Quilt Arizona 2020 ! Day 4

In February, when life was still "normal" , we attended the 2020 Quilt Arizona! Show which is an outstanding display of statewide quilts from the Arizona Quilters' Guild. This year's theme was "Desert Stars". We hope you enjoy these highlights from the show !

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Into The Wild by Martha Sivetz-Baltram

This original design pieced and appliqued quilt is truly stunning. Martha Sivetz-Baltram says that she was inspired by forests and wild animals, after touring several national parks last summer. This creation won a well-deserved blue ribbon in the Mixed Technique, Medium/Large-Solo category. She used the silhouette animals from clip art to create the animals, and placed crows (below) in the four corners of the quilt.

We couldn't resist one more closeup photo, showing the vertical line of bees that were placed between the rows of tree blocks.  The piecing, applique and quilting were all done by Martha herself.

Desert Watch by Elizabeth Heurlin

Desert Watch is an original design by Elizabeth Heurlin, created with pieced flying geese, turned and machine applique, a crewel owl, and machine and hand embroidery.  A quilt block in the upper right corner, with quilting that echoes the flying geese theme, depicts the desert sun.  The focus point was the amazing owl, shown below.

Elizabeth says she stitched the owl around 30 years ago from an unknown crewel embroidery kit.  We love the way she perched the owl on a prickly pear at the edge of the quilt!  Elizabeth credits Ann Peterson for inspiring some of the design elements. This piece won a yellow (Third Place) ribbon in the Mixed Technique, Small - Solo category,

Count Basie Bear under The Desert Stars by Jane Wilcox

This original design by Jane Wilcox was inspired by the 2020 show theme, Desert Stars.  Jane says,  "One of the most beautiful sights at night is the Phoenix skyline illuminated by the stars and moon!"
The bear sitting near the campfire is conducting a symphony of coyotes, a familiar sound to many who live in Arizona.

The prickly pear and other cactus had three-dimensional flowers and leaves, adding depth to the surface of this art quilt.

Neighorhood Delights by Yvonne Cozart, quilted by Sue Bruner

This is such a beautiful quilt, with its bright blue background and intricate design elements!  Yvonne Cozart says,  "I love the creativity of combining colors and changing rules to make a unique composition.  The pattern [by Wendy Williams] was originally done in the round." Yvonne also added many fun details, such as the little owl sitting on the fence, below.

This quilt was entered in the Display Only category, which means it was not professionally judged, but we and many others would have given it a blue ribbon.

I Spy Scrappy Spikes by Judy Birchett, quilted by Sharon Elsberry

One of the most delightful scrap quilts we've seen, Judy Birchett's original design was based on the traditional New York Beauty block, done in rainbow colors and an "I Spy" theme. For more color, Prairie Points were added around the outside of the quilt. The red ribbon is for Second Place in the Scrap-Duet category.

Judy says it was created with "lots of partial seams" and using her stash of scraps and juvenile novelty prints.  The centers of the blocks were fussy cut to showcase these fun characters, as in the closeup photos above and below.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Arizona Quilters Guild show.

Pineapple delight: Pineapple log cabin quilts!

This is our first-ever feature on Pineapple Log Cabin quilts. The Pineapple block design radiates from the center, and the overlapping angled strips produce a jagged edge that creates a whirl of motion.   Here are some dazzling examples!  

Note:  We're continually posting free patterns on Twitter! Check us out @QuiltInspire.

Summer Love by Keith Dommer

Blue ribbon winner at the 2014 Tucson Quilt Fiesta for Best Machine Quilted Pieced and Appliqued quilt, Keith writes, "Finally - it's finished !  My first quilt adding turned-edge machine applique to amp up a traditional pieced quilt. And apparently 15 years ago when I started this, I really liked green and orange together."  Keith's message is humorous, but it contains an important lesson:  Never give up on a UFO ( unfinished object), because you might achieve spectacular results upon its completion !

The use of gray and black neutrals as a background really help the green and orange blocks to "pop", in order to display the distinctive triangular, geometric look of the pineapple design. The circles within the center diamonds provide an innovative adaption to this traditional pattern.

Pineapple Log Cabin quilt by Sheila Arnold

Sheila Arnold notes, "I made this quilt to research methods of construction to teach a pineapple log cabin class." Sheila's quilt was part of the "Pieced Pineapple Special Exhibit" shown at the 2014 Quilt Arizona Show in Mesa, AZ.

The pineapple pattern is one that looks great in high contrast colors, whether the fabric is batik, solid colors, or small calico prints. The midnight blue, cream, and red calico prints give a contemporary, but warm and cozy look to this eye-catching design. Extra visual interest is provided by the four-patch blocks which nicely frame the quilt's center medallion.

Red Licorice, 34 x 34",  by Linda McGibbon

Linda explains, "I used pineapple blocks in a diamond shape. I then used black background fabric in some of the pieces and Stitch-n-Ditch to make the design three dimensional." Red Licorice won Second Place, Pieced-Small, at the 2013 Shipshewana Quilt Festival. A pattern for Red Licorice is available at Linda McGibbon's website: Lakeview Quilting.

Close up, Red Licorice by Linda McGibbon

Set against the dark black background, these high-chroma hues glow beautifully, almost as if they are illuminated by a black light.

When Pineapples Kaleide by Judy D. Birchett, quilted by Kate Snyder

This elegant creation is a cross between a Lone Star and a Pineapple quilt.  Judy Birchett says that When Pineapples Kaleide was based on the New Day Dawning quilt pattern, which can be found in the book, Pineapple Stars by Sharon Rexroad (2005).

Close up, When Pineapples Kaleide by Judy D. Birchett, quilted by Kate Snyder

Judy used the word "kaleide" to title this quilt, because her design looks like the pattern seen inside a kaleidoscope, a mirror-filled cylinder which displays fragments of images when one looks into it. This intricate center star is surrounded by an intriguing quilting pattern which replicates the sharp points of the pineapple blocks, but also adds some lyrical curves to provide a sense of balance to this innovative work.

Aurora by Dixie Haywood, exhibited by Lynn Kough

Lynn Kough says, "[This] quilt was purchased at a National Quilting Association Little Quilt Auction, which benefits the Grant Programs. It's wonderful to own a pineapple quilt made by one of the "dynamic duo" - Jane Hall and Dixie Haywood."
There are actually nine pineapple blocks in this quilt. In the blocks on the edges, the four outer pineapple rings were done in a single color (purple), which emphasizes the octagonal shape within each block.

The center block, done in four different colors, is shown below:

Jane Hall and Dixie Haywood have promoted the paper-piecing method of constructing pineapple quilts in order to enhance accuracy, which you can see in these blocks. In fact, in their book Hall and Haywood's Foundational Quilts, they advocate for using paper-piecing in the construction of almost every traditional geometric pattern.

Fresh Pineapple Possibilities, 2013, by Jane Hall and Dixie Haywood (Amazon)

On her website,  Jane Hall says, "My friend Dixie Haywood and I have written six books about this old-made-new technique. We wrote the first book on Pineapples and have been known ever since as ‘The Pineapple Queens.’ "


Image credits:  Quilt show photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the Arizona Quilters' Guild show, the Tucson Quilt Fiesta (Summer Love), and the Houston International Quilt Festival (Red Licorice).