What's New at NACQJ!!!
NACQJ Certified Judges gather for dinner at our annual Partner Show. Our partner show for 2022 was Mississippi Valley Quilters Guild at their Great River Quilt Show in Davenport, Iowa.
We have four newly minted NACQJ CJs!!
Kathie Beltz, New Hampshire

I am totally addicted to quilting, and enjoy associating with other quilters who are equally addicted.  I’ve been quilting since 1995, teaching since 2004, and judging quilts since 2007. 
I am a Certified Instructor with Studio 180 Design, and in 2017, I launched Kathie Beltz Quilt Designs, my own line of quilt patterns. I recently became a Member of the Board of Directors at the New England Quilt Museum.  More information on my work is available at KathieBeltz.com.
Karen Kendo, South Carolina

Karen has been quilting since 1995 and credits the hobby now turned second career with keeping her young.  She is active in her state guild, Quilters of South Carolina and her local guild, Cobblestone Quilters Guild of Charleston, SC.  Karen is a quilt teacher, quilt judge,lecturer, and a longarm quilter.  You can see her work at Quilting with Karen on Facebook.  
Kathryn Zimmerman, North Carolina

Kathryn has been quilting for 25 years.  She started entering competitions after retiring which led the Certified Judges Program as a desire to learn how winning quilts were chosen.  She enjoys assisting  other quilters with their creations to elevate their design and workmanship skills.  Kathryn lives on a 60 acre century farm in Western North Carolina with her husband Herbert , and dachshund, Odie.
 
Brandy Maslowski, British Columbia, CAN

Brandy Maslowski is a quiltmaker and fiber artist who travels the world as a teacher, speaker and judge. She leads quilt cruises and land tours with the tagline More Joy, Less Overwhelm. She hosts the weekly Quilter on Fire podcast and can be found everywhere online as the Quilter on Fire.
NACQJ Publicity Table at the Show!
Complete with a backdrop of the 2020 Certified Judge Challenge Quilts ~ "Our Cplors, My Style

In 2022, NACQJ partnered with the Mississippi Valley Quilters Guild at their Great River Quilt Show in Davenport, Iowa.
 The Certified Judge Challenge quilts,
"Our Colors, My Style" 
debuted at the Arizona Quilters Guild Show
"Kaleidoscope of Quilts"
March 24 - 26, 2022
at the Mesa Convention Center in Mesa, AZ

Click this button to go to individual images of each quilt and listings of each quilt's creator

2 New Masterpiece Quilts!

NACQJ would like to announce that the designation of "Masterpiece Quilt" has been given to two quilts at the NACQJ Certified Judges' Conference in Colorado Springs, CO in September, 2021. We are very proud to acknowledge the amazing design and spectacular workmanship of these two quilts. Each quilt went through a rigorous 3-hour evaluation by a team of 5 NACQJ Certified Judges. Both quilts are very deserving of this honor and we congratulate Janet Stone and Molly Hamilton-McNally for their excellence in all aspects of the creation of these incredible pieces of art!
                                                                                        Congratulations to...
                                                                      Janet Stone of Overland Park, Kansas
                                                                                                     and
                                                              Molly Hamilton-McNally of Tehachapi, California
Moonflower
by Molly Hamilton-McNally
of Tehachapi, California
"Crazy for Ewe"
by Janet Stone
of Overland Park, Kansas
NACQJ Certified Judges gathered in Colorado in early September for a 4 Day Conference. Included was a visit to the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum in its beautiful new location in Golden. Now showing at the Museum is an exhibit featuring quilts by a number of the Certified Judges.

The Exhibit continues through October 16th,2021

                    Be sure to visit if you're in the area!
A Face Book post of The Quilt Show.com with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims includes an article by our own NACQJ CJ Stacy Koehler!
Doing what we can to help out in the current health crisis...
NACQJ Certified Judge Fran Kordek of West Virginia has been busy making over 80 masks for family, friends, and her community.
 Certified Judge Sue Cortese of Holland, Michigan has created these masks for Holland Hospice, elderly relatives, a cousin who just finished chemo and for her daughter who is a dietitian in a hospital in Portland, OR.
We have a new Masterpiece Quilt!
Evaluated at the Certified Judge Retreat in Shipshewana, IN in a 3 hour process by a team of NACQJ Certified Judges in September, 2019

Congratulations to Sally Brown of Colleyville, TX
the designer and creator
and to quilter Jackie Brown of Caddo Mills, TX

                                                                   “My Baltimore Album”
Sally Brown states that she wanted this traditional Baltimore Album quilt to represent herself, her family, and their values.  She continues, “In our Applique group, we had a year of ‘lessons’ with Teresa Sherling and Barbara McCraw where we learned about Baltimore Album quilts and started our own quilt.  We made blocks and brought them for show & tell.  I made a few blocks and then it sat idle for a few years.  I had been to the Tyler (TX) Quilt show when Marilyn Hardy won Best of Show for her Baltimore Album quilt.  Marilyn graciously took quite a bit of time sharing with me what all the blocks in her quilt represented, connecting them to her family.  I knew then that I wanted my Baltimore Album 'quilt to have as much heart in it as her's did.  I wanted mine to reflect who I am and what is central to my life but I couldn't figure out how to do that.  After several years, I finally decided to do that with the inking and I was able to finish the top.  Of course, much of the inspiration came from the Elly Sienkiewicz Baltimore Album books.  At that point, it had become very special to me and I knew I wanted Jackie Brown to quilt it.  I knew she would make it sing and she certainly did.
Congratulations and Welcome!
To our three new NACQJ Certified Judges!!!

Nancy took her first quilting class in 1981. She was immediately addicted to the craft and hasn’t stopped making, looking at, and thinking about quilts since then. She loves all types of quilts, but right now she loves to make Art Quilts the most. Besides judging, she also teaches and lectures.
Nancy is a graduate of Northeastern University with a degree in Civil Engineering. When not at home in the beautiful high desert outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico, she and her husband Kent love to travel anywhere and everywhere. 
Sandy Gard is a self-taught seamstress and quilter since she started sewing at age 6.  Her lifelong love affair with quilting began at her grandmother’s farm house in Texas as all the neighbors gathered, lowered the quilting frame from the living room ceiling, then sat around the quilt, quilting and visiting.
Sandy has had a home-based sewing business for 21 years and in 2007, Sandy became a long-arm quilter. In 2014, Sandy entered the NQA Judging program. She has spent four years working with certified judges and judging quilt shows. She holds positions on four local quilt guild boards and is judging coordinator for two.
Sandy believes that quilting is a time-honored tradition. She loves the history and the future of quilting as she promotes the tradition to new quilters of any age.
Amy lives in rural West Virginia at the intersection of a ‘holler’ and a dirt road. Since she started quilting eight years ago, she feels like she’s found her place in life, which is behind a sewing machine. She’s very excited to be joining the ranks of the NACQJ Certified Judges.