Japanese Circles

This is from Karen Costello Soltys' book Bits and Pieces - I've done 6 quilts from that book. If you're a new quilter, like I am, get this book! Pick one or two from each "chapter," and do them in order - you learn so much, as I did - from squares and rectangles, in chapter one, to triangles in chapter two, to diamonds in chapter three, to appliqué (different kinds) in the last chapter. This little quilt was so fun! My circles aren't perfect, but I don't care - the overall effect of this piece is beautiful.

Quail Trail - Sandi Selk

I mentioned the Chiloquin, Oregon, quilt show a few weeks ago, and am now posting about Sandi Selk because I finished one of her designs. Sandi, above, is from Chiloquin. I bought two of her patterns - Quail Trail and Kokopelli, both from her Southwest Icons series.


(You can see Sandi's designs at her website: Sandi Quilts. )



Below is the finished wallhanging, which measures 17" x 36". I learned about fusible appliqué and used a new (hand) stitch - the outline stitch - which I used on the baby quail. I used blanket stitch around the mama.








Don't you love the fabric I found? I wanted mine to look like they were in a forest - so they're walking on some rocks in front of aspen trees.

I love Jo Morton!

Before I left for vacation, I visited Donna Sheridan's Calico Horse, a LQS in Redlands. (Donna is the mother of a former student!) I told her I liked to do miniature and small quilts, and asked if she had any books. She didn't at that time, but went back to her office and brought me a pattern for a small quilt by Jo Morton. This one is called Nine Patch Checkerboard, and it measures about 23" square. The original pattern called for shades of red with some dark tan accents, but I decided to try it "scrappy" style. I'm quite pleased with the results.

Americana Nine-Patch

Hello from Parcher's Resort in the Sierras - where I accidentally discovered I had WiFi. I booted up the computer to look for a block pattern I'd saved, and there it was. So now I'm busy checking email, viewing all the posts on Google Reader, and updating two of my three blogs. I'll be posting the travel-camping-fishing pics on Wanderlust, but don't have any new cooking-related stories to tell.

The little quilt shown above is another one from Karen Costello Soltys' Bits and Pieces. I wanted to do a patriotic quilt for July. This is basically nine-patches and snowballed-squares. Easy and quick.

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, set 5

Exhibitor: Samantha Bednoz/Carol Hancock
Title: Sam's World

closeup from Sam's World

closeup from Sam's World

closeup from Sam's World

Exhibitor: Jane Harworth
Title: Tribute to Charley Harper

Exhibitor: Linda Cloudas
Title: Tropical Paradise

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, set 4

Exhibitor: Jae Stewart
Title: Crazy Quilt

Exhibitor: Michael Handley
Title: Labyrinth
(it really is a labyrinth - there's a white path that starts in the lower right corner, and goes, unbroken, to the upper left corner.)

Exhibitor: Marston/Moran
Title: Lone Star

Exhibitor: Marston/Moran
Title: Quilt Sticks

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, set 3

Exhibitor: Mary Stiewig
Title: Shining Through

Exhibitor: Bryce Hamilton
Title: Pineapple Log Cabin

Exhibitor: Bryce Hamilton
Title: Colorado Log Cabin

Exhibitor: Joanne Balth
Title: Rainbow Reflections

Exhibitor: Debbie Startt
Title: Nature's Sampler

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, set 2

Exhibitor: Valerie Wells
(co-owner of The Stitchin' Post in Sisters)
Title: Moon Over Mountains

Exhibitor: Penny Dalton
Title: Beachy Keen

Yes, this is a quilted car. the Lebanon, Oregon, quilting guild stitched this to help advertise their own quilt show.

The show featured an appearance by the quilters of Gees Bend, Alabama, and included a set of "challenge" quilts stitched by employees of The Stitchin' Post. They were to create their own quilt "in the manner of" the Gees Bend quilts. This one was made by Annette Caldwell, and she called it "Insignificant Stripes."

Also part of the challenge, this is a cute quilt made from the legs of jeans by Sally Brittain. She calls it "Gees Bend Picnic."

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, set 1

As I've mentioned before, I went to Sisters, Oregon, for their Outdoor Quilt Show. I volunteered to take down quilts when it was over, so I didn't start early in the morning as most people did. I showed up around 1 pm, spent a few hours wandering the streets and viewing the quilts, and then grabbed some dinner before I took quilts down. I took photos only of quilts I liked, and made note of the exhibitor and the name of the quilt.

Exhibitor: Barbara Copeland
Title: The Dawn

Exhibitor: Jean Wells Keenan
(she's co-owner of The Stitchin' Post in Sisters)
Title: Twist From Tradition

Exhibitor: Barbara Copeland
Title: Country Album Sampler
(this was hanging in the machine quilting showcase)

Exhibitor: Eric Gunson for Pieceful Expressions
Title: Dune Thistle

Camp Sherman Quilt Show

We stayed at Black Butte Resort in Camp Sherman during the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, and the Pine Needlers of Camp Sherman (guild) had their own little show in the Camp Sherman Community Center. Hanging prominently in the center, permanently, is a quilt made for Mary Lou Loar (see placard below). I took several closeups of some of the squares.

This is the whole Mary Lou Loar quilt.

Below are some other quilts from the show that caught my eye - though I didn't take note of who did them (sorry!).

Some little quilts finished

See the wavy, wonky edges? That's because I'm new to making something with so many bias edges. Maybe it'll look better hanging up, or as a table centerpiece. It's called "Antique Diamonds," and it's from the book Bits and Pieces by Karen Costello Soltys.

At the Chiloquin Quilt Show, there was a basket on the table with a sign that said "Please Take One." The basket was full of scraps, all in sets, and I pulled out a set of 6 three-inch batik charms. The little tag on the set said these were "Quilt Seeds," so I made a little mini-quilt from them.

I learned a lesson about quilting with this little guy. I learned that when you're making tiny stars, your alignment mistakes and seam allowance differences are magnified when you use dark thread to quilt straight lines. I wanted to do lines that followed the seams, but my seams weren't in straight lines! Oh well. This is called "Honeymoon in Vegas," and it's from Lori Smith's packet of fat quarter patterns. The company is called From my heart to your hands.