Friday, March 21, 2014

More QAYG Blocks

Got a few more orphan blocks quilted this week for the Soy Amado charity block drive.
These blocks date back to the beginning of this blog in 2010.  I was thinking of making a bento box quilt at the time, but it fizzled.  It's still on the bucket list, though.
It feels good to finish these up quilt-as-you-go style and send them off to where they'll be made into colorful quilts for those in need.

Again, just doing what seems natural when I sit down to quilt these.  I have always wanted to try wishbone quilting, but my attempts on paper have been pretty wonky.  Well, it came out just as wonky in the actual quilting too, but hey, that's why it's called practice.

Looks better from the back, perhaps.

* * * * *
Last Sunday afternoon, I had the pleasure of hearing the fabulous Jeni Baker of In Color Order talk about her quilts and her career as a pattern and fabric designer!

She spoke to a group of us at Mill House Quilts in Waunakee, Wisconsin, within easy driving distance for me, and the weather cooperated, thank goodness.

It was fun and fascinating to hear about her quilt making experiences and what sounded like a true Cinderella story when it came to her entry into the world of fabric design.
I loved seeing her trunk show.  So much wonderful color and pattern!
I was especially enamored of this one (below), an early quilt of hers replicated from a quilt her grandmother had made:

We even chatted a little bit before her talk, about Pyrex, her bunny George, and the joys of thrifting. 

Her new fabric line, due out in April, is an ode to her love of vintage linens, called Dreamin' Vintage.  I meant to tell her that her Lazy Daisy Raspberry reminds me very much of a bedspread and sheet set I had on my bed back in the day.
I probably got a little carried away by asking for a photo with her, but she happily obliged.  I am a giant by comparison to her petite frame, so I squatted down a good bit for this shot.  Work those quads!

Jeni was such a delight to hear speak.  Her energy and bubbly enthusiasm was infectious, and I left with a big smile on my face.  
And a little bit of fabric too!

9 comments:

Sharon said...

your fmq on your blocks looks great! what a great idea for practicing, to make a quilt-as-you-go.
lucky you to meet Jeni. She is really sweet…I met her at sewing summit and camp stitchalot. Pretty cool to see the trunk show, though.

Karen said...

That is great you got to see Jeni! How fun! I so love the FMQ on your blocks, not wonky one bit :)

Kim said...

Ooooh....fabric inspired by vintage linen...that I have to see!! Love your orphan blocks, they look like a lot of fun. Love all the quilting patterns you came up with. What fun to spend an afternoon with Jeni Baker, hearing about all her quilting insights and drinking in all her lovely quilts!!

Angie in SoCal said...

What a nice quilt show you had for us! Love those hexies - I invite you to link up to Hexie Weekend, closes Monday, midnight.

Hazel said...

I really love the blocks that you showed in the photos! I've never made blocks, but am going to do so after I finish repairing this ancient family quilt that I'm working on. I had never heard of Jeni but am very impressed with her quilts and the fabrics. Thanks for sharing that with us!

Mina said...

Your blocks are so beautiful! And it looks like lots of fun at the show :)

Shay said...

I love the quilting in your blocks P...very fancy schmancy!

Plenty of eye candy at the Jeni Baker trunk show. I have a feeling you were really crouching to get that shot!

Kevin the Quilter said...

Umm, P.....if your quilting is just sitting down and doing it......YOU ARE A MASTER QUILTER! Those look phenomenal! How cool for you to have met Jeni! I would have loved to have attended that was well!

Elizabeth said...

Talk about burying the lead! You lucky girl! I'm not a faithful follower, but I love Jeni's posts on color. From what little I know of her, she is a talented lady! How awesome that you got to attend her trunk show! And you are both beautiful! I love the photo of you together!

OK, so, your QAYG blocks are AWESOME! The wishbone quilting is awesome and so is the flower in the center. My favorite, though is the quilting you did on the purple and black block. Shazam! The center is amazing and the swirls in the border around that (especially in the black) are out of this world fantastic! Wow!

xo -E