Looking for Plaids

After my last post about my progress on the Carolina Christmas Mystery Quilt you all are going to wonder what in the world was I doing going out and buying all these shirts?

Look.  I already told you I get a little bored at some of the monotony sometimes right?  Well, that’s not the reason, truely I just wanted to test this experiment.  I guess since I have Quiltville on the brain I just thought I’d give the ‘ol second hand shirt buying a try and see what I come up with.

I stopped at the Salvation Army on my way home from work and browsed through the button down shirts.  I looked over many a tag for the ones that said 100% cotton and decided on the above photographed red ones.  7 Shirts for a grand total of $10.42 cents.

I already cut one up just to see what I could get out of it and it seriously is equivelent to 3 or 4 fat quarters worth of fabric.  Like I’ve NEVER (yeah right) made a shirt before…of course it is silly!

Anyway.  I thought these were nice.  Nothing planned yet but I did have my eye on a photo of a plaid kaleidescope quilt.  We’ll see.  Maybe during quilting season of 2011.  Let’s see how far I get on my current projects…

Carolina Christmas Mystery Quilt Progress

It has been three and a half weeks since I started the Carolina Christmas Mystery Quilt from Quiltville.com and I have to say I’m still plugging away at it.

Lordy, Lordy, Lordy … it is time consuming.

Of this I am always fully aware, that is why I can appreciate all those beautiful quilts I gaze at during the shows and festivals.  Anyone who has ever pieced together a quilt surely must have this same appreciation.

I’m probably a little slower than the average quilter as I tend to have this problem of trying to be perfect.  I also have this habit of having to pre-c0unt everything in order to make sure I’ve cut everything out.  I know, I know, I know… Bonnie says to just “cut a bunch out”, but I find that I need exacts.  Suppose this comes from living with an Engineer for 18 years?  Or maybe having my degree from an Engineering School?  A B.S. vs a B.A. or B.F.A.?

I decided to resurrect an envelope system in order to help me with the counting.  I need to make 48 Poinsettia Star Blocks and 52 Fox and Geese Blocks.  I counted out 48 long envelopes and 52 smaller envelopes.  The difference in envelope size will tell me at a glance which block it is.

I’m almost finished with the cutting out phase.

I have sewn all of the HST’s for both blocks and am now just trying to scrounge up more neutrals to  complete the Fox and Geese blocks.

Because I get bored sometimes with the monotony of some of this I did experiment with some crazy stringing and produced 4 blocks with the scrap leftovers.

I KNOW, I KNOW!  Stop!  I know you just though to yourself “well duh, Cathy, that is why it takes you so long!  You go off on tangents and don’t stick to getting the project finished!”.

Sigh.

Well, you’re right, so thanks,  but this weekend should be a great opportunity to  make some real progress.

Must keep sewing.

Must keep sewing.

Must keep sewing…

So if we don’t talk in the next few days, because I’m buried under a mound of envelopes and fabric scraps, have a very Happy New Year!

Quiltville’s Carolina Christmas Mystery Quilt Part 2 – My version

I’ve been plugging away at the Mystery Quilt project over at Quiltville.

As the finished quilt is now up you are able to see that it consists of two blocks, the Poinsettia Star and a Christmas Star.

As I have been following along with the mystery, when I came to step two, about halfway through I switched gears and decided to go right to the Poinsettia Star Block portion of this mystery.  I kept thinking I might be better off if I did the Poinsettia Star Block first using my 2″ finished speedy half triangle paper template.

It works perfect for this.  This is completely different than Bonnie’s technique though.  What I am doing is using 2 half square triangles instead of a rectangle with two corner squares sewn on the diagonal like Bonnie’s.  The end effect will be the same when you look at the quilt and since I can use the template…even better.

First of all, here is the template I created for this step.

speedyhalftris20

I printed 50 of these templates.  48 of these will be used for the Poinsettia Star block and the other 2 will be the pick-up remainder half square triangle blocks for the Christmas Star block.

Cut out Reds and Neutrals a little larger than an 8.5″ x 11″ piece of paper.  A fat quarter should yield 2.  Layer a Neutral and a Red right sides together.

Next, layer one of the templates on top of these two fabrics and pin in place.

Place under the pressure foot and stitch following the arrows.  Backstitch at the edges which get cut.  This helps to lock in a few threads so when the paper gets removed the stitches don’t come out.

The pencil mark shows the area which will be back stitched.

Continue sewing along the dashed lines.  When you get to an edge, turn and keep on sewing.

Then, while you still have the template on the fabric, you can make a choice to stitch a couple of bonus lines.  The long straight stitching line on the right side will yield a 2.5″ strip (2″ finished width) and the short length stitching line on the bottom will yield a 2″ strip (1.5″ finished width).  Left un-stitched the 2.5″ width can be used to cut out 2.5″ neutral blocks — just an idea.

Now cut the template apart.

I used a rotary cutter to cut out the big pieces and then my scissors to cut the diagonal on the triangles.  You can use either your scissors or the rotary cutter for all of it, it’s your choice.  Both will work.

Then cut off the 1.5″ finished width strip at the bottom.

Then cut apart the HST’s.

Remove the paper, press and assemble the Poinsettia Block.

The big reason why I wanted to start with this Poinsettia Block was I can leave some of these strips aside for use in the Christmas Star Block as well as the remaining 4 red half square triangles (HST’s).  Each template yields 12 HST’s and the Poinsettia block needs 8 and the Christmas Star Block needs 4…

perfect!

We are getting a lot of snow today so it looks like I actually might get a chance to work more on this project tomorrow.  Seriously, I don’t know how Bonnie does it so fast.  I’m figuring that just the 48 Poinsettia blocks will take me about 4 weekends to finish.  We’ll see…hope they go faster.

Quiltville’s Carolina Christmas Mystery Quilt Step 1 – my version

In a post a few days ago I told you I was being sucked into the Carolina Christmas Mystery Quilt vortex over at Quiltville, no?  Well Bonnie just posted that she’s going to be gone for a few days so everyone following the mystery ought to have enough time to catch-up!

(She don’t know me very well).  Catch-up?  Okay…I’ll just try to get step 1 in and we’ll see where we go from there.  Okay?

Alright people.  Move aside.  I need to look for my reds, my greens, my neutrals and somewhere I need to locate a golden yellow.

Reds. Check.

Greens. Check.

Neutrals. What do you mean by neutrals?  What?  I can’t believe with all this fabric I have in boxes, bins, and drawers there aren’t any neutrals?  Geez!

Golden Yellow. Harrumph.  Again.  I could have sworn I had some nasty golden yellow around here somewhere.  Nothing.

Step 1: Bonnie is using the golden yellow matched with a neutral in 2.5″ strips sewn together and then cut into 4.5″ units.  I’ve used the strip method before but have been experimenting with my own paper piecing method using 8.5″ x 11″ pieces of paper.

I cut two fabrics the size of the paper, match them right sides together and stitch along pre-printed sewing lines that I’ve drafted on the paper.  I’ve done this technique a few times and it works for me on strips, half square triangles and quarter square triangles.  I guess the closest I’ve seen are the Thangles products but from what I can tell those use strips and not the paper that comes out of your printer.

Here is the template I created for the 2.5″ strip sets:

speedytwoandhalfstrips

I printed 16 pieces of paper to get enough units.

Blogs I follow – Quiltville

A blog I love to read is Quiltville by Bonnie Hunter.

www.quiltville.blogspot.com

Currently she is putting up a quilting mystery sew-along for a Christmas Quilt.  January through March is when I set aside space in my sewing area to work on quilts but because this is Christmas I’m toying with following along on the mystery.

Lord knows I have something like 10 or so quilt tops that I’ve started or are in various stages of progress.  And Lord knows too I don’t need to start another one!  But I just can’t resist the pull here at Quiltville.

IT IS SUCKING ME INTO IT’S VORTEX…

For one, it looks kinda fun.

For two, I can only be inspired by Bonnie’s passion and speed at getting these quilts finished.  My God…does she sleep?

I don’t know.  Do you think I should try to sew along?  Darn it!  I’m jumping in!

Hope it doesn’t end up in another box somewhere in the closet half finished.

Wish me luck!

Seeing plenty in Sisters, OR

Metal Horses adorn a field outside Sisters, OR

Three more weeks behind me.  Two on the road and one heading up a community festival.  This time, travel was to Oregon and Northern California.  These were family visits combined with some much needed R&R.

Me outside The Stitchin Post, Sisters, Oregon during the Outdoor Quilt Festival

Welcome to Sisters, Oregon!   It just was entirely coincidence that a family reunion taking place over the second weekend in July just so happened to be but 30 minutes from Sisters, Oregon.  I have to admit that I was completely out of touch with the Internationally acclaimed Outdoor Quilt Festival that takes over this town for just one day.  Talk about luck.

My sister in law…the amazingly talented Bari invited myself and my Mom up for the show and I was so thrilled to have such a diversion.  So many quilts to see.  So many stores to pop in to, so much to do I can hardly believe that it only happens for one day once a year!

The Gee's Bend quilters sign their award winning books outside The Stitching Post

The big highlight for me was meeting the Gee’s Bend quilters.  I bought both of their books and all the ladies had signed them.  I just find their stories so wonderful.  And oh what they can do with worn out work clothes and denim!

If you are not familiar with the Gee’s Bend quilters and their quilts and quilting/graphic style I would encourage you to check out this npr clip.  Just quickly browsing through the books my immediate first reaction is amazement.  I just can’t imagine the poverty these families have lived through.

The other reaction I have is joy.  Despite the circumstances these women found immeasurable joy through their expression in the quilting.  Materials came from everything they could find and use.  And nothing was random, although it might look like it for some of the designs, there was purpose in everything they did.  I think this is what attracts us to these quilts.  We are drawn into their stories and can share the appreciation we all have for creating something beautiful.

Besides the Gee’s Bend encounter I just couldn’t get enough of seeing the entire town covered in quilts.  Every store in town had quilts hanging from every possible place imaginable.

I tried to figure out the order of things…there was one but only having a day to try and figure it all out I just stood back and enjoyed being able to completely absorb the moment.

I looked forward to turning the next corner wondering what I would see.

This was main street.  As you can see there was a lot of people.  The streets are closed to traffic and everyone just wanders about.  The only downside that day was the temperature was getting very very hot.  Although we are at about 3,500 feet in altitude the high desert gets downright miserable about 2:00pm in the afternoon.  I think the temperature reached about 95F.  There was a wildfire reported to still be uncontained nearby on a mountain called Black Butte.

We stayed for only a short visit.  I bought plenty and snapped enough inspirational photos for years to come.  The next week I’d find myself chasing a few waterfalls…

From the Prairie to the Last Frontier to the Crossroads of America, a busy May!

Well it has been a busy few weeks for me and I’m going to need to do a few posts just to get it all in.  In April I went to the 2009 edition of the International Quilt Festival…so I’ll need to do a post on that when I get a chance.  There were some really beautiful quilts that I want to share…and also an interesting little side story that I’ll mention but for now I’m just going to recap where all I’ve been in the last few weeks.

I know I would have posted earlier had it not been for this funny thing called a power source.  I tell ya.  This is the second time its happened where the power to our SBC DSL 2Wire box craps out.  The last time this happened we were down for two weeks and had spent hours on the phone with SBC, even ordered a new box only to find out it wasn’t the box at all but the power supply.  Urgh!  So it did it again just before we left on one of these trips I’m about to mention and my husband decided to bypass all the rig-a-ma-ro and go direct to purchasing a new power supply.  It came in the mail today and viola!  We are up and running again!

So…I mentioned the quilt festival.  Here’s just a couple of photos to wet the appetite.  More will come in another post.  OOOh so much to talk about.

The IQF schedule

Quilt Lovers converge on the Stephens Convention Center in droves!

Then it was off to Peoria, IL to photograph the Ten Outstanding Young Person’s of Illinois.  There really is nothing like trying to take photos of people in a dark dungeon of a room and balance out the light with a spotlight glaring at you!  Urgh!  I know I know…photographer?  Me?  Well yes…I do have a pro camera and equipment that I take out every once in a while and actually do get busy with some work…

The TOYP

The Judge...shhh don't say anything I wouldn't say...

White Sox represented

A really cool volunteer

The above honorees were celebrated over the 1st weekend in May.  I got to play at professional photographer and it was a lot of fun.  But what does this have to do with sewing????  I know…once more I’ve gone off the tangent but actually I did sew the backdrop for the photo shoot a few years ago and used my training in procion dyes to dye the material.  It works in a pinch and other than possibly straightening out a few of the drapes the effect does the job.  So really nothing.  It’s just a little side job I do to earn a little money and keep me out of trouble.  It’s a good hobby…besides sewing.  And someday I’ll actually work out the lighting over the sewing machine to take some good photos.  Who knows.

Then it was off to the Last Frontier!  Whoo Hoo!  Another trip to Alaska! Ah laas SKAH! as Mrs. Palin would say it.  It’s funny.  Every time I said Alaska I would put the emphasis on the SKA…it drives everyone crazy now.  It’s a good political indicator for me as I would come to find out.  I just say ALASKAaaah! and watch the reaction.  Pretty hysterical.

Anyhooosy we were there to celebrate a final sister-in-law graduating from college.  We were up in Fairbanks for three days and then we had to get down to Denali to visit more family and see our newest niece who was born in January.  I decided to bring along a UFO that was my husband’s Grandmother’s before she passed away nearly 8 or so years ago.  Bertha had 9 children, umpteen grandchildren and gargantuanumpteen great grandchildren when she passed away at 92.  She adopted me just like one of her own when I married one of her many grandchildren back in 1992.  For almost a decade she’d send me $5 in a birthday card.  She was pretty amazing.  I didn’t know of her comitment to crochet until she passed away and I was given a box of yarn and miscellaneous old sewing thread and notions.

Inside the box was a broken knitting holder and inside THAT was a half finished baby blanket.  No instructions and the remainder of the yarn was strewn about in a few

Grandma's UFO finished!

other bags and boxes.  I just sorted through the things at the time and thought someday I’ll try and finish this.  Since the occasion arose that a new baby was on the way I pulled out the blanket and figured it all out.  Again…what does this have to do with sewing?  Wellllllllll….about the only thing related is more room for me in my sewing space and crochet actually does use the term ’stitch’…that’s about it.  Sorry.  But here’s a photo of the finished blanket.

If you look really really close you can tell where Bertha ends and I pick up.  My stitches are much bigger and looser.  It worked and for not being a super duper crochet artist it all worked out.

Denali Park Road

Now.  I know you are all wondering about AlaSKAaaah!  If you have never been I highly recommend it.  The vastness of the place will really blow you away.

One way to get away

You can decide if you want to go rustic.  As in cabin and out house.  Here is a living accommodation not for the faint of heart, but a real Alaskan cabin.

Bring your own toilet paper

Complete with all the comforts of your own personal out house.  The luxury is paramount.  You even have your own personalized foam seat and privacy screen.

It would do some good to let you all know that I managed not to drink any fluids while visiting just so I didn’t have to use the facilities.  I might have come away with a bout of IBS…

Don’t worry folks we did not stay the night here.  Alaska does have hotels and while we were in Fairbanks we stayed at a lovely one, with a shower even.

Animals are everywhere in AlasSKAaah!  Here is a moose just lolly gagging about.

Moose in the road. Doesn't he know about the road kill policy?

And the state bird, the Ptarmigan.  Ooh.  Hope I spelled that correctly else we’d just have to call it Chicken (a little inside AlasSKAaah! humor!).

The State Bird

We saw nearly all the top 5 animals.  No bear on this trip but we did spot the specks of a Lynx.  It was pretty exciting.  At least I’m sticking with the story that it was a Lynx.  Clearly it couldn’t have been anything other than a Lynx.  Through the brush, flashes of fur, Carribou running out of the way.  Yup.  It was a Lynx.

Dahl sheep were high up on the peaks, Carribou were down in flatlands, Moose were all over acting like it’s their territory or something and plenty of various other wildlife.  Spring hadn’t quite

gotten there as most of the place was still gray and nothing in bloom.

The only life and color blooming existed at the two quilt shops I managed to visit while in Fairbanks.

Northern Threads in Fairbanks

Inside Northern Threads...do I look like I just rolled out of the woods or what?

I will have to say that I was DE-Light-ED at both The Material Girls and Northern Threads.

Material Girls Fairbanks

Colorful.  Full of Life.  Bright.  Lots of fabrics and just a delight.  I bought a few yards of batiks at both and decided to pick up a Shop Hop Block from each store.

Inside Material Girls. Yup. I really did come out of the woods for this one.

Northern Threads also had a marvelous section of yarn and very beautiful samples on display.  It really was a treat

to be able to v

isit.  I know that if I was ever abandoned in AlasSKAah! I wouldn’t be far from a place that at least I could spend time on a really great hobby.  This was comforting.

Then, if all this travel wasn’t enough the next week we were off to Indianapolis to spend the weekend with a college roomate of mine.  It had been probably 12 years since I’d seen her in person so there was plenty of catching up to do.

Our trip included ‘the race’.  I endured.  I’ve seen better ones.  This year there were too many crashes and not enough strategic driving.  I’m not a huge race fan but at least if you are there to watch the spectacle it is pretty amazing.

I’m back home now and my sewing room extends it’s hands out to me.  Come inside my long lost friend!

Quilt Hop Day – NW Chicago

Hello friends,

On Saturday I decided to get a reading on the local quilt shops, shop for some fabric and all around just wanted to get out and see what’s changed.  I like to do this every once in a while just to get some inspiration and also to take the temperature in the local area of the business of sewing.

I had made big plans to visit about 8 shops but I soon realized that wasn’t going to happen.  The weather was turning after my 4th stop and time was slipping away from me so around 2pm I headed for home.  It looks like I’ll have to visit my list in a couple of outings.  No problem.  It will be fun to get out again on another day.

My first stop was A Touch of Amish in Barrington, Illinois.

My tour began on Northwest Highway through Palatine and then into Barrington.  I’ve been a customer at A Touch of Amish for many years so I had an idea of their inventory.  I came just as the store was opening and there was a packed parking lot full of cars.  A class was going on in the basement and there were another half dozen or so shoppers browsing the rooms.  To me, this is a good healthy sign.  I really love this store.

They carry a huge inventory of Civil War fabrics as well as Thimbleberries and a decent collection of 30’s prints.  The overall theme of their inventory is very muted colors, although I could find plenty of inspiration I tend to like more purist colors, florals, brights, and batiks.  I keep thinking someday I’ll takle a Dear Jane quilt but that will just have to wait.  This is an excellent store to get your fabrics for that.

My next stop along Northwest Highway was the Barrington Sewing Center.  Unfortunately, as you can see, it was out of business.

I must have missed this closing.  I’m trying to think when the last time I was there and it must be about 2 years.  I remember they carried a fantastic collection of batiks and they carried some garment sewing items and patterns.  They were in business a long time so it is sad to see them closed.

I spent a few minutes in mourning and then moved on.  Next stop, also along Northwest Highway was to Pieceful Gathering Quilt Shop in Fox River Grove.

I have passed this store numerous times on my way to Crystal Lake but never had stopped in.  It’s one of those places if you don’t know its there and you are traveling 50 mph I guarantee you’ll miss it.  The sign is beautiful but it’s not bright to catch your attention and the store is a house on a hill, so if you don’t know it’s a quilt shop it would be very easy to miss.  I think they should put a big sign on the house or paint it a really bright color to attract some attention.  I know I’ve missed it but today was a dedicated day to stop.

I walked into the entrance and was pleasantly surprised.  The place was charming with two big rooms of fabrics.  The fabrics are on the ground floor and upstairs is their long arm quilting machine and offices.  They carried a very similar selection of fabrics as A Touch of Amish.  A decent Civil War collection, a 30’s prints collection and several croppings of coordinates.

I was impressed with their class schedules and their newsletter.  I will definitely have to take a few classes as they seem to offer something for everyone at every level.  There was only one other customer in the store besides myself.  A severe contrast to A Touch of Amish.  It would be nice to see a few more customers.  I tend to think if I’m the only one in the store then that is a bad sign.  I’ll keep my eye on this shop and hope it will succeed.  I think they could add some brights and some florals to their mix, but like I’ve mentioned earlier that is only because I then to be attracted to them. Who knows, maybe there are more Dear Janer’s out there then I anticipated.

Now for a side trip.  I don’t know where I came across this name but in my search for shops a store on Dundee Road called Quilt in Joy caught my eye.  Well, I was thinking it was in Dundee which isn’t too far from me but it turns out to actually be in Huntley, a significantly longer drive.  Mapquest got me there without any difficulty.  There it was sandwiched between tanning and cremation (a side chuckle…get a tan while you quilt and plan your cremation funeral all in one stop).

The shopping center is all by its lonesome on a corner.  There’s a few shops and all the spaces are full so that is a plus.  Some light traffic but its another one of these scenarios of you have to know where it is to find it or be like me and have a purpose to find it.

The store is bright and cheerful inside and the fabric collections are also bright and cheerful.  Some Amy Butler, plenty of Batiks, some Florals and lots of pure color.  Such a contrast from the last two stops.  No Civil War or 30’s prints so I’m glad to see a shop owner has positioned herself offering a different collection of fabrics.  The store is a small single shop storefront but the interior is long.  Beyond the fabrics is an area for classes with plenty of room.  There were a few people in the shop and I was well looked after while I was there.  I would like to see shops a little bigger when they are just opening.  To me it just makes more sense to have a large inventory but who am I?  I’m sure there is a level of balance that a shop owner has to maintain between inventory and sales.

Well.  I hope Quilt in Joy succeeds.  It looks like they are off to a cheerful first start!  While I was getting ready to leave the winds were starting up and it was beginning to rain.  The weather report called for snow so I decided to cut my trip short and head for home.

It was a fun day.

International Quilt Festival Chicago Entry #3 – Quilters

Quilters are an interesting breed.

I consider myself a casual quilter. I enjoy the playing of colors with patterns and quilting designs, developing a pattern, looking at the thousands of fabrics that are available and sometimes just enjoy the solitude and monotony of piecing and/or quilting. It certainly is a form of meditation. I do not do enough of it to really consider myself an expert at all the different techniques, as I’m well aware, that consideration would only come from experience and practice. I can however appreciate the dedication, commitment and extreme creativity these sewers have. If ever there was a bright spot in the home sewing industry it is in the quilting world.

It sounds rather strange, doesn’t it, to say that? While fashion sewing, at least in the United States, has every characteristic of a dying market sector, quilting has exploded. Quilters don’t bat an eyelash at spending thousands upon thousands of dollars for fabrics, high-end machines, cutting tools, tables, special ergonomic chairs, long-arm quilting machines, special hand creams, stainless steel thimbles, French made needles, every color of thread, complete fat-quarter sets of a manufacturers line. The list is nearly endless. I mean Thousands and Thousands of dollars.

For example, let’s take a look at a typical quilt on display and lets just analyze the cost of making the quilt and you’ll see what I mean. Okay, let’s just pick one, how bout this one titled Solar Magic by which was in the exhibit The Sky’s the Limit? Good? Okay…

We’ll start with the obvious, the fabrics. Let’s look at the number of fabrics that are in the quilt. It might be hard to count since these photos are a little small, but just guessing from a distance I’d put it close to 60. There’s some hand dyed and some prints but there’s a lot of different colors and textures so my conservative guess is about 60. Now you all know when you go to the store to buy fabric you don’t walk away from the counter without getting either a 1/4 yard cut or more. So let’s just be conservative and say that over time this quilter had put into her stash 60 different fabrics at a minimum 1/4 yard cut at the average price of $7.00/yard (maybe a little high, especially if found on sale…but there’s a lot of hand dyed fabrics in this quilt and those are usually a little more). That is about $105 for the collection.

Then there’s the backing fabric. I didn’t see behind the quilt but based on the size, about 60″ x 60″ (152.4cm x 152.4cm) there’s about 3-4 yards of fabric on the back. Add an additional $28.00.

Now the batting. Add in another $15.00, just a hunch that it was made using a low loft cotton or cotton blend. Then there’s the thread. This quilt is loaded with thread. Thankfully thread really isn’t that big of an expense but you gotta figure there’s at least a few spools, so add in another$10.

Now add in all those things you don’t see, the tools of the trade. This was machine pieced and one of the techniques was paper piecing. Add in another $10 for the paper. Most likely those half square triangles and quarter square triangles were rotary cut so add in a rotary cutter, mat, ruler ($35). And of course the sewing machine and quilting hoop/frame or whatever was used…could be a lot. I won’t count that here…so just figuring the cost of the materials without the machine equipment we’re at an estimate of $203.00.

It’s a lot, and the place was packed with quilters just gobbling up the goods. I’d just listened to a report on the news about Alan Greenspan declared the U.S. economy was in a recession. Yeah, our gas, food, housing and all that is expensive but I tell you there wasn’t any indication we were in a recession at this festival. I would say the average consumer was over 50, retired (or close to it), and had lots of income ready to spend in pursuit of a passion. Sounds like the aging Baby Boomer market doesn’t it? You bet.

I did see some younger ladies here in there but very few. Most of them were going up the stairs to the Gem and Jewelry Show being held at the same convention center. Beading and jewelry making is a bit more popular with the younger set. Not as much technical skill to make a basic drop earing or simple necklace. Equally as expensive but easier and quicker to satisfy the creative urge I suppose.

One thing since I got to talking about age is something I happened to notice, there is definitely a direct correlation between age and intricacy of the quilts on display. The older the quilter the more intricate and mind-boggling complex the quilted masterpiece. A younger quilter just isn’t going to spend the time to accomplish one of these. The patience, skill, and time must come with plenty of maturity. Don’t believe me? Take a look at these two:

Here’s The Supper Quilt by Donald E. Locke D.D.S. of Waxahachie, Texas

And this quilt titled: Mother Earth and Her Children by Sieglinde Schoen Smith
of Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Just say it with me…    WOW!

Believe it or not The Supper Quilt was Don’s second quilt.  Both of the makers were at the show signing either the companion children’s book (Mother Earth) or postcards (Don).  These were just wonderful to admire and to just sit back and imagine how they must have been made.  There’s hope for me yet that someday I too will have a masterpiece hanging on display.  I bow to the masters!

International Quilt Festival Chicago Entry #2 – Traditions

A fun thing to do while I was there was to look for traditional quilts, or traditional patterns with interesting interpretations. My favorites of these were a Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt, a 9-Patch wonder, and a Lone Star combo that was out of this world.

Here is the Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt. This was also the cover of the festival program guide and was made by Janis Pearson of Portland, Oregon.

Techniques: Pieced, appliquéd, hand quilted
Design Source: Grandmother’s Flower Garden, Mosaic
“In the American Tradition, this quilt was made from fabrics salvaged from a vintage quilt top. When I brought the unfinished quilt home, it was obvious that it had not been completed because it would not lie flat to be quilted. I took the top apart, discarded the ill fitting pieces, hand pieced the flowers back together, added new white hexagons and then hand appliquéd the hexagon top to the borders. Then, I was able to finish it with hand quilting.”

Stunning. These pieces were very, very tiny and to think she took this all apart and re-made it, amazing. This pattern is one that I think I’ll just never have the patience to match-up the three sides coming together – All Over! Well done Janis, this is beautiful.

Next was this nine-patch quilt. Yes, you aren’t seeing things, it’s blurry because these squares were so tiny my camera just couldn’t focus! Plus I had to take several steps back to get the whole quilt into the frame. Even at that I don’t think I got the whole quilt in the picture. The title of this quilt is My Mini 9-Patch and was made by Lois Jarvis of Madison, Wisconsin.

Techniques: Machine pieced, machine quilted
Design Source: Nine Patch pattern and Postage Stamp quilts
“Antique Postage Stamp quilts inspired me to make this quilt. I love the way colors flicker across these quilts. Knowing I could never find a spectacular one in my price range, I decided I would make my own. I tried to capture the essence of an old time scrap quilt where the real goal was to get enough fabric sewn together to make a warm bed covering and the color placement was secondary.”

The close up of the nine-patches still look blurry. The pieces really were small. I’m just in awe at the amount of time that went into making this. You know, you just can’t put this up as a ‘Make-It-This-Weekend’ type of project. She did machine piece and machine quilt it though so I suppose there is some consolation there. Great job Lois! I love it.

Now for this beauty. This is a Lone Star patterned quilt titled Oh! The Places You’ll Go: Africa to Allentown and was made by Irene Berry of Arvada, Colorado.

Techniques: Hand and machine pieced, machine quilted
Design Source: Lone Star
“Lone Star quilts have always been favorites of mine. The pattern seemed perfect for showcasing a growing collection of fabrics including African and Japanese prints and a repro line from the Allentown Art Museum. During the time I was working on the quilt, my younger son graduated from high school. The graduates were given a copy of the Dr. Seuss book, Oh! The Places You’ll Go. The title seemed appropriate for my quilt as well. I was going places too (to wonderful quilt shows). And I have been to Allentown.”

This was a great blend of all her special fabrics from her collection and a great design to combine them. I appreciated her unique use of the colors. Most times when you see this pattern your eyes bug out from the pulsing colors, not so in this case. The blend was very pleasing and the African and Japanese prints really don’t look too African or Japanese. Mostly your eye is just seeing the colors all wonderfully arranged. Way to GO Irene, Amazing!

That’s about it for today’s post. I’ve got a few more entries that I’ll share with you yet. I haven’t even talked about all the vendors and mad dash shopping frenzy. Quilters are an interesting breed.