QuiltCon Compilation Quilt 2015

This past February I had the pleasure of attending QuiltCon. It was an amazing experience, and I walked away with an overabundance of inspiration. This quilt combines aspects of all four workshops that I took at QuiltCon 2015: Japanese Sashiko Stitching with Maura Ambrose, Emphasis with Carolyn Friedlander, Basic Improv Quiltmaking with Quilters of Gee's Bend and Off the Grid: Creating Alternate Layouts with Lee Heinrich.

I started the improv blocks in the Basic Improv Quiltmaking with Quilters of Gee's Bend workshop. The supply list called for old clothes, so I brought a couple of my husband’s old dress shirts and some coordinating quilting cotton scraps. There wasn’t a lot of structure in the class, so I left with a stack of improv blocks and no idea what to do with them.

While the improv blocks sat untouched in my WIP pile, I pondered what to make to enter in the QuiltCon 2016 show. I really enjoyed the 2015 show, and wanted to contribute something special to the next one. One day, it hit me: why not make a quilt that showcased what I had learned at the last QuiltCon?

First, a made a scrappy version of Carolyn Friedlander’s Emphasis block. You can find the pattern in her book, Savor Each Stitch. Paper piecing still isn’t my favorite technique, but I enjoyed taking a more improv approach to this one, in order to make sure that it played well with the Gee’s Bend blocks.

Using the dimensions of the Emphasis block as a guide, I trimmed down and built up my improv blocks into rectangles. I laid them out in an alternate grid, with the Emphasis block offset as an asymmetrical focus point, inspired by Lee Heinrich’s Off the Grid class. I made sure to make enough blocks so that the end result measured 37” square, just big enough to be too big for the Small Quilts category of the show.

After the top was pieced, the fun began. Using the circular motif that Maura Ambrose had taught in her Sashiko class, I hand quilted concentric circles one inch apart, using the middle of the Emphasis block as the starting point. I used a Sashiko needle and thread, and no hoop, just like in the class. At first, it was challenging to hand quilt a larger piece without a hoop. Once I got the hang of it, I loved it. Stacking stiches on the large needle made for quick stitching and the thread glided through the fabric in the loveliest way. Since I really wanted to finish this quilt in time to submit it to the 2016 show, I worked on it whenever I could, but I was a little bit sad when it was finished because I enjoyed quilting it so much. I already have plans for my next quilt using this technique.

In the end, I am extremely satisfied with my QuiltCon compilation quilt. I feel that it expresses the spirit of each of the classes I took. Even if it isn’t accepted into the show, it’s a wonderful souvenir of my trip and all that I learned. 



Update: Linking up with Scraptastic Tuesday at she can quilt and Finish It Up Friday at crazy mom quilts.

Best of QuiltCon 2015

QuiltCon was awesome and overwhelming and I am so very thankful I was able to go. After spending some time reflecting on the experience, it’s the best parts that stand out the most for me:

Best Hand Quilting Class

Before QuiltCon, I had never heard of Maura Ambrose. I signed up for her Sashiko class because I’ve dabbled in the technique and wanted to learn more. Maura makes beautiful hand quilted and naturally died quilts and walked us through her hand quilting process. In her own sweet, laidback way, she taught us straight line, circle and Baptist fan quilting patterns. We received the materials needed to quilt a linen placemat, so we could practice what we learned. While I definitely learned a few new tricks to add to my hand quilting arsenal, what I enjoyed most about the class was being able to sew and socialize all day long. I really enjoyed the slow pace and being able to connect with like-minded people.

Best Paper Piecing Class

When we signed up for QuiltCon workshops months ago, my mom and I managed to get in the same Carolyn Friedlander class, Emphasis. It was only later that we realized that the class wasn’t so much about using emphasis in quilt design, as it was making the Emphasis paper piecing project from her book, Savor Each Stitch. If I had known that before we registered, I would have never taken this class, and I would have missed out! Based on previous experience, I had decided that paper piecing was not for me. However, the way Carolyn explained it just clicked for me and I was able to finish a third of a table runner in class. Paper piecing’s still not my favorite technique, but after this class, I will no longer avoid it. I’m actually looking forward to finishing the table runner I started in class, and bought another one of Carolyn’s paper piecing patterns while at QuiltCon. I was really impressed by her teaching style. She’s quiet, but she made an effort to make sure that everyone could see her demonstration and spent individual time with everyone. Before this class, I admired Carolyn and her work, but after this class, I’m a Carolyn Friedlander fangirl!

Best Structured Class

I took Lee’s Off the Grid class because she was super nice when I met her at Sewing Summit a couple years ago, and I enjoy participating in her weekly WIP Wednesday link-up. While I have previously used alternate grid layouts in my work, this class gave me a more formal framework and vocabulary to use, so that I can be more intentional about it going forward. I absolutely loved how Lee structured the class. She would present slides about a few concepts with lots of example pictures, then break us up into teams to practice the concepts on design walls scattered throughout the classroom. After visiting each group and giving input, she would present more slides then let us practice them again. It was a really engaging way of teaching a quilting class, especially as she provided everyone with a printout of her presentation. Since we had to bring finished blocks to the class in order to practice the different alternate grid layouts, I was able to finish a quilt top before the day was over.

Best Food

Before the trip, I knew that the food in Austin was supposed to be good, and I was not disappointed. Pretty much every place I ate had super tasty food, and I ate everything from sushi to Brussel sprouts to barbeque. You could go to Austin just for the food! Here were my favorites:

Best breakfast: The classic crepe at Le Café Crepe
Best lunch: Gus’s Fried Chicken and everything at Moonshine
Best dinner: Pork Belly tacos at Micheladas
Best coffee: Café Medici

Best Part of QuiltCon: The People!

While QuiltCon is ostensibly about modern quilting, the best part about it was the people. In addition to spending quality time with my mom and our awesome roommate Marci, I had so much fun meeting new people in classes and on the exhibition floor, fangirling over people like Lizzy House, Denise Schmidt and everyone in the Cotton + Steel booth, putting real life faces to digital names, and getting to know my guild mates better. I loved wandering around the convention center and running into familiar faces, whether I had known them for years or for hours. Next time, I would definitely allow more time to enjoy all the wonderful people that are part of the modern quilting community.

If you’d like to see more of my time at QuiltCon, check out the hashtag #debandrachdoquiltcon on Instagram.