Beth Sherman Day On Today's Blog

This is the Pinnochio doll Beth recently made. 

Beth quilted this and then painted it with watercolor paints.

This was done with soy wax and painted. Beth always has a lot of new work. She loves to try to processes and new products.

I'm Working On It

These blocks were created as demonstration pieces as I taught this original sampler class. It took me over 20 years to use them in the following quilt.

Although it may not seam I am working on this now, deciding how to quilt it is one of the steps in creating a finished quilt. That is where I am on my journey right now.

It Had Been Too Long Since We’d Seen Each Other

It’s hard to believe that my friend Peggy and I live about a mile from each other and yet have not see each other recently.
Her friend Jill was visiting and they are spending the week doing fun stuff.
She brought Jill over to see my quilt Bordering On A New Millennium which is the quilt I take pictures in front of. It was so good to see her and catch up and to meet Jill.
They also got to see my other recent quilts.
Peggy is the FIRST quilter I met when I moved here and I sure was lucky to meet her.
We both are currently involved in projects which has prevented us from seeing each other but we do keep in touch on Facebook and with emails. Next year we WILL see more of each other.
Hard to believe that it has been 12 years since we met as it seems like yesterday.

Stitching On The Lanai

I usually leave all my hand sewing/finishing for the evenings when I watch TV.
It is such a beautiful day today I decided I’d sit outside and watch the golfers while I stitched down the facings.
I think that since golf is a part of this it can be considered exercise?

My New Friend Gail

Quilters have a way of finding each other. Gail and I have been “talking” on line for some time. Today we met in person.
She came over and brought quite a few of her pieces for me to see. She considers herself a “beginning” art quilter. I saw someone who has a lot of talent and is doing some very creative things. She works with various mediums in her work and has the eye and soul of an artist. Her workmanship is also excellent. I will be following her as she continues her journey.
After she shared her work I shared the few pieces I have here and some of the fabrics I’m creating.
We had a late lunch at Toppers Tavern and the food was great. We never ran out of things to talk about. I'm looking forward to seeing her again.

The Quilting Makes The Quilt

The design of a quilt is important in  successful composition.
That can be enhanced by proper quilting. It is not always evident right away what will be best for a particular quilt.
There are no hard and fast rules. A lot of this can come from experience.
The quilting should not overwhelm the quilt design itself. There currently is a tendency to “quilt the bejebbers” out of a quilt. There are quilts that can be improved with that approach. Generally they are simple quilts with solid or traditional fabrics.
Bejeebers quilting would have destroyed what had been created with the detailed fabrics and design of the piecing in this quilt.
I personally believe that Bejebbers quilting started when we started machine quilting our quilts. It was furthered with the use of mid and long arm machines. There is nothing wrong with either machine quilting or quilts being quilted on a mid or long arm machine.
If used appropriately they can make it possible to quilt a quilt much faster than we could when we hand quilted all our work. I find that machine quilting is VERY appropriate for quilts with a graphic design that would be destroyed with the soft effect hand quilting would create.
Think about this next time you are thinking about quilting your next quilt.

The Twelve Days Of Thanksgiving….Day Nine

I am so happy my life lead me to quilting.

The first time I tried it at about 13 years old the project ended up in the wastebasket

I’ve had a lifelong affair with fabric and color which eventually led me to quilting.

Since my Mom didn’t sew much fabric was not something we had laying around the house. I treasured each little bit I found and used it to make doll clothes.

From there I transitioned into making myself a costume on the sewing machine with crepe paper…..but it was summer and when I perspired the color ran.

I eventually learned to make my own clothes and nothing was too challenging for me.

I started teach for our local technical college almost 50 years ago. I taught all areas of sewing courses.

The most popular was my Sewing With Knits, long before those sewing with knit stores appeared on the scene.

Of course I ended up with a lot of scraps of polyester double knits which lead me into making and teaching quilted pillows and small quilts with polyester double knits.

My first quilt made from a Lee Wards kit.

The jump to sewing with quilting cottons was the next step, although it was hard to find fabrics and supplies in the 70’s.

I taught many quilting and quilted/patchwork clothing classes and designed my own patterns for them.

That kept me very busy and I thoroughly enjoyed it and the people I met.

I travelled around the country doing some teaching when I had time.

Eventually I gave up the teaching, lecturing and style shows when my husband retired.

I now work on finishing my own Works In Progress and create a lot of new work that speaks to my soul.

I do miss my students but I have kept in touch with many of them.

I also have found my quilting has allowed me to meet and become friends with many new people.

I’ve won some ribbons and big awards but that is not what keeps me involved.

To me creating is as necessary as breathing.

How lucky can one girl be?

Sixth And Last Quilt Layered For Now

I finished layering this quilt. It is the last one I am layering until I get these 6 quilts finished.
I picked up my machine that was being fixed so nothing can stand in the way now.
I am now ready to start the machine quilting on the remaining 5. I DO love to do machine quilting, especially when I can just play and move around.
Several of this group will require some precise quilting.
It is going to be great when I can add all 6 of these to my finished quilt list.
It will not be a race to see how fast I can do them. I’ll do it as the spirit moves me. Having them ready to quilt makes it easier to listen to that spirit!

I have had questions about the design of this quilt and the fabric. I am adding another picture which shows one yard of the fabrics. I designed the fabric and it is available through Spoonflower from this link.
http://www.spoonflower.com/profiles/kaydesignsfabric

 

I added the blue hand dyed fabric as a design element.

3 Quilts Layered

My current priorities are to get some of my quilts layered and ready for machine quilting.

My main sewing machine is being fixed so I want to have several ready when it is finished.

The smallest ones could be quilted on my smaller machine.

For those of you who are quilters you may notice I have used two different types of pins to hold the layers together.

On small quilts I often use my flower pins and double dip them and then bury the sharp tip in the layers. This works very well.

I often do this on larger quilts too. This time since I am going to be layering about 7 quilts I knew I would run out of pins.

With this in mind I used safety pins on two of these quilts.

Hopefully I will be able to make some quick progress on these quilts as soon as my machine comes home!

Meeting Up With Friends

I had just arrived at The Villages Quilt Show and my friend Teddy Pruett and I almost collided. I was heading to her appraisal area to see her and she was out on her first break. Teddy and I go way back to when we met at the Jinny Beyer Seminar at Hilton Head many years ago. Now we live less than 2 hours from each other. The only one missing was our mutual BFF Sandy Donabed!

Next was finding Lori Kabat of Lilly Ann Stitches in her booth in the vendor area. Lori is from Brillion, Wisconsin and is a family friend. She was not at the July 4th family gathering at the lake this year so it has been a long time since we had seen each other.

It’s so great to have quilting in my life. It has enriched my life and allowed me to meet and become friends with people from throughout the USA and beyond.

Yes, I did see the quilts at the show. There were some real stunners and I’ll be sharing a few of them on a future post.

It’s Quilted! Is It A Quilt?

This is a piece I did some sun painting on and then overpainted with a grid.

Love the backing.

This is what happened to it! I did not have one zipper in the length I needed, at least one that I could find. Two yellow zippers fit the opening perfectly.

Today this will be the perfect little pouch when the Green Bay Packers play football!

GO PACK!!!!!

Negative Positive Quilt Is Quilted

I was able to do the quilting on this quilt in two sessions, even with the problems my sewing machine was throwing at me.

Because of the busyness of the pattern it is hard to even see the quilting.

You are seeing the backing and batting and some Wonder Under around the edges. That will be trimmed away and I will finish the edges.

You may be able to see some of the quilting on this close-up.

This close-up features some of my favorite blocks. Again, because of the busyness it is very difficult so see the quilting.

Chasing Rainbows 2

This quilt was made for our Art Group Line Challenge.

I started with a piece of hand dyed fabric that I had done two processes on.

The lines you see are satin stitching with various colors of thread.

I changed the color of thread for each row of stitching.

It was a very calming process to do the rows of stitching and I thoroughly enjoyed each and every moment.

The binding was done with a companion piece of fabric that was almost an exact replica of the piece I used as the base.

Approaching Half A Million………

When I started this blog I had no idea how long I’d be doing it. I didn’t know if anyone would be interested in reading it.

Well sometime today or tomorrow I will be hitting half a million views of my blog.

I’ve talked about my quilts, color, my family, my activities, and anything else I want to keep a record of.

In reality it has become my diary that I share with anyone who wants to read it.

I am going to do a rerun of the first week of posts.

If you look carefully at these posts you will see there are some quilts that still aren’t finished.

You also may notice there has been a new direction with the work I am currently doing.

I am no longer teaching quilting or giving programs. I devote my time to my own work. I am finishing many of my works in progress and starting a few new ones along the way.

I’m also a few years older and happy to still be making art.

UPDATE: About 1 p.m. on July 29, 2014 I reached 500,000 views of my blog!

Monday, September 22, 2008

Bolt of Color

This is a quilt which few people have seen. I have never exhibited it because it was sold right off my design wall within hours after I finished it.

The center section was painted with Procion dye. Fabric paint was applied over the dyed painted fabric to emphasize the shapes.
The fabric I used for the border was left from a larger piece I had dyed for another project. I was able to blur the division between center and border by carefully cutting the border so the colors blended together.
It is machine quilted. I used an iridescent thread to quilt lines to define the shapes.
Each section was then quilted with a unique design to emphasize the shape.

By clicking on either photo you can see a close up and the detail of some of the quilting.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 9:36 PM 2 comments:

Labels: Fabric I dyed

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Multitasking Big Time

I spent this evening watching football, watching the Emmy Awards, monitoring incoming mail on my computer, writing this blog and finishing another one of my show quilts.
Since the football game and the Emmy Awards were on at the same time I was queen of the remote control with the aid of Tivo.
The game is over and now I'll finish watching the Emmy Awards.
It is always such a great feeling when I finish a quilt. It means I can move it to my finished list.

This is a section of the quilt that I showed you the prototype for.
I dyed all the fabrics for this quilt. Much of it is various types of shibori dye.
It is one of the June quilts that will be in my January-March 2009 show.
My solo show will include The Colors Of My Life series and my June series.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 9:39 PM 2 comments:

Labels: Fabric I dyed, Quilts: Another Dimension, Shibori

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Introducing my studio assistant

How many times have you said "If I had a studio assistant I could accomplish so much more?"
I am very fortunate to have had a studio assistant for almost a quarter of a century and she does help me a lot.
I was glad to have her around today as I finished the quilting on another one of the quilts for my upcoming show.
One important thing when choosing a studio assistant is to find someone who does not expect you to talk to them all the time.
I also prefer someone who is a quilter themselves.
I don't feel they must have the same quilting style as I do, but they must be passionate about their quilting.
They have to be able to stay on task without your constantly telling them what to do.
She is not easily distracted. A few years ago my then 2 year old granddaughter thought my assistant was unfriendly. Heidi looked up at her and said "Hi!"
When my assistant didn't even answer her she got the strangest look on her face.
A positive attitude is another important atribute.
She never expresses a negative opinion not matter what I do.
She has never put things in a place that I can't find them.
She is older than I am so I can draw on her wisdom.
I would like to introduce you to my studio assistant.

She has a few more wrinkles than I do as you can see in her close-up.

"Quilting Granny" by Sara Baker 1984

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 7:14 PM 1 comment:

Labels: Studio

Friday, September 19, 2008

Amish Southwest Fusion

I love the simplicity and the colors of Amish quilts.
The use of dark or dull colors along with the clear brights is what makes those Amish quilts sing.
I find the Southwest a very inspirational place to visit.
I put the two loves together in this quilt and added prairie points for an unexpected accent.
The unexpected makes a good quilt great.
The simple diagonal quilting on the black background complements the quilting in the ditch in the pieced area.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 10:20 PM No comments:

Labels: My original technique

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Eight Pointed Star for One Armed Quilter

Several years ago I was unable to use my left arm and was in considerable pain. I was not recovering and the pain medication was not doing it's job. I knew that doing something positive could help the healing process.
When I couldn't sleep I got up at 4 a.m. and thought about making a Lone Star quilt with strips I had already cut. I went to the computer and using the first colors on the palette designed a Lone Star.
I pulled out my box of strips and with one arm began sewing them together. As I did each step, I noticed I was improving enough to do the next step.
After making all the points I looked through my fabric collection and finally found the perfect fabric to finish the quilt.
After completing the first quilt top I realized I had the same background print in another color way.

I created this Broken Star using this fabric as my inspiration
I wanted to do this with a fabric that did not have a quarter circle design.

This quilt was done with a fabric with a linear color striation.
I will be teaching my Eight Pointed Star for One Armed Quilter at the Lighthouse Quilt Guild in Racine, Wisconsin on Monday September 29, 2008.

I will also be doing my lecture "Creating Spectacular Quilts" for them that evening.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 7:16 PM 9 comments:

Labels: My original technique

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

I love Shibori!

I did this prototype for a larger shibori piece. The larger piece is one of my show quilts.
The shibori fabrics talk to me and tell me what to do with them.
Prototypes also give me a chance to test quilting designs and quilting threads.
You can click on the photo to see the detail of the quilting.
A successful prototype stands on it's own as a finished work of art.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 9:55 PM 1 comment:

Labels: Fabric I dyed, Shibori

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Cubic Jubilee

This quilt is made from hand dyed fabrics. Even the black is hand dyed. Obtaining a deep dark black with Procion dyes is not the easiest thing to do as most dyers will attest to.
I did not dye the fabrics for this quilt.
It is 51 inches square.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 11:28 PM 1 comment:

Labels: hand dyed fabric., My original design

Monday, September 15, 2008

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again

This quilt started out as a strip pieced quilt shading from roses through blues.
It then was cut into a curve shape and sewn together to create a new design.
It DIDN'T work. It was so bad I don't even have a photo of the original.
I had put a lot of time in it and I knew it was salvageable.
Step 1: I cut it into diagonal squares.
Step 2: I added one inch black strips between each square.
Step 3: I added a plain black border and some leftover piecing from the original strata to the left of the quilt.
It needed more.
Step 4: I went to my fabric collection and found a large tropical print. I cut pieces from it and laid them on the quilt in a pleasing arrangement. I appliqued them to the quilt.
It still needed something.
I spied the leftover pieces that resulted when I cut the original strata into the curve shape.
Step 5: I laid them on the quilt and VOILA - that was it!

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 11:39 PM 3 comments:

Labels: Quilting Problems

Quilts for the Millennium

I sometimes introduce myself by saying "My name is Kay, - I don't do bed quilts - Sorensen.
I made an exception to that for the Millennium. I made a king size charm quilt for each of my 8 grandchildren.
Each quilt has 2000 different fabrics with a Millennium Border Print.
I traded fabric with over 350 people from around the world to do the project.
The grandchildren are only allowed to sleep under them on New Year's Eve or other special occasions. Each quilt is accompanied by a Journal so they can record their activities, photos and share where they were each time they use the quilts.
They were started in April 1999 and finished on December 15, 1999.
This would not have been possible if I had not had Sandy Schilawski of Green Bay, Wisconsin quilt them. She did a fantastic job and I really appreciated it.
No one was more amazed than me that I finished all 8 in that period of time!
The photo shows only 1 quilt but there are REALLY 8 - each with different borders and backings, but all with similar color layouts.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 1:04 AM 11 comments:

Labels: family, Millennium quilts

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Journey

Journey is the quilt you see on my header.
It is 18.5 x 320 inches.
It is made from hand dyed fabrics using reds, oranges and yellows alternating with blacks and shades of gray on one side.
The other side is greens, golds and yellows alternating with browns, tans and beiges.
Two years ago when doing some redecorating I realized I could hang it in an archway between my sunroom and kitchen.
This proved to be the perfect place to hang the quilt so you can appreciate both sides.

Posted by Kay Koeper Sorensen at 7:48 PM 1 comment:

Labels: My original technique

My Colorful Quilts

I love to create quilts - large quilts, small quilts, miniature quilts, art quilts, quilts made from fabric I've dyed or painted or both, odd shaped quilts, long quilts, three dimensional quilts, embellished quilts, post card quilts, altered playing card quilts, fused quilts, pieced quilts, appliqued quilts, hand quilted quilts, machine quilted quilts, even an occasional bed quilt.
What do they all have in common?
COLOR
Think about the first quilt you remember seeing that impressed you.
How do you describe it?
Probably the first word you use is the color name.
We see the color of a quilt before we see the pattern or the workmanship.
I will be sharing some of the quilts I've made with you. I hope you enjoy them.