Friday, February 1, 2013

Wedding Ring quilts (part 2): Judy Niemeyer Designs

As we continue our coverage of wedding ring quilts, today we're bringing you some beautiful double wedding ring patterns by Judy Niemeyer Quilting. Judy Niemeyer Quilting is a family owned business based in Kalispell, Montana and incorporated in 1996. Judy's Foundation Paper Piecing patterns are designed to enable quilters with minimal previous experience to create intricate and complex heirloom quality quilts.

Wedding Star, 67 x 67" by Tammy Zanella


Here is Judy Niemeyer's Bali Wedding Star pattern, sewn by Tammy Zanella. We originally featured Tammy's quilt as part of our coverage of the 2012 quilt show by the Guild of Quilters of Contra Costa County in California. We really like the lively curved border which provides so much energy around the outside of the quilt.

Close-up of Wedding Star by Tammy Zanella


Tammy says,  "This is a Judy Niemayer paper pieced pattern. It was machine trapunto quilted using Hari Walner's method."  Clear monochromatic shades of blue are interspersed with red-orange to form a strong geometric effect.

Bali Wedding Star, 80 x 80",  Judy Niemeyer Quilting

 

The Bali Wedding Star was actually one of Judy Niemeyer's very first designs. It was originally designed for paper piecing about 15 years ago. Recently, while redrafting the stars,  Judy and Bradley Niemeyer added template layout sheets to speed up the cutting process for the stars (which now have floating points) and background pieces. In recent years, Judy has been teaching a new technique using strip piecing to complete the foundation piecing of the arcs.

Flowers for my Wedding Ring, 87 x 100",  Judy Niemeyer Quilting


Flowers For My Wedding is available as a pattern from Judy Niemeyer or a  quilt kit size 88 x 99 from Keepsake Quilting.  This quilt kit contains Bali fabrics for the top and binding, including precut 2 1/2" strips, and pattern with Judy and Bradley Niemeyer's directions and printed paper foundations.  Notice that the background is not bright white, but is done in shades of icy pastels, which provides a softly dappled effect to complement the multi-colored rings of the foreground.

Grandma's Wedding Ring, 68 x 80", Judy Niemeyer Quilting


Grandma's Wedding Ring follows in the traditional wedding ring style of omitting border strips and attaching the binding directly to the outside of the arcs, thus accentuating the circular motif.  A technique called Foundation Strip Piecing is used to piece the Wedding Ring arcs. Traditional piecing is used to assemble four squares for the background units. Traditional curved piecing is required to assemble the arcs, centers, and melons. Note that by varying the color scheme, you can make a very contemporary quilt from this old, beloved pattern. For example, you could make the background out of charcoal gray and black, while making the arcs in cool hues of icy pastels.

Diamond Wedding Ring, 70 x 72", Judy Niemeyer Quilting

 

Judy Niemeyer notes that her Diamond Wedding Ring has been in the design stage for approximately 15 years. In this design, the pieced arcs are arranged in a triangle shape, with a star in the center.  Judy says that it is great for both the beginner and advanced quilter, because the foundation paper piecing has easy curves which lie flat when finished. Judy adds,  "I've developed a strip piecing method for the arcs, added an extra star behind the center star, and used a variation of colors to complement this design."

Diamond Wedding Ring by Diana Simkins as seen at Judy Niemeyer Quilting


Here is a beautiful Diamond Wedding Ring quilt made by Diana Simkins, who is a Certified Instructor for Judy Niemeyer Quilting. Diana achieved a luminous effect by using a gradation of fabrics, from light to dark, in the rings; the pink toned fabrics are echoed in the border strips. You can get many more ideas by viewing the Diamond Wedding Ring gallery.

Image credits:  Photos  are shown with the generous permission of Judy Niemeyer Quilting.  The photos of Tammy Zanella's quilt are by Quilt Inspiration. 

3 comments:

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

Related Posts with Thumbnails