This and That, February Version

February 22, 2014 Elizabeth E.6 Comments

This made me laugh this week, as I had NO life, yet TOO MUCH work. A bit out of balance. Papers to grade, lessons plans to prep, more grading, ACK!! Finally, yesterday afternoon I pushed back from the computer, and went outside to breathe in some balmy Southern California air.

First, a visit to the Genius Bar at an Apple Store, where they exchanged my Christmas-present phone for a new-to-me phone. That should fix the battery problem, the Genius said. Thanks, Justin.

Next, writing out my quilting goals for a couple of months. I tried to be judicious in my choices, not throwing EVERYTHING up there, but just the things I’ve committed to, or think I can do. I’m not doing the Finish-A-Long this quarter, but do like the push it gives me, so I have to generate my own push. I think I’ll tackle the quilting on my Tiny Envelopes quilt. It’s been pinned together for several weeks, waiting for me to finish my grading.

I always “test” my quilting in a doodle, then mark right on the fabric what the upper tension needs to be. Here are a few other test drives. I’m using King Tut thread by Superior Threads in the top, and So Fine thread in the bobbin. I LOVE So Fine. I often use Bottom Line thread in the bobbin, but then need to loosen the upper bobbin tension more. Bottom Line is very fine, so “sinks” into your backing nicely. I found the upper tension also varies between using my free-motion foot (needs to be lower), and my walking foot. Test, test test.

First, quilt the little envelope shapes.

Then I started looking up ways to quilt the larger design on the quilt, looking at all different kinds of postmarks on Google Images. Did you know you can send your envelopes to North Pole, Alaska and they will cancel your Christmas letters for you, with a postmark that says “North Pole”?

I thought this design had some potential, but I kept looking.

The one in the upper left corner — a square with wavy lines — that was the one that pushed my quilty buttons.

I always print out a “faded” version of my quilts onto paper, then doodle some designs. I’d been doodling for a while before I found that one. I recreated it in the upper left corner, then went to work. I Googled “wavy lines template” and found one here: cutting_wavy_lines. Click on that link and you’ll get a PDF file of some wavy lines.

I traced one of the wavy lines onto some heavyweight plastic from an old binder divider I had laying around, then traced the wavy lines onto my quilt with an air-disappearing marker.

After a couple of hours of quilting, I hit the proverbial wall, but since the marker is a disappearing marker when exposed to the air, I knew whatever marks I had made would be gone in the morning, so I quilted until I ran out of thread in both the bobbin and on the spool. I got the message, so called it a night.

Road to California 2014, part II

February 4, 2014February 5, 2014 Elizabeth E.18 Comments

There was a great exhibit of quilts from the book I was lucky enough to be in: Amish Quilts, The Adventure Continues. As always, seeing them in person, beats a flat picture or a digital photograph any day. (How has that changed what we esteem as “good” quilts? Just something to think about.) That’s why quilt shows are so valuable as they allow a viewer to fall in love with quilts again.

Suzanne Keeney Lucy’s Ocean Waves

Two views of Michelle Webber’s It’s Hip to Be Square

Two views (one to show the quilting) of Reflection of the Times, made by Angela Yosten and quilted by Natalia Bonner

Likewise there were some quilts from QuiltCon.

I took a shot of this one because I love Carolyn Friedlander’s fabrics, but it is true that this quilt is lacking some contrast. It’s not just the photography. The title of this one is The Local Quilt.

Deconstructed Nine Patch by Jacquie Gering

Honey in Space, by Elizabeth Hartman

Log Pyramids, by Liz Harvatine

You Rule, by Brigitte Heitland

and lastly, A Very Long Conversation, by Rossie Hutchinson. I was pretty sure I had a photo from Christa Watson’s String of Pearls (using Lizzy House’s fabric–a great design) but it’s too blurry to post, so go *here* to see that fun quilt. . . and her (more on that later). There were a couple of quilts I was sure I had a photo of, but when I looked at them, I must have been taking them on a fast run past. Maybe it was because I had too many bags around my shoulders?

At this point, don’t you think we need a little retail therapy? This is the little quilt in the charm booth–a way to display those little pins we all love. This group had figured out how to make earrings out of them, so they had a lot of people crowded around.

Fabricworm’s first time at Road. Judging from the crowd at their booth, I think they’ll be back.

Loved the chair AND the floor mat. The floor “rug” looked like just patches with some sort of matte finish brushed over it.

And LUNCH! From left, Leisa, Lisa, Lisa’s sister-in-law Betty (who came from another state just for Road), me and Simone. Get your scrolling fingers ready, here come more quilts!

Janet Dorsey Hirth used lots of different piecing styles in her sampler quilt, titled Loose Leaf Earl Grey.

Random snapshot of free-motion quilting

This is a terrible picture of a fabulous quilt, by Ann Feitelson, titled Music of the Spheres. Google it and you should find a better photo. It’s really amazing.

Here’s another Ann Feitelson. I think she never sleeps. This one is titled Basket Weave II: See Saw. There was a lot of math that went into this quilt, judging from her description. She writes “The titled also refers to seeing and have seen, the way vision shifts in every blink.”

Kim Bruny’s Blast from the Past is so named because all the bright designs and paisley prints remind her of her childhood. Well, now we know how old she is! (Kidding, Kim. It was a terrific quilt.) I have several photos, showing details.

She used the “tiling” method of creating her top: appliquéing her patches to a single piece of fabric, keeping the pieces an even distance away, so it looks like tiles have been laid down.

And in the borders–broderie perse, a technique of using specific cuts of the printed fabric to create the design.

I liked this quilting because it wasn’t so dense. Lately quilters have been quilting their quilts so densely, they could stand up as a room screen by themselves. This is a nice change.

Sandi Delman’s Kartwheels was started in 2009, and took several raids of her fabric stash to make the rings, arcs, borders and stars. Kerry Marksbury quilted it.

Eva Birch’s Tequila Sunrise was a more modern quilt with lots of interesting quilting in the negatives spaces. Even though the photo above looks washed out, the background fabric was deep-toned. Two more detail shots:

I spent the better part of Friday afternoon tearing back and forth between the Superior Thread Booth and the booth where my quilter Cathy Kreter was working, talking about threads, designs, colors, etc. I was successful in choosing a thread, and on the way back, I stopped by Nancy Rink’s booth to show her my quilt (she designed this quilt). She obliged me with a photo. Yes, I carried that king-sized quilt top around all afternoon (which may account for some of the blurry photos).

After a long day (as both Leisa and I woke up too early that morning and couldn’t go back to sleep) my little gang, The Good Heart Quilters, took ourselves to the local El Torito, where ten of us gathered round the table, including Cindy of Live A Colorful Life and Deborah of Simply Miss Luella. (They’ve adopted us Good Heart Quilters.)

A few went back home to our town, and those of us who were staying the night gathered together in mine and Leisa’s room, did Show and Tell and talked shop. I’m not letting those others go home next year, and think we ought to order in some chocolate cake and ice cream for fun.

You’ll hear us Southern Californians complain about our drought (those mountains ought to have WHITE tops, not brown), but you can’t beat waking up to this on a January morning. We’re in for a doozy this summer in terms of water rationing. Expect me to come and see you for a shower this summer. Okay, last batch of quilts. Here we go.

Pat Adair’s Joyful Giddiness used a few of Kim McClean’s patterns to create the appliqué in this quilt.

A lovely quilt, as evidenced by the use of color, piecing and quilting (and that blue ribbon!).

Almost Symmetry, by Nicki Allen (quilted by Kathy Gray).

This was made for the EZ Dresden Quilt Challenge, an online challenge sponsored by the Salt Lake Modern Quilt Guild.

Marilyn Belford used all varieties of fabrics and techniques to create this masterpiece titled Perseus Saving Andromeda.

That rough water is raw-edge appliquéd, as is most of the quilt.

Fractured Star was made by Linda Bergmann and quilted by Debbie Lopez, and is a Karen Stone design.

So is Susan Bianchi’s Graffiti Heart a quilt? Since she created her design out of beads and buttons on whole cloth? I remember that controversy came up with Hollis Chatelein first debuted at Houston, with her whole-cloth painted quilts. (She earned a blue ribbon that year.) Whatever, this was one of two of these button/bead quilts in the show, fascinating collages utilizing hard surface design.

And now it’s time for the Ugly Quilt Award. Every year I try to pick the ugliest quilt. It could miss on overall composition, surface design treatment, overreaching in the skill department (think: Peter Principle), or by the fact that somehow, it was just plain. And ugly. A very subjective category, but in walking around with some of my quilter friends, a number of them pointed out candidates for this award, so I know it wasn’t just me. All of these are nameless, maker-less. And in full-disclosure, any one of us could in any given year qualify, so no hubris intended.

From the plastic doll, to the overly busy background to the tassels, andthat 3D hair, this is a sure qualifier.

Another angel candidate, with her strangely proportioned torso to that gift-wrapped bow on the corner. Hmmm.

Meant to evoke a haunting response from the viewer, of the souls of lost native Americans now inhabiting the abandoned-dwellings-now-a-National-Park (I suppose) instead this just came off as creepy-looking, kind of like a cartoonish dead baby head filling a sacred space.

Update: While I originally noted the fine quality of the quilting and the good design and composition of space, I panned this quilt for the drawings, as they looked extremely juvenile. My sister, the historian, called me tonight to tell me that she thinks they were based on well-known (to historians) primitive drawings done by Native Americans at some of the critical battles. She’ll let me know the source, and then I’ll add it here.

If it is true that this quilt was based on those historical drawings, it obviously needs to be moved from this category. (However, I still stand on the unfortunate quilted swirls on the men’s faces.)

Okay, Ugly Quilt Contest over. Later on I’ll show you my favorite quilt, and I’ll tell you why. (The ones I love usually never win at this show. But I was happy to see this week that one of my favorites from last year went on to Win Big at other national contests.) Okay, back to the quilts.

Modern Alphabet, made and quilted by Gerrie Thompson.

Yep, I’m pretty much fixated on DSM quilting this year. My apologies.

Patricia Wolfe titled her innovation of a traditional Bear Paw block KABOOM! Bear Paws Gone Wild. She also quilted it herself.

Titled Mishief Maker, Sue Wilson both made and quilted this octopus quilt, hand-painting the design on linen. I walked around with my friend Simone and she gave me a lesson on borders, and why are quilters so attached to their borders? As a trained graphic artist, she showed me several quilts that would have benefitted from “breaking the borders,” as the traditional use of that space enclosing a design cramped the artistry of the quilt. This was a successful breaking of the border, she noted. We both loved it.

LUNCH! (Day Two) with Cindy, Deborah, me, Leisa and Christa of ChristaQuilts. It was a great conversation about quilting, the industry, design, breaking news and old news, one of the advantages of getting together at a quilt show.

Okay, last gasp of quilts, then my favorite.

One of a trio of quilts, Linzi Upton’s quilts were tucked away at the back of the hall. Another quilt, Silver Madonna won big last year, and these look like they follow in the same trend of using metallic fabric, then painting it, then quilting it to achieve the texture.

The title of the three together is Odin’s Triology, and Upton made and quilted them all.

Another strong black and white quilt, ChrisTaylor’s I have felt lonely in a crowded room brought in architectural features of doors, windows and line to portray that feeling of being “alone” yet feeling “comforted by memories.”

Inspired by the Holyoke Range and the Connecticut rivers near her home, Timna Tarr created Valley Snapshots, a rich mix of shape and color. This was almost my most favorite.

Timna Tarr was busy this year, getting two quilts into Road. This one, titled Request and Dedication, started out as a Wheel of Fortune block, but “after ten years of marriage [to a musician], he finally rubbed off on me and I unintentionally made a record quilt.”

I had to show you close-ups of the quilting.

Spilling Over was made and quilted by Sharon Schlotzhauer, her inspiration coming from the loss of a treasured quilt, and from the “faith. . . [and] loving thoughts and prayers from friends and the quilting community.”

Citrus Slices by Marie O’Kelley was dear to my heart, as we live near the Citrus Experimental Station of the University of California–Riverside. She writes “This quilt commemorates my brother’s career at UCR hybridizing new citrus varieties. Included are the names of his hybrids and those of more common citrus types.” By the way, if you like the little easy-to-peel Cutie (brand) tangerines, you have the scientists at UCR to thank.

Autumn Whirlpool, by Bobbie Moon.

Banderitas, by Victoria Murphy

Daisy Dance, by Susan Meyers, from a pattern by Kathy Munkelwitz

And now my favorite quilt of the show. It’s not flashy, overly huge, stylized with 300 pounds of crystals and bling, but it’s a perfectly executed gem of a quilt. Titled, Did You Wash Your Beak, it comes from a nature photograph of Eastern Bluebirds by Steve Byland.

The quilting appeared to be in a heavier weight variegated thread, which shows every flaw. I couldn’t find any. Taylor had put more leaves in the background of his quilting, surrounding those with small stippling stitches. The branch had more texture added by the quilting.

The white-gloved lady held it up to show me the back. Exquisite. Taylor writes “I believe this is my most accomplished quilt to date. The technique I have been trying to master for the past 12 years. . . was to create an appliquéd quilt that appears to be a photograph or painting at first glance.” I’d say he succeeded.

All of these feathers, the claw, all pieces really, are needle-turned appliqué, with the quilting enhancing the shading and structure. A masterpiece of a quilt. While some might aspire to be the big old blue ribbon winner at the front of the hall, by the CD-selling harpist, I aspire to create quiet quilts of detail and story like this one. I loved it!

And that’s all folks–see you next year!!

Quilts

In Bed With a Bad Cold

December 7, 2013December 7, 2013 Elizabeth E.15 Comments

In Bed with a Bad Cold
by Pam Rupert

Posted without permission. (Pam, if you wish, I’ll remove it, but thanks for your great rendition!)

And this was the Christmas Tree down at Urgent Care this morning (my second trip–I’m going to lick this yet!)

But I need to digress backwards and show off the three totes made in my Tote Bag class by three wonderful students. They worked hard and all finished up.

I had taken some time this week to work on the quilting on my Santa quilt, and as always, How to Quilt This can really take over my mindset and stop me in my tracks.

I have had troubles free-motion quilting (FMQ) in the past, and have worked to figure it out. I now have three different FMQ feet (the last one was the one that worked best), and am still experimenting with threads. This one, So Fine by Superior Threads, is a dream, as is using their topstitch size 12 needles. I purchased, and read, both of Diane Gaudynski’s books on quilting, which nudged a bit further along on this path. Both were helpful, but I don’t really see myself heading in her direction of teensy-weensy quilting decorated by gorgeous swooping feathers and lots of echo quilting.

This week, Judi Madsen’s book arrived, and this is more what I hope to quilt like. I’m already behind because she has a huge quilting machine, so our techniques of moving the cloth and figuring out the quilting stitches will be different, of necessity. But I found it really helpful in so many ways. She also has a video up on YouTube which is also instructive. So I quilted until the Bad Cold determined that I would not be quilting.

So the quilt is loosely folded up on my sewing room floor, waiting until I get better, get the Christmas tree decorated, the Christmas caramels made, the stack of research papers graded, the final given, the final graded. . . But you know, Santa doesn’t come until the 24th of December, does he? I doubt mine will arrive much before that either. And somewhere in there we need to do a little bit of shopping. Yessiree, it’s a bad time of year to be in bed with a bad cold.

200 Quilts · Quilt Finish · Quilts

Juxtaposition • Quilt Finish

October 1, 2013September 25, 2021 Elizabeth E.22 Comments

I finished my quilt, and I’ve titled it Juxtaposition. Every quilt teaches me something, and this one taught me to try again, to not get discouraged, to discover new ways of doing things.

This photo of the quilt, shows less of the texture–the quilting–and more of the color and pattern. I love the pattern.

It is Facets, from Anne of SpringLeaf Studios and as a lovely part of this quilt, she will be offering one pattern for a giveaway. (UPDATE: Giveaway is closed.) I only did one of the several versions of this pattern; mine was the simplest, but all of her directions are clearly written and easy-to-follow.

The easy punch of the graphic design drew me to this, and I knew that the fabric I chose, Charleston Farmhouse, would be a perfect fit. I just didn’t anticipate the difficulty of quilting that central square, but it didn’t take away my fondness for this pattern. I’m already planning to make it again, using the blocks idea shown on the front of the pattern.

I wrote about the frustration I experienced in quilting this, but sitting in my hotel room one morning (we were away at a conference), I realized that if I didn’t tackle and finish, this quilt, I probably would pitch it in the thrift store bag.

(original quilting)

So I drew up two ideas for the center; both were generated by a comment of a reader who said that my ferns in my original design were facing the wrong direction. I thought a long time about what she said, and as I drew, took in her ideas. I let my husband and my quilter friend Beth vote on the one they liked, and I went to town. I used a blue marking pen to assist me, but didn’t trace the leaves, as I still wanted that organic look to the quilting.

After I finished, I had my quilt in one hand, camera in the other, walking around the hotel looking for places to take its picture. This shot was taken in full sun, laying on the grass in the late afternoon and the texture of the quilting really pops. I used a faced binding again on this quilt, and I like how it looks.

It was lovely to come home with a finished quilt. This is quilt #121 on my 200 Quilts Index.

It is also part of the Third Quarter Finish-A-Long, and I’m happy to say I finished one more quilt on my list!

And also today, my tutorial on Y-seams posted at Leanne’s blog here, if you need a little help in that direction.

To win a copy of this pattern (it’s a downloadable PDF), tell me about the hardest quilt you ever made, that really challenged you, but one that stuck with until the end. Are you glad you finished it? Do you hate the quilt? Love it for what it taught you? Gave it away as soon as you could?

~~Leave a comment and I’ll pick a winner on Thursday evening.~~

Drawing is now closed. Thanks for participating.