Beating the Heat at the 2015 Arizona Quilt Show #2

It was 95°F for this year's Arizona Quilt show... but, as they say, it's a dry heat! Moreover, it was the perfect occasion to enjoy an air-conditioned quilt show. This is our 5th year of attendance, and we always look forward to seeing the variety and creativity displayed by members of the Arizona Quilters' Guild. Let's beat the heat with a look at this year's fantastic quilts... here is part 2 of our virtual show!

Arizona Grand by Wanda Seale 

We really enjoyed this stunning landscape quilt by Wanda Seale.  Although the scene has a photo-realistic appearance, it is not a digital quilt.  Wanda says, "Capturing the iconic splendor of our favorite landmark, I appliqued specific fabrics to showcase the depth and colors of the Canyon."

Georgetown Wedding, 74 x 75", by Ann L. Petersen

Award-winning quilter Ann Petersen has created another stunning quilt in colors that remind us of chocolate and cotton candy.  Ann's original design was based on the traditional Double Wedding Ring pattern, combined with Georgetown Circles.  At the 2015 show the quilt won First Place - Mixed Technique Large.

This is a close-up photo of the Georgetown Circles with appliqued centers. (For more information on the traditional Georgetown Circle block, see the post by Martha Dellasega Gray.) It's no surprise that Georgetown Wedding also won the award for Exemplary Machine Quilting – Stationary. At the 2014 Houston International Quilt Festival it won a blue ribbon in the Innovative Pieced category.

 Midnight Dahlia by Elaine Putnam, quilted by Gina Perkes

There was a spotlight shining on the corner of this quilt, but we tried our best with this photo.  This Midnight Dahlia (a pieced Dahlia on a black background)  won First Place, Pieced – Medium.  The quilting, by Gina Perkes, was awarded a special ribbon for  Exemplary Machine Quilting (Track Mounted).   Here is a photo of the pastel center of the Dahlia:

Midnight Dahlia was inspired by Marti Michell’s Giant Dahlia templates and Sharon Schamber’s Piece-lique method. You might be interested to know that Sharon's daughter, Cristy, has a tutorial on the Piece-lique technique at her website, Sew Much Like Mom.  We'll be posting more close-up photos on our Exemplary Quilting Board on Pinterest.

Brimill - Icelandic Horse by Georgia Thorne

Georgia Thorne won a Judge's Recognition award for her artistic depiction of an Icelandic horse.  She says, "Inspired by a Threadplayers (fiber art group) challenge to design a fiber art piece using Zentangle details, I chose an Icelandic horse with his flowing mane and tail."  The background fabric is a silver-and-white diamond print; Georgia echoed the pattern with diamond-shaped shadows.

Each section of the horse had a different Zentangle design rendered in machine embroidery and applique.

Out of Egypt by Florence A. Evans

Out of Egypt won 2nd place in the Pieced – Large quilt category. It was made of Egyptian-themed fabrics and strip-pieced panels, inspired by a class on Strips and Curves taught by Louisa Smith.   This is such a successful design; we loved the way in which Florence used the bright blue to provide a focal point.

close up, Out of Egypt by Florence A. Evans

In the close-up photo you can see some of the fun Egyptian-themed fabrics in this quilt, including silhouetted camels at sunset (upper right).

In Memoriam by Maggie Hagen, quilted by Pamela Dransfeldt

We enjoyed this intricate applique quilt, which features patterns from the 1858 Bird of Paradise quilt top in the American Folk Art Museum.  Some of the blocks and borders are Maggie's own design. The Bird of Paradise block patterns can be found in A Bountiful Life: An Adaptation of the Bird of Paradise Quilt by the late Karen Mowery.

There is a lot of detail in this quilt: the edges of some flowers and leaves were embellished with French knots.  Pamela Dransfeldt used echo quilting around the flowers, and created veins in the leaves.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.  We appreciate the assistance of Cathy Tognoni !

The Best of Cat Quilts! Part Three

Here we go... Part Three (and the grand finale) of The Best of Cat Quilts !  As we mentioned in Part One, we "previewed" over 150 cat quilts in order to select the best for this series. Some of the quilts we showed last week make us feel as if the cats could jump right off the page! Today we're including some more contemporary styles:  silhouettes, pieced cats, abstract cats, and some cool tessellations. Read on for The Best of Cat Quilts - Part Three (and a request to readers: we'd love to see any outstanding quilts that we missed !)

Stairway to Cat Heaven, 52 x 52, by Marty Mason, at Marty's Fiber Musings

Marty Mason is a fiber artist who creates original art quilts and thread paintings, along with a selection of classic quilts.  Her striking "Stairway To Cat Heaven"  is a beautiful rendition of the popular quilt which first appeared in 1997 (links to the pattern can be found at the bottom of this post.)  The quilt shown above has been sold, but you can read about it on Marty Mason's blog, where you can also see Kitty Cat Charm.   Marty Mason's original fiber art works can be found at Marty's Fiber Musings on Etsy, including one of our favorites, the abstract art quilt known as  Architect's Dream #2. We can't help but mention that we are smitten with Marty's original thread paintings of pretty ladies in smart hats; check out her fabulous recent works !

Cat Nap, by Cynthia England, at England Design

Cynthia England is an internationally known quilting instructor and pattern designer, who is best known for the stunning quilts she makes with Picture Piecing. Cynthia's innovative technique breaks the design down into pieces that can be sewn using straight seams. Her elegant Cat Nap quilt pattern, above, is one of our favorites: it features a serene gray cat reclining on a red-and-ivory quilt. You have only to look at the amazing detail of the cat's face, shown below, to appreciate the piecework.

Cynthia England's most recognized art quilt, Piece and Quiet, was chosen as one of the "The Twentieth Century's Best American Quilts" in 2000. Piece and Quiet has over 8000 pieces and it is so realistic that it appears to be a photograph!  Don't be intimidated, though: Cynthia has made her techniques easy to learn with a book and with free videos, and two free patterns so that quilters can try the technique.  Also check out Quilter's Kitty, and the many gorgeous patterns in Cynthia England's landscape and nature galleries.

Porcelain Cat, 26 x 31, by Jane Spolar, at Quilt Poetry

Jane Spolar's quilts and fabrics exemplify her distinctive, lyrical style. Porcelain Cat dreams the dream of life and chasing, naps and frolic, flowers, a garden, and a friendly lap.  Another lovely cat quilt, Contented, bears the description: "Contented as a cat in the flowers". Also, if you are seeking bliss, take a look at Bliss, Jane Spolar's luscious fabric line for Northcott Silk.

Kitty Corner Cats, 35 x 35, by Ruth Powers, at Ruth Powers Art Quilts

Since taking up the art of quilting in 1989, Ruth Powers has gained national recognition for her award-winning quilts. Her works hang in private collections from coast to coast.  "Kitty Corner Cats" is another classic, with its combination of playful cats and "catty-wampus pieced blocks". (What an apt description... cattywampus really sums it up !) The pattern can be obtained on the Kitty Corner Cats page; also you can browse Fat Cat Dreaming, and Ruth Powers' many other inspiring patterns and recent works.

Garden Patch Cats, about 18 x 18 each, by Helene Knott, as seen at StoryQuilts

Helene Knott is a designer and teacher whose quilts have received worldwide acclaim. We adore her stylish Garden Patch Cats, and are showing six of our favorites: Pumpkat, Gourdo Gato, Eggplant Purr-mesan, Boscat, Walla Walla Kitty, and Kitt'ney Bean. A total of fourteen cats are available as of this writing, and Helene reportedly has drawings for many more !  StoryQuilts also carries Helene's marvelous Postcards from Japan and other designs. Helene's brochure includes all of her workshops, along with images of many of her spectacular quilts.

Sawtooth Cats, 64.5 x 80, by Janet Miller, at the City Stitcher

Janet Miller has been quilting since she was 12 years old; her many bestselling designs can be found at The City Stitcher, which she founded.   The charming "Sawtooth Cats" is one of our favorite pieced cat quilts. The curved backs and tails of the cats, and the borders, are made with paper foundation piecing in a sawtooth pattern. This quilt is perfect for scrap fabrics.

Kitty Memories, 60.5 x 62, designed by Dawn Navarro Ericson, quilted by Pamela Dransfeldt, and published by McCalls Quilting

Dawn Navarro Ericson is an artist and illustrator, whose original designs include the very clever Copy Cat Quilts. One of Dawn's ingenious tessellation quilts is Kitty Memories, published by McCalls Quilting. If Kitty Memories is turned upside down, the dark cats appear, and if you click to enlarge the above image you can see the embellishments, which include dimensional cat collars and tags.  The McCall's web bonus includes photos of additional cat faces and a line drawing of the assembled quilt. 

Copy Cat Quilt, designed by Dawn Navarro Ericson, quilted by Pamela Dransfeldt, and published by Martingale and Company®

Finally, we're so pleased to be able to show you the ultra-cool quilt that  graces the cover of Copy Cat Quilts.  First published in the 1980's, this award-winning pattern has been updated with contemporary quilting techniques... it is a perennial favorite, and a definite Best of Cat Quilt !

And now (drum roll, please....) a request !   In  compiling The Best of Cat Quilts we previewed 150 quilts, and then selected the best 15 quilts to showcase in this series.  We're pretty sure there are some exceptional quilts we haven't seen, and we would love to know about them !  Please leave a link in the Comments below (et merci !)

Image credits and additional links: Images are shown with the generous permission of the artists. Stairway to Cat Heaven: Fabric requirements and applique templates are available at McCalls Quilting, and the complete pattern can be purchased from the Quilt and Sew Shop.  Feline-friendly blogs:  SewCalGal has just wrapped up her Pets On Quilts Show, with some wonderful photos of real pets on real quilts ! Also check out these blogs: Felines and Fibre Arts, Cats and Quilts, Cats On My Quilts, Cats Who Quilt, and Quilt Tales and Cat Tails.