Carrefour European Patchwork Show 2024

October 3, 2024August 30, 2025 Elizabeth E.14 Comments

All posts in order are on the European Patchwork (Carrefour) page.

The Carrefour European Patchwork Meeting was held September 12-15, 2024, in a series of small villages in the Alsace region of France, and ever since my husband Dave and I had decided to take a trip to France this year, visiting this quilt show was on the docket. We’d come before and I so enjoyed it, that we planned again to visit. Carrefour means crossroads in French, and this area, where France, Switzerland and Germany meet is a perfect place for quilters to gather. Not only were there many European quilters, but a couple of quilters from the USA that I know also had representation, due to the Modern Quilt Guild’s traveling show (shout-out to Yvonne Fuchs and Ginny Robinson), which I’ll get to in a subsequent post.

This post is about getting there, and the Vendor Mall.

Other posts are:

Carrefour Quilt I: Theater (Venue 1): Red and White quilts, Sarah Luise Kaminski’s art quilts, Pavillon Osmont (Venue 2): Ocean contest quilts, Carmen Netto, and others.
Carrefour Quilt II: Église des Chaînes (Venue 4): Amish, Temple Réformé (Venue 5): Val Patch, Église St. Louis (Venue 3): Anne Bellas, Église Ste. Madeleine (Venue 8): Viewpoints.
Carrefour Quilt III: Espace des Tisserands (Venue 6): Victoria Findlay Wolf, The Modern Quilt Guild, Quilt Art, Léna Meszaros; Chapelle St. Joseph (Venue 9): PatCHquilt’s Concours Round Bobbin Invitational Challenge.
Carrefour Quilt IV: Église St. Blaise (Venue 7): Virginie Peyre
Espace D’Exposition (Venue 11): Quilt en rêve (remakes of antique quilts), France Aubert (Passion for Samplers), Selma Huisman-Hilderbrand (Walk Down Memory Lane)

This year it was in four villages: Saint-Marie-Aux-Mines, Saint-Croix-Aux-Mines, Lièpvre (which I could never say), and Rombach-le-Franc. There were multiple sites in the first two towns, and only a couple of venues in the last two. We learned to keep track of where we were by the numbers.

However, the day started here, in my hotel (above), when I noticed this woman’s quilted bag at breakfast. Quilter! I thought, and soon we were trading photos on our phones, and speaking in broken French/English. Her name was Marie, and yes, she was headed to Carrefours.

Saint-Marie-Aux-Mines (yes, this area is also known as the Valley of Silver, where there were a lot of mines) was about 35 minutes away through lush green hills…which turned into 45 minutes away because a road had washed out and we had to take a detour. Luckily we were following someone, who we rightly guessed was going the same place as we were, so we didn’t get (too) lost. Parking was good, and close by.

Okay, yeah. The map (again). We figured out we were standing right in front of Val Expo, the “Espace Commercial” which I took as a sign that we should buy the catalogue, the tote bag and do the shopping first.

Everything looks similar to the US quilt shows…and not similar. I had learned from before that I would not be buying large quantities of American fabrics, or large quantities of anything, even if I wanted to (luggage restrictions), so I spent a lot of time enjoying the booths visually.

Until I hit Atelier des ABCDaires. Whoa–these were screen-printed velvets that could be made up into bags. (I got permission to take these photos.) The colors were vivid, the product unusual, and she spoke perfect English. I spent some time here.

Three projects came home with me, but I could have purchased waaaay more.

Chifonie Studio‘s booth was filled with wonderful bits of polymer clay, for rings and charms, and she had a whole section of jewelry (yes, I bought some — it fits in the suitcase really well). [I’ve linked her ETSY shops.] And then I saw:

Marie! She was there with her two friends: Marie Claude, and another Marie. And then she told me her full name was Marie Claude, too. Quick quilty friendships–it was fun to see her again.

I love the embroideries from Un Chat Dans L’Aiguille, but I’m still working on the one I bought last time I was here.

I had determined not to buy fabric from the states, but here was a whole booth of fabric from Germany.

Beautiful cottons with unique designs. Sometimes our fabrics tend to look the same in America, so it was nice to see something different (I got permission to photograph — she’s smiling on the left, in the red shirt). Here’s a link to the Christmas Garland, one of the fabrics in this group I loved.

Fabric from Africa–a riot of colors and prints, and only bought a 1/2 meter of each. They were very stiff, but she promised me they would soften after washing.

I noticed a lot of quilters who looked like me: comfy shoes, and a bag to carry things in. There was also a booth I recognized from last time:

From a booth titled Les Editions de Saxe, I purchased a book of 37 different tote bags and projects, which they slipped into a brightly colored floral bag along with a catalogue. Bonus souvenirs!

The book was written by a Japanese quilter, but published in French. I looked for any magazines that might replace our beloved QuiltMania magazines, and there were some, but alas — not any in English.

Okay. Enough shopping. I had my tote bag from the show, the catalogue (map), and it wasn’t raining. All good things. We bought a couple of demi-baguettes with ham and butter (French butter!), took a seat and ate lunch. Then we left the Espace Commercial, and headed to other sites in town. Above, you see something you wouldn’t find at an American show: history is all around us here.

Next up: Saint-Marie-Aux-Mines quilt venues: Theater, Pavilion Osmont with the Ocean contest.

European Patchwork Meeting · Free Download · Quilts

Strawberry & Saint Marie-aux-Mines

October 1, 2024August 30, 2025 Elizabeth E.9 Comments

I have so much to share from my trip to the Carrefours European Patchwork Show in Alsace, France last month, but first…strawberries.

I know we just did Halloweeeeen, but when my beemate asked for strawberries for her block in October, I couldn’t resist drawing up a free block guide for you to download.

Click to download:

Strawberry Block Sketch Download

Almost as soon as I got my suitcases cleared out then I came down with a case of covid, which meant Paxlovid (cue: grimace, for the taste it leaves in your mouth, but cue: happy face, for having this drug). I’m just now coming up to the top of things and curating my photos. All is coming, but here’s a taste of things:

Yes, it really is in a series of small villages set in the beautiful Alsace region of France (just below Strasbourg), and there really were amazing quilts to be seen in beautiful venues, but it’s coming, I promise!

*El Niño*, by Brazilian artist Sarah Luise Kaminski. Done with various fabrics, thread painting and free-motion quilting and layers of metallic thread.

One of the many sites where quilts and art were displayed: this was an old church filled with Amish-style quilts, honoring the early emmigrants from this region to America.

Au revoir!

Patterns by Elizabeth of OPQuilt

Halloween is coming…

September 29, 2024August 30, 2025 Elizabeth E.2 Comments

To kick off the month October, I’m offering up a coupon for 31% discount on any one pattern in my PayHip shop until the 31st. Those of you who hang out here know I rarely do sales, so figure out which pattern you want and get a Halloween treat. Get the code at the end of the blog: good on one item only.

(*My website media files when I type in the search term “Halloween.”*)

Given that I am no longer nine years old, don’t these major holidays seem to be pretty quick on the return these days? I have set up a Links List below that has all my Halloween stuff (finishes, progress reports, freebies, etc.) so enjoy a Halloween Parade.

Mr. Pumpkin, a pillow

Autumn Leaves

All Hallows Eve, a Quilt-A-Long I ran on this blog. Pattern info (not mine) is found on the links, but alas — it’s out of print. I think you can draw yourself a pumpkin, and cat and moon, but I did a complete post on making of wonky pieced stars, complete with free download for the stars.

Crossed Lilies (pillow) which isn’t technically a pumpkin or Halloween-themed, but it does have the pumpkin colors.

Make yourself a Tiny Quilt with a free downloadable pumpkin.

Pumpkin Block for our online bee, The Gridsters, with free pattern.

Pumpkins –– a race to the finish with Carol (a commercial pattern).

And the one I finished last month from a kit, Halloween in the Vegetable Patch. Here is it, draped over my sister’s stairwell railing.

Halloween Banner (from pre-printed fabric)

Spooky Action at a Distance, a gathering of some Halloween Polaroid blocks.

Shop for any one pattern in my PayHip pattern shop. Good until October 31, 2004.

Boo!

Scroll down to see all patterns alphabetically.

300 Quilts · Patterns by Elizabeth of OPQuilt · Quilts

Twilight Garden • Quilt Finish

September 8, 2024August 30, 2025 Elizabeth E.12 Comments

One summer night when we were sitting out in the garden, the year before all the mosquitoes arrived, we watched the bats dip and speed away, the tiny bird dash in to alight on the fountain. The night was calm, the sunset was unfurling in the background. We lingered, talked, until the stars blinked on and the twilight had slid into night. This quilt is about that kind of night, that feeling of letting the chatter of children, and friends, and a loved one float around you, when time is…timeless.

Sometimes ideas have to percolate a while in my brain. I’ve learned you can’t hurry them, anymore than you can recapture your sew-jo, as quilters like to say. Creative time comes on its own schedule. (This is Quilt #292 on the Quilt Index, above.)

I was also inspired by a trip in 2016 to Copenhagen and Stockholm, where I learned about the art of Poul Gernes, an artist who used strong colors, and simple shapes that expressed a wild traditionalism, if there is such a term.

(from here)

So somewhere between a summer night and a trip long ago, I started playing around with flowers on strong stems, then threw in the center tendrils to focus the eye. I’d been given a stack of Tilda’s polka dot flowers, which are not a typical palette, and I found some linen-look fabric for the background and leaves.

This was all I’d envisioned, but it just didn’t look “done.” So I ordered up more fabric–difficult to do when designers don’t label their colors (well, Kaffe does…)–and got to work.

It was during my New York Beauties project, so I kept going back and forth between the bright saturated solids of that quilt, to these inviting, musky deep colors of twilight.

I pinned everything together with short appliqué pins, and took it on the road — traveling to see grandchildren and the total eclipse in Texas.

Yes, I cut out the background of the flowers, and lined the centers of the flowers for a flat, solid look. (I glue-dotted the lining into place, to hold it until I would get it quilted.)

A couple of nights ago, I grabbed Dave and we went out to the side garden just as the light was dimming, so as to photograph the quilt. This light makes the details soft, the dense quilted foliage falling into the deep blue background, letting those simple Danish-inspired flowers rise to the front.

I wrote the pattern as I made this, and decided to add in three different sets of instructions, in case you were making it with raw-edge appliqué or needle-turn or machine appliqué. And then I added that outside border, so it’s thorough, with lots of patterns and words. But hopefully you’ll find your own design when you make it, and will add another garden to our world.

I went back and forth between Intermediate or Experienced Beginner, but in the end, decided that if you knew something about appliqué, it would go better. But other than that, it’s not a difficult quilt. I do have an extensive guide for laying it out, but it’s okay if you just want to use your own eye. I do reference a couple of quilters in the pattern, who I thought explained things well. One is Gladi Porshe, who writes about making vines and mixing appliqué styles.

Pattern is in my PayHip Shop here. Usually my patterns are $12 US, but I decided we all need more flowers so I have it for an introductory price until mid-November. Sometimes I post a coupon for a percentage off when I put up a new pattern, but this way, you won’t have to enter in a code, and can just grab the deal if you want it. All my patterns are downloadable PDFs.

Enjoy a night in a twilight garden–