Hello dear blogging friends! Just before Easter I showed you an image of a new Lace and Doily Throw I was starting to ...
Okay everyone! This long time anticipated crochet quilt tutorial is finally available! (happy jig!) My friend Tiffany of Fanny Lu Designs took the time to put together the most thorough and detailed t
A raffle quilt made by the Retreating Angels
Rebeka Lambert discovered modern improv quilting and hasn't stopped. She uses repurposed fabrics in most of her art.
Okay everyone! This long time anticipated crochet quilt tutorial is finally available! (happy jig!) My friend Tiffany of Fanny Lu Designs took the time to put together the most thorough and detaile…
I love blogs. I can get lost in them. That's the problem... I can also waste a lot of time - but is learning, being inspired, and seeing what everyone else is doing a waste of time? I think not. Facebook? Well, that's another story. I haven't figured out their real value. Yet. I'm not in a hurry to learn, either. So, this month, I am once again behind on all of my projects. Nothing has gotten finished, little has gotten started, and yet the first of the month came rapping on my door. Hello? Anybody home? I was out of town for most of the week (more on that, later), and when I got home, a blog post from a friend of mine popped up on my laptop: Denise Green (an amazing friend and longarm quilter) had just posted photos from her trip over to see the quilt show in Kerrville, Texas. Here's what I found interesting about her post: since she's a longarm quilter, her view of quilts is different than mine. So are her photos and comments. I emailed Denise and asked if I could use her blog for my blog. Answer: "I'd be honored!" I'm actually the one that was honored by her quick and positive response. What I thought I'd do is to show you all of her photos along with her comments... and then add my own comments. It's interesting to see how we both view the same quilts. If you want to catch up on Denise's blog directly, you can find it here: http://hollydeequilts.wordpress.com/2013/05/31/its-a-quilt-show-kerrville-style/. Let's get this conversation started, now. Denise's words are in italics. Mine are plain old straight up and down. D: We arrived at the show and my friend, Susie, met us there. She is a member of the Hill Country Quilt Guild and had a few quilts in the show (with ribbons on them!). One of Susie’s quilts – I quilted this for her – her quilts are a delight to quilt – she is very good piecer and I love her colors and pattern choices! S: I love how Denise quilts Judy Neimeyer quilts -- she honors the pattern but adds her own spin with feathers, spikes, swirls, and unique designs. The color choices on this one are great. D: (This is) Susie’s Prairie Star (a quiltworx.com pattern) – yes there is a ribbon on the right side! S: Well deserved, I'd say! D: I quilted the quilt below for Susie earlier this year – I really enjoyed this one! What I enjoyed almost as much was I sent her my king-size triple 4-patch to quilt and I just got it back. That was a GREAT TRADE! S: I love the soft colors in Susie's "Love is in the Air" quilt. It's from a Lori Smith pattern. I especially love the use of all those golds and blues and browns in the sashing strips. Are those are four-patch sashings? Yes! D: (Susie) added the pieced sashings as well as the applique border. The pattern had plain sashing and border. S: I love those sashing strips. I wish I could think of things like that! This picture needs to go into my folder of "great ideas." Susie machine appliqued the non-pieced blocks/borders. She did a nice job with that. D: This quilt of Susie’s ("Sew Many Colors") was made as a block of the month from Pinwheels and Posies. Each block is the same (except for fabric placement), Susie quilted this one! S: Pinwheels and Posies is a local quilt shop in Dickinson, Texas. They did this block of the month a while back and it clearly turned out nice. If Denise hadn't pointed it out to me, I don't think I would have noticed that the blocks are all identical. There's a lesson in there for all of us about the importance of value (how light or dark a color is), as it can have a dramatic effect on what a block looks like when you are finished making it. D: Another student, Linda B, was also working at the show and had a ribbon (or 2) on her Glacier Star Quilt that was started in a class I taught at Pinwheels and Posies. I love how she added to the main body of the quilt with her “tucked” border and this beautiful Jason Yenter print. S: If you have a chance to take a Judy Niemeyer class from Denise (her workshop schedule is posted on her blog), it's worth the trip. Denise is an excellent teacher with endless patience for anyone and everyone. In general, I'm not a fan of "cheater cloth" pre-printed borders and blocks. The border on this quilt, though, is really wonderful and frames the quilt nicely!! D: Kim’s quilting (her longarm business is called "A Busy Bobbin") was honored with the ribbon for Best Machine Quilting – WELL DESERVED! Our local longarm bee is excited to have Kim as our speaker Monday night at our monthly meeting. She and Linda B. will be joining us and talking about the rulers Kim uses and how she fills all that empty space with all of that gorgeous quilting. S: I am spoiled rotten by living in an area filled with quilters -- Denise started a longarm bee quite a while back, before it seemed that nearly everyone had some sort of quilting machine. She schedules speakers every month for the members -- and I can't wait to go to hear from this speaker. Look at the unique combination of quilting designs in this quilt.... D: (Here is...) Linda's sweet mini! S: Sometimes it's the little things that count, right? I want to point out that the Kerrville guild puts a wooden clothespin on every quilt. Quilt show attendees can then grab the clothespin to see the back of any quilt without having to hunt down a white-glove lady. What a great idea! D: I took several pictures of quilts that I enjoyed the setting of the blocks. I love how (Holly Nelson) set these blocks. S: I love the wonderful quilt edge, too. And setting those blocks inside a scalloped circle... wow. Holly designed these blocks for an applique class she taught in Fredricksburg, Texas. D: Here's another great way to set blocks. S: Love the blocks. I wondered where Holly Nelson planned to put this piece and was able to read the tag on her quilt, which said she designed this quilt for applique classes in Bandera, Texas - and the layout was an "experiment" as she's running of space for wall hangings. D: This is a great setting for those hexie blocks. S: I love the rich reds against those deep gray-greens and yellow-greens. The information on this quilt says that "Perseverence" was made by Merry Ann Rothe and quilted by Donna Scofield. The pattern is from "Quilts from Grandmother's Garden" by Jaynette Huff. This is a delightful quilt and the quilting makes it come alive. D: I love Stephanie Brandeburgs panels – I like how this quiltmaker broke up the panel. S: Carol Pope made "My Summer Garden" by using a 22 by 44" panel because she liked its shape and design. Her quilt was quilted by Donna Scofield (I hope I read that right; the label was pretty blurry...). I am always amazed when people can take something like this big panel and have the confidence to slice it up and add some long pieced and printed strips. It's wonderful! D: Great bargello quilt – I love the addition of the leaves in the border. S: You're right Denise - this is a great combination of a contemporary bargello design and a set of classic pieced blocks. Don't you love the little green piping between the outer border and the binding? Little additions like that make the difference between a good quilt and a great quilt. And the quilting is wonderful, with feathers ruffling their way across the bargello and a great leaf shape on the maple leaves. D: And the quilting ideas I find at shows! S: I have so much to learn! Denise is right - the quilting is phenomenal and offers lots of unique ideas for quilting; it changes from feathers to pumpkin seeds to cross-hatching without missing a beat. "Pottery II" was entered by Linda Humphrey, who says this was a "pass around" project of the Sew Bee It Bee. Linda made the center block and then passed it to each bee member to add a border. Other bee members include Helen Ridgway, Anita Crane, Holly Nelson, Marilyn Lampman, Ro Molder, Isabelle Tolliver, and Marvene Wallace. The finished quilt is 38 by 21 inches. And it won a Judge's Choice ribbon! D: Amazing quilting! S: Absolutely. Great ideas here! D: Gorgeous quilting! S: Ditto! This quilt, called "Walking Home," was made by Julie Schlichting. D: Awesome quilting! S: Tremendous! This 16 by 18 inch quilt, called "Desert Hills," was made by Jane Kutach. It was inspired by a workshop with Karen Eckmeier in 2012. D: More quilting to love! S: I do! D: Quilting! S: This is a great example of how to fill a square without just doing "doodling" in it! D: And these were just fun quilts; the colors are probably what draws me in. Love the colors for the Wild Goose Chase – a pattern by quiltworx.com. S: I was attracted to the design (how did they do those flying geese -- I would assume paper piecing?). And I love that diagonal border! D: Love the color in this one too! Great block! S: Yes - this block is incredible, both in the body of the quilt and in the border. My bucket list has a Lemoyne Star quilt in it.... hand pieced with 3 or 4 inch stars. D: Isn't this little mini pretty? S: I love the rich reds and greens. This quilt is another round robin quilt, with each person (Marvene Wallace - owner - and Anita Crane, Linda Humphrey, Marilyn Lampman, Ro Molder, Holly Nelson, Helen Ridgeway, and Isabella Tolliver) adding a border. The entire process took 8 months to complete. That's dedication! D: Bright and colorful... S: Yes - and a lot of work! D: I love the poppies on this grey scale quilt (that's hubby in the photo). S: This is another beauty! Kerrville has some pretty wonderful quilters in its midst! D: This was a group quilt. They started with a photo, cut it apart. Each member of the group was given a section of the photo to reproduce in cloth - and now you see the quilt put back together. I think this would be really fun to do - what do you think? S: These quilts have always intrigued me. I see them all the time in the Group Quilt category at the Houston quilt show... and they are stunning! This quilt is called "Infinity Interrupted" and was made by Wanna Bee members. D: See the seams? This shows where each member's work was added! D: I am not usually a fan of T-shirt quilts - but this one I love! This was a wonderful t-shirt quilt! S: I agree Denise -- I love the random way the t-shirts were added. D: And of course, I left the BEST for the last - Best of Show went to this beautiful quilt - this pattern is Ladies of the Sea by Sue Garman. Sue is a friend of mine and she was working on this quilt when we travelled to Brigham City, Utah, a few years back. If I remember correctly, the compass corner stones were inspired by some wall art in the facility where she was teaching (I went as her helper because I am originally from Utah). It is a marvel to watch Sue work - she is AMAZING! I hope Sue will enjoy the substitution this quilt maker made to the original quilt. The submarine honors a family member if I remember correctly. D: (Here is a) substitution to the original quilt (which is all tall ships). S: What a gorgeous rendition of this pattern! I love when people personalize quilts and make them speak to themselves or their families or their experiences. It makes the quilt extra special -- and the USS Carbonero is a great substitute for another historic ship! UPDATE! Thanks go to Susan Longacre who Chaired the Quilts in Motion Quilt Show of the Hill Country Quilt Guild in Kerrville, Texas. She sent me some additional information on this quilt. The maker of this quilt is Barbara Woodman, a very accomplished quilter, formerly of Uvalde and now living in Kerrville. She won ribbons for: First Place in Category, Best of Show (large), and Viewer's Choice. The most heartfelt information is that Barbara made this quilt for her husband who served on the USS Carbonero submarine but, unfortunately, he died before she finished the quilt. This quilt is such a beautiful legacy for Barbara and her family - and I thank her for sharing it with other quilters. D: Scrumptious quilting! S: Boy, you've got that right! I'm so sorry I don't know the maker and quilter's name for this quilt -- it is SO well done! D: I hope you enjoy my tour of the Kerrville Quilt Show and if you are in the area for Memorial Day weekend in 2015, you should add this show to your list of activities. S: Absolutely! What a great set of quilts - and definitely a beautiful town to visit! Thanks, Denise, for sharing -- I appreciate your friendship so much. Isn't it great that quilters seem able to make friends with complete strangers in a heartbeat? That's what happened with Mary Clendennen when I met her a few years ago. We bumped into each other at the Houston quilt show and she was so excited that I had gone over to Austin to see their quilt show and her quilt had just won best of show and I featured it in my blog back then. She is just the sweetest person you could ever hope to meet -- and we parted, saying we ought to get together some time. So here we are, a few years later... and we bumped into each other at two more quilt shows... and she again invited me to come visit her for a few days. Below is her quilt, "Ruffled Roses," based on the pattern I wrote for Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims' on "The Quilt Show." I just love the fabrics in it - all from an Elly Sienkiewicz line. But most of what makes this quilt so wonderful is Mary's exquisite piecing. I've never seen such precision! Here is a close-up of her quilt -- take a look at the piecing, but also the quilting (done by Angela McCorkle). Quilting can make or break a quilt, and Mary is certainly fortunate to have found someone who knows the craft well. By the way... Mary doesn't applique (yet), so she had a friend prepare the pieces for her and then appliqued the prepared units in place. She's determined to learn applique in the future. And so..... last week, I headed over to Marble Falls. Mary lives on her ranch along the Colorado River, which, when combined with the sweet blessings of Mary's warmth, hospitality, and friendship, gave me a piece of heaven on earth. I spent several days with Mary and her friend Marcie Wendrock and some others -- sewing, learning, relaxing, and enjoying my first time away from home in several years. It was a sweet breath of fresh air. Watching Mary work was an inspiration, in itself. Check out one of the blocks she had made: Do you want to know why it was such a joy to see her work? Because she is the QUEEN of precision piecing. I learned that I need to pick up my pace if I want my blocks to be as good as Mary's. But wait! Wait! There's more! Check out the back of her block. Look how she works to press the seams open! It was a great "light bulb moment" for me to see her block from the underside. It's perfection, plus! No wonder her quilts look so great. When I arrived, here is the quilt Mary was working on. She finished adding the final two borders while I was there, and was on to other projects. You can probably guess, by seeing the block above, why Mary's quilt lies perfectly flat. Some of the gals were working on Jo Morton quilts.... And Marcie was designing and working on a brand new quilt based on an antique. I fell in love with it and can't wait for the pattern to be done. You'll have to wait to see it... but the wait will be worth it!!!! One of the women there showed some quilts -- here is an antique spools quilt... And a close-up of it... And Zell Cook's quilts were stunning - she does a lot of quilts using tsukineko inks and embroidery - here's one with very detailed embroidery work in it. And a close-up of one of Zell's blocks... Now that I've finished sharing all those photos, one of you might be asking... but what are YOU working on, Sue? I've been working on lots of different things... and have no photos to share this month. Hang in there - they will show up soon enough. And I think you'll be glad I've kept busy, busy, busy, getting my next quilts ready. Several of you asked how they could find out what my lecture/workshop schedule is. Here is an incomplete list; where the location is undisclosed, it is because the group has asked that they be the first to announce me coming: June 15, 2013 - Lakeview Quilters Guild, Nassau Bay, Texas - precision piecing workshop June 29, 2013 - Sugarland Applique Society, Sugarland, Texas - applique workshop July 1, 2013 - Baytown Area Quilt Guild, Baytown, Texas - lecture July 15-16, 2013 - Hill Country Quilt Guild, Kerrville, Texas - lecture and feathered star workshop August 5, 2013 - Piecemaker Quilt Guild, Corsicana, Texas - lecture October 7-12, 2013 - location undisclosed; lecture and several days of applique workshops October 17-20, 2013 - Greenbriar retreat center, Athens, Texas - lecture, feathered star workshop, applique workshop Late October/early November - reserved for the International Quilters Association quilt show, Houston, Texas Winter, 2014 - 4-5 day personal workshop in my home, demonstrating design, process, etc. February 23-27, 2014 - Applique Away on Galveston Bay, Galveston, Texas - two 2-day applique workshops March 5, 2014 - Coastal Prairie Quilt Guild, Missouri City, Texas - lecture and workshop May 20-21, 2014 - Marble Falls Quilt Club, Marble Falls, Texas - lecture and workshop June 4, 2014 - Alvin Quilt Guild, Alvin, Texas - lecture June 24-25, 2014 - Ozark Piecemakers, Springfield, Missouri - lecture and workshop August 21, 2014 - Pride of Prairie Quilters, Naperville, Illinois - lecture and workshop September 17, 20, 2014 - West Houston Quilt Guild, Houston, Texas - lecture and workshop September 9-14, 2014 - location undisclosed; lecture and several days of applique workshops October 25+, 2014 - reserved for the International Quilters Association quilt show, Houston, Texas April or May, 2015 - Northwest Suburban Quilters Guild, northwest Chicago, Illinois - details to be determined June 18-20, 2015 - Trinity Valley Quilt Guild and Denton Quilt Guild, Dallas area, Texas - lectures and workshops Late October/early November - reserved for the International Quilters Association quilt show, Houston, Texas Much of my time over the past two months has been spent preparing for these workshops. I like to have plenty of examples of how to do things, including options for those who want a simpler or more unique option. Perhaps we'll get to meet at one of these events in the future! One more thing before I close. I am struggling with a creativity block. I want to start a new quilt - probably a block of the month - and cannot seem to focus on anything that really grabs me. So... what have you been looking for, what is your favorite type of quilt to make, what would you like to see me design? I'll listen to any ideas you have! Happy stitching - Sue (c)2013 Susan H. Garman
Okan Arts Quilting & Textile Tours to Japan are open for booking. To learn more +click here By Patricia Belyea TOKYO JP Three days after a traffic-stopping snowstorm hit the most populated city in the world, the Tokyo Quilt Festival opened its doors. Here are oodles of photos from Opening Day so you can vicariously tour the show floor. NOTE: This is only a thimbleful of the quilts exhibited! Most of the credits were listed in Japanese. I have included the artists’ names when they were available in English. original design category—a sampling original design category—the winners Detail: First Place—Jim Hay Detail: 2nd Place—Emiko Yakushiji Detail: 3rd Place— Hiroko Ouchi wa (the essence of Japan) category—a sampling wa category—the winners First Place—Yasuko Anai Second Place—Momoe Kashihara Third Place—Tamiko Mawatari traditional design category—the winners First Place— Rieko Hasegawa Second Place—Emiko Kobayashi Third Place—Kyo Saito invitational category—a sampling Quilt Artist: Sachiko Yoshida Quilt Artist: Mitsuyo Akita Quilt Artist: Keiko Miyauchi Quilt Artist: Toshie Shinohara Quilt Artist: Etsuko Ishitobi show winners Friendship Award—Chikako Akashi Hand Making Award—Toshiko Imai Japan Quilt Grand Prix Second Place—Chiharu Katsuragawa Japan Quilt Grand Prix First Place—Masako Sanada To take a look at the SPECIAL EXHIBITS at 2018 Tokyo Quilt Festival +click here To examine UP-CLOSE PHOTOS of the quilts at 2018 Tokyo Quilt Festival +click here # # # # # ABOUT US: Okan Arts, a petite family business, is co-owned by mother-daughter duo Patricia Belyea and Victoria Stone. Patricia and Victoria sell Japanese textiles online, host creative quilting experiences, and lead quilting & textile tours to Japan. FOLLOW OKAN ARTS ON INSTAGRAM @okanarts
When quilting meets crocheting, beautiful things happen. I am so excited to be sharing these photos with you. My very talented and dear friend, Tiffany Behmer of www.FannyLuWho.blogpsot.com, made thi
Here's an old pattern with an art deco look. You see it most often in wools with seam-covering embroidery--- relatives of the crazy quilt. Kansas Museum of History Sometimes in silks. But more common in wools and blend Most are from online auctions From dealer Mark French Polyester from the Wyoming Project and the Quilt Index The pattern was published several times. It's #3345 to 3347 in BlockBase Clara Stone published it first about 1900 as Sunshine or Friendship Fan, which may have been the inspiration for many of the wool examples. Eveline Foland at the Kansas City Star recognized the modern possibilities in the early 1930s. "Choose floral or figured fabrics in pastel color for the prettiest results." Green sashing. The Star published it at least twice as a full circle. "The Thrifty Wife" This cotton circle variation is older than the Star pattern. Feather stitching around the circles. Tim Latimer found one on the Quilt Index from the Nebraska project by Mabel Fletcher Hornaday, probably made from the Star pattern. International Quilt Museum collection Spectacular version that's a memorial to soldiers serving in the Spanish-American war. Rectangles--more string than fan. The fan arc is rather flattened out here Recent quilt Air Frais by Josette Schnegg, quilted by Paulette Capt Tim Latimer's version has a corner triangle rather than an arc. Here's one with an extra arc. Nancy Cabot at the Chicago Tribune called this variation Friendship Fan in 1933. From the 1930s or '40s There's a lot of pattern potential. You could just piece diagonal strings over a foundation and pop a quarter circle in the corner. Or here's an 8" pattern from BlockBase
Rebeka Lambert discovered modern improv quilting and hasn't stopped. She uses repurposed fabrics in most of her art.
I'm aware of two main methods of adding trapunto to hand quilting. Since most of my quilt is already quilted, I've been left with just one o...
Discover 26 brilliant, creative and thoughtful DIY items to handcraft to donate to your local nursing home.
Never make the mistake of forgetting these 4 important things to include when you gift a quilt! You'll be so glad that you did #4!!
What do you need to start quilting? This beginner's guide includes all of the bare minimum tools every quilter needs in order to get started.
I’m so excited to finally present the tutorial for my High Tea Crochet Quilt! However, it’s still a work in progress. Right now it guides you through the sewing and crocheting of the sq…
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This time the package will be including: x1 Customizer™ x1 carbide bit x30 diamond FREE bits for a variety of surfaces x1 Pen cap x1 USB-C cable x1 User manual x1 Engraving Mastery Guide (Ebook) Are there attachments and accessories available for The Customizer? Yes, there is a catalogue of additional engraving bits available at our store that you can use with The Customizer to achieve different effects and styles. What is the mastery guide and what's in it? The mastery guide is a comprehensive guide to using The Customizer and achieving the best results. It includes tips and tricks for engraving on different surfaces, using different engraving bits, and troubleshooting common issues. Additionally, the mastery guide includes some project ideas to inspire your creativity.
Hello All, Today I will venture into yet another new country, Serbia. It is more difficult to find material on Serbian Folklore than it is for Croatia, for example. I am not sure why this is the case. Serbia has been a very forward looking country since they emerged from under the Ottoman Empire. I will be covering the most common Serbian costume, that of central Serbia, or Šumadija. This is the heart of Serbia, extending from Beograd south along the Morava river.This costume comes in several forms, varying mostly in the type of skirt. As in most of my posts, I will not be able to cover every variation. This photo above shows one of the more common versions. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serbia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%A0umadija The basic garment, as in the rest of the Balkans and much of Eastern Europe, is the chemise. Typically there is a band collar and no cuffs. One typical feature of the Serbian chemise is that the sleeve is gathered just above the elbow. Very often a red garter or ribbon is tied around the arm at this point, as in the photo above. There is embroidery around the sleeve opening, around the neck opening, often on the lower part above the hem, and very often a spot design on the upper sleeve, above the gathered area. There is very little material on the traditional designs used. Today what is seen in almost all cases is multicolored cross-stitch floral designs which are very reminiscent of Berlin Work. This is of recent origin, not going past the mid 19th cent at most. There are various cuts used for the chemise, here is one version. There are also versions in which the sleeves are set in perpendicular to the body. The pieces used are narrow because the constraint of a hand-loom does not permit wider pieces to be woven. There are various vests or bodices worn with this costume, called pamuklija, djudica, grudniak, zubun, etc. The most commonly seen today is the one called jelek. Each of these vests has a different cut. The jelek is short, coming just to the waist, it hooks closed in front, with a point in the center and a curved opening on either side. It is usually red or black, and typically has rich ornamentation consisting of couched gold braid. For young women the neckline is low, functioning as a bustier, but for older women the neckline may be considerably higher. There are various types of skirts worn with this costume. One of the oldest and simplest is the two apron version. This has two aprons of a single panel each, the front apron being ornamented and the rear apron mostly plain, with ornamentation just along the bottom. This is common over much of eastern Europe. Here is a painting by the artist O. Benson showing a young woman from the village of Kumodraž near Beograd. On the left is a rear apron, on the right is a front apron. This is part of a painting by the artist Carol Pop de Szathmari, of a scene in a market in Beograd in the mid 1800's. What is most commonly seen today is a closed skirt woven in narrow stripes or plaid, often of two widths of cloth sewn together horizontally, with the plaid deliberately not matched. This is pleated finely, and usually has a black velvet hem and lace sewn onto it above that. See the image at the top of the article. Some forms of the skirt were plain in color with a decorated hem, either wide or narrow. Here is another part of the same painting by Carol Pop de Szatmari. The artist has painted himself into the scene at right. He was apparently a Hungarian Orthodox Priest. Below is another painting by Benson showing a young woman from the village of Kusadak. Some contemporary versions of the skirt in particular communities have become quite short.The first photo is from Užice. The second is from southern Pomoravlje. The most spectacular version of the skirt is basically the same as the narrow pleated one, but is not sewn closed in front, and is worn with the corners tucked into the waistband behind. This gives the outfit a lot of movement. Typically the hem that shows is ornamented with crochet and embroidery. See some of the images above. Here are a couple more images of that type of skirt. The kerchief wrapped around the torso seen in these last three images was commonly worn in the mid 1800's, under influence of Western fashion of the day. This has died out and is no longer seen. The last image is of a painting by Nikola Arsenović, who also painted in the mid 1800's. The apron is traditionally woven in tapestry technique, with colorful geometric motifs. Today it is more commonly made of red or black wool with floral cross-stitch or crewel embroidery. In the past, unmarried girls and brides often wore embroidered linen aprons, as you can see in this painting by Arsenović This is rarely seen today, however. There is often a striped sash tied around the waist. The stockings are hand knitted, either with geometric, or more often, floral designs either knitted into or embroidered onto them. The traditional footwear are moccasins, which are called opanci, They have thin goatskin strips woven on the uppers, and stereotypically in Serbia have curled toes. This is not traditionally true for all communities, but they have become somewhat of a symbol of Serbia. This last painting is by the celebrated Jugoslavian artist Vladimir Kirin. Thank you for reading, I hope that you have found this interesting and perhaps inspiring. Here is a website showing how a Serbian community in France made a 'parade giant' figure in Serbian costume named Bela Rada. There are many photographs of the finished figure, of the details of her costume and how she was made. Quite fascinating. http://belarada.canalblog.com/ A couple of Serbian groups performing traditional dances. Serbian dances are famous for small precise intricate footwork. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUlnyX-ijxM&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBHMgfJAB4g&feature=related This video shows the winged skirt. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVaUo-DApwo&feature=related Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals. I also choreograph and teach folk dance. Roman K. [email protected] Source Material: Mitar Vlahovic et al, 'National Costumes of Serbia - Watercolours by N. Arsenovic', Beograd, 1954 Erina Shobich, 'Odezhda i Ornament Serbii', Beograd, 1956 Vladimir Kirin, 'Narodne Nosnje Jugoslavije', Zagreb, Mirjana Prosic-Dvornic, 'Narodna Nosnja Sumadije', Zagreb Nikola Pantelic, 'Traditional Arts and Crafts in Yugoslavia', Belgrade, 1984 Vladimir Salopek, 'Folk Costumes and Dances of Yugoslavia', Zagreb, 1989 Kaoru Tanaka, 'World Folk Costumes in Natural Color', Osaka, 1961
Wow - the International Quilters Association (IQA) quilt show in Houston, Texas will all be history by tomorrow, but what a wild and fun event it was! This month I will be showing you some pictures from my trip to Baltimore on the Prairie, and to the Empty Spools Seminar at Asilomar in Pacific Grove, California. I'll also show you some great quilts that I've seen this past month or two... and some that I've been working on... and some that many other quilters have made and wanted to show me. You all are amazing! I have so many quilts to show you that I can't even begin to start showing the hundreds of quilts that I saw at the Houston quilt show. I had the pleasure of meeting many of you there - and I hope next year, I'll get to meet a lot more of you if you choose to come to Houston in October 2016. And before I forget... to those of you who made comments or sent me private emails, THANK YOU so much! I may not respond to every single note, but I read every single one and appreciate your time and your insights and your thoughts. They often help me understand what you want to see in my blog... and also that you actually LIKE my blog. That makes it all worth while. So let's get started! I thought I'd start by showing you some pictures that I didn't post when I went and took a workshop out at the Empty Spools Seminars at Asilomar in Pacific Grove, California. In general, you don't see me post non-quilt pictures, but I'm making an exception this time because if you ever decide to go there, there is much not to be missed in the locale! First of all, the setting for these workshops is along the coast. You can get up each morning and walk from the workshop out to the sea. How relaxing is this?!! But I suggest that you arrive a day or two earlier and rent a car. You can fly into one of three nearby airports and take a drive into San Francisco, where you can see the magnificent Golden Gate Bridge. It's worth your time and the extra expense. Just across the Golden Gate is one of my favorite places - the John Muir Woods, filled with the spectacular redwoods. It is definitely a bucket list trip, and only a short hop up the highway. On the way back to San Francisco, you can stop in trendy boutique-filled Sausalito, home of many water-loving house-boaters, for lunch. While in San Francisco, don't fail to miss China Town. It is wonderful and fun. And then, there are the seals of Pier 39... And the chocolate of Ghiradelli Square... (hint: you can see all these things by getting a one-day ticket on the tour buses that run through town!). And then... you head on down the highway to Pacific Grove. Empty Spools Seminars are all in glorious classrooms set amidst the coastal woods. Everyone gets their own table. Does it get any better than this? Oh yes it does - they serve locally grown/raised foods that are healthy and delicious! I took a class from Sandra Leichner. I have always admired her work, and I wanted to learn how she so adeptly incorporates embroidery into her work. Here's an example of one of her blocks. And another. Can you see why I chose to take this class? Her embroidery work is phenomenal (not to mention her designwork, applique, embellishment, etc. - plus she's really a cool person!). One day during the seminars, Empty Spools has a "walk-about" where everyone gets to go and see what everyone has been working on in the myriad of workshops that are offered during each session. I fell head-over-heels in love with Cindy Needham's machine quilting and embellishment. I want to take a workshop from her!!! Take a look at what she did, in the photo below. She finds old linens, sets them on a piece of background fabric, and then begins to applique and embellish in an incredible fashion. Here is another example of Cindy's work. It is just stunning! * * * * * * * Okay, so now I can tell you that if you REALLY want to go check out the Empty Spools Seminars, you can take a full immersion five-day workshop from me! Here's the link - I'm teaching in Session IV next year, April 10-15, 2016. The workshop will have you making The Album block below, from my quilt, Friends of Baltimore. In the workshop, you'll learn all the details of needle-turn applique, reverse applique, precision applique, off-unit applique, layering, pleated flowers, stuffed round circles, embellishment, inking, and more! If you just want to take the class and bring a different block (of mine) to work on, I'd be happy to have you in the class. We're going to have FUN! My favorite workshops are ones like this, where all of the students have time to accomplish a lot of work, and get to put into practice all the tips I pass along. Join us; just click here to go to the Empty Spools website: http://emptyspoolsseminars.com/index.html. * * * * * * * But let's just say that you don't think you can make it out to California - or perhaps those dates don't work for you. Here's another option. I'm teaching two two-day, back-to-back workshops at Applique Away on Galveston Bay. I've been invited to teach two different workshops, both of which incorporate fairly simple techniques, but still give me a chance to teach some very specific skills and techniques. One workshop is for my Red Twirly Balls quilt, below. In that workshop, you'll learn the secrets for deconstructing blocks and making complex blocks so easy to make! This twirly ball block is entirely appliqued. The other workshop that I'm teaching is a Love Birds block. This block is one that is included in my Baltimore Glory quilt, as shown below. I made this quilt earlier this year because I had always had a hankering for an on-point Baltimore quilt. Here is a close-up of the block I will be teaching. Again, this is not a particularly difficult block to make, but there are still plenty of lessons and tips and techniques to be shared in the workshop. You can find out the details and register for the Applique Away on Galveston Bay workshops here: http://www.appliqueawayongalvestonbay.com/. * * * * * * * Now, I'm going to show you some pictures from the Baltimore on the Prairie seminar up in Nebraska. I taught non-stop for seven days in very full classes, but that just energizes me. So does seeing Tresa Jones, the administrator of the conference. She is such a delight! This year, Tresa arranged for the conference to be at the Lied Lodge - a wonderful setting amidst the apple farms of Mr. Morton, of Morton Salt (and Arbor Day!) fame. While at the conference, we had plenty of long lunch breaks, where I took the opportunity to go and see the Arbor Lodge, the historic home of one of the elder Mortons. When I go to places like this, I can't help but look around and see quilt designs. Below, you can see a nice design idea in the art deco wallpaper in the home. And a ventilation grate in the floor set similar design thoughts spinning in my head. Many of the beds in the bedrooms of the home had quilts on them, but this one caught my eye; it was a "Roman Coin" design for a Victorian crazy quilt. The Roman coin design just has strips set side by side with sashing between them. I had never seen this layout used for a crazy quilt, though - what a wonderful way to use up my dupioni silks and other special fabrics! See the quilt below (notice the wallpaper behind the bed, too...). I have always wanted to make a crazy quilt but gnashed my teeth at the thought of having to do a bunch of little "drawings" to insert in the quilt. With this layout... I only need to do stitching. Hooray! I think I know what I'm going to do now! Below is a close-up of the quilt above. The workshop rooms at Baltimore on the Prairie were wonderful - I hung quilts on the back wall... and waited for students to arrive. And arrive, they did! They all worked very hard on their renditions of the Album Block, shown below. I snapped a couple of pictures of the students' work - I love when they all choose different colors and fabrics. Wow! Here's one... And another... And another... And another. What a great set of students I had in all my classes; if any of you are reading this, here's my shout out to you: hooray! I had such a great time with all of you! Another teacher at Baltimore on the Prairie was dear, sweet Nancy Kerns. She taught two workshops, too - and it was a joy to see her there. She brought along her Classic Nutcrackers, made using my pattern. I loved her rendition of the quilt! Here are some close-ups of Nancy's blocks. Each of the little nutcracker patterns in the set tells the story behind the nutcrackers. Herr Drosselmeyer, above right, is the star of The Nutcracker ballet. I had to ask Nancy how she came up with the timepiece hanging on Herr Drosselmeyer's waist. She said it was just a button she'd been saving for the quilt... but then I had to ask how she did the chain - was it a real chain? And the answer was no - it was just an embroidered chain stitch, using Silk Sparkle thread. Nancy assures me that this is the best thread in the world for achieving a metallic look. Nancy is wonderful in that she is willing to share her knowledge so openly. She even gave me some of this magical thread! Here are some more of her nutcrackers. The one below is a gardener nutcracker; Nancy cleverly chose to use some camouflage fabric for his outfit. What a perfect choice! I've included an enlargement of the gardener nutcracker so you can see the fabric. Such fun! Here's another star of The Nutcracker ballet - the mouse king - along with the Santa nutcracker. And a nutcracker quilt would not be complete without the classic Nutcracker Soldier! Nancy did a great job embroidering his uniform. And notice how she made the face - it's so perfect! Below are the other nutcrackers. Each is delightful in its own way. Nancy also made all of the pieced blocks that form a border around the quilt. I love making quilts that have multiple pieced blocks bordering them. They add so much visual interest to a quilt. The other workshop that I taught at Baltimore on the Prairie was an eagle block. Below is the one made by Sharon Meyer. The fabric that she chose to use for her eagle was phenomenal. Do you notice the tassels on the flag rope? In a future blog post, I'll do a tutorial on how to make them. They are really easy to make. Sharon also brought along a couple other blocks she has been working on. Below is a ship block (these are from my Friends of Baltimore pattern)... And here is her woven basket block. I can't wait to see Sharon's whole quilt when she finishes it. * * * * * * * One of the very special events that Tresa Jones lined up for everyone to see was a presentation by Pat Kuhns (pronounced "coons"). She is a wonderful, energetic, sprite of a woman, who absolutely loves miniature quilts. It's not that she just loves miniature quilts; she loves miniature quilts that fit on miniature beds! We all had the joy of seeing her share that love with us for an hour. Take a look! Pat hunts down miniature beds in antique shops and adds the quilts - and the linens - for a complete look. So how big is this quilt and bed? Can you take a guess? Here's the same bed with my hand in the picture so you can see the approximate size of the bed. Here's another bed. I believe that this pattern was made based on a pattern designed by Primitive Gatherings. How small is it now, though? A bit longer than my hand. Notice the little pillow and sheet. Pat makes these using old napkins, lace, christening gowns, etc. - a wonderful re-purposing of assorted vintage linens. This bed has not only a bed cover, but also a rug and pillow covers. Oh my! This sashed squares quilt is perfect for this tiny little bed. Notice that the bed and quilt above had a sheet and a pillow on it. Pat put old linens to use on them. They add a nice touch and stay within the period of the bed and quilt design. Would you like to make a log cabin quilt using 1/16th inch logs? Pat has no trouble at all. She is an inveterate paper-piecer, which makes it "easy." Take a look at this bed and quilt. People have often thought that I was crazy for making quilts with 1/2-inch squares in them. But those nine-patches with 1/2-inch squares are NOTHING compared to what Pat has created. Remember... these are LITTLE beds with LITTLER quilts on them. Let you forget what "little" means, here's my hand again, to put things into perspective. And Pat's show just kept going on. Again, you can see the size of the bed and quilt when referencing my hand in the picture. Sometimes the bed was the showcase in the combination of a bed, a quilt, and the linens. This old miniature bed had a wonderful carved headboard and footboard. Again, my hand is here for reference sake. Making feathered stars is not for the sissies amongst us. But making teeny little feathered stars? Really? REALLY!!! Here is a close-up of the quilt above. Note that Pat has machine quilted this quilt... and added a bit of miniature piping in the border! Here is a picture of an old magazine that is, sadly, no longer in print. Do you see that eagle toward the bottom left-center? It's Pat's. She brought the eagle quilt with her - it was amazing! And LITTLE! See my fingertip at the bottom of this picture... And here is another log cabin quilt. Oh my! See my finger for reference as to the size of the logs. Pat has to use miniature prints in her quilts when she makes them. She not only does miniature piecing; she does miniature applique. I am tempted to say she is nuts but really, if I had time, I might do a couple of these, too. Here's another little quilt - with baskets. I'll stop complaining about making little pieces anymore, after seeing these quilts (well... maybe I won't... whining seems to make problems not seem so big, doesn't it?). I doubt that there is any quilt layout that Pat would not conquer. But what about a mariner's compass? Not a problem. Here, she'd made one and showed the size of her flying geese paper foundations. Ouch! Do you see the picture in the top right corner, below, with the mariner's compasses in them? Pat finished the quilt but did not bring it along. It was hanging in the Houston IQA quilt show this week - with a second place ribbon on it. Congrats, Pat!!! You can see how tiny the compasses are by looking at the straight pins in the mockups she prepared. And yet another incredible quilt with complex piecing in it. Pat hand-quilts some of her quilts; check out the one below. Again, now you can see the relative size of the blocks and the quilt. Yikes! And a lone star? Easy-peasy, right? Not for most of us. And certainly not at this size with a perfectly straight floater and piping in the binding! Pat has made more than one lone star quilt, though. Here's one with Lemoyne stars in the corners and side-setting triangles. Those are challenging to make when they are "regular-sized." By the way - Pat manages to consider color when she makes all of these miniature quilts. Look how this one is just luminous. Here's yet another lone star quilt. It's sweet on this sweet little bed, too. But what if you make a lone star and surround it with a ring of pieced diamonds (making it a broken star design), and then you insert Lemoyne Stars in the setting squares, applique moons in the side-setting triangles, and then add a border of half-diamonds and even more. Goodness gracious; Pat seems to take on one challenge after another! Pat says she has a couple hundred beds and mini-quilts in her house. She stores them on shelves and in boxes and just about everywhere. Do you see the little violin-playing frog on the right side of the sheet below? Pat found a cute, cute little linen with that motif in the corner and turned it into a bed sheet. Awesome! But there is more to tell about the quilt above. Pat gets a bit tickled when she says this quilt is a cheater-cloth quilt. Say what??! Yes, she used the cheater cloth, below, for the fabric in the quilt above. Take a look at the fabric above and then look at the close-up of the quilt below. Can you find the same fabrics in the cheater cloth fabric above, inserted into the quilt below? The most obvious one (to me) was the one to the right of my fingertip, below, Go find it in the cheater cloth, above! Below, she "miniaturized" a Lori Smith pattern. Wow. There were just so many beds and quilts. Look at the lovely sheet top on this four-poster bed. Honestly, the beds and the quilts just kept coming. We were not bored in the least and just kept ooh-ing and aah-ing with each new quilt and bed that came out. Here's some more. Some of the beds were quite primitive but still very functional. I love the linens on this bed. The pillowcase on the bed below came from the sleeve of a christening gown. I love the quilt on this bed. Pat doesn't really do "medallion quilts" (at least I didn't see any), but she often inserts a single central block. But there's something else that is delightful about this quilt and the linens it shares. Look at the sheet. Pat found a little handkerchief that had those two little motifs on it - they were perfect for the sheet! Some of the linens were even more unique; here you can see the mattress-cover sheet. And before we all knew it, Pat was packing her little beds and quilts back into boxes, leaving us in awe of her inventiveness, her skills, her joyful expression of creativity. If you are interested in going to Baltimore on the Prairie in 2016, you can find all the details here: http://botpapplique.wix.com/botp#! Tresa Jones has lined up some brand new teachers for 2016: Barbara Burnham, Jeanna Kimball, and Nancy Amidon. I love Nancy Amidon's teaching skills -- she teaches prepared-edge applique and leaves no one disappointed with what they have learned when the class is over. Even old needle-turn applique aficionados, like me, need to know how to do prepared-edge applique, so I put in a hearty recommendation for her workshop; I had her come teach workshops at my guild last year and she was nothing short of fantastic! * * * * * * * And now it's time to show you quilts from Becky Stephenson. Becky has a big heart made out of Texas gold, as you'll see. She has made several Relay for Life quilts as fund raisers for breast cancer research and support. The quilt below was one of them. the quilt was auctioned off, but Becky managed to have it given back to her. She had raised funds by selling opportunities: if you donated, you could have the name of someone who died of cancer inscribed on the quilt (in memory of...) - or if they were living with cancer, that person's name could be inscribed (in honor of...). Becky was at my house earlier last month with the quilt. It was gorgeous and so full of heart and meaning. Here's a close-up of the layout - and the beautiful quilting in it. There's a block in it for my sister, who died of breast cancer after it metastasized six years after she had beat it. Sometimes life is just not fair. And then there is Jack, who has been living with cancer for several years now. Here is a better look at the simple but perfectly chosen quilting on this quilt. Becky also made this quilt, along with her two sisters, Jerrianne and Gayle. Becky and Jerrianne call this "the cemetery quilt" because it was donated to the North Elm Cemetary Association in Milam County, Texas, as a fund raiser for them. The gals had one rule: pull the fabric out of a bag without any consideration for color, value, print, or anything else. And stitch it in place. Here's a close-up of the blocks. And you can see from these two photos... the fabric choices did not suffer from thoughtful placement! Becky also brought along another quilt - a funny Lone Star quilt. It was probably about 5 feet square. We had the biggest laugh over this quilt! It was made by an elderly woman several years ago. So what's so funny about this quilt? It is perfectly pieced. It actually lies flat and there is no "volcano" in the middle of it. The choice of fabrics? Well... there's more to the story. Here is a close-up of the center of this quilt. We were all laughing because all of these fabrics are double-knit polyester fabrics!! Becky bought this quilt at her guild for $5.00. She just couldn't let the quilt be thrown away, though nobody else seemed to want it. We laughed because I said, "Well, I guess this is what you do with all those old polyester double-knit pant suits from the 70s, right? As for the lime green setting pieces, my guess is that the maker didn't have any polyester pant suits large enough to cut up, so she went to the nearest Wal-mart and bought some cheap double-knit. It turned out to be lime green. Go figure! In truth, quilts of this age are experiencing renewed interest and increasing value. Some of the diamond pieces in the quilt were even pieced - note the center blue/cream/orange diamond. But... oh my... the quilt maker may not have chosen the most wonderful fabrics by today's standards, but her piecing skills were excellent - particularly considering she hand-pieced all of this double-knit! Take a look at the back of this quilt. Holy cow! Because I had a bunch of gals at the house for a bee, we put this monstrous quilt on my coffee table, awaiting everyone's arrival. It was hysterical! * * * * * * * And now I get to show you some of my favorite things that happen each month: quilts and photos of quilts that cross my path as time flies by. First of all, here is a quilt that was pieced and quilted by LeeAnn Lively. She is a great quiltmaker and a superb quilter. This was made as a wedding quilt for someone. Take a look at LeeAnn's quilting. She has a computerized longarm that makes me envious. And another close-up... and another.... And a beautifully quilted border. Ann Miley shared a beautiful quilt she had made using French General fabrics. You rock, Ann! Debbie Williams made a quilt based on my Ruffled Roses pattern - it won first place in the Claremore quilt show. She made it but changed the center block, using ribbon work. It's a stunner, for sure! Diane Lacombe sent me pictures of her Twirly Balls and Pinwheels, made using my pattern. Wow - it's outstanding! I love her choice of fabrics - and you can see that her piecing and applique are perfect. Martha Fry sent me two pictures - both of them used Lady of the Lake blocks. The one below is called "Churchville" because Martha grew up near the Churchville, Pennsylvania reservoir. But I got a kick out of why Martha sent me the pictures. After all, these are not my patterns. She said she read my blog last month and got a chuckle. Last month's blog was filled with quilts that used (Halloween/Fall) cheddar/orange fabrics. She sent me the pictures because of my influence in past blogs -- I LOVE cheddar in my quilts! I thought that was really cute and sweet. So here is her second Lady of the Lake quilt, filled with lots of lovely fabrics including a bunch of cheddar fabrics. Martha called this quilt "Autumnal Churchville" because the trees around the reservoir are beautiful this time of year. She said, "the fabrics are all Civil War reproductions and I am surprised at how bright it looks. It must be the cheddar:)" It's great, Martha! Rachel Phipps shared a photo of her Ruffled Roses quilt. Lucky Rachel; she finished the quilt earlier this year and got it back from the quilter in time to enter it in a local quilt show where it won First Place in the judged competition and First Place in the Viewers' Choice. Here is what I loved about her quilt: she wanted to make the quilt a bit larger, but still keep it symmetric, so she added the rosebud blocks inside the outer pieced swag border, saying, "I just love how it turned out!" Me, too, Rachel! Sue Balch invested four years into making her Friends of Baltimore quilt -- taking the final stitch on October 17. It is entirely needle-turn appliqued and hand-quilted. Let's hope that she enters it in some local, regional, and even national quilt shows - I think it will inspire others to make challenging quilts. Sue had a lot of personal and family challenges to deal with during the making of this quilt; let's hope that the quilt was part of the healing therapy. I'm going to post some of the block pictures that Sue sent me (thanks, Sue!), for you all to see. . And now I have one more block to share with all of you. It was made by Sandy Kristoferson. She and her guild decided to make my Baltimore Glory as their raffle quilt. Oh my - now that is a true challenge, but hopefully they will sell a TON of tickets for their effort. What a wonderful quilt to make, though! Sandy did a beautiful job on her quilt block. I can't wait to see the rest of the blocks and the finished quilt. Send pictures, please! * * * * * * * And now... just one quick picture of a few rows of the IQA Quilt Show in Houston. There are 28 vendor aisles, each ten feet wide with a 10-foot deep both on each side of the aisles. This photo gives you an idea of how large this show is; it is overwhelming and unbelievable. In addition to the vendor booths, there is still MORE square footage devoted to the quilt exhibits. Can you imagine how your step-counters would be going crazy at the end of each day? My joints were about as stiff and sore as they've ever been and to be honest, I only made it through 18 aisles and about 60 percent of the quilt exhibits. I'm rarely out of energy at these shows and make it through the whole set of vendor booths in 8 hours and then all of the quilt exhibits in another 8 hours. I was at the show for a total of 36 hours this time. Somehow, I missed an awful lot of things. I would have gone back to see them all, but the Houston weather was SO bad that I didn't want to risk driving in again. Sigh... but I still have plenty of pictures to show you in future posts. I stay downtown for the first two days of the show so that I don't have to commute and also so I have a place to put all the "stuff" I gather. The show opens Wednesday at 5:00 pm and continues all day for the next four days. On Thursday night, a group of friends all gather in one of the upstairs hotel "sitting areas" and do a "show-and-tell" of the things we've purchased. That way, if there are any really cool things, we can go back on Friday and pick them up. We invite whomever we know to join us for our show-and-tell. This year, we were blessed when Cathy Woodson was passing by us on her way to take some quilts to her car. She asked what we were doing and then we asked what she was doing... and so we asked her to share her goodies with us. We were in for such a wonderful surprise! Below is an incredible quilt made in the 1830s. That's Cathy on the right - and JoAnne on the left, who I had met when I went out to southern California to teach. Then Cathy asked who I was and when I told her, she exclaimed that she had taken a workshop from me a couple months ago and showed me photos of her New York Beauty. This is such a small world! Back to the quilt below. It's a true treasure and we were lucky to have Cathy sort of "accidentally" join us. Here's a better picture of the quilt - aren't the colors vibrant?! And the zig-zag border and outer square-in-square border and the broderie perse... wow! Here is a close-up of the zig-zag border. I love those colors! And here is a close-up of the broderie perse. Look at those colors and the design. Such beauty! This is a very well-preserved quilt. I loved the square-in-square border on this quilt - and the quilt maker's use of a stripe in those triangles. Cathy pointed out one of the identifying marks indicating the age of this quilt - and probably where it came from. It is bound with what is called "Trenton Tape;" on this quilt, it is the narrow applied binding woven with longitudinal stripes in three different shades of brown. I did a little research to find that Trenton Tape is a woven binding found on quilts that originate in the Delaware River Valley area of New Jersey and sometimes in nearby Pennsylvania. The tape has also been seen in quilts in a wider area. In any case, it is considered a rare edge treatment in use between the 1830s and the 1860s. Next, Cathy showed us an interesting broken dishes quilt. Check out the border... and the area in the middle, which identifies the date of the quilt. Can't quite see it? Wait... Look at the broken dishes blocks. They are separated by four-patches. And the center of the quilt has an add-on label: GRANDMOTHER 1905. So we know it's old, for sure! Here is another quilt that Cathy shared - a Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt. Cathy liked it because the "path" between the flowers was different than the usual full hexagon path. It was a band of narrow diamonds. Lovely! Cathy - thank you! Sharon Meyer showed her special buy - a quilt of pinwheels in and between stars. Here is a close-up of the blocks. I love the use of crazy prints! And the maker hand-pieced the entire quilt. Most of today's quilt makers would not have the patience for hand-piecing a quilt like this. Sharon also purchased a quilt top from Jane Lury of Labors of Love. The brightness of the reds made it sparkle! So what did I purchase? Two quilt tops that I have yet to photograph (you'll see them in another post)... and one finished quilt. Cindy Rennels' booth is always one of my favorite stops - and this year did not disappoint me. When she opened up this quilt and showed it to me, I just could not stop smiling at it. Did you know that there are certain quilts that, when you look at them, you can't help but smile? This was true for me when Cindy showed me this quilt. My friend Sharon and I started calling it "the smile quilt." It is so quirky and unusual! The circles aren't exactly circular. Who cares? And there's a blue one. Huh? Who cares?! The undulating borders are unique - they are part of what make me smile. I mean... who makes a quilt with somewhere around 1700 circles in it? That is a VERY rough estimate -- I am not about to count them! And when that undulating line of circles came to a corner... so what if it didn't wrap nicely onto the next side of the quilt. Why not just throw in another ring of circles as the intersection solution?!! It cracked me up! And that's why I bought this quilt. It made me smile. Really big. * * * * * * * So... if I loved a quilt with 1700 circles in it (give or take a couple hundred), why not love a quilt with 1,620 circles in it? My friend Jerrianne had sent me a couple of different photos of two different quilts, each with lots of grape vines. She said she really wanted to make that quilt. So what did I do? I sat down and drew up the block. The 28-inch block. And then I drew up the borders and the corner block. And now, 1,620 circles of grapes later... I've made the stems for my grape vines. I'm ready to join in the fray with 5 other gals in my sewing group, to make an 84-inch square quilt with a ton of circles on it. I've already done a lot of the preparation work on my blocks. I can't wait to finish the quilt... but I also know that suddenly I've got a ton of life-interferences popping up that will put this on the back-burner for a while. Waaaahhhhh.... I hate when that happens, but life goes on, one day at a time. I'll get it done. One circle at a time! And you will all get to see it grow and appear in due time. But in the meantime, some of my girlfriends and I started a piecing bee. It's a smaller group, but we recognized that our regular bees do not afford us the luxury of power sewing using our machines. Bees seem to spend half their time doing show-and-tell and eating, leaving not enough time to bother bringing a machine for stitching. This piecing bee that meets for two solid days, all day, through dinner and into the evening. We meet quarterly. And we stitch like crazy without the interruption of housework, phones, computers, emails, family, etc. (not that those aren't important, of course!). We met this past month and I started on a new quilt that I'm calling Blue Heaven (unless a better name comes along before I finish it!). I saw this quilt in the offices of Quilts, Inc. in Houston a couple years ago. It knocked my socks off! I had seen the same quilt on a photo that someone sent me a while back. And so when the piecing bee met at my house... I started cutting and stitching like a mad woman. I had gathered 16 different navy/white fabrics. I pressed them and sliced them into narrow strips. Then I started stitching them together and pressing them neatly... AAnd slicing the strips into sub-strips. I have sewn and cut dozens and dozens of units. And I've done some wide sets of strips, too. And when I put them all together, I've got the start of my new Blue Heaven quilt! It's looking good, I think! In this picture, you can kind of see how it will all look, if you compare what I've sewn with the picture of the antique quilt at the end of the table. Whee! So this quilt is on the priority list - but I have not had time to touch it since the bee met a few weeks ago. Time flies, doesn't it? Alright - it is now the evening of November 1 and if I'm going to get this post online on the first of the month before you all go to bed, I suppose it is time to close. I have enjoyed reading all of your comments - and thank you for your time! If you get a chance between now and December 1 when I post again, go and visit my website. I updated the Gallery and have posted a lot more pictures of my quilts at www.comequilt.com. Enjoy a view of many more quilts there, once you are finished here. Happy quilting to all - Thanks for indulging my passion by reading this! Sue (c) 2015 Susan H. Garman
Here are examples of artistic expression from two isolated communities of the African diaspora. The quilters of Gee’s Bend, Alabama are fairly well-known here in the United States. Especial…
THE IDEA BEHIND THIS PROJECT IS TO PUSH THE UPCYCLING TREND TO NOT ONLY USING GROWN UPS WEAR, BUT ALSO BABY WEAR. CHILDREN GROW FAST AND THERE ARE TONS OF OUTWORN CLOTHES LAYING AROUND. MANY OF THESE GARMENTS HAVE STAINS ON THEM AND IN MOST CASES A LOW SECOND HAND VALUE. TO CREATE A WARM AND FASHIONABLE PUFFER JACKET OUT OF THESE, THEY ARE A GIVEN A NEW PURPOSE.
3 of the most popular Diamond sizes. You get one of each, 2", 3", 4". Markings are laser engraved for long lasting use. 60 Degree Diamonds. This set is 1/8" thick acrylic. We have dozens of different sets of templates in both 1/8" & ~1/4". The thicker ones are great for Long Arm Quilters. We are a small Laser Engraving company. We take care of our customers and appreciate any business. We also take special design requests.
Carvings from the Te Puia carving and weaving school in Rotorua, New Zealand
While it’s obvious I haven’t been busy writing blog posts, know that I have been busy sewing. In fact, I recently finished one of the most time-intensive quilts I’ve made. It all …
Enjoy the latest tips, techniques, projects, and patterns from QUILTsocial! Includes The picnic bag & tablecloth, Pretty pin cushion, Sewing borders, 5 stellar features on a new entry level sewing machine, The super accurate way to make flying geese quilt blocks, The friendship star block, The 3 most important tips for binding, Do you use these 9 sewing habits?, 2 quilting techniques to improve speed & accuracy, The embroidered word and quilting, and much much more!
What do you need to start quilting? This beginner's guide includes all of the bare minimum tools every quilter needs in order to get started.
simple truths stitched sustenance speak the change, then wear it Quilted Cotton Denim “Miner” Style Pants All-Over Embroidery “You Just Love”, “Compassion”, “Star”, “Magnolia Pearl”, “Neil Young”, “Revolution”, Peace Signs, Cactus, Flowers, Cowboy, Butterfly, Bird w/Guitar, etc. Hand Fading, Distressing, Patching, Mending & Stitching Adjustable Button Waist Button Fly Adjustable Slide Buckle at Back Front Pockets; One Back Pocket Belt Loops MP Love Co. Patch Each Magnolia Pearl item is cut "One Size Fits Most". Please contact an MP Maestro for measurements.
Making a new “End of Day” Quilter’s Basket. Happy Mothers Day! These baskets are great fun to make. Whats more, it’s using the strings I cut off from quilting, that would normally be thrown away. That really is half the battle. The fabric is already cut. And you could say its free, because for most … Continue reading Making a new “End of Day” Quilters Basket →
Behind the curtain at Les Passementeries de L’île de France
This quilt “save/rescue was one of the most challenging projects I’ve worked on in a long time. I had offered the quilt to 2 of my different retreat groups and with no takers I decided to work on t…
This afghan is gorgeous and the pattern is free. Here are some projects I spotted on Ravelry - so inspiring! Get the pattern for this knitted patchwork quilt: link to PDF, link to Ravelry page. SUGGESTED MATERIALS - KNITPICKS: This post contains affiliate links.
Vintage Handmade Scrap Quilt Fabric Basket with Wooden Handles/Organization/Kids Room Decoration/Baskets Darling vintage handmade basket made up of scrap quilt fabric with thick cutout wooden handles. Would look super cute to organize stuffed animals in a baby or kids room or just use as a cute storage option 15" Diameter 8" Tall *Flat rate for shipping due to size* Each piece is handpicked and sourced with love. Thank you for taking a peek at my little shop! Please note: Most of my items are pre-loved pieces, unless stated otherwise. Which means, there may be some signs of wear. I try my best to mention any noticeable marks or flaws, but all items are sold as is and all sales are final. Please inspect, ask questions, or request for any additional photos or information if you have any questions or concerns about an item, please don’t hesitate to ask! Once an item ships out, seller is no longer responsible for package. If item is lost or not delivered please contact your local post office most items will be sent with tracking and is insured for up to a certain amount. For fragile items, we do our best to pack items carefully with enough packing and protection. If an item arrives to you broken, please contact us. Normally we do not offer refunds, but broken items are at the sellers discretion and will be reviewed on case by case basis. In order to reduce our footprint packages will often times be packed with recycled packing materials including the box it is shipped in.
A Hera marker is a versatile stitching tool. Inexpensive and easy to use, it helps in quilting, pojagi, embroidery and sewing.
Find the latest issue of today's quilter magazine
Every year amateur knitting group The Materialistics take on a wildly extreme project. This year's might just be their most ambitious yet: knitted versions of some of the most famous paintings in the world
you’re new to sewing, you may have just started with the standard presser foot that comes on the machine and haven’t yet changed it out.
7 bags in 7 different sizes! Click through to see how easy it is to print the pattern at reduced scale and sew bags in any size you need.
(Jenny's cutie pie, Ty!) We are SO EXCITED!! Quilt Market Houston 2015... here we come! :) There has been many hours spent preparing for these next couple of weeks. Here are a few pictures showing some of our most recent preparations. Metro Hoops runner and three examples of the free runner pattern that comes with our new QCRmini! A fresh QCR runner to go in our booth at market. Metro Twist Jenny's awesome Curve It Up Challenge quilt from our CIU QAL earlier this year. Her signature grid quilting on this is simply amazing! Jenny and her family have been very busy folding and stuffing our new QCR patterns and QCRmini patterns! Yay for all those helpers! :) Sherilyn's runners for market and festival. Metro Rings, Metro Hoops, QCR runner and QCRmini runner Helen's runners for market. Chic Shells, Chic Kisses and Metro Medallion Jenny's runners, Metro Scope and Metro Twist We are releasing 8 brand new patterns! :) We are absolutely thrilled about these! 3 new patterns using our original QCR. And 5 new patterns using our brand new QCRmini! And finally, our 12 new patterns in our new book, One Wonderful Curve! Wow!! So much Fun!! All of these beautiful patterns will be available to everyone November 1st, on our website, sewkindofwonderful.com Packing today, and leaving on a jet plane tomorrow! We hope to see many of you in Houston! :) Happy Quilting Everyone! ~Sew Kind of Wonderful~ Jenny, Helen, and Sherilyn
BUY 1 Flannelette Item GET 1 Flannelette Item FREE. Our thick and luxurious flannelette sheets are in a class of their own. Thicker, warmer and more durable than your average flannelette, these sheets will keep you warm and cosy in bed. Brushed and sheared techniques create the perfect delicious velvet texture that is more than just soft. Crafted from 100% Fairtrade organically farmed cotton, free from toxic chemical sprays and genetically modified seeds, our organic flannelette creates warmth for your bedroom sanctuary. Match or contrast with our Organic Flannelette Quilt Covers for the perfect winter cocoon. Set includes 1 Fitted Sheet, 1 Flat Sheet and 2 Pillowcases (NB: Single and King Single includes 1 Pillow Case) Non Toxic Dyes - All of our products are dyed using water based Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) approved dyes, which are free from AZO dyes, toxic chlorine bleach, toxic heavy metals, toxic formaldehyde, toxic aromatic solvents and we do not use any toxic colour fasteners to artificially lock in the colour with chemicals. Composition - 100% Organic Cotton.
Okay everyone! This long time anticipated crochet quilt tutorial is finally available! (happy jig!) My friend Tiffany of Fanny Lu Designs took the time to put together the most thorough and detailed t
