Just Thinking Out Loud

I can't believe I'm staying up late to write this post, but here they are. All five of the quilts that I ended up putting in the NCW Quilt Show. I'll post later next week with pics of other quilts that caught my eye.

Scrappy Tulips

First of all, I went with a quiet but clearer mind this year. No 'comparison is the thief of joy' type of thoughts, 'not gonna nitpick the details', just a solid determination to enjoy. I'm a confident but filled with insecurities sort of gal and quilt shows can be difficult. The reason to do this is because nothing beats going to a quilt show and being inspired. By little ideas or big ones. Wonderful color and out of the box thinking. A saturation of the senses that is almost impossible to get strictly from pictures on the Net {especially when you're dealing with a camera-handicapped person like me!}.

Vintage Red

No ribbons this year which inexplicably made it all so much better. Wacko that I am, it was refreshing to know that none of my quilts stood out over any of the other ones I brought.*sigh  It's hard when people play favorites with our quilts! Scrappy Tulips {the first pic} almost didn't make the cut. The colors don't play nice in some lighting and it worried me. Turns out it was the one that absolutely shown under the lights at the quilt show. Totally melted my heart and I went back and stared at it several times. It looked sort of old timey, but sweet. Really, really sweet and dreamy. Why weren't more people staring at this quilt? lol

Vintage Red was one that I emphatically was not going to enter. Turns out I just couldn't resist seeing how it would look hanging up where I could see it full on. Oh my, did I love turning the corner and seeing that one. Totally vintage vibe going on which just made me smile so big. I totally nailed this idea! And well, I went ahead and looked at some of the other sewing details in others quilts. Uh huh. Maybe my mistakes aren't quite as horrible and blatantly obvious as I thought. Might have to rethink that one.

Quilty 365

I got a little jolt seeing Quilty 365 hanging up for the first time. That quiet looking stitching around every other block is a secret weapon. Can't see it in this pic at all, but all my concern over there not being enough stitching in this quilt were totally put to rest. I really, really loved seeing this one hanging out for others to peruse. I wished so hard it would have been where I could have stood back a long ways and looked at it from different distances. The colors/values do the dance thing. They really do. It wasn't just my imagination or wishful thinking.

Sunburst

I think Sunburst was in the poorest lighting overall. Yes, it's the brand new finish and looks so much better in proper lighting. I'll give it a post all its own next week so you can see how good the Baptist Fan stitching looks and sigh with me over the sweet look to it. Am I on a sweet kick? It seems to be so. There are lurking questions about this quilt, things I might have done different, but overall, it was a good one to umm, not compare to others. Not quite as complex as it appeared all the while I was hand sewing it. Funny how time and 'distance' change our perspectives.

Hills and Valleys

And Hills and Valleys was the other one that I wiffle, waffled about entering into the show. Turns out the lighting was fine for it, just not for me, the picture taker. Mostly I just wanted to look at the texture of this quilt in a hanging up presentation. Great idea as I just stood in front and sort of soaked it all in. Honestly, I'm super happy with this quilt, and yes, it looks tremendously better in person. It's kind of crazy that this quilt was made by me. 5 years ago, this wasn't in my wheelhouse at all--something to feel very good about today as I considered my growth as a quilter.

Don't worry if you're scratching your head over my enthusiasm, I can't see you and won't get my feelings hurt a bit. The thing I learned today is that I am completely, unabashedly making the sort of quilts that make my heart go pitter patter. Sometimes I worry at some of the squirrels that crop up, but a lot of these tangents lead to wonderful surprises and fabulous interpretations--things we might never have explored if we stick to the plan.  Every single time I turned the corner and saw one of my quilts, it was like 'Well, hello old friend'. Makes the effort and anxiety totally worthwhile. It's so good to get validation once in awhile that we do have a style, a look, or even a muse that is personal and custom fitted to us. And you know what?

This year being in the minority with that sort of thing didn't even bother me one little bit. So my quilts are softer, more simplistic, scrappy and naive looking. So what! I enjoyed the entire quilt show! All those sharp looking, fancy machine quilted quilts just got a different part of my attention. Maybe I'm finally reaching adulthood in my quilting journey? Please don't answer that. Thanks to NCW Quilty Guild for being so welcoming! I'll probably be back next year with another stack....

An {Overflowing} Trunk Show

Love the trunk show over at Whims and Fancies so much! Have you seen it yet? I'm still working my way through all the entries, but enjoying the show tremendously. I'm almost too late for the party myself, but decided to be very indulgent {it's a long post} and show off a couple several of my favorite quilts too.

The sawtooth quilt was made out of blocks given to me by friends I was moving away from. They made me the simple looking blue and brown stars and then several years later I added the red stars. It made all the difference with bringing the quilt to life when I added the red! It took a long time to come up with the best fabrics to set them off with, but once it happened I was absolutely delighted with the result. It drapes across one of my living room chairs year around and still feels very special to me.

Sawtooth Stars of Friendship

This baby quilt was a result of me experimenting with a fat quarter bundle of solids. Ach! but that was difficult for me. Finally had to incorporate a tiny bit of a print in order to move forward, but felt absolutely no remorse in breaking the 'all solids' rule. It had to be done! And it's probably one of my most 'modern' looking quilts yet and definitely my favorite baby quilt I've ever finished.

Lil' Retro Baby

Love, love, love how this scrappy log cabin quilt turned out! All the blocks were made directly out of my scrap bin, my first attempt at a truly scrap attack sort of quilt. I finished it up with simple borders and gave it to my son while he was living in Oklahoma attending college. I felt that he needed a piece of home in his teeny tiny dorm and this fit the bill perfectly. The last time I saw this quilt, it was very well worn. Such a compliment to momma!

Scrappy Log Cabin

Dutch Comfort was started during a very 'down' time in our life. I wanted to make something that was cozy, warm and comforting. I used a Blackbird Design block pattern for the middle and then sort of copied the Dutch look for the rest, using different colors of course! I've always had a very fond spot in my heart for this quilt. It feels so good to see it being used.

Dutch Comfort

Ahh... This basket quilt. Such a long project for me! Five years from start to finish, but well worth the time and effort involved. I thought it was a lunatic sort of project for me to start, but was immensely proud of myself for actually getting it finished. Wowsers, long term quilts take a different mentality altogether! But who cares how long something like this takes to make? Now it will be enjoyed by our family forever!

Worry Baskets

This Broken Dishes quilt was such a fun quilt to make. I was wanting to make this very old fashioned block, but experiment with a blend of modern to reproduction fabrics all in the same quilt. I'm kind of funny that way. Always pushing the boundaries of what goes with what even when I'm thinking it couldn't possibly come out all right in the end! I ended up finishing this for my oldest daughters senior graduation and I don't think it's left her bed yet.

Broken Dishes Part Deux

Quarter Circles has got to be one of my most favorite of all my favorite quilts. I wanted to play with a very low-volume sort of quilt, circles and also that lovely, sparky, red thing that the Netherland quilters seem to be so accomplished with. Honestly, this quilt has been on my bed longer than any other quilt I've made. It finally got shoved off after my very last quilt finish.

Quarter Circles

Yay for Happy Flowers! This one just sort of told me how it wanted to be started and put together. I love seeing this sweet little quilt draped over a rocker in the corner of my bedroom--it just makes me happy. I've almost given it away a couple times but always come to my senses and bite my tongue.

Happy Flowers

Most people don't understand my almost obsessive love for Vintage Reproduction, but this quilt was just a fantastic experience for me. I saw a picture of an antique quilt, hung it on my wall for a couple years and then one day out of the blue thought 'I can make this!'. Okay, it's not exactly the same colors--I changed that a bit here and there. But the pattern is very, very close {except for the center applique} and I had to draw, measure and plan that all by my lonesome. Loooove this quilt so much because it was exciting and fun and just felt so creative. Even though I was basically copying! huh. Quilters are such odd creatures....

Vintage Reproduction

Plain Jane was another one of those basket quilts that just call to me with a sirens song. It started out with the cake stand blocks that just wanted to be made. Then it eventually progressed to a finished quilt that melted my heart--Plain Jane proving that she wasn't so 'plain' after all! I will probably never, ever get enough of basket quilts. Enough said.

Plain Jane

All Grayed Down. A quilt that started out because I wanted to use up some of my gray fabrics that were collecting dust. Then it turned into a personal challenge to dig deep into the bottom of my stash totes and use other fabrics that I considered old and perhaps ugly enough to be unusable. Wowsers did this quilt blossom. I learned so very much during the making of this quilt!

All Grayed Down

This was a quilt I made for my brother a few months before he died. It still makes me sad to think of him, but I'm so very glad I got it done in time for him to actually use it. He always complained that quilts were never made properly for his tall frame and so I made sure this one could be tucked under his chin, wrapped around his feet and plenty wide enough for him to roll up in if he wanted to. I wanted it to be happy enough for him to smile occasionally, but not so cheesy he didn't want it in the same room. I cried a lot of tears while finishing this one up and definitely didn't have time to do much hand quilting except on the borders.

Rejoice Evermore

This quilt was a Pat Sloan pattern that reached out and demanded to be made. I changed the colors a bit from the original plan, but there wasn't any other changes to be made. Love the value changes in the yellow background fabrics especially. I gave this quilt to my sister after their house burnt down last year. My daughters thought I was nuts because 'what was there to be thankful about?' Oh you know... life, good health, a loving family and the fact that sometimes you are strong enough to survive whether you know it or not? Mostly I just hoped it would be the comforting sort of quilt to wrap up in and have a good cry, and then remember the good things too. It's really hard to give away certain quilts, but easy when you know they might need it more than you.

Be Thankful

And now I'm being sappy and weird. Thanks for sticking with my trunk show till the end {if you have!} and go check out those other great trunk shows here! It takes dedication and a great love of quilting to make a quilt start to finish. All of us have quilts to be proud of for one reason or another!

*On another note, if you're still with me on the Quilty 365, there is something you really should look at. Over at Crazy Mom Quilts, she is making a circle quilt that will give you a great idea of what our circle quilt could look like at the end of a year! Her quilt isn't a daily fabric journal like ours, but it's the same sort of pattern etc. How crazy is this? I'm sure I have seen the beginnings of her quilt before, but honestly never made the connection--circle quilt to circle quilt. I was thinking daily fabric choices, simple units, etc. etc. Gotta love quilting for the way inspiration flows, influences and changes with the advent of the Internet especially!

A Little Spark of Inspiration

10/23/15 Update: My quilt came home with this third place ribbon. So exciting!!

Third Place in the Modern Category

I know you're all getting tired of this quilt, but today was pretty incredible. My mom, a good friend and I traveled over to the Washington State Quilters 37th Annual Quilt Show in Spokane, Washington where I got to see one of my quilts hanging. Along with hundreds of other really great and wonderful quilts.

In another quilt show

I'm still blown away. The very first time I went to this particular quilt show I went around and mentally said 'I can never make anything this good. I will never have the skills to sew something like this.' And on and on and on, as you can only imagine a beginning quilter feeling the delight of seeing so many beautiful quilts mixed with despair at how very much there was to learn.

Seeing it through my eyes today....

And today I got to see one of my quilts hanging in that same space. {Okay. You got the message.} It was so much fun to see people standing in front of my quilt, silently reading, sometimes chatting, little kids taking pics with their cell phones. Just taking it in. Or not. I saw people glance at it and walk right on by too.

The spark that started this quilt on it's long, often difficult journey

My friend asked me how I got the courage to put a quilt into this particular show. Hmm... That's a long story. More important is how I got the mental fortitude to make this particular quilt. Well, that's because I really, really didn't know what I was setting myself up for. Or how long it would take and that the idea was too compelling to ever totally quit so I didn't really have a choice anyway?

We never really know what playtime can yield...

Funny how ideas can explode into something larger than our imagination. Did you get to go to the show too? Amazing where life can take us. Thank you Spokane for letting me have a small bit of space in your show! Vive La Difference!

Linking up with Quilty Inspiration #4.

Sometimes It Works Out Better

Well, the NCW 2015 Quilt Show was this weekend. I took my quilts down to Wenatchee on Monday for drop-off {it's an hour drive}. Practically shaking when I handed them over, I managed to leave them instead of gathering them all up and making a mad dash for the door. It felt a little like dropping a child off for the first day of Kindergarten.

X's and O's

I took all my pics with the flash off which makes the lighting seem not as good as it actually was. My X's and O's quilt had a really lovely glow about it {which I always knew it had} and made me feel very proud. Spring Forward looked soft and approachable {another proud moment}. I so loved being able to see them both hanging tall and proud--happiness in good lighting. It's always such a thrill to see our quilts hanging up for once instead of being wadded up in a ball at the end of the couch.*wink

Spring Forward

Forgive me for not remembering to get the full names of all who made the following quilts. Photo taking is not something that comes naturally to me and I often forget why I even have the thing dangling off my wrist. The quilt below was a wonderful example of wool up-cycling. I felt positively inspired to start combing my local 2nd hand stores for possible quilty uses.

A beautiful up-cycled quilt

The vintage/antique looking quilts caught my eye as usual. I'm beginning to think a hexy quilt might very well be in my far off, distant future...

Lovely hexies

The Dresden quilt below was quite possibly the most inspiring quilt in the whole show to me! The coloring is very bad in this picture, but if you could just imagine the various prints in this quilt looking spunky? Paired with the crhome yellow, lets just say that I was completely enamored of this quilt.

A gorgeous Dresden quilt

I had to smile at the quilt below. It gave off a very fun vintage vibes that I well appreciate.

A bit of a vintage vibe

I really enjoyed looking at this applique quilt although I'm quite positive yours truly would never be able to make something turn out quite this polished looking. And another great border idea!

Interesting applique border

Had to smile at this little quilt in one of the vender booths. Shades of my Sunburst quilt! There was so many good quilts that I simply forgot about taking a picture of.

Reminds me of my Sunburst quilt....

I did remember to go back and take a picture of these great mini quilts? So gorgeous. I adore the stitching details.

Fabulous detail...

 Incredible work ladies!

And stitching....

And this is such a fun, folksy flower quilt--I couldn't resist. I'm often tempted to make another big {one} flower quilt after seeing something like this. And there very far back in the picture on the right corner?

Fun folksy flower and waaay back in the corner?

Yep, it's my fire quilt. And the entire quilt was on display. In very good lighting {tho the picture doesn't do it justice}. My heart was about to beat out of my chest.

My fire quilt

And I just about started crying, blinking away tears as fast as I could--trying to control my emotions and not act like a weirdo.

Is the picture a bit fuzzy?

 'Cuz they gave me Best of Show. I know. Pretty insane huh?

'Cuz that must be you.  I can see it all perfectly....

My dad said it's validation. I just think it's amazing. {Still very unreal feeling}. And so naturally, I had to act like a stalker and go back and stare at it, over and over, for I won't tell you how many times. And I took like five? pictures of the ribbon because surely I had to be hallucinating......

Pics From the 2014 NCW Quilt Show

This is a photo heavy post, but I thought I'd show you some of the quilts that caught my eye. The quilt below was just fun and happy. I seriously wanted to haul it home with me in my bag! After seeing Kathie work her magic on that quick little baby quilt I wonder if I should start gathering fabric for one of my own?

There were quite a lot of quilts in the style made below--applique heavy and very detailed. They always draw my attention and make me feel like a slacker with my own applique work. lol

This next quilt is quite horrifying in that large butterfly motiff so commonly used in the seventies, but the fabrics... I am in LOVE with that wonderful chrome yellow and those fabulous odd prints used! Kudo's to the quilter for being bold in her choices!

My mom and I stared at this particular quilt for a long while. The entire centerpiece of the quilt is an upcycled vintage tablecloth which is a really, really great idea. Pinterest and this quilt = true love! The quilter just added a very nice border onto the quilt and then quilted it very complimentary to the tablecloth print. Genius. I am going to be trolling the 2nd hand stores for vintage tablecloths now for sure!

I couldn't resist the quilt below. Not all the fabrics used are my 'style' but I love the cheerful look to the quilt. The appliqued flowers on the bottom are totally up my alley and the trees above made my mom smile. We both enjoyed getting to see this fun little wall hanging. She needed the eye candy to distract her from the reminders of what she lost in the fire. She would point out various quilts and say, 'I made one of those' or 'I was working on a similar quilt to that one'. It made me so very sad, but she was obviously enjoying the quilt show regardless so I'm glad we went together.

I don't have the patience for Sue Spargo like stitching, but I sure appreciate looking at it! What a sweet little mini quilt!

I wish the picture could adequately convey what this quilt looked like. The color was just amazing the way the light made your eye want to dance around the quilt. We actually had a hard time viewing this quilt as there was a woman in front who would NOT move away from the quilt. We finally left and came back around later.

This little note was hilarious. Something to remember if you're having a hard time gifting one of your quilts...

I don't have many solid fabrics, but I always love the look of a Gee's bend style quilt.

The quilt below was actually a 70's kit with a very uninspiring white background. The applique however, was wonderful.

This quilt was made by the featured quilter whose applique work was beyond amazing. She always uses needleturn which is my absolute favorite method as well. I had to take a picture of this one (my favorite) because of the use of plaid fabrics (so sparky) for some of the flowers. All her other quilts were much more detailed and obviously took an enormous amount of time just in terms of handwork. We chatted with her for a moment and got to look at her current project. Wowsers, does this woman know how to do her thing. I left feeling very inspired.

There was quite a few Quilts of Valor on display which is always wonderful to see. I really love the red/turquoise combination of the quilt on the left.

And then there was the vendor booths. Mom teased me quite a lot about stocking up on the used quilt books (I bought 15 to her 10). All her quilt books had burned so she obviously needs to restock, but me? I was just being greedy. lol  At $1 a book, I don't think so!

We also managed to time getting through the quilt show perfectly, allowing us to sit in on a little applique class. Would you believe it was the first quilting 'class' I've ever been to! Thank goodness for good quilting books, the internet and of course my good quilting friends who have helped me all along the way. I learned a couple 'of course' things to remember about working with applique and quite enjoyed the presentation. Very interesting to sit in the small crowd and realize that I'm not a complete bumpkin about the technique after all (no matter what my insecurities always want to tell me)! I've graduated from beginning applique somewhere along the way without even realizing it. Funny how that happens with age, great passion and dedication.*wink