bling
Pieced and quilted by Katherine Jones
Chigwell, Tasmania, Australia
Tasmanian Modern Quilt Guild
98 x 98 inches
Piecing

“Foundation paper pieced from solid fabrics the inspiration for this quilt was a princess cut diamond.”

Freespirit Award of Quilting Excellence

Go North
Pieced and quilted by Maritza Soto
Cambridge, MA, United States
Cambridge Modern Quilt Guild
69 x 70 inches
Modern Traditionalism

“I wanted to make a quilt that was rooted in tradition and technique but employed a modern, flexible approach that allows for multiple versions of the same motif depending on use of color and gradations.”

Best Machine Quilting — Framed

Madonna
Pieced by Brittany Bowen Burton
Quilted by Natalia Bonner
Millcreek, UT, United States
Individual MQG Member
49.5 x 75.5 inches
Improvisation

“Religious texts mention few women, unfortunately, for there have always been great women. We know of Mary, the Madonna, because she was mother to Jesus. Often, I look beyond the walls of my home to find personal value and purpose, but as I created this quilt, I was reminded that my greatest power and influence is as a mother and in what I teach my children to become. As Mary was, I too can be a mother to greatness. This quilt was born at QuiltCon 2016, inspired by the score for ‘Get Your Curve On’ featured in The Improv Handbook For Modern Quilters by Sherri Lynn Wood.”

Best Machine Quilting — Frameless

Not Easy Being Green
Pieced and quilted by Mary Keasler
Chattanooga, TN, United States
Chattanooga Modern Quilt Guild
40 x 54 inches
Use of Negative Space

I decided to use bits of my leftover hand dyed fabrics and make small 4 patch blocks, not knowing what I would do with them. I decided to add strips in a log cabin effect. Still not sure of what I would do with them, I added the white fabric for negative space, then used a quilting design similar to the quilt blocks to complete the piece.

Judge’s Choice: Kristy Daum

Waiting for Sanity
Pieced and quilted by Kristin Shields
Bend, OR, United States
Central Oregon Modern Quilt Guild
49 x 48 inches
Modern Traditionalism

“Waiting for Sanity was begun in early 2016 during a class with Gwen Marston. The colors I used are some of my favorites with a naturally patriotic theme. As it turned out I didn’t get around to finishing this quilt until after the dreadful 2016 election when I was left with a feeling that sanity has gone out the window. The title is a direct reference to the liberated hourglass blocks.”

Judge’s Choice: Erica Bonkowski

Self Portrait in T
Pieced and quilted by Hillary Goodwin
Auburn, CA, United States
Individual MQG Member
26 x 26 inches
Small Quilts

“Combining my love of repurposing and nontraditional quilt mediums, I grabbed some of my old T-shirts and designed this quilt of the fly. There are obvious worn spots in my T-shirts which reflects the worn spots in my own body, and the geometric vibe well fits my personality. I enjoyed echoing the design with quilting in the negative space.”

Judge’s Choice: Elizabeth Spannring

Still With Her
Pieced and quilted by Liz Harvatine
Burbank, CA, United States
Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild
60 x 55 inches
Improvisation

“I made the basis for this quilt, a giant Hillary logo, the day before the presidential election. I felt so much hope and excitement and I channeled it into my sewing. The day after the election, all of that energy and feeling of promise was gone, yet it seemed so sad to leave this quilt unfinished. I decided to cut it apart and add to it; put it back together. I want to keep that feeling of hope. I want to build off of what could have been and create something even better in the future.”

People’s Choice

Lincoln
Pieced and quilted by Kim Soper
Huntington, NY, United States
Individual MQG Member
46 x 60 inches

“This quilt (passion project!) developed out of a desire to create an entirely improv-pieced, recognizable image without use of template, paper-piecing or applique. Using an iconic image of Lincoln that had been converted to WPAP (vector-based geometric pop art) by Ihsan Ekaputra, it was constructed using 6-inch blocks. The backing fabric is a repeating pattern of the original image of Lincoln. The binding is a nod to the vector-style of art on which the quilt is based. The end result is a quilt that is both identifiable as the intended image, and distinctly my own.”

American Patchwork & Quilting Nine-Patch Challenge: 1st Place

Warp and Weft
Pieced and quilted by Cheryl Brickey
Greer, South Carolina, United States
Greenville Modern Quilt Guild
43 x 41 inches

“Inspired by some shot cotton fabric where the different colors are used in the warp (machine direction) and weft (cross-machine direction), “Warp and Weft” creates a 9-patch block using woven strips of fabric having different colors in the warp and weft direction.  The woven strips are on a background of Yarn Dyed Essex Linen which also uses different colors in the warp and weft of the fabric.”

American Patchwork & Quilting Nine-Patch Challenge: 2nd Place

Hashtag Quilt, Hashtag Nine-Patch…
Pieced and quilted by Betsy Vinegrad
Short Hills, NJ, United States
North Jersey Modern Quilt Guild
48 x 55 inches

“Hashtag Quilt… honors all my quilting friends on social media. I am constantly inspired by my fellow guild members at show-and-tell each month. Since joining the the North Jersey Modern Quilt Guild and following members, friends of members and more, on social media, it is possible to participate in a show-and-tell everyday. It’s been fun meeting new people, some even in person. Designed as a one-block quilt, the horizontal lines were tilted six degrees.  The background is “made” fabric pieced in nine-patches. The cross hatch quilting, in three shades of grey and bright pink, reinforces the hashtag and nine-patch motifs. It is machine pieced and quilted.”

American Patchwork & Quilting Nine-Patch Challenge: 3rd Place

Mustard Stain
Pieced and quilted by Paige Alexander
Easley, South Carolina, United States
Greenville Modern Quilt Guild
33 x 34 inches

“Out of an exploration in hand-stamping with soy wax as a resist, ‘nine-patches’ in various sizes were created and the fabrics were dyed by immersion using Procion dyes. Wanting chartreuse and using dye by the same name, I ended up with MUSTARD. Some of those stamped nine-patches were then pieced into another nine-patch and so on. To further emphasize the theme, a nine-patch was created by quilting eight crossed lines in turquoise with echoing lines in gold from the quilted nine-patch.  I should have dyed more background fabric because the binding has a total of 15 joins.”

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Applique: 1st Place

Inside Out
Pieced and quilted by Susan Bleiweiss
Pepperell, MA, United States
Individual MQG Member
61 x 54 inches

“Original design, fused raw edge applique, cotton fabric and thread, machine quilted.”

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Applique: 2nd Place

Tea and Skittles
Pieced and quilted by Thomas Knauer
Utica, NY, United States
Individual MQG Member
40 x 48 inches

“In turning the shooting target that was sold after the killing of Trayvon Martin into a baby quilt and quilting it with text from the boy’s obituary, this quilt questions a society that claims to protect children even as it sees children of color as threats, and even targets.”

Applique: 3rd Place

Bloberella
Pieced by Hillary Goodwin
Quilted by Kristha Withers
Auburn, CA, United States
Individual MQG Member
52 x 67 inches

“Bloberella started as an experiment in improvisational piecing and needle turn appliqué. My improvisational rules are influenced by the laws of nature.  Though not planned the red blobs naturally “wanted” to stick close together like the aggregating of red blood cells.”

Group and Bee: 1st Place

Direction Optional
Pieced by Stephanie Ruyle, Leanne Chahley, Karen Foster, Hillary Goodwin, Marci Debetaz, MR Charbonneau, Felicity Ronaghan, Debbie Jeske, Anne Sullivan, Kari Vojtechovsky
Quilted by Christine Perrigo
Denver, CO, United States
Denver Metro Modern Quilt Guild
76 x 76 inches

“#Beesewcial January 2016 prompt: “Linear” using a palette of off whites, yellows, grays with pops of red/pink/orange. The prompt centered around the use of line as an element; whether curved or straight was up to the maker. The rich tapestry of shapes made this an amazing quilt to assemble.”

Group and Bee: 2nd Place

Blue Blue Electric Blue
Pieced and quilted by Ara Jane Olufson, Deborah Aspuria, Daisy Auschehoug, Ivy Bagnall, Yeechi Chen, Cat Downs, Mary Gibbons, Rachel Hauser, Allison Schnackenberg, and Jodie Wu.
Seattle, WA, United States
Seattle Modern Quilt Guild
52 x 61 inches

“I asked my do. Good Stitches charity bee members for improvisationally pieced fan blocks in any shades of blue and white, with a few tiny accents of bright warm colors. This quilt will go to the charity Wrap Them in Love, which distributes quilts to children in need around the world.”

Group and Bee: 3rd Place

Organic Mid-Century Mod
Pieced and quilted by Laura Bennett, Jessie Aller, Neva Asinari, Ashley Bander, Tracy Baird, Ruth Bass, Laura Bennett, Nicole Folino, Michelle Kochan, Jessica Levitt, Janet Schoenfeld, Robin Tillsworth, Colleen Wiest
Princeton, NJ, United States
Central Jersey Modern Quilt Guild
60 x 60 inches

“This quilt was a progressive quilt at the Mid-Atlantic Mod quilting retreat. Jessica Levitt set the theme (Organic Mid-Century Modern) and color scheme, and a dozen quilters each prepared blocks. At the retreat, we worked together to develop these blocks into a cohesive quilt top, making the full design of this quilt top a truly collaborative effort.  I then designed and constructed the quilt back, and quilted and bound the quilt.”

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Handwork: 1st Place

Canary meets Gold Mine
Pieced and quilted by Stephanie Ruyle
Denver, CO, United States
Denver Metro Modern Quilt Guild
48 x 59 inches

“This quilt was made from an assortment of on-hand garment and quilting linen of differing weights, quilting cottons and shared material. The color palette is somber with pops of neon pink and mustard yellow. The texture of the different materials along with the varied hand work gives the quilt top a wonderful 3rd dimension.”

Handwork: 2nd Place

Quilt no.019: Of Discontent
Pieced and quilted by Shelby Skumanich
Loveland, CO, United States
Denver Metro Modern Quilt Guild
67.5 x 84 inches

“By re-purposing the traditional quilt pattern Chinese Coins, I’ve created a vertical composition where light and dark move towards and away from one another. The asymmetry and dense hand quilting combine to make a subtle, textural design element. By pushing the traditional quilt pattern into the unexpected, the quilt evolves into a vessel for self-expression and contemplation. Made in the days after the terrorist attacks of 11/15/2015, I was pondering becoming an adult in the years after 9/11, how wide-scale acts of violence have become normal, and the ways in which such acts both polarize and unite.”

Handwork: 3rd Place

Trust Your Gut
Pieced and quilted by Marilyn Butler
Kansas City, MO, United States
39 x 43 inches

“I’ve been enamored with big-stitch quilting for a while, so hearing that Heidi Parkes was coming to our town and our guild was reason for great anticipation on my part! I signed up for her workshop. I saw her beautiful work up close. She showed us her technique and she encouraged us! I left that evening full of inspiration. With only a small bit of hand quilting added to my improv pieced shot cotton quilt top, I was determined to cover every last inch of it with colorful stitches. And to trust my gut with every design decision…and I did!”

Improvisation: 1st Place

Lincoln
Pieced and quilted by Kim Soper
Huntington, NY, United States
Individual MQG Member
46 x 60 inches

“This quilt (passion project!) developed out of a desire to create an entirely improv-pieced, recognizable image without use of template, paper-piecing or applique. Using an iconic image of Lincoln that had been converted to WPAP (vector-based geometric pop art) by Ihsan Ekaputra, it was constructed using 6-inch blocks. The backing fabric is a repeating pattern of the original image of Lincoln. The binding is a nod to the vector-style of art on which the quilt is based. The end result is a quilt that is both identifiable as the intended image, and distinctly my own.”

Improvisation: 2nd Place

What IF: A Color Study
Pieced and quilted by Lynn Crymes
Charleston, SC, United States
Charleston Modern Quilt Guild
42 x 46 inches

“While shopping for paint at Lowe’s, I picked up a color palette that I was drawn to for my house. Before deciding, I came home pulled matching solids and played with improvisational piecing. My thought was that if I liked the quilt, the color would be good. The quilting in this quilt is matchstick in same variety of colors. In all the randomness, “IF” is as clear as can be on the right side… hence the title. This hangs in my newly painted living room by the front door and reminds me as I leave to think of the what IF’s.”

Improvisation: 3rd Place

Scattered
Pieced and quilted by Jess Frost
Mount Stuart, Tasmania, Australia
Tasmanian Modern Quilt Guild
65 x 68 inches

“Scattered is improvisationally pieced, and all cutting was done with a rotary cutter without the use of a ruler. As a result, all the lines through the quilt are quite organic. The dense free motion quilting is also intentionally organic, and features a variety of grids with pockets of curved designs. Big stitch hand quilting has been added in some areas to add another level of texture.”

Michael Miller Luxe Fabric Challenge: 1st Place

Luxe Modern
Pieced and quilted by Susan Clay
Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States
Individual MQG Member
59 x 62 inches

“The Michael Miller Luxe fabric collection was my inspiration for this quilt. I pieced the quilt with the traditional “Robbing Peter to Pay Paul” quilt block. I turned the block on point and incorporated negative space and asymmetry for a modern aesthetic.”

Michael Miller Luxe Fabric Challenge: 2nd Place

Look Deep, Deep into My Eyes
Pieced and quilted by Kari Anderson
Los Angeles, CA, United States
Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild
62 x 58 inches

“Because of the repeated squares in the Michael Miller Luxe fabric “Tumble Blocks” pattern, I was inspired to explore a design using half-square triangles. Curious how I could manipulate this technique, I also brought in half-rectangle triangles the dimensions of two side-by-side squares. With only these two blocks and some solid squares, I grew this creature. The design, which is mirrored down the middle, ends up being reminiscent of a Totem Pole, a Rorschach Test, or perhaps a Wild Thing. It is intended to be open to interpretation to the eyes of the beholder.”

Michael Miller Luxe Fabric Challenge: 3rd Place

ANDTHENTHISHAPPENED
Pieced and quilted by Dawn Golstab
Leander, Texas, United States
Austin Modern Quilt Guild
80 x 80 inches

“At Quiltcon 2016, I took the EQ7 classes from Christa Watson. The classes were terrific and inspired me to spend more time creating original designs. When I saw the Michael Miller Luxe fabric, I started playing with large scale triangle shapes in the EQ7 program……and then this happened. To keep the design really clean, I used a knife-edge facing to bind the edges.’

Minimalist Design: 1st Place

Wax and Wane
Pieced and quilted by Susan Kyle
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Individual MQG Member
82 x 90 inches

“Have you ever wondered (while the esthetician is waxing your eyebrows) about the white fabric used to pull off the wax? I asked one day, and it turns out it’s 100% cotton muslin that comes in rolls 50 yards long and 2 1/2 inches wide. I bought 2 rolls, proving, although proof is hardly necessary, quilters can find an excuse to buy fabric anywhere, anytime. I designed a simple quilt with strips of muslin running its width, taking advantage of the length available on the rolls and with alternate colours — increasing and decreasing, waxing and waning.”

Minimalist Design: 2nd Place

Equilateral Sampler
Pieced and quilted by Rebecca Bryan
Wildwood, MO, United States
St. Louis Modern Quilt Guild
72 x 72 inches

“Working in a series, I set out to explore graphic design and how the field can influence the traditional art of quilt making. After sketching each triangle, and a whole lot more, I set out to create each design in fabric calling upon my knowledge of quilt making techniques. Techniques include piecing, paper piecing, appliqué, and improvisational piecing. For the quilting, I chose an all-over geometric design that would add texture but not detract from the graphic nature of the quilt.”

Minimalist Design: 3rd Place

Mod Blocks 2.0
Pieced and quilted by Betsy Vinegrad
Short Hills, NJ, United States
North Jersey Modern Quilt Guild
57 x 72 inches

“The image that inspired Mod Blocks 2.0 was designed by Dutch graphic artist, Wim Crouwel. It is one section of a 4 part folded catalog for a 1966 exhibition of the work of Peter Struycken at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. It’s amazing how a simple design of only 5 shapes can have so much movement. Mod Blocks 2.0 is the second quilt made from this pattern. The first one, Mod Blocks, which is 20 percent smaller, was shown in the Modern Quilt Guild Showcase at the International Quilt Festival 2016 in Houston. It is machine pieced and quilted. Permission granted courtesy Wim Crouwel and the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam.”

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Modern Traditionalism: 1st Place

Modern Waves Quilt
Pieced and quilted by Kristi Schroeder
Quilted by Lee Jenkins of Dallas, Texas
Austin, TX, United States
Austin Modern Quilt Guild
85 x 91 inches

“Inspired by my time spent along the south Texas coast as a child, the Modern Waves quilt is created with Robert Kaufman’s Kona® Cotton Solids in five colors, ranging from light to dark value.”

Modern Traditionalism: 2nd Place

Fireworks
Pieced and quilted by Jeannie Jenkins
Willowdale, Ontario, Canada
Toronto Modern Quilt Guild
50 x 76 inches

“This quilt is the third and final in a series that I designed on EQ7 after quitting my day job. Not sure if I did the  right thing, I filled my days with designing quilts and proceeded to piece and quilt them. Looking back, it was the best thing I ever did, and the only regret is I should have done it sooner!”

Modern Traditionalism: 3rd Place

Autumn Hours
Pieced and quilted by Daisy Aschehoug
Baton Rouge, LA, United States
Baton Rouge Modern Quilt Guild
45 x 60 inches

“I used the traditional hourglass block to explore ideas about contrasting aspects of fall — cool blue skies and chilly nights next to the lingering warmth of the soil and fiery orange in the turning leaves.”

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Piecing: 1st Place

Ode de Yoshiko
Pieced and quilted by Marilyn Farquhar
Heidelberg, ON, Canada
Grand River Modern Quilt Guild
54 x 54 inches

“At Quiltcon 2015, a friend purchased a meter of Yoshiko’s signed, hand-stamped fabric. This enabled me to create a quilt inspired by Yoshiko’s minimalist colour palette while utilizing her hand stamped fabric, commercially printed and vintage fabric. I hand drafted the design to create a complex circular pattern, however, extended the points to the corners to create a square format. The narrow circle is one piece of the featured fabric. The fabric selection includes quilting cottons, Japanese fabrics, silks and vintage linens.”

Piecing: 2nd Place

Finding The One
Pieced and quilted by Miriam Coffey
Lake Junaluska, North Carolina, United States
Asheville Modern Quilt Guild
39 x 48 inches

“This quilt is inspired by the notion of human companionship. I am interested in, how as humans we are always seeking the one to be our pair.”

Piecing: 3rd Place

Vertigo
Pieced and quilted by Elaine Poplin
Huntsville, Alabama, United States
Individual MQG Member
56 x 56 inches

“Dared by a friend, I reconstructed the 2002 Pinna illusion and made a quilt of it. Foundation paper pieced, hand-appliqued, and free-motion quilted. Permission to show the quilt graciously granted by Biangio Pinna, the original designer of the illusion.”

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Small Quilts: 1st Place

Whatever
Pieced and quilted by Katie Larson
Kansas City, Kansas, United States
Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild
32 x 31 inches

“This quilt was inspired by one of my favorite pieces of advice: You can do whatever you want to do. It’s easy to get caught up in self-doubt and that makes it hard to make decisions. I didn’t follow any specific guidelines while designing this, and instead focused on creating a quilt I wanted to make solely for the purpose of making and to challenge myself with a variety of different techniques.”

Small Quilts: 2nd Place

Cursive
Pieced and quilted by Paige Alexander
Easley, South Carolina, United States
Greenville Modern Quilt Guild
34 x 36 inches

“I am neither an educator nor a historian but simply appreciate the beauty of penmanship in everything from historical documents to thank you notes. Cursive was made for the Greenville MQG challenge, Black, White and a Pop of Color, although the idea was conceived much earlier. With the exception of two solid fabrics, the quilt, including the lettering was constructed almost entirely of text or text related fabrics. The D’Nealian cursive lettering was made from bias stems and hand appliqued. Lower case letters were chosen for the continuous free motion quilting where no i’s had to be dotted nor t’s crossed.”

Small Quilts: 3rd Place

Dark Geometry
Pieced and quilted by Susan McKinney
Waltham, MA, United States
Boston Modern Quilt Guild
33 x 33 inches

“This small quilt was created in response to a guild challenge to create a small work from solid colors only. Inspiration came from the pure geometric forms found in the work of Sol Lewitt – and in quilts! Each of the nine blocks is reverse appliquéd with a single shape in dark tone-on-tone colors, then machine quilted with radiating concentric circles. The machine quilting resulted in an accidental moiré effect on the reverse of the piece.”

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Use of Negative Space: 1st Place

Infused Plaid
Pieced and quilted by Cassandra Beaver
Urbana, OH, United States
Central Ohio Modern Quilt Guild
61 x 61 inches

“A simply pieced central design creates the basis for this quilt which allows the quilting to become the star of the show. Linear matchstick quilting is done using the same color of thread as the fabric it passes through. This process extends the colors of the piecing across the surface of the quilt and develops a plaid pattern in the process.”

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Use of Negative Space: 2nd Place

The Ground She Moves, Flies
Pieced and quilted by Kari Anderson
Los Angeles, CA, United States
Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild
55 x 56 inches

“Like the geological formation of patterns in earth through shifts over time, the patterns and textures transform in constant movement and reformation: they seem to fall into place and yet also, perhaps, fly away. My design process began with three randomly chosen words: Sliding, Rippling, Folding. From each word I developed a block and then explored ways to combine ideas. The blocks necessarily changed when brought together, but remnants can be found. The basic triangular pattern comes from Rippling. The white strips along which the triangles shift come from Sliding. The repeated folds in the negative space come from Folding.”

Use of Negative Space: 3rd Place

Implied Consent
Pieced and quilted by Colleen Molen
Fallbrook, CA, United States
Temecula Valley Modern Quilt Guild
46 x 60 inches

“By attending a concert, you imply consent to have your picture taken. Walking down the street does not imply consent to be whistled at, ogled, or groped. Attending a party, no matter what you drink, does not imply consent to be drugged and passed around to be used by whoever wants a turn. Sexual consent can never be implied.

The idea for this quilt came during a discussion of implied lines. I used a shadow appliqué technique learned from Yoshiko Jinzenji at QuiltCon. Quilting lines create an implied yes in the negative space.”

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Youth: 1st Place

Gemstones
Pieced and quilted by Lilianna Kehnle
Monroe, New York, United States
Individual MQG Member
45 x 53 inches

“I was very inspired by nature and the formation of rocks and minerals for this quilt. While working on the backgound, I ran out of the color I was using so I ordered more and it ended up being a little darker than I wanted, so I got one more shade of beige and made it 3 tones. I normally paint but I wanted to take a break and try quilting and this was the result.”

Youth: 2nd Place

Big Blue Whale
Pieced and quilted by Caitlyn Baxter
Quilted by Tiffany Baxter
Amherst, VA, United States
Individual MQG Member
47 x 53 inches

“The Michael Miller Luxe fabric made me think of water, and water made me think of ocean animals. The first ocean animal that came to me was a whale because I like whales. We thought of the diamond shapes for the spout because the fabric has diamonds on it. I stitched all of it, and my mom helped me cut and pin the pieces. Mommy helped me quilt it, and she also helped me with the binding. I used Luxe Tumble Blocks, Fog, Luna, Midnight, and Magic Folk. The whale is from the Preppy Pod pattern by Elizabeth Hartman.”

Youth: 3rd Place

Supernova
Pieced by Aida Gates
Pieced with Aida’s grandmother Judy Moyer
Quilted by Laura Simmons of Pieceful Quilts
Binding by Aida’s mother, Julie Moyer
Parker, Colorado, United States
Individual MQG Member
52.5 x 52.5 inches

“My favorite part about this quilt is the explosion of color. The colors were chosen because my favorite color is orange, and blue contrasts really well with it. I like the story this quilt tells and that you can see movement throughout the pattern. This is by far my favorite quilt out of any I have made and I am excited to make many more like it.”