Quilt Fiesta! Highlights of the Show (finale)

Here are more favorites from the Quilt Fiesta, the annual Tucson (Arizona) Quilters Guild show, including awrd winners. We hope you have enjoyed the photos!

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Four Ladies by Diana Strzok

Primarily appliqued and machine quilted, this piece was made and quilted by Diana Strzok.  It was inspired by a Monica Stewart Unity print.  Diana Strzok says, "A Monica Stewart unity print has hung over my fireplace for years, when my partner suggested that I use the design to create a quilted wall hanging." These dancing ladies even have earrings as embellishments.  The freeform quilting designs enhance the sense of movement within this quilt.

Joanna Canada's Last Gift entered by Catherine Mombourquette; top made by Joanna Stephenson, quilted by Joanna Stephenson, Sara Rumbaugh, Joyce Kaiser, & Ruth Martin

Joanna Stephenson, long-time Tucson Quilters Guild member and past Best of Show winner, nursing instructor, private pilot and Canadian wilderness homesteader, was a member of the Piecepatchers Bee.  After her passing, this original design quilt was bequeathed to the Bee to finish for Quilt for a Cause. 

The themes include flowers and birds, including a hummingbird and cardinal. The appliqued blocks and borders are beautifully hand appliqued and hand quilted.

 Perennial Favorites by Gloria Magee, quilted by Carolyn (Nubin) Minerd & Brenda Smitley

We enjoyed this beautifully appliqued quilt which highlights sashiko embroidery. The use of white thread on the black background really stands out! Gloria Magee says, "This pattern [Perennial Favorites by Sylvia Pippen] was supposed to have been done with wool appliqued flowers, but I felt the wool was too heavy for the black fabric so I chose batiks.  I found sashiko to be very addictive but fun!"

Circa 2024 Double Wedding Ring by Stephanie Nordlin, quilted by Athena Taylor

Here is a stunning double wedding ring quilt with great fabrics and some lovely quilting [by Athena Taylor]!  Stephanie Nordlin says, "Papers purchased for a three ring tablerunner and eight fat quarters grew on me! I wanted an updated version of my grandmother's quilt circa 1933.  [The] Hand pieced rings are machine appliqued to background."

The Goldie Richmond Project / Goldie's Rodeo by Kay Walen, quilted by Whisper Stitch Studio

Here is a fantastic sampler quilt with 25 appliqued blocks featuring rodeo and Southwest themes.  Kay Walen says, "This quilt is a combination of the Goldie Richmond Project and Goldie's Rodeo patterns with an original layout.  I chose this pattern to challenge my needle turn hand applique and embellishment skills."

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2024 Tucson Quilters Guild show.

Exotic flower quilts (we're dreaming of paradise)

Here are the stunning flower quilts we've been writing about for the last week.   As you can see, each quilter has her own unique style.  These exotic flowers bring to mind Hawaii and other tropical climes.  We wish we were there (but this is the next best thing !)  We hope you've enjoyed the show too.

Image credits and links: Row 1, Sylvia Pippen, Sylvia Pippen Designs; Row 2, Eileen Sullivan, The Designer's Workshop; Row 3, Brenda Yirsa, at Bigfork Bay Cotton Company; Row 4, Ellen Lindner, Adventure Quilter; Row 5, Vyvyan Emery, Rosewood Quilts.

Exotic flower quilts: Paradise Stitched, by Sylvia Pippen

Today, we begin a five-part series on quilts featuring exotic and unique flowers. To kick off the series, we are featuring several quilts from an outstanding and prolific designer, author, and teacher, Sylvia Pippen. Join us, as we sail the Pacific Ocean to Hawaii and Australia, lands of magnificent natural floral beauty.

Plumeria floating on water, 22 x 33, by Sylvia Pippen, at Sylvia Pippen Designs

Sylvia has so many fabulous quilt kits and patterns on her website - Sylvia Pippen Designs - that it's difficult to select favorites. However, we were enchanted by the exquisite appliqued pinks, peaches, corals, and magentas of the delicate plumeria flowers as they rest gently on a water background. Unconstrained, the flowers extend from the water, into the border batik. Silvia has made this quilt so life-like by the swirls of Japanese sashiko stitching which follow the curved applique background, thus replicating the ripples and undulations of a quiet pond. As a time-saver, the sashiko embroidery design is already screened onto the background cloth,  so all you have to do is follow the dashes printed onto the cloth in order to complete the stitches. Included in this kit is the Hoffman turquoise batik for the borders, water, and binding, along with sashiko thread and beautiful color-washed fabric for the plumeria.

 Blue lady orchid, 14 x 18, by Sylvia Pippen, at Sylvia Pippen Designs

This quilt block kit  is part of Sylvia's new quilt and new series on Flowers of the Outback, featuring six  Australian wildflower designs. We love how this cerulean blue fabric is gently tinted with pastel streaks to make it appear as if the orchid blossoms are streaked with sunlight.   Sylvia is preparing for a teaching tour of Australia in October/November 2011, where she will give classes and seminars on applique and sashiko techniques. The black Kona cotton background fabric is included in the kit and really makes the vibrant orchids just pop right off the quilt. We think that black is a great neutral when working with high-chroma, pure jewel-tone colors, as it provides a perfect contrast. Sylvia also sells the pattern for this quilt without the fabric, so that you can make a 20 x 24 wall quilt of Blue Lady Orchid.

Heliconia with bamboo, 31 x 38, by Sylvia Pippen, at Sylvia Pippen Designs

Heliconia flowers, with their bright pointed leaves, are an important source of food for hummingbirds in the tropical rainforest. The sashiko bamboo design provides a graceful sturdy backdrop for these exquisite blossoms in shades of orchid, pink, and pale yellow. Note the magenta, fuchsia and orchid inner border of this quilt, which glows against the black Kona cotton and reflects an eye-catching color scheme of fuchsia with yellow, orange-yellow and pale green. This "Heliconia with bamboo" quilt can be seen at Sylvia Pippen's Gallery; there is also a heliconia fabric kit in "sexy pink".

Paradise Stitched: Sashiko and Applique Quilts by Sylvia Pippen

Having lived in California, New England, and having sailed in her own sailboat across the Pacific Ocean to her current home in Hawaii, Sylvia Pippen is living a fascinating life. In addition to being a very gifted designer and teacher, she is also a wonderful author, as you will see when reading her book, Paradise Stitched, from C and T Publishers. It provides numerous ideas for creating beautiful quilts by combining sashiko stitchery with applique, including tips for fabric selection and patterns. Also, check out Sylvia's first book,  Asian Elegance, which she co-wrote with her mother, Kitty Pippen.