My Favorite Quilts

 A student asked me the other day "How many quilts do you think you have made?" My reply was "Hundreds.". 

I used to  keep a photo notebook as each quilt got done but ended that process in the late 1990's I think. That was back in the olden days when you took a photo with a camera and sent the film off to be developed and printed. Now it's all digital files and computer folders for most of us.

Many of my quilts were teaching samples, most smaller than bed size and there are many of those. I have been giving them away over time when it is clear they will never be a class sample again.

My quilts are everywhere:

Spare bedroom, quilt overflow room

Pile on the chair are too big to put anywhere else at the moment

Little bittys in a basket

Smalls in an antique crib

Shelf in the Living Room

It's Fall, y'all

Since I will be gone to Houston for a couple of weeks soon, I will use this time to mention a few of my most favorite quilts. And tell their story. Every quilt has a story.

Stay tuned starting Sunday October 23, 2022 for My Favorite Quilts.

Let's quilt.

Barbara

So Many Quilts!

 What to do with them all?  

The spare bedroom is home to a lot of quilts. This bookcase is full. Some are class samples/traveling quilts for teaching jobs, some are just because they have to go somewhere  and some are favorites:

The spare bed is the staging spot for quilts going to the next job--so I don't forget the class sample or teaching supplies or quilts that support the lecture:

Every room in the house has quilts on the walls, on chairs/sofas, in progress, etc. There are just so many:

Living Room

Master Bedroom

Even the bathrooms have quilts in them: 

Master Bath

 Master Bath

One of the earliest on display, in the half bath, made in 1994, when I first learned paper piecing: 

Detail, when I hand quilted everything I made. The upper kimono was made from a real cotton kimono my husband brought back from Japan in 1979. When it wore out I cut up the parts that were salvageable and used a bit in this tiny block:  

Of course, the Studio has lots of quilts, finished and in progress: 

The best quilts--the family heirlooms--are in a safe place in storage. They don't come out very often. But what to do with all the rest?

I've sold some over the years. And will do that again, next year most likely. 

I've given more than a few away. And will continue to do that as I find the right quilt for the right recipient. 

And since not making any more is simply NOT AN OPTION, there will continue to be more made that need a place to reside.

Do you  have a plan? What will you do with all of your quilts? I can't be the only one with a sizeable stockpile of my quilts. 

I am not even addressing the antique quilts and tops I have bought over the years. They will need a home too. 

Time to finish the next one. Let's quilt.

Barbara

Red, White and Blue--All Set

I decided. It was tough. There were several ideas for a red, white and blue quilt for another Quilt of Valor calling my name. A Trip Around the World. A Coins quilt. Something easy but interesting. What to do, too many choices???

My next Quilt of Valor is a variation of a pattern a friend sent me:

The pattern is Sail On, by Eileen Fowler. It was published in EASY QUILTS SPRING 2019:

Mine has just gotten started:

I thought if I changed the construction, I would have fewer seams. And that is true. The downside?  I now have partial seams to deal with. So the trade-off may not have been worth it. But once I started, I was committed. "In for a penny, in for a pound". 

The quilting will delineate the star blocks--essentially putting the "seams" back in visually. I hope to have it ready to quilt before April is over. But maybe not... There are a lot of flying geese in that border.

This weekend was "hang a quilt on your house" weekend so I did:

Gift of Love from the Sunday Sew and Sews

It's a good day to read on the porch swing

Antique Rose Star--one of my most favorite quilts

I hope you are handling the stress of "isewlation" and "QuiltersQuarantine" pretty well. There is so much available online to educate and amuse us. Take care and learn something new. Some classes are free, some are offering special deals. If you are not a member of The Quilt Show, NOW is the time--$19.95 for a 6 month membership gives you access to 13 YEARS of shows. And so much more. 

Let's quilt.

Barbara