2018 Quilts

Here are my 2018 finishes, in chronological order.

Look Both Ways, Don
One of my co-workers retired after twenty-five years training Nebraska transportation workers about roadway safety, signing, flagging and other MUTCD topics. This is the quilt I made (with some help from some colleagues) for him. Read the full story.

Nebraska Home
Kim Lapacek's Project Quilting challenges have caught my attention for quite some time. I really wanted to dive in this year but life got in the way. This was my lone entry for the first challenge: Hometown Proud. Since Nebraska, in some ways, is one big small town, it seemed apt to try out Cassandra Beaver's raw edge appliqué meets quilting via many stitches. I was pretty pleased with the effort. The Saunders County Fair judge wasn't as pleased. :)

Happy Birthday, Valentine
I made this mini at the Ashland Quilt Guild's annual retreat for my grandma's ninety-sixth birthday.

A Wooly Mini
I was partnered with Linda McLaren, aka the Quilting Biker, from Canada for the Modern Quilt Guild Swap. I made her this woven "wooly" quilt on Anne's Melissa and Doug loom. She has become a great online quilting friend. I am in awe of her skill as a quilter and ability to make so many quilts. Photo credit: Linda McLaren

Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend
I was fortunate to participate in a workshop led by MJ Kinman at the International Quilt Study Center and Museum. MJ led us in a simplified version of her beautiful gem quilts using a freezer paper piecing method. I finished mine in time to send it to the Nebraska State Fair where it earned a fifth place ribbon in a small quilt category.

Lola the Llama
Lola is from Elizabeth Hartman's Lloyd and Lola pattern. Her patterns are so adorable! This was supposed to be a baby quilt for a neighbor down the road. It's a little late but will still find a perfect home on their farm with many animals. This quilt was quilted at Mangelsen's in Omaha.

Mid Century Mod
I am a member of two local Modern Quilt Guilds: Lincoln and Omaha. The two guilds meet about fifty miles apart and share some overlap in membership. A swap between members of the two guilds was proposed to build relationships between the guilds and their members. My swap partner is a great quilter who is inspired by zentangles. She lives in a mid-1900's house and loves all things Mid-Century Modern. This quilt was adapted from a photo I had found on Pinterest (unfortunately without attribution). I paper pieced it using Kona Solids.

Make it Fun
The Make it Fun quilt was begun as a part of the Improv Sampler Quilt Along hosted by Patty Dudek of Elm Street Quilts in 2017. Each block was improv-pieced in response to her weekly prompts. I designed the setting. This quilt was special and then Marsha Gormley Swanson of Dog Ear Creek Quilts added her magic. It was fortunate to win the best of its lot at the Saunders County Fair and was named the Best Improv Quilt at the Nebraska State Fair in 2018.

Upcycled Denim Picnic Blanket
A quilt guild friend and mentor challenged me to not only think about quilts for the Nebraska State Fair but to also consider entering items in the Textile Arts division. This upcycled denim picnic blanket is in response to that challenge. Made from an assortment of jeans in a simple design inspired by Katie Larson of The Crafting Shell's quilt. The back is feed sacks from our chicken feed. They are a woven plastic similar to a tarp, but lighter-weight. This addition should make the quilt moisture resistant. Because I wanted to enter it in Textile Arts instead of Quilts, I purposefully left out the batting. For a denim quilt backed by plastic, essentially, I didn't think it was necessary, either. It did receive a ribbon in its category of "Upcycled Textile: Other", as well.

Giant Plus Block Quilt
Girls, Inc., of Omaha reached out to a fellow OMQG member about providing quilts for a new facility that will be opening in 2019 providing a home for 17 girls who have aged out of the foster care system and are working to build a strong foundation for their lives. Thank you to Jillian Hoistad for quilting and binding this monster quilt!