Two Color Quilts : Blue and White

Here's a tribute to quilts done in the shades of blue and white, which always seems like such a calm, cool, color combination. These soothing tones seem to work so well in every season and in every climate. We hope you enjoy this lovely work on display !

Tentmakers of Cairo quilt, 99 x 99”, by Mr. Mahmoud

Khayamiya is a type of decorative appliqué textile historically used to decorate tents across the Middle East. The vibrant, intricate design on this quilt is entirely hand appliqued. Since 2007, Jenny Bowker has worked with the Tentmakers of Cairo to get their work out into the wider world and to show people the magnificent work they do.

This quilt was featured in an AQS exhibit that toured the U.S. in 2014. Designed to be displayed on the wall, many of the Tentmakers' quilts are available for sale.  Check out the gallery at the American Quilter's Society.

One Fish, Two Fish by Jane Taylor, Gone to Pieces Quilters (Florida)

Jane Taylor notes, " I love the idea of the chevron blocks depicting the ocean surface." This quilt was inspired by one posted on Pinterest, designed by Small Fox in a Big World. The embroidery design was a free download at Mary Corbet's Needle n Thread website.

This hand embroidery was done with perle cotton and the blue bubbles were hand appliqued. The fabric is cotton and the batting includes layers of White N Natural and wool felt. The quilting was completed by Jane Taylor on her domestic sewing machine.

Blue Plate Special, 73 x 73", by Susan Stewart (Kansas, USA)

Susan Stewart teaches heirloom sewing and embroidery techniques; you can see a listing of her classes on her website at Susan Stewart Designs. Blue Plate Special contains cotton sateen, Cherrywood hand-dyed fabrics, and a strip of border print left over from a quilt Susan cut out for her mom to piece.  We really enjoyed the intricate machine embroidery on this quilt.

#402 – Blue Metamorphosis, 52 x 38", by Marcia Baraldi (Brazil)

Blue Metamorphosis was inspired by the miracle of nature which turns crawling caterpillars into beautiful blue butterflies in the sky.  The butterfly was constructed with individual applique shapes including hearts and feathers, which are echoed in the quilting design.

Bluer than Blue, 96 x 102”, by Cindy Seitz-Krug

Bluer than Blue is machine pieced, machine appliqued and machine quilted. Cindy Seitz-Krug says, "For almost ten years I had wanted to make a blue and white quilt but couldn’t decide upon a pattern. When Robert’s Floral Garden [by Robert Callaham] came out in McCall’s Quilting, I knew that this would be a beautiful quilt made in all blues and whites. This pattern was perfect for the blue and white fabric stash I had been collecting for so long."

#220 – Sarah’s Revival in Blue, 87 x 84",  by Gail H. Smith and Karen C. McTavish (Illinois)

This is a Sue Garman (who sadly, just passed away)  rendition of an 1847 quilt done in reds and greens.  Gail chose to make it in blue to use up her stash from an earlier quilt.  It won First Place in the Large Quilts - Longarm Machine Quilted category in the AQS QuiltWeek® – Grand Rapids, Michigan 2016, along with many other awards.  Quilted by Karen C. McTavish.  Design source: Sarah's Revival Pattern by Sue Garman

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2016 AQS quilt show in Phoenix, Arizona, except for the Tentmaker's quilt (2014 AQS) and One Fish (2015 World Quilt Show - Florida).