A Finish! - Mirror Ball Dot Challenge

 Last week at guild, we had the reveal of our latest fabric challenge. The Michael Miller Company sponsored a challenge proposed by our fabulous swap committee!  

The company provided four fat quarters to each participant - two fq's of Mark Hordyszynski Mirror Ball Dot fabric, and two fq's of coordinating cotton couture solids.  The rules of the swap were to make a quilt, inspired by an architectural element on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City, Missouri. 

I went to Google Images for my inspiration and found a photo of the tiled steps leading up to McCormick and Schmick's restaurant. Since the tiles were the same colors as my fabrics it seemed a natural choice. 

There are many, many talented quilters and artists in the KCMQG and swaps are a bit intimidating for that reason, so I decided to fore go the artistic approach and use a literal interpretation.  I converted the photo through the "Stitch Sketch" app on my iPad to a cross stitch pattern, which I then used to make a pixel quilt. 

This is the photo:

And this is the quilt: 

And the back.

I added some other fabric from a Gees Bend quilt kit in blues and grays.  I think the gray tone in the GB fabric sets off the mirror ball shine. 

I wasn't sure about the color fastness of the GB fabric as it is hand dyed and every time I washed the fabrics, the color catcher came out dark blue.  I washed the quilt after the reveal, though and it came out fine. I plan to donate it to the Blessings Bee next month. I didn't want to donate a quilt that had special washing instructions, so I was relieved at it came out with all the same colors at it went in with!

See all the challenge quilts here in the guild Flickr stream.  The original inspiration photos are there too.  Prepare to be amazed!

A Finish! Madrona Road Challenge Quilt

Someday I will take 'artful' photos of quilts on a fence, on the grass, etc.  It was too cold and dark when I finished this to try.

This is my first finish for 2013!  I received seven fat eights of Violet Craft's Madrona Road fabric at the December Meeting of the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild.  The Michael Miller Fabric Company offered the fabric to participating guilds.

The challenge rules were to create a quilt, at least 18" x 18" using only the Madrona Road fabric issued, other fabric from the line or solids.  The design was to be a modern take on a traditional block, and the traditional block was to appear somewhere on the quilt.  

My first pieced back!  I was glad to see it turned out pretty straight...

I used Elizabeth Hartman's Wonky 9-patch Trellis design and alternated traditional 9-patches with wonky 9-patches on the pieced back.

Quilting detail on the back.

I quilted wavy lines through the 'trellis' and free motion flowers in the white squares.

Quilting detail on front.

The wavy lines did not turn out exactly as I envisioned, but I think they are effective, especially where they cross.  The flowers were inspired by Angela Walters' "Flower Power" from her book, "Free Motion Quilting with Angela Walters"

Before I resolved to sew from my stash last fall, I had purchased some half yard cuts of Madrona Road, but in the other colorway.  The only one that I felt worked in this project was the text print on white.  I also added some Kona solids in purple, blue, mustard and grey.  I pieced the binding with the gray, blue and purple and added some of the blue Haystack print that I mis-cut and couldn't use for the blocks.

I should have cut the binding a little wider, to account for the heavier Kona, especially since I had starched the fabric when pressing.  I realized it was a bit scant, but in my haste to finish I didn't want to take it off and resew it with a smaller seam allowance.  I stitched it down really securely though, so I think it will be fine, just more narrow on the back than the front.

These colors are not ones that I am drawn to, but I think it works.  The finished quilt is about 40" x 50". I think it could be a modem baby quilt.

The reveal will be at the February KCMQG meeting.  I know from looking at our Facebook page there will be lots of interesting quilts. 

 Can't wait to see them!

To see more  Madrona Road Challenge quilt finishes check out today's post at the Modern Quilt Guild or the Flikr group here.

Two Finishes!

Last Thursday was our KCMQG meeting and I took my quilt con entries for show and tell, so I thought I would show them here, as well. I don't know if they will be accepted, but I am not sure they would be finished, had it not been for that deadline

This is my Octagonal Orb quilt. I started it at the Las Vegas MQG retreat last February. I pieced three 'orbs' that weekend and cut the fabric for the rest.  They are a bit time consuming with 84 pieces in each block but also kind of 'zen' in the repetition.   I used a fat eighth stack of Lauren and Jesse Jung's "Flora" fabric with a little bit of their "Hideaway" line that I had left over from another project.  The block is from a tutorial that Elizabeth Hartman posted on the MQG blog during the 100 days of Modern Quilting series. 













The Mister left the desert a month ahead of me to take a pickup truck load of our stuff to our Kansas house and to get it outfitted with appliances, etc.  He took the TV, the computer and the car, which left me with only my sewing machine and IPhone for amusements.  The first weekend by myself, I used up the whole month's worth of the data plan on my phone watching videos, so after that, I sewed when I wasn't at work.  





























This is another quilt that I pieced last spring. I was inspired by a quilt by a guild member in the LVMQG who made a similar quilt.  Hers was a sample for a class that she taught at the lqs on using panels in improvisational pricing. I fell in love with the Suzy Ultman prints and made my own version. 

The quilting is a mix of three or four different patterns.

Such a cute print!

I have another panel of Suzy's fabric called "Critterville".  It is next in queue!

Reboot: A New Beginning, And Some Finishes!

Hello.

A lot has happened since I have spent any time here. I will summarize it this way:

I retired.

We moved to Kansas.

We had a wedding and 'reunioned' with family from far afield.

Things have settled down. 

Also, I joined the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild and I have been finishing quilts!

I made the top for this quilt in my "piece making basics" class three years ago.   

I practiced lots of designs and echoed the print in border. 

The fabric was a pre-selected kit for the class, and it didn't really 'speak' to me in the way that things do, sometimes.  It has hung in the closet with various other quilt tops of my own making and collecting since then.  It feels good to have it finished up!

A couple of months ago, I took a workshop on free motion quilting from Tia Curtis. Tia is a dynamic teacher and an excellent quilter.  Her passion is helping people get past their trepidation and jumping in to fmq. She also recommended Angela Walters' book which I had on my 'want list' already. 

In the workshop, we made these clever bags with our practice sandwiches. 

I have also been following the excellent year long series of posts and tutorials on fmq at Insights from Sew Cal Gal. Not stitching along, but reading along and saving the tutorials. Armed with Tia's encouragement and the other excellent resources at Sew Cal Gal, I started practicing on some orphan blocks and auction/estate sale partial tops. I finally got to the point where I felt that I could do some designs without 'ruining' a quilt top. 

And, I made a few more bags:

This is another low investment top that I put together with some 30's reproduction prints that I was hooked on for a brief minute. I practiced using my free motion foot to make straight lines. (Well fairly straight lines)  I am going to donate this one.

I have been working my way up to larger tops that I am fonder of.  

Here is just a peak at one that I am going to enter into the quilt show at Quilt Con.  The Mister said he wouldn't mind a trip to Austin in February if my quilt will be in the show! It is a juried show so it may or may not be accepted. I am going to keep it under wraps until I have it completely finished. Just so I don't jinx it, you know.  Maybe I can get on a wait list for a workshop or seminar!

The past two years have been full of change and transition, but I am finally feeling like I am back in the groove!  I have set some goals and one of them is to stay current here, if only for my own record, but I am always pleased to have folks stop by!

Jan