Celebrating the Desert with Art Quilts

The Sonoran Desert is rich in species in many dimensions, including topography, creatures large and small, unusual plants, and of course cultures.  Here are examples of the Tucson Art Quilters' creativity in response to their 2022 "Desert Diversity" challenge.

p.s. 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.

Hopi Dancer by Genevieve Guadalupe

Hopi Dancer is a an artful representation of Kokopelli, symbolizing fertility, music, merry making, and good luck. Genevieve Guadalupe used desert plants to print the monotype background. Native symbols were embroidered and represent the diversity of cultures in our desert.

I Love You Arizona by Sandy Lambert

The beauty of the desert sunset is represented by Sandy Lambert with batiks in hues of orange, violet, and turquoise, as the sun sets behind a stately saguaro cactus. This piece was beautifully hand quilted.

Picacho Poppies by Kathy Genz

Picacho Poppies by Kathy Genz is "a loose interpretation of a hike I took in 2020 at Picacho Peak State Park.  The poppies were in full bloom.  I used batiks, shibori and rust dyed fabrics, and my own hand dyed fabrics." The undulating path draws us right into this scene.  This piece was created with raw edge fused applique and was machine quilted.

Hedgehog Cactus by Sherall Donovan

Here is a great artistic depiction of a hedgehog cactus, made with fabric painting by Sherall Donovan. These plants are covered by a dense network of spines and they produce large brilliant colored blossoms that may last only a day. The hand painted scene is set into a simple ombre border.

Desert Melange by Jolene Ficklin

This desert still life represents so many wonderful elements in an artistic way. As Jolene Ficklin notes, "The plants wither in drought and revive and bloom when the rains come.  The cycle repeats and the wonder of the desert endures and enchants us... It's a medley of wonder and perseverance."

Desert Sunset by Vivian Streeter

The red rocks of the desert are exemplified in Desert Sunset by Vivian Streeter.  She says, "This fabric reminded me of Sedona and in the evening when all the critters come out for food." In the foreground you can see a roadrunner, coyote, and lizard. The spines of the saguaro cactus are rendered in sharp detail.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 Tucson Quilters Guild show.

"My Initial x Five" : A Fun Quilt Challenge!

Today we're showing photos from a 2022 challenge undertaken by the Delightful Quilters of the Arizona Quilter's Guild. The challenge asked quilters to use their first initial to pick 5 items beginning with the same letter to add to their quilt. Any 5 or more items that start with the same letter as the quilter's first name can be included. This is like an "I Spy" or "Where's Waldo" game. See how many of these items you can find!

p.s. 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.

Cat in a Cup by Claire Victor

Claire's first name begins with "C", so here she has designed a cat in a cup, wearing a cone hat, balancing citrus and cranberries, with a cherry on top.

In this close-up, you can see the cat holding the cranberry on his paw. Claire machine quilted and hand-guided her original design. The concentric rings of bubbles add to the whimsical, zany energy of this quilt.

There's a Giraffe in My Garden by Gayle Reed

Gayle notes, "What a fun challenge; however, way out of my comfort zone. Many hours were spent staring a my blank design wall. My 5 required "G" words were:  Giraffe, Glasses, Grapes, Green, Grass. There were more!"

Gayle machine quilted and hand-guided her original design. We love the fashionable blue spectacles on the giraffe's face.

Moonshine by Mimi Ferrell

Mimi says, " I challenged myself even further by learning three new techniques: Lorraine Carthew's mosaic applique technique for the moon, a shisha embroidery stitch for the mirrors, and a flanged binding technique.

Mimi's "M" words include Moon, Mosaic Applique, Midnight Blue, Metallic Thread, and Mirror Embellishment We think the mosaic embroidery gives a fascinating, sophisticated look to Mimi's creation. She machine quilted and hand-guided her original design.

Kaleidoscope of K's by Krista Dyell

Krista notes, "We were to include 5 items starting with our initial. I got carried away." We really admire this colorful, eye-catching, artistically arranged collage. She machine quilted and hand-guided her original design.

On Krista's description card, she listed over 30 items in her quilt that start with letter "K".  Here's just 10 of them: Kingfisher bird, Kitten, Ketchup, Elvis the King, B.B. King, Kite, Keyboard, Kiss Emoji, Kris Kringle, and King of Hearts.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 Quilt Arizona show.

Quilt Arizona! The 2022 Show (5)

The theme of the 2022 Arizona Quilters Guild show was Kaleidoscope of Quilts.  It was a fantastic show!  Last year's show was cancelled - so there was high anticipation for this year's event. There were many amazing quilts on display... here are some of our favorites!

p.s. 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.

Feel The Wave by Leilani Purvis, quilted by Beth Watts

Here's a fabulous art quilt by Leilani Purvis, who was inspired by a photograph of the wave by John Cocozza (San Diego, California).  Leilani says, "I hope this quilt makes you feel like you're in this wave!"  She used raw edge applique and lace to depict the colors and energy of the breaking wave, which reflects the warm hues of the sun. Feel the Wave was professionally machine quilted (hand guided) by Beth Watts.

Red Mandala by Cindy Seitz-Krug

Cindy Seitz-Krug won two major awards for Red Mandala, including a blue ribbon (First Place) in the Applique, Small-Solo category and a special Judge's Recognition award (turquoise and gold ribbon.)  Cindy says, "I got the crazy notion to try my hand at 1" finished hand-appliqued clams.  They were definitely more challenging to execute than larger clamshells."  Cindy's precise applique and award-winning machine quilting can be seen in the closeup photo, below.

Gone Fishin' Instead of Just a Wishin' by Joyce Strassburg, quilted by Jessica Jones

Joyce's fabric choices perfectly capture the colors and textures of the fish and the underwater scene. We love this design, which includes five trout fly designs around the borders. Joyce Stassburg says, "My husband kept asking me to do a quilt for him.  When I saw this pattern (About Trout by Lunch Box Quilts), I knew [that] it was perfect.  It will hang under a wall hanging of the same pattern in our dream cabin".

French Braid Quilt by Linda Ashburn, quilted by Donna Goldbeck

We love French Braid quilts, and we don't often seen them!  This one is a beauty cone in formal tones of red on gray. This stunning quilt won Third Prize (yellow ribbon) in the Pieced, Large-Duet category.

This French Braid Quilt was based on a published design in French Braid Quilts by Jane Hardy Miller and Arlene Netten. Linda Ashburn says, "My mother gave me the quilt book one year.  In March 2020, I decided to start a braid quilt.  I chose the 'Big Red' pattern."the black-and-white prints add outstanding visual interest to the design.

Circle of Friends by Celeste Johnson, quilted by Melissa Turner

This quilt was really fun, with all its tiny fussy-cut faces! Celeste Johnson says that she purchased the 'Faces' fabric at the Houston International Quilt Festival, and used the free Circle of Friends pattern [by Ariga Mahmoudlou for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.] The closeup photo, below, shows some of the cute faces in the centers of the friendship stars.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 Quilt Arizona show.

Quilt Arizona! The 2022 Show (4)

 We could hardly wait for the 2022 Arizona Quilters Guild show, where the theme was Kaleidoscope of Quilts.  And what a fantastic show it was!  Due to the pandemic, the show was cancelled last year - so there was high anticipation for this year's event. There were many amazing quilts on display... here are some of our favorites!

p.s. 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.

Rise and Shine by Leilani Purvis

Leilani Purvis notes, "Polar bears are beautiful animals but are endangered. I loved doing this piece! I used fabrics, lace, tulle, and thread."
 

Leilani used Lorraine Turner's "Rise and Shine" quilt pattern for this captivating creation. Her work is machine quilted and hand guided. 

Branching Out by Carol Carpenter, quilted by Kris Neifeld

Carol writes, "This Cathy Geier pattern was challenging but became fun once I started with the applique trees and leaves. Choosing fabrics was one of the best challenges of the quilt, and I'm pleased with the results."

Carol's quilt has a beautiful three-dimensional effect to it, almost as if one were looking out a window towards a lovely lake or sky. It was professionally machine quilted and hand guided by Kris Neifeld.

Pyramid Power by Karen Weaver, quilted by Sharon Elsberry

Winner of the Judges' Special Recognition Award, plus Honorable Mention in the Pieced - Large Duet category, Karen states, "This large quilt is entirely a stash quilt. The pyramids are supposed to create a shadow effect with the two sides in different values. Sharon Elsberry of Akamai Quilts did the fabulous quilting."

For her vibrantly colored quilt done with expert workmanship, Karen used the "Pyramid Power" pattern by Running With Scissors/Studio 180 Design.

Sunset Point by Janet Grant

Janet comments, " This quilt is made with 6 Kaffe Fassett prints, 1 Grunge, 1 batik, 1 Stonehenge, and miscellaneous wovens from my stash. An unusual color combination- and I just love it!"

Janet's dynamic quilt really dances with energy ! She machine quilted and hand guided it herself. The pattern is "Dancing Batiks" by Judy Niemeyer. 

Atom Quilt by Rose Maynes

The Atom Quilt was the Second Place winner for Pieced Quilts. This enchanting quilt, which features complementary colors of blue and orange, is from the published pattern "Atom" designed by Deb Karasik. 

Dorothy Aliss pieced this paper pattern, and Rose Maynes quilted it with the pattern designs from Kate Glenn.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 Quilt Arizona show.