October 2017 – Page 2 – Artquiltmaker Blog

Design Wall Monday

I have been writing about En Provence and the Triple Stars a lot. They are the main projects, though I slip in other sewing here and there.

My design wall doesn’t have a lot on it at present, though I thought it would be interesting to show you how I work with a smaller design wall and a larger quilt.

Off hand I don’t know how large En Provence will be. I am doing the large version, so I am sure those of you who have made it know. I am not, usually focused on sizes. Regardless of the final size, it won’t fit on my design wall after a few more rows and columns.

Design Wall, October 15, 2017, annotated

1 – En Provence. I am working from the left bottom corner up towards the right top corner. This is the usual way I put a quilt together, because then I can be sure that, at least, the bottom will be on the design wall.

2 – En Provence fold. I fold the quilt and cover part of the quilt I don’t need to see right at the moment. Since I am working on adding a column on the right, the middle part isn’t needed, except for reference right now. (You might have to enlarge the photo to see the fold.

3 – Triple Star. This is my reference block.

4 – Triple Star. This is my current block in progress, n.12.

The last design wall Monday was back in March. Take a look at that post to see my progress. I am linking up with ~~Patchwork Times~~, uh Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, the new hosting site of Design Wall Monday. Since I haven’t posted a Design Wall Monday in awhile, this is the first I have heard of this.

FOTY 2017 – More Rectangles

FOTY 2017 - mid October 2017 — FOTY 2017 – mid October 2017

The FOTY 2017 is not dead, though I haven’t worked on it much beyond cutting a few pieces here and there. As you know from my En Provence and Triple Star posts, I am not cutting a lot, which means no new FOTY pieces to show.

This group shows fabrics from the back of the Terrain donation quilt, the back of the Stars n.3 donation top, a couple of the Little Cell Phone Wallets, a few pieces from the Triple Star.

Four Low Volume Backgrounds

I have always liked to use a variety of fabrics to add interest. This means that I like scrap quilts, but I also like to use a variety of fabrics in the same colors in my quilts.

I learned this technique from Mary Mashuta. Many of you modern quiltmakers probably think she is old time and her techniques are not a useful addition to your modern arsenal. Mary is a really good teacher. She trained as a teacher and taught at SF High Schools for years before she left to become a quilt teacher. Her ideas are easily translatable to different fabrics and styles. I took a class from her about “pushed neutrals,” which had to do with making a background from a variety of neutrals rather than just using one fabric. I extrapolated that idea out to include non-neutrals as well, which evolved into using a variety of fabrics in the same colors for backgrounds. I have since used this technique for foregrounds as well.

Kay V, a longtime reader, made a comment that made me think about my low volume background for En Provence. As you know, the background is a variety of text fabrics. These are, mostly, the same fabrics I used for the Carpenter’s Wheel.

Jennifer’s Quilt is a quilt I made for my acupuncturist who really helped me get back on the road to health. When she died, I got the quilt back. Bittersweet. I would rather have her and never see the quilt again.

It is the first quilt, I think, I made using a variety of black and white fabrics for the background. Some of the pieces are a little heavy and I probably wouldn’t use them again. I also used the same technique for the foreground – the pinks, blues and limes are all a variety of fabrics in the same tones/shades. The blues have more contrast than the pinks and limes.

Flowering Snowball was primarily supposed to be a handwork project – something to take around with me when I needed a to-go project. At that point, I didn’t think as much about the background. In general this is not as successful an exercise in using different fabrics for the background. Some of the prints read grey rather than white. Others have too heavy a hand in the print department.

Carpenter's Wheel top finished — Carpenter’s Wheel top finished

I got better with the Carpenter’s Wheel. I was focusing on using text prints and, thus, tried hard to make the background work. The scale of the different fabrics all vary, but the overall effect works.

En Provence - October 8, 2017 — En Provence – October 8, 2017

From close up, the background of En Provence looks somewhat chaotic. The foreground fabrics can handle the chaos, however, because there is no bleeding of color into the background. I like the little bit of chaos as it seems to move my eye around the quilt.

As an added bonus, this technique does not require one to have a zillion yards of one fabric to use as a background. 😉

ColorPlay: Shirt

I went to the Retreat last weekend. While there, SIL suggested I do a ColorPlay post on G’s shirt. I thought it would be great because there were a lot of bright-ish colors.

The default was …neutral, as usual. The Earth looks a little purple.

The first non-default palette is my favorite. I went to towards the turquoise. Ok, it isn’t really turquoise, it is Candy Green. I have never heard of Candy Green and that name kind of scares me.

Palette n.2 is an extension of palette n.1. I added a couple of neutrals. I am a fan of the gold, but it works well with the Ultramarine and the Deep Rose.

Palette n.3 is a combination of the neutral palette and my favorite, palette n.1. The Ultramarine stands out in this crowd. I also like the name of the Spice color.

Palette n.4 has colors that show up in other palettes. Although I see this as a more colorful image, I also realized that the embroidery was all of the same colors.

Have you made any interesting palettes lately? Please share.

Quick PIQF 2017 Report

I went to the preview of the Pacific International Quilt Show 2017 last night.

The Preview is an hour and a half long. Preview attendees can look at quilts and interact with vendors as on the normal days. The bonus is that it is really empty, so it is much easier to take pictures of quilts that will be mobbed once the show opens. also, if you can find that one thing you want at a vendor booth, it will be there and you won’t have to fight for it.

I did a quick survey of the vendors and, yes, bought a few things. I saw as many of the quilts as I could, but I really didn’t see anywhere near all of them. I didn’t get a chance to look at the special exhibits.

Quick impressions:

many vendors were in different places
lots of new vendors
same types of quilts – look and feel of the show was the same

I was really pleased to see some new vendors. I didn’t get to look at all of the wares the new vendors had available. I got an idea of what I might want to buy when I go back.

I was disappointed by the New Quilts of Northern California. I didn’t see anything new and must not understand that point of that exhibit anymore.

The Peacock was hanging there. I was pleased with the location. I was pleased to get a good photo of it.

3 Triple Stars

In between working on putting together the En Provence quilt, I have been sewing Triple Star blocks together. I use the blocks as leaders and enders.

While I am concerned that using the blocks as leaders and enders means I am not as engaged with the quilt, I really have to have something in between the En Provence pieces to keep them in order. While I could make make more donation blocks, I want to make progress on other projects as well, so the Triple Star blocks are the leaders and enders.

Unlike Fresh Fruit, I have to pick a lot of colors for the blocks. I also have a lot more seams to sew, so I do pay attention.

What Else We Did at the BAMaQG Retreat

I wasn’t the only one busy at Retreat. A lot of charity blocks and tops were made. People also worked on their own projects.

MassDrop gave the guild a bunch of fat quarter packs to use to make charity quilts. The group did not disappoint. Right there, at least 5 were made. There were only about 4 packs left at the end of the day on Sunday, so I think others are in process.

Gerre had taken my Yellow Donation quilt and quilted it. She was working on the binding on Friday at the Retreat. She finished it and, thus, finished the quilt at the Retreat. I was pleased that she had worked on the top I made. I always feel happy when Gerre and I collaborate, especially when she says nice things about my color combinations. 😉

Michelle S' map quilt — Michelle S’ map quilt

Michelle S was working on, what I think of as, a map quilt. She had a different name for it, but I thought the blocks looks like a map or aerial photo.

I didn’t take as many photos as I expected to. I was focused on sewing and getting as much done as possible. There was a lot of moving around to shared cutting tables and ironing stations. People were also very chatty and interested in what other people were working on. It is always interesting to be in a Retreat situation because you get to see how other people work, what they are working on and how they interact with other.

BAMaQG Retreat

I have discussed the Retreat in passing over and over, so finally decided that I should get around to writing about the retreat itself.

The Retreat started on Friday at 10am. Following along with our year long theme, Scrap Attack, the Retreat followed that them as well.

Before arriving at the Retreat, I went to the gym, ate breakfast and packed the car. I had two days at home alone (YM gone at school, DH on a NSGW trip) in the evenings during which I prepared and packed and organized. After leaving to go to the Retreat, we stopped at Always Quilting and The Granary. I wanted to find an open toe Acufeed foot for my Janome 6600. I planned to quilt the Thanksgiving tablemat and needed to see where I was going. The Acufeed foot that came with the machine is good, but not for seeing exactly where the foot is going or following a line. I didn’t get my hopes up for the foot to be available at Always Quilting and I wasn’t disappointed. I resolved to try to quilt the tablemat anyway.

We went to the Granary, because I like that store and SIL had never been there. I bought a couple of pieces of fabric, thinking I might make an extra Cell Phone Wallet with one of the pinks.

Then we headed the 8 or so blocks to the Wild Palms hotel and to sewing nirvana. We didn’t arrive until about noon, but we set up and got to work right away. Nirvana isn’t easy and setting up took some time.

Once I got set up, my first order of business was sewing together all seven Cell Phone Wallets I had cut out.

Lesson one for quilting retreat is prep your projects. Having several projects already cut out made my output much better than expected.

I had cut out seven Cell Phone Wallets from fabric leftover from dresses and tunics. I spent Friday making them. I didn’t think I would get as far as I did, but I was able to finish all except for weaving in the last two ends from top stitching. I was shocked that I even had time to turn the pieces. Turning these and poking out the ‘corners’ is not for the faint of heart. I rose to the challenge and got the job done. Now I am going to feel a lot more confident when wearing my dresses, skirts and tunics. I made all of these with D rings and will use the same chain for all of them. I also think I can use the black one with other black outfits.

Next, I started quilting the tablemat. 🙁 It didn’t work. I want to follow the lines of the leaves and other Thanksgiving motifs and I just couldn’t see where I was going. I ripped stitching out three times before I gave up. I would really like to get it done before Thanksgiving. Not only to I want to count the yardage as fabric used, I also want to have one less item on my to do list. I have ordered new feet from Sew Vac Direct, a suggestion from Gerre, so we will see.

No rest for the sad or wicked. I was determined to get as much done as possible. So, next up was the Poolside Tote. Not only had it been taking up horizontal surface space for a long time – ever since I cut it out at Scruffy Quilts back in May, but Tim and I had decided to work on ours together. Julie said she would make one as well, but she wasn’t at the retreat and I have only seen quilts coming out of her studio. You can read about the sewing, etc of this tote in the post from earlier in the week. I am not sure if I will make this tote again. I may need to as it is large and popular.

I worked on this all day Saturday and a little bit on Sunday morning. Next on the list was the Mostly Manor Lozenge quilt. I had the blocks made so all I had to do was sew them together. Lucky for me, the raffle prizes had all been given away (I won a charm pack of grey Northcott solids-YAY), so I had a table right behind me to use as design surface space.

I sewed fast and got this top done in a couple of hours. I used the Terrain donation blocks as leaders and enders.

In between everything I made three donation blocks. We received kits for 3 donation blocks in our goody bags. I didn’t have a lot of leaders and enders opportunities, so I rushed at the end to get these done. The Committee gave extra raffle tickets for handing in donation blocks and charity quilts and tops.

I really didn’t want to leave and stayed until the bitter end. The Retreat Committee did a great job organizing everything and I was thrilled to get so much done.

Mostly Manor Lozenge Top

I wasn’t able to quilt at the Retreat (which I promise I will write about). This was a disappointment since it would have been the perfect time to get the final Thanksgiving decoration, a table mat I intend to put on the coffee table, quilted.

Fortunately I had some extra projects in my Half Moon Modern Chubby Charmer, so I was able to put the Mostly Manor Lozenge Quilt top together.

The last time I talked about this project I said I was going to cut the lozenges in half. I didn’t end up doing that, because the one I did do looked awful.

After finishing the Poolside Tote, I took up this project, using the Terrain donation quilt blocks as leaders and enders. The blocks were already sewn, so the top went together quickly.

I cut the borders at Craft Night on Monday, but haven’t sewn them on yet.

Heard Museum, Part 4: Random Inspiration

Last week, I wrote about the silver collection. Earlier I also talked about the Katsina collection at the Heard Museum. I really could have taken a photo of each Katsina, but I tried restraint instead. The week before, I talked about the Kahlo / Rivera Exhibit.

I only had about two hours to see the whole museum, so I had to focus. the collections described above were mostly the collections on which I focused. As I walked around I saw a few other random items that inspired me.

In an exhibit about weddings, there were numerous items related to that event. One was a beautiful flat basket.

One of the things I like about this basket is the texture combined with the color. I think it would look great on a wall. I also liked the description “Numerous baskets were made by the bride’s family and given to the groom’s family” (Heard Museum information). This information, brief as it is, seems to imply that the groom rather than the bride was the property and the bride’s family had to pay for “the property.” 😉

You know I like metalwork, if you saw my Art Institute of Chicago post. I find grilles and grates to be good sources of inspiration for machine quilting designs. I thought these would be great all over designs. They are also simple and would be nearly continuous.

The thing I like about this pot/bowl is the design around the outside. A quick glance shows a flower, but if you look closer, you see some small birds, butterflies or flying insects. They remind me of dragonflies. I like the way they are integrated into the design of the bowl itself. I keep trying to think of ways to do this with a quilt. It might not be possible, but I am thinking.

I thought this was interesting. It is a painting housed inside of a Navajo hogan, made of cedar and adobe. You can see the painting in situ in an image on the museum site as part of the exhibit, HOME: Native People in the Southwest.

This museum is well worth a visit. There is a lot to see, so if you go to visit, plan to spend some time there.

Poolside Tote

Remember when I cut out all of those pieces for the Poolside Tote? Remember when I laid it out on the floor to look at it? Well, now it is done.

This past weekend was the weekend when I sewed the whole thing together. Tim and I sewed ours at the Retreat. He got busy first and I followed his lead. I had to rip a bunch, so I got behind. It was a great to have a buddy and Diana L acted as mentor to us with some tricky parts.

I love the fabric that Tim used. He fussy cut birds for certain parts of the tote.

Having all the pieces cut and fused was awesome! It made the tote so much easier to put together. Yes, I did have to cut them out at some point, but not having to cut them out and them sew them at the Retreat made everything go much more smoothly.

I am not sure about making this bag again, though I have the fabric to make a pink version. It wasn’t difficult, but it was fiddly.

The sides have rounded centers, which are kind of a pain. There is a piece of facing that is sewed around the top edge to cover all of the raw edges. In general, I thought it was a good way to cover the raw edges, but it was difficult to sew on. I pinned a lot and still got puckers. It might be useful to fuse down parts of it.

The facing was large enough so I wasn’t sewing right on the edge where the bag was thickest, which was helpful. I sewed slowly and used a walking foot for most of this project.

It would not have been possible, or perhaps convenient is a better term, to use the add on style of walking foot. The 6600 has the integrated walking foot and, while not perfect, that thing is awesome. It was great for bag making, especially after I adjusted the foot pressure to the correct number.

Poolside Tote - inside — Poolside Tote – inside

I sewed the inside smaller than the directions said (using a larger seam allowance) and it was still really large. You can see the extra fabric really well. I am not sure how much more to adjust it.

I forgot my zippers and swivel hook, so I made slip pockets for the outside and put a metal loop on the inside. The inside has no pockets, which is kind of a design fail, so I think I will make a zipper tote in the same fabric with a swivel hook and clip it on. Either I, or my giftee will be able to put items in there securely without worrying about someone reaching their hand in and easily grabbing them.

I am not sure how I feel about this tote. The lack of inside pockets or a pen pen makes it more for carrying large items rather than everyday use. I guess Poolside Tote is a good descriptions because it would be great for towels and swimsuits.

26 Projects – October 2017 Edition

Finished 2017 Quilt Projects

Down the Drain
The Peacock

Finished 2017 Non-Quilt Projects
While finished quilts are thin on the ground, as you know, I have been sewing and I have finished a lot of small projects. I am working on quilts and t I plan to make more small projects this year.

Boxcar Tote
California Pillow
4 Clippy Pincushions for gifts
Cupcake Pillowcases
Dark Blue Journal Cover
Emerald Philip Jacobs Cell Phone Wallet
EPP Travel Kit for Mary
Gift Basket of various items
Gift Clippy Pincushion
Habitat Cell Phone Wallet
Journal cover for Mary
Key Ring for Mary
Lanyard & Scissor Sheath for Mary
Lichen Scarf for YM’s friend
Make It Take it Large Tote
Make It Take it Small Tote
Make It Take It Sunflower Tote
Mugrug for Mary
Nighthawk Scarf for YM’s friend
Needle Safe for Mary
One Hour Basket for me
One Hour Basket for Mary
Pencil Roll for Mary
Perfect Pincushion for Mary
Red Dot Cell Phone Wallet
Skeleton Cuff pillowcase
Sunflower napkins
Tissue Cover for Mary
Tooly McToolston

Shockingly, the above along with donation blocks and tops is about 70 yards of fabric this year and I am not in the black in terms of usage.

Doing Good

In Process
The ‘In Process’ is used to denote projects on which I am actively working or pretending to stitch. I try not to put away projects, because that will ensure I never work on them.

City Sampler – blocks all made. Need to sash the blocks and finish putting the top together. Due to some issues I had with my seam allowance, some of the blocks are smaller than others, so I will have to adjust them in some way – either adding a piece or two to the block or with sashing. I did actually put the sashing and the blocks in my bag for Sew Day yesterday. I just didn’t get to working on them. I need to press the VERY large piece of backing fabric and it was just too hot.
Dots & Stripes HST Quilt (or Something) – half square triangle blocks are made. I laid them out and see what is what with them.
English Paper Piecing Project– half hexies – I am still making stars. I am still using the big stack of fabrics I cut over Thanksgiving to make them, though I am starting to run out and I will need to cut more. I am filling in the weird shape I talked about last time. Next up, adding a border to one side to keep me from making it a weird shape again. I need to find the triangle papers and the fabric I planned to use.
En Provence – I finished the the fifth and sixth clues. I am on Clue 7, which is starting assembly, but I still have some blocks to make. I am using HSTs instead of plain blocks to make the quilt flow better. For the same reason, I am making more Peaky and Spikes and using them instead of QSTs. I have some more work to do.
FOTY 2016 – I didn’t capitalize on my excitement after seeing the Ellsworth Kelly exhibit and now I have lost that rush. I still need to get on it. 9 months into the year and I am still not done. 🙁
Lobster – I still have more stitching to do and then I need to quilt it.
Triple Star: I am sewing the pieces into blocks as leaders and enders between other projects.
Under the Sea: class project; like the design and am happier with the colors. I had an idea for it, but got another idea last week at Craft Night that might be better.

Still WIPs
I still have WIPs. Who doesn’t, after all? A project in the ‘UFO’ category means I am stalled. A nicer way of saying UFO is a WIP. The list is a lot shorter and the projects are newer, for the most part.

Aqua-Red Sampler – I need to lay the blocks out and put the piece together.
BAMaQG IRR – this was never on the list before, but I have clearly been working on it for a long time. I think the last time I even really thought about it was in June of 2016 when Ruth returned it to me. The last post has some good ideas about what I need to do next.
BAMaQG Color Round Robin – this was just returned to me and I think I will just finish it and send it off to a friend who has a 1 year old.
Octagon 9 Patch: It is ready to put together. I could have used it as leaders and enders for a number of different projects I have going. I didn’t, mostly because I have a lot I can use as leaders and enders. Not sure what I am waiting for. Do I want to lay out the blocks more carefully? I actually have a plan for it, so I should get on it. I should do a lot of things.
The Tarts Come to Tea: I still haven’t worked on this since April 2011, though, I did bring it to the 2017 CQFA Retreat as a potential project. It is still in a prominent location so I have easy access. I plan to bring it to the BAMaQG retreat.
Pointillist Palette #4: Fourth is a series of 6 quilts; needs tiny square patches sewn together. No progress.
Pies and Points from Victoria Findlay Wolfe class. No further progress. I did wash the background fabric I found when I went to Portland, so I am ready to cut. I need to focus on this and it is not up high enough on the list yet.
Self Portrait: started in 2006 at a class at Quilting Adventures in Richmond, Virginia. I am stalled on this again. Again, I didn’t capitalize on the excitement I got from my career counselor and now the feeling is lost.
Serendipity Lady Quilt: no progress.
Stepping Stones #2 – I am still ready to make the border blocks , but haven’t gone beyond designing them yet.
Lozenge quilt – Blocks are trimmed. Need to sew them together.
Stripes & Dots HST quilt – need to sew blocks together.

Ready for Quilting

Nothing at the moment

In Quilting Process

Carpenter’s Wheel is being quilted– I took this to Colleen’s a few weeks ago and am waiting for her to get back to me.
Thanksgiving tablemat – I started quilting this piece at the 2017 CQFA Retreat. I made good progress, but it isn’t finished yet. It will be another BAMaQG retreat project.
Theoretically, the Tarts Come to Tea is in the quilting process, though I haven’t worked on it in a while. See above.

Binding

Nothing at the moment

Hunting and Gathering

30 Something: I am still cutting 1.5 inch squares. I am pretty sure I have the 800 I need, but I am not ready to sew these yet, so whenever I have a chance I cut more. It will give me choice when the time comes. I’ll have to think up a new name, too.
Blue Gradation Quilt: cutting 2.5 inch x 4.5 inch blue rectangles
Blue Lemonade: cutting blue, green, purple 2 inch squares. I used a lot of these squares for En Provence, so I will need to cut more.
Pink Gradation Quilt: cutting 2.5 inch x 4.5 inch pink rectangles
Spin Wheel: really not started, but supplies gathered. I probably have enough fabrics and just need to decide to start.
Windmill quilt: Still hunting and gathering. I am supposed to be cutting a variety of greys for the background. I bought a new template, so I should be able to get going again

Other

Stepping Stones #3 using the Macaron pre-cuts from Hoffman. I have all the fabric in pre-cuts and am just waiting for space (and desire) in my schedule.

What’s on your list?

Book Review: Creative Quilt Challenges

Creative Quilt Challenges: Take the Challenge to Discover Your Style & Improve Your Design Skills by Pat Pease

I like quilt challenges, but almost never take the time to participate anymore. I am almost always in the middle of an important piece of my own and don’t want to disrupt my flow. I also have a long list of dream projects.

However, occasionally, I will take part in a challenge. I did the A-B-C quilt as part of a challenge and the Whole Cloth Quilt as well. I am very pleased with both of them.

I saw the challenge exhibit at PIQF last year and that exhibit made me buy this book. I thought the outcomes were really interesting and beautiful.

This is a dense book. There is a lot more to it than a few ideas and a bunch of pretty quilts. The book has seven different challenge ideas (pg.3). The challenge ideas are supported by a long list of special techniques (pg.86-103). Each challenge section includes the following sub-sections:
-About this challenge
-Make it your own
-Description of quilts made
-Description of techniques used
-Color and design decisions
-Under construction
-Why it works

Tips are sprinkled throughout.

Many of the sub-sections are repeated for each quilt. The challenges are varied as well. The way this book is written makes me want to do them all:
-Reimagine an old block with a new twist (pg.6-7)
-The Value of Value (pg.18-27)
-Unlikely Materials (pg.28-39)
-Pass it Back and Forth & Do Not Speak (pg.40-49)
-The Collection (pg.50-59)
-Invent Your Own Challenge (pg.60-71)
-Mix It Up (pg.72-85)

The Table of Contents is full of detail information on the quilts made and the tips and techniques demonstrated (pg.3). The introduction includes a line that I use often to explain my fabric purchases. “When we look through our fabrics at home or go fabric shopping, we don’t see yards of whole cloth. Instead, we imagine finished quilts (pg.4). This is absolutely true for me and when I read that I decided I like these authors. They followed it up with “when we go about our day, we don’t only see the world around us – we see potential pattern, colors and ideas for future quilts (pg.4). If you follow my Instagram feed you will see what I post and will know that I am always looking at the world around me in hopes of being inspired for my next quilt idea. The first paragraph of the Introduction (pg.4) could have been written by me.

The rest of the Introduction explains how the book came about, how the authors differ in their work style. They characterize this book as an invitation to “enter the ‘Land of Color, Design and Imagination’ ” (pg.4). They make it clear they want you to explore, but aren’t giving the reader a map. They are also clear that they want you to use their challenge themes. Why buy the book, otherwise? LOL!

The authors acknowledge that there are many ideas for quilt challenges on the Internet. They “selected the ones you see in this book because we found them appealing, inspiring and focused enough to have cohesion but open-ended enough to allow us to run with the idea” (pg.5). They also sketch out basically how a challenge works (pg.5). Then they dive right into the challenges and the quilts.

Each section talks about the parameters of the challenge or includes a brief description or inspiration. Next they talk about making the challenge personal (pg.6). I think the latter is a very important aspect to this book. This is what will help readers grow. Books that tell the maker what to do step by step with no space for improvisation add to the store of quilts, but not to growth as a quiltmaker.

In the first challenge they answer the question “what did we learn” with “Exploring the anatomy of a familiar block allows you to go in new direction while being grounded in a foundation that you already understand. Starting with something you understand frees you up to try new things without getting overwhelmed” (pg.6).

I liked the skillbuilding included in each challenge. As I have made clear, learning new skills contributes to growth as a quiltmaker. The first challenge includes a visual tutorial on partial seams (pg.9). Partial seams* aren’t often taught, even in sampler classes, but they are very useful skill for modern design as they facilitate the ability to sew asymmetrical designs together.

While this book is published by C&T and it makes financial sense for them to promote some of their other products, their inclusion of the Ultimate 3-in-1 Color Tool by Joen Wolfrom is not gratuitous. This tool, along with the Studio Color Wheel and the Design Ratio Tool are three of the best color and design tools I own. As the authors say the 3-in-1 Color Tool helps to “visualize color progression, such as chartreuse going to yellow-green, then to spring green” (pg.11). I find both color tools help me find what color is missing in a quilt and give me ideas for color combinations.

The second challenge (pg.18-27) is about value. I know value is an important aspect of color work, but I don’t like the idea that it is more important than any other aspect of color work. This book has the right attitude for me. The authors express this sentiment well when they write “color is a visual language that goes hand in hand with value, the relative lightness or darkness of a color” (pg.18).

The authors include technique demonstrations or lessons in each section. These demonstrations show how to make units or parts that make up their quilts. The technique in Wendy’s quilt is the Reversible Double French Fold Binding (pg.24). I am always interested in learning new ways of binding, especially when one works on reversible quilts.

The other challenges are interesting and useful as well. Unlikely Materials (pg.28-39) gives permission to move beyond ‘regular’ quilt fabric. A maker could use decorator fabrics to introduce texture into their work. FabMo fabrics would work very well.

Pass It Back and Forth and Do Not Speak (pg.40-49) is a pretty common challenge concept. It is difficult, however, because there is a level of trust involved. Your partner can add to your piece in a shocking way. S/he could cut the whole piece up or cover it with fabric stitching in an unexpected manner. This challenge requires that you play and limit your expectations

“The Collection’s” (pg.50-59) intent is to provide an opportunity to use a favorite group of fabric. While useful in general, the challenge is especially fun if you and a friend collect the same type of materials (fabric, embellishments, etc).

There are a number of things to like about the challenges. The authors provide many step by step photographs to illustrate and help explain the various techniques. There is scope for change and evolution in all of the challenges. Also, these are all techniques and ideas rather than step-by-step projects. Your pieces will come out much differently than those the authors created from the same directions.

Towards the back is a section called Special Techniques (pg.86-104). this section helps make the quilts successfully. There are two machine binding techniques (pg. 86-87) as well as a Facing Finish (pg.88-89), if you don’t like my facing tutorial. 😉 The authors show how to make inset squares (pg.92-93), which I want to try. I liked that they talked about pressing in a sensible non-dogmatic way (pg.94), though they don’t discuss the benefits of matching seams when seams are pressed to the side. The various pages on stitching techniques will help the art quilt makers among you (pg.99-104).

The book includes a gallery at the back with more colorful and interesting pieces.

There is no index, which is a shame because it would be really useful with all of the techniques the book includes.

Making art quilts is not in fashion right now. Many of the art quilts being made are being lumped into the modern category, especially the political quilts. This book is the closest I have seen to an art quilt book recently. I like for that and also for the skill-building aspect.

*Check out the tutorial on sewing partial seams.

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