Tonight I got on a wild hare...

Hello!
Tonight instead of playing another game or two
of Freecell, Spider Solitaire,
Bridge Baron 19 or Internet Scrabble
while avoiding going to bed,
I decided to create a quilt on Electric Quilt 6.

I view Electric Quilt as a "computer game"
without the violence and with a useful and often lovely outcome.

Tonight I chose this antique quilt
which was made in 1896
and is currently hanging in the Quilt Room
of the Nodaway Valley Histoical Museum
 in Clarinda, Iowa where I am a Board member.

When I looked at my photo, I thought,

 "What a pitiful photo of this quilt!" 

While I worked on it, 

I decided the most appealing aspect of it

 in this photo is the aged antique look. 

It certainly is not the slightly unique, 

but not particularly interesting, blocks. 

But I was not to be deterred, so here it is.

How boring!

So that got me searching for 

and coloring a more interesting block 

and then choosing another nine patch alternate block to complement it. 

After I colored them a couple blues and white, 

I used the "Swap All Colors" tool 

and came up with this color scheme.

I have named this 100" x 100" quilt which has 81 - 9" blocks,

"Clearly you have made your point".

I think it is much more interesting. 

Don't you?

Never one to give up the fight easily and retire to bed,

I decided to reduce the number of blocks

 from 81 to 49 by removing the outside row of blocks, 

revising some of the coloring

 in the alternate blocks along the sides, 

inserting a middle border, 

and enlarging the outer border to 15" 

to keep the quilt at 100" square 

and allow the center 

to fit on the top of my queen-sized mattress 

and only the borders to drop over.

Hmmm, which do you prefer?

I'm glad I skipped my other computer games 

and went for "Electric Quilt."

I always feel more productive. 

If I do decide to make this quilt, 

I can use EQ6 to print off my rotary cutting directions,

 yardages and a printed drawing to select fabrics to match...

or not...as I desire.

I hope you dream of quilts tonight, too.
Carlene

Going green...

I design all the quilts I want to make on Electric Quilt

before I purchase fabric and begin construction.
Here are drawings of two 100" x 100" green quilts
 I am currently working on.

This one features "deviled eggs on a tray".

So far I have hand appliqued a golden orange yolk
onto each of the 23 egg whites

(made from Kona white cotton).

(Two eggs are missing because...

when have you ever gotten the deviled egg tray 

to the table with all the eggs on it? 

People are always grabbing one off

 as you approach the serving table.)

Now I need to applique the egg whites
onto the large piece of "hostas" background.

Isn't this "hosta" fabric (for the tray) excellent!

My current dilemna is to find a way to keep the hostas

from showing through the egg white fabric.

When this quilt top is completed,
I had planned to stencil "paprika" on the yolks.

Someone recently suggested "pepper" instead,

so now I am considering a second quilt featuring fried eggs on a tray

which I might have to name "Over Easy".

If I do make it,

I would probably have to use some brown/tan striped fabric

and add some 3D rippled bacon strips.

(And yes, I do sleep under all my quilts.)

The next quilt I am prepping for is the sheep in the pasture below.

The sheep will be foundation pieced and sashed

so that they can constantly graze on a lush green grass background.



I hope you are going green, too!
Carlene

Surfing in new waters

I created this 100" x 100" quilt
(with slightly different inner borders)

after viewing a photo of an antique quilt online.

As you can see, green is a powerful draw for me yet.

What would you use to make the 378 half square triangles--

Triangle Paper, Wonder Ruler or traditional methods?

Also I discovered two more websites of interesting quilts.

On the BBC website I found information about England's

Victoria and Albert Museum current show of quilts from 1700-2010.

Check out the hexagon quilt probably made by a sailor.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8578091.stm

Below is the website where you can view the winners of the

Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival 2010 and 2009.

http://www.tokyo-dome.co.jp/e/quilt/

You know I loved the quilt entitled "Variations of Green" by Chinami Terai

which appeared with the 2009 winners.

http://www.tokyo-dome.co.jp/e/quilt/8/original1.htm

Keep quilting--in your style and with your favorite colored fabrics--or not.

Whatever you choose, I hope you have a lovely spring!

Carlene

Jacob's Extension Ladder

Perhaps you know by now that I like to find quilts that interest me and recreate them on Electric Quilt. Check out this 1870-1890 Jacob's Ladder quilt on the International Quilt Study Center and Museum.

http://explorer.quiltstudy.org/#/quilt/1997.007.0037/

What intrigued me about the antique quilt was there were four Jacob's Ladder blocks in "the" block. First I recreated the quilt up to 100" square in pretty much the colors of the original. However, notice that I did not use half blocks in the top and bottom rows.

 I found this drawing pretty boring. It was hard to appreciate the block. 

 It had popped in the antique quilt, but not in the drawing. 

 When I look back at the original and this drawing, I don't find much different. 

 I think I thought the original quilt's blocks popped because I zoomed in on them.

 But meanwhile, I decided to spice up the colors.

Actually I still don't like it. 

 As it is now, I wouldn't be willing to make it.

What is wrong? 

 Leave a comment if you know what I should do differently. 

 We can all use help. 

 Carlene

I believe a skunk just cozied up to my basement window

There is an amazing "skunk" stench wafting through my basement window. Definitely time to go to bed. Sadly, my bedroom windows are directly above this basement window.

Here is one more quilt from the International Quilt Study Center website circa 1900-1920.
http://explorer.quiltstudy.org/#/quilt/1997.007.0291/

Isn't this a lovely two-color quilt? I hope you see beauty this week...and don't have a skunk near your basement window!

Carlene

Interesting border with Union Star

I found another interesting quilt on the International Quilt Study Center and Museum website dated from 1875-1895.

http://explorer.quiltstudy.org/#/quilt/1997.007.0053/

I think it is interesting because the "unknown" quilter chose not to predictably have a sashing border. Instead "he or she" chose to allow the blocks to float on the outer white border.

I enjoy a quilt that shows someone chose not to take the typical path, but instead to try something new.

Courage always catches my eye. I hope you or someone you see this week chooses to stretch artistically.

Carlene

Treasure trove of quilts to inspire you

I was surfing on the International Quilt Study Center and Museum website and found this quilt in their amazing collection.

http://explorer.quiltstudy.org/#/quilt/1997.007.0051/


So I went to my Electric Quilt 6 program and recreated the quilt and resized it to 101.5" square. What an attractive quilt with my favorite details....triangles and flying geese blocks. I think I am going to have to make this one!


This week I hope you find an inspiration that you choose to dream about.


Carlene

Leftovers

I found some leftovers in My Pictures and had to share them with you because they are related to the last two blogs. The colors chosen are more edgy.

I think the pumpkin and white is very peaceful.
Hmmmm, all I can think about is pumpkin pie with Cool Whip. Guess I am hungry.

Onto the green and pink quilt which is saying "Look at me!!!" Those large stars in the corners are quite demanding.

It is hard to believe both quilt drawings (on Electric Quilt) are sized to 100" square.
They each have such a different feel.





















These are crazy quilts and I am a crazy quilter. It is almost 3:30 a.m. I must go to bed.
Hope you are more prudent.

Carlene

Inspiration redirected

If you read the last blog, you saw a quilt in five different color settings.

Now you are seeing that quilt revised into a circle of stars around a center double star.

I ended up making the white and red "Stars in a Circle" shown below. The 100" x 100" quilt contains only 17 blocks (18 of you count the "center" of the center star.)

I think this is a wonderful quilt for a gift. To me it represents family gathered around in a celebratory mood for a wedding, anniversary, graduation, whatever.

I hope you have the courage to revamp a quilt design to tell your story. It makes the quilt "yours" in every sense of the word.

Carlene

Variations on a theme...Stars in a circle

In 2007 (I believe) I went to the Machine Quilting Symposium in Overland Park, Kansas. The winning quilt looked something like this one...white with yellow stars. It was, of course, quilted beautifully, but it was the star layout that really caught my eye.

I went to my computer and using Electric Quilt I designed it in several colors. Here is periwinkle and white.

White with pink stars.

White with green and then green with white.

Which is your favorite?

I must confess that each one is special, but the darker ones really interest me the most.

Whether it is the stars, the moon or the sun (and its sunshine)--I hope you see something outdoors that sparks your imagination and appreciation today.

Carlene

Say cheese!

For some reason I am totally into orange lately. Maybe it is all the gray skies here in Iowa. Maybe it is the lack of it in the colors of our clothing. Whatever the reason it is speaking to me.

So I went into Electric Quilt 6 and designed and colored a two color quilt with white and orange....and then orange and white.

Which do you prefer? Doesn't it remind you of "Dreamsickles"? Perhaps you knew of them as "Pushups"--vanilla ice cream coated with orange sherbet (or as we said..sherbert).

Hmmm...would these quilts keep you warm or cause you to shiver as you slept under them....not sure.

Perhaps this pink one would warm you up more.

That is what I love about quilting....the emotional connection to color and design.

I hope you have a warm quilt on your bed tonight. Sleep well and dream of the colors in your life.

Carlene

A tisket, a tasket, white with blue basket

Here is a photo of a lovely full sized Depression era basket quilt which I took at the quilt show at the Shenandoah Historical Museum in September, 2009. I drafted a queen/king on Electric Quilt 6 and added a inner border to float the blocks more. In addition I changed the setting from alternate white blocks to white sashing. I have to make more blocks, but I chose that method.

Then I flipped the basket colors and actually like the white baskets on blue, too. I am a sucker for two color quilts. How about you?

Then I got to thinking...why didn't I like the plain alternate blocks? So I reworked the quilt a bit more and here it is in white with blue baskets and then blue with white baskets. Leave a comment if you have a preference.

I love to give my opinion. Don't you?

There's snow on the pink mountains

I've been working at quilting again. This is my pink and white delectable mountains quilt. Five borders are added onto the center block. As you can see, I am up to number three so far.

I am using the Eleanor Burns book and template. It was been going very smoothly.

After a green spell, I am currently on a pink focus. The next quilt is a trip around the world...or at least that is my current thought.

Last September I went to a quilt lecture by Star Anne McIntire Kloberdanz at the Historical Museum in Shenandoah, Iowa. There was a lovely exhibit of Depression era quilts which prompted me to take many pictures.

I have been using them as inspiration for new quilts to design and make. Here is their dark blue and white quilt that is inspiring me to use my indigo blue and white fabrics and their "Squirrel in a Cage" block to make my version of this quilt shown below in an Electric Quilt 6 drawing.

I have been very lax on blogging. Perhaps I will turn over a new leaf and use my blog to prompt myself to do more quilt re-designing.

I hope you are finding inspiration to create quilts or other arts that make your heart sing.

Carlene