Made from lowly scraps of fabric, string quilts can be quite beautiful, as evidenced in the quilt top above made by Nancy Ray. American quilters have made string quilts for generationsthey are beautiful, versatile, and fascinating, yet even now this interesting technique is not widely recognized. Nancy Ray will show old quilts from her collection during her presentation at the West Virginia Quilters, Inc. The workshops will include the opportunity to see more string quilts and will provide opportunities to learn several string piecing techniques. In addition to Ray’s talk on string quilts, the free meeting will include light refreshments and offerings by some quilting vendors. Membership in the state group is $10 and includes the benefits of networking with other quilters statewide; a directory of members, guilds, quilt shops, quilt teachers, judges, and appraisers; a quarterly newsletter, “Pin Pals”, with information on what is happening in quilting throughout the state; statewide meetings of quilters, with special programs and guests, workshops, and quilt shop vendors, and a member discount on Biennial Quilt Show registration and fees.

Complimenting the accessories line, the collection is created around the 9 easy pieces that are the season’s must-haves and 5 fashion themes that satisfy the needs of the more fashion savvy. The collection encompasses new shapes and cuts in bold black, heather grey and crisp white to create a variety of silhouettes that work together seamlessly as a winter wardrobe. Inspired by the indigenous cultures of the world, this collection allows the Nine West woman to connect to her inner global soul with native patterns, ethnic print borders such as the Ikat print and fabric imbued with Bias Woodcut prints. A dark neutral color palette of intense navy and deep pacific blues is punctuated by a strong violet, giving this menswear inspired collection a boldly feminine twist.

Using “jelly rolls,” the fifth annual Elsah Fall Quilt Retreat will focus on the technique of quilt stripping, beginning with two-inch “strips” used as the basis of new strip pieced quilt patterns. Friday, International Quilting Teacher Karel Owens will share ideas and techniques from her years of quilting experience, interlaced with a humorous presentation in her program “Still Stripping” at the Elsah Civic Center, 51 Mill St. Badasch is an avid quilter, becoming hooked on the craft just a few years ago when she reluctantly tagged along with a friend to the annual American Quilter’s Society Festival in Paducah, Ky. The two began arranging the retreats as a way for those who enjoy quilting - or would like to learn to get a jump start on a quilt and to learn something new no matter how long they’ve been engaged in the craft. They are both also enthusiastic book readers, but felt reading was taking time away from quilting, so they devised a way to do both by listening to books on tape while quilting at the same time.

CATSKILL — In case you haven’t noticed, Main Street is a little less animated these days — lacking the summer-long felinity that drew thousands of visitors to this “cool” riverfront community. The Cat’n Around Catskill Cat’s Meow Auction and Gala was held Sunday at the Historic Catskill Point, bidding farewell to another successful year of the Catskill Cats. The auction raised approximately $95,000 from the sale of each Catskill Cat, and will be contributed to Animalkind and the Barry Hopkins Memorial Art Scholarship Fund. The success of this year’s Cat’n Around public art exhibition has, once again, proved itself worthy of a continued presence in the Catskill community, according to Overbaugh. While next year’s Cat’n Around will surely be another huge success, Overbaugh says the next challenge is to come up with something for the rest of the year.