I often think back to the times that I would be with my grandmother and she would be piece quilting. She started me off with a love of fabric by letting me make fabric dolls.
Later on my mother continued the tradition of quilting. She enjoyed adding embroidery to hers.
Now it’s time for me to express myself through fabric. I recently purchased a software program to design my own quilts! So exciting.
It’s amazing the wonderful people you meet when going to quilting shops and taking workshops. They all enjoy sharing their skills. Since jumping back into quilting in 2016 I have been taking as many technique and design classes as possible. There are some amazing artists/instructors out there and I enjoy seeking them out and taking their classes. Below are some of the national instructors that I have studies with this year:
• Jenny Doan, Missouri Star Quilt
• Rob Appell, Man Sewing
“Color Strata”
“Gears Quilt”
• Melissa Averinos
Face Quilt
• Freddy Moran
“Freddy.com”
Each month we create blocks for our fellow Bee Members so that they will have close to enough blocks to create their own quilt. There are 23 members in the Super Bee’s!
These were the blocks that I made for Licet in January 2019. I really love the colors and how they turned out
This is the Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild group of quilt enthusiasts that I belong to. Each month we create a block for the other 18 members, therefore you basically have enough to make a quilt.
These were the blocks from June 2018 that the Super Bee members made. I assembled and quilted for Miriam’s House
For the first challenge we did a charity quilt for Miriam’s House. I actually got to go to Miriam’s House on Christmas Eve to give the mother’s and their children a quilt for Christmas.
On Christmas Eve I joined a few of our LAMQG members to visit Miriam’s House and gift the mother’s and their children with a quilt for Christmas
For James’ third birthday I made him a quilt with Thomas the Train as the theme. He has been so intrigued by the trains that I thought he would enjoy cuddling with this quilt.
The biggest challenge was finding the the various pieces of fabric, as most were discontinued.
I designed the quilt with Electric Quilt 7 software and made each column different widths and within the column the blocks were various heights. Binding was all done in a royal blue by Kona.
The quilt backing was made up of various sizes and selections of Thomas the Train fabrics.
Starting the 2nd week of May I started the 100 Days/100 Blocks Tula Pink City Sampler Quilt Challenge. The goal of the challenge is to make one block each day for 100 days, using predominantly Tula Pink fabrics. I have completed over 40 of the blocks- feeling great!
Can’t wait to see them all blocked and assembled together.
It has been a while since I posted any quilts, however that is not to say I have not been busy making them. I am in the process of making several block of the month quilts, including the one shown here, Delilah.
I finished the first two blocks-
Rising Sun:
Bells Beach:
And now I have made the first of two for block 3
Shooting Star:
I will continue to update this post as I complete more blocks for the quilt. #delilahjenkingwell #deliahsewingparty
Quilt design: Ab Five, using Mickey & Minnie fabrics with a splash of yellow, black and red. Jillian was appliquéd using a blanket stitch. Hand stitched binding and quilting by Greg.
This is a toddler quilt that I made for my very dear friend Jillian. I took the Ab Five pattern, using their unique template, and created the quilt using various Mickey and Minnie themed fabrics, “Mickey Mouse and Friends” by Camelot Fabrics. I also incorporated Red and Yellows to break it up a bit.
Close-up of fabrics and Ab Five quilt design.
Detail of blanket stitch appliqué and hand stitched binding
Lucy claims the Disappearing Four Patch to be her quilt of choice.
Earlier this summer I took a class at Sewing Arts Center in Santa Monica with Susanne Cole. It was a variation of the Disappearing Four Patch. The class was a lot of fun and in the end I used over 90 different fabrics for this quilt, with each square having four different colors and they were not repeated in other blocks.
As you can see, Lucy claimed this quilt earlier on in the process. While I was sewing the binding by hand she was laying on the quilt and each time I moved the quilt she would get right back on it. For those of you that have four legged kids- you know that they always get their way!
I was very happy with how the quilt turned out. The white background help to give the eyes a bit of a rest from all of the colors that were used.
Disappearing Four Patch with 96 different colors. The border was completed with a piano key pattern, using all 96 colors again.
Detail of the corners of the quilt, along with the piano key border and hand stitched binding.
This is very typical of the Aboriginal fabric designs.
Aboriginal fabrics are designed by a group of native Australians known as Aboriginals. They have been designing these patterns and fabrics for generation after generation and there is so much symbolism with each design.
They have an extremely limited distribution in the US.
“Australian Aboriginal Designs arise from a heritage that goes back thousands of years. Aboriginal “Dreaming Stories” are passed on from generation to generation and explain life and are central to their culture and relationship to the natural world. Aboriginal art illustrates their “Dreaming Stories” with a series of symbolic motifs. Each design has a story and historical significance. The abstract dot and circle designs, based on these stories, have become a trademark of the contemporary Aboriginal art movement,” HeartSong Quilts.
Here is some of the symbolism that has been used over the centuries:
Other Aboriginal fabrics:
Platypus Habitat on Yellow Background, designed by Marion Chapman
Bush Sweet Potato in Gold, designed by Audrey Martin Napanangka
Honey Ant & Witchery Grub on Rust Background, designed by Mary Elena Ellis
Woman Dreaming 2 in Yellow, designed by Geraldine Dixon
Passion Fruit Dreaming in Gold, designed by Mary Narbarulla
Bush Sultana in Charcoal, designed by Audrey Martin Napanangka
Bush Yam in Red, designed by Rosemary Pitjara
Bambillah, designed by Nambooka
Woman Digging for Honey Ants in Rust, designed by Audrey Nungarrai
Wild Bush Honey Ant in Brown, designed by Audrey Martin
Wave quilt using Dear Stella!, “On My Way” fabrics. There are waves of transportation that go across the quilt: airplanes, cars & taxis, boats and his favorite of all- trains!
This is the quilt that I made for James for Christmas 2016- shhh, don’t tell him!
The Dear Stella!, “On My Way” fabrics were perfect for this quilt, featuring different modes of transportation: planes, cars, taxis, boats and his favorite- trains! The backing of the quilt was this very comforting cloud print.
I find that binding the quilt by hand is very soothing and gives me great satisfaction that the recipient will hopefully understand the difference- maybe not at 3 years old, but some day.
This was my first time tackling a wave quilt and making it flat in the end- as opposed to a curved mess!
I quilted it using a wave pattern that kept with the mood of the quilt.
Fabric Swatches of the Dear Stella!, “On My Way” collection.
Cotton & Steel line of fabric, “Checkers” was used for my design, playing off of my childhood memories of gingham prints.
When I first saw the Chckers line of fabric it reminded me of a board game with all of the boxes and strategy that is involved. I am really looking forward to constructing this quilt.
Today I started working on a new quilt that I designed myself. I titled the quilt “Checkmate” because I used all of these new fabrics by Kaufman that are various sizes and colors of checks. … it actually reminds me of the gingham prints that I have always love.
Let’s see how it turns out and I hope that you like it.