Well, not literally…. I DON’T do handwork!! But we can still enjoy the amazing work displayed at the International Quilt Festival!!

The Blue Ribbon was awarded to this gem…..

She suggested that we count the number of ladybugs. While I didn’t do that, I see three in this single detail photo…

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Second Prize went to…..

There are SO many fantastic details in this quilt….

In case you missed it, look at the 3-D refrigerator!!

The border was made up of many imaginative details….

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The Third Place ribbon was awarded to…..

The quilter writes…. “I’ll give you a tulip bouquet with hope for your happy days.”

The embroidery on this quilt is out of this world…..

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This quilt was made to celebrate life!!

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This quilt is based on a pattern by Ruth de Vos” and is appliqued with linen.

The colors work together so well!

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Look at how intricate the applique is…..

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Her hope is that “the people who see this quilt will be filled with joy and happiness.”

Look at this quilting and appliqued details….

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The theme of this quilt is “My Color” As she made each pattern, she thought about what colors she liked and how freely and joyfully she could combine colors and patterns.

Each block i9s 12-cm square…..approximately 4.724 inches!!

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The applique, embroidery and quilting are all outstanding…..

We will stop there for today, but come back tomorrow for the rest of hand-quilting division!!

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Well, we have spent the last three days wandering thru the Abstract Quilts from the International Quilt Festival.

Let’s start with one from my friend and fellow guild member……

Laura uses a unique process…..she first produces a piece of artwork using alcohol inks. Those designs are professionally printed onto fabric and then she quilts the daylights out of them.

She is a lifetime artist but a fairly new quilter, and she has an abundant career ahead of her!!

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This quilt is one of a series that are inspired by waves. “This quilt shows the joy of being—of singing, floating, dancing, and swimming; of being unchained, unrestricted, unboxed and unconstrained— FREE!

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I love the simplicity of this quilt!!

Much like my Cherrywood Poppy Challenge, this quilt was inspired by her father’s service in WWII.

She used improvisational Log cabin blocks to depict the red petals and black centers.

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Get this….. the top is comprised of 300, QUARTER INCH finished vertical pieced strips!! How in the world did she accomplish that!!

Much of it was straight-line quilted with subtle accents added in the half-circles….

And, look at the ornamentation that she used to put the blocks together…..

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Such a wonderful use of circles in the design!!

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I am so enamored with the curves!!

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She used Drunkard’s Path shapes but freehand cut them with her rotary cutter. Doesn’t that sound interesting?

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This was her first attempt at an improvisational quilt!!….. Oh my!!

I love the muted colors and curvilinear shapes. And the quilting isn’t bad either…..

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This quilt was also a favorite from Quiltcon…probably my favorite there!!

Even though she changed the image of the Eiffel Tower, looking up from an unusual perspective, I still immediately KNEW what it was!!

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The blocks were freehand cut and the composition was improvisationally designed!

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And finally…..

From the artist…. “This is a celebration of the pure joy I feel when immersed in my textiles and colors”.

We can all identify with that!!

Okay….that finishes up the Abstract Quilts.

Come back tomorrow for a review of a new iron that I learned about at Houston and then on Sunday we will make a start on the Hand Quilted division!!

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Today we are on part three of my favorites from the Abstract Quilts category at the International Quilt Festival.

Let’s get started…..

I have long enjoyed Robbi Eklow’s quilts!! Her style is so distinct and it appeals to me greatly.

She used a zig-zag stitch to applique these shapes on and did it flawlessly……

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She says of her improv piecing…. “The improv nature of the piecing was freeing, at times, and often frustrating. I had to let go of my desire to have order and structure and embractd ambiguity.

What a perfect description of what many of us go thru!

She made great use of unequal straight lines….

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I love the mixture of “surf board” shapes with circles and rectangles. Great job!!

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This is what she says about the quilt….

“The theme of my work is the many sewing accessories that handcraft enthusiasts use every day. The quilt expresses the excitement of opening the zipper pouch containing my favorite notions.”

Take a closer look at the details in this quilt…..

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The quilter used so many different techniques in the make of this quilt…. hand applique, embellishment, embroidery, dyeing, machine quilting and original digitized quilting.

Just have a look at some of the embroidered deteails….

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The colors are depicting a hike in the forest in Maine where there are so many shades of green.

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This quilt is technically about global warming, but for me, I love the calming colors!!

This quilt was also in Quiltcon, and I marveled over its construction there. Her goal was to create curves and movement using only straight lines…..

She did that!!

We will stop here for today and finish up our discovery of the Abstract Quilts tomorrow. Be sure to come back so you don’t miss a single one!!

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Yesterday we looked at the first of the Abstract Quilt Category at the International Quilt Festival. Today, let’s see a few more!

This quilt is English-Paper-Pieced, double batted and free-motion quilted.

Have a look at the FMQ…..

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The small fabric scraps give so much texture to this quilt!!

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This wonderful piece was made from hours spent marbling fabrics. Doesn’t that sound fun!!

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This quilt describes the sensory overload of Morocco, including doorways, winding pathways, and exotic markets. I want to go!!!

Look at the fun quilting…..

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This was the maker’s exploration of Improv design. She saw earth, wind and fire, but her family saw a busy city traffic roundabout!!

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This was inspired by rain trickling down an airplane window. She included cotton fabrics and sheer silk organza that were hand-dyed!!

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Finally for today…..

This quilt showed a mastery of free-motion couching and beading

Okay…that’s it for today.

Come back tomorrow for Part 3!!

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Yesterday, I looked at six of the quilts in the “Modern Quilts – A Twist on Tradition” category from the International Quilt Festival.

Let’s finish them up today…..

This quilt was inspired by Amish star quilts, but the background fabric was inserted in much of the center piecing, meaning that the start floats.

And once again, look at this astounding quilting….

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Christa Watson is an amazing machine quilting educator and you should check out her website….

This is what she says about this quilt…..

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I love the quilting that she added…..

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And, speaking of quilting…..

This quilt was a machine quilting challenge to incorporate pieces from LeMoyne Star blocks. She made one large one, put it on point, and then twisted the setting.

That left lots of negative space to be filled with thousands of tiny stitches….

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This quilt was inspired by the “Diamond in a Square” block. Each narrow piece in the squares is like the facets of a cut diamond.

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This final quilt was used in much of the advertising for the show……

She based the quilt on a traditional Half-Square triangle block, but with an improvisational twist!

Tomorrow we will start looking at the Abstract Category. There were an amazing number of quilts in the category and some were truly awesome.

Don’t miss it!!

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If you don’t want to miss my personal tour of the International Quilt Festival in Houston, be sure to subscribe…….

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