Hexagon Quilt Inspiration (part 2)

Today's post is inspired by some outstanding hexagon quilts we've seen at quilt shows.  The hexagon shape can be used to create contemporary as well as traditional quilts, as shown in today's post. (For more hexagon quilt inspiration, see part 1 of this series.)

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De Jurk (The Dress) by Annemiek van den Boogaard,  The Netherlands

An Award of Merit winner at the Houston International Quilt Festival, Annemiek says, "For my inspiration, I used a drawing by the artist Victor Vasarely. Then, I started to draw myself and I put my own ideas into it."

Annemiek continues, "This quilt is made with different techniques, fabrics, and colours. I followed my intuition, and I'm proud of the result." We love this hand-pieced, machine quilted, creation in soft neutrals, with a touch of terracotta shades and the happy flower face which brings so much personality to Annemiek's work.

Five Little Peppers and How They Grew by Linda Puttmann, Arizona

Second place winner in the Scrap Quilts category, Linda comments, "Blocks made using colored pencils, applique, and embroidery in the 'Grandmother's Flower Garden' setting. This pattern was from a class by the late Arlene Southworth."

These adorable images of children are interspersed among the hexagons. Linda's use of 1930's style small prints in pastel colors is a perfect choice for this charming quilt.

For The Love of Hexies by Sharon Wilkinson, Australia. Quilted by Leanne Kaufmann

Sharon notes, "It was while preparing to open our quilt shop that we decided we needed to have a statement quilt; a quilt that displayed what we were about. Bright, modern, and just a little bit different."

This is a wonderful display of hexagonal block patterns, showing the versatility of  the hexagon
shape when combined with triangles. Sharon's design source is Katja Marek's The New Hexagon: 52 Blocks to Paper Piece.

Granddaughter's Flower Garden, 46 x 56", by Louise Moor, Florida

Louise explains, "I'm a very traditional quilter and found it hard to 'go Modern'. Then I saw this [Easy Breezy Hexies] design by Sonja Callaghan and felt it was modern but still let me feel comfortable in my traditional roots." Louise's use of solids and striped fabrics, along with a pale gray and white background lend a three-dimensional perspective.

Triangular, parallel line, and small circle quilt patterns give this vintage pattern such a refreshing, updated look. The saying "Everything old is new again" is really exemplified by Louise's contemporary craftsmanship. Louise adds, "While I would normally hand quilt this, I decided to quilt this by machine."

My Grandma's Garden by Michele Louise Knight, Utah

Michele explains, My inspiration came from a quilt I saw online a few years ago, which did not have the traditional pathways in the flower garden. I had never done English paper piecing, but thought this handwork would travel easily." We love the warm pastel shades of the flowers, which create a radiant, sunlit effect against the aqua background.

Michele adds, "I also had never tried hand-piecing, applique, or much embroidery, so many thanks to the talented ladies of our 'Gone to Pieces' quilt group for tutoring me. I worked on the quilt for 2.5 years while in the car traveling."

Michele continues, "I named the quilt for my maternal grandmother, who worked all her life and never had a garden."  For Michele's first attempt at these techniques, we think the results are spectacular.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2017 Houston International Quilt Festival (For The Love of Hexies), the 2014 Arizona Quilters Guild Show (Five Little Peppers), the 2015 World Quilt Show (Granddaughter's Flower Garden),the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival (De Jurk), and the 2015 Springville (Utah) quilt show (My Grandma's Garden).

Hexagon Quilt Inspiration

Today's post is inspired by some outstanding hexagon quilts we've seen over the last few years.  The hexagon shape is so versatile, it can be used to create flowers, diamonds, tumbling blocks, and even pixel quilts (check out the Hexie Hummingbird, below !)

Please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns, books, and collectible items !
For the latest free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter.


Hexie Hummingbird No. 2, 42 x 36", by Gail L. Weiss

Gail L. Weiss created her original design, Hexie Hummingbird No. 2, with 474 one-half-inch English Paper Pieced Hexies!  This quilt is hand pieced, appliqued and quilted with fine silk thread on the Hummingbird, and with #12 Perle Cotton for the background.  Gail describes Hexie Hummingbird as "A quilt that makes me happy!"

You can find a pattern for this quilt, and for more of Gail Lizette's wonderfully creative works, at her website (click here: gaillizette.com.)

Lupines by Karen McCarty

Winner of a ribbon for third place in the Applique - Solo category at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show, Lupines was inspired by a photo which Karen McCarty took in Ushuaia, Argentina, in 2014.  She says, "I knew that someday it would be a quilt. Just needed to find a way to make those tiny hexies."  We admire Karen McCarty's excellent technique and the many artistic details, including tiny bead embellishments.

City by Crystal Bray

Inspired by Libs Elliott's "Weight of Love" quilt, this quilt combines whole hexagons and hexagons divided into 60-degree triangles, radiating from light to dark, creating a 3-dimensional appearance. Crystal Bray says that she pieced hexies by the values in the Hoffman City fabric (shown below), hence the quilt title, City.  This quilt "reads" modern without being overtly minimalist... we love the look!

Oranges, Lemons and Limes - Oh My!  by Lynn G. Kough

Made by Lynn G. Kough, a member of the Arizona Quilters Hall of Fame, and exhibited in 2015, this quilt is a whimsical celebration of citrus in Arizona.  The fragrance of citrus blossoms is a beloved scent in the Valley [of the Sun] and throughout Arizona's warmer regions.  Small and large hexagons combine to create a lively mixture of lime green, orange, and lemon yellow hues. 

Diamonds Are Forever by Susan Cox, quilted by Jessica Gamez

Bright colors in many different hues create the sparkling diamond-shaped emblems in this beauty. Winner of a second place ribbon in the Scrap Quilt category, Diamonds Are Forever is made up of 4066 hexies. Susan Cox created this heirloom quilt using the traditional English Paper Piecing technique and many, many hours of work -  a true labor of love.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show (Lupines), the 2015 Quilt Arizona show (Oranges, Lemons and Limes), the 2018 Road to California quilt show (Hexie Hummingbird), the 2018 Quilt Arizona show (City), and the 2019 Quilt Arizona show (Diamonds Are Forever).

Quilt Arizona 2020 ! Day 5

In February, when life was still "normal" , we attended the 2020 Quilt Arizona! Show which is an outstanding display of statewide quilts from the Arizona Quilters' Guild. This year's theme was "Desert Stars". We hope you enjoy these highlights from the show !

Please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns, books, and collectible items !
For the latest free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter.

Perito Moreno Glacier by Georgia Heller

It's been said that if you only visit one glacier in your life, Perito Moreno would be a good one to pick. It towers above the turquoise glacial water of Patagonia’s Los Glaciares National Park. Georgia Heller's stunning quilt is based on this natural wonder. Entered in the Pictorial category, Georgia says, "I took a photo of the glacier from a boat, manipulated it in Photoshop, printed the image on fabric and quilted it."

Waterfall 1 by Rose Swarts

This beaded fabric art quilt was entered in the Theme category, Desert Stars.  Rose Swarts says, "The desert night sky has always awed and inspired me.  This is how I imagine it might look from Havasupai Falls."  This little quilt is embellished with hundreds of interesting beads, representing the falls, rocks, and stars, and hand embroidered.

Sunshine by Diana Jones, quilted by Sue Bruner

Inspired by the Phoenix (Arizona) Zoo, this quilt was constructed using 100 foundation paper pieces.  The pattern The Giraffe Abstractions is by Violet Craft.  Diana Jones says, "I changed the colors to reflect the colors I see at the Phoenix Zoo... The Phoenix Zoo is my Desert Star.  It has been designated as a Phoenix Point of Pride... This quilt is titled 'Sunshine' in honor of one of the giraffes.  Sunshine is a 5-year-old Masai giraffe, 13 feet tall and weighs 1400 pounds."

Urbanologie by Susan Fleming, quilted by Pat Roche

We admire the excellent use of color in this fun quilt.  Susan Fleming says, "This quilt pushed all my buttons. [I] loved the design... it helped me with curved piecing.  [I] used up lots of my stash and it came out looking great.  The design is Urbanologie by Sew Kind of Wonderful." 
The closeup photo, below,  shows Susan's skillful piecing, and Sue Bruner's professional quilting.

My Splendid Sampler by Wanda Dix

Sampler quilts are so much fun, and this one is exceptional in every way. It won a Blue Ribbon in the Scrap-Solo category. Wanda Dix said she used over 210 fabrics and 32 thread colors for the quilting.  The blocks are based on the online Splendid Sampler Project 1 by Jane Davidson and Pat Sloan.  Check out the cute quilting on the flower, shown below.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show.

Flowers for All

Happy Mother's Day to everyone who is a caretaker for her own family or who is a caretaker for another family.  We hope you have time on Mother's Day to take a quiet break and to enjoy some flowers - either in nature, photos, or quilts. The stunning quilt below, which features one of the largest flowers on earth, caught our eye at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show.

Note: Please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns, books, and collectible items !  For the latest free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter.

Don't Cry for Me, Argentina, by Debra Goley

Fabric artist Debra Goley created this spectacular art quilt to celebrate the flowers produced by the Argentine Giant cactus (Echinopsis candicans). They have huge, fragrant white flowers, generally 6 to 8 inches in diameter, that bloom at night. Although they are not native to Arizona, they grow well here, especially in the higher altitudes.  Each flower lasts only one night, providing much excitement for  night pollinators such as bats and moths, as well as early morning photographers.

In keeping with Desert Stars, the theme of the 2020 show, Debra Goley says: "The Argentine Giant Cacti is one such desert star that looks familiar as a long cactus arm, but the surprise of its flowering in the night is breathtaking.  It's a star of hope at the light of dawn." Debra quilted this piece with a variety of decorative stitches, adding much texture and interest, as shown below.

 

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Arizona Quilters Guild show.