Evergreen Quilters 2012 Quilt Show

 I entered four quilts in the Evergreen Quilters 2012 Quilt Show in Green Bay WI which was March 24-25, 2012. They are one of the few regional shows that have special art quilt categories-landscape/still life, figurative/portrait, surreal/fantasy and abstract. The two quilts behind me I entered in the surreal/fantasy category and I won both 1st and 2nd place!! I also won an honorable mention in the figurative/portrait category. It was hard to chose which quilts for this show because I don't do landscapes and abstract which meant my work fell into the other two categories. I also had a few favorites at the same time being juried into an art quilt exhibit in Escanaba MI. They chose one out of the three I entered so if I had a crystal ball I would have entered one of the quilts that did not make the Escananba cut.

This quilt I entered in the machine pieced, machine quilted by master quilter category and won 2nd place. That made my day since this quilt was a very challenging project. I used the 2012 Hoffman Fabrics Challenge Fabric since it was going to be used for the challenge but was too big for the rules. I chose to make it anyway and I will enjoy the ribbon!!

This quilt won Best of Show and I like it because it is in bright colors yet the technique is traditional using the Baltimore Beauty style of hand applique. I did not ge the artist's name. :(

 This quilt called "Boom-Cosmic Inferno" by Diane Auger was in the Abstract art quilt category. I love it because of the high contrast between the black/white prints and the bright rainbow colors. It looks like a double Ricky Timms' Convergence quilt with her own applique over it. I love circles and thus was drawn to this quilt. It only won an honrable mention but I love it!!

This quilt called
"Zippity Do Dad" was in the Abstract art quilt category by Linda Kuritz and won second place. It has actual working zippers with funky hanging do dads as zipper pulls. I love the string quilt technique and the irregular edge. Lots of activity but it is cohesive in theme. Linda had lots of work in the show and I was able to met her and compliment her on her creativity!!

The Green Bay guild had a great biennial quilt show with 22 vendors (I bought lots of batiks and a tote pattern.) I got to visit with some of my Appleton WI quilt friends and many others quilt friends even those from Marinette/Menominee where I live!! I had so much fun!!

Joann Fabrics "Quilt Your Colors" Quilt Contest 2011

I entered the Joann Fabrics "Quilt Your Colors" Quilt Contest last year and made the cut of 22 finalists and I mailed my piece to the Joann Fabrics headquearters for judging. Unfortunately it did not make the top 10 where all the prizes/money were. I was bummed and said I wouldn't enter the next year. The size requirement was a minimum 36" x 36" which I thought my quilt measured. It actually shrunk in the quilting process and was not the minimum size and maybe that's why it didn't make it any farther than it did. So after 6 months of thinking about it I decided to give it another try for the 2011 contest and go bigger with my entry. This is my quilt named "Sapphire and Topaz" and is 51" x 42." I wanted to explore the color combination of blues and oranges. This was a challenge using Joann Fabrics fabric because they did not have a lot of prints with both colors together in the fabric. I went to three Joann stores-Madison WI, Green bay WI and Escanaba MI, and finally was satisfied with my collection of fabrics for the project. I have a secondary theme of circles in the quilt-circle print fabric, circle appliques, circle echo quilting in the background and circle shaped felt buttons and sequins. I found a fun blue and orange metallic knit in the Hallowee section which fit nicely for part of the hair. I kept the face quite simple because the hair was the emphasis. There are also beads and buttons sewn to the quilt and a bit of fabric paint.

I received a phone call last week to let me know of 900 quilts mine made the cut of 22 which now are shipped to their headquarters for judging!! That made my day!! I sent my quilt to Ohio on Monday and the judging starts after April 1st and by the second half of April we find out who the winners are. The top 3 quilts are photographed and are featured on-line on Joann's website and in an upcoming sale flyer. So it's a waiting game now but I love this quilt-the oranges make me smile!!

SAQA 2012 Auction Piece and 4 x 6 Exchange 2

Studio Arts Quilt Associates (SAQA) has an art quilt auction every September to raise money for the organization. They encourage members to create and donate a 12" x 12" piece for the auction and this is the third year I have donated a mini art quilt. Above is my piece which I named "The Woman by the Beach." The quilts will be on display at SAQAs website www.saqa.com later this summer and there is an on-line auction.  I was able to find out the individuals who purchased my quilts and that was nice to receive an e-mail from them and thank them for choosing my quilt-it makes it more personal!!

I was still inspired by the soft blues, tans and yellows from the Florida mermaid quilt I made for my friend and went with them in this quilt. I modified my pattern to fit the required size. I pieced the background and raw edged fused appliqued the image of the woman to the background. I embellished with blue/turquise crystals for eyeliner. If I mailed it before the March 16th deadline  my quilt will be included in the SAQA exhibit that will be displayed at the IQA Quilt Show in Cincinnati OH.

On-line I discovered  through The Art House Coopertive an art exchange. It is called The 4 x 6 Exchange 2. All I had to do was enter for free, make any art piece sized 4 x  6 which would fit in a standard envelope, meet the March 31st deadline and mail it to the designated address. When they are all mailed the mini art pieces will be exchanged and I will receive one back in the mail. I will post this returned exchange piece when I receive it! I thought it was a nice coincidence that my fabric postcards were 4 x6 so I used my scraps from the SAQa auction piece and made this postcard. I embellished with fabric paint and a few rhinestones. I mailed it this week and it went to Brroklyn NY. Can't wait to see what I get!!

Fabrications III: Art Quilts of the U.P.

I may have posted this quilt before when I made it for my local quilt groups 2010 quilt show challenge but it has been chosen for inclusion in the Fabrications III: Art Quilts of the U.P. at the Bonifas Art Center in Escanaba, MI. The exhibit runs from March 29-April 36, 2012 with an artists reception on Thursday April 12 from 7-9EST. This exhibit is every other year and this is the third time the Bonifas has done it-in 2010 my Tina quilt was entered and I won second place!!

This quilt began with three fabrics-the gold crackle, the dark green batik and the small floral print. I kept seeing the Green Bay Packer colors and couldn't get insprired. One of the local quilt shops got in a line of fabric with greens, browns and yellows and I had a plan. I used Ricky Timms' convengence quilt as a background and did a raw edged fused applique technique for the image of the earth mother. It has a very naturey feel to it and I added rhinestones, silk and felt flowers, leave buttons, silk leaves, and a decorative button as part of the necklace as embellishments. When I look at this quilt it is very calming to me.

The second photo is a close up of the face area.