Celebrity Quilter Sightings

February 28, 2013March 4, 20136 Comments

As most of you know, I attended QuiltCon last week, the modern quilting show and conference. You can see pictures of the quilts here and read about my adventures here.

Today I thought it would be fun to share with you a few pictures of many of the “quilting celebrities” I met. These are such wonderful women and I want to be just like all of them when I grow up. As you look through the pictures, you can realize just how short I am!

Christa with Angela Walters

Here’s me with modern machine quilting goddess Angela Walters. She scrunched down to make me not feel so short. Nice of my BFF to do that, LOL! (Read this post to get that!)

Quite by accident I ran into Mary Fons, while talking to her publisher, and the next day I met her mom Marianne checking out quilts at the show. I told Marianne she was the one who helped start me on my quilting journey. Fons & Porter’s Quilter’s Complete Guide was the first book I ever bought, over 18 years ago! (Too bad I didn’t have it on me for an autograph!)

Mary Fons, Christa, Kristy Loeffelholz (publisher)

Marianne Fons, Christa

I was able to listen to a wonderful lecture of Anna Maria’s journey from artist to fabric and afterwards she posed with me and a couple of my buddies (Becca and Deirdre from the skill-builder BOM). She’s due now with baby #7 – whoo- hoo!

Anna Maria with Groupies

I was pleased to meet Alissa Haight Carlton in person. I advertise on her modern quilting blog and I was able to tell her what a wonderful job she and the QuiltCon committee did! (And I was excited to finally see a successful quilter about my height, LOL!!)

Christa, Alissa Haight Carlton

They say tall people are more successful – well, I’ve never had a problem with my size and what I lack in height I make up for in feisty-ness!

Finally, I got to share a moment with Jacquie Gering during the show. She brought everyone to tears discussing her own personal quilting journeys and inspiration. She talked about being a “Maker” and that really resonated with me!

Christa, Jacquie Gering

Her book, Quilting Modern (that she co-authored with Katie Pedersen) was the very first book I read about modern quilting, less than a year ago. You can read about that here.

If I can follow in any of these ladies’ footsteps, I will consider myself blessed!

What I Learned from QuiltCon 2013

February 26, 2013February 14, 201814 Comments

My head is still reeling from all of the QuiltCon awesomeness over the weekend. I hope you are not tired of me blogging about it yet! You can read about many the awesome quilts here.

When I arrived at the Austin Airport, I knew I was for a treat. In fact, I met a couple of gals on the plane headed to QuiltCon who were so friendly, even though we had just met. This was just the beginning of a weekend full of fun and friendship. Most everyone who attended was meeting people for the first time, and I felt like we all finally found an excuse in this world to be nice to each other. If all the world quilted, it would be a peaceful world indeed!

Austin, Texas Airport

The first day there, I started running into people that I had only met online before. Here are Faith from Fresh Lemons and Katie from Swim, Bike, Quilt. They were so sweet and fun to hang out with. In turn, they introduced me to several of their other blogger friends and we all had a wonderful dinner together Thursday night. When I asked how they all knew each other, they all responded the same, “from blogging, of course!” I knew right then and there that these were my peeps!

The next day I took a machine quilting class with Angela Walters. Angela is probably the most fun and enthusiastic quilting teacher I’ve ever met. I took lots of notes, not only on how to be a better machine quilter, but how to be a better quilt teacher, too! I asked her if she’d be my BFF and she said, yes!! (I think she says yes to everyone – but hey, I don’t care. I quilt-around, and I am not ashamed to admit it!)

Here’s Lee (from Freshly Pieced) and I next to the long-arm machines. While I prefer to quilt on my Bernina, the class was wonderful because Angela taught us techniques and design ideas that we could apply to any quilt. She gave me permission to share some of the designs in my quilts – so watch for that in my next quilt-along!

Friday night, I met up with a bunch of gals from Pile O’Fabric’s Skillbuilder Block of the Month. We talked quilting, discussed our BOM progress and had a pincushion swap. This is the one I received from Deirdre – isn’t it the cutest?? Thanks to Alyssa for putting this on!

In between socializing and viewing all of the lovely Quilts, I attended several of the informative lectures. I learned more about how to get my work published into books and magazines (keep doing what I’m doing, but save a few original ideas to debut professionally in print, not on the blog – sorry gals!)

Bill Gardner, Editor-in-Chief of Quilters Newsletter
Vicki Anderson, CEO & Publisher, Modern Quilts Unlimited

I also learned more about the history of modern quilting, and that we women are emotional and can cry at the drop of the hat when overcome by quilting awesomeness!

I learned what “alternate grid” design means. Instead of laying things out neatly in columns and rows, an alternate grid structure is used to create more randomness and I think, a more interesting aesthetic appeal.

Regular Grid Quilt

Alternate Grid Quilt

Modern quilting is definitely not art quilting; yet it is not constrained by traditional design.

It’s somewhere in between. In her lecture, Heather Grant said, “Art quilting is to fine art, as Modern quilting is to graphic art.” I also learned that making a quilt from “modern” fabric does not make it modern! (Well, I already thought that, but now it was confirmed.)

Ellen Rushman, Lecture on Modern Quilting Research

Some new areas of modern quilting that I would like to explore are making a low volume quilt (think lots of neutrals), and making quilts on an exaggerated scale (think pixelization but with clearer images). I also want to teach my own modern version of applique.

How will this all of this new knowledge influence me in the future? I now feel a little more focused in the direction that I want to take with my quilting, both personally and professionally. While my next quilt-along is set to launch tomorrow, the one after that will definitely be more modern!

Free Bag from Kaufman

Michael Miller Fabric Reps

I also have a better understanding for the kinds of modern fabrics I want to add to my store. I will definitely be adding more Kona Cotton Solids, and I will constantly be on the lookout for more cool collections (from Michael Miller and others!)

Watch for my next post on Celebrity Quilter encounters at QuiltCon, later in the week!

Additional Posts I wrote About QuiltCon 2013

More Amazing Quilts from QuiltCon 2013

February 25, 2013March 19, 201316 Comments

QuiltCon was the most amazing quilting event I’ve ever been to in my life! You can see pictures of all of the Award Winning Quilts by clicking on these links below:

My head is so full of inspiration right now that I feel like it’s going to burst! I think I will spend most of this week blogging, and getting my ideas organized and written down.

Every quilt that was entered received a participation button that looked like a mini-ribbon, so it’s like my own personal keepsake.

I can’t thank the organizers enough for all their hard work! I am already anticipating the next QuiltCon in 2015.

Here are more beautiful quilts from the show that really touched me in some way:

Touch This Quilt by Elizabeth Hartman, Hillsboro, Oregon

QuiltCon Block Challenge by Members of the Modern Quilt Guild
Assembled and Quilted by Elizabeth Hartman

Spin Dr. by Angela Walters, Kearney, Missouri

In Defense of Handmade (Bar Code) by Thomas Knauer
Quilted by Lisa Sipes, Utica, New York

Texas by Dana Michaelsen, Quilted by Angela Walters
Los Angeles, California

Pointless by Laura Bisagna, Winchester, California

Stella! by Susan Strong, Quilted by Ardelle Kerr
Wetaskiwin, Alberta, Canada

Las Vegas Modern Quilt Guild Charity Quilt 2011
By Members of the Las Vegas Modern Quilt Guild and Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild

Concerto by Alyssa Lichner, Gilbert, Arizona

Charming Chevrons by Christa Watson, Las Vegas, Nevada

It was such a pleasure to be a part of this experience! If you like my Charming Chevrons quilt above, you can follow my free tutorial series on how to make it.

QuiltCon – Award Winning Quilts Part 3 – Updated with Viewer’s Choice

February 24, 2013February 27, 201324 Comments

Today I am posting the rest of the QuiltCon winners. This show was so filled with inspiration that I’m going home excited, ready to start my next big quilting project. You can see the rest of the show winners in these blog posts: Part 1 and Part 2.

The viewer’s choice winner has been announced: Overgrown by Alison Glass & Lisa Sipes:

Viewer’s Choice – Overgrown, by Alison Glass of Norfolk, Virginia
Quilted by Lisa Sipes

Minimalist Design, Large 1st Place – Untitled by Lindsay Stead
Toronto, Ontario Canada

Minimalist Design, Large 2nd Place – 2+2 by Collen Wooton
Clinton, Washington

Minimalist Design, Large 3rd Place – Don’t Box Me In by Tammy Vasser
Olathe, Kansas

Minimalist Design, Small 1st Place – Pa Kua by Donna Morales-Oemig
Stow, Massachusetts

Minimalist Design, Small Honorable Mention – Helix by Nicole Neblett
Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Use of Negative Space, Large 1st Place – Trajectory #2 by Megan Dye
Portland, Oregon

Use of Negative Space, Large 2nd Place – Broken Diamonds by Kati Spencer
Taylorsville, Utah

Use of Negative Space, Large 3rd Place – Rhythm & Blues by Ann Deister
Louisville, Colorado

Use of Negative Space, Small 1st Place – Mobile by Elizabeth Brandt
Holland Michigan

Use of Negative Space, Small Honorable Mention – Shattered by Leanne Chahley
Edmonton, Alberta Canada

Handwork, Large 1st Place – Log Cabin Improv by Sherri Lynn Wood
Oakland, California

Handwork, Large 2nd Place and Judges Choice – Untitled by Lindsay Stead
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Handwork, Large 3rd Place – Dark Star by Maura Ambrose
Quilted by Juliet Gamarci, Austin Texas

Handwork, Small 1st Place – Modern Mini by Carolyn Braun
Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey

Handwork, Small Honorable Mention – Bohemian Confetti by Felicity Ronaghan
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Modern Traditionalism, Large 1st Place – New Star Rising by Ben Darby
Huntsville, Alabama

Modern Traditionalism, Large 2nd Place – Doppelganger by Thomas Knauer
Quilted by Lisa Sipes, Utica, New York

Modern Traditionalism, Large 3rd Place – Hannah by Kaite Sciarrano
Quilted by Susan Sciarrano, Portland Oregon

Modern Traditionalism, Small 1st Place – Lifesavers by Lee Heinrich
Mequon, Wisconsin

The next QuiltCon show will be in 2015 and I can hardly wait!

QuiltCon – Award Winning Quilts Part 2

February 23, 2013February 26, 201313 Comments

I just finished my second day at QuiltCon and I can’t even begin to tell you how amazing it is. I have enough pictures and notes that I could literally write a book about it, LOL!!

Today, I will share with you more amazing award-winning quilts. You can see Part 1 here, and Part 3 here.

Improvisation, Large 1st Place – Pantone Circles by Elizabeth Brandt
Holland, Michigan

Improvisation, Large 2nd Place – Unraveled by Kati Spencer
Taylorsville, Utah

Improvisation, Large 3rd Place – Love Will Tear Us Apart by Denise Gonzalez-Walker
Austin, Texas

Improvisation, Small 1st Place – Red Concentrate by Lavialle Campbell
Studio City, California

Improvisation, Small Honorable Mention – Sea Glass on Sand by Felicity Ronaghan
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Miniature 1st Place – Modern Challenge by Catherine Redford
Naperville, Illinois

Miniature 2nd Place – Analysis of Variance by Charlotte Newland
London, United Kingdom

Miniature 3rd Place – Shirts by Carolyn Friedlander
Lake Wells, Florida

Piecing, Large 1st Place – RonQuilt: The Ron Swanson Quilt by Monica Solorio-Snow
Astoria Oregon

Piecing, Large 2nd Place – Autumn Jewels by Krista Fleckenstein
Anchorage, Alaska

Piecing, Large 3rd Place – Don’t Blink by Caro Sheridan
Everett Massachusetts

Piecing, Small 1st Place – Flock of Starlings by Terri Carpenter
Moraga, California

Piecing Honorable Mention Piecing, Small Honorable Mention – Frost Bank by Claire Jain
Austin, Texas

I must say, I am quite impressed that most of the quilts here were quilted by the makers themselves. My favorite part of quilt-making is machine quilting, so I appreciate it when quilters are reaching beyond what is comfortable to quilt their own works.

QuiltCon – Award Winning Quilts Part 1

February 22, 2013February 28, 201348 Comments

All I can say is wow! QuiltCon is as awesome as I thought it would be and more. The quilts, the friendly atmosphere, the lectures, classes and more are a dream come true. The show was so well organized that you could tell immediately which quilts were competing in each category. The ribbons are the cutest and most creative I’ve ever seen!

You can see pictures the rest of the quilts in Part 2 and Part 3.

Cute QuiltCon Ribbons

So here they are – the best modern quilts. I tried to get pictures of all the ribbon winners so it will take me a couple of days to post them all. Enjoy the show! (See part 2 here.)

Best in Show – Double Edged Love by Victoria Findlay Wolfe
Quilted by Lisa Sipes, New York, New York

Best Machine Quilting – The Local Quilt by Carolyn Friedlander
Lake Wales, Florida

Judges Choice – Adrift by Tina Michalik
Quilted by Susan Spencer, Santa Cruz, California

Quilting Excellence – Sing It Out Loud! by Karen Anderson-Abraham
Santa Barbara, California

Applique Large, 1st Place – Flying Saucer by Lisa Alexakis
Culver City, California

Applique Large, 2nd Place – Rainbow Rocks by Kathleen Baden
Kernersville, North Carolina

Applique Large, 3rd Place – Retro Modern Shapes
By Heather Davidson, Portland, Oregon

Applique Small, 1st Place – Self Study #1 by Chawne Kimber
Easton, Pennsylvania

Applique, Small Honorable Mention – Needless by Laura Bisagna
Winchester, California

Dear Stella Challenge, 1st Place – Charm Squares Baby Quilt
By Melody Baker, Lenexa, Kansas

Dear Stella Challenge, 2nd Place – Not Quite a Shadow by Susan Shore
Quilted by Jessica Sloan, Austin, Texas

Dear Stella Challenge, 3rd Place – A Modern Day Mystery by Lisa Holk
Overland Park, Kansas

Group or Bee Quilt, 1st Place – Off the B.O.W.
Compiled and Quilted by Krista Fleckenstein, blocks by members of the Bee Liberated quilt group

Group or Bee Quilt, 2nd Place – Kelsey’s Crosses
Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild, Missouri

Group or Bee Quilt, 3rd Place – Confetti Amongst Friends
St. Louis Modern Quilt Guild, Missouri

And this is just the start! I can’t wait for more quilting goodness tomorrow!

Christa’s Quilt Links – QuiltCon Sneak Peek

February 16, 2013March 19, 201313 Comments

I’ve put together a little Sneak Peek of a few quilts going to QuiltCon. I do a LOT of blog surfing for inspiration and by chance have come across quite a a few blogs whose quilts have been accepted into this show.

Think of this as a mini show for those of you that cannot attend in person. I think this is only natural since the whole Modern quilting movement essentially started online. It only makes sense that we should all share.

This post is long, but I wanted to show a large enough of picture of each quilt so you can enjoy their beauty. All pictures are re-posted with permission of each quiltmaker.

Leanne from She Can Quilt:

Shattered

Noise

Lee, from Freshly Pieced:

Modern Mirage

Shattered Spectrum

Lifesavers

Faith from Fresh Lemons:

Off Centered Improv

Belle Wave

Kati From The Blue Chair:

Unraveled, Broken Diamonds, NY Beauty Mini

(Unraveled was featured in the latest issue of Modern Quilting Unlimited – Yay Kati!)

Melissa from Happy Quilting:

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Melissa has a tutorial on how to make this pretty quilt here.

Katie from Swim, Bike Quilt:

Desert Stars, Dear Stella Challenge

Amy from The Cute Life:

Birthstones, Madrona Road Challenge Winner to be Displayed in Michael Miller’s Booth

Be sure to visit each of these quilters’ blogs for some fantastic inspiration and and to learn a little bit more about each quilt. To think that my quilt will be hung with these lovelies is a humbling thought. I couldn’t ask for better company.

I am also super excited about all of the classes and lectures being offered at QuiltCon. I will be taking Angela Walters’ machine quilting class and I look forward to translating her long-arm quilting techniques into domestic machine quilting on my Bernina.

There are two lectures that I am most eager to attend; one is on preparing a book proposal and the other is discussing how to get one’s work into magazines. Since these are listed as part of my professional quilting goals, I will be all ears!

Every time I turn around, one of the awesome modern bloggers I follow has gotten one of her patterns published in a magazine or is writing her next book. If that’s not inspiration and encouragement I don’t know what is. 🙂

By the way, if any of you are going, here’s a link to my QuiltCon intro post with my picture. I’m pretty short (but feisty) so you can come on up to me in the halls or on the show floor and I’ll be glad to meet ya!

And She’s Off!

February 6, 201317 Comments

I got my Charming Chevrons quilt shipped off to QuiltCon today. Making the quilt was fun. The bag to store it in however, was another story!

We were required to enclose our quilts in some sort of drawstring bag.

The only bags we have around here are small ditty bags (for holding misc. board gaming pieces) or larger nylon bags that hold our backpacking gear – hubby wouldn’t be too happy if I took those over.

So, I improvised. I took out a piece of string from a pair of my comfy-cozy pants (they stay up anyway) and grabbed a hunk of fabric that I thought would be big enough. It totally doesn’t match my quilt but I’m going for utility here. 🙂

With a bit of folding, ironing, pinning and sewing, I was able to sew up the sides and make a casing for the drawstring which I inserted with a safety pin and “fished” around to the other end to close. I had to remember not to sew the openings closed. This is why I don’t make totes or “crafty” items- it’s hard for me to make it all line up when I’m working in 3D, LOL!!

In the future, I’ll stick to straight flat quilts instead and buy or trade for the rest. 🙂 At least the hanging sleeve was a breeze to make following Jacquie Gering’s wonderful tutorial.

My final touch was to add a label. I don’t like adding labels (call the quilt police now!) mostly because I haven’t found a “pretty” way to make one. I first tried free-motion embroidering my name in colored thread, but that didn’t turn out so well.

Next, I tried printing text onto some fusible backed white fabric. I was afraid the glue from the fusible would either melt or harm my laser printer, but it actually turned out ok. I used a sheet of Light Steam a Seam 2 which has paper on both sides. I took off one side of paper, ironed it to the back of some solid white fabric, trimmed it down to 8.5 x 11 inches and ran it through the printer. So far so good!

I was able to print off two labels on one sheet of paper, a larger one for the bag and a smaller one for the quilt. I machined sewed the bag label and hand sewed on the quilt label.

I’ve never shipped a quilt to a show before, but I’m hoping the combination of wool and cotton batting I used will help relax the fold lines once it’s hung and give it a nice drape.

At least I can check that off my list for the week. Now for the next thing on my “to do” list…

Christa’s Quilt Links, QuiltCon Intro and More

February 2, 2013March 19, 201315 Comments

I’m linking up to a couple of different posts today. Then I’ll tell you about more fun linkups at the end! Warning: this post is heavy on words and light on pictures! 🙂

The Modern Quilt Guild is hosting a linky party for those of us attending QuiltCon in just a couple of weeks. It’s a fun way for us to share pictures of ourselves so we can recognize each other when we meet in person. I’m also introducing myself for the Thinky Thursday linky party. Here are 5 things you may not know about me:

Here’s Christa!

1. I signed up to go to QuiltCon all by myself with no roommate or traveling buddy. No, I’m not a loner. It’s just when I first heard about QuiltCon in August, I had never met or talked to any modern quilters before so I didn’t know a soul. I just knew I had to go to QuiltCon and make some modern quilts. In the few months since, I have met many online friends through their blogs, gotten one of my quilts juried into QuiltCon and now officially consider myself a modern quilter!

2. I’ve been quilting since I was 20, (a year after I got married) but sometimes feel like I’m still a beginner. It took me about 10 years to figure out stippling and another 10 to finally give starching a try. But this is the year I make up for lost time, LOL!!

3. I turn 40 this year. I had to put that in there because sometimes I feel a little “sandwiched” in between the younger modern crowd, and the more experienced ‘quiltie ladies’ from my guild as I call them, (some old enough to be friends with my grandmother). But I love them all!

4. My husband and I work full-time from home running our online quilt shop. We also homeschool our 3 kids. Yes, we get in each other’s way and step on toes quite a bit so it’s kind of a crazy lifestyle. But we are in charge, so we love it! (We both used to be accountants so we know that a hard day at home is better than a great day at the office!)

Hubby and Kids

5. I hated writing papers in college but I love to blog about quilting! Ok, that one is sort of cheesy but what it really means is that sometimes I can be a little long-winded. That’s the beauty of written thoughts. I can write pages and pages of blog thoughts and then edit them down to one or two simple posts. And yes, this is the shortened edited version, LOL!!

So now that I’ve shared where I’m linking up, I wanted to include the following linky parties that I have come across in my blog travels.

They are all sewing and quilting related, and I can spend hours browsing through them and finding tons of inspiration. Just click the images to go that blog and enjoy!

Monday Linkups:

Tuesday Linkups:

Wednesday Linkup:

Thursday Linkups

And Sew Thinky Thursday Hosted by Mommy’s Nap Time

Friday Linkups

And Finish It Up Friday Hosted by Crazy Mom Quilts

Weekend Linkups:

If you have any other fun quilt-related linkups you participate in, just let me know!

QuiltCon Here I Come! Charming Chevrons Juried-In

December 28, 2012March 19, 201369 Comments

I just got the best news ever! I just found out that my Charming Chevrons quilt was accepted into QuiltCon, the modern quilting conference taking place in Austin, Texas in February.

I am practically speechless and beside myself with joy! I am already registered to attend the conference, and in fact just booked my plane ticket today. This is like icing on the cake! 🙂

Here is the front of Charming Chevrons (you can click to enlarge):

And here is the back (which I think is just as much fun as the front):

One of the quilting goals I made for the new year was to get a quilt accepted into a major show. Well, now I can cross that one off the list. (Or maybe I should say I’ll add to it?)

I will update the goal to read, “Win a ribbon at a major quilt show.” I’m sure this new goal will take much more than a year to accomplish, but I believe anything is possible with enough patience and perseverance!