Highlights of Quilt Arizona! (5)

The 2025 Quilt Arizona show features hundreds of quilters, many of whom spend the winter months in this sunny locale.  Here are some more highlights from the show.  We hope you enjoy our photos!

Note: Please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns, jewelry, and collectibles. You also can follow us on Twitter!

Nandina #4, made and quilted by Stephanie Nordlin

 Winner of 1st place in the Art/Abstract category, Stephanie Nordlin says that this original design quilt was inspired by her photo of Nandina (a bush with red berries). She says, "I drew it small, tweaked it and had it enlarged. After that I smoothed curves, added detail lines, retraced the design and played with color before appliqueing."

Cinco de Mayo Kaffe Style, made and quilted by Peggy Foster

 This quilt is so cheerful with its bright Kaffe Fassett prints! Peggy Foster says, "A freezer paper piecing demonstration by Ann Peterson on "The Quilt Show" inspired me to try this quilting method.  Karen Stone's "Cinco de Mayo" pattern looked like a fun, colorful challenge.  I also enjoyed using bright threads to quilt the negative space on the quilt top." Her quilting echoes the spiky points of the New York Beauty blocks.

Mostly Sunny, made and quilted by Marianne Nowacki

Winner of Honorable Mention in the Modern-Solo category, Marianne Nowacki says that this "temperature quilt" shows the 2023 high and low temps every day recorded at Falcon Field in Mesa (Arizona). The blue light/dark blocks separate the months.  Small purple triangles on the blocks are the days it rained.  The color chart (which was on the back) shows the colors used for each 5 degrees of temperature.The quilting was done with a sun design!

Color, Color, Color, made and quilted by Merci Apodaca  

Beautiful, and so much fun:  This quilt was based on a published design from the book called Whizz Bang (Adventures with Folded Fabric qults) by Rachel Daisy. Merci Apodaca says, "I was inspired to make this quilt because of the whimsy, opportunity to combine many fabrics and dig into my collection of trims.  I was bedazzled by the simplistic techniques becoming a color feast for one's viewing pleasure." Fussy cut Tula Pink prints can be seen in the centers of the circle blocks. 

Giraffes Out of Africa, made and quilted by Barbara Harrell

We loved this stunning large quilt with its saturated colors, off-center medallion design, and multiple pieced borders. Barbara Harrell says this was a "very fun challenge. The center block and small giraffe blocks were purchased from an African textile booth years ago at a show."

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2025 Arizona Quilters Guild show.

Highlights of Quilt Arizona! (4)

The 2025 Quilt Arizona show features hundreds of quilters, many of whom spend the winter months in this sunny locale.  Here are some highlights from the show.  We hope you enjoy our photos!

Note: Please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns, jewelry, and collectibles. You also can follow us on Twitter!

Moving Parts, made and quilted by Claire Victor 

Winner of a blue ribbon for 1st place in the Modern-Solo category, plus a special award for Exemplary Professional Machine Quilting, Claire Victor says: "Moving Parts was designed using Procreate [design software]. I am trying to create dimension and motion without shading or painting.  The background quilting design is my modern tribute to crazy quilting.  This is English paper pieced and machine quilted on a domestic Bernina machine." 

 

 

Claire's exemplary machine quilting can be seen in the closeup photos, with different quilting designs applied to each of the "segments" of the design. 

Wonkydoodle, made and quilted by Geri Cavanagh  

Winner of a special award for Excellent Use of Color, Geri Cavanagh says: "This is way outside my box.  I usually make quilts with traditional blocks and civil war fabrics.  I stretched my creativity with this since I had no plan and no pattern. I just developed into this wild and crazy quilt which I love."

She continues, "I found a purple and green print, and a Caryl Bryer Fallert Gradations print, then matched them with colorful, upbeat and wonky fabrics. I started doodling with purple and green strips of various widths. Some were too short, so I cut them which left a hole to be covered with a circle... I had no idea how it was going to turn out. It was fun to use my creativity and let it develop."

Freedom, made and quilted by Frances Murphy

This original design was given the NACQJ Award of Merit  by the National Association of Certified Quilt Judges.  Frances Murphy says that she pondered how to tell a story about freedom. She used birds because they are icons of freedom (as reflected in the saying "free as a bird".) The theme is depicted in 4 panels, from the open door of a bird cage on the left, to birds flying over the city, to birds viewed in their natural habitat in the wild. She says, "I love working with graphic design and color to create emotion and depth in my quilts."

Peacock Patchwork, made and quilted by Linda Hopkins

It was so much fun to see this colorful and unique quilt with its many details. Linda Hopkins says, "When cleaning out my Crazy Quilt fabrics, I discovered a multitude of peacocks.  In this color-washed Crazy Quilt I have incorporated vintage doilies, beads, buttons, and many of the peacocks that I purchased over the years. Enjoy the journey." (And so we did!)  Winner of Honorable Mention at the show.

Bottle Vases, made and quilted by Merci Apodaca

Made with machine-embroidery appplique with organza overlay on vases, this lovely piece won 2nd place in the Machine Embroidery category.  Merci Apodaca says, "I chose to make this quilt because it reflects my love of flowers.  It's been challenging growing flowers in AZ.  The next best thing would be to embroider flowers.  Published design: Anita Goodesign Embroidery.

 Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2025 Arizona Quilters Guild show.