Out of the Blue: Outstanding Blue-and-White Quilts

Quilters have long used the color blue to symbolize trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, faith, truth, and heaven. These new and antique blue-and-white quilts revisit the chosen gems that celebrated the 45th anniversary of the International Quilt Festival. 

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Blue Hawaii, IQF Corporate Collection. 

Blue Hawaii was hand appliquéd and machine quilted. The quilt top was donated to the Texas Quilt Museum in 2015 by Karen K. Buckley. The unknown hand appliquér was clearly an expert in her craft; check out the tiny, even stitches in the closeup photo, below.

The top was quilted by local Houston longarm quilter Ellen Happe Phillips. Echo quilting was selected to complete the quilt in the traditional Hawaiian method.

Early Indigo Trapunto, IQF Corporate Collection. 

This quilt is circa 1876, the 100th Anniversary of the American Independence. It was hand pieced and hand quilted. It is pieced in such a way that it looks more like a woven blanket than a quilt. The intricate hand piecing and outstanding hand quilting shows just what an expert needle artist the maker was. 

 

Carpenter’s Square, IQF Corporate Collection.

The indigo and white Carpenter’s Square is distinguished by an unusual diagonal block. Constructed by hand and machine, the quilt features double-line hand quilting in a windowpane pattern.

Indigo Sunburst, IQF Corporate Collection. 

This quilt block design is known by various names – Sunburst, Sunflower, Compass Rose, Mariner’s Compass, etc. The research shows that this 14-block point is unusual because of the number of points. Indigo Sunburst was hand pieced, hand appliquéd, and hand quilted. 

T-block variation, IQF Corporate Collection. 

This T-block variation is hand pieced, appliquéd, and quilted. The setting for this quilt is “T” blocks with an appliqué border. The appliquéd border is 11 inches wide with four cornerstones; we love the frilly motifs, which soften the angular shapes of the blocks. The appliqué motifs are a combination of a modified tulip or pomegranate with cutouts in the center of two large leaves. 

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 International Quilt Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah.

In Love with Blue-Violet

We hope your year is going well. This stunning heirloom quilt by Mami Noda from Japan inspires us to dream about going to a real (not virtual) quilt show, in person, in the near future.  We wish you good health and happy quilting.

p.s. Check out our eBay shop for great bargains on books, magazines, and collectible items. For free quilt inspiration, please visit us on Twitter.

In Love With Blue-Violet by Mami Noda (Japan)

Mami explains, "At the first sight of the old kimono, left by late mother-in-law, I was fascinated by its beauty. I put it together with white and light colors to bring out the blue-violet color." 

Mami's quilting technique is not listed on the description card, but this work appears to be all hand-quilted. Mami does say, "I added applique, trapunto, and embroidery to make it a little more gorgeous." We think she did an outstanding job!  We are amazed at all the hours of work it must have taken to produce this lovely creation!

In the background, you can see some quilt blocks which seem to be of vintage fabric, as some are in soft,  gently weathered tones. Mami remarked, "I tried to replace various memories of her life with many small pieces and patterns. It's my pleasure to revive beautiful fabrics as quilts." We think Mami has done a superb job in honoring her family relative with this intricately detailed and spectacular quilt.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Road to California show.

Highlights of Quilt Arizona 2019! part 5 (the finale)

Here is the finale of our Quilt Arizona photos! The Arizona Quilters Guild has over 35 chapters, and they all get together annually for the show. The 2019 theme was Jewels of the Desert: "Every quilt is like a gemstone, the dancing colors play through patterns to endlessly fascinate and amaze. This year your quilt should convey Arizona's iridescent beauty, from golden sunsets and emerald cacti, to clear sparkling memories."

Note: please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns, fabric, and vintage jewelry ! (For continuous free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter !)

Spring Cleaning by Patti Kupferer

This adorable small quilt has eight different mini quilts hanging from a clothesline. Patti Kupferer says, "The Gallon Bag Challenge [in my guild] required me to use the 12 different items/collections a fellow quilter had placed in the bag in a wall hanging." We enjoyed seeing the crocheted doll (in the lower left corner), the clothes line and pins, and decorative buttons.

Look at how tiny these little quilts are, compared to the gloved hand (below)!

Extra, Extra, Read All About It by Millie Burgheimer, quilted by Millie Burgheimer

Extra, Extra won a first place ribbon in the Mixed Technique category.  Millie Burgheimer based the quilt on a story of her dad selling newspapers.  The newsboys in this original design were created with thread painting.  The background is made of newsprint-themed fabrics.

Dresden Elegance by Gail Witt,quilted by Jessica Gamez
 

Dresden Elegance won the award for Exemplary Professional Machine Quilting, along with Third Place in the Mixed Technique category.  Gail Witt says, "I am inspired by Di Ford medallion quilts. My original design features hand appliqued center star, swirls and Dresden plates. Jessica Gamez' trapunto feathers and border Gothic arches are beautiful." Here are two closeup photos of her lovely quilting.

Treasures of the Southwest by Judith Tobias, quilted by Karen Toomey

This wonderful quilt features a hot air balloon, pueblo, saguaro cactus, and more.  The pattern is Enchanted Lands at SW Decoratives. Members of Quilts N More, a Fountain Hills (Arizona) group, created this quilt to donate to Quilt for a Cause which raises funds for research, education and treatment of breast and gynecological cancers. The beautiful batik fabrics lend so much beauty to this quilt.

See What You See Under The Sea by Magdalena Castillo-Cockrum, quilted by Eunice Hill

Magdalena Castillo-Cockrum won a First Place ribbon in the Pictorial - Non Original Design category for this collage-style quilt.  She says, "Turtles are beautiful and peaceful. I love watching them swim. Exploring fabrics to fulfill my expectations for this turtle was fun, exciting and adventurous. I am excited with my turtle’s uniqueness." The turtle brings to mind Laura Heine's Seawell Collage Sea Turtle design, enhanced with many other design elements and fabrics.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Arizona at the 2019 Quilt Arizona show.

In Full Bloom : Springtime in Japan

Last week we talked about Hanami (flower viewing) in Japan (see It's Cherry Blossom Time) !  Today we're featuring more beautiful floral quilts inspired by springtime in Japan, as shown at the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival.  We love these intricate and innovative works of art by our fellow quilters across the Pacific. From a distance the flowers appear as clouds, while the beauty of single blossoms can be enjoyed close up.

Teatime in my Yard by Harumi Asada,  Aichi, Japan

Harumi writes, "Our sons became independent and my husband's and my life together started. We talk pleasantly together, drinking afternoon tea in the yard." Teatime in my Yard was exhibited in Hands All Around, a showcase for contemporary international quilt design at the 2013 Fall Quilt Festival.

Close up, Teatime in my Yard by Harumi Asada

 Harumi's magnificent stained glass quilt is hand-appliqued, pieced, and quilted, plus some machine piecing. This stained glass quilt was based on a European dome roof design.

Close up, Teatime in my Yard by Harumi Asada

Here you can see the variety of green and peach fabric colors and patterns used by the quilt artist. We were amazed by Harumi's handwork especially in creating the stained glass leading, which is most impressive.

Rose Garden by Akiko Kawata, Chuo-Ku, Osaka-City, Japan

Akiko states," In 2010, I visited the United Kingdom and was inspired to make a quilt of roses. Taking a walk in the park in London one morning, I was surrounded by the mellow smell of roses in the refreshing morning breeze. Using the Nine Patch block as the background, with appliqued flowers on top, I made this quilt...filled with a lot of roses, which remain in my heart."

Close up, Rose Garden by Akiko Kawata

Akiko notes that her design source was her love of flowers. Her stunning quilt is machine-pieced, appliqued, and quilted, plus hand-appliqued. As you can see in this close-up, this satin stitch around the outside of the flower petals gives a very eye-catching three dimensional effect to the lovely roses.

Lace in the Garden by Junko Sano, Toride-shi, Japan

Junko notes, "I love patchwork patterns and always make blocks at first. Then I think about the whole design of a quilt. This time, the blocks look like flowers, and I decided to make a garden with them.  I added trapunto in the background." This quilt was a prize winner at the 2012 International Quilt Week in Yokohama.

Close up, Lace in the Garden by Junko Sano

Here's a close-up of Junko's trapunto and hand-quilting in the center medallion,  which is just exquisite.

Close up, Lace in the Garden by Junko Sano

Besides containing trapunto work, Junko's very pretty quilt is pieced, appliqued, and quilted. The complementary colors of periwinkle blue and tangerine orange in these pinwheel-themed blocks really help them pop right off the printed background.

Just Splendid by Harumi Asada, Aichi, Japan

Harumi says, "Many kinds of flowers bloom in the yard of my home every year. Times may be difficult, but the flowers still have beautiful blooms. I took pictures and printed them on cloth, and I inserted them in the applique of a flower. " 

Close up, Just Splendid by Harumi Asada

Harumi notes that her design source is other stained glass quilts. Her work is computer printed, hand-pieced, appliqued, and quilted. We love this beautiful star pattern, which looks like dozens of small bouquets of roses, daisies, and wildflowers.

Image credits:  Photos were taken at the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival.

Award-winning quilts from the Houston International Quilt Festival

We saw some incredible quilts at the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival this weekend !  We hope you enjoy these award-winning creations as much as we did.

Wind, approx 14 x 18", by Masanobu Miyama, Chofu-City, Tokyo, Japan

This impressive quilt was the winner of the Superior Threads Master Award for Thread Artistry ($5000 prize). Masanobu writes,  "My dog's long fur was streaming in the wind while I walked her at the riverside. I thought it might be fun to express the invisible wind with streaming fur, waving grass, and so on. The original microfused applique technique is applied to create the dog precisely. I also hand-dyed almost all of the fabrics I used to match the color."

Close-up, Wind by Masanobu Miyama

In this close up photo you can also see the trapunto quilting, representing the swirling wind in the background sky. We're estimating the size of this quilt at 18" wide, which gives you an idea of the tiny applique pieces that make up this photo-realistic quilt. The dense thread painting is visible upon close inspection:

Here you can see that Masanobu changed the color of the thread to match the color of each applique piece.  For example, the dark red area of the dog's tongue was stitched with dark red thread and the pink areas were stitched with pink thread, and so forth, so that the thread blended perfectly with the underlying applique.

Illinois Album, 60 x 70", by Jane Sassaman, Harvard, Illinois

Jane Sassaman is a renowned quilt artist, fabric designer and book author.  Her art quilts have been shown in many national and international exhibits and we were thrilled to see her work in person.  Winner of the Baby Lock Master Award for Innovative Artistry ($5000), this exuberant quilt shows Jane's love for art nouveau influences.   She says, "This quilt was inspired by my rural environment in northern Illinois".

Close up, Illinois Album by Jane Sassaman

Lively bursts of color and a sense of energetic movement give this vibrant, dynamic quilt an almost tropical look.   In this close up photo you also can see the decorative stitched leaves that cover the surface of the quilt.  This quilt is currently for sale; for more information, please see Jane Sassaman's website.

Photographer Darling by Noriko Nozawa, Chiba City, Chiba, Japan

Photographer Darling won the $5,000 Fairfield Master Award for Contemporary Artistry. Artist Noriko Nozawa explains that her work was inspired by a trip to Europe that she took with her husband. Because he was always the photographer behind the camera, he did not appear in many of their vacation photos.  Therefore, Noriko made a quilt featuring her husband, with scenic postcards and maps of Europe in the background. This admirable quilt is a real show-stopper, done with a variety of materials and expert techniques.

Close- up, Photographer Darling by Noriko Nozawa

We were impressed by the realistic, life-like details in Noriko's work, which reminds us of the style of an oil painting. For materials, the artist used cotton and linen mixed spinning cloth, cotton fabric dye, monofilament yarn, and machine embroidery thread.

Close up, Photographer Darling by Noriko Nozawa

The pastel colors of the Europe map are done in a handsome herringbone-type thread painting pattern, with the lettering in trapunto style.  Artistic techniques used on this quilt included original and Janome Digitizer Pro machine embroidery (as shown in the "Venezia" postcard above), dyeing, machine piecing and applique, and free-motion machine quilting.


Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration. 

Best of the 2013 Concord (California) quilt show

Last week, we attended a little hometown quilt show, which are often the most fun, and had a great time viewing all the talent on display. From the Contra Costa Guild of Quilters in Concord, California, here is some wonderful, colorful "eye-candy", which we think you'll love. Enjoy !

Ciara's Favorite Colors,  62x 43, by Barbara Fors

Barbara says,  "My darling granddaughter Ciara (11) can hardly wait until this quilt show is over so she an hang this one in her room. The walls are freshly painted in readiness."  We think this vibrant creation will certainly brighten any room, with its patchwork background of Kaffe Fassett Collection fabrics and the giant whimsical blossoms which almost pop off the quilt.

Close-up, Ciara's Favorite Colors by Barbara Fors

The bright orange center of the flower appears to be lightly padded to give it a trapunto effect. The center is then wrapped in a spiral of variegated green felt, with green yarn satin-stitched spokes radiating out from the center. We really liked this artistic embellishment which gives a distinct three dimensional effect to Barbara's quilt.

Ancient Sentinel, 46 x 52,Valerie M. Sauban

Valerie states, "I took a vacation to the Bristle Cone Pine Forest in the White Mountains south of Mono Lake [California]. These ancient trees can live to 5,000 years old. The big horn sheep faces danger. It is not only losing habitat, but because Californians voted to protect the mountain lion, the increased cat population is putting pressure on the sheep." The quilt is an original design.

We really liked the imaginative use of neutral grays and browns, and whites used to portray the granite landscape, as well as the solid color pieced Delectable Mountains border, which gives the quilt a very western, rustic look.

Those Bloomin' Sisters, 66 x 82, by Jill Orr

Jill writes, "My oldest sister Kathy is quite the instigator- and is a very good one. She came to visit with some pre-cut squares to work on a yo-yo quilt. I was instantly smitten. We dove into my stash, cut some more squares, then later, sent the squares back and forth to each other after she went home."

We think that Jill and her sister did a great job in selecting fabric in an analogous color scheme with blue undertones, such as magentas, lavenders, violets, and spruce greens.

Close-up,  Those Bloomin' Sisters by Jill Orr

Jill adds, "....A month later at the annual family beach gathering at Pacific Beach, we had to make a 'pilgrimage' to Rosie's Quilt Store in San Diego to pick some more fun fabric for our yo-yo quilts. We proceeded to make yo-yo's on the beach, and our cousins thought we were a bit yo-yo !  My quilt is dedicated to our loving husbands who tolerate our fabric stash."

Flower Garden, 62 x82, by Dorothy Hooper

We're always attracted to Dresden Plate quilts in their infinite varieties, and this one is no exception! Dorothy has created a bouquet of large sunflower shapes attached to jumbo rick-rack stems. The quilting design includes flowers, feathers and swirls. A carefully pieced border of vivid batiks adds even more cheer to this happy quilt.

Close-up, Flower Garden by Dorothy Hooper

Dorothy notes, "This was quilted by Kamala Alahan. My garden grew as I found so many fabrics to add to this." We loved the lively, swirly floral quilting design done in brightly colored variegated thread.

Monarch Variations by Valerie M. Sauban

Valerie says,  "The monarch butterly is made from my original paper pieced design. I place the two lightest butterflies together in the center to form a flower. The other four butterflies are flying towards the flower and vary in color from primary in the upper left corner to gold, red, and brown looking clockwise. I then created an original continuous line quilting design using the milkweed plant as an inspiration, since that plant is the monarch's favorite food." 

Close-up, Monarch Variations, 65 x65,  by Valerie M. Saubhan

In this close-up, you can see Valerie's beautiful and precise piecing of the butterfly's wings, which gives a radiant stained-glass effect to her quilt.  In the lower left, you can also see some of the quilting of the milkweed flower of which she speaks.  This quilt is a lovely example of the powerful combination of  violet and blue-violet hues paired with their nearly complementary colors, yellow, and golden yellow.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.