This has been a busy week. I was in Duluth on Friday for the Minnesota Quilt Show, then I had three full days of Art and Stitch classes with Loes and Theo van der Heiden. In my spare time, I have been working on some of the kite blocks as well.
This week I will share with you some of the highlights of the quilt show along with instructions for piecing two of the kite blocks. MN Quilt Show
The quilts were amazing this year. Lot's of eye candy and inspiration. I thought I would share a few photos of some of the quilts that caught my eye.
The following are quilting close-ups from a quilt by Susan Fetter Ward. It was quilted by Lisa Arndt, of Lisa's Creative Quilting. Somehow I missed photographing the whole quilt -- but lots of quilting inspiration. This was a great use of geometric designs.
There were a series of quilts from Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan. These quilts were all made by members of the Cover to Cover book club in Portland Oregon. The quilts were made within a six month time frame. This is one example from the special exhibit.
Another of the fun challenges were the collection of "Wicked Quilts". This challenge was inspired by Cherrywood Fabrics.
Featured Pattern - Be My Valentine
Do you need a quick wedding gift? Be my Valentine is sure to be a hit with the bride and groom. Consider making it in their "colors". This pattern also features the Split Rects tool used in the Kite blocks.
Happy quilting.
Kari Sign up for my newsletter to stay current on what's happening in my studio and learn more quilting tips. As a thank you, I'll send you a FREE pattern for this small maple leaf quilt. Last summer when I was dealing with Vestibular Neuritis (think really bad vertigo), everything was out of sorts. I couldn't drive, I couldn't quilt, I couldn't work on the computer and I definitely couldn't ice skate. Once my brain started to adapt to the loss of the nerve, I began thinking about new quilting ideas. I tend to like a lot of piecing in a quilt. But during this time in my life, I also needed a chance for my brain to rest a bit, so I knew I wanted more negative space than I am typically use to working with. I began playing with ideas for a modern quilt. So what is a modern quilt? According to the Modern Quilt Guilt, "We define modern quilts as quilts that are functional, include bold colors, and are inspired by modern design. Minimalism, asymmetry, expansive negative space, and alternate grid work are often a part of modern quilt compositions, as are improvisational piecing and solid fabrics." Fabric Selection - I liked the idea of asymmetrical, along negative space, and grid work. I couldn't quite make the leap to solid fabrics. But I had some Molly B's fabric from Marcus Brothers that is more tonal in nature and would work for me. I am personally in my "zone" when I can work with a great line of Civil War fabric. Drumroll please!!!! Here is the quilt block and the final quilt. I really liked the cleanness of the final quilt. One thing I would probably change is the light grey I used for the background. It looks great in the actual quilt, but I am not sure it photographed quite as well. The quilt below is another variation of this quilt. I think changing the layout results in a significantly different look. One of the big decisions you need to make in working with asymmetric blocks is the layout. There are lots of possibilities to audition. I find the easiest way to do this is using my Electric Quilt program. For this weeks video, I decided to share how I used Electric Quilt to audition layout ideas for my Modern Maze quilt. Featured Quilt - Modern MazeHot off the presses, the pattern for Modern Maze is now available for purchase. For those that collect charm packs, this quilt is charm friendly!
Happy quilting.
Kari Sign up for my newsletter to stay current on what's happening in my studio and learn more quilting tips. As a thank you, I'll send you a FREE pattern for this small maple leaf quilt. I told myself that I wasn't going to do a Christmas quilt this year. I still haven't even put up the tree and I will be picking up Mom and Uncle John on Sunday for a week long visit, with my sister and her family coming from Missouri on Wednesday. There is always so much going on. But I really wanted to show how to draft a hexagon quilt in Electric Quilt and I decided this is a really easy project So I couldn't resist. I have two table topper options for you. The video on how I drafted this quilt in EQ is here. It is less complicated than it looks. Rotary cutting charts for the blocks are here. Sizing is exact (i.e. no oversized pieces). For the borders use 1-1/2" strips for the sashing (4 1-1/2” x 7" and 4 1-1/2” x 8”)and 2-1/2" strips for the outer border (4 2-1/2” x 12” and 4 2-1/2” x 8”). I have a few diagrams on piecing the borders. If this is a Christmas gift, you can stitch in the ditch and it will be done in a jiffy. Happy quilting -- and Merry Christmas. Kari Sign up for my newsletter to stay current on what's happening in my studio and learn more quilting tips. As a thank you, I'll send you a FREE pattern for this small maple leaf quilt.
It is hard to believe that it is time to finish our tops. Is the artist in you seeing the design possibilities? I suspect everyone of our projects will look unique and make this a very special gift.
To quilt these I recommend a pantograph or an overall meander. I am using Minky for the backs as I love the cuddly nature of that fabric. Since it is 60" wide, no piecing is required and you can get by with purchasing 1-1/4 yards. Here are some of my finished quilts.
The football quilt below was done entirely with scraps. I had some leftover pieces from a sports quilt for my nephew which I pieces together for the "theme print". Then I used fabric from my shelves to fill in the rest. It truly feels like a "free quilt".
Happy quilting.
Kari
Sign up for my newsletter to stay current on what's happening in my studio and learn more quilting tips. As a thank you, I'll send you a FREE pattern for this small maple leaf quilt.
I had a fabulous time with family last weekend and managed to get a bit of my Christmas shopping done as well. It was very cold (i.e. sub-zero) during much of my stay in Bismarck. However we still managed an outing to the newly renovated Heritage Center. If you ever make it to Bismarck, it is definitely worth a visit. There were a couple of quilt related items I thought I would share. ![]()
This sewing machine was date 1870-1879. It was given to Ingebjurg Arnason shortly after she immigrated from Iceland in 1878. She used this machine to do the family sewing for her two sons and 11 daughters in Pembina Co. We definitely have it much easier today.
The following photos were from an interactive display on designing your own quilt block or your own bagpipe.
Back to our 2+6 Baby Quilt Along
Here is one of my finished rows from last weeks clue:
My fried Sherry posted her pinwheel rows on Facebook. She is using kitty fabric from her stash.
Instructions for the 6+2 Baby Quilt have been deleted.
Happy Quilting. Kari
Sign up for my newsletter to stay current on what's happening in my studio and learn more quilting tips. As a thank you, I'll send you a FREE pattern for this small maple leaf quilt.
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