My version of the Snow Dye process (reprise)

I thought I would re-post my blog on snow dyeing. There are areas of the country that have snow now that haven't had much for many years. Enjoy! So, we've had a LOT of snow. What to do? What else, dye fabric in the snow!! This was really the perfect snow for dyeing - not too wet, not too dry, just right!


I grabbed some of my dye bins, soda ash soaked some PFD fabrics and wadded them up into the bins:


At this point, some people let the fabric freeze, but not me - too impatient! So I packed them all to the brim with snow. (NOTE: I have since found that freezing the fabric first does have an effect - you get much crisper lines in the finished fabric as you can see from my subsequent blogs where I did freeze the fabric.)


Then I brought them inside to my wet studio and squirted dye on the snow. I used 2 colors on each, mixing them up with the 5 colors of fiber reactive procion dye that I had mixed. The dyes were Lemon Yellow, Brilliant Blue, Pagoda Red, Ultra Violet and Forest Green. I tend to choose dyes that are mixtures of color, rather than what they call "primaries" so that the colors come apart on the fabric and give some really unique results. Here are the fabrics after I put dye on them:



And here they are melting . . .


You can see the dye start to wick down into the fabric:


And melting . . .


And more wicking . . .



Over half way - this takes probaby 6-8 hours to get it totally melted.


And I took these just before I went to bed. The snow is nearly gone. I thought this was going to be a rather ugly piece from looking at this, but it's NOT!!


Here they are totally melted. I let them sit like this till they're room temperature, (or 24 hours, whichever comes first!) then rinse them out by hand, then they go through 2 super hot washes, the first with synthrapol in my dye dedicated top loader and the second in my front loader with regular detergent and fabric softener on the sanitary cycle. They're in the wash now, so as soon as they're done and I can iron them, I'll post pictures of the results. Stay tuned!!



(Yes, that's the "ugly" one!)

Quilters Award $60,000 to Mount Sinai School of Medicine

(Burton, Michigan) -- May 21, 2013: The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) has awarded a $60,000 grant to Mount Sinai School of Medicine to study a drug which may decrease the production of amyloid in the brain and increase the "birth" of new brain cells. The drug is currently being tested in humans for other conditions. Should the AAQI-funded study show promising results in mice, it is hoped the drug can be tested in Alzheimer's patients. The research will be carried out by Dr. Michelle E. Ehrlich, professor of Pediatrics, Neurology, and Genetics and Genomic Sciences at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. This is the 15th grant the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative has awarded since it began in 2006 and the 4th grant award this year. These grants are made possible, in large part, by the money raised from the sale of donated quilts. To support the AAQI's mission by purchasing a quilt, visit www.alzquilts.org/quiltsforsale.html A small wall quilt stitched by AAQI Board member Kathy Kennedy-Dennis of Houston, TX was presented to Dr. Erlich on behalf of the Alzheimeimer's Art Quilt Initiative by quilter Paula Nadelstern of New York, NY. Please see AAQI Update Blog for more details about the quilt presentation. The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative is a national charity whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research. The AAQI has raised more than $916,000 for Alzheimer’s research since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of the AAQI, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Her mother had Alzheimer’s. This is the last year the AAQI will be fundraising. For more information about the AAQI or to make a donation, contact Ami Simms at 810-637-5586 (9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Eastern), ami@alzquilts.org or www.alzquilts.org.

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Contact:
Ami Simms
Founder and Executive Director
Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative
1200 Creekwood Trail
Burton, MI 48509
(810) 637-5586

AAQI Awards Three Grants in One Month

Last month the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) awarded three research grants, the most awarded in a single month since the AAQI became a nonprofit in 2008.

• $40,894 was awarded to Texas A & M Health Science Center to explore the connection between type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. The research will be conducted by Ian V.J. Murray, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics; and Carmen Ramirez, M.D., M.Sc., Assistant Professor, Texas A & M Health Science Center.
• $35,000 was awarded to The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to understand why some individuals remain cognitively intact despite the presence of abundant plaques and tangles (the hallmark signs of Alzheimer's) in their brains. The research will be conducted by Nicole L. Bjorklund, Ph.D., National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Postdoctoral Trainee.
• $38,354 was awarded to Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, to identify and target molecular mechanisms of cell death in the Alzheimer’s brain. The research will be conducted by Lucian Soane, M.D., Research Associate.

The AAQI has funded 14 research studies to date. These grants are made possible, in large part, by the money raised from the sale of donated quilts. For more in depth explanation of the funded research see www.alzquilts.org/researchawards.html.
Purchase quilts online at www.alzquilts.org/quiltsforsale.html The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative is a national charity whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research. The AAQI has raised more than $894,000 for Alzheimer’s research since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of the AAQI, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Her mother had Alzheimer’s. This is the last year the AAQI will be fundraising. For more information about the AAQI or to make a donation, contact Ami Simms at 810-637-5586 (9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Eastern), ami@alzquilts.org or www.alzquilts.org.

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Contact:
Ami Simms
Founder and Executive Director
Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative
1200 Creekwood Trail
Burton, MI 48509
(810) 637-5586 Photo Caption:
Dr. Carmen Ramirez, Lab Manager Janelle Fawver, and Dr. Ian V. J. Murray are presented with a check and a quilt from the AAQI at Texas A & M. See blog post.

OVER 2000 AAQI QUILTS AT HOUSTON IQF!!

This is just a smattering of the over 2000 quilts we will have in Houston for IQF!! Please stop by and see us: We're right at the top of Row S, (hard right as soon as you enter the exhibit area from the front of the George R Brown) October 31 to November 4th. Follow your ears . . . there's usually a lot of hootin' & hollerin' going on!!

Watch the video and you'll see just a small number and taste of what we have in store for you!! AAQI quilts headed for Houston!

We're also looking for volunteers to help staff the booth for a short while each day. For more information and how to sign up, go here: Houston Helpers & The AAQI Text Brigade

This picture is from our booth in 2011 - it's 50% BIGGER for 2012!!

AAQI: INCREDIBLE NEWS!!

(Burton, Michigan) September 26, 2012: The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) has received its 12,000th donated quilt. Made by multi-award winning quilter and teacher Charlotte Warr Andersen of Salt Lake City, Utah, this 9" x 12" quilt represents another milestone for the all-volunteer charity dedicated to raising awareness and funding research through art. "Outside Juneau, AK 2012" is based on a photograph Charlotte took on a trip to Alaska. Charlotte's quilt will be part of the AAQI's October online auction at http://www.alzquilts.org/quiltauction.html Charlotte is most recognized for her realistic applique portraits. She has purchased four Priority: Alzheimer's Quilts made by supporters of the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative. They hang in her sewing room. The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (www.alzquilts.org) is a national, grassroots organization whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research through art. It auctions and sells donated quilts through the Priority: Alzheimer's Quilt project and sponsors a touring exhibit of quilts about Alzheimer's called "Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope." The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative has raised more than $763,000 since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of the AAQI, a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation operated entirely by volunteers. She is a quilter. Her mother had Alzheimer's. For more information on the AAQI or to make a donation, contact Ami Simms at 810-637-5586 (9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Eastern), ami@alzquilts.org or www.alzquilts.org.
Contact: Ami Simms
Founder and Executive Director
Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative
1200 Creekwood Trail
Burton, MI 48509
(810) 637-5586
www.alzquilts.org CLICK the image to see it larger.
RIGHT CLICK the image and select "save target/link as" to download it to your computer. Please credit photo: "Alzheimer's Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative. Quilt title: "Outside Juneau, AK 2012"
Quilt maker: Charlotte Warr Andersen (Salt Lake City, UT)

AAQI is in Women's Day Magazine!!

Great news! The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (and Ami Simms) are in the October issue of Woman's Day magazine! Page 14. I'm so excited! Think of all the new people we can reach! May they all buy a quilt (or two)!! Please share this if you have room in your blog. Hooray for the AAQI! Plus, the September online quilt auction starts September 1st: See the quilts here!

AAQI Quilt Auction Starts Tomorrow!

The May Online Quilt Auction
Starts Tuesday!
Please bid generously.
All profits fund Alzheimer's research.