Joe Cunningham Workshop

Joe Cunningham was in town this week and I had the pleasure of taking his hand quilting workshop. I am a beginner at hand quilting so I didn't have to forget what I already knew. He taught us how to do the rocking stitch with a teeny tiny needle.  Roxanne #11 Betweens. He also showed us what to do with the ends of the thread so there is not a knot, and how to quilt so that when you're at a quilting frame you can  quilt in any direction, not just right to left (if you're right handed).

 

We got a close up look at some of his quilts. He does not mark them. He just free hand stitches and adds his signature into the stitches (can you see his name in the stitching?) and sometime a few other words that pertain to the overall quilt. So what if the leaves aren't all the same size and the lines aren't all the same distance apart. He also does machine quilting.

 

Last night at the guild meeting he entertained us with his guitar playing and singing. And of course, he showed his quilts and gave us the scoop on how and why he did what he did. Afterall, they are art quilts and not everybody would "get it."

The quilt below is called "Snakes in the Garden" and is on the cover of his new book Men and the Art of Quiltmaking.

The quilt below is called "Every Day is a Good Day".

The background red fabric is actually a wide backing. Now it's a fronting!

 

And my favorite.... "Winter Twister". Maybe it's my favorite because it's black and white.

He will be teaching another workshop today and then heading over to Gee's Bend, AL

to quilt with his friends there. He loves the traditions of the Gee's Bend Quilters... learning from their mothers, grandmothers, and great grandmother, and even gathering in the same building for over a hundred years.

Click here to visit Joe's website: Joe the Quilter

Batik Quilt - Square in a Square

What is the correct name for this block.? I've seen it called "square peg" and "square in a square" but they could both be wrong. If you know of another name for it please let me know.

Anyway, I saw other quilts like this online and thought they were gorgeous. So contemporary looking! Perfect for a 30-something son of mine. Using lighter and brighter colors would make it more feminine.

The block is very simple to make and the size can easily be changed to make a larger or smaller quilt, or change the number of blocks. I used 108  blocks in 12 rows of 9. The blocks finished at 6-inches (6.5 inches before sewing together). The fabric is cotton batik. 

Here's the cutting diagram.

Pieces A and B are cut from the same fabric, and C is cut from a contrasting fabric.

Sew with 1/4 inch seams.

This is the finished quilt. Approximate size - 72 x 54 inches



Grandma was a quilter

My grandmother, Bessie, made lots of quilts and although she's been gone for twenty four years, I'm lucky enough to know where a few of her quilts are.

I have this quilt made by Grandma - a Lemoyne Star block with light blue sashing, light pink background and cornerstones, and a slightly darker pink border and backing. The quilting design is the Baptist Fan which she used on most of her quilts.

Uncle Bubba, my grandmother's youngest child, has had this string quilt (below) since sometime in the 1950's. Notice the sashing and quilting are the same style as the one I have. Also notice all the plaid shirt fabrics. Bonnie Hunter (famous quilter) would be so proud of my Grandmother... or maybe it's the other way around. Bonnie has written a wonderful book called Scraps & Shirttails: Reuse, Re-purpose, Recycle! The Art of Quilting Green. Grandma Bessie reused, re-purposed and recycled everything.

A few words about me....

My name is Jeanelle.

I love quilts!

I do a little quilting,

a little painting,

a little photography,

a little reading,

not much cooking.

Mostly, I sell fabric.