I really enjoyed quilting this top. I just let my imagination run wild and the thread flow.
Quilts of Valour
Tag Archives: full custom quilting
Best of Quilting in Canada
In 2021 I made this art quilt of Lucy (Edmonton Valley Zoo) and I entered it into the Canadian Quilters Association (CQA) national juried show. I was thrilled to learn that it was juried into the 2021 CQA Show. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, the in-person show was cancelled and replaced with a virtual show so I never got the opportunity to see it hang on the show floor.
This summer I received at email from CQA informing me that they were compiling a selection of juried entries into a “Best of Quilting in Canada”collection and they wanted to include my piece. The quilts would be exhibited in the New England Quilt Museum (NEQM) in Lowell, Massachusetts, from January 17 to May 9, 2023. Needless to say, I was shocked and thrilled.
All of the selected quilts are also featured in the 2023 spring edition of Canadian Quilters Magazine.
Batik Beauty
Shirley made this colourful batik quilt for her sister. Her sister loves bright colours and picked all the fabrics herself. Shirley gave me free rein to quilt it as I please. I did a lot of dense quilting around the appliqué and quilted each border differently.
Big Surprise
On a whim, and to push myself out of my comfort zone, I entered one of my quilts into the 2019 Edmonton Festival of Quilts show. I went today to volunteer and was so surprised to see that there was a 2nd place ribbon hanging on it. There were so many amazing and inspiring quilts at the show. I’ve got so many ideas for new projects swirling around in my head.
Shirley’s Double Irish Chain
Our friend Shirley moved into her new house earlier this year and decided it was time to invest in herself and make a new quilt for her bedroom. She made this beautiful 93″ x 114″ red, green and cream double Irish chain. She gave me the freedom to quilt it anyway I wanted, so this is what I came up with. I used tidewater, cream and ruby thread from Glide.
Urban Windows
This is a quilt that I made and then donated to The Little Nose that Knows to use as a give-away at their April 27-28, Sporting Detection Dog Association (SDDA) trial. It is 60×77″ and fully custom quilted so that each “window” is unique. I think the quilting adds a lot of interest and texture. I hope whoever wins it, loves it as much as I do.
Big Surprise
For the first time, Klondike Days (our annual summer exhibition) featured a Makers Exhibition to showcase and celebrate local makers, creators, artists and producers. On a whim, I decided to enter my Bridges of Madison County quilt into the Longarm Quilting category. Unfortunately I was so busy that I completely forgot to go and see the exhibit before it closed. I went this week to pick up my quilt and was shocked to see that it had a first place ribbon on it. The judges comments were “Superb. Small pucker on backing but otherwise excellent”.
Welcome Chloe
This quilt was made for sweet baby Chloe who was born on June 10th. It was fully custom quilted. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of the finished quilt but Chloe’s Grandmother was kind enough to send me one.
2015 BOM Bridges of Madison County
This is one of my own quilts. It started with these twelve 10.5 inch blocks that I made as part of the 2015 BOM program at QuiltEssential Co Inc. Each year the owner, Ingrid Machtemes, picks 3 different colour schemes and comes up with 12 unique designs for the blocks.
Then the fun happens…..coming up with a creative design to incorporate these 12 blocks into a finished top. Months before we had even finished piecing all the blocks, I already had this design idea floating around in my head. I wanted to have lots of negative space for quilting. I knew I wanted to quilt a detailed centre medallion but other than that, I had no idea how I was going to quilt it until I got it on the longarm and starting playing.
Here is the finished quilt:
My inspiration for the quilting came from some of the designs in the 12 blocks. I wish I had kept track of how long it took me to do the longarm work because it was substantial. I am really happy with the finished product.
Close up of the centre medallion and some of the long arm work:
I like using pieced backings on my quilts. I think it makes for a more attractive back that gives you the option to flip it over so you have two quilts in one.
Edmonton Modern Quilt Guild
I volunteered to do the longarm quilting on this charity quilt made by members of the Edmonton Modern Quilt Guild.
Here is a close-up of each of the nine blocks.
Dog House Quilting 