“modern” quilting
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February 7, 2013
Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Thanks to all for the kind words commenting on our “thread tales” here. Sometimes I think I’m talking to myself, but now it seems perhaps there are a bunch of good listeners out there. Paula commented that she feels drawn to “modern” quilting. I think I am too, but I’m going to guess that we may have different notions of what modern quilting is. From all the traveling to quilt blogs that I do, I’d say there isn’t a standard definition but perhaps just a few common threads (pun intended). Here are the threads I associate with making a quilt modern: lots of white space, bright colors, light gray used as background, solid fabrics used often, improvisational piecing often, but traditional blocks are very common as well. I’m also often surprised by how many of the younger modern quilters are using templates for their innovative […]
January 20, 2013
Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Have you visited the Craftsy site? You really ought to. Although it is free to join, you don’t have to be a member to visit much of the site. There are all sorts of goodies to explore. As a crafting addict I have supplies for more crafts than I’ll ever be able to complete in several life times. I’ve tried so many things. I think I can name the crafts I have NOT tried in a shorter list–stained glass making, pen and ink drawing, sculpting, glass blowing … Right now at Craftsy I am taking an online class taught by Anita Grossman Solomon, who was our national seminar teacher last fall. I was only able to take one class of hers during seminar and I really enjoyed it. Haven’t finished the project of course. The block I made in seminar, the pineapple block, is one […]
January 17, 2013
Hello all, Mary Ellen back. I love scrap quilts. I’ve made several-4 or 5 large ones, and many minis. I love the interplay of the seemingly unrelated patterns, the focus they put on values rather than individual fabrics. I can’t say where this interest comes from. Although I do come from a long line of needleworkers–my first quilt was made for me by my great-grandmother–all of those quilts in my background were planned fabric assortments. The really early ones are made of solids. The current episode on Quilters Newsletter TV (a free video compilation) is an interview with Pepper Cory about her feelings on the importance of scrap quilts in helping to maintain our history and quilting tradition. It’s about 10 minutes long. Pepper has been a “name” in quilting for quite some time. Back when I began quilting in earnest, in the 80’s, there were only a few “names” […]
January 5, 2013
Hello again. Mary Ellen back. When talking with quilters at the demos and classes I present, the topic of free motion quilting often comes up. I consider myself proficient at FMQ but certainly not an expert. As I tell those who ask, the concept of free motion quilting is very simple but the practice of it is not. There is a long learning curve for most of us, requiring lots of time spent stitching to build muscle memory. I have never met a quilter who mastered FMQ right away. One of the websites I visit frequently, when in FMQ mode, is the one maintained by Leah Day. Lots of ideas for designs, well explained. Her blog gives guidance and encouragement. I’m sure many of you have visited her at one time or another, if FMQ is a goal of yours. This year Leah will be approaching FMQ from a different […]
August 30, 2012
Hello all, Mary Ellen here. Despite the facts of our weather this summer, it seems like summer has been very short. Trying to squash lots of fun into the few days remaining. Went to the zoo yesterday with the 5 year old twin boys I have mentioned here before. Made the mistake of buying them each a glass of orange pop early in the adventure! Acted like hi-test gasoline in those little engines. We did the zoo at a very fast clip. The weather was perfect for the day-so many families and school groups were there enjoying it as well. Lots-o-fun! Picked up a new quilt magazine the other day at Wegmans. It’s called Generation Q. I’ve followed their blog for a while now. (The Q is for quilting.) It says on the cover that it’s the premiere issue-no subscriptions yet. I often start reading a quilt magazine with the […]
July 29, 2012
Hello all, Mary Ellen here. I know that this fourth block is going to make some of you very antsy. No, it’s not paper piecing again. It’s a liberated block-I prefer to call them wonky (love that word!)–inspired by the work of designer Gwen Marston. If you are of fan a quick cutting, no measuring, and relaxed precision (is there such a thing?), you will love her work and will enjoy this block. If you are of the camp that will take out a seam 5 times to make sure the points match, then this block is going to send your blood pressure up. Have a glass of an adult beverage, just enough to relax your standards but not enough to make you dangerous with a rotary cutter! Take a few deep cleansing breaths, maybe do a few yoga stretches and then read on! Here is a link to the […]
July 15, 2012
Hi again It’s ME. Got away from blogging for a bit, didn’t I? I was surprised to see how long it had been since my last posts, since I didn’t have anything impressive accomplished during my “hiatus”. I have been taking 2 online classes this month–one based on sewing, and one on my other favorite hobby of paper crafting. In a way the 2 classes are related. The sewing class is from Craftsy.com called Stupendous Stitching. The final project will be an “art” piece suitable for framing, based on machine decorative stitches, hand embroidery, and embellishing through couching etc. Right now I am working on what the instructor is calling a “stitch bible”. The idea is to make a sample book (fabric actually) of all the stitches that your machine will do, in the default mode and with changes to the stitch length and width. I have done this for […]
June 19, 2012
Hello all, ME back again. A while ago I shared how Marija and I have decided to make sure that posts go up regularly by giving ourselves assignments. My assigned day is Friday and I was looking for a catchy name for it. Came across this name (above) at another blogger’s site. This morning I listened to another podcast from Pat Sloan. (If you haven’t tried them yet, I still encourage you to give it a whirl. They’re free and can be listened to on your phone or mp3 whenever you wish, or via your computer. Gotta be better than listening to regular talk radio!) When the dog and I returned home from our walk, I went to her website to see what she had up for today. It’s an interview with a quilter I had never heard of–and will be going back to visit again and again. Here’s a […]
June 8, 2012
Hi again, Mary Ellen here. If forced to categorize your quilting sensibilities, would you call yourself modern or traditional? I’d have a hard time with that myself. I love the graphic geometries of traditional blocks, traditional quilt layouts. I also love the modern fabrics that are so abundant these days. Large colorful prints-nothing muddy or grayed out. My own quilting is becoming more and more of a hybrid I think, marrying those two loves. How about you? I have written quite a bit about the modern movement in quilting. Denyse Schmidt’s name often comes up in the discussion on modern quilting. Here is a blog post from etsy (another modern development for selling your crafts) that nicely introduces you to Denyse. Her latest book’s inspiration is discussed. It’s interesting to read the reviews at Amazon from those who have purchased the book. Not very many yet, but the dissenting reviews […]