Zoe - Park Applique Quilt

Zoe

90” x 90”

Preferring the background to the spotlight, yet refusing to be outshone, Zoe is a strong woman. She will always work hard, with or with out credit, but never dismiss her. She was there at the beginning of the fight and is still there, supporting those with more energy for the battles. Quick to hug you, a twinkle in her eye, and just the right touch when you didn’t even know you needed it. She is the mom who knows you better than you know yourself, even though she never had kids of her own. Not really an option for her, truth be told. Now, though, she is mom to all her girls.

A long time ago Carolyn Friedlander convinced me to try applique. She promised me that I would like it with the right tools, patterns, and techniques. She was not wrong. I know the basics, even took a class or two as a beginner quilter, but it never stuck. What I didn’t like about it was that it was so much prep before I could even get to sewing. At least, the way that I was taught required a lot of prep. But Carolyn’s way is straight from cutting to basting (which is sewing) to stitching. Plus, her patterns are modern and gorgeous. I started with her Alturus pattern and learned a lot.

Over 10 years ago I started using her Park pattern to teach applique here in town. Park is a great pattern for beginners because it has inside and outside corners, curves and straight lines, and looks cool. To make my initial samples and the blocks I used in classes I chose from a stack of fabric I’d sent to Lisa Flower, which she painted. Quite quickly, I decided to keep making blocks. Inspired by my initial pull sent to Lisa I added fabrics as I went.

Somewhere along the way, one of my husband’s cousins moved to the Province. We would visit in Edmonton and they would visit here. Quite quickly, it was clear that her girlfriend was definitely going to be her wife one day. I don’t remember exactly when, but I decided that these Park blocks would be a wedding quilt for them when they did get married.

The top was finished in 2017, more or less. It took me another year or two to trim the fabric from behind the applique so there was no shadowing. It’s always a nervewracking process. Then the quilt sat and sat. I came across the Suzy Quilts wide back at a local sale and matched it to the quilt. All of this before the wedding happened. That came in 2020, a small pandemic wedding.

Yes, I did just finish the quilt.

The fabrics include so many favourites and such a yummy colour combination. I enjoyed pairing fabrics and then figuring out a layout that works. It’s bold, with the odd quiet moment. Some blocks are very high contrast and some are a bit confusing. In pairs, though, the combinations are always interesting.

It’s always a little tough to quilt an applique quilt. Or, at least, to decide how to quilt an applique quilt. Or is that just me? Rather than outline the shapes I went for straight lines in a grid, each line 2” apart. It’s easy and will be more than good for holding everything together and still be cuddly.

I went with a great contrasting binding. The ladies’ house has a lot of green accents so I decided to add that colour to the quilt. Thankfully, it works well with the existing fabrics.

In all honesty, I don’t know why I procrastinated so much with this quilt. It took less time to make the 25 applique blocks than it did to turn the top into a finished quilt! (Aside from the two months I lost quilting when my machine broke and went in for service.) Oh well, it is done now and I am already getting photos of the family (yes, they have a kid now too) snuggled. That’s all that really matters.

And now, I’m already making more blocks! When moving the studio I discovered a couple more blocks. Leftover class samples? Regardless, I realized that with these blocks and a few more additions I could make a small version of the quilt. The little guy of the family only wanted a baby doll for Christmas so I am making him a quilt just like his Mamas’ for his baby.

Faye

Faye

72” x 72”

Years in the making. Like her namesake. A fearless woman, tenacious, and patient. She knew her time would come. Moved to New York with a dream. Moved through New York with relentless energy. Meeting people, making herself just that much more, ignoring the naysayers. She persevered and found her beauty and her success.

Faye, the quilt, began life in the follow-up to making the Alturas quilt. Carolyn Friedlander’s book, Savor Each Stitch came out and I fell in love with the graphic pattern. She’d already got me hooked on needle turn appliqué so this seemed like a logical step. I started the first block back in the fall of 2014. This finish is indeed a long time coming.

One block led to two and then I might as well do four, right? The initial pattern in the book calls for one block and a great use of negative space. I never follow a pattern anyway. So over the course of a few years I worked on the blocks. Looking back, it took me about 6 hours to baste each block, then who knows how many to stitch. Appliqué is not for a quick finish. Then again, nothing is a quick finish for me.

The finish for Faye come very recently though. Our family wanted to gift a quilt to celebrate a wedding. The gift was long overdue and we decided that this quilt top matched the couple’s personality. I will admit, I had a moment of selfishness for her. Then I realized that my love for her came in the making more than anything. It was time to set her free and share that love.

I always have a hard time with quilting an appliqué project. It’s a battle between accentuating the appliqué and ease. At least, it feels like a battle. In the end I went for a straight line quilting pattern. For one, Carolyn has done this a lot in the past and it works. It provides texture and security without taking away from the graphic design. Secondly, I am hoping this will be a loved couch quilt so I wanted dense quilting to help keep her strong.

The whole quilt is divided into quarters with an X through the middle. Then I echoed that line between each triangle. I chose a pale yellow/cream Aurifil thread in 50W (2311). It isn’t harsh on the backing but disappears for the most part on the front. It might seem odd to use a creamy colour when there is so much bright white, but the reduction in contrast on the coloured fabrics makes it worthwhile and you don’t even notice it on the white.

You know me and my love for a contrast binding. This bright yellow might seem like a funny choice, but almost all of the blocks have a bit of yellow in them. Black, my other thought, seemed too harsh. I had just purchased this yellow Spectrastic by Giucy Giuce from Keystone too. It was meant to be! Such a fun pop to finish this off.

The whole quilt really is a collection of some favourite and treasured fabrics. I started the whole thing with Samarra Khaja’s amazing New York illustrated fabric. Combined with a much loved Charlie Harper print that first block set the tone for the rest of the combinations. I stuck with the New York fabric when I realized I had enough of it, then paired it with some hoarded Heather Ross unicorns, the Stendig calendar print, and a gorgeous purple from Carrie Bloomston. On the back I shared another Charley Harper treasure.

Hopefully I will get to visit Faye in her new home.

Modern Mills and Stars from Perfectly Pretty Patchwork

Back when we could hang out with other people I had a lovely breakfast with Kristyne Czepuryk. We are lucky enough to live in the same city and get to hang out when our schedules allow. She shared a copy of her latest book with me. It is pretty and perfect and so bang on for her style, I love it. And right now, a lovely distraction from the real world. She asked me to make something from the book and share it as part of her book tour.

I chose the Mills and Stars pattern, one that has always appealed to me yet I’ve never made a single block. Because it is me, I changed up the colours quite a bit from Kristyne’s typical pastel palette. It works with the patterns in the book because they are classic, traditional patterns that be played with.

Mills and Stars can also be known by Hummingbird as well as Periwinkle. In fact, I remember Kristyne telling me the story of the block at that breakfast but it has slipped away from my brain.

I won’t lie, this quilt was a lot of work, especially for me. I am decidedly not a template person. Yet there I was cutting out hundreds of pieces for 73 blocks, each with 12 pieces of fabric in them. (I watched/listened to Fleabag, Dr. Thorne, and Austenland while I worked on it. Whatever it takes!) In the end, however, it was welcome work. A respite from the world to just get lost in someone else’s decision making. Once all the cutting is done it just becomes assembly line production. I always forget how fast the sewing goes when you’ve cut everything in advance. I did eventually finish.

The final quilt is a slight adaptation from the original pattern. I made it one row of stars all the way around smaller. My intention is to gift this as a baby quilt so I didn’t need it to be 60” square. I also used a single piece of the background around the center section, rather than what the pattern called for. Just to show off that cool Carolyn Friedlander fabric.

So often we think things aren’t ‘for us’. I won’t lie, the book is delightful and pretty, but it isn’t something I am instinctively drawn to. More often than not, however, it is about seeing shapes or projects beyond the fabric. Kind of like viewing a house you want to buy and ignoring the colour on the walls. I’m not a basic beige person in my house, but someone else may love it. I’d rather have lime green and that can turn off a whole new crowd of people. I think we all need to look at shapes and patterns more than fabric and colour when we see a book or a new quilt. That’s why I was drawn to this pattern myself. It was the mix of block sizes and the graphic nature of the block itself that grabbed me. I just had to add my own spin on it.

The books is full of classic designs and some really cool projects. For each block design there is a quilt pattern as well as a small project. And who is to say you can’t mix and match one block with another project? The instructions are attentive to detail, templates are included in a tear out sheet, and the photography is well, pretty. Kristyne has made a lovely book.

Park Quilt Blocks Done and Resting Together

Over two years worth of hand applique. Not the only hand work I did in that time, but definitely the bulk of it. Maybe it should be a relief that it is over, but there is some sadness there too. It's been such a constant companion in that time. Coming with me on trips, to pools, while watching shows, on quiet Sunday mornings. Forever forcing me to slow down, to be silent. A welcome respite from the frenetic energy of improv piecing, deadlines, and household chaos. 

All that being said, it won't be getting quilted anytime soon! Mostly because I haven't a clue how I want to quilt it. The quilt top needs some time to rest and I need time to think on it.

The whole thing started for two reasons. One, I was teaching a couple of hand applique classes and Carolyn Friedlander's pattern is a perfect lesson. With her permission I used the block. The other starting point was a bundle of fabric I gave to Lysa Flower to paint years ago. She asked for a bundle of my favourite fabrics. Many of those fabrics are in this quilt and the originals inspired the rest of the fabric selection. 

It was a lot of fun to pick different combinations of fabric for the blocks. Some times I went for really high contrast, others for almost none. The pattern combinations are shocking to many, but I love each and every one.  I was able to use some of my new Tag fabrics with some old treasures.

I really do need to think on the quilting so I can do the whole quilt proper justice. It's okay, I'm not going anywhere and neither is this quilt.