Houston 2010

It was wonderful to join over 50,000 people at the International Quilt Festival in Houston this year.  There was so much to see and do.  The first thing I did was to run over to the Art-Naturescapes category of the IQA Quilts: A World of Beauty Judged Show.

My quilt "Caster Bean" was a finalist!  It was my first entry in a national show and I just couldn't believe it until I saw it hanging there.  That was when I decided I could pin the "Finalist" ribbon on my name tag.  One of my friends told everyone we met that I had a quilt in the show.  It was quite embarrassing and also quite fun.

Well, then I spent the next few hours in the 20 aisles of vendors.  There is an abundance of quilt and mixed media materials for sale.  I particularly like the display at this booth of silk and other fibers.  The white skeins were new to me this year and really lovely.  I just wish I could remember what they are.  It is written down somewhere...

I have bought many skeins of this silk over the years.  It is lovely to look at and to touch and some day will be used by me. 

Family Ties

 

Several years ago I was given a wonderful collection of hundreds of ties from my husband's great uncles spanning about 7 decades.  I decided to make 5 quilts- one for each of the 4 brothers and one for his parents.  To make the collection multigenerational, I added ties from my husband's father and "bros."  After much experimentation, I decided to keep the design simple so that the ties would be the focus.  The one above is the first of the series, made for my husband.

Here is a fun detail from ties near the center of 2 quilts.  The bottom of the tie lifts up for a peek.

The next 3 quilts made for the brothers are very similar to the first one. It was fun and challenging to cut each tie to avoid the inevitable gravy stains and to maximize the number of attractive rectangles.  You may think these ties were made of silk.  Surprisingly few were.  Dacron and acetate were common materials with some made of rayon and polyester.  These fibers did not adhere well to the iron-on stabilizers.

One of the uncles danced competitively with Arthur Murray Studios and the quilt above has his dance tie near the center.  Do you see it?  (Hint-it is a burgundy color)

 

One of the uncles had a name that began with a "D".  See the long tie block with the big "D"?  This quilt was made for the brother (middle) named after this uncle.

 

The other uncle had a name that began with a "C" and a tie with a big letter is on this quilt, made for the brother (middle) named for this uncle.

The final quilt in this series was made for the parents in a different design and a wall size.