FRINGE AREA

BY HEATHER BLACK

SPOKANE, WASHINGTON

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Pantone Color of the Year

Fringe Area was designed for this year’s Pantone Color of the Year quilt challenge. The Color of the Year for 2018 is ultra-violet, and I wanted a design that featured almost entirely shades of purple. I named the quilt Fringe Area because ultra-violet is just out of the range of visual light on the electromagnetic wave scale.

PERIODICITY

BY CHERYL BRICKEY

Greer, South Carolina

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Periodic waves

Periodicity shows the beauty and rhythm of periodic waves in this high contrast and vibrant quilt. It was quilted with horizontal rows of loops using a matching thread color for each section to give the quilt texture but not take away from the bold fabrics.

KONA SUNSET

BY SHERI CIFALDI-MORRILL

Woodbridge, Connecticut

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Drunkard’s Path block

Inspiration for Kona Sunset came from one of my most favorite places in the world, Hawaii. This modern interpretation of the spectacular sunsets on the west coast of Hawaii is entirely pieced from two blocks, a traditional Drunkard’s Path and an elongated Drunkard’s Path using all solid fabrics. Kona Sunset was then quilted on a domestic machine using a walking foot.

PASSAGE NO. 3

BY CARSON CONVERSE

Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Original design

I strive to create order and calm amid anxiety caused by the increasingly inflammatory and divisive language that is so common these days.  Focusing on creating “quiet” quilts that push the boundaries of minimalism is meditative. I am reminded that we are a single stitch in a vast timeline. I am drawn to horizontal strips, which remind me of rock strata. I made a connection between my quilts and my love of printmaking and architectural drawing. In addition to being a meditative process, this series is an opportunity to study the way stitched lines can alter values and create atmosphere.

PAPER ROUND QUILT

BY JENNY HAYNES

QUILTED BY JOË BENNISON

Sheffield, South Yorkshire

United Kingdom

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Mid-century modern style and the Drunkard’s Path block

This design reminded me of newspapers stacked up ready for the paper round. I like the kick of that light blue newspaper on the top of the pile. I did find it a bit jarring at first, and I nearly remade that part. Now I’m very happy I kept it. My Swedish aesthetics are matchy-matchy by default, but I’m rebelling and loving every minute of it.

NUMBER 16

BY MIGUEL HUIDOR

Los Angeles, California

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced

Design Source:

Original design

With this quilt I wanted to take a traditional shape, the triangle, and really modernize it. The quilt is layered in images with the triangles, the hexagons, the stripes, and the small hints of color. I also explored moving away from printed quilt fabrics to more yarn-dyed fashion fabrics. The result is a more elevated finish to the quilt.

SHOW UP

BY SAM HUNTER

QUILTED BY NANCY STOVALL

CONSTRUCTED BY MARIA CARDENAS, NICOLE HOWE, LINDA NUSSBAUM, AMY QUALLS, MATTHEW STOVALL, NANCY STOVALL, AND MEGAN WOOLERY

Beaverton, Oregon

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted, paper pieced, fused appliqué

Design Source:

Design adapted by Sam Hunter from an artwork by Lisa Congdon

When Lisa published this design, Show Up, as a poster, I approached her to adapt the design into a quilt pattern. I am a self-professed “word girl” and so was excited to help produce a pattern with such a timeless message. The construction was assisted by my sewing pals, the Stunt Sewists.

GEESE STUDY #1

BY HEATHER KINION

Chicago, Illinois

USA

Techniques:

 Hand-quilted, machine pieced

Design Source:

Flying Geese block

This quilt is the second in a series of almost wholecloth quilts. I explored dense quilting stitches and used contrasting 12 weight thread to create a feeling of more piecing than is actually present. There are only two pieced seams in the top. I was influenced by the handwork of Chawne Kimber and Heidi Parkes along with the “ghost” quilting of longarm quilters.

NET WORTH

BY SARAH LEFEBVRE

Stuart, Florida

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Half-square triangles, Flying Geese blocks

This quilt was an entry in the Riley Blake Designs Spring 2018 Fabric Challenge. Titled literally because the middle part of the quilt top and quilting design reminded me of the “net worth” emoji. Titled figuratively because although it is complete, it is not perfect. We all need to remind ourselves that our perfectionism in quilts and in life, or lack thereof, does not equate to our personal net worth!

MID-CENTURY MODERN

CURVE #1

BY CAROLE LYLES SHAW

QUILTED BY CAROL BYRNES

Bradenton, Florida

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Drunkard’s Path block

This is a functional quilt inspired by 20th century art. Specifically, the bold palette was inspired by Color Field painters and the curved motifs found in the works of Sonia Delaunay. The blocks are based on traditional Drunkard’s Path blocks that were improvisationally cut and fractured. I created negative space in and around the blocks and placed it in an alternative and asymmetrical layout.

COUNTERPART

BY RIANE MENARDI MORRISON

Windsor Heights, Iowa

USA

Techniques:

Hand-appliquéd and quilted, machine pieced

Design Source:

Original design

This quilt is my modern take on a Wedding Ring quilt. After getting married in fall 2017, I started designing and making quilts that represent my idea of home and family. This quilt design was inspired by two wedding rings — mine and my husband’s.

The ½” rings are appliquéd on a wholecloth background. The quilt is hand-quilted using large sashiko thread in two colors. The quilting motif emanates from the center of the rings, representing two lives coming together.

INFINITE MAGNIFICATION

BY CHRISTINE PERRIGO

Erie, Colorado

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul block

When our guild chose antique quilts as inspiration for a modern challenge, I was immediately attracted to the Robbing Peter to Pay Paul block. The detail that I was intrigued with the most was that the petals did not meet at the corner of the blocks. In order to emphasize this detail I decided to play with scale and focus on just one of those intersections. This allowed me plenty of space where I could play with a wonky version of the traditional petal pattern in the quilting.

CRAZY TOWN ROOPETOOPE

BY IRENE RODERICK

Austin, Texas

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Original design

This quilt is one of the first quilts in what I consider my true voice. After trying to figure out what modern quilting was supposed to be, I threw caution to the wind and just started making elements, putting pieces of fabric on the wall then  rearranging them until I found the perfect arrangement. I didn’t pay attention to how to construct the pieces into a quilt, but only enjoyed playing!

STRIPED CHAOS

BY MARIA SHELL

Anchorage, Alaska

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Traditional strip sets

When making the quilts for my book Improv Patchwork--Dynamic Quilts Made with Line and Shape, I wanted to show the design potential present in the simple stripe, also known in the quilting world as a strip set. This quilt is an off-the-grid composition based solely on machine pieced striped fabric.

70s CHILD

BY KRISTIN SHIELDS

Bend, Oregon

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Mid-century design

This quilt came about when I decided to try out some improvisationally pieced curves. I made several sizes of blocks with various types of curves and then played with the arrangement until I came up with this. The bold shapes and colors remind me of mid-century design and since I’m a child of the 1970s I started to think about bell bottoms, bold graphics, and certain colors. I remember vividly the abundance of avocado green, harvest gold, and orange during the 70s. I chose the harvest gold for that reason, but then updated it with turquoise, pink, and red.

COLOR GLIDE - SUMMER

BY JULI SMITH

San Diego, California

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Original design

This really started as an exercise to explore how the same color array would react in different widths and with different backgrounds, but in the same quilt. I explored the world of color gradations to learn more about color values and hues. My goal was to use solids to find harmony and balance between the color and the negative space. I call this colorful simplicity. Color Glide - Summer included 24 Kona solids against the white backdrop.

RADIANT

BY MARITZA SOTO

Cambridge, Massachusetts

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Original design

I wanted to make a compass quilt using a fresh, modern palette. Inspired by the paintings of Kristin Farr, who in turn was inspired by barn quilts, I employed an analog approach to making this. I used a 10º wedge ruler and kraft paper to create paper piecing templates for the radiating wedges. I enjoyed how the result played tricks on the eye.

FELICITOUS PICKLE

BY KELLY SPELL

Hixson, Tennessee

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Stack-n-Whack block

This quilt was made for the 2018 rendition of the Cut It Up! Challenge hosted by the Chattanooga Modern Quilt Guild. In January, guild members swapped orphan blocks, unfinished pieces, and even a few completed quilt tops. The challenge was to take someone else’s work, cut it up, and use it to create a new, modern quilt of your own design.

I inherited one 12” Stack-n-Whack block and some scraps of fabric from Ann Hurley. Once I started sewing the fabric together, it resembled a Pickle Dish block—a felicitous result!

GIVE AND TAKE

BY KARI VOJTECHOVSKY

QUILTED BY CHRISTINE PERRIGO

Centennial, Colorado

USA

Techniques:

Machine pieced and quilted

Design Source:

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul block

Give and Take was created as a modern quilt with inspiration from a selection of antique quilts for the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum show “How New is Modern?” I kept a curved element in the otherwise angular design. The similarities diverge from there, with Give and Take using an expanded color palette, expansive negative space, and boldly streamlined design. The quilting is a nod to the past with the addition of feathers but in a different and modern way.