Fandango

As always, left click on the image to see larger.


Hi Gang,
It's been awhile, I know! Here is one of the many things I've been working on as of late. It was the Mystery quilt that I taught last weekend. It's called Fandango and it's a new pattern of mine that features two types of free style piecing along with dimensional, folded piecing. The pattern will be one of the five new patterns we will debut at Quilt Colorado, next month in Estes Park. It comes with instructions for this big 'ol throw or a Queen size. It was easy and fun to make, but due to the dimensional part - really ate up the fabric!. I love the hot, hot colors with the cool blue thrown in.
We have so much going on here at the store. I've just started working on the new newsletter for summer. If you have any suggestions - now's the time to let me know. We have our one year anniversary coming up. I can't believe it's been a whole year all ready! Then we will be in Estes Park for five days for the Quilt Colorado show, then we have our summer open house. We're busy developing some quick and dirty Make and Take mini classes for our open house. I'll let you know all about it in a couple of weeks via email.
As summer approaches, I'm reminded of the fullness of my life. Aren't we lucky that we get to follow our passions, that we can, if we try, find time for all of the fulfillment we can possibly stand - be it the garden, long hikes in the wilderness, or hours in our studio creating art !
Here's to following our bliss,
Heather

May 13, 2008

(Left click pictures to see larger)

Good Afternoon Gang,
Is it really the middle of May - It feels like mid winter in the mid-west. It's Ugly, with a capital U out there. Here's a photo that Tom took of my old kitty, Quimby, sitting in the sun. Click on her to make the photo larger. Her tongue is sticking out about 1/2 an inch! Silly thing.


This quilt is my latest in a new series I'm calling "She". It's called "She Was Lucky". I'm exploring new ways to draw and paint on my work. The whole thing is made of Dupioni silk. The flowers are stenciled using my own stencil designs and Shiva paintstiks. The pale purple panel is machine quilted with my own musings on being a lucky woman and the background is heavily quilted with swirls and 1/8" - 1/4" wavy lines (click on it for a closer look). I'm very pleased with the work and getting over being bothered when folks comment that it is "pretty".
For a long time, I, like a lot of contemporary quilters I know, considered the word "pretty" as a description of our work to be a put down. I've spent so much time trying to keep up with the big girls and wanting my work to be taken seriously, not just as decoration, but as art and not wanting my work to be merely pretty, but wanting it to be meaningful, cutting edge, professional. Now, I think I've come to a new understanding of both my creativity and the word pretty. It makes me feel good to make something pretty, beautiful, feminine. I'm happy to find yet another voice.

How's your voice sounding these days?
Till next time,
Heather

Mystery Quilt

Hey Gang,
I finally finished this quilt I've been working on - one of the many reasons
why I haven't written on my blog as often as I'd like to!. I finished an art piece too. I'll show you a photo of it soon. I feel like I've got my mojo back - yee ha!
I'm really very pleased with this quilt. It's the first Queen sized one I've done in over a year. I love the hard graphic edge that the pieced blocks provide mixed with the wonderful, almost delicate Japanese prints in, lets admit it, such a weird, unexpected colorway! Left click on the image of the quilt to see it larger.


Now, it's up to you guys to name the pattern. I wrote about this little contest several weeks (maybe months) ago. Here are the guidelines for proposing a title;

• I've posted a finished photo of the quilt - pick a title for the pattern and post it in the comments section of this entry. Include your first name (no last names please) and your email address.
• Names sell patterns. Make it quirky, rhythmic and memorable. No more than three words please.
• The quilt uses easy cuts from just three widths of fabric, 1 1/2", 2" and 2 1/2" which create the five different small blocks that form the one large block.
• Don't include information about the colors or fabrics used in the quilt top as lots of folks will use very different colors and fabrics in their version.
• Two weeks after I post the photo of the finished quilt top, I will review all of the entries and choose a winner. The chosen title will be used in the published version of the pattern and the winner's name will be noted on the pattern. The winner will receive a free copy of the pattern along with a $25.00 gift certificate from Wild Heather Quilts or wildheatherdesigns.com.
• You may enter as often as you like.

I hope to hear lots of great titles from all of you - Naming a quilt is a difficult thing! Naming a pattern you hope to sell tons of is even harder!

Till next time
Heather