Quilts with Attitude

We love spiky quilts, which are perfect for paper piecing.  One of our favorite artists in the genre is Deb Karasik.  Deb's designs are totally unique !  Imagine art deco-style motifs that look like eyelashes, and medallions punctuated by daggers. Deb's methods make it easy to create those long, narrow spikes. There is even a design with no curves ("Look Ma, No Curves") and a quilt that brings to mind an infamous Venus Fly Trap ("Audrey III").   Which of these is your favorite?

Phat Tuesday, 70 x 70",  by Deb Karasik

Here is a show-stopper, and the subject of a recent workshop by Deb Karasik at the Madeline School.  As Deb says:  "Phat Tuesday will let you achieve that show-stopping look, no matter what color choices you make!"  The pattern is available at Deb's website.

Look Ma, No Curves, 44 x 44", by Deb Karasik at Deb Karasik

This fabulous quilt has plenty of spikes, but it doesn't have a single curve anywhere.  In addition to patterns, Deb sells her own Perfect! Paper Piecing Paper which we are dying to try.  Here's what we know:  the paper is extremely translucent, which makes fabric alignment easy (this is critical, in our opinion);  it is compatible with laser and inkjet printers; and it is made of 100% cotton fibers, which means that it will not dull your fabric scissors or sewing needles.  Note:  you can see a totally different colorway at Deb's Gallery and at Pointless Quilter.

Inner Light, approx. 40 x 40",  by Deb Karasik

This small wall quilt, "Inner Light", is one of the projects in Deb's book, Quilts With Attitude. The book explains error-free foundation paper piecing with step-by-step instructions, and includes 13 original patterns, plus a dose of quilting philosophy.  In her author's statement, Deb explains:  "I'm constantly told that I do things wrong in quilting. I don't care, it works for me. I firmly believe that life is too short, so just do it. Don't think about what you COULD be doing, SHOULD be doing, or WOULD have done....just do it."

Wayward Geese, 60 x 60", by Deb Karasik

In this award-winning quilt, undulating rows of geese point toward the center, while spikey geese - which look like arrows - weave in and out of the spokes. The unusual spikey blue border really complements this quilt. Deb Karasik's description of the quilt reads:  "I wanted to make a quilt that was not only visually intriguing, but constructively challenging."  Finished in 2006, this quilt won the award for Best Use of Color at the 2007 Road to California show. 

Audrey III, 68 x 68", by Deb Karasik at Deb Karasik

"Audrey III" just might be our favorite of Deb Karasik's designs (so far). We love the color scheme and the gradations which create a luminous effect in the center of this quilt. Deb explains the name of this dazzling quilt:  "I was stumped trying to name her, so I looked to my online Yahoo! group for help, after posting a picture of her.  Several thought they could see a 'Venus Fly Trap' look, so we called her Audrey, an homage to the character in 'Little Shoppe Of Horrors'."  The pattern is available at Deb's online shop.

Image credits:  Images are shown with the generous permission of Deb Karasik.