Author Meg Cox and I got a chance to meet and do a bit of catching up while at Market.  Meg was there promoting her 600-page resource book, “The Quilters Catalog. A Comprehensive Resource Guide” for quilters that is coming out in January.

 She gave me a little sneaky peek of some of the gallery proofs.   This book which has been years in the making will be a wonderful resource for quilters to answer every quilting questions one may have and get the “low-down” on topic like tools of the trade, old and new techniques, care for quilts, profiles on some of the top teachers and designers, step-by-step projects, info out the online world of quilting (yup, QuiltersBuzz.com is mentioned) and so much more.

 This paperback will retail for about $18, but Workman Publishers is taking some deep discounts if you order 5 or more.  Contact them at 212-614-7509.

 
Meg is a quilter and has been on the board for The Alliance for American Quilter for several years, she is also a former Wall Street Journal reporter.  I know this book will be a wonderful resource for all quilters at all skill levels and abilities.

 
Meg has she has asked me a favor to help promote a charity auction “Put A Roof Over Our Head” for the benefit of the Alliance.  This e-bay auction starts tomorrow, so here is Meg to tell us more:

 
“It's Meg Cox here, author of The Quilter's Catalog: A Comprehensive Resource Guide (coming in January 2008) sharing news of a fun auction of very vivid small quilts for a charity that's dear to many quilt makers and quilt lovers.

 
The nonprofit Alliance for American Quilts, whose website is a treasure trove of both vintage and current quilts is auctioning off 74 quilts that have been touring the country for a year. These were made for a contest called "Put A Roof Over Our Head," to celebrate the organization moving from the founder's home to its own office in Asheville, North Carolina.

 These stunning quilts are 19 and 1/2 inches by 15 inches and the bidding starts at $50 on eBay.

The quilts will be sold in three groupings, starting with 24 quilts to be auctioned off the week of November 12. Click here to see more of the quilts being offered the first week.  (Which includes the quilts shown here: "Cover Us" by Yvonne Porcella of Medesto, CA and "A House Is A Home For Me" by Terry Pottmeyer or Mercer Island, WA.) The second batch of Put a Roof quilts will be auctioned off the week of November 19, with the rest going up on eBay starting November 26.

 Go here to view all 74 quilts.  If you are new to e-bay and want to get instructions on eBay bidding go to e-bay for easy directions.

The Put A Roof Over Our Head quilts were donated by their makers to The Alliance for American Quilts in celebration of its move to Asheville, North Carolina. The Alliance wants to thank all the artists for their generosity.

Continue to read more about the auction on the next page.

 

I've been on the board of The Alliance for American Quilts for several years, and I can promise you that all the money raised in this auction will be very well spent. The AAQ helps run the amazing Quilt Index, which now has about 2,000 vintage quilts online, but will have about 50,000 by the end of 2008.

 Thanks to a new grant, we'll also be adding a lot of nifty bells and high-tech whistles to allow people to view and study quilts, and document private collections. Also, our oral history project for today's quilters, Quilter's S.O.S. - Save Our Stories currently holds interviews with more than 600 quilters, from prize-winning celebrity quilters to everyday quilters with amazing stories to tell. The Alliance helps quilters tell their stories and share their quilts in many ways. To find out more, go the website and sign up for a free newsletter that provides news on our projects.

 
Thanks, Meg, for helping to preserve our American quilting heritage.  I am looking forward to the book coming out too.