52 Quilts Completed in 2013

I didn't plan on completing an average of one quilt per week, it just turned out that way. Some were bed sized, some were small; some were traditional quilts, but most were art quilts. (If you click on the links you will be taken to the original blog posts about each quilt.)

This year started out like the last few years, with the Project Quilting challenges:

 (top row, left to right) "Lime Squares", "Mountain Mist", "Coneflower Confection"

(bottom row, left to right) "Make a LittleBirdhouse in Your Soul", "Three Wishes, and "Tweet Dreams Baby Quilt"

And there were several custom quilts:

Two custom T-shirt quilts 

 Two custom bed quilts

Two quilts started by another quilter (left) "The Blue Collection" and (right) "Barbara's Pineapples" 

Then there were some quilts that were made for other groups:

(Left) My slice of "Industrial Dayton" for the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network’s Dayton Landmark Redux quilts and (right) a collaborative "String Quilt" for the Children's Museum of South Dakota.

Plus two more pieces:

(left) "Red Sky at Night" which was a special Project Quilting challenge and (right) "Home Tweet Home", a fabric mosaic made for the Miniature Show at Would You, Could You In a Frame

And a series of quilts based on design principles for the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network study group:

(top row, left to right) "Lines of Text", "Colorful Language", "Love Letter"

(bottom row, left to right) "Fishy, Fishy", "Every Fiber of Her Being", and "Bent out of Shape"

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On June 16 I posted on my Facebook page: "We're 24 weeks into 2013 and I've made 23 quilts/fabrics mosaics so far this year."

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The next few months was getting ready for the Textile Art Group show at the Wind’s Café in Yellow Springs:

The Yellow Springs Americana Series:

(top row, left to right) "Kings Yard Farmers Market", "Sunflowers at Whitehall Farm", "Patio at the Winds Cafe"

(bottom row, left to right) "My Soul in a Blackberry Pie", "Lazy Summer Afternoon", and "Picnic at Ellis Pond"

A dozen quilted birdhouses.

Two more custom quilts made using the client’s father’s bathrobes and made for twin sisters:

 "Willie"

Three more art quilts:

(left) "The Fragment of a Song" made for the Bound 2B Round show at Village Artisans and (right) "My Very Educated Mother Just Said Uh-oh, No Pluto" for the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network study group
(bottom) "Four Patch Bridge at Sunset" made for the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network's Fiver Rivers MetroParks exhibit for 2014

Two more framed pieces:

(left to right) "Orange Tree at Sunset" and "Sunrise in the City" 

And something a little different:

 

"How Does Your Rainbow Grow"

This little 3D art quilt and "Sunrise in the City" were the only piece I made all year that wasn't for a specific challenge, show, or client.

Did you count them? Yes, there are only 48 photos as three not mentioned here because they aren't ready to be shown, plus a custom table caddy that I didn't take a photo of before it was picked up.

Sunrise in the City

"Sunrise in the City," 9" x 11", made by Pam Geisel, December 2013

I have been making quilted bookmarks using hand dyed fabric. I usually piece the strips of colors together then cut them to the size I need, which sometimes leaves me with left over smaller pieces. I used these pieces to make this framed art.

I used a purple variegated thread to quilt these then I framed it.

More about Sunrise in the City.

Four Patch Bridge at Sunset

“Four Patch Bridge at Sunset,” 45.5” x 17.5”, made by Pam Geisel, Nov. 2013

The last few years the members of the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network created “slice” quilts of photos of Dayton Landmarks. For 2014 we are each making a quilt that represents a place in one of the Five RiversMetroParks in Dayton, Oh.

The quilts could be based on a photograph of a spot in one of the parks, the use of the location, or something regarding the history of the Metro Parks. The quilts can be more abstract than the previous sets but must convey the scene without needing a “story” to explain it.

I decided to use an image from the Eastwood MetroPark, which is located close to where I grew up. I didn’t go there a lot as a kid, but I did have a vague memory of some stone bridges. My husband remembers going with his family when he was a kid and canoeing in the lagoon and under the bridges. Last Spring we went to the park to take some photos that I could use for reference.

Reference photo of bridge at Eastwood MetroPark

I made this quilt similar to my quilt “Early Morning Nine Patch” only the sky in this quilt is at sunset so there are purples and pinks in it, but there is still a strip that has stars on it. The strips are 1" tall.

Four Patch Bridge at Sunset detail of bridge

There are two “four patch” squares in the sky and one in the ground, plus the colors of the stones on the bridge alternate in a four-patch fashion, especially noticeable in the posts. I really think the bridge's reflection in the water really adds to the piece.

The sky and ground are pieced, the bridge is raw-edge appliqué. I bound it using my favorite facing technique.

The Miami Valley Art Quilt Study Group was recently discussing the “Rule of Thirds” so I used this to determine the placement of the bridge. To use the “Rule of Thirds” you divide the quilt into thirds both horizontally and vertically then make a note where these lines cross. This is where you place an item of interest, in this case it's the bridge.

More about Four Patch Bridge at Sunset

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The exhibit of Five Rivers MetroPark quilts will be at:

Cox Arboretum in March and April 2014

Wegerzyn Gardens in May and June 2014

Carriage Hill in July and August 2014

Aullwood Garden in January and February 2015