Blanc n Noir

 This quilt was started at least 30 years ago and was finished recently.

The quilting is amazing.

Quilted In One Day

I had pieced this quilt top a few months ago.
It took me a while to get to the quilting.
I love doing spiral quilting and was able to do all the quilting in one day.
It is about 36 x 45 inches.

Mystic Movement- A Favorite Of Mine

                        Mystic Movement   18.5 x 15.5 inches   $400

I love strong graphic images. Mystic Movement definitely fits that description.
I started this by simply sewing together some carefully chosen strips I had cut with no idea what was going to happen.
This happened and I couldn’t be happier with it.

It is another one of those pieces that will work in any decorating scheme with any colors.
Machine quilting enhances the design and gives the sharp edge necessary for strong graphic images.

Fabrics Considered For June Quilts & Quilting Close Ups

The top right one made it into one of the June Series quilts.
I also think I used a part of the bottom left one.
The others have been overdyed once or more and there are some that need a 6th dying!

I found some close ups of the June Series where you can see the quilting. I thought you might enjoy seeing how I handled a few of them.






As you can see my quilting is suggested by the patterns in the fabric but I only let it influence me to the degree of creating a similar pattern.
I quilt “free and easy” and sometimes it is done in a relatively short time and other times it takes forever. It I the overall feeling that is created with the quilting that makes the quilt. 
I really LOVE to machine quilt when I can design as I go. Often no decision on what I will do is made until the needle hits the fabric and I do something original and something I've never done before.

An Extra Post Sharing A Great Quilt With Great Quilting!

This quilt has everything!
Color, Design, Amazing Ice Dyed fabric and Super Quilting
I wanted to showcase it all by itself on a post so you could enjoy it all.

All My Olympic Quilts

This is Olympic Quilt 1. It is a Gold Medal quilt. It set the bar high for what was to follow. Figuring out how to quilt this one was a challenge and I started, did what I knew I needed to do to start it, stepped back and took my time until it told me what to do next. I loved the dialogue the quilt spoke with me.

Olympic Quilt 2 also is a Gold Medal Quilt. The spiral quilting plays well with the linear lines of the quilt itself.

I was not so sure that Olympic Quilt 3 would make Gold.

When it was turned into a perfectly stuffed pillow it too became a Gold Medalist.

Olympic Quilt 4 was also trying to be a contender for Gold.

It also made the Gold status when it too became a pillow. The quilting was done horizontally to contrast with the leno weave of the silk fabric.

Olympic Quilt 5 came out of the reject pile and was quilted in a grid to make the save.

The “pillow save” also created another Gold Medalist.

Three gold medalists which work together, or as I like to call them 3 ART pillows.
My friend Debbie wanted to see all of the Gold Medal quilts and try to find the commonality between them. There definitely is a commonality, but it is not obvious unless you have been following my work for a long time.
Let me know what you see as the commonality.
(I also did Olympic dyeing and Olympic scarves)

Olympic Quilt/Pillow 3…Another Gold Medal

When I started this I planned on making a small quilt. The center was a piece I layer painted and then thermofax screened. The borders were fabrics I had done layers of pattern on.

This is the fabric I used for the inner border.

This is the fabric I used for the outer border.
When I got it to this size I realized the proportions didn’t work to use it as a quilt so I changed course and made it into a quilted pillow.

You can see the quilting clearly in this picture of the top before it was sewn to the pillow back.
I wanted it to be firm so it would stand upright. I used a full pound of that non clumping polyester stuffing and it really is looking full and comfy.
I love it and I think it is the beginning of changing all the pillows in my great room over time.

Olympic Quilt Number 1

I hope you can see the quilting on this photo. If you click on the photo you can see a larger version.
I am thrilled it is finished. I love how the fabrics worked and also that I was able to come up with a quilting design to compliment the quilt.
The machine quilting emphasizes the strong graphic image in this quilt.

Quilting: Sneak Peak

I’m moving right along with this newest quilt.
This is a section that shows part of the border and a little of the main quilt.
I hope to finish the quilting today and then maybe get the facings and casings ready for the hand sewing.
I could do the handwork as I watch the Olympics this evening.
Wish me luck!

Bulls Eye Quilt

This was a popular raw edge quilt idea several years ago.
Of course I had to add my own twist to it and used my magic circle stitcher to made the circles.
After they were made each one was cut in quarters and connected with 3 different ones. I think the Jinny Beyer border added a lot to this one.
Like so many other of my pieces it sat for years waiting to be quilted. When Eileen Mirr said she could long arm some quilts for me I had her do this one right away. Of course she used her famous spiral design.

The backing fabric has cows on it which is simply a coincidence. I looked in my fabric supply and found this piece that was wide enough and just a few inches longer than I needed.
The quilting added so much to this.

So What Is Happening In My Studio

I am working hard (OK, not real hard) finishing many pieces that have been in progress.
Some might be as much as 30 years old.
I have some that are even older…some of those that I am not super excited to finish are 40 years old which is when I became a serious quilter.

These are all miniatures. I developed a technique for making miniatures. I taught it throughout the US. The strips are 1/4 inch wide.

This quilt started with fabric I painted and you can see it in the 9 patches. The sashing came from one fabric dyer and the border fabric from another. It just needs the binding to finish it.

The top quilt in the picture just needs binding. The other needs quilting and is on my list to have hand quilted.
It will be a great feeling to have these pieces finished.

Through The Years

This is not the type of quilt I make. I made this for a contest where one had to use Thimbleberries fabric in 1999. It was a finalist but not a winner.
It measures 61 inches square. It has a traditional feel to it and I do like it.
The reason I am sharing it now is because at lunch Tuesday the subject of their fabrics came up in a conversation between Kathy Metallica Cray and myself.
She said she no longer has any of their fabrics and I know I still have a few of their buck bundles I have used for guild projects, etc.
It is a good quilt but not my style. They did buy the pattern from me to publish a calendar which was never created but I was paid.
I actually designed this in Corel Draw but when I made the units they didn’t work so I made some changes and made a better quilt with them.
When I am creating I really need to work with fabric and not on a computer. I also need to let the quilt talk to me and tell me what it wants to be.

Another Finish–Ice On Fire

It is always such a good feeling to have another finish. The fabrics are ice dyed. After the washout and ironing what I saw in these fabrics was fire.
I used the pieces without cutting them up. I did a quilting design that suggested flames.
This is my 8th finish for the year and my 444th overall finish for the years I have been creating quilts.

Spiral Ice Is Done

Sometimes a piece has to be totally finished to fall in love with it. I am totally in love with this now that it is finished. I am not sure how many colors of dye I used but after ice dyeing there seem to be an infinite number of colors.
It is dyed in a spiral type of design and the quilting is one spiral to compliment the dye design.
Took me a while to hand sew down all the facings and casings. I put a rod pocket at both the top and bottom for quilts of this size…slightly over 40 inches square.

Stitching A BIG Spiral

You are only seeing a portion of this quilt which I am currently quilting.
I started at the center and am stitching a single spiral to fill the surface of this 40 something inch quilt.
I do love stitching circles and spirals. Quilting one this size is a challenge.
I should finish the quilting very soon.

Another Finished Quilt…

When you look at this quilt do you see anything familiar? I am not going to tell you and I want to see how many of you can figure it out.
My middle child was here and gave it a name that is under consideration. What would you name this?
This is one of those quilts that I like so much better when it is quilted and finished. Often as I work on a quilt I am not sure what I think of it. It also was fun to make this one with the bright cheery colors.

The Quilting Is Finished But This Is A Teaser!

This quilt is the negative image of a positive image I showed you recently.
I have finished quilting the entire quilt but right now I am only sharing the center section.
Stay tuned until I get it finished!

The Circles On The Quilt Go Round And Round, Round And Round…..

It’s FINISHED!!!!!!
This started years ago looking like this:

Then it morphed into this:

I cut it into 4 equal strips with no idea what I would do with it.
I figured out how to use them as the border. Next I found this piece of rust to fill in the center.
Finally I found the perfect purple for a design for the center.
I chose to quilt the center motif in a way I had never done before.
The rest of the quilting was done using styles I felt fit the design of the piece.
I tried to carry the circle idea through as many of the layers as possible.
I’m pleased with the completed piece.
Stay tuned as there will be more in this style later!

I Can’t Believe I Quilted The Whole Thing!

Yesterday I decided to work on quilting this. I actually was able to complete the quilting.
I tried something new when quilting this….not with the idea of making the quilting better… but with the idea of balancing my body better as I quilted. I unplugged the foot pedal and used the on/off button on the machine itself. I did practice a little before I started. I have to say it was a lot easier than I expected. I did need to anticipate my stops so I could have one hand on the quilt and the other ready to press the button. I would not do this for something where I needed to be 100% accurate, but it worked great for the quilting. I did set the machine at 1/2 speed.
You may be able to get a closer look at the quilt on your computer by clicking on the photo.
I’m hoping to get this finished soon..but I have a few decisions to make first.

We Interrupt This Quilt’s Story To Bring You Glorious Quilting

This is some of the most gorgeous machine quilting I have ever seen. It is free motion quilted on a domestic machine. This is the front of the bag. I did not make this.

This is the back of the bag, every bit as beautiful as the front. This arrived in my mail today from an artist in South Africa I commissioned to make this for me. I could not be happier than I am with it. The bag is made from denim. I am guessing from jeans that are still in great shape from the look of the pockets. It has a zipper closing at the top, faux leather handles and a pocket inside. The size will be perfect as I can put a lot in it but it won’t be heavy.
This is her website:
http://www.ladyjanequilting.co.za She also has a Facebook group: LADY JANE QUILTING SHOP