Secret Santa

I'm sure at one time or another

you've been part of a Secret Santa 

gift exchange.

This year I was a recipient of 

a secret Santa gift from

the Temecula Quilt Co quilt shop.

I have never been to the shop in Temecula, California,

or never have met the shop owner, Sheryl Johnson,

but she shared a wonderful secret Santa mystery quilt design

with anyone who read her blog.

What an awesome gift!

Each week we received another clue.

A little more cutting and

some more sewing.  

Nine patches...

4 patches...

Greens...

and plenty of Reds and Neutrals.

Lots of oldies, but goodies, for sure.

After 5-6 weeks

this sweet Christmas variation of 

the classic Burgoyne Surrounded quilt

was sewn together.

"Secret Santa"

42" x 54"

I machine quilted using a 28wt. Aurifil thread.

I love the texture it created.

Snowflakes, and 

snow blowing swirls.

Of course, there were lots of 

things I should have been working on,

but it was exciting to get a mystery 

Secret Santa gift each week.

This pattern has been on my

perpetual list for 20+ years.

Sheryl divided up the construction 

in easy and doable segments.

I think 2019 will find me 

FINALLY making this pattern

1991

in the indigo and white fabrics I had planned 

so long ago. 

Thanks, Sheryl for sharing 

your mystery with all of us. 

It was a fabulous seasonal project.

Wishing you all a Happy Holiday season

and Merry Christmas.  We'll catch up

after the New Year.

Until Then-

Kyle

The Colors of Santa Fe

It's been over 6 months 

since I finished this quilt.

The Colors of Santa Fe

But I was waiting for the right 

backdrop to highlight this pattern.

You might recognize it as 

the quilt of the year 

designed exclusively for

The Quilt Show by Sue Garman in 2017

called Halo Medallion.

This past weekend I had two tall sons-in-laws

who were willing to stretch their arms and brave frigid temps

so I could finally take a photo. 

The majority of the piecing 

for this quilt had to be done using 

a paper piecing method.  

That can be a challenge for me.

But it was definitely necessary, especially for these
 fabulous flying geese.

But what has made this quilt so wonderful

is the beautiful machine quilting that

my machine quilter and friend, Kathy Herman, 

of Hearth and Home Quilting so skillfully and

artistically stitched.

This quilt has become one of my favorites.

The colors were inspired by my many

trips to Santa Fe and incorporating

the color palette found in the American desert areas.

Colors such as sand, adobe, terracotta, and mahogany.  

I emphasized the neutrals.

It's wonderful to finally be able to share this properly.

The Colors of Santa Fe

86" x 86"

Until Next Time-

Kyle

November Small Quilt- Another One Done

With the Thanksgiving holiday over,

it's time to get back to a "normal" routine.

Well, at least for a couple days.

My Florida daughter and son-in-law are coming

to celebrate Christmas, birthdays,

and just being together.
They come and freeze, these two born and raised Colorado kids,
but it's wonderful to have them here.

So it's time to share my November small quilt,
which is part of the monthly challenge
coordinated by Wendy, the Constant Quilter.

Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice
22" x 36"

This little quilt had it's beginning back in January, 2017.
It's when I started Primitive Gathering's Triangle Gatherings.

I made lots of  sets of triangle units,

even put together a few blocks, but

then staled out.
That ever happened to you?!
Of course it has!

Well, those little piles have stayed
together for almost 2 years.
Time to use 'em
move 'em, or loose 'em.

One of my favorite combos
is indigo blue with cheddar orange.
I had this fabulous cheddar strip and
it was telling me to use those blocks
in this simple pattern from
Jo Morton's book, Jo's Little Favorites III.

Most of the sewing was already done.
So it went together easily.

But look what I discovered when I set the
quilt up for its photo shoot.

Oh, well.
Such is life.

Don't sweat the small stuff.
You could be Humpty Dumpty.

I kept that fabulous color scheme going
on the back and

stretched a favorite remnant to make it work.

Thanks again, Wendy for
all this fun!
One more month and then another year?

Until Next Time-

Kyle

Houston International Quilt Festival

How do you describe the "grandmother"

of all quilt shows?

Fabulous, Amazing, Incredible, Extraordinary....

I'm not sure you really can.

Each of the 50,000+ attendees would say something else 

to describe their experience.

I went to be inspired.

Daisy and Basket by Helm Hulsman

I went to learn some new things.

Karen Miller 

Redbird Quilt Co and Aurifil Thread

I went to do some shopping.

Each day as the doors opened

it was an organized frenzy of quilters

all seeking out their favorite venders to

discover what enticing products they had brought.

First stop for me

Dutch Heritage and 

saying hi to Petra Prins and Judith Ebbelaar.

Judith and Me

I had my map labeled 1,2,3,...

There's never been so many 

beautiful temptations.

Mary Koval"s Antique Quilts

There is something for every style of quilter,

every skill level, and every credit card limit.

Equally important is seeing and meeting friends.

I finally had the privilege to meet 

Janet Olmstead from Calgary, Alberta Canada.

You might know her as Mrs Sew n' sew

Her applique work is exquisite and she

is so delightful to hangout with.

We had a great time shopping and

viewing the quilts.

It was exciting to see her Bird of Paradise quilt 

in person!

It was also exciting to say hi

to Rachael Daisy from Australia.

Her quilts are an explosion of color, pattern

and innovated techniques.  That's her 

Whiz Bang, prize winning quilt in the background.

The show couldn't happen or run 

so smoothly without the incredible crew of 

volunteers that work behind the scenes.

I caught up with Lori DeJarnatt

from Humble Quilts

as she was getting things set up for the next

open studio demos.

My dear Virginia and Netherlands travelers

were all there 

with an outstanding exhibit 

Esther's Quilt, 1858 

Many quilters followed along and 

created their own masterpieces.

 Doreen Johnson's Quilt

made with French General fabrics.

You might know Doreen at

Aunt Reen's Place.

Patti Snyder's quilt

with extraordinary quilting

Karen Beigh's quilt

who you know as the Log Cabin Quilter

with her wonderful chocolate background

Wendy Reed's quilt

The Constant Quilter,

Don't you love the cheddar background!

Harolyn Klawan's,

"Playtime in the Valley", with her 

lovely small embroidered interpretation.

Susie Martin Corrao's 

lovely quilt with sashing.

Laurie Sanders took a different approach.

Laurie visualized the flowers that Esther might have

seen from her kitchen window.

There were so many quilts to enjoy and study,

about 1600.  Each one a work of art.

Just a couple more.

How about:

Barb Vedder's quilt

from Fun with Barb.

It was fabulous to see in person.  

The pink background is awesome with

the blue saw tooth border.  

She has a creative whimsical style.

There were so many hand quilted quilts this year

with the exhibit of Antique Quilts of the British Isles

Hexagon Quilt, 1810

and the French collection

Quilts de Legende

Marie-Henriette 

by Martine Crabe'-Lanux.

I know I didn't see everything in my two days,

but I gave it a good try.

Until Next Time-

Kyle