Quest Quilts

Craft Shows

I decided to participate in my first craft show in November of 2016. It was a school show, and I enjoyed myself. That being said, I didn’t have any ready-made items, and I never did receive any orders. I was already full on Christmas orders, and I didn’t have time to take on any more. I figured I would get my orders from that school once graduation season came around.

Nope.

Quilt display — My show set-up has come a long long way since my first show.

But it was so much fun I decided to try again in the Spring at a craft fair that was much closer to home. I did have ready-made items this time – the stadium quilts. Well, it turns out folks don’t want to buy flannel-backed quilts in weather that is in the upper 80’s F. I ended up getting only one order from that show – many months later.

Second show set up. It had rained not long ago – hence the straw.

But the fairs themselves were awesome! It’s an ego boost because I get to hear people gush over my work and talk about my love of quilting for a whole day! This in mind, I decided to give it one more go. There was a huge show in the fall, and I decided to try it. I would use this show as the gauge on whether or not I would keep on doing these. As fun as they were, they weren’t paying off.

Well the fall one was a completely different experience. People bought stuff! I sold three quilts along with wallets and casserole carriers! I. Was. Stoked. I’d also squeezed in another smaller show that fall, and I managed to sell the Braves quilt! So yeah, I was pretty jazzed that the fall ones had paid off after all. And the BEST part was that for both of the fall shows I had a t-shirt quilt order placed within 24 hours of the show.

22549837_1503536956399490_4794434714872840335_n — Putting this quilt facing out was the best choice I ever made!

This past weekend I tried another spring show, and I was floored at how well I did, especially considering the crowd was mostly my fellow church members. I wanted to cry I was so happy and honored and flattered.

Next weekend I’m going to give a craft fair another try – the same one that was so hot the year before. I have new items and am hoping that I do well. Wish me luck!

Pet Picture Pillows

My family has two cats and a dog. Our orange cat, Jordan, has a personality for days! He’s hysterical, talkative, and a first-class spooning partner.

My brother was over helping me with a project one afternoon when Jordan plopped down right in the middle of our picture set up. My brother smiled and muttered, “I love that cat”. Then he snapped a quick picture that was included along with all of the other ones from that day.

Fast forward to around Christmas time – I’m looking for something funny to make for my husband. It was right about then I came across the picture from that day that my brother took. Then I had an idea. The image was so clean and clear that I could use it as a base and draw all sorts of stuff on him. From there, I made a series of pictures using Microsoft Paint. No, it wasn’t supposed to look “professional”. It was meant to look cheesy and goofy. Mission accomplished!

I had a blast making this, and I tee-heed the whole time! Well a few years later, my husband hinted that another pillow of our girl cat, Eleanor, would be a good match. The issue? Well Eleanor is…well…a typical cat. Grumpy. Judgy. A curmudgeon. Doing the same image for her wouldn’t work.

But Eleanor is very good at TWO things: blocking your view and putting her butt in your face. So I decided to go that route.

Can I even begin to explain to you how humiliating it is to chase your cat around a bathroom trying to get a good picture of her butt? Can I also convey how awkward it is to send that picture to your ever-patient brother, asking him to isolate the cat image from the rest of the picture? Well, for love and goofiness, I did both. It isn’t the cleanest image by far, but it’s the best I could get all things considered.

From there, I picked out four images of settings my husband (and most people) would recognize. And I let Eleanor do what she does best – block your view.

Eleanor-pillow — Versailles, Pyramids of Giza, Angkor Wat, and Fort Sumter

We have had the dog, Diana, since September, so she hasn’t gotten a pillow made in her honor yet. Stay tuned….

French Madamoiselle Quilt

A few years ago I went to a Sewing and Quilting Expo, and I bought some fabric there that featured French women. It was such pretty fabric, and I just HAD to have it. Well, I bought and then didn’t know what to do with it. So it just sat in my fabric stash for a good, long while.

In my recent drive to take care of some of my long-resident fabric, I brought this piece back out. Well, it didn’t lend itself to the usual quilt fabric cutting, so I used rulers and cut out individual ladies. To do this, I ended up sacrificing every other row of the print. It felt positively sinful, but it was either that or put it back in the box for an indeterminate amount of time longer.

I’d wanted to try a technique for a while where you created a block that featured an off-centered focus in the middle. Since the ladies were of varying sizes, I figured now would be as good of a time as any to try it out.

I did have to break my rule a little and purchase some blue, but otherwise I had all of the other fabrics already on hand – even the backing! Yes, I was thrilled when I noticed some fabric I’d purchased at an estate sale in the neighborhood matched the colors on the front and also possessed a slightly French feel. Boom! Backing! All I had to do was make it slightly bigger by adding on some more of the gold fabric.

I added borders to help tone down some of the business from the blocks, and I’m happy with it, especially the pink fabric on the outermost border.

Since gold was featured so widely, I decided to stick with that and use gold-colored thread for the quilting part. The quilting itself being simple waves all the way down.

It was a fun project, and I’m always happy to pick up a new technique.

Dinosaur Lap Quilt

This quilt came as a result of a find in the JoAnn’s remnant bin. I’d picked it up and put it back several times, and I finally decided to just grab it. I coordinated it using fabrics I already had on hand for the most part. Several of the fabrics were left over from previous projects, and a couple were also remnant bin finds. This is the game I play. And I believe I won it this time.

~~It’s for sale on my Etsy Shop. –~~ It has a home now.

It’s really a simple pattern – quarter blocks alternating with framed blocks and 2″ sashing in between. The only real issue I had was that the purple fabric I used for the sashing is no longer made. It had been in my fabric stash since almost the beginning of my quilting obsession. I knew nothing else was even close, so I had to think. I finally made a pieced top and bottom sashing using the same fabric that framed the dinosaur print. I think it worked out alright.

I quilted it using a variegated pink thread and used a purple flannel-backed satin for the backing.

Side note: I was in one of the Sunday school classrooms and saw where the same fun dinosaur fabric was used to make the curtains. I commented on it, and a friend said her mother had recently made those curtains and others for all the classrooms. I got tickled and told her I’d probably bought my remnant as a result from her mother’s purchase. As it is, that dino fabric is very popular and is sold out in many of the stores. I can see why; it’s such a fun print!

Berenstein Bears Quilt

First off, I’ll confess I’m more stressed about whether to call it “Berenstein” or “Berenstain” Bears than I’d like to admit. And no, I have no idea when it switched and why it did. But yeah, there’s that.

It started when my kids pointed out from fabric in a bin while we were looking around at the Sewing and Quilting Expo. They asked for a “Very Hungry Caterpillar” panel and a yard of Berenstein Bears fabric. The caterpillar fabric ended up being a pillowcase for my son. But I wasn’t sure what to do with the other fabric.

So it sat in a bin for about three years.

I was looking through my fabric hoard and came across it and decided that enough was enough. so I went in like I did with the Girly Asian-themed quilt and cut out pictures as best I could.

I’ll confess I’m not sure where the design for the quilt came to me, but I’m sure it’s probably a combination of several other designs I’ve examined over the years. But I’ve never made one quite like it before.

I wanted to keep it gender neutral as best I could, and I ended up using the primary colors and green. In fact, I used two greens due to availability. Like usual, this one was also meant to be made from nothing but what I had on hand.

I decided to feature each little picture with a frame and then connect frames of the same color. The staggering took more thinking than I realized, but in the end I think it worked out.

I did have to go out and purchase backing, and I had a couple of ideas. I really liked the idea of red flannel-backed satin, but when I saw the bright blue fabric in the quilting section I changed my mind. I did decide to use red thread for quilting, though. And in the end I liked the result. It’s simple but cute.

Projects

When I went to my crafting weekend the other week, I started several quilts. Most of them I had to finish once I returned home because I was short on one type of fabric or another. Well I’ve been busy getting those settled and ready.

I three more stadium quilts. One is blue and silver with crepe back satin backing – the color of one of the local high schools.

Blue and Gray Lap Quilt

Another one is maroon, black, and gold themed. It is the colors and mascot of one of the local high schools. It’s the section in which my church is located, and it’s also where my husband and many of my friends went. (My county is huge, and we have a ridiculous amount of schools.)

Brookwood High Broncos

The third one is another school’s colors -black and silver/gray. Those colors can be bland if you don’t use them correctly. In this case, I made simple blocks and used a pretty gray patterned fabric for the sashing to add texture and interest.

Black and Gray Lap Quilt

Another one I made using the split rail (aka rail fence) design, and it’s garden themed. I also used the cute pink fabric as part of the backing as well.

Garden Fence Lap Quilt

I have two others that are done, but I ran out of daylight to take pictures. I’ll check in tomorrow with their pictures.

I plan on selling these at the craft fairs or on my Etsy shop.

Senior Softball Quilt

This is another senior quilt I made. It was from her softball jerseys and shirts; she had been playing softball most of her life. I met with her mother, and one of the first things she told me was that her daughter was a “girly girl.” We used this info to look for the backing. We wandered over to the pink fabric section and saw some lined rainbow fabric. It looked alright, but there was something about it that didn’t quite fit. It was right about then I pulled at another bolt and noticed that it was rainbow as well – a mottled one that moved in a gradient. As soon as I pulled it out, the mother and I knew we had struck gold.

It remains to this day one of my favorite backings! And I don’t think I’ve seen that fabric since. Pity. I would buy the dang bolt if I could.

As I was working on it, I had an idea and asked the mother to send me the earliest picture they had of the daughter playing softball. She sent me a precious picture, and I laughed when I saw it because the daughter still made that face.

Softball kid picture — This was a picture of her early years in softball.

The last step was to make her name. I made each letter match one of the jerseys on that same row. I specifically went out and bought zebra print fabric for the “I”. I haven’t used the rest of it and still have it floating around my sewing room.

Creative Spaces

The hardest part of my process is the fact that I can’t show you all current projects because they haven’t been gifted yet. So until I can show you this year’s haul, I’m going to talk about something else that is important, and I’d LOVE to hear from you.

What is in your creative space? I don’t mean your tools. I mean what art or decor do you have that helps you establish your creative flow?

For me, I have surrounded my sewing room with artwork. Most of it is from my absolute favorite artist – James C. Christensen. I first found out about him when they turned one of his books into a cheesy Hallmark movie called Voyage of the Unicorn. I was fascinated and looked up the original book, Voyage of the Basset. From there I found out that the author was primarily an artist and was a professor at Brigham Young University. I learned he passed in 2017, and I was actually in my sewing room when my uncle, who also likes him and bought me an autographed copy of his book, texted me. I choked up as I looked around and realized how much his art defined my own creativity. The featured picture is called A Place of Her Own, and I plan on getting that print one day. I feel like he captured my soul in this painting.

His artwork is so complex and beautiful. I loved all the layers his people wore, and the depth and symbolism he used. He had successfully created another world.

james-christensen-butterfly-knight — *Butterfly Knight* by James C. Christensen

I even have one of his paintings in puzzle form. It’s in a frame in my classroom. It’s a piece called All the World’s a Stage, and it has all of Shakespeare’s plays represented in one way or another with Shakespeare himself in the center. I’ve labeled as many as I could. My students stopped class one day to finally ask me about it because they’d been eyeing it since the beginning of the year.

4.1.1 — *All the World’s a Stage* by James C. Christensen

In my creative space, I have other prints both big and small. One of my favorites was a gift from my husband for my birthday. For a long time it hung in my daughter’s nursery, but I reclaimed it for my new sewing space when we moved. I loved the notion that story-telling was like setting sail.

talesbeyondtimp — *Tales Beyond TIMP* by James C. Christensen

The Listener is also right above my cutting and ironing area. This one fascinates me because I end up noticing something new each time I look at it, and I love the message of tuning out life’s distractions. My creative space is where I can do just that, and I’ll go into my own head and everything else just melts away. In a world where there’s a lot out of my control, my quilts and creative space are mine to own.

db_file_img_83274_746xauto — *The Listener* by James C. Christensen

In addition to Christensen’s artwork, I have an original piece I bought at a silent auction. It’s a piece by artist Lori-Gene who I just found out passed away in 2014. Her site is no longer up – otherwise I’d link it. Here is another blog discussing her work. The frenzied fingers of the pianist mesmerized me and reminded me of my piano classes in college.

Piano player - Lori-Gene — Original Drawing by Lori-Gene

I also have a picture of the solar system my daughter drew. It was cute, but I especially loved it for one specific detail. The planet on the extreme right is Jakku. That’s right – the planet from which Star War’s Rey hails.

Our solar system along with visiting planet Jakku – by my daughter.

I have some other works by Christensen around the room, and my daughter has claimed a small wall nearby for her own artwork. My creative space is slowly also becoming hers. I love it, and it’s my happy place.

What all do you have in your creative space?

DIY Tent Weights

There’s a big issue whenever I go to a craft fair. My quilts that hang from the tent end up acting like sails, and they catch every gust of wind. Thankfully I learned about this issue early on, and I purchased some cinder blocks. On the one hand, my tent doesn’t budge, and I don’t have to scramble to re-set everything as a result. BUT…the cinder blocks are…ugly. I’ve placed signs over them, etc, but I couldn’t help but wonder if there was something else I could do.

Thanks to Pinterest there is.

I found a blog, Betties N Brimstone, that had a tutorial on it for DIY tent weights. Considering all of my plans for the days leading up to my shows, I decided that there was no time like…well…today.

After church I ran to Home Depot and grabbed the materials. I like that the new ones won’t scratch my signs.

And now I’d like to give a shout out to my husband who, when casually informed of my plan and even more casually asked to help, just shrugged and dove right in. At this point, after 4 years of dating and 10 years of marriage, he knows he married a “project person.” And he’s been somewhat patient over the years as I’ve gone from focus to focus.

Today we spat out concrete dust and drilled PVC pipes, all in the name of ~~love~~ craft fairs. Right now we have four pipes filled with concrete and protruding eye hooks in the hopes they’ll solidify and become first-class tent weights.

tent weights

Dog beds

One thing you have a lot of when you do t-shirt quilts is SCRAPS! I’ve had bags overflowing with scraps by the end of Christmas and graduation season.

A while back I asked my friends for fabric donations to be used in making dog and cat beds. It needed to be non-cotton, durable fabric that wasn’t suitable for quilting. Boy oh boy did they deliver!

I use that fabric to make basic squares and rectangles, and then I stuff them with strips of fabric leftover from the t-shirt cuttings.

I donate them to the organization where I got both my cats and my dog: the Society of Humane Friends. Those precious people can be found every. single. Saturday at Petco, organizing pet adoptions. It was my way of helping the foster people cut down on the materials they were buying while they fostered those pets.

Thanks guys, you’re amazing!

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