Sunday Smiles - July 5, 2026

Featured Quilt - "I" Can't Believe We're Already at the Ninth Quilt In Janet Stone's Alphabet Series!

Today we continue with our presentation of the quilts in Janet Stone's Alphabet series, currently hanging in the National Quilt Museum as part of her exhibit, Janet Stone: And Now I Know My ABCs!. Janet tells us that "each quilt contains the entire alphabet, not just a specific letter."

The ninth quilt is B.S. I Love You, and was made as a tribute to her husband, AND won her First Place - Embellished at the 2011 Houston International Quilt Festival. She says, "This quilt was made as a tribute to my dear husband, Brad, and whose initials are B.S. I tried several fabrics to use for the bee wings. I finally found crinoline fabric like what is used for square dancing skirts to make them poof out. It's 100% cotton and really stiff, which I thought would make it easier to appliqué. It worked great. I pieced the tan and white background. All the blocks were pieced or appliquéd, attached to the background, and then quilted. Filigree embellishments, hotfix studs and crystals, and a set of letter charms were added."

Janet's quilts in the series have been collected and presented together in her most recent book, Mutton But Letters!, which is available to purchase in her Etsy shop or in the gift shop of The National Quilt Museum.

And a fun fact from Janet about this quilt: "I was originally going to have a letter B where the S is and I was going to name it, 'Let-ter B', a play on the words to the song Let It Be. Get It? Yeah, I didn't think anyone else would either."

Learn from Janet right here at The Quilt Show by watching her in Block of the Month Quilt 2014 A-Z for Ewe and Me! by Janet Stone.

Barbara Black's Tips for "Game On!" Month 7

Going For Border Number Four In Month Number Seven

As we head into the back half of Game On!, The Quilt Show's 2026 Block Of the Month designed by Becky Goldsmith, so too does Barbara Black. And as such, Barbara comes with her next round of (and much appreciated) tips and tricks for what is now Month 7. She says, "This month we add the fourth 3" border, the one at the bottom of the center. This is another one of those "good to know" borders, easy to make and interesting to use. Arranging colors makes the border flow."

[Above Photo: Barbara Black's Game On! Month 7 Border]

See "Material Nation: 250 Years of American Quilts" at the International Quilt Museum

Celebrate American History with Over 250 Quilts for 250 Years

America turned 250 years old yesterday, and maybe you celebrated by having a barbecue, shooting off some fireworks, and spending some time with friends and family. The International Quilt Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska chose to celebrate on a much grander scale with their Material Nation: 250 Years of American Quilts exhibit, which features more than 250 quilts that "trace American material culture and thread together more than two centuries of the creativity, innovation and community that made quilting a quintessentially American artform."

Take a tour of this latest exhibit from the International Quilt Museum in their brand new video. And if you can, be sure to see Material Nation: 250 Years of American Quilts for yourself in person as the exhibit is now on display through December 19, 2026.

Textile Talks: T3%+!le$ - The Language of Fiber

Now We're Speaking The Same Language

Presented by the Surface Design Association: "Join us on Wednesday, July 8th at 2PM EDT to celebrate T3%+!le$: The Language of Fiber with juror Diana Weymar and Award Winners Kelly Wilson, Kathleen Mcconaughy, Amy Wilson, and Joy Muller-McCoola. “Between fiber and the written or spoken word is a large space. This exhibit fills that space with translations, reconstructions, hidden meanings, common language, materiality, and manifestations of the creative impulse. How do we get from one place to another, through the day to day, during a time of overwhelming stimulation? How do we put our hands on and into our making? Most of all, how can fiber art help us feel?” T3%+!le$: The Language of Fiber is on view at the Schweinfurth Art Center through August 15, 2026."

Register today and watch when this episode airs this Wednesday, July 8, 2026, at 2 PM EDT. 

In The Store - Encore Fat Quarter Bundle by Whistler Studio for Anthology Fabrics

You'll Want to Use Encore Fabrics Over and Over Again

Encore features airy batik-inspired florals, leaves, and modern geometric prints in soft neutrals accented with beautiful watercolor hues that are perfect for everything from striking focal fabrics to subtle backgrounds. Encore also blends effortlessly into modern, traditional, and art quilt projects alike.

The Quilt Show Puzzle: A Lovely "Bouquet"

"Bouquet" by Carly Mul

When Carly was biking with her husband in Northern Virginia through the vineyards, she began to wonder how the different tastes of wine would look in color. So, she created Bouquet as way to see if her idea could be executed in a quilt. Working under the general conception that a red wine is robust and bold, the reds in Carly's quilt are very different, with some being more burgundy while others are more fuchsia. Going off of that same concept, the whites complement those of white wine and grapes. Carly's goal with Bouquet was to sketch a scene that evokes a feeling, that being, "where the colors of growing wine give a visual to the different blending aromas we taste.

See more of Carly's quilts in How to Make a Line in Color Plus Color Collage - Carly Mul | National Quilt Museum Paducah.

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(Above Quilt: "A Year of Memories" by Tracey Thorne)

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