We are on week 3 of the True Blue QAL with American Patchwork & Quilting. Yes I am making a red version so it seems silly every time I type the words True Blue.
Quiltalong – week 3
This block has the most pieces in it. I am a huge fan of using wooden blocks to help set the seam allowances to lay flat. This really helped on this block. I am a huge fan of Modern American Vintage’s sewing accessories. They are a treasure and future heirlooms for sure. It is usually my spurge at quilt shows to add to my collection. Quiltcon is coming up so I will have to get to CHRIS’S BOOTH EARLY.
Just some of the eye candy from week 2 of the True Blue QAL that I have found on the internet.
There is something comforting about a quilt-along. It feels a bit like a recipe card that’s been passed down for generations. Same method, same heart, but every time it turns out a little different depending on who’s in the kitchen or sewing room and what fabric is selected.. The True Blue QAL is exactly that kind of experience. last week it was picking fabric. This week it is making block 1.. Following directions in the magazine gives you exactly how many pieces you need to cut and sew. I never mind having some extra so I cut 2″ strips and strip pieced them. Subcut, mix and match to have a variety plus some extras!!
If you are just joining and don’t know about the QAL, here is the info.
While True Blue is the name of the QAl and the colors used in the original quilt, I’ve decided to take a tiny creative detour and bring in my color of the year: red. Not “oops I grabbed the wrong fabric” red. Intentional, bold, patriotic-quilt-meets-heirloom red. Plus I had to sew along with y’all which means making another quilt!
Why red? Red has always been one of those colors that carries emotion. It’s warmth. It’s courage. It’s love. It’s tradition. Red and white quilts have been inspiring me for years, especially after seeing the Red & White Quilt exhibits that celebrate the power of a limited palette. There’s something magical about taking one strong color and letting it tell the whole story.
You can follow the pattern exactly, or you can bend it just enough to make it unmistakably yours. I almost went red white and blue!!
Using red fabrics has also made me slow down and think more carefully about contrast and balance. Beth at American Patchwork and Quilting did a gtrreat post last week about choosing her fabrics and tacked about scale etc. My reds started with a bundle of fabric from Bunny Hill so I had a nice range to start with, then adding more lights and reds to create larger variety and to use up some more of my “stash.”
And honestly, using red’s make me smile every time I sit down to sew.
So whether you’re sewing in blue, red, or something completely unexpected, remember: quilts have always been about using what you love, what you have, and what speaks to you. That’s how traditions stay alive. They grow, they shift, and they welcome a little creative rebellion now and then.
Make 5 of these blocks and you will be ready for next week!!
The 25th Anniversary issue includes what Jody Saunders references as the DREAM TEAM.
She isn’t talking about the designers even though they are pretty darn special if I do say so myself.
I am NOT going to spoil who the dream team is. You will just have to see for yourself!
I have had the privilege of reading this magazine since the beginning when I searched for anything that had the word quilt in it or on it!
Then wam- bam, 25 years later one of my quilts was chosen to be in this publication
alongside some of my quilting idols and friends.
My second favorite pages are page 8 and 9.
These two pages are chock full of stats from the past 25 years.
The right hand page has a picture of all the issues from the past 25 years in one nice neat stack.
I can’t even begin to imagine all the great designs, products, articles, designers and fabrics that are featured in these pages.
The hours of inspiration, education and therapy that quilters have experienced just thumbing through the pages.
History!
Gives me goosebumps!
I want to give a shout out to Lori Eggers and Chris Neubauer.
I see your picture on page 9. It is nice to put a face to the names.
Great job, ladies!
Get this magazine on newsstands first week of Feb. and flip to page 4 to see the DREAM TEAM. I think you will agree!
Then see page 66 to make your own version of my Tone It Down quilt.
How super cool is Lisa Bongean of Primitive Gatherings? She is the first person to be shown on the cover of American Patchwork & Quilting. This does make her the official cover girl of quilting. Nick, her husband, thought she should do the photo shoot in a bikini, until everyone informed him it was not that type of cover girl. (just kidding, Nick!!)
I was tickled to see Lisa on the cover and then continued to flip through the pages to see some of my other friends. Vanessa Goetzen of Lella Boutique’s bright shiny face on page 5, Betsy Chutchian‘s reproduction quilt, Just Toasty on page 35, Pat Sloan, Bonanza of Baskets on page 54, and then on page 79 I almost wet my pants. There was my quilt, Kettle Corn. You know I love scrappy quilts and mixing all kinds of Moda designers fabrics into one quilt. I also love fall and I can be found munching on kettle corn regardless of what time of the year it is. My family must think I am a bit of a mad scientist. I am always dipping, dying, bleaching and messing with fabrics. I had a variety of fabrics and wondered what they would look like bleached and overdyed. I loved how some of the modern lines turned almost vintage with a dunk into bleach. Shown here is the quilt top before it was sent to the quilter. It really shows off the variety of prints.
Everything including fabrics from Sandy Gervias, Urban Chics, Zen Chic, Vanessa Christenson, Barbara Brackman, Fig Tree and Sweetwater. I guess I could have named it Kitchen Sink since many of the fabrics have spent some time there and I threw in such a variety. Love it!
To be in such good company with all the people in this issue warms my heart.
Can’t wait for the season to change to fall and be surrounded by all things pumpkins.
Look for the October issue of American Patchwork and Quilting!!
Also a thank you shout out to Carrie Nelson and Elizabeth Besse. I was recouping from surgery so they jumped in and wrote the article for me.
Everything in our world is so fast, fast, fast especially at this time of year. I find it interesting there is this Slow it Down movement that people like Cheryl Arkison talks about in her book, A Month of Sundays, or the Slow Stitching topic that Mark Lipinski talks about. Now Mark is the most energetic person in the industry so when he talks Slow it makes
you stop and listen.
I strip piece. My mind thinks what is quickest most efficient way to make a project.
But this slow it down got me to thinking
about my Tone it Down quilt.
Slow it Down…
Tone it Down…
I thoroughly enjoyed each and every second of making this quilt. Looking at each and every little piece of fabric as I worked from block to block. Thinking about the fabric, the designer that created it and the story that goes along with it.
Now I watch online as more and more people are
making this quilt and posting their
pictures and honestly
it is quite humbling
and makes my heart feel good.
search #apqquiltalong to see some of the versions
This is what the quilting industry is all about.
I am sure if you are reading my blog you are a quilter
or one of my aunts.
If for some reason you have landed here and are not a quilter, I encourage you to join this community. It is the most wonderful world to be living in.
Sign up for a class, get a book, do anything, just start!
The tone it down quilt is not for the faint of heart.
It is not a quilt that you can create over the weekend.
However this is a great quilt to add to your
to-do list and slowly enjoy as each block develops.
I am always so honored to share my passion for quilting with others. So of course I am super pumped when one of my projects gets published in a national magazine. BUT what really has taken the whole experience way over the top is the #APQquiltalong from the Feb 2014 issue of American Patchwork and Quilting. There were several people that had agreed to go on this quilt along ride and were featured in the magazine. I knew each of them would do something really different.
I wanted to share some of the #AQPquiltalong projects. I just love how they are all coming along. Each is so different and is also a great lesson in color and value placement.
Jennifer Keltner’s quilt
is going to be so rich with a Japanese feel. Jennifer is the Senior
Editor of American Patchwork and Quilting and has got to be one of the
busiest women in the industry. I am honored that she has carved out the
time to be a part of this.
And then we have Anne from Bunny Hill.
Anne has a uncanny knack for putting the chic in shabby chic with
everything she touches. She is adding alternate blocks of applique to
her quilt.
See what I mean by how different each of the quilts are coming along.
Kimberly from Fat Quarter Shop made her version using Wishes from Sweetwater.
Of course her quilt is completely done. You can certainly see why she is so successful by jumping in
and getting her projects complete.
Another classic!
How cool and different is Quilt Jane’s version? The pattern
is the exact same as the other quilts but the value placement has given this quilt a completely different design.
Just imagine all the variations of traditional
quilt blocks we could do if we just looked at everything
in black and white, then started coloring in the shapes.
Jane, you are so inspiring.
Sherri McConnell of A Quilting Life.
I am sure you all read Sherri’s blog. She is a true classic in every step of the word. So Sherri choose fabric from a classic designer, Sandy Klop of American Jane. This quilt was a good reason for Sherri to pull out her American Jane collection of fabrics and dive in. I would like to point out that this is also a good reason why we like to hoard our favorite designers fabric collection. And yes it is okay to have more than one favorite designer, hoard their collections, and have a fabulous stash.Stash is not a bad word.
Amy Ellis from Amy’s Creative Side
I knew Amy would give us all an interesting take on scale and design.
Amy’s combination of fabrics adds such movement throughout.
I knew Lisa would give us all the complete opposite look of my quilt.
She put darks where the lights were, lights where the darks were supposed to be.
She gives the quilt her magic primitive touch. A good lesson in just
because the pattern says
“dark fabrics”
doesn’t mean you have to use dark.
Camille Roskelley
Again another example of greatness in everything she touches.
Camille played with her value by use of lights, mediums and darks.
My quilt was truly lights or darks, no mediums.
By adding the mediums, Camille’s version incorporates a softer, vintage feel.
And my apologies to Carrie Nelson. I left her greatness off of my original post.
I can’t really say enough about Carrie. Her version is a timeless classic. Read all about her thought process as she created this quilt.
Thanks again to all these talented ladies for being a part of this quiltalong.
Let me know if you are quiltingalong.
I have made a board on pinterest
http://www.pinterest.com/modalissa/apqquiltalong/
and I would love to add your version to the board.
