Special Exhibits are always exciting to see.  There’s a quilt guild in the Portland area called Cover to Cover Quilts.  Every six months they read a book and make a quilt based on it!

I’m sure you can guess their latest project–Alice in Wonderland!

Even the Mad Hatter was there.

And the Hookah smoking character.

And the Cheshire Cat.

Oh no!  Alice goes down the rabbit hole!

Most of my knowledge of Alice comes from the Jefferson Airplane Song!

The Cheshire Cat.

“I’m late, I’m late, for a very important date!” (Actually, I am, but I wanted to get this post up before I leave!)

Another great exhibit that I enjoyed was this one, sponsored by Greenbaum’s Quilted Forest from Salem.

Fiber Artists were asked to make their interpretation of a tree.

They were amazing.

Sisters is located in Central Oregon.

It’s on the eastern edge of the Cascade Mountains.

All the area beyond Sisters is high desert–sage brush, junipers and lava rock.

It’s as close to the old West as you can get.

If you love the outdoors, it’s a great place to live.

I always think of quilts like these as Central Oregon quilts.

They are so influenced by the the world around them.

I find them truly works of art.

These are what I call the Novelty or Pictorial quilts.  Some are whimsical and some are works of art.

This VB bus sure fits the whimsical category!  I love the attention to detail, like the tiny barbecue and the ice chest!

More summer fun!

This reminds me of gathering eggs in the hen house.  Yes, I’ve really done that!

I wish this were our forecast!

Around the edge, this quilts says, “There’s No Place Like Home.”

Hmm, I wonder if I need a quilt like this in my potting shed?

What little boy wouldn’t love this quilt?

OMG!  Isn’t this adorable.  I’d even like it without the robot.

I was delighted to see this.  It’s made with my friend Glenna’s fabric.

So was this one!

Aye, the pot o’ gold!

Isn’t this charming?

This butterfly quilt was for sale from one of the antique dealers.  Even though butterfly quilts are my favorites, I didn’t buy it.  I already have one like it in my collection.

Who says orange doesn’t look good with pink and green?

Moon over the mountain?

I love this cat pattern.  Not so much the “things” in the borders.

I thought this was very whimsical.

I wonder what the inspiration for this quilt was.

Very pretty.

This Mammy quilt was nicely done.

Great fabrics in the clothing.

I’m starting to see some interesting and modern versions of the Grandmother’s Flower Garden.

I love sunflowers, and the pieced backing on this really makes it sparkle.

Wow!

The bird in this quilt looks more real than the lady’s eyebrows!

The realistic ones fascinate me.

When I was organizing my pictures, I decided to do a separate section for applique.  Like all quilts, it’s amazing how diverse “applique” can be!

It’s always so interesting to see how the same pattern is done by different people.

This looks like it was a fun challenge.

Here’s an Asian inspired quilt.

The mottled green in the leaves and stems of this quilt are really cool.

Wow!

Not only is the applique on this quilt stunning, so is the quilting.  Imagine being brave enough to quilt with black thread on white!

This quilt was wool.

Here’s a lovely Baltimore Album style quilt.

Sorry I don’t know how to photoshop out the sign that was hanging from this porch, but I thought the quilt was worth sharing.

This Hawaiian sampler is so pretty.

Another Hawaiian influenced quilt.

Oh, I have the pattern for this.  It’s on my to-do list.  It cracked me up that the maker left the buds out of one basket!

Note:  I get a lot of questions about this pattern.  It’ is from the book A Bouquet of Quilts from C&T Publishing.

This quilt really popped!

Does this say Flower Power or what?

So graceful.

The split leaves on this quilt are great.

It’s hard to beat bright in my book.

This is a very interesting combination of piecing and applique.  It’s done with Asian fabrics on a black background.  If you look carefully, you can see a bamboo design stitched into it.

I think I may like poppies even better than daisies!

This quilt makes me want to get out a Matchbook car and have some fun!

Time to share some more wonderful quilts, like this Tumbling Blocks.

This is a cool Tumbling Blocks variation.

I wish I could think of the name of it.  It always reminds me of an aerial view of skyscrapers!

As a lover of scrappy quilts, I’m always attracted to string pieced quilts like this one.

This one isn’t as scrappy, but still used some string piecing.

Ooh, Spider Webs!

This was a quilt for sale by a vendor.  The little “strings” in it were about 1/4″ wide.  Why didn’t I buy it???

A very pretty pieced and appliqued quilts.

It has an interesting border, using string piecing.

I thought the simplicity of this quilt made it very charming.

There was a whole display of quilts made from these wonky strings.

I really like this with the hand prints.

I didn’t see a lot of Redwork or embroidered quilts.  This Halloween one from Yesterday’s Charm is pretty cute.

And this Snowman Christmas was adorable.  Lot’s of work, but worth the effort, in my opinion!  The final block, Z, is the snowman snoring.  I’m sure the quiltmaker felt that way, too!

Isn’t this an interesting variation on the Log Cabin?

I’m assuming this was strip pieced, if not, Holy Cow!

Braid quilts are fun to make.  I’m surprised we don’t see more of them.

The addition of the cherry applique really perks up this plain quilt.

Wow, I’d like to learn the technique used to make these “shattered” blocks.

Wow, I’m loving this quilt.

I think solids are finally coming into their own.

I wonder how long it took this quiltmaker to collect all the right shades of blue?

I’m crazy for daisies and loved this quilt.

I thought this was really striking in its simplicity.

This quilt is made with buttons!

 

The quiltmaker added embroidery for stems and framed each block.

Wow!  Talk about visual impact.

I made a quilt like this for my Secret Pal in Guild one year, and cut one out for myself.  Guess I should dig it out an get it finished!

This is a pretty color combination.

Brights on black are a winner in my opinion.

I loved this.

 

Lots and lots more to come!

 

The Sisters Quilt Show was fabulous.  I took a lot of photos, of course.  As I got home and was looking at what I took, it occurred to me that everyone who goes to the show probably comes home with different memories.  Surely no one else took the same photos I did.  I guess it says a lot about who we are as quilters.  I find I’m drawn mostly to traditional quilts, but I also love looking at modern quilts—even though I may never want to make one.

I just spent some time organizing the photos I took and grouping them together a bit.  So, we’ll start with the basics–the Nine-Patch.  It doesn’t get more basic than that, but it’s amazing what quilters can do with just a few squares!

I apologize for the shadows on some of the quilts.  It was a bright, sunny day, which was lovely, but doesn’t always make photography easy!

I think there’s something to be said for a two color quilt—and the sawtooth border on this is great, too.

 

This quilt has a beautiful applique border.

When I look quilts, I’m alway curious about how the blocks are set together.  Did this quilt maker do a square-in-a-square setting around each Nine-Patch, or did she make alternate Broken Dishes blocks when setting this quilt together?  The result would be the same either way.

Here’s a nice combination of a Sixteen-Patch and a Four-Patch.

I think this was the only vintage quilt I saw hanging in the show.  Interesting setting, with the single block in the center.

Now things are really starting to change, but still the same basic grid.

The alternate dark and light is good here.

This block isn’t that different than the one above, just a change to two corners, but the result sure is different.

Perspective is different when things are set on point, too.  Also, the darker outer blocks act as a cool border.

More geometric quilts.

This is an interesting quilt with some dimensional blocks.

This Tennessee Waltz is very pretty.

I thought this quilt was simple but elegant.

This gives the impression of a Nine-Patch…

…but the construction was more like a log cabin.

Isn’t the border on this quilt great?

And I’ve always loved this block.

Color placement in this Triple Irish Chain sure makes a statement.

And what about the Four-Patch?

It’s pretty versatile, too.

This was a vintage quilt that was for sale.  (No, I didn’t buy it!)

This Tussie Mussie quilt was very clever.

Usually I don’t like shadows on the quilts, but the sun dappling on this diamond quilt is kind of cool.

Isn’t this an interesting geometric design?

I’ve made a quilt similar to this called Spruce Root.

At first, I thought these were half-square triangles, but one side is longer.  It really makes for an interesting design.

Lots more to come!

I hadn’t been to the Sisters Quilt Show for a few years, so decided it was time for a trip back.  We drove over on Friday.  Of course, a stop at the Stitchin’ Post was in order.  To say it was crowded would be an understatement!

As usual, the displays there were top notch.

I love to look at the quilts on display.

Inspiration everywhere!

I’m gearing up to do a circle quilt, and loved this one.

The dimension on this quilt was amazing.

We stayed in Bend, but bright and early Saturday morning, we made our way back to Sisters.

We weren’t the only ones who thought we’d get an early start!

The impact of all the quilts on the buildings is incredible.

I especially loved this butterfly quilt.  The stitching on it was wonderful.

I just love seeing quilts blowing in the breeze.

They had this “sidewalk” quilt that kids could add a block to.  Very clever, I think.

And they were raffling this “quilted” bike.

This was the raffle quilt.  It was exquisite.  With the sun shining through from the back, it really sparkled.

Tomorrow I’ll start posting “the parade of quilts!”

 

I got this email this morning, and I think it speaks for itself!

Hi, Karen,

It’s been several days since I’ve read your blog, but I caught up this morning and saw some of the pics from the quilt show.  I went there with a couple of friends and their 9YO granddaughter.  She is a member of the Northwest Quilters Youth group, along with 4 other 9- and 10-YOs.  We saw an easy strippy quilt there, done in scraps plus solid blue, and were taken with how easy it would be to teach the girls.

Just a few days later was the call for Quilts for Japan.  In one session, the five girls sewed all the strips and assembled the front, plus the long strip for the backing.  I thought you might like to see.  It turned out really beautiful, as almost all scrappy quilts do.

The hardest part for the girls: Just Use The Next Strip You Pull From The Bag!  (and, oh yes, the continuing quest for a quarter-inch seam allowance!)

Thanks for the inspiration,
Maureen in Portland

The only thing I can add is a big CONGRATULATIONS, GIRLS!!!

Here are the last of the photos I took at the Peninsula Quilt Guild show.

Out of the Darkness by Nellie Beasley.

2010 Block of the Month by Lynda Newell.

Flowers Block of the Month by Bev Wakeman.

Grandmother’s Dream by Dorothy Payne.

Triple Nine-Patch by Ann Saari.

Rail Fence by Winnie Tupper.

Round the Twist by Beverly Wakeman.

Blue Patch by Cherry Harris.

Palouse Sunset by Ann Saari.

Baby Nines by Vivian Herbel.

Batik Bear Paw by Andi Maroncelli.

Market Baskets by Joan Stoltz.

Twelve Step Program by ???

Desert Nine-Patch by Karen Montgomery.

Here’s a detail of the beautiful quilting on this quilt.

Family Reunion by Mary Hayden.

Broken Nine-Patch by Ann Saari.

Made Up by Bev Wakeman.

Sunbonnet Sue by Dorothy Payne. These blocks were made by her mother, and she recently finished it.

Detail of Sue.  Love her orange hat and matching shoes!

Another Vintage Sue.  I didn’t get the info on this one.

I love to compare the different Sue’s.

Dear Dorothy by me!

Blue Boxtrot by Andi Maroncelli.

Selvedge Spider Webs by Rene Newstrum.

This quilt was made by Gail Messick.  She started it at my Retreat last fall!

Spider Web  by Brooke Weller.

?? by Eleanor Will.

Holy Snowballs by Janet King.

Kaffe Kaleidoscope by Dianne Duprez.

Star Struck Hexagon by Jeri Dawson.

I hope you enjoyed the show!

More quilts from the recent Peninsula Quilt Guild show.  I don’t know who made all the quilts, so if you can help, post a comment and I’ll make a correction.

Barn Raising by Gloria Park.

Windy City Stars by Linda Lester.

Dizzy Geese by Bev Wakeman.

Here’s a closeup.  Even though it looks curved, that’s just an illusion!

This lovely table runner was made by Carol Osterholm.

Jacobean Feathers by Lynda Newell won first prize!

Stars by Jan Lambert.

This was the raffle quilt the guild made this year!

Red Feather Medallion by ??

Spirit by Randi O’Phalen

Eureka! by Earlene Nichols.

Batik Sampler by Becky Olson Evans.

Peninsula BOM by Jan Lambert.

Stars by Merrie Johnson.

Down the country Paths by Wendy West.

??? by Nellie Beasley.

Christmas Porch by Lynda Newell.

American Beauty by Lynda Newell.

Day Dreams by Glyns Hess.

Tribute to the Seibert Brothers in World War II by Mary Anna Carr.

Signal Flags by Joan Wekell.