms, would not be available
due to an approaching flood?

What if the decorator already had the carpet
and pipe and drape in place in anticipation
of 300 vendors beginning their load-in
the next day? What would you do with hundreds
of exhibits worth thousands of dollars
in the buildings you had to evacuate? And
what if you were working with only your
usual skeleton setup crew because this event
had always gone off like clockwork?

This is exactly what happened to
the producers of the American Quilter’s
Society Quilt Show and Contest in Paducah,
Kentucky, in late April 2011.

For 26 years the annual AQS Quilt Show
was held in the Julian Carroll Convention
Center and since 2002, the Paducah Expo
Center, on the bank of the Ohio River without
flood problems. Then, in 2011, heavy
winter snowmelt saturated the ground before
unusually wet spring weather dropped
17 inches of rain on the area in the ten
days prior to the opening of the show.

In fact, the weather was so bad that
as setup and quilt judging was being
completed on Easter Sunday, tornado
sirens forced moving some of the quilts
and the three judges to an interior safe
room, truly panicking one of them with
no tornado experience at all.

Just when the all clear sounded, suddenly
Plan B was needed. At 1:00 p.m. when the
decorator was finishing and judging was
near completion, the city engineer came to
the site to tell show managers to vacate. The
floodwall gates that protect Paducah (a city
of 26,000) had to be installed, and doing
so would cut off all access to the convention
center buildings and parking. The only
contracted usable space that remained was
the Pavilion, a 40,000 square foot air dome
facility with no parking.

After the team got over the “deer in
the headlights” shock, they sprang into
action. Because there was no Plan B in
place, a rapid assessment had to be made
in order to create one. Over the course of
four hours, this is what was done:
City staff and AQS staff pulled out cell
phones to see who could open doors to
empty buildings throughout the city to
assess space availability. Volunteers were
called to come evacuate the quilts while a
plan was developed. Many of these people
left their Easter family dinners to open
building doors or to fold, organize, and
safeguard the quilts. The decorator had to
dismantle the pipe and drape, and all of the
carpeting that had been laid for the show.

By 5:00 p.m. the management team
was ready to scout, and they split up
to look at alternative venues. The space
needs included vendor space (electric and
phone), classrooms (heavy duty electric
for irons and sewing machines), and
exhibit space (spacious and secure). All of
this had to be on some sort of transportation
loop. Vacant mall buildings were
looked at for exhibits and vendors and
area churches for classrooms. When the
show staff reconvened back at the convention
center about 8:00 p.m., all of the
options were discussed:

#1 Cancel the event. This was not viable.
Many of the vendors and visitors were
already in town; they had nonrefundable
hotel rooms and airplane tickets. Food
vendors had already purchased food.
The loss of the $17 million economic
impact from the event would be devastating
to many local businesses; the
annual AQS quilt show is better than
Christmas for merchants in Paducah.

#2 Find enough square footage to give
all of the vendors their contracted
amount of space, keeping the Pavilion
plan in place. This would require
multiple buildings and an unwieldy
shuttle bus system to get to all of
the locations. Vendors would not
do well if they were spread out to so
many locations.

#3 Find enough space in a concentrated
area to give all of the vendors at
least some space. This would require
relocating all of the exhibits and
vendors, including those slated for
the Pavilion. Adjust the transportation
accordingly.

Option 3 was chosen, to use two
adjacent buildings at the mall for special
quilt exhibits and vendors. This space could
accommodate all of the vendors by giving
the sponsors their double booths and the
other vendors a single booth. The First Baptist
Church had ten classrooms for the 100+
workshops, their chapel could be used for
lectures, and part of the contest quilts could
be hung in the church’s great room. When
all of the tables and sewing machines for the
classrooms had to be hand carried up the
stairs of the church, the baseball team from
a local college was recruited to help.

Now Plan B had to be implemented
– It was 10:00 p.m., Sunday, and the setup had
to be completely re-done in time for the
first event at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday evening.
Vendors were expecting to load-in at 8:00
a.m. Monday morning.

First thing Monday morning the entire
AQS staff was notified of the venue
changes. Reassignments were worked out
for vendor locations and staff jobs, and a
press release was written to disseminate
via email to vendors and instructors either
at home or en-route. A quick adjustment
to the event’s show guide made it possible
to insert one page indicating changes
made for the show, including addresses of
the new buildings involved. Staff created
“original location / new location” handouts
to guide visitors to new venues.

At 10:00 a.m. on Monday morning,
AQS management participated in a
press conference with the mayor and
other city leaders to announce to the
public the course of action being taken
to install the floodwall gates and what
would happen to the quilt show.

Power and other utilities had to be
installed in the vacant buildings; the
buildings had to be cleaned (crews worked
overnight on Sunday to get this done); and
new drawings of the facilities had to be
prepared for the decorator and matched to
orders for vendor electricity and telephone
services. Various city inspectors were on
hand to make sure all of the new venues
being used were up to code for the safety of
visitors, vendors, instructors, and staff.

Finally, it was time to begin resetting the
show in the new locations, which required
additional decorator staff. The 40,000
square foot Pavilion became the headquarters
for the show— admissions, membership,
and workshop desks; First Aid; Post
Office; wheelchair and scooter rental; and
a package check area, plus the Best of Show
award winning quilt and other major prize
winners, the bed-sized contest quilts, and
sponsor and vendor booths.

One of the biggest challenges was finding
a place to put the food vendors – this
event taxes every creature comfort including
providing enough food for the visitors
necessitating having outside food vendors
who are normally located in the parking lot
of the convention center. The ultimate fix for
the food service was the biggest disappointment
of the readjustments. Visitors found
plenty of food when they traveled to the
mall area, and the church turned out to have
a wonderful food service, so the downtown
restaurants and relocated food vendors did
not do the business they expected.

Ten buses had been scheduled to
provide transportation to/from the hotels
and attractions that contracted for that
service. To support the new venues, two
additional buses were contracted. The bus
route maps were updated and copies were
made to distribute to all venues.

Somewhere along the way, assistance
was provided to countless visitors who
were planning to stay across the river in
Illinois, where some flooding had also
occurred, with finding new hotel rooms.
By 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, all of the
vendors had loaded in. The first evening
event at 5:30 p.m. began on time.
Wednesday morning at 9:00 a.m., it
looked like every quilt show ever hosted in
Paducah: Hundreds of quilters were waiting
for the doors to open and before long,
the aisles were crowded and remained
that way all day. Thursday, Friday, and
Saturday, quilters continued to come—
almost 27,000 attended this year’s event.

The show went amazingly well
when you consider the entire event
was re-planned in eight hours time just
three days before the show opened.
Only two activities had to be cancelled
as a result of the changes made in the
show venues. Some vendors, even
those in smaller booth spaces, said this
was their best show ever.

Was all of this planning on the fly
necessary? Just how serious was the situation
on April 24 when we had to change
gears? The danger was real; the Ohio
River at Paducah crested at 55.8 feet,
16.9 feet above flood stage. The floodwall
gates were not taken down until May 17.
While we never know what to expect
from Mother Nature, quick action to develop
an alternate plan and hard work by Mayor
Bill Paxton, Judge Executive Van Newberry,
the City of Paducah, McCracken County,
City Engineer Rick Murphy, Mark Thompson
at Paducah Parks Department, Paducah
Expo and Convention Center, Paducah Visitors
Bureau, Paducah Ambassadors, Freeman
Decorating, Turner Communications, Anchor
Trailways, Neil’s Catering, ServiceMaster,
First Baptist Church, utility companies,
Mid-Continent University Baseball Team,
American Quilter’s Society’s staff, and countless
others, made it possible for the AQS
Quilt Show to go on! Kudos to everyone
involved, including our flexible, adaptable
sponsors, vendors, instructors, and visitors.

Heed our advice: Nurture and appreciate
good working relationships with your onsite
providers; never underestimate the value of
experienced event planning staff; and have a
Plan B in place before you need one.

Bonnie Browning is the Executive
Show Director of the American
Quilter’s Society. She can be reached
at phone: 270-898-7903, ext. 146 or
email: bonniebrowning@AQSquilt.com.

Christmas in Iowa

2011-12-25T11:02:00.003-06:00

We're enjoying Christmas in Iowa with our families... and no SNOW. But there are lots of pretty lights, and especially those at the Scheulter farm just south of Durant. Last night after dark we loaded into the car and drove slowly by their farm so I could take a movie of the lights. Look hard for Santa - he's in the outhouse!

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T12:51:00.000-06:00

I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving... and didn't eat TOO much. We had turkey and all of the trimmings, and have plenty of leftovers for a few days. Today it is turkey sandwiches, or maybe a turkey wrap.

Last month I traveled to Providence, RI, to take the Zentangle Teacher Seminar so I could teach Zentangle Art. Now I am certified so I've been drawing a variety of tiles to show on my website, www.bonniebrowning.com . Here are a few of them.

One of my favorite Zentangle designs is on the border of this tile. It is called Betweed - looks like a braid. The entire design is drawn with a black permanent pen. There are no mistakes in Zentangle drawing - you just figure out something different to add. Shading is done with fine lines in this one.

Some of the fun designs are those drawn on a grid, like the center of this one. It's a surprise to see how it is drawn... and easy too.

Did you ever want pearls? Here I have drawn them in a design called Purk, accompanied by Mooka and Betweed.

Do you know that you do not need any art training to learn these Zentangle designs? Want to take a class? Contact me to set up a class, or watch my schedule on my website to see what conferences I may be teaching at.

Why would you want to learn the art of Zentangle? It is a meditational artform that lets you relax as you draw repetitive lines, one at a time. Everyone can do it and you don't need to be an artist to create these beautiful Zentangle works of abstract art. Supplies are inexpensive and it's very portable and easy to take with you. Everyone is an artist and I'd be delighted to help you show off your artistic talent. Sign up for a Zentangle class and you'll see for yourself.

Just ask my sister Karen, her neighbor Rose, and great nieces Kelsi and Katie - they sat down with me one afternoon on a recent visit and we completed two tiles, and they couldn't wait to do more. It's great for any age.

Today I've been updating my website and my blog. Since I am off until Monday, I plan to get some sewing done too.

Talk to you again soon.

A Day on the Prairie

2011-10-30T14:21:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Wayne and I took a drive out to the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes, KY. It's about 35 minutes from our home, and we usually visit it several times a year. This is the first time all year that we have been there. And Mother Nature certainly put on a colorful show for us as the trees were ablaze with color, and we say a herd of 26 elk, and all but one of the bison (according to the Conservation Officer that we thanked as we left).

I hope you enjoy A Day on the Prairie...

Create a free picture slideshow

Zentangle Seminar and Trip Home

2011-10-27T21:50:00.000-05:00

Here's a bit more about the Zentangle Teachers Seminar in Rhode Island...
In case you missed seeing them up close, here is a photo of my Zentangled shoes.

First I colored the white Keds tennis shoes with Marvy permanent markers, then I added the Zentangle designs, and finished them off with sapphire and amethyst Swarovski crystals.

This is the entire Certified Zentangle Teacher class #7, October 2011. (I am one of the tall ones in the back row - near the mirror in the right rear section of the group.) We had students from India, Japan, Australia, Canada, and all points far and wide across the U.S. What a fun week in Rhode Island and we learned a lot. And now I can add CZT after my name. I'm working on some classes and will add them to my class list very soon. You all will love learning to make your own Zentangled art... and everyone can do it!

The trip from Rhode Island to Iowa was a lot of driving, but the leaves were especially beautiful as we drove through the endless mountains in Pennsylvania. Mountains were all around us and we drove through several tunnels through the mountains. Here's a couple of photos...

The mountains had a lot of red trees giving color all around us.

Here we are heading into one of the tunnels through the mountains.

We arrived at my sister Karen's in Durant, Iowa, on Monday evening. We spent several days helping Wayne's sister Kathi go through their Mom & Step-dad's home. It's hard to believe that they passed away exactly 12 weeks apart. There was a lot of sorting of clothes and soft goods, cleaning in the kitchen - Karen took on the kitchen clean-up, sorting out foodstuffs and pitching out-of-date canned goods. Makes me want to start on our drawers and closets and do the same thing. I know we have a bunch of stuff we could get rid of... all except my quilting stuff, or course. We enjoyed a nice dinner with sister Marcia and her husband Don, Karen, and Mom Kirkland one evening and we all ate way too much.

We drove home on Saturday. Did our own bed ever feel good, after 2 1/2 weeks away. Poor Tuffy spent that time at Kitty Camp (boarded at the Vet), and he was really glad to get home too. The first day he wouldn't leave Wayne's side.

We say pretty trees in Ohio on the way to Rhode Island, in Pennsylvania on our way to Iowa, and now the color in the trees is good here in Paducah. This is a photo I took tonight as I got out of the car of trees in our yard and the neighbors. It was drizzling but you can still see all of the color in the trees - reds, oranges, and yellows.

And now we are catching up on our sleep, and I'm busy catching up at work.

More later... we are planning to drive out to see the elk on the prairie at Land Between the Lakes this weekend. Hope I can catch a good photo or two there.

Bonnie B

Providence Zentangle Teacher Seminar

2011-10-23T18:48:00.000-05:00

What a trip - Wayne and I just finished a 3,200 mile trip which took us from KY, OH, PA, WV, NJ, NY, CT, and RI to get to the Zentangle Teacher Seminar in Providence, RI. Along the way we spent a couple of days in the Poconos where we visited Ray and Linda (Poole) Williams and Linda's parents, Gero & Gloria Grohs. We took a trip through the mountains in NY and went to a big craft fair on the grounds of Woodstock.

Ray and Linda Williams at the Craft Fair on the grounds of Woodstock.

Wayne and I had our photo taken in front the tye-dye shirt booth - the only visible remains of Woodstock.

Then we all went to the Williams new home and enjoyed some delicious grilled shis-ka-bobs. It was fun to see Linda's new office and studio area, and their beautiful new home tucked into the woods.

Then Wayne and I headed to Hotel Providence, Providence, RI, where the Zentangle seminar was held. Neither of us had been there before. Since we arrived a day early, we did have a chance to explore downtown Providence and their 6-story art museum. One whole room was paintings by Impressionist painters - Monet, Degas, Cézanne, Pissarro, Gauguin, Picasso, Matisse, and Rodin. They also have a lot of very old - 3500 B.C. carvings of ivory and other materials.

A view of the river running through downtown Providence

Zentangle creators Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts.

After we completed our first Zentangle tile, they were pinned to a background.

Class members studying our first Zentangle tiles.

Samples of Zentangled items we brought to share.

This photo shows off some of our Zentangled shoes, including my colorful ones.

More samples, including some quilted Zentangle designs.

Check out the knee-high sneakers with red shoestrings, and the Zen-opoly in the upper right corner.
All of the properties on this game are Zentangle designs.

How about this Zentangled flag!

And when we concluded the seminar on Friday morning, we received our Certified Zentangle Teacher certificates.

Before we left RI, Wayne and I had to do a little sightseeing of the area. We enjoyed seeing the ocean and having dinner at the Top of the Bay Restaurant in Warwick, RI. Take a look...

A boat harbor near Providence.

I guess we were supposed to be in this harbor because this boat is called My Zenda - coincidence?!

Wayne and I enjoyed dinner at the Top of the Bay Restaurant where we could see the ocean. It was a bit rainy but that didn't dampen our spirits or keep us from enjoying this for dinner....

And we ate every bite!

More in the next blog on our trip to Iowa and home to Kentucky.

Renovations

2011-09-11T16:46:00.000-05:00

This past week we had workers in to put siding on all of the places that needed paint - the soffits, ceilings of front and back porches, and the carport, and the front peak on the front of the house. Also put up new shutters. Now we only have one place to paint - the railing on the back porch... and the paint has been bought to get that done. It will be the same color as the shutters. Also bought some new fence sections to replace the ones that our redbud damaged in a wind storm. The fence will be the same color as the shutters too.

Here are a few photos so you can see what we have done.

Front of the house

The carport received a new ceiling and new lights. Really lights up the area.

The new shutters really look nice with the brick and the new windows that we had put in this year.

And here is Wayne waving "Hi" from the back porch. We added some new lights here too. Before we had fans on this porch but rarely used them. You'll notice that my swing is empty... that's my favorite spot. Wayne says he'll know where to find me now. LOL. You can see the posts and railings on the porch in this photo - we'll get those painted soon.

All done for this week. Hope you are enjoying the same beautiful day we are having in Paducah. It is a very pleasant 84 degrees now.

Bonnie B

It's nice to have this all finished.

Busy Week - Lots Done

2011-09-09T20:28:00.000-05:00

Man, I don't know what eBlogger has done to my blog but it sure does look messy - boxes and lines all over the place. Whatever they tried, it certainly didn't improve anything.

It has been a busy week here. We had a crew come in and put siding everywhere we would need to paint - soffits, facia boards under gutters, front peak on the house, ceilings on front and back porches, and in the carport. It looks really good. They just finished this afternoon. I'll snap some photos tomorrow so you can see too. The only painting we have to do is on the back porch - the railings. Oh, and I forgot, we had new shutters put on the windows too. This will sure save us a lot of work around the house.

We finished the registration guide for the Lancaster show today and hope to have registration open online next week. Busy working on the Paducah registration guide now, and finalizing our instructors for Grand Rapids and Des Moines - all in 2012. We work months in advance to get it all done for each show.

Last Saturday I even visited Hancock's and bought some fabric... mostly black and white prints and solids. I'll keep you in suspense with what I plan to do with that fabric.

All for tonight...Bonnie B

Blog on Fire Award

2011-08-01T20:21:00.000-05:00

My friend Lois Arnold, AZ, gave me the Blog on Fire Award. Who knew there was such a thing.

One of the things you are supposed to do is tell seven things about yourself... so here goes:

1. Wayne and I have lived in Paducah, KY for 17 years (this week) and that is the longest we have lived in any city (except our hometown of Muscatine, Iowa).

2. I have collected crock chicken waterers for years. Most of them have some kind of indigo blue design painted on them. And what does one do with crock chicken waterers, you say? Well they make great conversation pieces, and aren't good for much else unless you raise chickens and need to water them.

3. I'm working on my 10th quilt book, and may sneak in another small one before I get it finished. My books are published by the American Quilter's Society (AQS). By the time I finish the Lone Star book, I'm going to have a magnificent collection of Lone Star quilts - just bought another one last week to use in the book. I've been employed as the Executive Show Director for AQS for 17 years now - who would have thought I would do this for 17 years? Still having fun doing it!

4. Since drawing is another hobby of mine, I'm heading to Rhode Island this fall to take a Zentangle Teacher Certification Seminar. Talk about something that is relaxing to do. One nice thing about Zentangle is there is no preconceived outcome, you just draw one line at a time. And there are no erasers.

5. We enjoy nature and feed a lot of birds in our backyard... and squirrels... and the neighborhood raccoons and ground hogs too. Often we can watch up to 15 or more different types of birds come to the feeders in the evening. Right now the hummingbirds are here enmasse fighting over the two feeders.

6. Teaching quilting is one of my great joys. Is there anything better than spending a day or two with a group of quilters? My class info is on my website, http://www.bonniebrowning.com/ .

7. It is so much fun to keep up with my long-time quilting friends, Lois Arnold, Lorinda Lie, and Jo Fifield on the Internet. It makes the distance between us so much shorter. And, amazingly, we are all still making quilts and are involved in so many other things.

Guess you now know a few bits of information about me that you may not have known. I use my blog to share what I am up to... so come back often. Hope to have some new quilt photos to post soon.

Bonnie Browning
Paducah, KY

A July Saturday in Paducah

2011-07-30T17:55:00.000-05:00

This day started out like any Saturday... have some breakfast and head to Farmer's Market to get some fresh veggies. We hadn't driven out of Reidland yet when we came upon a Mama wild turkey taking her young one for a walk... across the busy highway. We stopped and let them cross. And, where was my camera when I needed it!

Then it was off to Farmer's Market to get some sweet corn and tomatoes. Stopped by the National Quilt Museum (which is right across the street from the market) to pick up the silver necklace that I saw in their newsletter. It is a heart that says Quilts inside the heart - one is now in my jewelry box. And I also picked up some of the museum's collection of dogwood fabric made by Moda. They told me that the supply is getting limited, so if you want some, contact the museum. They had 5" squares, jelly rolls, layer cakes (10" squares - that's what I bought), and some fat quarters and other cuts.

After a bacon and tomato sandwich for lunch - yum - it started to rain. I love to sit on our back porch when it rains. This photo shows how hard it rained.

Our backyard has lots of bushes blooming now. Here is how the pink crepe myrtle looks in the rain. We also have a dark rose colored crepe myrtle, and the Rose of Sharon buses are blooming too - they are a purple-ish pink.

My next bit of entertainment on the porch was watching the hummingbirds. We haven't had but about 4 hummingbirds up to now... but they were fighting in masses over the feeders today. Here are two of them going beak-to-beak over this feeder.

And now, I'm going to go Zentangle. If you don't know what that is, stay tuned. I'm heading to a seminar for teacher certification in Zentangle this fall. I see lots of applications for it in designing quilting patterns.

Have a great weekend!
Bonnie B

Miss You Maxine

2011-07-26T18:54:00.000-05:00

Last week we attended the funeral of Wayne's Mother, Maxine Furnas Browning Martin in Muscatine, Iowa. She would have been 90 in December. While we already miss her, she passed away in her home, did not have any disabling diseases, and was mentally sharp. She passed away as she was getting dressed on the morning of Sunday, July 10. If we have to go, that would be my choice too.

Maxine leaves behind her husband, Buster Martin, one son - Wayne Browning, and her daughter - Kathi Beverlin, two granddaughters - Cherdyl and Chrystal, and one great-granddaughter, Jamie. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Carl Browning, and son James Browning.

She loved flowers and we often sent her bouquets of live flowers to enjoy. Maxine was well-known for making some of the best cinnamon rolls and pies around. There were always fresh cinnamon rolls waiting when we visited her. Usually our fall visits included a visit to our favorite orchard near Morning Sun, IA, to buy bushels of apples. She believed that an apple, or two, did keep the doctor away. Her apple dumplings were yummy!

My favorite memory of Maxine is the time she and I spent together making candy for the holidays. We would each buy 10 pounds of sugar and we made candy until the sugar was all gone. We made several kinds of fudge - the old-fashioned cooked cocoa kind, white chocolate fudge will lots of nuts in it, and peanut butter fudge. Of course there were several flavors of divinity - her two syrup recipe is still the best one, peanut brittle, date rolls, and whatever new kind we wanted to try. Our family and friends enjoyed lots of holiday candy from our weekend of candy making.

Peace!

Love Red, White and Blue

2011-07-01T21:26:00.000-05:00

It is hard to believe that it is the 4th of July weekend already... and time for me to share some of my red, white and blue quilts!

Lady Liberty, Bonnie K. Browning

American Eagle, redwork by Bonnie K. Browning

Collection of Bonnie K. Browning

Quilt by Milford Valley Quilters,
Collection of Bonnie K. Browning

Collection of Bonnie K. Browning

Quilt by Florence, Alabama Quilters
Collection of Bonnie K. Browning

Collection of Bonnie K. Browning

Salute to Uncle Sam, Bonnie K. Browning

May you all have a fun, safe 4th of July holiday!

Birthday, Sewing and Eagles

2011-06-19T14:39:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it has been so long long since I wrote on my Blog. It has been crazy busy at work. We are just finishing the Showbook for the show in Knoxville, July 13 - 16; and the registration guide is finished for the Des Moines show, September 28 - October 1. And, I just returned from three days of planning meetings for the 2012 summer show in Grand Rapids, MI.

And, then I had a birthday yesterday - had a nice leisurely day - stopped at Farmer's Market to pick up some home grown tomatoes, watermelon, green beans, and cabbage. Then did a little shopping, had lunch with Wayne at Tribeca, and home for a quiet evening.

Heavy rain and lots of wind woke me up about 5 a.m. so I got up. Decided I needed to make some new pillows that I use when I travel. They are shaped like dogbones and fit perfectly into a carryon. I just finished making three new ones so I'll be set for a while.

Have you joined the new website, MyQuiltPlace.com ? It's free and you can make your own page, add photos of your quilts, join or start interest groups. Check it out by clicking here.

Have you checked out the Decorah eagles lately. They are expected to fly away sometime this week. Right now they are sitting on the branches of the tree where their nest is. See how big the eagles are now. Click here to check them out.

That's all for now... hope you are having a great day!

Happy Memorial Day!

2011-05-28T16:25:00.000-05:00

Memorial Day has always been a special day for us - to remember and celebrate my sister Marcia's birthday on May 30, and to visit the cemeteries where our families are buried. We also made an afternoon of taking fresh peonies to the cemeteries and visiting grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles grave sites.

And we always then enjoyed some traditional Memorial Day food - grilled chicken and ribs, home-made potato salad, baked beans, deviled eggs, and yummy desserts. I have a dessert to share with you today.

Whoopie Pies

From Food Network Kitchens

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking sheet.

Ingredients
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup natural cocoa powder, such as Hershey's
1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons fine salt
18 large marshmallows (not minis)

Put the unsweetened and semisweet chocolates and butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl; heat at 75 percent power until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir, and continue to microwave until completely melted, about 2 minutes more. (Alternatively, put the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with an inch or so of water to a very slow simmer; set the bowl over, but not touching the water, and stir occasionally until melted and smooth.)

Whisk the sugar, eggs and vanilla into the chocolate mixture until smooth.

Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt into another bowl. Gradually whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until moistened. Switch to a rubber spatula and finish folding the batter together; take care not to over-mix.

Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to drop a heaping tablespoon of batter onto the prepared pan. Repeat to make 36 cookies, spacing them about 1-inch apart. Bake until the cookies spring back when lightly touched, about 6 minutes.

Cool the cookies slightly. Transfer half of the cookies to a rack. Turn the remaining cookies on the pan over, so they lay flat side up. Place a marshmallow on top of each flipped cookie and return pan to the oven. Cook just until the marshmallow begins to soften and puff, about 3 minutes. Cool marshmallow topped cookies slightly, about 2 minutes. Top with the remaining cookies, pressing lightly to make sandwiches. Cool whoopee pies completely on wire racks. Serve. Store in tightly sealed container for up to 1 week.

Enjoy your Memorial Day, and remember our troops!

Blue Jays vs Hawk

2011-05-19T22:44:00.000-05:00

Tonight Wayne and I were sitting on the back porch eating our supper when I spotted a hawk in a tree at the edge of our yard. All of the other birds disappeared - most went into hiding in the wisteria bushes. And all was quiet... until a pair of blue jays let the hawk know that this was their backyard. They dive bombed the hawk, until the hawk flew to the opposite side of the yard, and they dive bombed it again and chased it on down the street. Blue jays are noisy anyway, and you should have heard the racket they created as they chased this hawk out of the yard.

Soon the birds were back on the feeder. Here are some special guests at the feeders tonight, and one bluebird who chose to land on the cable line.

This red-breasted woodpecker is a frequent visitor to the feeder. He usually gets the feeder to himself. The white bucket behind the feeder is a baffle to keep the squirrels out of the feeders. It works most of the time.

This is the first time we have spotted the female rose-breasted grosbeak eating the corn. She very meticulously plucked off a kernel, ate it, and helped herself to another kernel.

This bluebird landed on the cable line and waited for me to snap his picture. We have a bluebird box on a tree out in the yard. They loved it earlier this week when I mowed the yard - they swooped down to get the bugs I had stirred up.

Jenny wren has built nests in both wren houses now - guess they can't decide which one to set up house in.

All of our backyard birds certainly do give us a sideshow, especially in the evening when they come in to feed. We like our feathered friends.

Enjoy our Backyard Birds...and Tuffy too!

2011-05-15T15:53:00.000-05:00

While cleaning our back porch this morning, I sat and watched the birds that come to our feeders every day. Soon I grabbed my camera so I could share them with you - we feed the birds year-round so have many that stay here all year long. In addition to the cardinals, rose-breasted grosbeaks, indigo buntings, hummingbirds, and American goldfinches that I photographed, I also saw some hairy woodpeckers, titmouses, mourning doves, sparrows, and wrens. What fun to listen to all of them singing their songs. Needless to say, we buy sunflower seed in 50 pound bags. :-)

Here is my Smilebox album of photos of the birds in our backyard today...

Digital slideshow generated with Smilebox

Cosmati Pavement at the Royal Wedding

2011-05-03T19:16:00.000-05:00

The Cosmati Pavement at the Royal Wedding in Westminster Abbey - looks like a quilt, doesn't it?

E-1's Big Adventure

2011-04-05T20:42:00.000-05:00

On Sunday I was sitting at the computer doing some paperwork, and decided to use a split screen so I could watch the eagles for a while too. Well, I had a really big show when Eaglet #1 (2 days old) was exercising his independence by trying to wiggle out from under Dad.

Here you can see both E-1 and E-2 as Dad tries to corral them both under him. Not an easy task.

Dad works on the nest all of the time - he is the nest builder, and he rearranges it every time he returns to the nest. He works on the inside rim of the nest to make room for the growing eaglets. He was doing that and either E-1 grabbed his beak or Dad caught some feathers of E-1, and the next thing you know, here is little E-1 on the outside of the nest bowl.

Here we have E-2 and the third egg in the nest, E-1 outside the bowl of the nest, and Dad pacing to try to figure out what to do next. He finally decides that he needs to sit back on the egg (which should hatch in the next day or two).

"Hey, Dad, here I am"... little E-1 keeps popping up behind Dad. Dad was very restless and kept moving around the nest.

"Hey, hey, I'm over here"... good thing the weather was warm that day so there was no harm to little E-1.

Bob Anderson from the Raptor Resource Group that provides this camera shows us the horses in the field next to the tree where the eagle nest is located.

This is Mom, who just arrived back at the nest. She looked at Dad as if to say, "what have you been doing up here?"

Mom takes over the duties of sitting on the nest. She, too, moved around quite a bit. Finally she turned to where E-1 was trying to climb back into the nest. She loosens the edge of the nest some, and uses her beak to scoop E-1 back into the nest under her. E-1 isn't so naughty when Mom is around.

And that concludes E-1's Big Adventure on Sunday afternoon!

This is enjoying nature at its finest! If you haven't logged on to check out the eagles for yourself, here is the link.

In Honor of President's Day

2011-02-19T13:44:00.000-06:00

Since we have been in an eagle-watching mode lately, I chose this Redwork Eagle as my tribute to honor President's Day.

Some of you may remember me showing this on Simply Quilts a few years ago when Michael Buckingham was there with his book, Presidential Redwork. I demonstrated how to do the redwork for him.

Do you like redwork? I find it very relaxing. The key is to take small even stitches and you do get into a rhythm making those stitches.

Wishing for our President to take actions as keen as the eyesight of an eagle.

It's nearly time for the Decorah, Iowa, eagles to lay their eggs and start sitting on their nest. This morning they were both sitting on the branch next to the nest. The new camera lets them move the camera and also to zoom it so we are getting great pictures of the eagles this year. Thank you to the Raptor Resource group for providing us all an up-close look at the Decorah eagles. We have a front-row seat to watching nature in action.

Here is the link so you can go view the eagles:

http://www.raptorresource.org/falcon_cams/ .

Eagle Cruise - What a Great Day!

2011-02-06T17:20:00.000-06:00

Wayne and I enjoyed our annual Eagle Cruise on Kentucky Lake yesterday. While the temperatures were in the 30's, it didn't feel as cold on the deck taking photos as I though it would be - I tried to stay in some protected spots so I wasn't standing in the wind. With clothing four layers deep and a nice scarf to wrap over my head and neck, I spent quite a bit of time on the front and back decks taking photos of the 27 eagles we saw this year. Many others aboard, including Wayne, enjoyed watching from inside with their binoculars.

Previously we had seen most of the eagles sitting in trees. This year most of the eagles were flying. There were some immature ones sitting in trees in the coves - like they were trying to stay out of sight - I did get some photos of them though with my dandy 300 mm lens. There were lots of gulls flying along the boat, and we saw lots of coots - a favorite meal of the eagles (more on that later).

After the cruise we had dinner at the Ken Lake Lodge, which was followed by a great program by the Louisville Raptor Rehab group. They brought several raptors which have been injured and can't be returned to the wild, plus one beautiful barn owl they have raised and use for the educational program.

Before we even left the dock, we spotted an adult eagle sitting in the trees across the lake from the landing. Can you spot the adult eagle sitting in the trees? Hint: Look for the while head on a black body. The white birds you see flying are some gulls that seemed to follow us throughout the cruise.

Just after leaving the dock we spotted a peregrine falcon that has taken up residence in this big osprey nest on top of the bridge over Kentucky Lake. It's head is peaking out above the nest.

Here's the bridge... so that nest is way up there. The falcon has a bird's eye view.

After a while, you can spot the eagles pretty easy. This adult eagle was tucked into the trees.

It's fun to see them flying with their full-wing span. The wing span can reach seven feet.

There are two immature eagles sitting on the branch of this tree. They are a little fuzzy because this tree was back in a cove and it was quite a distance from the boat. Just look for two brown lumps sitting on the same branch.

We saw quite a few eagles flying along the tree line like this one.

This one looks like a missile flying into the trees.

They were soaring in groups - often they would fly away from us and then fly right back over the boat. They could have been performing their own symphony up there with the ease and grace that they were soaring.

Some of the coots who were swimming along the way became meals for the eagles. We saw this eagle swoop down alongside the boat to catch a coot - the coot was fast and went underwater. The eagle went up and swooped down to make another pass for the coot - again the coot went underwater. This time the eagle hovered like in this photo to wait for the coot to come up - when the coot came up, the eagle snatched it from the water and few off to a tree for a meal. The hovering was like watching someone tread water; it was amazing to watch.

Here is an American Coot - it's a water-dwelling bird that resembles a duck.

After watching the demise of the coot, we enjoyed the cruise back to dock, checking to see if some of the eagles were still sitting in the same spots... and some were.

After docking it was off to dinner at the Lodge. Then we saw some raptors in a program presented by the Raptor Rehabilitation of Kentucky, Inc. from Louisville. I'll share some of the photos I took of the raptors.

First we saw one of the smallest owls - the Saw-whet Owl that only weighed 3.3 oz.

Eileen Wicker talks about the Common Barn Owl.

The Turkey Vulture wanted to flap its wings - can't fly though because one wing was damaged at the joint.

After his performance, the Turkey Vulture sat down for a rest

This Golden Eagle had been caged for 18 years; they are nursing it back to health.
This was its first time to be taken out for their educational program.

The Golden Eagle gets its name from the gold feathers around its neck.

Check out the talons on the Golden Eagle.

Debbie handles the American Bald Eagle - it has a damaged wing.

Look at the beautiful coloring in the Bald Eagle's feathers.

What a beautiful day to go eagle watching. The other raptors were a bonus!
Thank you to the staff at Raptor Rehabilitation of Kentucky for
sharing their knowledge about the raptors with us.

This morning (Feb. 6) was the final eagle cruise for this year. If you are interested in going on one of these cruises in 2012, contact http://www.kentuckylake.com/lbl/eagletours.htm or call 270-924-2020.

And here is another place for you to watch eagles online. It is the Nest Cam at Decorah, Iowa, near the fish hatchery. What smart birds to build their nest by a fish hatchery!

Here is the link: http://www.raptorresource.org/falcon_cams/index.html

They have a live camera that runs 24/7. Then you can also look at the hourly shots posted. Right now the Decorah eagles are getting their nest ready - shredding corncobs for nesting material. Last year we watched from the time their eggs were laid in February until the three young eagles left the nest in August. It's a great educational tool for your children and grandchildren to watch.

This photo is from the daily stills at Decorah.

Happy Eagle Watching!

Scissors & Pincushions & Tools, Oh My

2011-01-15T13:38:00.000-06:00

When we had our new windows put in, I had to do some serious cleaning in my sewing room. I went through tote bags of stuff, and sewing kits of stuff, and found that I have a lot of pincushions and scissors too. So today I shot some photos of them in groups so you could see them. Most of these pincushions were given to me by guilds and conferences, and a few I bought at some guild bazaars - I don't have patterns for any of them.

So here goes... A Quilter and Her Tools

Customize your own free picture slideshow

Winter, Cold, Brrr

2011-01-09T11:49:00.000-06:00

click on photo to enlarge

It is only about 25 degrees here in Paducah today and I thought this photo that I took in Iowa during our Christmas holiday portrayed that same degree of coldness. We don't have any snow in Paducah though - it's just COLD!

So it's a good day to stay inside and sew and do some computer work.

Hope you are staying warm where you are...

Merry Snowy Christmas!

2010-12-27T22:31:00.000-06:00

Bonnie & Wayne Browning wish you all a Verry Happy New Year. Here are some photos from our Christmas with our families in Iowa.

A free scrapbook design by Smilebox

Merry Christmas from Bonnie and Wayne

2010-12-18T21:48:00.000-06:00

This photo slideshow created with Smilebox

The Holidays are Here

2010-12-05T14:57:00.000-06:00

On Thanksgiving Wayne and I enjoyed our Thanksgiving dinner at Patti's Restaurant in Grand Rivers, KY. As we left home the rain started and it rained and rained and rained all afternoon. When we arrived at Patti's it was raining so hard that we had to sit in the car for a while to keep from getting drenched - luckily we had left home a bit early and we were able to find a parking place fairly close to the restaurant.

(Note: You can make any of the photos larger by clicking on them.)

If you have been to Patti's, then you know that they have a creek that runs next to the restaurant. It was overflowing because of the sudden heavy rain.

We weren't able to walk around the grounds to look at the Christmas decorations except for these poor drowned reindeer - don't they look like they are saying - please stop the rain!

But once inside it was dry and toasty warm. Patti's serves an "all you can eat" dinner for Thanksgiving. To start you can choose soup or a gelatin cranberry salad, then they serve you a sampler plate of beef, pork, white and dark turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potato casserole, creamed corn, green beans, and dressing. You can re-order anything that you want more of. We also had Patti's famous bread served in the flower pot with strawberry and regular butter.

And they finish it off with a small piece of pie (like a half piece) which was just the right size. Many families go to Patti's every year. We certainly enjoyed the meal and would do this again - no cooking and no dishes either.

Wayne posed with the resident Pilgrim!

We always enjoy the decoration both inside and out (we'll have to go again to see these though). Here are a few photos I took inside the restaurant.

The restaurant has lots of different rooms and they are all decorated differently. We were in a room that had stars hanging from the ceiling and angels along the walls.

There were angels in wreaths...

And Santa wreaths too.

And decorated trees everywhere. If you are in the Paducah area, be sure to plan a meal at Patti's Restaurant in Grand Rivers. It's about 30 miles toward Kentucky Lake from Paducah and well worth the trip.

We hope you had a good Thanksgiving Day, we certainly did.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T07:08:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving from the Brownings!

We are thankful for so many things - family, friends, and fair weather. Hope the storms moving around the country don't keep you from enjoying the day.

Busy week in AL and TN

2010-11-14T12:52:00.000-06:00

This week was my last teaching job of the year and it was such fun to be with the Birmingham Quilters Guild in Alabama. I saw some old friends and met many new ones too. We started off with my Getting It Straight lecture on Monday morning, and then had a 3-hour class in Bindings - What's Old and What's New. The Windmill - Twisted Log Cabin workshops on Tuesday and Wednesday were a big hit. They had so many who wanted that class that we scheduled a second day of it. It's always such fun to see how these blocks turn out depending on the color choices...and they all work. It even works with one fabric instead of using the gradations. Thanks for having me in Birmingham!

In the photo above, taken during Show and Tell, you'll notice the Stardust quilts some of the guild members made for one of their charity projects. This is such a great pattern to use for beginning or intermediate quiltmakers, and looks great using one light, one medium, and one dark fabric. It's a free pattern that I did for the AQS Teach America 2 Quilt program; just send me an e-mail (bbquilter@gmail.com) and I'll e-mail the pattern to you, and I always love to receive photos of the quilts you make with this pattern.

From Birmingham, Wayne and I drove to Knoxville, TN, on Wednesday evening for a planning meeting for the 2011 AQS Quilt Show in Knoxville. We are starting to work on the registration materials for the Knoxville show. Wayne and I joined Mary Miltenberger and Kelli Gibson (from the Knoxville Tourism and Sports Commission) on the Star of Knoxville lunch cruise to check out the cruise, the boat, and the food. We're planning to have an Elvis Mystery Dinner Cruise during the show in July. Doesn't that sound like fun?

Note: You can click on any of the photos to make them larger.

We cruised to the area where the Tennessee River begins. There were still some pretty leaves to see along the way.

Here I am as the Guest Captain as he narrates during the cruise down river. And I didn't even run into any of the fisherman who were taking advantage of this beautiful November day to catch a few fish...and they were catching them too.

We passed by the Ijams Nature Center that has a really nice walking path along the river. There was a cave just past this walkway too.

We were on our best behavior and not one person had to walk the gang plank!

The Star of Knoxville has a nice indoor area where we ate our buffet lunch, but you could go upstairs and be outside to enjoy the nice sunny day we had for the cruise.

As we turned the curve headed back to port,

we had a great view of the downtown Knoxville sky line.

This was a fun cruise and the Elvis Mystery Dinner Cruise will be a blast in July.

Don't miss this event in Knoxville.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T21:30:00.000-05:00

Look at the colors of fall in this photo - from the browns of the cornstalks to the oranges of the pumpkins and the beautiful mums. Fall is here!

My Mom surprised me by taking a bus to Des Moines for the quilt show with members of the Mississippi Valley Quilt Guild. She didn't even tell Karen that she was coming on the bus because she was afraid Karen would tell. I was surprised when she tapped me on the shoulder in the hallway - and my reaction was, "what are you doing here?" Then I gave her a big hug. She loves it when she gets to put one over on me.

And here we are standing in front of the Best of Show quilt (black & pink one).
L to R: Karen, Mom, Bonnie, Bonnabelle Rayner

You can make any of the photos larger by clicking on them.

After the AQS Quilt Show in Des Moines, Wayne and I spent a few extra days in Iowa to visit some of our family. It's always a whirlwind but fun to see everyone. We said we visited from meal to meal with our sisters, mothers, and friends.

We had barely arrived at Karen's home in Durant when some of the high school students were out doing a fundraiser for school. This one was very clever. They had a goat in a wagon and all of the kids were riding in the wagon around town. They stopped in front of Karen's driveway and unloaded Mike the goat (this wasn't Karen's son Mike - grin) and the kids made us an offer. Mike was going to live here until we paid up - $10 and he would go away, but for $15 you could buy insurance that he would never return again. What fun they were having.

And here's MIKE the GOAT just before we paid up and they trotted Mike on down the street to gather more funds.

One of Karen's farmer friends always decorates their hay bales for different holidays. For Halloween they had a black cat, a pumpkin, and a giant spider.

Karen, Wayne and I spent one day in Kalona, Iowa. The first stop is always the Cheese Factory - have to get some fresh cheese curds, and then it was off to the Willow Creek Quilt Shop - and I found some fabric I needed for a quilt I'm working on. Kalona is working on the downtown streets. Then they will be working on the sidewalks. They are going to insert some quilt blocks in the sidewalks when they do them. That will look really nice.

We had a nice lunch with Mom and Stanley, and stopped to see our friends Connie and John Bohling on the way back to Muscatine.

One evening we had dinner with my youngest sister Marcia and her husband Don. Here we are sitting on the hay bales outside The Machine Shed.

Marcia and Don's granddaughter, Brienna, was able to have dinner with us too. She is growning up too fast.

Marcia and Brienna had to jump up on the John Deere tractor outside the restaurant. We always have fun when we get together...

Next we had lunch with Wayne's Mom, Maxine and Buster, and his sister Kathi.

Now anyone could tell these two are brother and sister. Buster and Maxine at the Farmer's Restaurant.

Phew...that was a busy week. After two weeks of being away, it was back to Paducah and working on the Paducah show. Tuffy was really glad to see us after spending two weeks at Kitty Camp aka boarding with our vet.

Our next show is in Lancaster, PA, March 16 - 19, 2011, and then the Paducah show is April 27 - 30 (the week after Easter - it's really late in 2011). If you are looking for a summer quilt show, our show in Knoxville, TN, is July 13 - 16, 2011.

Mark your calendar for next year's Des Moines show - it is September 28 - October 1, 2011 at the Iowa Events Center. Don't miss it!

Beautiful Fall Weekend in Paducah

2010-09-12T12:48:00.000-05:00

Fall housecleaning...me, well sort of. On Friday we had more new windows installed in our home. That meant moving a lot of furniture so they could work on the windows. And after they were installed, there were curtains and blinds to wash...all done now. And then we washed the new windows. It is so wonderful to have sashes that fold down inside to wash the outside of the windows. We purchased composite windows from THV (True Home Value) and so far they have lived up to their sales pitch. The windows are wood grain on the inside and almond on the outside with aluminum trim so we don't have to paint anything. The mullions are between the panes of glass so you are just washing one pane of glass to clean them. Yeah!

The first group was replaced in the living room and kitchen - the thermostat sits on a wall between these two rooms. Our air conditioner runs half as much as it did. Now we have put new windows in the computer room, the family room and the hall bathroom. Still have two bedrooms to go but we couldn't move everything at once so they are working at our speed.

The hummingbirds are eating like crazy right now. There can be about 20 birds fighting over the 8 spots on our two feeders. And you always have one that guards the feeder. This hummer decided it would sit on the whirligig that my sister Karen gave us - just happens to have a hummingbird in the center of it.

That rascal Tuffy decided to be a night prowler last night...didn't come in until 2:30 a.m. Earlier in the evening I snapped a couple of new photos of him - he hates the camera though and always avoids me if he can. I was faster than he was.

Is he saying: "Okay, so you snapped my photo but I don't have to like it?"

Would you believe that he has already figured out how to open the new screen door on the new sliding glass door to the back porch?

I had some fun on eBay last night. I've been watching some quilts there and the auction closed last night. I was able to be the final bidder on four quilt tops. Two can be used in my next book. And some lucky people may get the other two after they are quilted. Now I have to get my name on my machine quilter's list to get them all quilted. I'll shoot some photos after they arrive so you can see how beautiful they are.

Speaking of quilts, have you made your plans to go to the AQS Quilt Show in Des Moines? It's getting close, October 6 - 9. There will be nearly 1,000 quilts on exhibit. You can click here to register. We're going to have fun with Eleanor Burns on Wednesday, Joe Cunningham on Thursday, and Jim Shore (maker of those Heartwood Creek Collectibles with quilt designs on them) on Friday, and brunch with Flavin Glover on Saturday. Hope we will see you there!

Visiting the Amish in Lancaster, PA

2010-08-22T14:00:00.004-05:00

Hi! It's a beautiful Sunday here in Paducah, and I haven't written on my Blog for a while. I thought I would share some of the photos I took while I was in Lancaster a week ago for a quilt show planning meeting. I have reduced the size of the photos to make this message load faster. You can enlarge any of the photos by clicking on them.

We (Terry Guill and I) stayed at the new Cork Factory Hotel. It is a restored cork factory with a lot of charm. My room had a comfortable bed, a huge shower with lots of hot water (not always the case in hotels these days), and very high ceilings.

Like many hotels and convention centers today, the Cork Factory Hotel had a very interesting bar of "green" soap.

The box says "This innovative ergonomically shaped "waste reducing" soap has been designed to eliminate the unused center of traditional soap bars."

When you think about it...what do we usually throw away - that center that they didn't put into the bar in the first place. Great idea! The box is made from natural recycled packaging with soy based inks.

While we were there, Terry and I had a couple of hours to spend seeing the sights, so we took a buggy ride into the Amish countryside. Here are a few photos from our ride....

We knew we were getting close to the farming area when we began passing the buggies on the highway.

Aaron & Jessica's Buggy Rides was the one we chose. There are a number of families along the way that provide these rides.

Our ride began by driving through a covered bridge. Did you know that there are 27 covered bridges in Lancaster County and many of them are near the city of Lancaster. Sometimes you can look over and see one as you are driving along.

It was fun to see all of the flowers blooming at every home along the way
.

.

What a pastoral scene. Our driver told us that 80 families live on the farms you can see in the background.

In addition to horse and buggy travel, this young man was hitching a ride on his wagon as it rolled downhill. Both young and old alike used these scooters - a bicycle with a flat section for your foot...and no seat. They moved along at a pretty good speed on these scooters.

Someone asked what the children did. Then we say this young girl making hay on this hot 90+ degree day. The children help with chores around the farm.

We had a fun afternoon enjoying the peace and quiet of the Amish countryside. We are having fun learning more about Lancaster and the Amish community there.

The dates for the AQS Quilt Show in Lancaster are March 16 - 19, 2011. You can make your hotel reservations now; just click here to book your room online.

Update on the Young Eagles in Decorah

2010-07-25T12:05:00.000-05:00

The eagle cam was shut down on July 7, but click here to get the latest on the young eagles and some photos too.

I hope you enjoyed getting a close-up view of the hatching and raising of these young eagles as much as we did.

Is it hot where you are?

2010-07-25T11:48:00.000-05:00

Happy Sunday...it is another hot day here in Paducah, where the temps have been in the high 90's for the last several days. Rain, rain, come again some day to wash this heat away. The grass is dry and crinkles when you walk across it.

It's been a busy few weeks since I last wrote a note here. The AQS Quilt Show in Knoxville was July 14 - 17 and I'm finally catching up with laundry, work, and my e-mails.

We don't have a garden this year but sure are enjoying the fresh veggies and fruits from the Farmer's Market. We can get fresh-picked peacher from a Southern Illinois orchard that has a stand here in town...look at these beauties. Peach cobbler, here we come!

Since it is so hot outside, I decided this was indeed a good weekend to do some sewing. Starting to sew on a new Xquisite scrap quilt in a whole different color scheme for me - browns, creams, teals, and some greens. Well, the teal is one of the colors I use a lot, but not the others. It will definitely have a modern look to it.

Hope you are staying cool, whereever you are....

Happy 4th of July - Patriotic Quilts

2010-07-04T14:49:00.000-05:00

Make your own slideshow

Happy Birthday America!

2010-07-04T14:07:00.000-05:00

In Memory of Deanna

2010-07-03T12:23:00.000-05:00

On Thursday, my longest friend, Deanna Tumey, passed away after her battle with pancreatic cancer. This is my tribute to my dear friend. Our sincere sympathy goes out to her partner, Karen. We will all miss Dee.

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Celebrating This Week

2010-06-19T21:27:00.000-05:00

Wayne and I celebrated our anniversary and my birthday this week. We went to Patti's Restaurant in Grand Rivers, Kentucky, for dinner on Wednesday evening. This is the first time we have eaten in the Crown Room -- look at the beautiful stained glass window with the crown in it. And there were beautiful dolls hanging on swings from the ceiling, in cabinets in the corners, and displayed with quilts throughout the room. It is a fun room to dine in. We had our usual 2-inch thick pork chop (and brought half of it home) and a piece of their mile-high lemon meringue pie. YUM.

Most of the dolls were at least 12 inches tall and many of them were at least 36 inches tall. Look at the beautiful dresses and hats. The flowers and the white twinkle lights add to the charm of the Crown Room.

Quilts with pink in them were draped along the walls, and there is even one on the ceiling.

Can you believe that we have been married 47 years? And I'm only 49 again, and again...... grin. Our waiter was kind enough to snap this photo of us... after they sang "Let Me Call You Sweetheart."

And now some news from the home front:

This is one of the baby wrens - I snapped this photo the evening before they left the nest this week. They were sure noisy. Now we have some more wrens that have built a nest in the other wren house. See how they fill in the gaps of the bird house with sticks. It always amazes me how they get those long pieces in there and get them maneuvered into place.

Have you been watching the eagles in Decorah? Just click here and it will take you to the eagle site; you'll be able to see right into their nest. The first of the eaglets was born April 3 and the other two were born during the following week. The eagles usually stay in the nest 10 - 12 weeks, so they will be flying away soon and then they will be shutting down the live streaming video of the nest. Here you can see the oldest eagle trying out its wings. They will take about three hops across the nest flapping their wings. Guess this is how they practice getting the air under their winds in preparation for flying away.

I took this photo this morning. You can see how they have changed from my earlier posts. Their beaks are changing to a gold color instead of black. They can now use their feet to hold the fish that the parents bring them and tear off the flesh themselves. Look at how long the talons on their feet are already.

It has been amazing to watch the adult eagles build, and continue to add onto the nest to accommodate all three of these young ones. Usually the eagles will have two eggs, so this was extra special to see how they raise three eaglets.

It has been fun to watch this nest of eagles -- from the parents sitting on the eggs, to the hatching, and watching them grow. It will take until they are about five years old for their heads to turn white to look like the American Bald Eagle that we all know. Thank you to Luther College for providing this bird's eye view so we can watch these majestic birds in their natural habitat.

Hope you are staying cool... it is hot here in Kentucky. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Happy Memorial Day from Kentucky

2010-05-30T13:39:00.003-05:00

Wayne and I are spending the weekend here at home...and it's a much needed weekend without any travel plans. We are roasting a turkey on the grill, potato salad is made, and Andi and Dennis are coming over for dinner later.

Wayne has been busy this week mowing the yard. With rains in between mowing spells, it's been hard to keep up with it.

Tuffy thinks it's a good day for a nap....

.........And he settled in to take one on the back porch.

Today I took my camera out to shoot some photos of our hydrangea bushes - they are in full bloom now.

Love those bright blue flowering heads on them.

And the lilies we bought for Socks are all in full bloom. Don't they look like someone painted them? They are exactly that rosy color with the dark red splotches. There are about ten stalks on each plant this year.

Wishing you all a safe holiday weekend.

And Happy Birthday to my sister Marcia!

Wayne and Bonnie

Bonnie Browning Appearing Now on www.TheQuiltShow.com

2010-05-07T19:19:00.000-05:00

Hello:
My program #609 is now appearing on http://www.thequiltshow/ with Alex Anderson & Ricky Tims. They asked me to put together a group of photos of some of my quilts and other projects. Hope you enjoy seeing what keeps me busy when I'm not working on AQS Quilt Shows. Many of the quilts and projects have patterns in my books; other are just fun projects that I've made. If you want to order my latest book, Borders & Finishing Touches 2, which was featured on the show, you can order it from the shop at TheQuiltShow.com or from the American Quilter's Society.

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Update on the Eagles

2010-05-06T22:11:00.000-05:00

Wow, you won't believe how fast eagles grow. Here are some photos that show you their size when they were first born...and where they are today. These images are from the Decorah Eagle Cam near the Fish Hatchery in Decorah, Iowa.

April 7, two eaglets had hatched.

April 10, all three eaglets have now hatched

May 1, feeding time by both female and male eagles

May 4, taking a nap - every day the adult eagles redo the nest,

shredding cornstalks for bedding

May 4, some family time - check out those feathers on the oldest eaglet, changing from down to feathers; boy they eat a lot of fish

May 4, they tend to lay in a pile - one adult is always nearby

May 6, what are these big feet for...they are very wobbly when they try to walk

May 6, wings work...now if I only knew what to do with them

In less than one month, they have grown from just being hatched to this size. Amazing, and what fun to watch via the Decorah Eagle Cam. You can watch too, here is the link: http://www.luther.edu/eaglecam/stream/

Beautiful Irises...and More

2010-05-06T21:38:00.000-05:00

The house next door has been sold and the new owners are a couple that just loves flowers. We are so glad because for years we enjoyed all of the beautiful flowers that Lorraine Ingram cared for in her yard.

After I broke a belt on the lawn mower...so I couldn't mow like I had planned, I did a little weed-whacking with the trimmer. When I was thoroughly covered in dirt and whatever else I kicked up with the trimmer, Wayne suggested that we go over so I could meet the new neighbors. I washed my face and arms, and grabbed my camera because the irises are blooming and I wouldn't miss this opportunity to take a few photos.

I thought you all would enjoy seeing these beauties too.

Hope you enjoyed this bouquet of flowers. Remember your Mother on Mother's Day. We hope our Mothers enjoy the real flowers that are on their way.

Bonnie's New Sewing Machine...well, Old Sewing Machine

2010-05-06T20:57:00.000-05:00

I have a new sewing machine. Well, it is new to me. When I was a little girl, one year for Christmas I received a hand crank sewing machine...and I still have that machine. Here it is:

And it is a little bit rusty...but then, so am I.

Recently someone on Facebook was talking about the "big" hand crank old sewing machines. I joined the discussion and said I was looking for one of those machines because I wanted to make a lamp out of it...and that I didn't care whether it worked or nor. Diann Becker from PA saw my comment and told me she had one and that she would bring it on the bus to Lancaster if I wanted it. Of course, I said, "Yes, please bring it with you." And she did. Thanks, Diann. And here it is:

It is a Frister & Rossmann hand crank machine, made in Germany. From the serial number, it looks to date between 1896 and 1914. So now that I owned this machine, I needed to find out more. We know that in
1846 Elias Howe invented and patented the first automatic sewing machine for practical operation.

Frister & Rossmann started life near Berlin, Germany, in 1864. The two business partners, Gustav Rossmann and Robert Frister had started their sewing machine business by copying existing machines such as the American Wheeler & Wilson and Willcox & Gibbs under licence from the original manufacturers. Their first sewing machine, the A1 was simply a Wheeler & Wilson clone machine. However its success was unsurpassed, hardly changing for around 50 years. For decades Frister & Rossmann were the largest producers of sewing machines in Germany. By the early 1880s they had made a staggering quarter of a million machines, and by 1903 the great company had produced over one million machines.

Frister & Rossmann machines are known world wide, and similar models are better known in Australia and New Zealand as The Globe, and in America as Jaguar and Kenmore machines. Frister & Rossmann continues to hold it place amongst the premier sewing machine names in Great Britain.
(Frister & Rossman Info Source: http://www.sewalot.com/frister_rossmann.htm)

You can see from the photo I shot of the machine, it also has a box of attachments, some bobbins (good thing because they are very strange looking), several feet, and the instruction manual.

Now curious as to what kind of working it order it might be in, I took the machine on Saturday to Keith English of English's Sew & Vac here in Paducah. His motto on TV is that they "sell the best and service the rest." So we'll see if it works when I get it back. Keith said his granddaughter says he can fix anything. Now that is putting the pressure on. : )

Think I still will make into a lamp, but will put a wooden base under it to run the fixings for the lamp so the machine can be removed if I should want to take it to a demonstration some time. Let's keep our fingers crossed that it is good running order. What a fun new machine I have - and it remains to be seen if it will actually sew or live out its life as a lamp!

Backyard Birds at the Brownings

2010-04-28T20:17:00.000-05:00

Tonight after work, Wayne was helping the neighbor, so I grabbed my camera and sat in my porch swing to watch the birds. I saw ALL of these birds tonight as they visited our feeders in the back yard. Hope you enjoy a bit of spring in Paducah and seeing all of the fine feathered friends...and one squirrel...that happened along this evening.

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Vendors Relax on Boat at Kentucky Lake...and more

2010-04-25T19:56:00.000-05:00

I thought you all would get a kick out of this tape from WPSD TV Local 6 about the vendors who stayed on an 80 foot houseboat at Kentucky Lake, and about the fancy portalets that we had behind the Pavilion this year.

Click here to view the tape.

Bonnie B

The 26th Paducah Show is Now History

2010-04-25T11:18:00.000-05:00

Wow, what a busy week. We moved the quilts into the Convention Center on Friday, April 17, and it has been a whirlwind ever since. Judging took place on Saturday and Sunday; the quilts were hung on Monday and Tuesday...and the vendors set up then too; and the winners in the quilt contest were announced on Tuesday evening. The show opened on Wednesday and closed at 5 p.m. on Saturday. It was a busy week of quilts, quilters, classes, special events, and best of all - seeing quilters from all 50 states (plus Wash. D.C.), and 14 other countries around the world.

Wednesday was a very early morning - I was up at 3:45 a.m. so I could pick up Sue McCarty, the Janome Best of Show winner, and we did live broadcasts from the Expo Center from 5 to 7 a.m. Quilt Judge Libby Lehman joined us for the broadcast too. From then on, it was nonstop. We had three great evening performances on the stage at the Carson Four Rivers Center - Kaffe Fassett, Eleanor Burns, and Ricky Tims.

Kaffe Fassett and Liza Lucy sign a copy of their new book, Simple Shapes, Spectacular Quilts, for me.

The National Quilt Museum had their annual quilt auction on Thursday. I was the lucky bidder for two quilts and a really neat ironing/cutting board cabinet from Tracey's Tables. Ah, now I will HAVE to clean up my sewng room.

So today is Sunday. Wayne was up early to go to the Pavilion to help the last few vendors load out. He, Kelly, and John will be there for a little while this morning doing that. And me, well I went back to sleep and woke up at 10 a.m. What a luxury after all my early mornings this past week.

So what's next? Registration is underway for the Knoxville show that will be July 14 - 17, and we'll be finishing up the registration materials for the Des Moines show, October 6 - 9. And we are working on all four shows for 2011. I hope to see you at one of our shows soon. For all of the latest information, you can go to the AQS Web site, http://www.americanquilter.com/ or check out the blog.

Have you entered one of your quilts in an AQS Quilt Show? You can't win if you don't enter...just ask Sue McCarty, our Janome Best of Show winner this year in Paducah. This is the first time she ever entered one of the AQS quilt shows!

The Dogwoods are Blooming!

2010-04-11T00:00:00.000-05:00

Today was my day to go take some new photos of dogwoods for us to use in our quilt show materials. How do you like this one?

I love the red dogwoods.

And look how pristine this white dogwood is? When they first open full out, they are just beautiful too.

Other flowers are blooming too - here we have a variety of tulips, phlox, and a white dogwood tree in the background. Don't you just love SPRING when the blossoms add color everywhere?

Look at this pretty iris I found blooming - look at those yummy purples!

We drove on the Dogwood Trail, and the dogwoods look like lace as they line the streets. If you are in Paducah, don't miss driving the Dogwood Trail, in daylight or at night when the homeowners light their dogwoods and flowers. It's pretty either way.

The AQS Quilt Show is April 21 - 24, and I hope to see many of you here.

There will be plenty of beautiful quilts to see in the quilt show.

Bonnie B

Meet my Cousin Margie

2010-04-04T13:05:00.000-05:00

While we were in Lancaster, Wayne and I had dinner at Annie Bailey's with my cousin, Margie McFayden and her husband Jeff, and her mother Shirley Kirkland (our dads were brothers). It has been years since we have seen each other...but you wouldn't know it by the way we talked and talked. Margie and Jeff live in New Jersey, and Margie plans to be back next year to the Lancaster show to take some classes. She has a brand new Janome sewing machine and is looking forward to learning all about how to use it and to make quilts.

As children, I was always the tall one and Margie was the short one...nothing has changed there. GRIN

It was really fun to have a chance to get together and catch up. It's a good thing that Jeff and Wayne are the quiet type - they could hardly get in a word. We will plan to do this again soon.

American Eagles!!

2010-04-04T12:34:00.000-05:00

This week we have been watching the Luther College Eaglecam...and this morning we saw the first eaglet - there are two more eggs to hatch. It's amazing to watch these magnificent birds in action.
Enjoy the show...

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Think Spring...and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-13T17:08:00.003-06:00

The flowers are starting to bloom here in Paducah. That brightens everyones mood. Hope the sun is shining where you are.

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Omaha - Turkeys, Deer, and Great Classes

2010-02-21T11:31:00.003-06:00

This week I taught for the Cottonwood Quilt Guild in Omaha, Nebraska. Wayne and I drove and along the way enjoyed seeing lots of wild turkeys (was hard to get a photo of them though at 70 miles an hour), deer playing in the fields (I did capture a photo of some of them), and hundreds of geese flying overhead. There was enough snow in the fields that it was pretty easy to spot them.

One of the many groups of deer we saw along I-29

By the time we arrived in Omaha on Saturday evening, there was a fine snow coming down. The problem was it snowed all night long that way. By noon on Sunday, the wind was blowing the snow so there were white-out conditions and we couldn't see the cars parked in the parking lot at the hotel where the class was held - lucky for us, it was the same hotel that we stayed in.

The classes were great - on Sunday, we did the Windmill Twisted Log Cabin - this is the quilt that I showed on Simply Quilts; that quilt received more mail than any other program on the show. Several of the ladies finished one complete Windmill. Here's a photo of them showing off their work at Show and Tell during the meeting on Monday night.

Show and Tell: It's always fun to see how different they look when different fabrics are chosen. I can't wait to see their quilts finished.

Sunday evening Wayne and I had dinner with Gary and Susie VonWeihe, who live in Council Bluffs. Gary and Wayne were stationed at Richard Gebaur Air Force Base in Kansas City. Can't believe that was 40 years ago, after Wayne returned from Viet Nam. We enjoyed getting to see how the Gerber baby has grown up with teenagers of her own. We always called Robin the Gerber baby because she looked like the baby on their labels. Gary and Susie have three other children...and a total of nine grandchildren. We had a fun evening together.

Then on Monday we did the Xquisite Scrap Quilt class. I always encourage people to bring what they have in lights, mediums, and darks. We went through my process for sorting the fabrics to get the values in the right piles. Then to just pick up a value and sew it to another square, using my formula. And they learned some tips for trimming and pressing too. About an hour before the end of class I take everyone's blocks and lay them out on the floor to show some of the variations you can make with these blocks. I did make believers out of them - value does the work and color gets the credit - if the value is correct, then it really doesn't make any difference what color the fabric is. See for yourself....

Quilt laid out using blocks from all of the students in class in the Sunshine & Shadow pattern

My Getting It Straight lectures on Monday evening and again Tuesday morning were well received. I hope everyone picked up a tip or two for making their quilts turn out flat and straight. And I even took a couple of photos of the snow piled in the parking lot of the church where the guild meeting was held. You definitely have to scoop and plow the snow they get.

Thanks, Cottonwood Quilt Guild, for inviting me to Omaha - snow and all!

Wayne and I enjoyed some nice sunshine for the drive home. Left Omaha with 14 degree temps and it was 35 degrees when we arrived back in Paducah on Wednesday.

Today (Sunday) we are enjoying 65 degrees here in Paducah and have the door open to get some fresh air into the house. Spring is on the way! Come on Spring!!

2010-02-20T18:54:00.018-06:00

In September I flew to Boulder, Colorado, to tape a program with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims for their online program, TheQuiltShow.com. The program will be posted on their Web site, www.TheQuiltShow.com on April 26. In addition to learning how to make your borders fit your quilts every time, our interview was talking about the American Quilter's Society and my job as the Executive Show Director for AQS.

Here I am on the set getting ready to tape the show. Tune in to http://www.thequiltshow.com/ on April 26.
Episode 609 – Freeform feathers & Happy endings (Bonnie Browning / Judy Woodworth
Posts on April 26, 2010

This super show brings you two outstanding teachers for “the price of one!” First, professional machine- and award-winning quilter Judy Woodworth uses a Gammill Longarm Quilting Machine to create freeform, out-of-the-box feathers, and encourages Alex to try her hand as well. Then: Who doesn’t love a happy ending? Bonnie Browning, author of nine books, including Borders & Finishing Touches 2, involves our enthusiastic studio audience as she demonstrates a variety of innovative techniques, tips, and notions for giving our quilts the best endings ever! You’ll be learning something every moment of this jam-packed episode.

Visit with the Eagles on Kentucky Lake - February 6, 2010

2010-02-07T13:01:00.000-06:00

Every year Wayne and I enjoy a February cruise on Kentucky Lake to see the American Bald Eagles. Yesterday we had a great time on the cruise, which is sponsored by the Kentucky State Parks and Kentucky Wildlife & Conservation Department. They have staff on board as guides and to answer questions.

We cruised in style aboard the CQ Princess, which is normally docked in Louisville. They bring this yacht to the lakes in January/February for the eagle cruises.

We saw 29 eagles, lots of ducks and geese, herons, and other birds. It wasn't sunny but at least it wasn't raining (like last year). I took my camera with the 300mm lens and an extender so I could get better shots of the eagles. It was worth the price of the cruise to see a female sitting on a nest and the male eagle sitting on a branch nearby. We were able to view it in 270 degrees since the nest was in the top of a tree that was on a peninsula. I was able to shoot lots of photos.

This was my first view of the nest, using my long lens to see the male eagle sitting on a branch, while the female sits on the nest. The captain slowed down the boat so we could go by very slowly.

How about this view? You can see the female tucked behind the crooked branch.

Now the boat is almost on the other side of the nest - the female (on the left) has hopped off the nest. Did you know that female eagles are 20-30% larger than the male eagles. And this is one type of bird where the male and female look alike - he doesn't get all of the pretty feathers.

An immature eagle - see the speckled head and breast. They don't have a white head until they are about 5 years old.

This young eagle is older than the one in the previous photo. See how it has more white on his head?

Another eagle nest that was tucked back into a group of trees. The other two nests we saw were closer to the water.

An adult American Bald Eagle. We saw 29 eagles in all; 15 were immature, 2 we couldn't tell, and the other 12 were adults. You can't miss the adults with their big white heads.

Two immature eagles sit in this tree on the point. See how they look like a big black blob sitting in the tree. They are so big that they are easy to spot once you know what you are looking for.

There were some eagles soaring close to our boat just as we were finishing our cruise. Look at that wing span.

Another nest that was close to the water.

Another eagle soaring - the staff called this one the greeter, it's the first eagle we saw as we left the dock and the last one we saw when we returned. He stays in a group of trees just across from the boat dock.

Part of this Visit with the Eagles program was an evening talk on Raptors (Birds of Prey) by Dale and John Stokes. They are associated with S.O.A.R. - Save our American Raptors. From May to September they present programs at the Rock City Raptors Birds of Prey at Rock City near Chattanooga, Tennessee. During the rest of the year, the give programs at schools and at state parks. All of the birds they display have been "humanized" - that is they have been raised by humans (and often depend then on humans for their food) or have been injured and cannot be released back to the wild.

I took a few photos, but they asked us not to use any flash, so the lighting isn't the best. You can see what the birds look like anyway.

Many of us have probably heard Screech Owls - here is what they look like. These two small owls are the only birds that live together at their sanctuary for these birds of prey.

The barn owl has such a funny shaped face.

This broad-winged hawk flew very fast...and this one came right over my head, parting my hair it was so close. But I got his picture anyway. Phew, that was close.

Red-tailed hawk has such beautiful coloring. I didn't get a photo of his back, but the back and tail feathers are really pretty. We have one of these hawks that torments the squirrels in our back yard (and catches one of them sometimes).

This black vulture flew back and forth over the heads of the audience. BIG bird.

This American Bald Eagle was rescued after being shot; his wing had to be removed as a result of that shot. Still a beautiful bird, but can never be released to the wild again. (The bald eagle is the bird up front...not the head you see in the photos...grin.)

There were people on this cruise from all over. If you are ever going through Kentucky in late January or early February, be sure to check out the Eagle Cruises through the Kentucky State Parks. We are really glad that they have this program and enjoy cruising to see the eagles every year!

Radio Interview on the AQS Quilt Show in Paducah

2010-02-04T20:27:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I taped an hour-long radio interview with Sally Terry. We talked about many of the changes for this year's AQS Quilt Show in Paducah.

Here is a link to so you can listen to a replay of the program:

http://www.AttendThisEvent.com/?eventid=11107371

We were just informed this afternoon that there are some rooms available at the Hampton Inn (270-442-0200). Call immediately - these rooms won't last long.
Or, you can call the Paducah Visitor's Bureau (1-800-PADUCAH) for an application for the AQS Home Bed & Breakfast Program.

See you in Paducah in April!

Stay tuned...we'll be taping a program on the AQS Quilt Show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, soon.

Paper Piecing Patterns - Now in an eBook Downloadable Format

2010-02-01T19:38:00.000-06:00

My book, Paper Piecing Patterns, published in 1999, is no longer available in print. You've been asking for this book, and it is now available as a downloadable eBook in Adobe PDF format. You can download the book, and print the pattern pages you want to stitch.

What is in this book? I've been paper piecing since the late 1960's and have shared my technique in easy-to-see photographs. Besides the step-by-step instructions for paper piecing, you'll find a selection of patterns that can be paper (some call it foundation) pieced. I like to use vellum paper, so I call it paper piecing. Why vellum? Because you can see the lines from either side of the paper. You can print directly onto the vellum, and sew on the side with the printing. The vellum is very easy to tear away too.

Here are some of the patterns: Teapot, Tea Cup, Cupcake, Coffee Pot, Coffee Cup, and Chocolate Cake - and those are just the designs on the inside front and back covers. Then there is a Barn, Cabin and House; Squirrel Eating Corn, Hummingbird, Tree 1, and Tree 2. Traditional patterns include Snowball Variation, Pineapple, Log Cabin Courthouse Steps, Diamond in a Square, Double Pinwheel Whirls, Job's Troubles, 3-D, Mosaic Rose, Palm Leaf (one of my favorites), Airplane, Sailboat, and a Heart (on the title page).

As you can see, it is chock full of some fun patterns to sew, and it's all straight line sewing. No fancy or difficult sewing here.

Click here to purchase the eBook and download it right onto your computer. It's just $8.00 or only $6.40 if you are an AQS member.

Send me some photos of quilts you make using my Paper Piecing Patterns.

Happy piecing!

Bonnie B

Snowy & Cold....

2010-01-30T22:29:00.003-06:00

Last year it was an ice storm on this weekend...this year it is a snow storm. We'll take the snow any time! Here in Paducah we had about 4.5 inches of snow. Wayne snapped this photo this morning as he headed to the grocery store - Food Giant, that is very close to our home.

And, so we had a lazy day here at home. I worked on the pattern for a bag to carry my new mini purple passion computer. It will have a central pocket for the computer so it is easy to pull it out at the airports, with pockets on the sides to carry the mouse, jump sticks, my mini external hard drive...and all of the other things I need to give my presentations. It will be quilted, of course. The pattern is drawn out now, so tomorrow I can cut fabric.

Hope you are staying warm and dry, wherever you are!

Oops...You Can't Iron an Iron...

2010-01-11T19:51:00.000-06:00

Sometimes not paying attention to what you are doing leaves you scratching your head! Yesterday I was going to finish up some fabric thank you postcards and clicked on the switch to the surge protector where I plug in my iron....did something else until the iron heated.

When I returned, I smelled something kind of funny but didn't see anything. Then I went to iron. The last time I had used my iron, I had used my small Rowenta travel iron. It had fallen over on my big Rowenta iron.

You guessed it, the heat of the small iron melted the big iron. Yowser, what a mess. Now I had a nonfunctional big iron and half of the base of my travel iron was covered with white plastic. I unplugged the travel iron and proceeded to scrap off the plastic while it was still warm with a straight-bladed sharp knife. Then I plugged it back in and ironed it over paper to remove even more. That was followed with ironing on fabric.

Here's the hole it left in my Rowenta. Hard to believe that it would get that hot, isn't it? When Sharon Schamber tells us that the Rowenta travel iron is the only that gets hot enough...I certainly believe her now.

I finished pressing my postcards together by using a press cloth over the top so I could get that part done.

Tonight it looks like I did get all of the plastic off the base of my travel iron.

The moral of the story is: Make sure you know what is plugged in...and that the irons are not touching one another.

Anyone have suggestions for a new big iron? I'm in the market for an iron now!

Our Holiday Visit to See the Barn Quilts of Washington County, Iowa

2010-01-01T15:31:00.000-06:00

Wayne, his sister Kathi Beverlin, my sister Karen Franzen, and I spent a day visiting the Kalona, Iowa area to see the Barn Quilts of Washington County, Iowa. The snow on the ground made the barns more picturesque. We had a fun day and made stops at the Family Restaurant in Kalona for lunch, and then had to stop at the General Store, Willow Creek Quilting & Gifts (great shop), and the Kalona Bakery (the peach pie and cinnamon rolls were yummy). Afterward, we picked up Wayne's Mom and Buster to go to Bryn Mawr Steakhouse for dinner. What a fun day we had!

Look at all of the different styles of barns in the Kalona area as you view these photos.

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Hope you had a Happy New Year!

Christmas in Iowa - 2009

2010-01-01T14:05:00.000-06:00

Enjoy some photos of our visit with our family in Iowa over the holidays.

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Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T23:34:00.003-06:00

Can you believe that another year has flown by... guess that happens when you are having fun. Wayne, my sister Karen, and I had lunch with Mom Kirkland, and left just in time to do a little eagle siting before we headed back to Durant.

This is one of the big eagles that we saw as they came back to the trees to roost in Credit Island Park in Davenport. Some trees had as many as five eagles land in them. There were so many tree branches between my camera and the eagles that the photos are not very clear. It's always fun to just watch these majestic birds flying.

Did you see the Blue Moon (2nd new moon in December) tonight? We were out eagle watching along the Mississippi River when the sun went down and the moon came up. It was a beautiful yellow moon shining brightly on the Mississippi River.

Happy New Year...hope you and I find time to do more quiltiung in 2010!

Bonnie B

Packages are Wrapped with Care....

2009-12-20T22:41:00.003-06:00

Happy Sunday! This has been a busy weekend, trying to get the packages wrapped for our families. I made some Christmas telephone calls to some far-away friends that we won't get to see during the holidays. It's always fun to catch up with our friends.

We had a good time at the Schroeder Publishing Christmas party on Thursday evening. Billy Schroeder always comes up with some kind of trivia for us to play. He had some great questions this year - like how many stitches are in a baseball? Or, what sport has more participants than any other? I'll put the answers at the end of this message so you can think about the answers for a bit. Dinner was catered by Patti's Restaurant from Grand Rivers, KY.

On Friday evening, Wayne and I attended the Cirque Dreams Illumination at the Carson Four Rivers Center. It was really good...great stage work, lighting, high wire work, acrobats, skits, and singing. It had a little bit of everything.

The next couple of weeks will be very busy. Wayne and I hope you are able to spend some time with your family and have a Merry Christmas together. I'll talk to you again in the new year - can you believe that 2010 is here already? See you then!

Bonnie B

The answers are: 108 stitches in a baseball, and fishing is the sport with the most participants (we should have guessed that one since Billy is an avid bass fisherman)

Kentucky Living Magazine - December

2009-11-30T21:53:00.000-06:00

Watch for the December issue of Kentucky Living magazine. I will be part of an article on using my photographs to make fabric postcards as Thank You cards. The title of the article is the Lost Art of Writing Thank You Notes.

Do you send written Thank You notes? My mother has always instilled in us that the proper way to say Thank You is to send a hand written note. In these days of electronic media, we sometimes forget how much people enjoy receiving something in the mail. I know I do. Whether you care to send the very best (Hallmark) or make your own cards, see what kind of reaction you get to sending something special that you have made.

Make someone's holiday merry by sending them a handwritten greeting.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T09:54:00.000-06:00

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Great Quilt Shop in Celeste, Texas - Quilt Mercantile

2009-11-21T08:18:00.001-06:00

While in Texas teaching last week, my host, Alice Wilhoit, took me to the Quilt Mercantile in Celeste, TX. It is just outside Dallas. What a great shop. There are lots of sample quilts and other projects covering the walls...it's like a small quilt show.

Alice was teaching a class there so I had some time to do some hand stitching...and SHOP. See that purse sitting in the foreground of this photo - it's an Indygo Junction pattern that came home with me. The handles go through those big grommets and when you pick it up, the purse closes. Can't wait to make it.

At this time of year, my favorite spot in a quilt shop is the Christmas room...lots of quilts with red in them and quilty gifts we can make.

If you are ever in the Celeste area, be sure to stop and visit this shop. Tell them Bonnie Browning sent you!

Wednesday Musings...

2009-11-18T21:26:00.000-06:00

Life is getting back to normal again. After 8 days in Des Moines for the AQS Quilt Show there, then a planning meeting in Knoxville, TN, the following week, and last week I taught in Plano, TX, it's nice to be home for a while.

Today Marcelle and I finalized the last teachers for the Paducah show in April, so the registration guide is getting ready to go to the designer for layout.

Registration for the Lancater show is open and classes are filling, so don't delay in registering if you plan to attend that show. We've already filled the Thursday evening (7:00 - 8:30 p.m.) performance for Eleanor Burns... and we have been able to add another performance that will be held from 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. that same day. She is always popular so don't wait to get your tickets to see Eleanor Burns.

I'm ready to do some sewing. After teaching my Xquisite Scrap class in Texas, I even bought some fabric to work on the black,gray, and cream version of that quilt that I want to make. Should have enough different fabrics now... just need to get busy cutting 4" squares.

Hope you are having a great week, wherever you are...

Bonnie B

Bonnie Visits with Classmates in Muscatine, Iowa

2009-10-18T00:26:00.000-05:00

When Wayne and I were in town for his class reunion in September, I also was able to meet up with two of my high school classmates, Anita Bendle Bennett and Judy Leu Pare. Here are a few photos from that day. Anita and Judy then went to have dinner with Gini VanZandt - I've included a photo of them that Judy sent to me.

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Fall in Paducah

2009-10-10T17:33:00.000-05:00

Enjoy some photos Wayne and I took today...

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MHS Class of 1959 - Dinner on Saturday, September 26, 2009

2009-10-04T09:17:00.019-05:00

The 50th reunion of the 1959 graduating classes of Muscatine High School and Hayes Catholio High School held its reunion dinner at Whispering Pines on Tipton Road in Muscatine. In addition to a wonderful dinner of steak, pork chops, and chicken prepared by the famous A Guy & A Grill, emcee Gary Diercks shared some happenings of long ago. Everyone present was pleased to learn that Larry Mittman's demise was greatly exaggerated... since he was here.

Click on the photos to enlarge them. You can right click to print or save the photographs.

There are six Blog entries altogether, with photos from both Friday and Saturday evenings.

If you find any names that are incorrect, please send me corrections. Sometimes the name badges were partially hidden. E-mail corrections or additional names to: bonniewayne@bellsouth.net. I'll correct the Blog if necessary. It was fun to share your reunion with all of you, and I hope you enjoy the photos.

Bonnie Browning

A beautiful sunset was the beginning of a great evening with old friends. Purple and Gold balloons greeted us as we drove into Whispering Pines.

Dinner was prepared by A Guy & A Grill

Emcee Gary Diercks

Catching up with old friends

Chatting before dinner

Janice Erickson & Jerry Lichtenwald

Judy Connor, Janet Kahl

Bruce & Sandi Hildebrandt

Leo & Gay Webb Hindbaugh

Larry Mittman, John Shepard, Glen Monson

Sandra Smith, Mary Jo TeStrake, Beth Williamson

Jean Ripperger, Nancy Eis & Alan Ripperger

Darla Morgan, Laura Jamison, Mary Ann Morris

Ervin Morgan, Bob Jones

John Bohling, Wayne Browning

MHS Class of 1959 - some more Saturday Evening Photos

2009-10-04T09:04:00.009-05:00

Click on the photo to enlarge. Right click to print or save the photos.

Sandi Hildebrandt, Sandy Wells

Janet Kahl, Connie Bohling, Sandi Hildebrandt

John Bohling

Laurel Heard, Bill Griffin

Janet Kahl

Glen Smith talking to Wayne Browning

Hank & Rita Mann

Janet Kindler, Maxine Ricketts

Toma Tarin (married to Karen Berry)

Karen Berry

Beth Williamson, Dave Alftine

MHS Class of 1959 - more Saturday Evening Photos

2009-10-04T08:51:00.012-05:00

Click on the photo to enlarge it. Right click to print or save the photos.

Beverly Smith, Lynn Paul

Laura Lee Mulvihill, Carol Lichtenwald

Juli & Bob Wagner

Dennis Roth, Lynn Beaucamp

Deems Ahlf, Bob Herrick, Diane Greene

John & Connie Bohling

Ervin & Darla Morgan

Phil & Mary Jane Chalups

Kathy & Bill Schmidt, Bob Bancks

Sandra Ash

MHS Class of 1959 - and more Saturday Evening Photos

2009-10-04T08:17:00.008-05:00

You can click on the photo to enlarge it. Right click to save or print the photos.

Denise & Glen Monson

David Kneer, Ruth Ann Thorpe

Bill & Weninoka Jones

?? and Lois Kemp

Linda Giessregen Maas & Jim Maas

Lynda Raushenberger

Sally & Bill Paetz

Jane Klatt, Jim Esmoil, Kathy & Bill Schmidt

MHS Class of 1959 - Group Photos

2009-10-04T07:53:00.009-05:00

Getting everyone into one end of the room at the Whispering Pines was no easy feat...but we did it. Here are the photos of those who attended the 50th class reunion of the 1959 graduating classes from Muscatine High School and Hayes Catholc High School.

Muscatine High School - Class of 1959: Attendees at the 50th Class Reunion

Hayes Catholic High School - Class of 1959: Attendees at 50th Class Reunion

Listed in alphabetical order by school, here are photos of those who attended Franklin, Jefferson, and Lincoln Grade Schools.

Attended Franklin Grade School

Attended Jefferson Grade School

Attended Lincoln Grade School

Photo Credit: Bonnie K. Browning, Paducah, Kentucky

MHS Class of 1959 - 50th Class Reunion

2009-10-03T20:13:00.006-05:00

Last weekend was the 50th class reunion for the Muscatine High School class of 1959 in Muscatine, Iowa. Wayne and I attended the festivities on Friday and Saturday evenings, and in between, visited members of our families who still live in the area.

Friday evening, September 25, 2009, was supposed to be a tailgate party at the MHS football game...but heavy rain soaked the tent so Plan B was to hold it at the Button Factory, which graciously gave us the second floor of their restaurant.

I took photographs both evenings, and I'll share them here on my Blog. I was able to get most names from the name tags, but I'm sorry that I don't know who everyone is. Wayne graduated four years before me...so this group had graduated before I was even in high school...they were MUCH order....GRIN

You can click on the photos to see them larger, and you can right click to print or save the photographs.

If you know the names of the people in these photos, send them to me and I'll update my Blog to identify those whose names are missing. You can send them to me at: bonniewayne@bellsouth.net

Danny & Suzanne Trask

Jerry Schreurs

There are two more posts from the Friday evening festivities...read on.

More MHS - Class of 1959 - 50th Class Reunion

2009-10-03T19:48:00.011-05:00

More Photos from the MHS Class of 1959 Class Reunion - Friday evening

Carol Lichtenwald, Connie Jamison

Mike & Elaine Rehbehn, Dave Sywassink

Bob & Juli Wagner

Sharon & Ray Miller

Phil & Mary Chalups

Brenda & Mike Day

Judy Ware, Joni Axel

Look for more photos in the next post.

More MHS Class of 1959 Reunion

2009-10-03T18:19:00.035-05:00

More Photos from Friday Evening at the MHS 1959 Class Reunion

Gary Kissell, Dennis Roth

Looks like a serious discussion here. Dave Barton (in red), Gary Kissell

Notice the purple and gold table cloths...

Groups visiting

Gary Diercks, Bill Schmidt, Karen Diercks

Bruce Hildebrandt & Wayne Browning

Alice Shepard

Those who attended moved around the room to get reacquainted. Karen Diercks provided the football mums for the women. Thanks Karen!

Taping The Quilt Show with Alex Anderson & Ricky Tims

2009-09-17T21:57:00.002-05:00

Here are some photos of my trip to Colorado for the taping of The Quilt Show with Alex and Ricky. My program will be aired sometime in early 2010.

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Cookbook was just delivered!

2009-09-03T18:42:00.012-05:00

Several years ago Mom suggested that we do a family cookbook. Everyone (guys and gals) in our family cooks, and we're pretty good at it too. So last year I decided that would be the Christmas present to everyone from Wayne and me. We didn't get it done in time for Christmas, but we did have the first draft of all of the recipes done when we went home for the holidays. It took me a while longer to proof it, and make the corrections. I had typed the recipes in online so I only needed to finish the personal pages for the front of the book.

My sister, Marcia, suggested that I use one of the photos I have taken for the cover. We ended up using one with pink dogwoods - I take dogwood photos every spring for us to use as graphics in materials for our April AQS Quilt Show.

Lynda Smith, one of our great graphic artists at AQS, helped me format the photos and do the artwork on them. I shipped off those pages, and saw the proof in early August. The UPS man just delivered me three big boxes of cookbooks - and the other half of them should be arriving at Mom's today too. And so, now Cooking with the Kirklands is all printed!

Here are a couple sample pages of recipes in the cookbook. There are 300 recipes in the cookbook with a spiral binding to lay flat, plus there are an index and other helpful pages in the back, including napkin folding, substitution charts, food quantities, quick fixes, and even an order form for ordering more copies.

We will have some cookbooks left over to sell. If you would like a copy, they are $15 plus $3 shipping. If you would like a copy, send an e-mail to: bbquilter@gmail.com and I'll send you my address for sending a check/money order.

Bonnie B - editor of Cooking with the Kirklands

Home again, Home again, Jiggity Jig

2009-08-25T23:51:00.005-05:00

Last week Terry Guill, our Director of Show Operations, and I went to Des Moines for a planning meeting for our AQS Quilt Expo that will be held October 28 - 31 at the Iowa Events Center. After finishing up two days of meetings, we spent Friday evening at the Iowa State Fair. Terry had never been to the state fair...so this Iowa girl got to show him the sites that are not to be missed, and of course, we had to eat fair food too.

Hope you enjoy the photos I took of our visit to the Iowa State Fair 2009.

Make a Smilebox postcard

AQS Grows Again!

2009-08-22T17:10:00.002-05:00

If you haven't heard yet, AQS is growing again. Below is the press release that went out on Thursday about the new AQS Quilt Show & Contest in Lancaster, PA, March 24 - 27, 2010.

AQS Announces New Show for 2010
Lancaster Pennsylvania Becomes 4th AQS Show
by Bonnie Browning, Show Director

Paducah, Kentucky – August 20, 2009: Today AQS President Meredith Schroeder announced plans for the American Quilter’s Society (AQS) to hold a fourth quilt show in 2010.

AQS will produce a new show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, March 24 – 27, 2010, at the new Lancaster County Convention Center. The AQS Quilt Show & Contest – Lancaster will feature a quilt contest with $44,000 in cash awards. A special category in the contest is Grand Geometrics – Created the Amish Way. “We are pleased to bring an AQS Quilt Show to Lancaster and the southeastern Pennsylvania area, and to provide another opportunity for quilters to enter our contests and be recognized for their artistry,” stated Schroeder. AQS has signed a three-year agreement to hold this event in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

“We’re thrilled at the prospect of welcoming the American Quilter’s Society (AQS) and one of this country’s top quilting shows to the new Lancaster County Convention Center (LCCC),” remarked Josh Nowak, director of sales & marketing with the LCCC.

“We can’t think of a better setting for the AQS Quilt Show & Contest than Lancaster County – home to a rich quilting heritage within our Amish community, and where this art form continues to thrive today,” said Christopher Barrett, president and CEO of the PA Dutch Convention & Visitors Bureau. “The 2010 AQS Quilt Show presents an undeniably alluring opportunity for local and national quilters alike to share their creative process and outcomes, in a setting recognized worldwide for its beautifully manicured quilt of farms and fields.”

AQS also holds events in Paducah, Kentucky (pending for 2010); Knoxville, Tennessee (July 14 – 17, 2010); and Des Moines, Iowa (October 6 – 9, 2010).

Contest rules are available on the AQS Web site, www.AmericanQuilter.com. Registration guides for each show will be available online as soon as they are completed. To order a printed registration guide, send $2.00 for each guide to: AQS, Attn: (name of show) Registration Guide, PO Box 3290, Paducah, KY 42002-3290.

In addition to the AQS Web site and the AQS Blogs (AQS Quilt News, AQS Publishing, and American Quilter magazine), quilters can now become a fan of AQS on Facebook, and follow AQS on Twitter. The AQS quilting community grows again!

For lodging and general information on American Quilter’s Society shows, go to www.AmericanQuilter.com, or call 270-898-7903. Tour groups can contact Marcelle Cashon or Laura Davis for information on booking charter tours by calling 270-898-7903.

222nd Aviation Battalion Reunion - Gettysburg, PA

2009-08-18T21:35:00.007-05:00

Wayne and I went from one reunion to the other. First we went to Iowa for my class reunion, and then on to Pennsylvania for his Army reunion with the guys he was stationed in Viet Nam with in the late 1960's.

We visited Gettysburg, and had a great guide on our bus tour. He almost had us believing the soldiers would be marching through the trees. Then there was a walking tour where everyone heard all about Sadie...I'm still waiting for the rest of that story. Herb, you didn't finish the story. GRIN

This is the Army Vets with their spouses who attended the reunion.

These fellows were in the 222nd Aviation Battalion stationed in Vung Tau, Viet Nam; Col. Louise Terrell (center of front row) was the commander of the 222nd in Ft. Eustis, VA.

46th Class Reunion - Saturday Evening Dinner

2009-08-17T21:47:00.004-05:00

Here are more photos using Smilebox. I didn't know who all of the spouses or significant others were...so in some places I just named our classmate. Sorry that I didn't meet everyone to include all of the names. Hope you enjoy it!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Saturday Night Dinner at my Class Reunion

2009-08-10T21:57:00.006-05:00

The class of 1963 who attended the 46th Class Reunion at the Holiday Inn, Muscatine, Iowa.

Bernita stops to say hello to Wayne Browning.

Bernita...aka Bernie Coder, our DJ opened the evening by visiting with some of our classmates and spouses. This was his best side. How about those boots?

I have a lot more photos and will share them when I have more time to play with the photos and get them on my Blog.

I hope everyone enjoyed being together again like Wayne and I did. Keep those e-mails coming; it was certainly fun to read what everyone has been doing. Hope to see you all at our 50th reunion, schedule for September 14, 2013.

Saturday Lunch at the Button Factory with Friends

2009-08-10T21:48:00.010-05:00

A lunch with classmates at the Button Factory was followed by a trip around town to take photos on the riverfront by the Clamdigger statute, in front of our Muscatine High School (now Central Middle School), and at the Weed Park lagoon.

I don't have time right now to add all of the names...but will come back and do that when I get back home.

The island at Week Park lagoon.

Left, standing: Bonnie Kirkland, Martha Beveridge
Seated: Pat Alternbernd, Penny Fuhlman, Chris Godeke, Barbara Thomas, Sussan Schuessler
Right, standing: Janet Day

Our Muscatine High School, now Central Middle School

In front of the Clamdigger statute on the riverfront:
Bonnie Kirkland, Pat Altenbernd, Martha Beveridge, Chris Godeke, Penny Fuhlman, Janet Day, Barbara Thomas

In front of The Button Factory Restaurant where we enjoyed lunch together:
Janet Day, Sussan Schuessler, Barbara Thomas, Pat Alternbernd, Bonnie Kirkland, Penny Fuhlman, Martha Beveridge, Chris Godeke

The Reunion Begins...

2009-08-08T10:26:00.012-05:00

The 46th reunion of the Muscatine High School of 1963 began last night with a drop-in gathering in the bar at the Holiday Inn. It was easy to recognize some of our classmates...others we had to ask "who are you?"

Here are a few snapshots. I was able to get a photo of most of those who were there.

Watch for more photos after tonight's main event.

L to R: Martha Beveridge, Kathy TeStrake, Mike Rogers

L ro R: Doug Buchele, Carol Bunn, Diana Collins, Kathy Holtz, Gini VanZandt, Dottie Beranek, Mike Rogers

L to R: Julia Barnard, Maggie Teraberry, Carol Bunn, Barb Haveman Felton, Doug Felton

L to R: Nancy Peters, Tom Schauland, Gini VanZandt, Doug Buchele

L t R: Kathy TeStrake, Ron Miller, Karen Buekenhorst

Watch for more to come.

Hi Deanna!

2009-07-08T23:42:00.004-05:00

Today I had an e-mail from one of my closest high school buddies, Deanna Tumey. She was maid of honor at our wedding. We had lost touch over the years.

We are having our 46th class reunion next month so some of our classmates are busy trying to track down those they haven't heard from. So now we are reconnected. Deanna has retired to Cape Cod - now I have a really good excuse for a fall vacation out that direction.... And she didn't know that we are living in Paducah, Kentucky, and that I was a quilter. But she does now.

We talked more than an hour and I can't wait for our next phone call.

Deanna, I bet you never thought you would be subject of one of my Blogs.

Bonnie B

The Squirrel Chase

2009-07-05T13:22:00.007-05:00

We have a lot of baby squirrels in our yard now...so Tuffy is busy patrolling our property. He knows what belongs and what doesn't, and he tries to keep the "invaders" away.

Yesterday, he was letting the young squirrels know that this was his territory.

Okay, so where did he go?

I know he went this way...

And the chase was on, and Tuffy took off up the tree after the squirrel. Of course the squirrel got away - went to a higher branch and sat and chattered to Tuffy for several minutes. Don't you wonder if Tuffy understood that message?

Red, White and Blue Quilts

2009-07-04T00:02:00.004-05:00

I had no idea that I had so many red, white, and blue quilts until I decided to show some of them to you. Several of these quilts came from quilts that were auctioned after 9/11 and AQS asked quilters to make blocks and quilts to be auctioned off to raise funds for those affected in New York. I purchased several on eBay at that auction.

I hope you enjoy seeing my quilts and I've sprinkled in some of the patriotic designs that I included in my pattern book called Designs on Freedom, published by the American Quilter's Society.

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Happy 4th of July from Paducah, Kentucky!

2009-07-03T17:05:00.001-05:00

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Baby Wrens...and Peaches..Oh, My...for the 4th of July

2009-06-30T20:52:00.006-05:00

The wrens are eating like little pigs and they are starting to flap their wings in the nest...so it won't be long before they fly off. I thought you would enjoy a few closeup photos of them before they leave.

The Southern Illinois peaches are starting...and I made the first fresh peach shortcake (the kind with the thin batter, spread the peaches over the top, and cover with boiling water with 1 cup sugar dissolved in it. Yummy!

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Exhibits at The National Quilt Museum

2009-06-27T08:08:00.009-05:00

Wow...yesterday after work I stopped at the National Quilt Museum to see the quilt exhibits. If you have not see these exhibits...you need to. I think these three exhibits are some of the best ever displayed at the museum.

The current exhibits are:
Best of Show: 25 Years of Excellence - this is an exhibit of all of the past Best of Show winners from the AQS Quilt Shows. What a great tribute to the quilters from 1985 through 2009. You have to be in awe of this workmanship.

New Winds from Asia - quilts from China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan
This is the only showing of these quilts in the United States. You have to marvel at how successfully these quiltmakers have been in using what I would call difficult fabrics to work with - kimonos, obis, and other fabrics that tend to move around. Wonderful color and creative designs in this exhibit.

European Art Quilts V - a juried exhibition by some of the best art quilters from across Europe. This exhibit is meant to initiate discussions on current affairs around the world. The ingredients for these quilts include materials determined by the availability and traditions in the different countries. I saw lots of slicing and dicing in these quilts, and especially enjoyed one that included fabric beads that formed a circle.

You can get more information from the quilt museum's Web site: http://www.quiltmuseum.org/exhibits_current.htm . Don't delay in seeing these exhibits - the first two are on exhibit until July 6 and 7. The European Art Quilts will be there until August 10.

These exhibits are worth a trip to Paducah to see.

Bonnie B

Baby Wrens and Other Visitors

2009-06-21T21:12:00.006-05:00

Our wrens have a nest of little ones now and are busy feeding them. And I've snapped a few photos of other birds which have visited our backyard.

We're still having temperatures in the mid-90's so we've not done much outside. Wayne put new blades on the lawn tractor. Even in the early morning, it was warm out there.

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Ave Maria Grotto in Cullman, Alabama

2009-06-14T21:06:00.005-05:00

I just returned home from teaching at the Alabama Quilt Symposium that was held at St. Bernard Abbey, in Cullman, Alabama.

The students in my classes were great and I hope they picked up some tips for borders and edges for their quilt projects, and the Fun with Nine-Patch class was just that...fun. Most of those quilters had half of their quilt sewn together, and a couple had their whole top done. One quilter said she had never accomplished that much in a class before. Hooray! Our classes were held in the Retreat and Prep School buildings at the Abbey.

Also on the grounds is the Ave Maria Grotto. After driving past it a couple of times I knew I needed to find some time to go see the whole thing. I did, and here are some photos so you can see it too. These 125 miniature stone and cement structures are the handiwork of Brother Joseph Zoetl, a monk of the Abbey for almost 70 years. His monastic life was spent at the Abbey in daily hours of prayer and in laboring in the Abbey power house. When not busy shoveling coal into the furnaces, he took time to construct some miniature buildings, using stone, concrete, and unwanted donated materials, broken plates, costume jewelry, ceramic tile, beads, marbles, seashells, etc.

He gathered his ideas for his creations from extensive readings of history and the Bible. Of all the replcas constructed, he had seen only about six of them; all of the others were constrcted from photos or from printed descriptions.

They are amazing. He even included the Statue of Liberty as a tribute to his adopted country; Hansel and Gretel visit the Temple of the Fairies - note its beautiful little children and the awful dragon, which is bound by a heavy chain!

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Paducah Murals

2009-05-31T15:59:00.007-05:00

The murals on the Paducah floodwall tell the history of this community. They provide a pictorial view of the city way back when.

Once in a while we go down to snap some photos in front of some of the murals. Don't miss seeing them when you stop in Paducah. Just head downtown to the river - you can't miss them!

Bonnie B

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The Nest Building Saga Continues...

2009-05-25T17:43:00.004-05:00

Today is Memorial Day and it has been raining off and on, so I took advantage of the weather to do a bit of birdwatching from my favorite swing on the back porch. The wrens were very active today...even during the rain. Here's a pictorial view for you to enjoy.

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Gluing Things Together

2009-05-25T11:57:00.007-05:00

I just found this site that gives you a variety of options for using the right glue to attach one thing to another.

Here is the site: www.thistothat.com

You just put in the two types of items that you want to glue and it will give you a variety of options of glues to use.

Neat site. I've added it to my Favorites. You never know when I'll need the answer to a glue question...

Hope you are enjoying your Memorial Day holiday. My sister Marcia was born on the "real" Memorial Day - May 30, so this is odd to be celebrating on the 25th.

Bonnie B

Nesting

2009-05-23T14:07:00.006-05:00

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Today we are burning more piles of sticks in our backyard. I shot a couple of photos of my fire tending. My time in the Girl Scouts indeed is serving me well in how to stack those logs up to get them to burn good. While I sat there tending the fire piles, I enjoyed listening to and watching the frolic of the birds in our backyard. So you know me, I grabbed my camera and shot some new photos.

We have already had one hatching of baby bluebirds in our bluebird house. Once they left, Wayne cleaned it out so they can use it again. When he did, the structure of the nest is amazing. It is mostly made with pine needles that are all interwoven to hold it together.

Today the bluebirds have been stopping by the house to set up housekeeping again. Our bluebirds stay all year long.

The wrens have been building in the wren house too. They aren't as neat as the bluebirds though - look at how the sticks hang out under the roof. Maybe those are just draft dodgers from a crack between the side wall and the roof. Isn't it interesting how they can find those gaps?

I caught a photo of one of the wrens stopping by, and then quickly flying into their house. This house hangs on the clothesline pole so we can watch first hand from the deck all of their comings and goings.

And then I snapped some of the other birds that stopped by for a bite to eat this morning...mourning doves, blue jays, indigo buntings, cardinals, brown thrasher, chickadee,American robin, Eastern bluebird,tufted titmouse, house finches (momma was teaching her little ones to forage for food in the grass), American Goldfinch, and red-bellied woodpecker....and I saw all of those different kinds just this morning.

Mother Nature at her finest!

Interview on Sew-a-Quilt.com

2009-05-23T14:03:00.004-05:00

Gloria Massard of www.sew-a-quilt.com just posted this interview she did with me. She talks about the many things that I'm involved in -- as a teacher, author, quilter, traveler, photographer...and the list goes on.

Here is the link:
http://www.sewaquilt.com/bonnie-browning-interview.html

Thanks Gloria. Good job!

Something New Has Been Added

2009-05-17T17:30:00.005-05:00

I am using a new way to share my photos - Smilebox. Hope you enjoy the photos...and the music too.

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Take a Look at our Backyard Visitors

2009-05-17T16:13:00.002-05:00

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