Houston International Quilt Festival 2016

For quite some time now I've been devoting all my blogging energy to the Machine Quilting Unlimited blog. I've posted lots of tips, video tutorials, and loads of eye candy, so be sure to check it out! I also posted on the BERNINA WeAllSew blog about double needle free motion quilting. It's a fun technique, so be sure to hop over there at some point as well.

That said, I'm still here! I just returned from a fabulous trip to the Houston International Quilt Festival. I had three quilts there, two in the International Quilt Association judged show, and one in the Dinner at Eight special exhibit "Patterns". Without further ado, photos!

I'm very pleased and honored that I won two ribbons in the Digital Imagery catalog. Below you can see me with my quilt "Paint the Town Red", which won second place. I'm delighted that my quilt was hanging right next to that of my friend, Suzan Cloud Engler, who won first place with her wonderful quilt "GMO?". My quilt is the same size as hers, but the space available to stand in led to a little bit of a skewed perspective here. Thanks to Lisa Brehm Ellis who took the photo despite her very busy schedule. Lisa also had two wonderful quilts in the show that she made using a special technique she developed to make cathedral windows.

Me with "Paint the Town Red", Suzan Cloud Engler with her first place winner "GMO?" photo credit Lisa Brehm Ellis

I also won an honorable mention with "Winter's Tarnish". Yeah!

As always, the best part of Quilt Festival is seeing friends and meeting new people. My lovely friend Sarah Anne Smith was kind enough to take this photo of me doing my best Vanna White impression by "Blossoming", my Dinner at Eight quilt. Sarah had a quilt in the judged show as well as one in the Dinner at Eight exhibit, and both are stunning.

"Blossoming" by Diane Rusin Doran, photo credit Sarah Anne Smith

All three of these quilts, as well as every other quilt I've made, were sewn on domestic BERNINA machines. "Blossoming" is the first quilt I've completed on my new 770 QE and I loved using it!

All in all it was a wonderful adventure. I'm not sure how many photos from the show I'll post here, but I'll definitely posting some on the Machine Quilting Unlimited blog later this week. Thanks for stopping by!

Kaleidoscope Fun Part 2

In my last post I shared a simple technique for creating a kaleidoscope in Kaleidoscope Kreator, then importing the saved Kaleidoscope back into the program for further manipulation. Today I'll show an easy digital layering technique for creating the center of a medallion quilt. (If you are not familiar with the Kaliedoscope Kreator program, which I'll call KK from now on, you can refer to my original post, or go to the KALcollections website for more information.)

I'm lucky to write a column called Filler Finesse for Machine Quilting Unlimited.  Each issue I show how to quilt three filler designs, including a written description, diagrams, and stitch outs of each filler. I also create a composition where I use all three fillers. In every issue I try to make the composition a little different. The first three issues of this year I made pictorial compositions (see an example here), but I wanted to switch things up a little for the next three. Here's the example from the July/August issue:

When I first started quilting the part I loved the most was the piecing. I've pieced many a sharp point in my day, but honestly didn't want to do that for this design. OK, this may seem like cheating, but for this little wall hanging I decided to use a couple of different software programs to create the look I wanted. It was much faster than piecing!

First I used Electric Quilt to create the blue rays. Briefly, I modified the block "Dean's Sunflower Sun", found in the Contemporary Pieced, Sun Compasses library. I simplified the block so that it consisted only of the rays, and then used the block by itself in a quilt layout. Then I exported that image as a jpeg. I originally saved the "quilt" with black rays, and later changed the background to red and the rays to blue in Photoshop.

The compass as it appeared when exported out of Electric Quilt

I used the magic wand tool in Photoshop to change the color of the rays and background

The next step was to use KK to create the feathered star in the center. I started with a photograph of a sunset that has a lovely gradation of oranges in the sky. Using a feathered star template it was a snap to create the star that I wanted, then save the star as a jpeg.

I imported the feathered star into Photoshop and created a duplicate of the background layer.  I used the magic wand tool to select and then clear the white background from the duplicate layer, leaving me with just the feathered star. I then dragged the star over the red, white, and blue compass.

I resized the star to fit the center circle, adjusted my colors a little, and voila, my cheater panel was complete! I printed it as large as I could (13"x13" on my printer), then added the blue borders. All of those solid colors provided a great canvas to show off my fillers.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of this series on ways I use  Kaleidoscope Kreator in my work, where I'll show how I've used kaleidoscopes in digital collages for art quilts.

MQU News

I've been happily busy in the last few weeks. Last Monday I gave a lecture in Woodbridge, Virginia at the wonderful Cabin Branch Quilters guild. They are a very energetic and enthusiastic group! Many thanks for their warm welcome.

Arriving just in time for me to pass  out at the meeting were copies of the latest sample issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited. If MQU has a booth at a show, they have copies of the sample issue in their booth, so be sure to check it out. It has a variety of articles from previous issues to give you a taste of the magazine.

 Do you recognize the cover quilt ;).

Since then I've been finishing up my Filler Finesse article for the July issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited, and I'm just a wee bit too excited about a new ruler I recently found. After I try it out I'll report back.

*New & Improved* Filler Finesse

I've had quite a bit of fun writing the Filler Finesse column for Machine Quilting Unlimited. It's been an interesting challenge to try and come up with several new fills for each column. Last year Kit, MQU's managing editor, upped the ante a little. For 2012 she asked me to come up with three fillers per column, instead of two, and to combine all three in an additional sample. Here's a peek at the January/February result:

I love how Jonathan, MQU's graphic designer, used an image of one of my hand dyed fabrics as a background.

 One of the more interesting aspects of this is trying to design three fills that will work together. If you read the article let me know how you think I'm doing!

Branching Out - Again!

Turns out an old dog can learn new tricks. My Machine Quilting Unlimited column, Filler Finesse, is expanded in 2012 - 3 fills per issue instead of two, and an additional stitched out sample using all three fills in one composition. I've decided to use the "three fills in one" compositions to try out some techniques that I haven't really used before. Back in September I shared an experiment I made using thread painting - something new to me. For the March issue I tried something else.

I can't show you the whole sample, as that would give away the quilting fills, but wanted to focus on this flower. I've used fusible applique many times in the past, but generally satin stitch the edges down. In this sample I quilted the entire background first, then fused on the flowers. OK, not terribly exciting. However, the real departure for me was that I did not trace the flower parts at all. I looked at a bunch of crocus photographs, made some very rough sketches, then applied fusible web to my hand dyed fabrics. I then cut out all the applique pieces free hand, just looking at my little sketches. I think I could have done a little better with the shading of the fabrics, but for someone who has always done applique in a very preplanned and precise manner, I'm quite happy with how it turned out.

Have you tried anything new lately?

Back From Houston

Still getting back in the swing of things after returning from the Houston Quilt Festival. There's been lots of real life happening, including the third family birthday in 15 days!

I had a wonderful time and met lots of talented artists. One of the highlights of the trip was spending time in the Machine Quilting Unlimited booth with Kit Robinson (managing editor) and Vicki Anderson (owner and publisher). We were so busy that I completely forgot to take any pictures! However, Vicki did interview me about my column, and here it is:



There's an MQUMag channel on youtube with lots of other interviews from the quilt festival, including one with Best of Show winner Sue McCarty - be sure and check those out.

Houston Quilt Festival 2011

I can't believe that in just two days I'll be heading to Houston for the International Quilt Festival. I don't have an hour by hour schedule, but I will absolutely be spending time in the Machine Quilting Unlimited booth, #204. I'm also hoping to attend the SAQA meet up at 5:30 on Thursday. I'll be at the show on Thursday, Friday, and most of Saturday, so if you see me be sure and say hello!

This year I have a smallish quilt in the IQA show. It's a little more abstract than most of my recent pieces, and I had a great time making it. I was much freer with my construction techniques this time around, and added some paint to emphasize some of the vertical elements.And I really love those blues.

Jamestown, 2011

November/December Machine Quilting Unlimited

Last week I received my preview copy of the November/December issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited. Wow! Look at this cover -

The cover image is just a taste of the wonderful photography inside. They always have lots of beautiful quilts, but this issue has even more than usual.

In addition to my Filler Finesse column, I also wrote an article about using decorative stitches for quilting. In it there are photos of quilts by Carol Ann Waugh, Cathy Jeffrey, Jane Sassaman, Karen Linduska, and Mary Vaneecke. They are all lovely quilts, and really helped to show the many effects that can be produced by various styles of decorative stitches - thanks ladies!

And speaking of MQU, I better go get my next filler article done before I leave for Houston later this week!

Doodle All the Day

There's been a lot of buzz lately about sketchbooks amongst art quilters. I really enjoy checking out all the posts related to the sketchbook challenge. I admire all those artists who do journal, and love to see how their journaling eventually translates into other work.

Yesterday I received my copy of the latest SAQA Journal, and lo and behold there was even an article about sketchbooks/journals by Vivien Zepf.It made me feel much better! I don't journal, or even have a sketchbook. I use the computer as what I like to call my "virtual design wall". I do sketch out ideas occasionally, and have a folder full of sketches I've made over the years, but it's not something that I feel compelled to do. The one exception is when I'm considering new quilting designs (as in the actual stitching, not the overall quilt). Here are two pages of sketches, or doodles, that I made while thinking about upcoming "Filler Finesse" columns for Machine Quilting Unlimited.

OK, the number line at the top is not a potential quilting design - it was an illustration of negative numbers for my youngest son

 Designing quilting motifs or fillers for an article is an iterative process for me. I go back and forth between sketching, stitching, and then making a clean diagram in Illustrator. I skip the illustrator step if I'm working on a quilt and not writing an article.

So do you have a sketchbook or journal? How does it fit in to your design process?

Thread Painting Experiment

One of the best parts of meeting other artists is seeing what they make, which often leads to being inspired by them. This is just what happened when I met Terry White in the green room for the QA TV taping in Cleveland. She showed me some stunning examples of her thread painting on some hand dyed osnaburg. I'm sure you've seen the ads for Star Threads that feature her lovely work, and they are even more impressive in person. Then she gave me some of the thread she designed! I couldn't stop thinking about it.

Now, I'm a super fine thread, tiny needle, tiny stitches kind of machine quilter, and this thread is 30wt. But I checked out some of her videos and decided to first try thread painting instead of quilting with it. (I'm working on next year's new and improved Filler Finesse column for Machine Quilting Unlimited and needed to make a sample to quilt on, and didn't feel like making an applique.) So here's my experiment (without quilting).

What was really great about this was how much work the thread did for me. I always thought of thread painting as involving endless thread changes, but because of the gradation of color in Terry's threads this was much easier than I anticipated. The thickness of the thread is also a plus, as it fills in faster than a thinner thread. I have not thread painted anything like this before, but it was very fun and I'm so glad to have tried it out. And the thread is so pretty that I'm sure I will quilt with it eventually.Thanks, Terry, for the thread and the inspiration!

Whew!

I hope you've all been having as wonderful a summer as I have. We returned last week from a once in a lifetime trip to some of our fabulous national parks - Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, and Arches, with a little break in Vegas (to see Hoover Dam) in the middle. My guys were real troopers - they were already seasoned travelers, but this was quite the road trip. We took thousands of pictures - too many to fully appreciate yet. Here are two of my favorites:

A peaceful moment in a geyser basin

A storm was brewing  in Lamar Valley in Yellowstone as we observed a (very) distant grizzly on another hillside. The dramatic lighting really caught my eye.

Last week I received my preview copy of the September issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited.

 

As always, jam packed with great articles. I especially enjoyed Barb Hollinger's article on pressing - she used an analytical approach that I found very appealing, and quite informative!

The kids won't start school until next week, but in the meantime I'm super excited to be working on a few things for Quilting Arts - 2 more TV segments, and an instructional DVD!

New Boyfriend*

When it's hot outside, my thoughts turn to just one thing - dyeing! Sun and heat make the dyes take very well, so I look forward to super crazy hot days.

OK, no pics yet of the fabric I have dyed this week (some still needs to be ironed), but I have been working on some samples for an article for Machine Quilting Unlimited (now available at Barnes & Noble - yeah!). I won't show the finished sample just yet - I'll save that for the article - but thought I'd show two "in progress" shots.

                                     
 Silk screened leaves and rubber band printed lines. (I wrapped the rubber bands around a wood block.)

 Purple aster like flowers screened on top.

I was inspired by the motifs on some vintage fabric that belonged to my aunt. Normally the mustardy color of the background is not one of my faves. However, something about this combo makes me very happy. I'm adding some applique and decorative stitching on top of this.


*In the surface design community, sometimes new fabric, with which one is infatuated, is referred to as a "new boyfriend".

March Issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited

It's always fun to receive the writer's copy of a magazine when I have an article in it. It usually arrives a few days earlier than a subscription, making me feel a little bit like one of the cool kids. I just received the March issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited and it's beautiful. Here's a peek at my article, the second in a series of six on machine quilted fillers:

I know I say this every time, but this is a really great issue. If you're interested in using colored pencils on quilts, curved crosshatching, integrating machine quilting with machine needle felting, or learning more about straight of grain and stitch regulators, it's all there! Be sure and check it out.
 

Quilting Arts at 10

Can you believe that Quilting Arts is celebrating their 10th birthday?! I remember how exciting it was to have a new kid on the quilting block, and to this day look forward to every issue.

I'm happy to have an article called "Serendipitous Screen Printing" in the 10th Anniversary Issue. The article details a fun and easy technique for you to add to your screen printing bag of tricks. Here are two examples (that aren't in the magazine) I made with this technique:

My obsession with locust leaves continues ;)

This reminds me of the woods in springtime, when the maples are starting to bloom.

The contributing artists were asked to make commemorative postcards, and here's mine.

This was fun to make, as I combined a variety of techniques - digital imagery, screen printing, and sponge painting.

So what else is new? I'm honored to have won 3rd place at the Houston IQA show with my grackle. So many people who saw this quilt in Houston have reached out to me with many kind words, and I really appreciate it - thank you all!

November was just a mess. My mother in law has been quite ill, so my husband was gone most of the time starting October 29, including four weekends in a row. Thankfully she is doing much better now!

I've been working on several more articles. I'm really excited about a series of six articles I'm writing for Machine Quilting Unlimited on fill designs. The first one will debut in the January issue. And right now I better dash back to the studio to finish working on a project for Quilting Arts' 101 Patchwork Projects - hmmm, I wonder what the other 100 are?

September Machine Quilting Unlimited

Thanks to *everyone* for all your lovely comments on yesterday's post! Wow! You really made my day.

After I finished the quilt in my last post I got busy writing an article. I love working with the folks at Machine Quilting Unlimited, so I jumped at the chance to write another article for them. You can check it out it out in the September issue. Here's a glimpse of part of it:


It's all about feathers - a variety of types, on a variety of types of quilts. Believe it or not, feathers are fun! Because of their organic shape they work on a wide variety of quilts, and I've used them fairly often in my work - the border of The Gathering is just full of them, and they're all over Under the Rainbow. Once you get the hang of them they are a pretty quick way to fill up an area and are graceful to boot. The September issue is also jam packed with lots of other great articles, including the cover story on Patt Blair, how to quilt large quilts on your home machine, a great article by Marcia DeCamp and much more.

May Issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited

I'm thrilled to have been a part of the last two issues of Machine Quilting Unlimited. In March my quilt "Last Dance" was featured as the "Jaw Dropper" (what a great name!).

For the May issue I wrote an article on creating unique quilting motifs. If you've ever wanted or needed to come up with a unique quilting design to fit a block or border, this article has loads of tips on design sources and techniques.


I really love this magazine (and not just because I've been in it). It's a wonderful source of information on all aspects of machine quilting, both domestic and long arm. It also features great articles on wonderful artists who quilt by machine. In the May issue alone there are articles by Carol Ann Sinnreich, Gloria Hansen, Jenny Bowker, Eileen Doughty and more. Suffice to say I really look forward to each new issue!