Quilt Arizona 2017! Day 4

For us, springtime in the desert means three things: spring flowers, spring training (baseball), and Quilt Arizona!  This is our 8th year blogging about this fun show, which draws visitors from many parts of North America. Here are some of our favorites from this year's show.

Please note: We're continuously posting free patterns on Twitter ! Check us out here !

Hawaiian Fireworks by Ann L. Petersen

Blue ribbon winner in the category of Pieced Small Quilts and winner for Exemplary Machine Quilting  Ann notes, "This Hoffman Challenge fabric was one I particularly disliked. By cutting it into narrow strips, making stars, and adding a few flowers, I had a quilt I liked."

Ann quilted her stunning original design herself. For fabrics, she used an array of warm hues to set her stars and flowers off against cooler background hues of deep green and violet.

Fantasy Village by the Sea by Amanda Jeffrey

Amanda says, "This was a challenge project for [my quilt group], the Delightful Quilters, for 2016. We had to use a fabric panel and make it into something totally different.  I chose a Thimbleberries Flower panel."

Quilted by Amanda herself, "Fantasy Village" is a charming scene of tiny house surrounded by tranquil aqua-green water which gently ripples in the ocean breeze. She did an excellent job of using a traditional fabric in a contemporary pictorial quilt.

Greta Guineahen by Anna Peterson

Greta notes that her work is hand needle-felted on hand dyed wool. Guinea fowl are native to Africa, but even though they are called "hens", they are not members of the same family as chickens. They often roost in tree-tops, and they travel in large groups, foraging for insects and small rodents. They are very helpful on farms, where they help keep bugs and other pests off of growing crops.

Wool is a beautiful medium, because it can produce such a pretty, soft, wispy texture. Anna did a perfect job in selecting just the right dye colors to define "Greta's" head and feathers against the softly blurred background.

Lady Bird Travels by Karin Scanlon

Third place winner in the category of Medium-Large Applique Quilts, Karin explains, "This is a maze that starts with the lady bird and goes around the quilt to the beetle."  How many animals can you identify in this innovative setting? 

Close-up,  Lady Bird Travels

Gorgeous butterflies provide an enchanting and three-dimensional embellishment to this colorful garden scene.(We're still searching for the source of this pattern.)

Wild Blue Mustard Revolution by Geri Cavanagh

Second place winner in the category of Medium Pieced Quilts, Geri says, "The layout started with a Carrie Nelson design. I altered the blocks around the center, designed the floral applique, and added a border. "

Quilted by Geri herself, this design includes orange-red appliqued flowers which add sparkle and contrast to a neutral background of stars and baskets.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.