Pages

Friday, March 25, 2022

QuiltCon 2022 Highlights (5)

The outstanding QuiltCon show was held in Phoenix, Arizona this year! Presented by The Modern Quilt Guild, QuiltCon is the largest modern quilting show of its kind. Hundreds of modern quilts were on display, including a juried show with entries from MQG members around the world. Here are some of the remarkable quilts we enjoyed.

Also check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns, fabric, and vintage jewelry!
For more free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter.

Metamorphosis by Terry Smith (Greely, Ontario, Canada), quilted by Nellie Van de Ven

The excellent foundation paper piecing stands out in this stunning quilt by Terry Smith, who participated in a project that helps save Monarch butterflies. Terry says, "When my girlfriend challenged me to enter a quilt in QuiltCon 2022, of course I accepted.  I thought, what can I make that is significant? That makes a statement? Metamorphosis spoke to me, loud and clear."

Beautiful batiks make up the wings of the butterfly, which stand out brilliantly against the neutral gray background. The Metamorphosis pattern was created by Veruschka Zarate at Pride and Joy quilting.The machine quilting (by Nellie Van de Ven) was done with dense pebbles below and around the body, while light quilting was done to follow the lines of the body.

 Surf's Up by Nancy Lambert (Georgia)

Surf's Up really captured our eye with its intriguing design and complementary hues. Nancy Lambert used sunshine colors to evoke the beach and surfing. The machine-appliqued curves, which reminded us of the Art Deco style, were used to represent surf boards, water and waves. It was machine quilted without a frame (domestic).  Colors were gradated for added dimension, as shown in the closeup photo below.

May I Hug You by Gwen Edwards (Keynsham, Avon, UK)

This lovely hand embroidered, hand quilted piece was one of our favorite quilts at the show. It is so beautiful in its simplicity.  Gwen Edwards explains that May I Hug You? is the third in a series about hugs and the pandemic.  It was started as England came out of Lockdown #3 - with rules that included no hugging of anyone outside your "bubble".  Nancy poses the question: "In the future, what will the psychological barriers to hugs be?  May I? May I hug you?"

This piece was hand quilted with two sets of lines, sometimes aligning and sometimes opposing, mirroring our complex relationship with others.

We Are All Made of Stars by Melissa de Leon Mason (Utah)

We Are All Made of Stars beckons the viewer to approach and to admire the details, from the piecing and machine quilting to the hand quilting done with colored threads. The quilt plays with the idea of scale, suggesting the vast sprawl of the universe and the microscopic precision of the human eye.  The rays and sunspots are foundation paper pieced with hand quilting and hand applique in the center.  The quilt is both hand and machine quilted in a swirling galaxy motif.

Stovetop by Linda Leake (California)

There is so much energy and movement in this contemporary pieced quilt - it seems almost to vibrate!  Linda Leake says that she branched out from making traditional quilts, and created her first original design during the pandemic.  "After many hours at the stove either cooking or cleaning up the mess from quilting, the stovetop became my inspiration."

Linda continues, "I loved the experience of making my own fabrics for each spoke from scratch, not always using a ruler to cut, taking changes with color and design, and hand quilting.  Making this quilt taught me to be patient and to be willing to rearrange, start over if necessary, and give the design time to grow."

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 QuiltCon show in Phoenix, Arizona.


1 comment:

We love reading each and every comment... thanks for visiting our blog!