Talking Quilts

 
If, to coin an old phrase, a picture paints 1,000 words what does a picture of 1,000 words on Cloth say!!!!

Absolutely gasp worthy Cloth...I simply cannot wait to get my hands on this and see what happens.  What will the message end up?  Words...words...more words...

Tactile and intelligent all rolled up in one...and unrolled on our NEW and FABULOUS quilt rack.  Yes, after years of begging, planning, pleading I got the man to build me the quilt rack of my dreams!!!  The essential word here was PLEASE...or maybe NOW!  Whatever the means it is now covered with quilts that say MAKE ME! (please)

 Follow, follow, follow the tangerine stones....

Cloth, back in the house in all its glory.  Its a big job unrolling and then rolling this beautiful fabric.  It such a complete sensory overload in that the fabric has such a nice substantial feel and then it smells earthy and real and well, the look speaks for itself.

And once again I find myself wishing I was in starting mode instead of finishing mode at them moment.  I also want to get my hands on these little beauties... completely conscious free ORGANIC cottons.  Not just earth friendly but design friendly as well.

Organic cotton in limey greens with cruising bikes.  Something nice for the boys to enjoy.  As a mother of boys I really enjoy seeing a fabric that says boy without being too brutish.

Recently we have acquired some fabrics from Turkey of undistinguishable origin given that they came via Istanbul but look more vintage Russian in nature.  Diedre selected a piece to say carpet style.  The blue border really really really works and when she started getting the triangles up it was hard to look at anything else and the diamonds start to take us to another land of geometric shapes and repeat patterns.

Sometimes saying less is saying so much more!...

 The eclectic mix is the destination of choice.  A wild combinations of fabrics ranging from vintage to reproduction to contemporary is very engaging and speaks of the maker as being an individual.  I know sometimes when people come into the shop they are surprised and maybe confused to find things mixed up.  However we do that intentionally.  The surprises are exciting.  The unexpected excites us.   Rather than grouping the obvious with the obvious we work the bays to invite the quilter to look harder at what they are seeing and to review options. That's what its all about to us...and then those options give us the opportunity to stand back and carefully consider what is happening before our eyes.

I often think of it like a song...words set to music.  There are some songs you hear and instantly like.  However after a few listens there is nothing more to grasp onto.  The lyrics repeat and the meaning is obvious or maybe nonexistent.  But a good song...a piece with layers of sound and a message that slowly reveals...well that is the kind of music we want to listen to over and over again.

Combinations of fabric are fascinating but good use of a fabric is the volume in the song.  Brigitte Giblin turned it up when she used the Kaffe Liberty fabric to make outstanding borders in this quilt.  This is a particularly wonderful fabric with dramatic effects.
 A while back I did a workshop on Gypsy Kisses with Wendy and friends from Newcastle.  Wendy brought her finished quilt in yesterday.  Isn't it beautiful!  I bought that fabric as an option for Gypsy Kisses and before I got 10cm it was sold out!!!  However it is worth it when I see it come back like this...the "like a version" cover song!  How interesting is it the way the squares pop out and create a secondary design element?  Wendy also brought in her Kaffe Fassett workshop quilt which she did in black and white...who'd a thunk it!  A Kaffe workshop with black and white!

There is an interesting use of fabric here too.  That border is a zig zag cut just right to frame the angular design of the quilt.  

Also by Wendy quilt was a Bonnie Hunter pattern that Wendy also finished recently and all were quilted by Kay at Quilts on Q.  
 What a combination...fabric, patterns, quilters...no two can be exactly the same.  

So given a piece of these fabrics...

 Or what about these sweet memory stirring girls on swings and dogs with balls...

what would you do? The possibilities are endless.  No matter what the choice of fabric is or where in the world it comes from we have so many wonderful options.  Do you wonder when you pick up a bolt what would your fabric choice will make your quilt say about YOU?  k

Comments

[joelle]

when the ladies are auditioning fabrics, like the triangles around the turkish fabric, are they cut? do they buy the yardage first? because i see other fabric triangles in a lower picture. is that cut and bought too? i'm interested in understanding how you manage that. can't it get expensive to cut? thanks. i'd love to know how that works.

[V]

The WORD fabrics are speaking to me.. I need to get some of that... I'm also crazy for the retro dogs and green pink and blue birds... I forget the woman's name now... I think it's easier for other's to tell me if fabrics are "ME"... I look at my stash and I think it looks full of medium tones... I do have people say that's a very me print... hmmmm, what does that mean...

[AT]

Beautiful Quilts and a great article! All my quilts are quilted by Kay at Quilts on Q in Newcastle, and they always exceed my expectations.

[Gin Hewitt]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the word material!! Is there any left?? Will go perfect in a project Im working on....

[North Face]

On the non-payment of a bill of exchange, the notary public

[Coach Outlet Online]

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[North Face UK]

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[christian]

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