Square Dance Quilt

by | Nov 11, 2014 | Completed Longarm Quilting

This next quilt is one of my favorite quilts I have ever done!  It is the Square Dance quilt that I made using my own blocks and those of my group in Stash Bee, Hive 12. I love loading a fresh quilt onto the machine because each quilt is so full of potential. Then, as I quilt, the design begins to show itself.  I used grey thread to make the feathers in the grey section. Then I switched to aqua thread for the star centers.  I liked the contrast between the feathers and the angular, geometric design in the stars. One afternoon, as I was under the machine to double-check the tension, the sunlight was reflecting off my machine onto the back of the quilt making a lovely design. On a custom quilt like this that took 25-30 hours to quilt, seeing the end of the quilt is a welcome sight! This photo was immediately after I pulled the quilt off my machine.  I love how this quilting turned out! I entered the large Square Dance Quilt (8″ blocks) into the North Carolina State fair, and earned 2nd place in the Group category.  My mini square dance quilt is the same block design, but with 3″ blocks and a small border.  It earned 2nd place in the Miniature Category at the Quilting in the Pines Quilt Show, and the Floral Fantasy Quilt Show.  It’s amazing how different the same design can look with different quilting, colors, sizes, and borders! One last shot of the back of the quilt.  I’m so happy I used a solid grey for the majority...

North Carolina State Fair 2014

by | Oct 30, 2014 | Awards

Quilt Show season is over for me this year.  I finished off entering a few things at the North Carolina State Fair, and was fortunate to earn a few more ribbons! The first quilt is my Square Dance quilt.  The paper piecing template is available on Craftsy currently.  I’m working on a pattern, but it’s slow going!  I completed this quilt with the help of the Stash Bee, and decided to custom quilt it and go all out.  I really love how this quilt turned out!  It earned 2nd place in the Group category. The next quilt is the “Spinnaker Quilt“.  It was actually my dad’s Christmas present last year, and I borrowed it to enter it in the fair.  It took 2nd place in the New Entrant category.  I really love this quilt, but this is probably the only show I will enter it in because it is such a simple design that I think it would get overlooked. Lastly, my Cargo Duffle earned 3rd place in the Other category.  I’m happy to have this bag home so that I can start to use it! Every show is a new and good experience,  but the North Carolina State Fair is kind of a letdown as far as the quilt display goes.  They have a lot of beautiful quilts that are entered every year, but they are shoved in a corner that is probably 50×10 feet and have to share that space with the crochet, knitting, and weaving entries.  Only the 1st place quilts gets to be displayed, and the full quilt wasn’t showing for most – because there...

Tarheel Quilters Guild Floral Fantasy Show 2014

by | Oct 22, 2014 | Awards

The Cape Fear Botanical Gardens hosted their annual fall Heritage Festival the first weekend in October.  In conjunction with the Heritage Festival, the Tarheel Quilters Guild of Fayetteville, NC held their “Floral Fantasy” Quilt Show at the gardens. I entered a few of the pieces that I have long arm quilted, and was fortunate to earn a few ribbons! My Blue and Brown Pandora’s Box earned 3rd place in the crib/lap quilt category. My miniature quilt, Square Dance Mini, once again took 2nd place in the Miniature quilt category.  I need a quilt with smaller pieces next year!  Although, I still love this quilt and will happily hang it on my wall soon. I also entered my Cargo Duffle, a free pattern from Noodlehead. I did long arm the fabric, then cut out the fabric to make the quilt. Longarming is not limited to quilts!!  This is another piece that I will be very happy to have back at home 🙂 I am still available to quilt for you if you want it complete by Christmas!  Contact me if you have a quilt (or more) so we can get the process started.  You can email me or call me.  The easiest way for us to begin is if you have the size of the quilt in inches (length and height), and if you send a picture of the top so that we can both look at it while we talk. – Heather  ...

Quilting in the Pines Show 2014

by | Sep 28, 2014 | Awards

This weekend was the biannual Quilting in the Pines Quilt Show put on by the Sandhills Quilt Guild.  They hold the show every other year in the historic 1917 Fair Barn in Pinehurst, North Carolina. I entered a few of my quilts, and had the good fortune of winning a couple prizes! I earned second place in the Miniature Category for my “Mini Square Dance Quilt“. There was a good assortment of miniature quilts this year, probably because they have been very popular in the last year or so and more and more designers are releasing mini patterns for sale. I also won third place in the “First Judged Quilt” category for my Blue and Brown Pandora’s Quilt.  This was one of my earlier quilts when I got my long arm, so I was very pleased to win an award for it 🙂 The guild also made a quilt cozy for a golf cart.  It was very appropriate because the Southern Pines and Pinehurst area are known for golfing. Overall it was a lovely show, in a great location, and I was honored to be recognized for my quilting. –...