I was in Walmartville, um I mean Bentonville, Arkansas..It was wonderful

Some may be wondering, why on earth would I be in Bentonville (Rogers), Arkansas.  Well to visit a quilt shop of course...smiles.  No seriously, I was selected to be in the class of 2012 America's Leaders of Change and our first session was in Bentonville/Rogers, AR because the fellowship is sponsored by Walmart.  To begin I must simply say wow, I did not realize how large they are and how long they have been around.  Anyway, while learning and touring I had the wonderful pleasure of visiting the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. It was incorporated into our agenda, I did not know anything about it, and it had just opened on 11/11/11.

Needless, to stay I was amazed at the collection of works that is on display at this amazing structure.  It is a beautiful museum with stunning grounds, not to mention the artwork included in its collection. Of course a highlight for me was the "After the Last Supper" 2005 by Devorah Sperber.  It is formed and suspended upside and when you look through the globe it is turned rightside up and is comprised of 20,736 thread spools.

And I would not be a true lover of fiber if I did not stake out the local quilt shop.  The Rabbits Lair in Rogers, AR was AWESOMMMMMEEEE.  One of their lovely associates is from the good ol boogie down Bronx, New York accent and all.  It is an incredible space, with an incredible array of fabric and options.  The best wool selection I have ever seen.  What was cool is that they had lots of brights and kafe's etc. and lots of others that I had not seen.  I was truly pleased.  I also had the opportunity to introduce two of my ALOC Cohorts to the lovely world of quilting.

So enjoy some of the images and if you are ever in Bentonville, you should be sure to stop at the The Rabbit's Lair and Crystal Bridges Museum.

Side of one of the building in historic Rogers

Inside the Rabbit's Lair

From upstairs classroom

The Museum from above

Sculpture outside on the grounds

Cool pic from one side of the pond with the reflection of the architecture (from where i was) on the glass

Mosa-Mohave 1903 by Edward Sheriff Curtis. Photgravure

Rosie the Riveter, 1943 Norman Rockwell

After the Last Supper, 2005 Devorah Sperber

20,736 thread spools

Stopping in the Local Quilt Shop and Video Update

Hello blog world.  It has been a very busy time, as I am sure we all are.  Fortunately I have been sipping and stitching...smiles. 

Last week I had the pleasure of being invited to speak at the Pennsylvania Bar Associations Conference of Bar Leaders.  It went well of course.  A highlight of my trek to Penn State (driving) was the discovery of a local quilt shop nearby.

I happened upon  "Stitch Your Art Out" where I met Kim and was fortunate (perhaps my pockets were unfortunate) to have gone while they had lovely things on sale.  Needles to say, I bought sale and non-sale items and left with a large bag of goodies.  They had yarn, fabric, thread, oh my...  It was a lovely selection.  That detour made the rest of my stay even better.

Definately not representative of all that was available...smiles.

VIDEO UPDATE

I am on EHow and also on Ehows You Tube Channel "EhowArtsandCrafts" and just search for me..

I have another series that should be premiering within the next 2 weeks, and will be working on a whole lot more, throughout the month of March.  Now, I just have to find the time to figure out how to link them to my website, set up my website (right now it links to this blog post), and all the other wonderful things that go with being online.  Any suggestions...you know how to reach me...  E@cocktailsandthread.com