A Day with Loretta Bennett

I got to spend Saturday with Loretta Bennett of Gee's Bend, Alabama!

When Stephanie heard she would be in the area for another project, 

she organized a sewing day for Gee's Bend quilt fans--like me.  

Thank you so much, Stephanie!!

Here's Loretta showing how she takes apart jeans.  There's a pocket perfectly picked off.  

To her right is a polyester double knit block she made.  She's wearing a t-shirt made from the design.  

(She had been at Pilchuck school as an artist-in-residence.  The t-shirt was made there.)

After telling lots of stories about growing up in Gee's Bend, 

she took a strip from each of us to show how she makes a quilt out of anything she has.  

All that, plus a leg of denim, and wa-la!

Behind her you can see some of the blocks made by participants in the class.  

Loretta will take these home and put them together into one quilt.  

Loretta is a really lovely person.  Besides being talented, she's humble, generous, patient, and kind.

You can see some of her quilts here.

I finished this top, which I started in 2011 at another Gee's Bend class in Sisters, Oregon.

Below are some details.

Now, I've got a whole lot'a quilting to do!

Gwen Marston on Lopez Island

I've just returned from four days with Gwen Marston and friends on Lopez Island, Washington.

This was one of several workshops I've taken from her.  

She never fails to be witty, good natured, helpful, talented and SO much fun.  

This retreat was all about making medallion quilts.
Here's Gwen with the flimsy I made during the first two days.

This is the start of one I worked on the last two days.

Photo by Sharon Risedorph, shown with permission from Roderick Kiracofe.

The inspiration is this quilt in Roderick Kiracofe's book, QUILTS, at Blurb.com.

It's made between 1950-1975 in New Orleans by an African American quilt maker.

  

Here's Gwen showing the book, while everyone took notes about how to order it.

If you like quirky quilts like I do, you're going to want this book!

The retreat took place at this historic one room school house, set in an idyllic field. 

One day, I heard a "baa" and looked out the door to find a herd of sheep passing by!  

If you look closely, you can see a black border collie working the herd.

Our hosts were two lovely women who did everything to make sure we were all relaxed and happy.  

One has a great little quilt shop on the island.  Isn't this a fun sign?

Each day started and ended with a ferry ride from and to a friend's place on a nearby island.

And a drive past driftwood sculpture.

One morning I spotted these deer outside my bedroom window.

The last night, we all made a scarecrow for our friend's garden.  

Ah, the island life!

Sharon and Anita were also at the retreat.  It was a real treat to sew with them.  

Check their posts for photos of the participants' quilts and thoughts from Gwen.  

One Word Wednesday

Embroidery

All the seams will get their stitching.  They seem "undressed" without it!   

For the back story on this quilt, click here.

That 70's Quilt

I've become obsessed with a certain quilt block pattern.  

I found it used in an old quilt here.  According to Barbara Brackman's Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Block Patterns,* it's called "Shooting Star," and dates back to 1895.  

I made it with my 1970's fabrics.  Each block is 24 inches, so the whole thing is 72 inches square.

This block is a great way to show off large prints.  

This print is from a table cloth that came with 4 inch white fringe.

This one is yardage, 36 inches wide, of course.

(Sorry about the blur.  It was sunny, but breezy outside today.)

More yardage--perfect for a summer dress.

Another table cloth, which also came with white fringe, paired with and a man's shirt.

An apron with sleeves.

The print is bark cloth, and was made into napkins.  The gingham was curtains.  

Home decorator yardage.


I just love these fabrics!  They remind me of the carefree days of my teens and twenties.

Here are some other quilts I've made using 1970's fabrics.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

*The Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns is an excellent resource for over 4,000 quilt block patterns.  The book is out of print, but there's a digital version called Block Base here.

A finish, a start and a ribbon!

I finished this flimsy last night.  It's been in the works for over a year!

"Garnet Hill," 68" x 51"

Actually, it's been on my mind since I saw this folk art rug in the Garnet Hill catalog 5 years ago.

I made this block today.  It's the start of my summer scrap project.

And I won a ribbon for "Spring Equinox" at the local quilt show!  Quilted by Cindy Gilbrough.

Signs of Spring

I'm preparing for a 4-day retreat with Gwen Marston in June.  

We're going to make "Liberated Medallion Quilts."  

I chose this vintage Japanese yukata panel from Patricia Belyea's wonderful collection at Stashfest in LaConner last weekend.   It's a new challenge to work in a more simplistic, abstract style.  

I'm sure Gwen and the other participants will help.  

Pink "snow."

My first vegetable garden!

Happy Spring!

This just makes me happy

I've been in love with this quilt for a long time.  It's been on my computer screen for months, 

maybe even years.  I don't know where I found it. 

A few months ago, Julie sent me a box of blocks she'd bought on ebay.  

They came from a quilt top the seller said was made in the 1940's in Ohio.

I started embroidering the seams on my trip to NYC.

I thought that's what the maker would have done, if she'd finished the quilt.

I had planned to sash the blocks and make a simple lap quilt. 

But there I was in Victoria's loft, with all of her Lone Star quilts, 

plus that one on my computer screen and...

There are JUST enough blocks to make a 68" star and a 4" border!  

Don't you just love it when that happens?