Some of my best friends are strippers. One member of our organization moved away and became a hooker, but stripping seems to remain a favorite activity.
My quilt guild’s annual challenge quilts were presented this week. This year’s challenge title was “Let’s Strip.” So, strip we did.
The rules were simple. Make a “strippy quilt”, any size, any color (no orange required this year), any technique. That was open to interpretation by the maker. Refer to antique English quilts, Amish bar quilts, recent jelly roll collections from manufacturers – or any other type of quilt in which you assemble the units in strips.
Members mingle and socialize while examining all the entries before casting their vote. In addition to choosing their favorite quilt for ribbon awards, members study the quilts for evidence of personalities in the work. One of the most coveted prizes of the day is the one awarded to the winner of “Guess the Maker”, the person who is able to identify more quilt makers than anyone else.
In the photos, you see Queen Tess moderating. She periodically announces how much time is remaining for judging and reminds us again to follow directions we tend to ignore. Here, she is standing in front of Marie’s entry, One Golden Autumn Day. As winners are announced, they reveal the story behind their entry, then all other members do the same.
This year’s third place ribbon went to Joyce, for Maui Sunrise.
Second place went to Mary, one of our most prolific members. Mary always does amazing work and has fun doing it. This fun piece, Chicken Buffet, was no different. Evidently, the block with the toilet paper was really an interesting one to make!
And, lucky me! My entry, Autumn Elegance, won the blue ribbon! My piece measures 29” x 47” and began as a jelly roll (a collection of strips 2 1/2” wide by 40” long) from Cherrywood hand-dyed fabrics. I added batik leaves, and then quilted it densely using a variety of motifs.
Carol’s entry had to have a name change. Carol began with strips of flying geese she bought at one of our guild auctions (we clean out our closets and bring things we no longer need and buy and sell from each other). Thinking they were brought by Betty, she had titled the quilt Miss Betty’s Geese. Learning that in fact Tess had made and discarded the strips, the quilt title is now Tess’s Geese.
Members aren’t limited to one entry. Marie finished her large quilt early, then had scraps lying around and made a table runner that complied with the guildelines, too. (it’s the red and black one with tiny squares in one row).
Susan made her challenge quilt (behind Tess in this photo) using our friend Candace’s pattern called Sonja’s Windows (available here). Susan shared another quilt (the one she and Tess are holding) from the same pattern, not assembled in rows, too. In addition, Susan made a strippy red and black quilt for the contest.
DeAnn, who is busy building a new house, created a pattern with a story in each panel. Times in the Garden depicts scenes from each house DeAnn has owned. so this wall hanging is filled with memories she will take with her. to her new home.
Hilda’s title, Study in Black and White, Oops, (seen in the background of a group photo) conveys the message that quilts have a mind of their own sometime. That red fabric just jumped in! Janet likes black and white, too. Her Silhouette came from a pattern she found in McCall’s quilting magazine.
Linda’s Sunrise, Gladys’ Kaleidoscope Pinwheels, and Angie’s Happy Scrappy, added to the inspirational display.
Carolyn’s Rework Nursery Rhymes depicts familiar scenes rendered in hand appliqué and framed with red calico.
Sharon and her grandchildren love to make bubbles, so Sharon made a bubble quilt using some unique materials to depict transparency.
Oh, if you are still wondering about the member I mentioned who left our group, she still keeps in touch. And she shares photos of the beautiful rugs she’s hooked from strips of woven wool. So, I guess that makes her a stripper, too.
Our meeting day was a rainy, dreary day, not the best for photography. I’ve included some views of my quilt in the great outdoors with sun shining on it.
Click on any image to enlarge.
My husband is a magician. Not only can he see beauty though the lens of his camera, but in post processing, he can emphasize whatever he wants. Recently, he’s put the emphasis on my quilts. I love what he can do, don’t you?
Yesterday found us riding backroads with quilts and cameras in the car. We ended up at The Farm House. An old sharecropper’s cabin with numerous additions, good food, and decor to please any southern girl; it’s one of our favorite destinations.
We had a nice lunch in the dining room with a fire burning in the open fireplace. Outside, guineas were roaming around, a scarecrow was standing guard, and piles of pumpkins adding color. The menu included candied sweet potatoes, turnip greens, and corn muffins – more evidence that this is a place to please any county soul.
Surrounded by old quilts, old baskets, old ironstone, I feel like I’m visiting relatives from my childhood. Since much of it is for sale, visitors can take elements of the past home.
I personally brought a wreath with a crow inside, and a pair of earrings made from feathers from the wandering guineas.
The owner gave us permission to take all the photos we wanted; her goal is to share this place with all who will love it. Quilts posed on farm implements, beside pumpkins, in the garden, and on the porch.
My talented husband worked his magic in post processing. Some samples are here, more (with details of these quilts) will follow in upcoming posts.
