Highlights of Quilt Arizona! (2)

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!

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Girl with the Pearl Earring, made and quilted by Denise Farnworth. 

Winner of 1st Place in the Kit Quilt - Solo category, Denise Farnworth says: "I saw this beautiful quilt on Instagram @PrideandJoyquilting.  I have seen this painting in Holland in The Hague, Netherlands.  I have read the fictional book about her and when I saw this quilt, I knew I had to make it." Denise's use of straight-line quilting was the perfect choice for this modern quilt. (Note: More information on the Girl with a Pearl Earring design can be found at the Pride and Joy Quilting website.)

 My Comfort Zone, made and quilted by Darla Orndorff

 This was the only quilted clothing we saw at the show, and it really caught our eye! Winner of 1st place in her category, Darla Orndorff says: "I had an old chenille robe from Lands End.  When it wore out, I tore it apart and used it as a pattern to make another chenille robe.  when that one wore out, I used the pattern to make a quilted robe - mimicking the use of chenille."

Whimsical Mystery Quilt by Janet Strafalace, quilted by Matt Seamons  

 Winner of the Laurene Sinema Award* for Exemplary Workmanship, Janet Strafalace says: "My quilt is the result of having made several raw edged applique quilts. Having lots of fabric already backed with Steam-A-Seam2, and being a no-waste kind of gal, I decided to use it all, with some entertaining modifications. Fun project!" The project was based on the Mystery Quilt pattern by Yoko Saito. 

Many intricate details were created!  See if you can spot the colorful stained glass windows in the church; a dog and cat; and a street resembling cobblestones. (*Note:  Laurene Sinema (1929-2003) was the founder of the Arizona Quilters Guild; this special award honors her legacy.)

Butterflies in the Garden Trellis by Gail Witt, quilted by Jessica Jones

 

Butterflies in the Garden Trellis was awarded Best of Show - Team, and 1st Place - Mixed Technique Duet. Gail Witt says: The quilt center is an adaptation of a traditional Carpenter's Square design.  Butterflies were added to the quilt center to echo the butterfly border.  Fussy cut Kaffe flowers and leaves were appliqued to curvy vines swirling around the trellis center.  Jessica Jones' quilting adds beauty and creativity to the quilt."

 

Birds and Birds, and Birds in the Air by Darla Orndorff, quilted by Penny Boese 

 This is most intricately pieced quilt we saw at the show, and we were amazed by the precision needed to create this beauty. Darla Orndorff says, "The quilt was designed in the style of "British Frame Quilts." The traditional block called Birds in the Air was used to create new blocks.  Winner of a red ribbon (2nd place) in the Large Pieced Duet quilts category!

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

Yoko Saito Through the Years

A prominent and celebrated quilt artist and designer, Yoko Saito is known for her use of gentle taupe colors in quilting and sewing projects. Last fall, the Houston International Quilt Festival hosted a special exhibit called "Yoko Saito Through the Years, My Quilt Journey." The exhibit was a showcase of Saito's exquisite handiwork, her choices of color, and designs that have inspired her. We hope you enjoy these photos and descriptions from the exhibit!

~Scroll down for two free quilt patterns featuring Ms. Saito's fabric collection for Lecien.
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Mystery Quilt by Yoko Saito (2012)

Designed for Quiltmania's "2012 Mystery Quilt" series, this wall hanging consists of six blocks that were combined into a final quilt.  The houses and buildings were arranged in such a way that when all the blocks are pieced together, it made the village come to life. In the border, Ms. Saito added random staircases that seem to go nowhere, giving the quilt a magical feel.

Cats, dogs, street lights, and trees were added with applique and embroidery. The entire quilt is hand-pieced, appliqued, quilted and embroidered. and machine pieced. Embroidery was added around the windows and doors of the houses.

Cosmos by Yoko Saito (2002)

Ms. Saito says, "This quilt, Cosmos, is special to me as it is what I showed at The Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival for my first exhibition there in 2002. The venue where it is held, The Tokyo Dome, is so huge that I wanted to create a bold design. I chose to applique flowers that are not as well-known as others, and used my signature taupe color favorites."  The quilt is hand-pieced, appliqued, embroidered and quilted.

Fågel Pipa by Yoko Saito (2011)

Inspired by Yoko Saito's trips to Sweden, Fågel Pipa (bird pipe or whistle) is an intricate combination of flowers, trees, and birds.  The quilt was made entirely by hand.  Hundreds of small leaves from a leafy-printed fabric were appliqued along with other motifs.

The curved vines and branches add a sense of movement. She says, "I imagine the bird chirping in the tree."

Julstjärna (Poinsettia) by Yoko Saito (2009)

Julstjärna (Poinsettia) was inspired by another trip to the lovely country of Sweden.  The grays and blues were chosen to reflect Ms. Saito's impression of colors seen in northern Europe.  She used the diamond shape to depict the petals of the poinsettia flower.

Basket Tree by Yoko Saito (1998)

Made in 1998, Basket Tree features pastel pinks and greens, along with beige branches, fencing, and borders.  Ms. Saito says,  "Whenever I visited America, I would see many baskets.  I was fascinated by the variety that were available, such as the egg-gathering baskets, long vertical ones, baskets with lids, and so many more.  I was told that in the days of the pioneers, basket quilts were made in hopes of having a bountiful fall harvest.  I fell in love with baskets and so began to sketch out basket patterns that I would then use to create applique."

In addition to the baskets, she added mittens, honeycombs, bird houses and other things that made her think of the American Country.  In the photo below you can see a bird house, a spider and spiderweb, appliqued on a floral background.

Merrier and Happier by Yoko Saito (2005)

In this wonderful quilt, branches and ornaments evoke a Christmas tree, and whimsical blocks bring merriment to the scene. Ms. Saito says, "This was a fun quilt where I deconstructed sixteen different pieced patterns and re-interpreted them with applique.  In putting the shapes back together, I allowed myself to do so freelyy, so that they are expressed more casually; even to the point were they are put together as puzzle pieces."  The closeup photo below shows a deconstructed Double Wedding Ring block.

The Chatter of Houses by Yoko Saito (2004)

Some years ago, Ms. Saito was invited to demonstrate various quilting tools and notions at a department store shop.  Instead of demonstrating techniques on random pieces of fabric, she decided to make houses.  By the end of the festival, there were enough houses to make an entire quilt - thus, the Chatter of Houses was created!
The center is made up of seven rows of seven houses surrounded by two borders of appliqued houses and buildings. The dark fabric she used for the background reminded her of the winter sky, so she added embroidered colonial knots on the outer border.

The 2017 Yoko Saito exhibit was sponsored in part by Lecien Fabrics. Here are two free patterns from Yoko Saito's Centenary fabric collections at Lecien:


Centenary Stars, 62 x 82", free pattern by Lynne Goldsworthy (PDF download). Designed for the 2017 Centenary fabric collection by Yoko Saito for Lecien.

The Neighborhood, 50 x 50", free pattern by Joe Wood (PDF download).  Designed for the 2009 Centenary fabric collection by Yoko Saito for Lecien.

Image credits:  Photos of the Yoko Saito Through the Years exhibit were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2017 Houston International Quilt Festival.

Christmas around the world: Japan

Do you wonder what Christmas is like in Japan? Since less than 1% of Japan's population is Christian, there is no Japanese national holiday on December 25. Instead,  Japanese people enjoy the pleasures of home and family as on any other day. Therefore we thought it appropriate to feature “My Home Town Tapestry” by designer Yoko Saito. This lovely quilt features the gentle taupe colors that have made her famous among quilters worldwide.

My Home Town Tapestry 108 x 98 cm by Yoko Saito at Quilt Party (Ichikawa City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan)

In 2008 Yoko Saito commemorated 30 years of creative activities with the Yoko Saito Quilt Exhibition in Ginza, Tokyo. In recent years, aside from her regular appearances on TV and in magazines in Japan, she has begun to expand her operations overseas, holding exhibitions and workshops in countries such as France, Italy and Taiwan.  The pattern book and kit for "My Home Town Tapestry", and much of the website, are available in English. You can even purchase tickets for the Tokyo International Quilt Festival 2012.  The amazing quilt on the show poster, below,  is by none other than Yoko Saito.

 
The official website of the Tokyo Quilt Show is at the Tokyo Dome.

Finally, Yoko Saito has teamed with Lecien (pronounced Lew-shen), a fabric manufacturer based in Japan, to produce fabrics from her favorite collections. Her Fall 2011 line, Etoffe Imprevue, consists of natural textures such as wood grain, basket weave and cross hatch, and tiny flowers.