Best of Utah: The 44th annual Springville Quilt Show (1)

This annual Springville quilt show is a juried exhibition that features quilts of all styles and sizes created by some of Utah's finest quilters. This is our third year attending the show and the quality of the work is outstanding. Here are some of our favorites!
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Kaleidoscope Walk by Kathi Shunn, Quilted by Ami Krenzel. Award of Excellence.

This quilt took our breath away. It was hand pieced and contains over 2900 pieces and 200 different fabrics. Kathi Shunn says the piecing alone took over a year. The design was based on the the La Passacaglia Quilt from the book Millefiori Quilts by Willyne Hammerstein.

Kathi Shunn says, “My favorite thing about making the La Passacaglia quilt was the ability to treat each rosette as an individual. I didn’t think about how the rosettes would look together until I was at the end just looking at what colors were lacking. I enjoyed the process of one rosette at a time so much that I am making four more of them for each of my children to inherit."

Blessed by Rhonda Montgomery, quilted by Charlene Nelson. Best of Show.

It's no wonder this fantastic quilt received Best of Show.  We loved the creative design and beautiful applique work.  Rhonda Montgomery says the quilt depicts her five children at one of the family's favorite beaches.

Rhonda says, “I have always wanted to make a beach quilt. After many years and several attempts at making an ocean, I decided I could live with this “storm at sea” one. I hand dyed the sky and decided an old mariner’s compass block would be perfect for my sun. I was born in Hawaii and have loved Hawaiian quilts, so I added a beach boardwalk border with appliqued flowers to resemble their style."

Round the Garden by Katherine Porter, quilted by Virginia Gore

The applique and embroidery details on this quilt were absolutely stunning. Katherine Porter says, “When I saw the picture of Wendy Williams’ Round the Garden [quilt pattern] it spoke to my heart and became my personal obsession. I started it in November and considered skipping Christmas to continue my 10-12 hour days. Wendy’s design called for wool applique but I chose to use needle-turned applique."

Katherine continues, “I love embroidery and after making three million, five hundred and sixty two French knots (not an exact number – there may be more!), I still love it. I have absolutely loved making this quilt.”

Woven Rainbow by Kira Carter, quilted by Marion McClellan.

Kira Carter says, “I wanted to push myself and make an illusion quilt in a modern way. The spectrum of colors in this was a challenge to get right but I love the way it turned out.

Kira continues, “Marion [McClellan] and I brainstormed on how to make the quilting pop. We decided on the straight lines to imitate a basket weave with the bold graphic flowers popping out as if in the basket.”

Sweet Millefiori Meadow by Karin Crawford, quilted by Kim Peterson. Award of Excellence.

This quilt reminds us of Spring in all its glory. You can see just about every technique of quilting in this quilt. It is hand pieced, machine pieced, hand appliqued, machine appliqued and hand embroidered. Karin Crawford says she wanted to portray a meadow with everything you can find: flowers, birds, insets, greenery and a beautiful sky.

Karin says Sweet Millefiori Meadow was made of Riley Blake fabric for a challenge in May 2017. She used every fabric in the Meadow Sweets line, and the theme was taken from the fabric line’s name.

Farm Quilt, made and quilted by Joan Hardman

Joan Hartman says, “As a quilter, I like to try new techniques. This art form comes from Marilyn Bedford’s book, Portraits for Fabric Lovers. Bonnie Keller used this technique to take stock photos of animals from the internet and posterize them [for the Farm Quilt pattern]. My quilt includes my three cats, Jimmy, Chloe, and Paddington."  The photo below shows some of the embroidery details.

Joan continues, "I used soft country colors from my stash and searched the Internet for material that looked like barn wood that I could quilt wood grain on. I used Steam-a-Seam to piece the animals and Quilted Treasures to print flowers and such. Each of my farm friends has hand-embroidered details and very little quilting to keep them dimensional.”

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.