Atmospheric Quilt

Atmoshperic Quilt

When my daughters married, I gave each of them a quilt as a wedding present. Sara and Josh’s puppy chewed a hole right in the middle of their quilt. So, when Sara and Josh sold their house and bought another one in November 2011, I promised Sara a new quilt of her choosing, but told her I would need one year to complete it. She choose a gray quilt with a little taupe color in it to match her new bedroom. Of course it had to be king-sized—I already had a king sized in the making for myself--no pressure! Plus, I had to find enough gray fabrics in light, medium and dark fabrics for the pattern I chose. In case you haven’t discovered—I like scrappy quilts—more fabrics make a more interesting quilt!

Finding a quilt in McCall’s Quilting magazine, March/April 2011, designed by Gerri Robinson as my inspiration, I designed a 15 inch block, carefully placing a light, medium and dark gray fabric in each block. The quilt has, I think, at least 40 different fabrics—I lost count! It’s amazing how many different “gray” colors of fabrics are available. Notice the quilt has no borders, giving it a modern feel.

If you were wondering about the name, I stole “Atomspheric” from the paint sample they gave me, feeling it fit the quilt.

Pattern: Inspired by Celestial Waltz by Gerri Robinson, published in McCall’s Quilting magazine, March/April 2011

Fabrics: Gray, Taupe, and White

Quilting: by Joyce Coburn

Batting: Warm & White Cotton

Started: July 2012

Finished: November 2012

"I'm the bad puppy"

Christmas Pickle Quilt

Christmas Pickle Quilt

After finding a picture of this quilt in an ad, I collected as many different green fabrics as I could find. It is paper pieced and I used the exact pattern from the book. Different greens were specifically selected for each block with red, gold and purple accents. I mitered the gold, red and green borders. The backing is a fabric with green pine needles on cream. Funny thing happened when I blocked the quilt--the red fabrics bled through to the backing. Very carefully, I used a Q-tip dipped in bleach to remove the red. It worked!

Pattern: Christmas Pickle Pattern from Home for the Holidays by Lynda Milligan and Nancy Smith
Quilting: by Joyce Coburn
Batting: Cotton
Finished: December 22, 2010
Size: 50 x 62
Quilt Shows: 2011 Lake FarmPark Quilt Show in Kirtland, Ohio and 2012 NQS Quilt Show in Columbus, Ohio

2011 Lake FarmPark Quilt Show

Gilbert's Quilt

Gilbert's Quilt

Nathaniel, my nephew, and his wife, Susie, were having a baby, and they decided not to find out the sex of it. So my dilemma was--what color to make the baby quilt? I chose brown and aqua, so it could be either a boy or a girl quilt. 

Pat Speth's quilts fascinated me, so I tried one of her patterns, Chesapeake, only I didn't use charm squares, instead used strips of fabric and Thangles. I cut the strips 2 3/4 inches and used 2 1/4 inch Thangles to make the half square triangles in this quilt. It has 24 brown and 24 aqua blocks. As you can see, it is larger than a baby quilt, more of a crib sized quilt.

So they had a boy, pictured here at nine months with his quilt. Isn't he a cutie?

 

Stained Glass Trip Around the World Quilt

My inspiration came from a quilt on the front cover of Quilter's World magazine, February 2007. My objective was to use the leftover fabrics from my Birthday Baskets quilt. I chose my favorite colors from the collection of fat quarters given to me by my friends with a request for Amish-like mottled fabrics--not solids!

Black strips create the stained glass window effect with 10 different colors of 2 1/2 inch fabric strips. There is a black border and binding to complete it into a wall hanging.

It is a beautiful quilt that brightens my office. 

 

Batik Double Sawtooth Stars Quilt

Batik Double Sawtooth Stars Quilt

As many quilters do, when I viewed the Double Sawtooth Stars Quilt in a magazine (I don't know which magazine, but will post when I find it), I knew I had to make it. However, the pattern was in just three colors, light blue, purple and dark blue. Of course, I made it my own scrappy type of quilt, deciding to use batiks in purple, aqua and green. 

 In my quilt guild, twelve of us participate in a birthday fabric exchange. At least one month before our birthday, we request a particular type of fabric. Then, on our birthday, we receive 3 fat quarters from each participating member of that fabric. During the year 2011, I requested dark and light Christmas batik fabrics in purple, aqua and green. As you can see, I received 33 beautiful batik fat quarters.

First, I planned each block using one light fabric, one medium and one dark fabric. The small star in the center of the block was made using the medium fabrics, the large star used the dark fabrics, and the background was the light batik fabrics. In all, this quilt has 49 -- 10 inch finished double sawtooth star blocks.

Next, the sashing was made using light and medium batiks. Each year, we are supposed to present our finished quilt on our birthday. Well, in 2012, I presented the top, without borders, on my birthday. It was not completed by my birthday on May 15. I actually spent the summer completing the borders.

The inner border is a red Christmas batik fabric, also used as a dark large star in several blocks, and as the binding. The large outer border, also a Christmas batik fabric, is found in the blocks as a large star. The center border used half square triangles which were the remains of the triangles trimmed from the large star point.

Not all the fabrics are Christmas batiks, but using several of them creates the effect of winter stars. The quilt is king size and is the Christmas/Winter quilt that covers my bed. It is extremely precious to me because my quilting buddies have contributed to this quilt and warms not only my cold feet here in cold NE Ohio, but my heart as well.

First quilt

Here I am at the National Quilt Association Show in Columbus Ohio with my first quilt entered into a national show. No ribbons, of course, but I feel honored and accomplished to even be entered into the quilt show. Upon first entering the quilt show, I wanted to find my quilt, Christmas Pickle. Heck with the best of show quilts. And Where do you think it was? In the very far corner of the room! Anyway, it was such a thrill to see my quilt hanging there, I didn't care. So we worked our way from the back to the front and ended at the best of show quilts at the end of the day. My favorite quilt, besides mine, was Sparkle, Fruitcake Quilt. Probably because I have those fabrics, but she did a wonderfully creative job of using all the fabrics in the Fruitcake line from Moda with Swarovski crystals--and the quilting was fabulous! Great job Sue Hawks. You have my vote for viewers choice. At the end of the day, I was very inspired with ideas, and also purchased fabrics for more quilts! Isn't that what it's all about?

Bevan Blooms

Using the fabrics leftover from Sara and Josh's wedding quilt, I made Bevan Blooms, a courthouse steps block. The pattern from American Patchwork and Quilting magazine, October 2006, must be very carefully constructed by matching each row with the previous one. 

Quilted by Joyce Coburn

81 inches x 94 inches