The Latest Projects

I've been having a great time working on these hand-pieced Antique Rose blocks:

I've written about these before here.  Each block has 72 kite-shaped pieces and I typically hand-piece 3 of them to form a unit, because they have a bit of a Y seam, then use the "hybrid" method:  I machine piece those units into the complete block.  It's fast and fun and I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel--4 more blocks to go.  The complete row on the right is just stuck up on the design wall but the 3 rows on the left are completely sewn together, and there's one block waiting for the last 4 to join it and become the final row.  I'll be teaching this in July for our guild quilt-in and the  top will be done before that. This is another project that makes me glad I paid attention in Geometry class!  The template comes from Material Obsession in Australia. 

Here's what I'm itching to get to work on:  my Paducah Round Robin.  This was begun last year, 2013, at Paducah when my two friends and I continued our challenge to each other to make quilts together.  I've written about that here.  I made the Feathered Star, Ellen added the first purple/green border and Sharon added the pinwheel border.  I love it!  Sharon was shopping in Paducah for a great black and more cheddars.  She found perfect fabrics and came home and jumped on this.  Now it's my turn and I don't know what I'll do but it will be bigger because I really like it.

This week I head off to Pittsburgh to work for Quilts Inc. at Spring Market.  I love Market and this will be especially fun for me as the excitement about Red and White--By the Numbers being used for Houston 2014 advertising is just beginning to build.  I'll let you know what is new and exciting when I get back.

And when I get back I have a commission piece to get made.  It's a "Modern Quilt", unlike my usual work, but planning it has been fun and I'm eager to get it completed and off to it's new home.

Check out what is new on Judy L's Design Wall Monday blog. 

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Rubies are a Girl's Best Friend

This is the 40th anniversary of International Quilt Festival in Houston, TX--that's the Ruby year.  To celebrate, they are having a special exhibit of Red and White quilts, both contemporary and vintage/antique.  I submitted my Red and White--By the Numbers and am so pleased to announce:

 

 

 

They liked it, they really, really liked it.

 

In fact, they liked it so much, it will be the featured quilt for Houston 2014.  That means:  it will be in all the print advertising, on the catalog cover, on the cover of the show book, the Quintessential Quilter, AND, drum roll please, the show TOTE BAG!   Oh, yes, I'm over the moon with excitement and so pleased so many people will get to see this quilt in Houston.  About 60,000 make the trip each year. 

 

A lot of credit goes to the pattern designers, Gay Bomers and Brenda Papadakis, for their JustTakes2 patterns, still available here.  This quilt was designed as a tribute to the Infinite Variety special exhibit held in New York City in March 2011, where more than 700 red and white quilts were on display.  I'm sure that, like most quilters who saw this exhibit, they said "I want to make that one".  "No, I want to make that one". "No, wait, I want to make that one".  So why not do a quilt with lots of patterns?  And they did and I did and here you have it. 

 

My best decision:  sending this quilt to Pam Dransfedt, The Joyful Quilter for quilting.  I found her on Facebook a few years ago and so admired the magic she can make with her longarm machine.  Here are a few closeups Pam posted of the work she did on this quilt: 

 

 

I kept track:  I used 59 different fabrics and there are 2770 pieces, including that crazy set of pieced borders I designed.  I've seen photos of 2 other of these quilts completed and I'm not surprised the makers added a red border to the outside and called it done.  Not me, I had to make it really, really hard. 

 

So, if you're in Houston this year, stop by to see the quilt--it is a fitting tribute to the amazing company of Quilts, Inc. who provide such wonderful shows for so many quilters and vendors every year.  The quilt world is a better place because of them and I'm so happy to be a small part of this year's celebration!

 

Let's quilt!

 

Barbara