Bee Weekends, Covered in Love, and bye-bye Stash Bee 2015

Y'all Thanksgiving is comin' up fast, and for that matter, so is Christmas!  You can really tell when folks are finishing quilts and working on Christmas gifts.  Unfortunately, the Christmas gift I was working on is for my mom, so I'm not posting it here until after Christmas!

Thimblelinas Bee

Karen's Bargello quilt

This was a kit, and Karen has worked on it most of the year and finally finished the top!

This is Maria's civil war quilt using scrap from Barb's quilt, which won a ribbon in the West Houston Quilter's Guild 2015 show.  Maria wanted it bright, and boy, is it!  I love the bright civil war fabrics!

Jeannie finished her Strip-n-Flip quilt by quilting each row with a different stitch!

This will be donated at Guilt meeting on Wednesday to our Comfort Quilters, who provide quilts for nursing homes and Project Linus.

Karen's Sunburnt Zebra quilt was quilted by bee member Lillie.  Love those flames!  This is another donation quilt.

Jennifer is piecing a fun sawtooth star variation quilt with CATS!  The low volume fabric here is SO cute with cat outlines.  I wish I had gotten a close-up pic!  

Yayas Bee

I continue to stay terrible at taking pics at Yayas.  I'm not sure why I'm on top of it at one bee and not the other.  There are similar projects and four of us are in both bees (hey, we really like each other!)  Anyway, the only thing I took pics of was Lillie's piecing for the store (Quilt 'n Sew) sample for the NEW 2016 Block of the Month from Red Crinoline Quilts.

partial row one of Latimer Farms BOM

Block 32 of Latimer Farms

This one has a lot less of the triangle paper than the previous RCQ BOM that Lillie pieced: Hampton Ridge.  You just really have to like sashing your blocks!

Covered in Love

I can finally show you some of my work!  These are the blocks that Kat now has hanging on her design wall:

Falling Leaves blocks

So, I may have used some questionable fabrics for the backgrounds, but hey, I'm keeping it interesting and different!  A little Route 66, a little Curious Nature.  This is a GREAT scrap block!  Thanks again, Kat!

And if you're interested in contributing blocks for Covered in Love, go check out Kat's blog:

Stash Bee Hive 6

This month I sent off my last block for Stash Bee Hive 6:

Link to the post

I got a great quilt out of this, but it was a lot of shipping cost, so I'm taking a break next year.  Plus, I really enjoy not only the blocks, but also the reason for Covered in Love.  So, that's where I'll  focus my efforts.

Linking up with 

Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River

and

Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story

To get there, click on the buttons on the right side of the blog page!

Houston IQF 2015: Post 3 - Old or New?

One of the exhibits at this year's International Quilt Festival in Houston was "40 Years of Moda".  In this exhibit they showed the antique quilts that were their inspiration for Moda's Collections for a Cause.  Can you tell which is the antique and which is the reproduction?  Answers at the bottom of this post!

or 

This is a diamond-pattern quilt called "Community."  I was amazed by how closely the reproductions resembled the original fabrics!

I usually don't care for the clothing exhibit at IQF, but this year there were two fashions that I loved and would wear in a second (though for what occasion, I am currently stumped!)

This is "Snow White and Rose Red" by Diane Herbort.  Can't you see this being worn during the Edwardian period of Downton Abbey?  This is totally a Lady Sybil outfit!

This is "Venus on the Half Shell: Day Two" by Van Horn.  An Oscar-worthy dress if I've ever seen one.  Which celeb would wear it best?  I think it would look amazing on Nicole Kidman with her auburn hair!

The window valance (?) on display in the back is "High Tide" by Diane Ricks.

And of course, there are MORE quilts!

Amongst the Eucalypts by Denise Griffiths

Detail

Love the use of polka dots!

Visitor by Hope Wilmarth

Just My Scraps by Joan Aitken, quilted by Brenda Marien

I love a string quilt!

Small Galaxy by John Flynn

Sunset on Coyote Buttes by Kimberly Lacey

Le Monde by Judith Ahlborn

Easy Quilter Honorable Mention

The detailed quilting is AMAZING!

Everyday Applique by Martha Young

I'm not a big fan of applique, but I love the color-on-color-on-color that this quilt brings.

Detail

Rooflines #10: Mountain Villages by Colleen Kole

Tidy Towns: Irish Houses by Andrew Steinbrecher

Mini Double Wedding Ring by Victoria Findlay Wolfe

Reflect Upon Your Blessings by Victoria Findlay Wolfe

I love the slight curves using the small squares, and I want to try it!

Half Crazy, All Lucky by Margaret Williams

Affinity for Improv & Love of the Line by Leslie Tucker Jenison

Easy Quilter Honorable Mention

I love the movement, contrast, and quilting in this one.

Detail

Answer: The antique quilt is on the left!

Well, folks, that the end of the show!  I hope you've enjoyed it, and if it's your desire, that you can make it to see all of the amazing quilts at the IQF soon!

Linking up with Show Off Saturday at SewCanShe.

Houston IQF 2015: Post 2 - You are HERE

Jessica Skultety of Quilty Habit posted a picture someone sent her of her quilt "Home" hanging at the International Quilt Festival this year.  I saw this before I went to see the quilt, and I thought - wouldn't it be nice to show her how it looks walking up to the quilt so she can get the whole experience, even without being there?

 

(Yes, there are bright lights shining everywhere, and yet not all of the quilts are lit well or some are lit too brightly.  The ceiling is high up, y'all.   They try. ;P )

 

 

I think I see it from here in the main aisle...

 

There's a couple checking it out -

Home by Jessica Skultety

 

Up close, this quilt is full of beautiful Botanics fabrics from Carolyn Friedlander's line as well as detailed quilting.  There was also a small blue thread camouflaged on one of the turquoise trees.  I flagged the nearest Quilt Angel (oh, she of the white gloves) and asked her to remove it post haste!

The fair lady did consent to pose next to the aforementioned quilt in her Halloween costume (interesting to have Festival on Halloween day, by the way; there was lots of lighted and flashing headgear - quilters don't do things by halves!).

 

Some more quilts in the show:

 

These two quilts are by Brigette Morgenroth, a lovely German lady, who also brought along some of the paper-piecing she was working on.  She does it all by machine - no handwork, she says there's no time for that!

Tango

Tripoli

done in all silk!

 

More Quilts...

Earth. Water. Fire by Gisha Wogier

 

In Carrboro by Chawne Kimber

 

Enigma - Margaret Cibulsky

Easy Quilter Honorable Mention -

Love the improv piecing and the offset hand quilting.

 

Pointed Statement by Amy Friend

Detail

 

Tune in Next Time For...

 

Is it Moda or Is it Antique?

 

Work of Art Dresses!

 

More Amazing Quilts!

 

Plus...Who else will get an Easy Quilter Honorable Mention?

 

Linking up with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts

Did you miss it?  My winners shown here.

 

 

 

Houston IQF 2015: Post 1- My Winners!

Howdy from Houston where we are finally getting some rain after a long August-September drought, but unfortunately, it's flooding our bayous and some folks' houses.  That didn't keep people away from the biggest convention that Houston sees all year - that's right!  The International Quilt Festival at the George R Brown Convention Center is the largest there is, y'all, 'cuz everything is bigger in Texas!  Here's my first post of pics from the show.  Think of it as my curated collection of the quilts they'd let you take a picture of. 

First off, have you ever seen how large the vendor section is?  It is 28 rows of what you see below:

Looking through 2nd floor "porthole" down to first floor vendor area.

 

I talked to Emily Taylor from Pattern Jam, who very graciously was handing out fat quarters.  I took one for my mom to give to her next door neighbor back in Alabama who's a quilter, painter, stain-glass maker, potter, you-name-it! creator.  I also pitched in a pattern book, and we picked up a free mini-charm pack of the NEW January 2016 colors from the American Made Brand (AMB) booth.  Thank you, AMB!

 

Paula Barnes checked out my order at the Red Crinoline Quilts booth, and Kim Jolly looked a bit overwhelmed at how packed the Fat Quarter Shop mini-shop was.  They were trying to keep it stocked, but the stock guys were having a hard time getting through the mass of quilters!

 

Here's a look up and down the main aisle in the exhibit area:

 

Looking toward vendors area of floor

 

Looking towards rows J through S or was it T?

What do you do when you get to a show?  Do you look at the winners first?

Hmm, I didn't.  I wanted to be surprised as I rounded a corner and saw it.  But you are not me, and you may have gone straight there!

So, here are my favorites - MY WINNERS!

 

FIRST PLACE

 

This one just captured me.  First I was drawn by it's lack of color, and then I was amazed at the use of thread to convey what I felt was a very 3D image on a mostly flat surface:

Meridian Hill Park - Fountain by K. Velis Turan

Detail

 

Congratulations! 

You win internet immortality as my favorite quilt of the 2015 Houston International Quilt Festival!

 

SECOND PLACE

 

Okay, I was a bit swayed by Barbara's story of exorcising her grief over her father's death by creating this quilt.  But it is one I wish that I had done myself.

 

Grief by Barbara Jahn

Detail

 

I also loved the intricate and random hand quilting.

Detail

 

Sometimes the extremes in our lives produce great creativity and inspiration.

 

THIRD PLACE

 

This was difficult to choose.  Of course, I only took pics of the quilts I really liked.

 

However, this one edged the others out.

Kintsugi I (Medallion) by Alexis Deise

 

It tricks the eye - you see a beautifully pieced medallion quilt, but wait!  There are the places it was repaired, just like Japanese kintsugi - breaking pottery to repair it with precious metals, etc. to highlight the break.  What skill it must have taken to deliberately put those "breaks" in there?  In some areas, blocks would have had to be scaled down just a hair to fit the skinny strip of "repair" fabric.

 

Tune in for more posts including-

 

Beautiful Gowns!

 

Where in the Show is Jessica Skultety's Quilt?

Featuring a Halloween Quilt Angel!

 

More Dazzling and Eclectic Quilts!

 

 Linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation.