Interesting Times

When I started this blog, it was to laugh at myself while I learned to do long arm quilting.  Well, I do still laugh at myself but not as much.  I have learned so much.  Thanks to the internet, pictures on Pinterest and videos on You Tube I have had a huge classroom.  And most of all I have had people have confidence that I will do a good job on their very precious quilt.

This does not mean that I have stopped learning.  Learning is a life time objective  but I have come a long way.  I do my quilting hand guided with a stitch regulator.   I have a robot but prefer the more organic way things turn out. Excuse the organic.  It is a bit overused but it fits the bill.  I do use the robot for complex designs or designs I have created myself but I do not use it for overall quilting.  Also, I do not use it for appliqued quilts.  The computerized designs are beautiful but when you see quilt after quilt with exactly the same pattern perfect to a tee it gets a bit boring.  A squiggle here and there and a motif not absolutely positively in scale to the last one adds a human touch.  And I fully subscribe to Angela Walters philosophy.  If you are just starting out to do long arm quilting or quilting on a domestic machine, look up her YouTube Videos, subscribe to her blog posts.

I had the honour to quilt this quilt.  The owner has worked on the applique for 3 years.  Talk about the shakes starting on this one.  But it came alive as I worked.  The borders around each block were like picture frames.  All was helped by a second batting of wool.  It truly makes applique pop.  Here is the quilt.  Each applique block was quilted differently after the applique was outlined.

The owner kindly allowed me to post the picture.  I also took a picture while working on the quilt which shows the lovely detail of the applique. The fabric of the background was ideal for quilting around the blue to make the clouds puff out and look like a snowy day with patches of blue.

Isn't the applique gorgeous?.  Every block was beautiful.  

Quilting for others can be scary.  But it can be so rewarding when you a see the smile of pleasure you have wrought.

Other sources of designs, techniques is to go to Trunk Shows and Quilt Shows.  In the past 10 days I attended a Trunk Show by Karen Neary who is a Nova Scotia treasure who is well known across the North American continent and in Europe.  In a small village hall, she showed off beautiful quilts, talked about their creation and provided itineraries of where they had traveled to after being finished and before returning home.  It was a wonderful show. 

The week before I had seen a Trunk Show by Celeste Thibodeay Stacey a well known Art Quilter.  She too is from Nova Scotia.  There were gasps from the audience at the creativity displayed and the detail of her quilts.  Lucky me.  I have been a pupil on a couple of occasions.  

Then today I escaped to a Quilt Show in a little town called Centerville in Nova Scotia.  There were gorgeous quilts.  This show is put on by a group of women who meet regularly in a hall.  They are not a formal guild but they put on a beautiful show every year.  This year there were quilts that took your breath away.  And I came away with ideas of all kinds.  

All of this inspiration was seen within a 1.5 hour drive from my home.  Any surprise I took up quilting when I moved here.  

If you are not inclined to quilt just enjoy the many artists who do.  And in Nova Scotia we have a wealth of them.  We have those who design and create quilts; those who are artists at quilting them and true art quilters all of whom bring and share pleasure.  We are a little province, hanging into the Atlantic ocean but we are mighty quilters.

Surprises

I love surprises.  There was one at the Post Office yesterday.   A very good friend from Australia sent fabrics for art quilts.  They are lovely and one is already earmarked for the sea in a small quilt.  She is an exceptional artist and you can find her here.  Kerry Thompson, Australia

She is my long distance consultant as I mull over quilting choices.  She knows my addiction to fabric and my attempts to create art quilts as an expression of my less tamed quilting side.  So these fabrics have come from Tasmania to Nova Scotia with loads of inspiration and care. Have a look at her paintings and you will see that we both love colour.  I wake each day to a wonderful one called 'Hello Sunshine'.  It helped in our winter past.

Some of my quilts are on display at the Centerville Quilt Show in Centerville, Nova Scotia just outside of Kentville.  The show is this weekend on Friday and Saturday.  It feels strange to put your quilts out in public as you know each stitch that is not perfection.  But quilters are a lot of very nice people and are great at sharing appreciation and knowledge.

At the Mahone Bay quilt guild meeting this week, Karen Miller a noted fiber artist had a trunk show. Mahone Bay Quilt Guild  Karen was a prime example of this sharing.  She not only had her pieces but photos of work in progress.  And she talked about the development of pieces and the components.  It was fabulous as it helps to understand that art quilts do not arrive full blown but are c r e a t i o n s that take time.

I started this post when the fabric arrived but forgot to complete it.  So here goes.  Better late.  The Centerville Show was wonderful with both traditional quilts, art quilts and rug hooking on display.  The ladies who do this show are so well organized and so friendly.  It was fun to take quilts out in public but a little scary too but I got some nice comments so that makes it a good experience.

One of the pieces of fabric I received is lobbying to be worked over and sent back to Australia as a gift.   Perhaps it will even be tucked into a suitcase I am  carrying on my way there.