Crazy for Quilts...New Contest Info

Amy Milne, the brilliant and dedicated director of the Alliance for American Quilts, has just sent out this letter...I think the news is exciting...and she does a fine job of explaining what the Alliance is all about.

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Dear Alliance for American Quilts contest quilt donor,

I am so pleased to write you with exciting news. This year we will add all contest entries (this year’s and the last two year’s contests) into the Quilt Index, an online database now with over 18,000 records of contemporary and historical quilts, and soon to reach 50,000 records. The Quilt Index, a joint project of the AAQ and Michigan State University, is essentially a virtual museum bringing new access to detailed information and images of quilts from museums, historical societies, guilds, documentation projects and private collections. Putting your contest quilts in the Quilt Index is another way that we can document, preserve and share the history of quilts, providing inspiration and information to our audience today and for generations to come.

I hope that this new incentive will encourage you to enter our 2009 contest- Crazy for Quilts. Full information and entry forms are available at: http://www.allianceforamericanquilts.org/projects/crazy/. This year we’re asking for the same small format (16” x 16”), and we’re celebrating the crazy quilt. As usual, all techniques, media and approaches are welcome—from traditional to artistic and all styles in between. As one member put it during our voting last year: “I appreciate the variety of techniques and designs. It's refreshing to see traditional patchwork and art quilts displayed together.”

Last year’s My Quilts/Our History quilt auction and 2007’s Put a Roof Over Our Head quilt auction raised a combined total of over $16,000. This much-needed income allows the AAQ to continue doing the important work of collecting and archiving the incredible achievements of quiltmakers like you. Thank you for playing a critical role in this effort with the contribution of your incredible quilts and stories!

If you’re not already an AAQ member, please consider joining now or when you send in your Crazy for Quilts entry. Members who join or renew for as low as $25/year can enter the contest for only $5/quilt. Another great reason to become an AAQ member is that you will become eligible to vote on the Crazy for Quilt entries (including your own). In a contest like this—the opportunity to vote for your own quilt (and maybe enlisting friends and family to join too J) can significantly increase your chances to win!!

Join online or download an order form at: http://www.allianceforamericanquilts.org/support/support.php.

Sending you best wishes and creative vibes,

Amy

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Debra Spincic, Deb Hardman, and my cousin Tracy are joining in. Each of their quilts will reflect something totally unique about crazy quilting.

Won't you please join us? If not to enter the contest, then to become a member.
Let's make sure that future historians see how valuable our quilt work is!