By the looks of all the competition quilts coming across the Pacific from Tokyo quilters, Hawaiian applique quilts are very popular right now. There were at least ten at the Paducah Show, all from Tokyo.
I suspect that Kathy Nakajima has been a big part of the movement in throughout the country. If you don't know Kathy, she really is the quilt celebrity. Kathy was born on the island of Maui, Hawaii. She now spends the vast majority of her time in Tokyo, where she is a very popular TV personality and author of books and DVDs -- most, if not all, on making Hawaiian Quilts. She runs three quilt studios and shops, too. A very busy lady, to say the least.
Kathy teaches in Toyko, and obviously the fruits of her labor have paid off. The diversity of the Hawaiian Applique Quilts in competition this year is amazing. If you get the chance, visit one of the competition quilt shows.
Here is a bit of trivia about Hawaiian Quilts. Around 1820, native Hawaiians learned to quilt from missionaries. But it was not a revolutionary concept to the Hawaiians. Their traditional bedcoverings were made of kapa, a cloth made from the inner bark of native trees. Strips of the inner bark were beaten and felted together to transform it into a smooth and soft fabric. Like a quilt, kapa moe was made in layers. The layers were "sewn" together only at one end though, so that a person could adjust the number of layers slept under based on the need for wamth. The kapa moe were often embellished with dyes and stamps, and often scented with native flowers.
I was thinking about creating a fabric (cotton & batting) "kapa moe". Maybe with keeping the tradition alive, I'll embellish with natural dyes and leaf stencils. I thought it might be a great way to deal with cold nights in my family's Colorado cabin.
As promised, I have news from the AQS Quilt Show in Paducah last week. It was crazy. It always amazes me that this small town can handle the influx of quilters. This year Kudos to Paducah -- they outdid themselves. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the Executive Inn -- nuf said.
The weather was beautiful in Paducah -- dogwoods were in bloom -- and the quilts were magnificent. If you have not seen the Hancock of Paducah's/AQS Best of Show -- here it is:
SPRING OF DESIRE: Ted Storm-vanWeelden, 's-Gravenzande, Netherlands
I understand that it was inspired by her grandmother's hanky. The applique was so beautiful, and the subtle color shifts of the background all came together to make this an exquisite quilt.
Big Congratulations to Joanie! Our own Joanie Zeier Poole won 2nd place in Large Quilts: Applique with her magnificent LEA'S CHOICE. Joanie has been having great success with this quilt all year long. LEA'S CHOICE has won Excellence in Machine Quilting at the 2008 Road to California, and Best Machine Quilting, Traditional Quilt 2007 at the Pacific International Quilt Festival. It is beautifully hand appliqued, then machine quilted.
Check out Joanie's new book, Joanie's Design Elements. It's on sale now. Get Joanie's inside tips on how to great your own masterpiece.
It has been POURING with rain here in Newton Abbot today. I was all ready for Spring, but it seems I had jumped the gun.
However, here’s a beautiful quilt from clever Tilda designer, Tone Finnanger, which combines cosy little houses with bright springtime colours. Perfect for brightening up even the coldest glummest day!
The quilt is from Sew Pretty Homestyle, which is full of stunning sewn projects. Check it out at MyCraftivity store (UK one here, and US one here).
By the way, if you’re hooked on houses, look out for Joanne Figueroa’s lovely book, Fig Tree Houses, too.
And speaking of Spring, I do hope that any of you that are going to Spring Quilt Market in Portland will come and say hello at the Krause Publications booth (number 2711). I’d love to meet any or all of you!
The journey is more important than getting there. I think…
Do you ever get to the point when making something, when you just can’t see yourself ever finishing it? I guess this happens to everyone. The really, really self-controlled types (oh how I admire you people!) just knuckle down and carry on. Empires were built by the likes of this crowd. The rest of us drift on to something new and promise we’ll get back to it when we are next in the mood.
I mention this because I got to wondering over the weekend about the value of speed over experience. Do we want to complete quilts quickly so we can relish the results? Or is the pleasure of creating something with great care over months and years the driving force? Probably a bit of both, I suppose, which is why all the quilt makers I know have at least a couple of projects on the go at once, one of which is a fabulous heirloom-to-be piece.
I’m in the final throes of completing Great Aunt Hilda’s 90th birthday quilt (deadline 10th May). It was pieced with a jelly roll and machine quilted, so it was really meant to be quite quick. Huh! Not with me at the controls!
But when I see a cathedral window quilt, made by someone like Lynne Edwards, I’m consumed with a desire to make something that will cause even casual passers-by to rock back on their heels with shock and wonder (a girl can dream). Just look at these!
Lynne’s lovely book Cathedral Window Quilts will be available at the Festival of Quilts and from all good bookshops (especially the MyCraftivity UK and US ones) in July.
The annual pilgrimage to Paducah has begun. For those of you who have not found the "calling" to the quilt show in west Kentucky each April, you might not understand the allure of this annual spring rite, dare I say "religious experience?" For those of us bitten by the Paducah bug, it is one of those things that out rank any other event of the year. Christmas, in my house, does not take on the importance of PADUCAH. Say it with me children -- PA-DUC-AH.
So here is how it is shaking out: Six months ago, I started getting calls from friends, friends-of-friends, and friends-of-friends-of-friends – all asking if I had room at my house to "camp out" on the floor, or could they park their RV in my yard during the show. Of course, these are the desperate ones, who did not get reservations into hotels, campgrounds and B&Bs in time to secure a place within a 100 miles radius of the town. (Oh, I should have mentioned, I still have a house at Kentucky Lake that I just can't bear to give up.) As I write, there are eight RVs being packed up for the road trip from Kansas and Nebraska—I'm not sure how many quilters are going to be in these RVs, but I'm sure every bed has a planned occupant. There are another seven people going to be at the house in addition to my two sisters, three dogs, four cats and myself. We converge on the property like an army on the move. Sync your watches for ETA -- Tuesday, 4:00 p.m. CDT – plenty of time to get to the awards ceremony that night, plus sneak-preview.
Starting two weeks ago, there has been a mad flurry of phone calls and emails setting up meetings, dinners, general girl sessions. Also there are the endless plans of who is bringing what to the house, what classes are you taking, what are you wearing (great walking shoes, of course). This has required major strategic planning – my "general" brother would be proud.
For four days of the show, Paducah will transform itself into Quilt City USA® -- where quilters own the streets. Everything will be all about quilting. There will be vendors throughout the town – even at the Mall. Shuttle buses zooming through the streets carrying quilters to every venue. Window fronts will display quilts – even the law offices and the Harley Davidson dealer will have quilts. My visitors and I will be immersed (including our pocketbooks) in all things "quilting." We will ogle at all the competition quilts – of course, making our own valued judgments on the quality of the work and design. We will debate the endless conflict between traditional and fiber art. We will roam the aisles of the trade show, looking (and, of course, buying) all the latest stuff that we just can't live without (but will soon forget why we bought it).
