Quilts of the World part 4: New Zealand

Part of the 2016 Pacific International Quilt Festival was the World Quilt Competition XX, which is a special exhibition within the larger P.I.Q.F. This competition, which is open to quilters from many countries, starts out each summer on the East Coast of the U.S.A.; the best quilts from that show then go on tour to the various regional shows in America. We hope you enjoy this presentation, continuing with quilts from NEW ZEALAND.

Please note: We're selling beautiful quilting and crafting books and fabrics at low introductory prices on e-Bay! Also, we're continuously posting free patterns on Twitter!

Tranquility, 36 x 40", by Sonya Prchal

Sonya Prchal writes," Mimiwhangata Coastal Park is a favorite destination of mine. This beautiful sunset inspired me to create a quilt to capture the memory. My design was composed from my photos. Whole cloth painting was my primary technique, as I felt it would depict the intensity of the sunset beautifully."

Sonya adds, "I used extensive free motion quilting to enhance the work, with a variety of thread types and weight. Tranquility was both challenging and satisfying to make."  This original design is sewing machine quilted. We admire the elegant sophistication of this work and the way that the colors of the water perfectly reflect the setting sun.

Fabulous Feathers, 94 x 94", by Carol Newsham

Fabulous Feathers won a Judge's Choice award at the 2016 Great New Zealand quilt show. The Princess Feathers quilt pattern is by Kim McLean; for the pattern see Glorious Color.  The fabrics are by Kaffe Fassett.

Carol Newsham notes, "I love doing hand applique. From the first moment I saw this pattern by Kim McLean, I was going to do it, but not in Kaffe Fassett fabrics. They were too big, bold, and bright, even for me. However, I soon realized that everything else would not give me that 'zing' I was looking for. Kaffe's magenta Bekah fabric grabbed my attention and subsequently provided the inspiration for the colors I would use in my quilt." Carol's lovely work is hand appliqued and hand quilted.

This Beats Chopping Firewood, 54 x 64", by Maree Le Comte

Maree Le Comte explains, "I learned the hexagon techniques at a class run by Shirley Mooney. I did the class because I was interested in the technique and so that I could have a day off from cutting firewood." We certainly agree with Maree. We'd much rather enjoy a day of quilting than cutting firewood, doing housework, or pretty much any other kind of work that we can imagine!

Maree continues, "Once I saw the technique, rather than following one of the suggested layouts, I played with the pieces to come up with my own layout. This is the layout which worked best with the quantity of fabric I had." This original design is machine pieced and sewing machine quilted. We really appreciate the quality of  Maree's worksmanship and her sewing accuracy, which gives these bold geometric lines a stunning appeal.

My Nearly Insane Journey, 95 x 96", by Sue Flego

This wonderful "Nearly Insane" quilt was based on the 1870 Salinda Rupp quilt, patterned by Liz Lois. The Salinda quilt has 93 six-inch blocks and the finished quilt has over 5,500 pieces. Sue Flego says, "All the 6” blocks were paper foundation pieced and I tried to replicate the colors on the front of the book." Sue's intricate and precise piecing of these small blocks can be seen in the photo below. My Nearly Insane Journey was quilted by Judi Schon from Auckland on a longarm machine.

For more information on the Nearly Insane quilt and other 19th-century samplers, see our 2010 post: Crazy About Jane, Nearly Insane, and Just Plain Nuts.

Abstraction, 28 x 52", by Rosemary Rush

Rosemary Rush says, "This quilt was started as an exercise in design, emphasizing line and shape. I challenged myself to then use colors which I would not normally juxtapose. This quilt is my own design which I machine appliqued and free motion stitched on a domestic sewing machine."  Rosemary's beautiful quilting stands out on this glorious, flowing applique design.

At The Bach, 57 x 48", by Rachel Cadwallader

Rachel Cadwallader says, "A bach is a small rustic holiday home and often found at the beach. A quilt hanging over a door as an advertisement for thread evoked memories of an old beach towel my father used. I wanted to replicate the memory and so the quilt, originally designed by Heather Jones, was made. I used my domestic machine to piece and quilt it.”

At The Bach was based on the free Around the World quilt pattern by Heather Jones at Olive and Ollie shown below.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.

Sylvia's Bridal Sampler, Pearl's Pieces, The Farmer's Wife and Salinda W. Rupp quilts

At the recent quilt show we were excited to find sampler quilts representing some of the most popular designs around:  Sylvia's Bridal Sampler, The Farmer's Wife, and the Salinda Rupp quilt (aka Nearly Insane).  In addition there was a beautiful and unique sampler, exhibited as a memorial to a local quilter.  Here are sampler quilts from the 2013 DVQG show.

Sylvia's Bridal Sampler, 98 x 98", by Christine Taylor

The design for this quilt is Sylvia’s Bridal Sampler. The story is in the book called The Master Quilter by Jennifer Chiaverini, in which the friends of Elm Creek Quilts founder Sylvia Compson plan to make her a special quilt to celebrate her wedding. For her version of the quilt, Christine Taylor changed the setting and added four more blocks (and modified some blocks) to total 144 different blocks.

close up, Sylvia's Bridal Sampler by Christine Taylor

The blocks are mostly pieced and paper-pieced with some applique, as shown above. We loved Christine's choice of colors, which matched the elegant floral fabric she used in the sashing and borders.

Pearl's Prized Pieces, 92 x 92",  pieced by Pearl Denison, quilted by Elaine Beattie

Pearl Lillian Denison (1928-2012) was born in Vanguard, Saskatchewan and came to the United States in 1954. During her 20 year retirement she enjoyed traveling, gardening and quilting.  Fran Schweitzer, who owns the quilt and entered it in the show, says: “[This quilt has] 112 totally different pieced blocks, many blocks with more than 50 pieces. Beautiful work by Pearl (RIP).”  In this clever setting, the blocks are offset at three different levels around the quilt, such that the blocks appear to tumble around the border. 

close up, Pearl's Prized Pieces

The use of ivory and cream provides a unifying background for the many-colored blocks; in this photo you can see an airplane, stars, pinwheels, shoo fly, a shamrock, a schoolhouse and hearts. The blocks surround large and small trees of life.

The Farmer's Wife, 84 x 95", by Carroll Stephens, quilted by Sharon Graves

First published in 2009, the Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt is filled with letters from 1920s farm wives and the quilt blocks they inspired.   The quilt was designed by Laurie Aaron Hird and consists of 111 classic 6" blocks. Carroll Stephens' classic version is true to the original; the blocks are set on point and topped with cornerstones.

close up, The Farmer's Wife quilt by Carroll Stephens

In this close up photo you can see Carroll's perfectly pieced blocks, rendered in a multitude of colors.  This quilt is challenging to construct; for reviews and readers' tips see the book web page at Amazon.
 
Nearly Nearly Insane, 55 x 65",  by Pam Creason

Pam Creason says: “Every once in a while I enjoy making a quilt that is really challenging. This was one of those quilts… The original quilt had [93] blocks and my quilt contains 40 for if I had made all of the blocks I would have gone Nearly Insane.”  The 1870's-era Salinda W. Rupp quilt was brought to light by Liz Lois, who spent 3 years reproducing the blocks; she named the pattern Nearly Insane. The full quilt has over 5,500 pieces.

close up, Nearly Nearly Insane by Pam Creason

You can see some of the incredibly detailed blocks in this close up photo, with their tiny triangles, diamonds and squares.  Pam Creason did a fabulous job piecing and quilting her masterpiece.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.

Fun in the Sun: Day 7 of the Arizona Quilters' Guild Show

What could be more entertaining than a show full of beautiful quilts?  Here we go for Day 7 of  "Fun in the Sun"  from the 2013 Arizona Quilters' Guild Show. You be the judges and let us know which ones are your favorites, in the Comments section below. 

Lilies, 50" x 35", by Rita Blocksom

These beautiful day lilies make an excellent subject for a quilt, as so much of the detail of their intricate petals, stamens, and pistils shows up perfectly. Second place winner in the Art/Painted or Digital quilts category, Rita writes, "This is from a digital image I took outside my dad's back door at the family farm in Illinois." The quilt is made on one sheet of fabric, not tiled like so many digital quilts are done.  Rita has been been teaching imagery on fabric for 20 years; you can see her website at Rita Blocksom.com.

Close up, Lilies by Rita Blocksom, quilted by Sharon Brooks

Sharon Brooks' excellent longarm quilting skills really show up here, especially on the gorgeous blended hues of reds, corals, and pinks which create a striking monochromatic and analogous color scheme.

Sundance, approximately 12 x 12", by Christy Schliesmann

Blue ribbon winner for miniature quilts, Christy says,  " The Cindy Richards design uses twenty different fabrics cut into 325 pieces, giving a twirling effect around the golden sun." 

Close up, Sundance by Christy Schliesmann

These tiny, perfectly sewn pieces measure anywhere from one-fourth inch to one inch long in a great display of Christy's workmanship.

Wild Woman by Donna Goldbeck

Donna says of her self-portrait, "The 3-D effect was achieved using yarn colors and textures. The paint makeup gives her [face] the wildness that I may have secretly longed for when I was younger." This quilt really appeals to the tactile senses with the juxtaposition of dozens of different yarn types, colors, and thicknesses.

Little Amsterdam by Marilyn Wood

Marilyn notes, "This pattern is from the [ North Sea Quilters of ] the Netherlands. The flowered fabrics in the houses and border are antique Dutch reproduction fabrics from Amsterdam, my husband's favorite city."  Marilyn's striped border adds to the lively, upbeat personality of this charming quilt.

Close up, Little Amsterdam by Marilyn Wood

Floral fabrics are perfect for portraying the highly stylised, almost baroque facades of traditional Dutch and Flemish architecture.

Jeremy's Quilt by Joan McNamara

Joan says, of her quilt in the Nearly Insane pattern, " I did this to learn to piece. Each block was drafted from a picture and some 6" blocks had over 280 pieces. Over 100 fabrics were used."  Joan has truly created a fascinating array of challenging block patterns, using predominantly reds and purples against a soft taupe background.

Close up photos, Jeremy's Quilt by Joan McNamara, quilted by Jessica (Jones) Gamez

Here's a montage of the intricate and precisely sewn 6 " x 6" blocks, many of which contain more than 50 pieces of fabric.

Quilt Inspiration has previous featured the Nearly Insane quilt pattern, which was inspired by an 1870's sampler quilt by Salinda W. Rupp.  In recent years, the Nearly Insane pattern has been re-created and popularized by quilt teacher and author Liz Lois. We've never seen a Nearly Insane quilt in person; it was fascinating to see Joan McNamara's quilt!

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.

Crazy about Jane, Nearly Insane, and Just Plain Nuts

We're still crazy about two formidable sampler quilts: the 1863 quilt by Jane A. Blakely Stickle, and the 1870's quilt by Salinda W. Rupp. We admire the modern-day quilters who have tackled these epic works, while managing to retain (or regain) their sanity !

The Jane A. Stickle quilt was, of course, made famous by Brenda Papadakis, who coined the term Dear Jane® and chronicled each of its 225 blocks. In a previous article called Crazy About Jane we featured some gorgeous name-appropriate quilts, including "Dear Jane's a Pain", "No Pain - No Jane", and "My Insanity".

The Salinda W. Rupp quilt was brought to light by Liz Lois, who named it Nearly Insane. The Salinda quilt has 'only' 93 six-inch blocks, but the finished quilt has over 5,500 pieces, making it every bit as onerous as Jane Stickle's quilt.

Hold on to your hat while we move from "Crazy About Jane" to "Nearly Insane", to "Just Plain Nuts".

Facets: Rubies, Emeralds, and Sapphires, by Marcie Thompson, at The Blue Cat Creations

We've been admiring "Facets" for a long time.  Marcie Thompson finished piecing the quilt in just under a year; that's more than one block every two days. You can read her story on the Facets page at the Blue Cat Creations. Marcie's quilts are show-stoppers; while you are visiting her site, check out her Conway Album and Calico Garden quilt pages.

Jeepers... It's Jane, by Beth Schillig, at Beth Schillig.com

"Jeepers.....It's Jane!" won the Viewer's Choice award at the National Quilting Association 2009 show, and a full page article was done on it in the Quilting Quarterly magazine. The quilt also won an award for "Best Interpretation of a Theme" at the 2009 Pacific International Quilt Festival.  Jeepers, along with Beth Schillig's "Sunset Serenade", have been accepted in the Houston International Quilt Show next month ... if you are going to the show, you can see the quilts in person !   For more inspiration, visit Beth's online gallery.

Jane, Past and Present, by Lesley Thomas, at Quilts in Ireland

Lesley Thomas made her gorgeous "Jane, Past and Present" with batiks, set in Kona natural cotton as a background, with a trip-around-the-world design. The quilt was made in 6 months, 22 days.  It is also hand quilted !  Lesley writes: "These little blocks (4-1/2 inch finished) really took me over, and I couldn't stop making them, so I ran ahead of the schedule and just kept going." You can read a compete description of the quilt at the Quilting Board; and visit Lesley's website at Quilts in Ireland.

In The Pink (formerly known as Dear Jane at Sea), by Bonnie Hunter, at Quiltville

Many quilters have admired "In The Pink", and we couldn't resist showing it here.  Who would have thought that storm-at-sea sashing would so beautifully complement the blocks?  Read about the quilt on Bonnie Hunter's In The Pink page, and check out the photo of her hand quilting at her September 20, 2010 post; also see Bonnie's completed baby Jane, done in the traditional style.

A Baby Jane Quilt, 2009, by the Monterey Peninsula Quilters Guild

Over seventy-five members of the Monterey Peninsula Quilters Guild created their own baby Jane for their 2009 opportunity quilt. In this dazzler, 104 medium and large DJ blocks are combined in alternating square sets of 4 and 9 blocks. The center of the quilt surrounded by a continuous border of 68 small blocks, for a grand total of 172.

The City Quilter and Empire Quilters, Inc.: New York City is the center of Janiac-tivity in North America. Over the years, Judy Doenias and Diane Rode Schneck have taught hundreds of students at The City Quilter's Dear Jane classroom.  We showed Judy and Diane's Technicolor Jane, along with the Empire Quilters' Broadway Jane raffle quilt, in Crazy About Jane. Also check out Kitschen Jane by Amy Ronis, and Purple Jane by Debra Levin, which were in the City Quilters' 2009 special exhibition, and Dear Jane Goes to Japan, by Leila Lieberman, at the Urban Inspirations 2007 show. At the Empire Quilters site you can see two completed 225-block DJ's by twin sisters, Barbara Feinstein and Emily Klainberg. Here are two more innovative quilts by guild members:

Janeway, 51 x 66, by Pamela Leonard Wexler, at the Empire Quilters 2009 show

This is Pamela Leonard Wexler's second Dear Jane-inspired quilt.  The center of the quilt was adapted from Mabeth Oxenrider*. Also see Pamela's delightful Jane Plays with Dolls and Jane and Hannah on the Savannah.  You can read about Pamela Leonard Wexler on the November 2004 Quilter-of-the-Month page.

Blue Sky and Sunshine, 62 x 69, by Anna Krassy, at Empire Quilters 2009 show

This striking quilt won a 2nd Prize ribbon at the 2009 Urban Inspirations Show. Anna writes that she took the "Awash With Color" and "Dear Jane" classes at The City Quilter, and combined the two into one quilt.  See more quilts by Anna Krassy on the April 2006 Quilter-of-the-Month page. 

Nearly Insane, by Liz Lois, at Nearly Insane.com

Some years ago, Liz Lois purchased an out-of-print book at a garage sale. The book had a picture of an 1870's sampler quilt made by Salinda W. Rupp from Pennsylvania.  Working only with the picture from the book, she reconstructed the blocks and pieced them into a faithful reproduction of the quilt. As Liz says: "Not only is this the title of the book, but it also describes how I felt after my three year journey to recreate the quilt, and "Nearly Insane" is what I called my quilt, too, when it was finally finished."  We love the warm color scheme, the dazzling blocks, and the little on-point squares that connect the blocks. Read all about Liz' masterpiece, and the book, at the Nearly Insane website (or is that the website for the nearly insane?)

Nearly Insane, by Hanne Schneider, at Hanne's Quilt Corner

Hanne Schneider inspires us with her creations from Norway, and her rendition of "Nearly Insane" is one of our favorites. The pretty red-and-white colorway gives the whole quilt a crisp look; the blocks really stand out from the snowy white background as a result of the value contrast.  Many of the blocks are incredibly detailed, as you can see from the NI block photos shown below. 

The block on the right is the one with 229 pieces; just look at the perfect piecing of the teensy triangles. At Hanne's Quilt Corner, you can also see her delightful Dear Jane Christmas Quilt .

Nearly Insane, block 75, by Pipers Girls

This complicated NI block has 181 pieces. We love Pipers Girls' dynamic fabric selections, and they always inspire us with their quilts. To read about this quilt and view more impressive blocks, see this Pipers Girls blog post and Flickr links within. Also check out Pipers Quilts and their great Etsy shop.

Just Plain Nuts, 68 x 68, by Liz Lois

For her second book, Just Plain Nuts, Liz designed 49 colorful blocks in the style of Salinda Rupp, and set them together in a new way. This quilt has about half as many blocks as the Salinda quilt, making it only half as insane ! The Just Plain Nuts book can be obtained from many of the sources listed on Nearly Insane, and online from Piecing the Past and Quilted Treasures.

More Nearly Insane quilters:  Nanayane at Nearly Insane in the Brain  has fondly named each of the NI blocks; we are partial to "catatonia" (block 21) and "delirium" (block 18). Also see the Nearly Insane Fans and Nearly Insane Quilts blogs, and a dozen finished NI quilts by the "Salinda Girls" at the Kilmore Quilters' Gallery (Australia).  Don't miss the incredible photos by Reiko at Reiko Quilt (Japan). And last but not least:  a Nearly Insane quilt, named Bewitched, Bothered and Bewindered, won First Place in the "Pieced, Amateur" category at the 19th annual IHQS show.  This raises two questions: if you complete a Nearly Insane quilt, can you still qualify as an amateur? And, what is the meaning of "bewindered" ?

Quilts we have been closely following, in the spirit of insanity :  Here are some magnificent baby Jane quilts in various stages of completion:

• Karen's "Insanity Revisited" (her 2nd DJ) at Karen's Quilting (U.S.)
• Pip's "Kind of Blue" beauty at Rest is not Idleness (Australia) 
• Doreen's "Kindred Sister's Journey" at Aunt Reen's Quilt (U.S.)
• Paula's Dear Jane at, of course, Paula's Dear Jane (Luxembourg)
• Rita's lavender-and-mauve beauty at Grand Mere's Jardin de Fleur (U.S.)
• Giulia's Dear Baby Jane at Dear Baby Jane Italia (Italia)
• Robin's "Jane Stickle Quilt", in green,  at Crafty Musings (U.S.)
• Lene's rainbow Jane at Lene's Lines (Norway)
• Nicolette's Dear Baby Jane at Dutch Comfort (Netherlands)
• Anina's design and tutorials at That Quilt (U.S.)
• We'll bet you haven't seen the six DJ's by Brigitte, Anne Marie, Jeannette, Betty, Annie, and Sylvie at Chant-du-Coq (France) (they'll knock your socks off !)

Image credits: Quilt images are shown with the generous permission of the artists and the Empire Quilters Guild. Dear Jane® is the registered trademark of Brenda Papadakis and is used with permission.
Footnote:  *See "Trail Mix" by Mabeth Oxenreider at American Patchwork and Quilting.