quilt

Chicago International Quilt Festival Thursday – Saturday

Its that wonderful time of the year where the quilt show comes to Chicago. If you plan to see the show (March 28-30, 2019) please check out the Open Studio instructors. I will be there each day with something new. Please stop by and say hi.

Festival will have educational opportunities for free on the show floor including our popular Open Studios™ and the new Learning Lounge in lieu of traditional classes and a class catalog.

Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, located at 5555 N. River Road, Rosemont, Illinois 60018.

Show hours are 10 am-5 pm

Admission are $10 adult daily, $8 seniors 65+/students/military and $25 full show pass Children 10 and under free.

Drum Roll Please

Congratulations Mary M from Lockport, Illinois who was randomly chosen for the wooden needle give away.

No Measuring Borders Tutorial

If you want better borders, so they are not flopping in the wind or somehow out of wack, but really hate math and measuring, this is for you. This is the method I have used since I started quilting and still use today. It works for me, give it try and you won’t be disappointed. Any questions, or unsure of any step, PLEASE contact me. I want you to have fun while making a better quilt!

Make sure your quilt top is nicely pressed.

Find center of the quilt top. Do this by folding the ends and marking middles with a pin, iron tap the center, or use a chalk mark.

Cut border fabric for the first two sides you will be applying. Make sure you go longer than your quilt top.

Line up border fabric on the top of each other, and find the centers of these pieces in the same manner. Mark them.

Match the center points of the border with the center of the quilt, pin them together well.

Gently, without pulling, lay the border strips down the middle of the quilt, keeping them all in line. Mark borders with pin, chalk or finger press where the borders meet the end of the quilt.

Trim your borders where marked.

Find the centers of borders by folding in half and iron press center ,this will help with registration marks.

Match centers of borders with center marks on ends of quilt, (PIN) right side together on top of quilt.

Match ends of borders to end of quilt making sure you have 90 degree angle in corners and pin.

Pin more of the borders on the side making sure they will not shift in sewing. Add more pins to hold border as you sew. Ease in any fabric (if needed) between already pinned points. Now Sew! Do not sew over the pins.

Now that you have your two borders applied, press.

Now find the center again and mark.

Again, find your center on the borders to match to your center on the quilt top. Gently bring across the quilt. Mark the ends where they meet the end of your quilt top and trim.

Find your centers again and pin in the same manner as you did the others. (if quilt is large, fold into quarters for borders and quilt) this will help with registration marks.

Finished, square and no trimming needed.

Thank You & Now For The Fun

Now for some FUN!

Some of you have come by and saw my presentation in Open Studio 2017, also so my Giant…16 inch wooden needle with a notch to hang on a wall. I was so pleased to have so many people interested, and all the wonderful questions.

So….. what I would like to do, is anyone who follows me, will have a chance to own the wonderful Needle. I will randomly chose one person on April 30th!

Will it be you?

International Quilt Festival Starts Today

Here is my schedule for this year’s Open Studio at the International Quilt Festival. This year I will be teaching “No Measure Borders”.

Thursday, April 6, 2017

12:00 P.M.-2:00 P.M.

Friday, April 7th and Saturday, April 8, 2017

10:00 A.M.-12:00 P.M.

Quiltcon 2015 – Celebration and Winners

Quiltcon 2015 in Austin, Texas was a great celebration of modern quilting. Look below for prior postings with images from the other categories.

Quiltcon 2015 – Best of Show

i Quilt by Kathy York
Austin, Texas, Austin MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Kathy York

Judge’s Choice, Janine Vangool

Face #1 by Melissa Averinos
West Barnstable, Massachusetts, Individual MQG Member
Pieced & Quilted by: Melissa Averinos Quilted by: Melissa Averinos & Suzanne Whiteside

First Place, Bias Tape Quilting Challenge

CPU by Katherine Jones
Chigwell, Tasmania, Australia, Tasmania, Australia MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Katherine Jones

First Place, Best Machine Quilting

Diving Geese by Katie Pedersen
Seattle, Washington, Seattle MQG
Pieced by: Katie Pedersen Quilted by: Krista Withers

2015 Coats Award of Quilting Excellence

Coral Reef by Marla Varner
Sequim, Washington, Bainbridge Island MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Marla Varner

First Place, Appliqué

Anniversary Quilt by Katrina Hertzer
Calgary, AB, Canada, Calgary MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Katrina Hertzer

First Place, Improvisation

The Rabbit Hole by Nydia Kehnle
Monroe, New York, Individual MQG Member
Pieced & Quilted by: Nydia Kehnle

Judge’s Choice, Stevii Graves

For Tanya by Emily & Miriam Coffey
Lake Junaluska, North Carolina, MQG of Asheville
Pieced & Quilted by: Miriam Coffey

First Place, Handwork

Fuzhou Fujian by Patricia Lutteral
Martinez, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Individual MQG Member
Pieced & Quilted by: Patricia Lutteral

First Place, Modern Traditionalism

Long Island Modern Sampler by Kim Soper
Centerport, New York Individual MQG Member
Pieced & Quilted by: Kim Soper

First Place, Small Quilts

What’s the frequency, love? by Sheri Cifaldi-Morrill
Woodbridge, Connecticut, Southern Connecticut MQG
Pieced & Quitled by: Sheri Cifaldi-Morrill

First Place, Minimalist Design

Breathe by Leanne Chahley
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Edmonton MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Leanne Chahley

First Place, Group or Bee Quilts

Playing with Little Bits created by participants of Mid-Atlantic MOD 2014
Columbia, Maryland, Baltimore MQG
Pieced by: Rose Daley, Anna Levengood, Jill Stafford, Jessica Skultety, Jessica Levitt, Robin Tillsworth, Rachel Singh, and Elizabeth Timmons Quilted by: Rose Daley

First Place, Piecing

Flight Path by Mary Menzer
Virginia Beach, Virginia, Virginia Beach MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Mary Menzer

First Place, Use of Negative Space

Blackbird Fly by Krista Hennebury
North Vancouver, BC, Canada, Vancouver MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Krista Hennebury

*Sorry, no image of 7 Up by Debra Jalbert

First Place, Michael Miller Fabric Challenge

7 Up by Debra Jalbert
Clermont, Florida, Orlando MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Debra Jalbert

First Place, Youth and Judge’s Choice, Carolyn Friedlander

Rainbow Magic by Mollie McMahon
Sutton, NSW, Australia, Canberra MQG
Pieced by: Mollie McMahon Quilted by: Mollie McMahon & Jules McMahon

People’s Choice Award at Quilt Con 2015 went to “A Quilt for Our Bed” by Laura Hartrich and quilted by Nikki Maroon.

Quiltcon 2015 – The Quilts of Gee’s Bend

Here are a few of the quilts that were on display at Quiltcon 2015 from Gee’s Bend.

Devil’s Walking Stick by Mary Margret Pettway

Railroad Crossing by China Pettway

Lazy Gal Bars by Lucy Lee Pettway-Witherspoon

Untitled by Unknown Maker

Housetop Red and Turquoise by Ruth Kennedy

Quiltcon 2015 – Modern Traditionalism

Modern Traditionalism – Quilt design incorporates the use of an identifiable traditional block pattern and modernizes it by applying design elements such as alternate grid work, asymmetry, color, scale, etc.

Third Place Refresh by Anna Boenish

Seattle, Washington, Seattle MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Anna Boenish

Second Place Deconstructed LoneStar by Amy Struckmeyer

Oak Park, Illinois, Chicago MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Amy Struckmeyer

First Place Long Island Modern Sampler by Kim Soper

Centerport, New York, Individual MQG Member
Pieced & Quilted by: Kim Soper

Half Square Triangles by Tara Faughnan
Individual Member, Oakland, California

Grand Pineapple- Dichotomy by Allison Lee
Triangle MQG (North Carolina) (right)

Sunset by Corinne Sovey
Austin MQG

Quiltcon 2015 – Piecing

Piecing – Quilts that are machine pieced and reflect a particularly strong or innovative use of piecing.

First Place Flight Path by Mary Menzer

Virginia Beach, Virginia, Virginia Beach MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Mary Menzer

Holy Sh*t Sherlock by Kristy Daum
St Louis MQG

Fractal Kaleidoscope by Katie Larson
Kansas City MQG

Off Kilter by Melissa Corry
Individual Member, Utah

City Center by Angie Henderson
St Louis MQG

Annie Albers’ Orange Chair by Martha Peterson
Seattle MQG

Triangles Quilt by Tara Faughnan
Individual Member, California

Cascade Quilt by Kristi Schroeder
Individual Member, Texas (left)

The Power of Three by Kristin Shields
Central Oregon MQG (right)

Welcome to Colorful Colorado by Katie Larson
Kansas City MQG

Third Place Emergent by Kari Vojtechovsky

Centennial, Colorado, Individual MQG Member
Pieced & Quilted by: Kari Vojtechovsky

Second Place Balancing Act by Amanda Hohnstreiter

Thorndale, Texas, Austin MQG
Pieced & Quilted by: Amanda Hohnstreiter

Quiltcon 2015 – Negative Space

Use of Negative Space – Quilt design incorporates a creative or significant use of negative space which is integrated into and/or organizes the composition of the quilt.