2023 year in Summary and Whats New in 2024

 

What have I been Doing Since Completing My Book?

Just about a year ago I finished up my Scrap Book of Quilts - 40 quilted pages of  projects/techniques I had tried out, memories of life events and my love of quilt history.  You can read about that project at:   http://quiltpapers.blogspot.com/2023/02/louises-scrap-book-of-quilts.html

There are posts prior and after that show techniques, materials, inspirations and process of making the book.

Then it was on to class preparation for Quilting By the Lake.  I signed up to make a quilted coat with Rachel Clark in July 2023.  I decided to use the geometric elements that Gustav Klimt used for textures in his paintings.  I opted to use straight-line elements, in multiples of 1.5-inches.  I went through my stash and picked out my favorite colors.  I did purchase some Cherryword solids to compliment my choices - all the rest was stash.  Using my Design Sofa, I laid out my selections and started making elements. 

The Making of The Elements of Klimt - A Quilted Coat

Armed with all my elements, it was time for the class at QBL with Rachel.  We spent the first day or so making our muslin base.  By making sure that it fitted properly, it was time to start designing!  During the class time, I was able to get the front sections just about completed, and the back started.  I would need to make more elements to finish off the back and make the sleeves.  At several sew days at the Chenango Bridge Town Hall and a few days at the Broome County Public Library - the pieces were completed.  Border and Collar Triangles were next.  All was going well, then New Zealand happened.

The New Zealand Kiwi Bird Quilt

In preparation for our trip, I made a batik zip bag to carry my hand sewing project, Hexagon Patchwork Pictures, along with me.  I started working on the embroideries in March 2020.  They are based on the Priscilla M. Warner book Pictures and Patchwork.  You can read about it here:  https://kwiltkeyes.blogspot.com/2020/08/my-embroidered-pictures-for-patchwork.html and https://kwiltkeyes.blogspot.com/2020/03/hexagon-quilts-cot-cover-pictures-and.html

I have only one more motif from the book left to do.  I created eight additional ones using other illustrations by Priscilla - there will be 48 embroidered pictures in total..

While in New Zealand, I was able to stop at a couple of quilt shops for a few moments: Fox's Cottage Quilting and Wool in Foxton and Annie's Country Quilt Store in Ashburton.

After designing my kiwi pattern, I started making them - 51 in total of various sizes.  I added some free-styled leaves into the design to represent the concerted effort New Zealanders make in conserving their native plant and animal species.  The birds are surrounded by pathways.  

While visiting several kiwi encounters - in the dark since they are nocturnal birds, it took me a long time for my eyes to adjust.  I found that if I saw a kiwi at a particular place, they would eventually return along that path and I would get to see them again, rather than looking all over to find them elsewhere.  

My Kiwi Quilt top is all pressed and ready for backing and batting.  I should be able to pin baste it at at future Sew Day and will machine quilt it on a domestic machine if all goes according to plan.

Cheers, Louise

Mom, Dad - What are you doing in November?

 

Mom, Dad - What are you doing in November?

This was the question asked by our son back in June 2023.  As you can guess, we ended up going to New Zealand for November!  

Being a quilter, I wanted to make a quilt commemorating our trip.  I was able to get a bit of NZ themed fabric while there - two 10 minute jumps from the car into a shop while the boys waited ... not patiently I might add.

I did see some sidewalk pavers in Otorohanga in the shape of a Kiwi.  I even drafted a pattern the day after I got home.  The pavers were 9" x 7".  By reducing to a third, the pavers became 3" x 2.5" in size - a doable quilt pattern.

Otorohanga Street Pavers as a Patchwork Kiwi

I decided that the block size would be too big - but maybe I will revisit as a wall hanging at a later date.

I was still searching for a kiwi pattern and only came up with a very complicated paper piece design and an applique one.  That is until I saw a patchwork chick and somehow I saw kiwi!

I rotated it and made a long beak.  A quilter in New Zealand tried out the design.  http://stitchingfarmgirl.blogspot.com/  It was still not quite there, so I chopped off the 'squared off ' backside and made the beak longer and my New Zealand Kiwi Bird pattern was finally getting there and worked out a paper pieced pattern.

Working out the Kiwi Pattern

I shared the Paper Pieced New Zealand Kiwi Pattern with a group of quilt stitchers and bloggers - the Chookshed Stitchers hosted by ChookyBlue. https://chookyblue.blogspot.com/ 

My Flock of Kiwi ... so far...

Here is the paper pieced pattern - one for each direction - enjoy.  Cheers, Louise

Musical Love Birds

 

Musical Love Birds 

A daughter of one of our friends was getting married after postponing for a year due to covid.  We have known her for most of her life and watched her romance blossom for many years.  She is a music teacher, and so was her husband-to-be.  I knew I wanted to make them a unique gift and began my search for inspiration.

Over the past couple of years I have been researching a design motif found on crazy quilts of a rooster blowing a horn, which led me to discovering frakturs, illuminated folk art drawings made by the Pennsylvania Dutch to commemorate life events (births, baptism, marriage), house blessings and student merits.

Just recently, while doing research on quilt maker / designer Velma Mackay Paul of York, PA, I was drawn back into PA Dutch design motifs and frakturs. Since frakturs were also used to decorate song or tune books – they would provide the inspiration to make the perfect gift for a couple of music teachers!

I knew the background would be music themed and started my search for the perfect fabrics.  Thank goodness for PJ shopping on the internet!  I was able to get what I wanted after a few weeks of searching. With the remaining fabric, I made them some market bags and face masks.

Design Inspiration

I have been making quilted pictures of birds (and an angler fish) using embroidered applique for many years now (a combination of raw edge applique and crazy quilt stitches to “embroider” the motifs in place).

In my various searches on Velma Mackay Pay, Baltimore Album Quilts, Frakturs, Pecolia Warner, I came across an ad in the Spring 1993 Folk Art magazine for a baptismal certificate signed by Daniel Peterman dated  May 4, 1857.  I liked the layout of the birds with the drooping flowers, and combined it with elements from other frakturs – heart, flowers and birds – to come up with an original design for the piece.

Selected sources:

https://issuu.com/american_folk_art_museum/docs/folkart_18_1_spr1993

Page 60 – ad for a baptismal certificate signed by Daniel Peterman dated  May 4, 1857 

https://libwww.freelibrary.org/digital/item/6366 

Drawing (Bird of Paradise and Butterfly) 

To View some frakturs: 

https://libwww.freelibrary.org/digital/collection/fraktur 

Pennsylvania German Fraktur and Manuscripts

Embroidered Applique

 

Embroidered Applique

Here is my latest project, a wedding gift for a co-worker, in the unframed stage, 11x14-inches.  The background was made by placing random scraps on a craft felt base and stitching into place. I used 2 bobbin's worth of thread with a couple of top thread colors to complete the background.

The bird, branch, leaf, flower and heart shapes are raw edge cut fabric and hand sewn into place using various embroidery stitches - similar to stitches found on crazy quilts.

 

My What-Not Bag and Bog Coat

 

My What-Not Bag and Bog Coat 

About 20 years ago I saw Rachel Clark (http://www.rdkc.com/) on Simply Quilts and was inspired by her sense of design, quirkiness and humor. So inspired, I made a quilted coat, using the Bog Coat method. It won first place in a local quilt show in the wearable category. I remember finishing up the binding the morning of show set up. Later, during the show, someone offered me $300 for it – I of course said no – it was made for me, and I had not even worn it yet. I did for years – constantly, until it started showing signs of wear, now it comes out only for quilt shows and the local philharmonic concerts.

These past few weeks, Quilting Arts has featured Rachel Clark on our local PBS station – and once again she inspired me. In one of the episodes, she showed how to make a What-Not Wallet. I grabbed my pen and paper and started sketching along, writing down all the measurements. Luckily for me, Quilting Daily of Quilting Arts TV posted a pdf file of the instructions https://www.quiltingdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/2512-1_CLARK.pdf .

I had picked up several bags of fabric scraps at Sew Creative down in Maryland on my trip to DC last fall (https://sewcreativeshop.com/) where they have a great selection of African print fabrics. I am making a Wonky Hex quilt with them, with a charcoal gray velvet center. It’s based on an antique quilt top I have - more on that another time.

Anyway, the pieces, that were too small for that quilt, were sewn together ‘crazy patch’ style until they met the dimensions needed for my What-Not Wallet.

It’s a really fun project, and a great way to use up those bits of fabric you can’t bear to part with. If I have fabric left over from the Wonky Hex quilt, I may just have to make another jacket to match my wallet!

Another web site on Rachel: https://suzyquilts.com/meet-a-fabulous-fiber-artist-rachel-clark/

Rachel’s Blog – Whatnot Wallet: http://www.rdkc.com/2016/11/whatnot-wallet/

Image Key: Front of Salt Walter Bog Coat, made in 2009, Back of Coat, Right Sleeve, Left Sleeve, Coat Label, Whatnot Wallet - Closed, Whatnot Lining, Whatnot Exterior, Whatnot Inside - Opened, Whatnot Wallet Outside - Opened.

My Embroidered Pictures for Patchwork

Embroidery Mary by Priscilla M Warner

Embroidery Mary by Priscilla M. Warner, published in 1948 by George G. Harrap.  This is a precursor to the instructional books Pictures and Patchwork (1950) and Embroidered Pictures and Patchwork (1960, 1964) published by Dryad Press.

Mary Grant, age 12, visits her Aunt Helen and Uncle George in Tolton for vacation with her little dog Hamish.  Candy, the friendly cat lives on the farm.  Aunt Helen teaches her niece and her friends how to embroider and sew useful objects.  Stitch diagrams and project illustrations are woven throughout the story as they enjoy their visit.  There is even a bit of math involved as they measure fabric needed and draw hexagons.  Mary turns 13 while there and receives a hexagon patchwork quilt, and then plans to make a doll-sized one for her little sister Penny.  It is a very endearing story and the projects are designed for beginners – both sewing and embroidering.

Earlier this spring, I started making the embroidered hexagons from  Pictures and Patchwork.  I traced out 48 hexagons on a piece of muslin and began stitching.  There are only 40 designs in the book, but I am going to incorporate images from Embroidery Mary and Dryad Leaflets 136. Embroidered Dresses for Children and 141. Embroidery for the Nursery – both by P.M. Warner.  Here is my work in progress.

Hexagon Quilts (Cot Cover) – Pictures and Patchwork

Embroidered Pictures & Patchwork Cot Cover

In 1950, Priscilla M. Warner wrote and illustrated a book called Pictures and Patchwork, published by the Dryad Press Leicester, and by 1964 the third edition was published, under the name Embroidered Pictures & Patchwork.  The latter version has a slightly larger format, and the crucial difference is the “eye” of the squirrel motif is added (not sure if this was corrected in the second printing, as I do not have that version). 

The 1950 version has a colored image of the project on the covers, along with a black and white photo/illustration in the book.  The 1964 version has a graphic of the pattern on the front. 

I've done some measuring, and the motifs in the book fit nicely in the 5-inch wide hexagon fabric die cutter by AccuQuilt (2.5-inch sides) - though I will probably hand-cut my embroidered blocks to size, rather than process through the machine - I would be nervous about shifting, centering, etc.  The fabric hexagons, on the other hand, I am going to die cut.  You could make a twisted hexagon block, by cutting the die-cut hexagons in half and surrounding the embroidered hex.  This is probably what I am going to do, I might even add some setting triangles, like on the quilt top I just recently received. 

You can see that vintage hexagon quilt top, done with embroidered centers at:  http://quiltpapers.blogspot.com/2020/03/102-hexagons-vintage-quilt-top.html