I watched Rickey on the internet doing curves . I made this quilt to show our group how easy it is to sew curves . So many people are so frightened . I took 6 min. to rotary cut two squares , sew one together , iron and  square up and put on the design wall .

Several years ago, I made a quilt called Garden of Pomegranates…adapted from a commercially available pattern.  Because I had to rush the quilting to meet a show deadline, the quilt did not live up to its potential.  Today it serves as a reminder to slow down, enjoy the process and give each quilt the time it deserves.  The new quilt, BACK TO THE GARDEN is really a do over.  Since it would be boring to make an identical quilt, I selected a different color scheme and fabrics; I changed the setting and reduced the scale to up the degree of difficulty.

This is a half square triangle quilt, made from two different gradients of a speckled ombre fabric. I took advantage of the different shades of fabric in just one yard.  I also included a yellow fabric I hand painted using Neocolor water-soluble wax pastels.

I echoed the color values of the sun in the purple gradient fabric below, to create the look of the reflection of the sun on water. The center star and pin wheels gave the quilt dimension and a focal point.

This quilt was inspired by a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822) "On a Faded Violet" and the poem "Afterglow". It was made in memory and in the process of healing from the loss of a child.

I designed this quilt in Rosalie Dace's "Here and Now " class in Sisters, OR in August 2015.  Then I agonized over finishing it, finally completing it in February 2016.

Half-size 2010 BOM

I have to share this with the TQS family.  The beautiful hand-dyes used in this quilt make this quilt glow with beauty and warmth.  When I saw Ricky's 2nd in Arthurian Legend Quilt Series I was immediately drawn to these warm, elegant colors.   I purchased the kit, which made making this quilt a breeze.  All the fabric was pre-cut using an AccuQuilt cutter.  It went together with precision and having it pre-cut saved tons of time.  It was so relaxing and fun to make.  There was plenty of fabric for the borders, so I made them 7" wide, a variation from the pattern directions.  I also used all the extra pre-cut blocks and made an extra row, so my quilt has 15 x 16 rows. It finished to 81" x 85".  It is quilted with a chocolate brown Superior Threads "So Fine" on the top and a copper "Bottom Line" thread in the bobbin.  It is quilted with allover feathers to add to the elegance of Ricky's hand dyes.   Ricky's hand dyes were also used for the back of the quilt.  This beautiful quilt will greet quests in our extra bedroom.  

Two "majestic beauties" on the west coast of British Columbia are the cedar tree and the bald eagle. This winter we have seen hundreds of bald eagles in the trees nearby and they inspired me to make this wallhanging. The collage technique was learned in a class with Susan Teece. The background is hand painted with fabric paints.

Original Design by me. Painted background with added applique fused and stitched. Some Free Motion Quilting. Some machine quilting. 18" wide by 24" long

From a photograph my daughter-in-law sent to me.  A beautiful doorway in France, painted on 100% PFC cotton.  I used Pebeo fabric paint.and quilted around the details of the doorway and the stone wall to provide dimension.  The quilt sandwich was then stretched around an artist's canvas frame "gallery wrap" style.  The piece was then sprayed with a fine art varnish to provide protection.

This is an 8 x 9 1/2 inch quilt based on Ricky Tims Valentine free pattern.  It has 2 1/2 inch squares background with applique leaves, I used Accuquilt heart and bird dies.  It is machine pieced, quilted and appliqued.

I did this for a friend. It depicts all 12 of her past/present Cat pets.

I did it in raw edge applique, quilted all edges completely. Used white/blue batik for borders and backing.

I did the cats from photographs she supplied.

Our granddaughter's parents wanted a high contrast quilt for their first child because of the studies that show this kind of image stimulates baby's eyesight and brain development. 

MQX NE 2016 has called for quilts in their Alfred Shaheen Vintage Panel exhibit and I decided to make one just for relaxed fun.  After it was finished, I decided to enter it into the juried part of the show because I liked the way it came out and they waived the entry fee, so why not.  I found my beautiful linen panel online and designed the borders around it.  I was fortunate to find exactly the right solid colors for the borders, and so I quilted, then painted the light green border.  The dark green border is my first venture into ruler work for a show quilt, since all I did was make a row of touching circles using Lisa Calle's new circle rulers with my Bernina 830.  They are hard to see, but I quilted in a frog, a pig, a parrot, and a flying bird in the white background of the central panel and then did a circular twirl fill with that.  Fun to make...since I'm competing against some of the country's best quilters, I would be really surprised if it wins anything, but that's ok.  It makes me happy.  This quilt will be available for purchase on my shop after it finishes its show season (it will be shown in the fall MQX also).

This table runner was made with a group of friends, as we explored surface design; print making with shiva sticks, foiling, embossing, and fabric painting with fabric paints and Inktense blocks. Each leaf block started out as a plain white fabric. I was also reading Jean Wells book "Journey to Inspired Art Quilting" so I made the alternate blocks with her curved piecing method. We gave ourselves "permission to play" and it was a lot of fun!

I have always found Michael James strip pieced quilts an inspiration. When I saw Louisa L. Smith's book Strips and Curves, it inspired me to make this quilt.

My mother made a quilt for each of my 3 children and gave me the left over fabric for the quilt she made for my daughter. She was always an excellent seamstress, yet started quilting after I took it up. It is wonderful being able to share our passion for quilting together.

I had always wanted to do a quilt that included black and white fabric with colored fabric. I love the contrast and reflections of the combination. I also enjoy quilt projects where the creativity continues throughout the quilt making process. 

I strip pieced the fabrics, then made Drunker's Path combinations and inset circles using the pieced strips and whole cloth "Fussy cut" images from the fabric. I then played around on my design wall with the arrangement of the squares. I added the striped extensions and  appliquéd animals that expanded the animals into and off the edge of the quilt.

Just finished Carol Ann Waugh's Stupendous Stitching class on Craftsy and fell in love. What a great technique to relax and just let your mind go. She's a fantastic instructor and I enjoyed every minute of it. Can't wait to do more of these. Highly encourage anybody looking for something fun and not fiddly to give this a shot! I call it Convergence for many reasons that are too long to get into here

This is a BOM from a 1998 Peacemakers Calendar that included a BOM for each month to complete the calendar quilt. 

The blocks blended together between the blocks. The lines of the background were matched together and some appliqué  was added between two blocks after they were completed. It was hand quilted after the whole top was completed.