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Friday, June 30, 2023

Modern Quilt Month: Effervescence

It's Modern Quilt Month here at Quilt Inspiration. We'll be posting a new modern quilt each weekday... we hope you enjoy our photos! Today's feature quilt highlights the beauty of color wheels against neutral backgrounds.

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Effervescence by Sheryl Gillilan

Winner of Best Solitaire Machine Quilting, Sheryl Gillilan says, "This quilt reminds me of champagne bubbles exploding!"  The gray background squares are finished with matchstick quilting using different colors of thread, for a beautiful contemporary look.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 Springville (Utah) quilt show.

Thursday, June 29, 2023

Modern Quilt Month: Black & White

It's Modern Quilt Month here at Quilt Inspiration! We'll be posting a new modern quilt each weekday... we hope you enjoy our photos! Today's feature quilt highlights the beauty of black-and-white designs.

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Love Links by Kathie Gilbert

Love Links by Kathie Gilbert won the Quilt Chair’s Choice award. The pattern is by Deb Tucker (Studio 180 Designs). Kathie took a workshop with Deb in 2018 in Dallas, and she finally custom quilted it summer 2022. We enjoyed the graphic design, fascinating contrasts, and fabulous quilting in this quilt.

(Note: In this original post, we erroneously identified this quilt as Penelope by Meg Silvern & Linda Powell.  We apologize for this error).


 Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2023 Quilt Fiesta (Tucson, Arizona).

Wednesday, June 28, 2023

Modern Quilt Month: Every Which Way

It's Modern Quilt Month here at Quilt Inspiration! We are posting a new quilt each weekday. We hope you enjoy these photos!

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Every Which Way by Athena Taylor

Winner of a red ribbon in the Modern Quilts category, Athena Taylor says that Every Which Way is based on a design by Judi Madsen. A 3D illusion is created by placing a neutral "grid" over the solid color blocks.  The genius is in the quilting. As shown below, one edge of each block is quilted with an arrow.  Other areas are quilted with spirals, dots, swirls, and cross-hatch designs.

Athena Taylor says, "I chose to [make this quilt] because of the intricate quilting (as a challenge to myself).  It was fun looking at a small magazine photo and trying to re-create it. In some areas I used creative license."  Athena's beautiful quilting softens the geometric lines of the design.
 


Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2023 Tucson Quilters Guild show.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Modern Quilt Month: The Frank Klein Collection

 It's Modern Quilt Month here at Quilt Inspiration! We'll be posting a new modern quilt each weekday... we hope you enjoy our photos.  Today's feature comes from the Celebration of Color exhibit at the 2022 International Quilt Festival.

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Aurora, 27 x 29", by Terry Aske

Aurora, an original art quilt by Terry Aske, is a highlight of the Frank Klein Collection.  We were drawn to the artistic colors and shapes, representing the Aurora borealis. Terry Aske says, "I used variegated poly-sheen thread. I have 2 spools – one is neon colors, the other is shades of pink. I [used] matchstick quilting as I thought that would add to the impression of vertical streaks of light and color."

 

Frank Klein is a Texas art collector with an emphasis on art quilts.  His love of family, photography, and nature have developed a collection of fine art quilts that inspires the nature lover in all of us. the exhibit, titled Highlights of the Frank Klein collection, was curated by Sandra Sider and co-curated by Ele Chew.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 International Quilt Festival (Salt Lake City, Utah).

Monday, June 26, 2023

Modern Quilt Month: A Celebration of Color

It's Modern Quilt Month here at Quilt Inspiration! We'll be posting a new modern quilt each weekday... we hope you enjoy our photos! Today's feature quilt comes from the Celebration of Color exhibit at the 2022 International Quilt Festival.

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Losing It by Randa Mulford (California)

In this intriguing original design, there is a progression of color and pattern from the upper left circle (which is a complete kaleidoscope on a lighter background) to the lower right, in which elements of the design are faded and/or missing. The background gradually darkens as the elements fade.

This colorful quilt has a poignant story. As Randa Mulford explains, Losing It started as a response to watching an elderly friend lose her memory and personality to dementia. Color and pattern gradually fade away, leaving only a suggestion of what had been before.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 Celebration of Color exhibit.  Shown at the 2022 International Quilt Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Friday, June 23, 2023

Welcome to Modern Quilt Month!

It's Modern Quilt Month here at Quilt Inspiration! Modern quilts often include the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast, improvisational piecing, minimalism, and/or expansive negative space. This month's selections range from easy, pieced quilts to more complex works of art! We'll be posting a new quilt each weekday... we hope you enjoy these photos.

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Radiant Rhapsody by Valerie Greenwell

This stunning original art quilt by Valerie Greenwell was first drawn full scale on paper, then traced to create a pattern.  The vibrant shapes in warm colors are balanced by tones and a three-piece neutral background.  A variety of different quilting designs were used, adding interest to this contemporary quilt.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2023 Quilt Fiesta (Tucson, Arizona).

Monday, June 12, 2023

Straight Lines that Appear Curved: Storm-at-Sea Quilts!

Storm at Sea quilts use small changes in straight angles to create the optical illusion of curves. We love this pattern!  Here are some wonderfully colorful examples.  Plus, we've included a link to our FREE Pattern Day for Storm-at-Sea Quilts in case you want to create your own masterpiece! 

p.s. Please see our E-Bay shop for great bargains on patterns and vintage collectibles. For continuous free quilt patterns and blog updates, please visit us on Twitter.

Storm at Sea by Carol Carpenter (Arizona), quilted by Kris Neifeld

We love the contrasting color scheme of this wall quilt! Carol Carpenter say, "I've always wanted to make a Storm at Sea pattern, so this John Flynn kit was the size and color theme that interested me.This pattern required precise piecing but the result was worth all the work." 

Sailor's Delight by John Flynn (Montana)

John Flynn designs quilts and kits, and leads quilting workshops.  Here is one of his beautiful, precise Storm at Sea designs, featuring 20 blocks (4 across and 5 down). The expert coloring and shading emphasizes the wavy lines created by the design. Read about his work at Flynn Quilts.

Storm at Sea by Lauren Semple (Texas), quilted by Pam Klein

Here is a paper pieced Storm at Sea quilt with intensely colorful batiks.  Lauren Semple says, "This is a pattern I have always wanted to challenge myself with, and a challenge it proved to be! I changed the light and dark order from the more traditional method.  I designed the border pattern to complement the quilt."

Color Wave by Beth Shutty (Florida)

Beth Shutty says, "I arranged my hand dyed fabric so the color radiates out from the central point.  The placement of white patches creates diagonal waves of color which influenced the quilt's name.  The use of spiral machine quilting added an unexpected third level of movement to the quilt."

Screamer by Jean Firestine (Arizona)

Jean Firestine says, "I decided to make this block (Storm at Sea) having very little paper piecing experience.  Needless to say, it took about 3 tries to get it right." (Hence the title: "Screamer".) Fun fabrics in desert-y hues can be seen throughout this quilt.

"The bad blocks are on the back, and are a reminder that there's usually a good reason for following directions. However, no promise to follow directions, I'm an artist and it's ok to think outside the box." We love this clever use of "bad" blocks (waste not, want not!)

For FREE quilt patterns and coloring diagrams (so you can plan your own), check out our Free Pattern Day for Storm-at-Sea quilts (CLICK HERE!)  

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Image credits: Original quilt photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2023 Tucson Quilters guild show (Screamer by Jean Firestine); the 2020 Arizona Quilters Guild show (Storm at Sea by Carol Carpenter); the 2015 World Quilt Show Florida VI  (Color Wave by Beth Shutty); and the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival (Storm at Sea by John Flynn & Storm at Sea by Lauren Semple).