Kristin Shields Quiltmaker

Celia's Raven

Celia's Raven
2015
43 x 46
Inspired by The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Celia's Raven is done over 6 months early!  I am so excited about that.  No more sweating the summer over a book quilt.  Anyway, I love how the raven came out though it's hard to see the stitching unless you are in the right light.

I chose to keep the machine quilting fairly simple.  I added some lines of stitch to represent the face, but didn't try to add anything for an eye, for instance.The other quilting really doesn't show too much with so much pattern going on.  

The back is also simple, but I followed my rule about making the back fun and indicative of what's on the front.  I bought that circus tent fabric just especially for the back of this quilt and I was pleasantly surprised to find the raven fabric in the stash.  

I don't normally show my labels, but I did here because I wanted to show the book quote that inspired this quilt.  "In the blink of an eye folds of silk are glossy black feathers, and it is impossible to pinpoint the moment when it is fully raven and no longer cloth".

Modern Machine Quilting by Pam Raby

Last week I took a two day class that was probably one of the best I've ever taken on technique (rather than design).  It was Modern Machine Quilting with Pam Raby at the Stitchin' Post.  Pam is a quilter from Corvallis, Oregon and she teaches at a shop there as well as one up near Portland.  Now she's teaching in Central Oregon and I know the Stitchin' Post will have her back after the raves about this class.  Pam used the book, First Steps to Free Motion Quilting by Christina Cameli as the main text, but added lots of her own handouts and freebies.  The class was organized around doing a sampler/practice piece and 3 projects (pillow cover, fabric bucket and zipper bag).  The project patterns are in the book and are really well written, easy and satisfying!  It's worth buying the book for that reason.  In addition, Pam gave us a handout with measurements to make several other sizes of the fabric bucket.  I learned a lot about machine quilting, but also about sewing in general.  So good, I tell you!For my sampler/practice piece I brought this small quilt top that got started at the Modern Quilt Guild Sew Down this year.  I just realized that I never did a blog post about the Sew Down!  How could that be?  Anyway, it was great fun on a crazy, snowy weekend in Portland.  All participants did all four classes and my favorite was the one with Sherri Lynn Wood.  The class was called Improv Round Robin.  

We came to class with a box of fabric and a signature fabric that we would add to every quilt that came into our hands.  At the start of class we had 15 minutes to create a center for our piece, then passed the box to the next person, adding our signature fabric to whatever was in the box.  Every 15 minutes we passed the boxes.  It was hectic and fun and only a 3 hour class, so I think 7 people worked on mine.  Both of my friends from Bend worked on mine so that's cool.  Also, Sherri herself did part of mine.  So, this little top was waiting around to be finished.  I took it out, fixed a ripple and added the borders and it was ready to be quilted.The main reason I took this class was because when I am faced with a top to be machine quilted I usually go to my standard meander or try some basic other stitches, but mostly I just don't have any good ideas.  I liked Pam's class samples and thought I'd at least get some good ideas for patterns, but it was so much more.  Most important is that I have increased confidence with the machine quilting.

I hope that when I sit down with my next top I can dive right in and try something new!

The pillow is now in my Etsy shop.  I grabbed fabric without thinking and realized after that this particular green isn't quite right for my living room.  So, if you are interested, check it out here.  Also, remember to use the discount code Birthday25.

Lastly, Pam gave us a little bonus pattern & fabric for these nifty gift card holder ornaments.  Aren't they cute!  So quick and easy to make and I can think of all sorts of other uses.  How about for candies, gift tags, 24 for an advent calendar?  It was her gift to the students, but she also shared with all the Stitchin' Post employees. Pam was a great teacher, so supportive, enthusiastic and giving.  I would highly recommend her as a teacher!

My Weekend :: Journal Covers

Last week QuiltWorks put out a call for mini class ideas.  It took me a few days to come up with an idea, but I think these are so much fun and quick to do that they'll work perfectly.  These mini classes are intended to be small projects that can be done perhaps as holiday gifts.  

These three are made to fit a standard US composition book, which means they'd be perfect for any age of student, journaler or artist.  I started with a tutorial I found online, but made my own changes, such as adding interfacing so they are a little sturdier than they would be otherwise.  These three are made with an oatmeal colored cotton/linen blend as a base, then scraps of commercial and hand dyed fabrics are used for the applique.

I also had fun with the sketchbook approach. I love the sketchy black lines.  In the case of the horse and owl, I used actual sketches from my journals to make the designs.  The bird I drew out free hand and it's definitely more stylized.  I happen to really love the more quirky designs myself.

Also, I've been trying out writing words when I do my machine quilting on some projects and thought it would be fun to add here.  The secret is to go over your lines multiple times.  Once or twice just doesn't look as good in my opinion. 

I added pockets to one of the covers, but they all have a ribbon book marker.

This last one is done on a smaller journal and uses Osnaburg fabric for the base.  I've figured out how to measure and fit any size of journal.  It's also a less ambitious cover design which might appeal to some.  I'll let you know when the class gets scheduled.

Sweet and Simple Owls

Here's another old work in progress finally finished!  This one started several years ago.  It must have been not too long after Tonya Ricucci's Word Play Quilts book came out.  I love this owl print and I wanted to highlight it.  I also wanted to hand quilt.  Remember, this was several years ago.  I started having some hand issues and the hand quilting was really bothering me.

I took a few years off of my old way of hand quilting (with a rocking motion).  I tried big stitch quilting without a hoop for a while, but recently I got back into the hand quilting as I mentioned in the previous post.  My new method is working well for me and it didn't take long to finish this one.  Actually, I have been hand quilting everyday for the past couple of months and enjoying it immensely.  Unfortunately, my knitting has taken a hit, but you can't have everything!  All of this quilting is done free hand.  I hate taking the time to mark and I hate having to deal with leftover lines.  Sometimes I'll do a little scratch across the fabric with my needle tip, but mostly I just wing it.  The more you do it the easier it becomes.  I'd love to know, have you tried free hand quilting?

Welcome to the Neighborhood!

The new SOQS Men Behind the Quilts Calendar is out!  My quilt group, The Undercover Quilters Book Club, collaborated on one of the quilts in the calendar.  In fact, our quilt is in the centerfold!

Mr. March is Chris M., one of the daring men of Sisters who graciously agreed to pose with a quilt all in good fun and for a good cause.  Our quilt, called Welcome to the Neighborhood!, will be auctioned off this Wednesday along with the other calendar quilts at the Men Behind the Quilts Calendar Premier Party.  This promises to be a fun party and sadly, the tickets are sold out, but you can buy a calendar at many outlets in Sisters and Bend as well as online at the link above.  

I was really pleased to be invited to head up the project, but all of the Undercovers made a house block and some also made the extra blocks including the word blocks which may have caused some consternation!  However, it all came together beautifully.  What I love about the auction is that it's a fundraiser for the quilt show, but also for various other non-profits in town.  The funds raised from our quilt will be split with the SOQS and the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity. Isn't that wonderful! 

back row: Cindy, Erin, Martha, Lani, Sandie, Janelle, Betty
front row: Wanda, Susan, Jane, Sally, me

Spooky Town (aka Halloween in July!)

I have been on a mission for the last several weeks to finish a whole lot of half finished projects that have filled the drawers so much I couldn't fit anything else in!  It's been interesting.  It feels a bit like an excavation and I am unearthing many things I forgot I had.  This piece was finished just to use up some of the massive bin of Halloween prints I've collected.  I had the one house on the left that was made in a class demo.  I decided to add two more and some words.  Spooky Town just came to me for no apparent reason, but I like it!  

I used up some leftover large triangles that were saved from another Halloween top that is now at the quilter's.  I used some in the sky over the houses and the rest were sewn together and cut up for the border of the Spooky Town block.  Determined to use up even the smallest pieces, I made a string border.

But that wasn't all!  I still had way too many scraps, so I made scrappy blocks and cut them with my 9.5 inch ruler to make the back.  This quilt is pretty heavy and with the pieced backing it was also a bit tricky to quilt.  I knew this would be a class sample and I can't afford to get everything professionally quilted, so I soldiered on and did a swirl pattern myself.  In the next few days I'll be posting more of what I've been doing the last couple of weeks.  I count at least 6 finishes, plus some other bindings.  I still have more WIP's, but it feels like progress has been made. I am finding it hard to concentrate on new work at the moment, so I want to wipe the slate clean over the summer and get back to business in the fall.

The best part about this quilt, was that after I finished hand sewing the binding, I took it back to my dark studio and discovered these eyes looking at me!  I had to laugh because I had no idea the fabric was glow in the dark.  Very cool, although I wish I'd used the eyes in the windows of the houses.

SOQS Michael Miller Challenge Fabric Postcards

The Wish Upon a Card fabric postcards were due yesterday for consideration for framing and for the Michael Miller Challenge. I spent all day finishing these, but got them delivered just in time.  The challenge fabric was available in two colorways, but I went for my comfort zone and chose the brightest areas of the print.  I paired the challenge print with hand dyes, except for the green print above. The balloons and the bird are created with needleturn applique. The beach houses are with fusible (when I really had to finish it fast!).  I think the beach houses are my favorite, though the bird is a close second.

These are created with crinoline as a foundation, then layered with regular batting and backing.  The crinoline provides a bit more stability than just the batting.  As I said before, I keep trying methods to get the best feel for a postcard. This seems like a good solution for something that's not so stiff.

Greetings!

Greetings from Overwhelmed Land!  Sheesh, it's been the busiest fall yet.  I am so happy to report that I have done the real grunt work in creating the new blog/website for my quilt guild.  Check it out if you're interested.  That took several long days.  Then, I managed to get a few little Christmas goodies made.  These are so much fun to do.  Sometimes, I wish I could spend all my time making little projects like this.  They are so doable compared to the big art quilts I keep getting myself into!

I made a couple of brooches with some new techniques I learned in Art Quilt Maps by Valerie S. Goodwin.  What a fabulous book!  I also managed to finish my actual map quilt made with techniques from this book, but am keeping it under wraps for now.  The technique involves crinoline, textile paint, sheer layers, hand and machine stitching.  So much fun!

These are all for sale in my Etsy shop, except the large rectangle bird and the heart shaped house ornament.  Both sold before I could even get them up on Etsy. Gotta love having very supportive friends!  Thank you Sarah!

So, now I can breathe a sigh of relief, at least about those things above.  Life is further complicated by my hubby's very bad back and surgery that didn't quite fix it.  There are deadlines and a trip to get ready for in December.  So, sorry about the sporadic posting this fall, but I guess that's the way it's going to be.  How's your November going?

To Boston with Love Exhibit Opens!

The To Boston with Love exhibit has been installed at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.  It looks amazing.  With the goal of collecting 1000 flags, quilters from around the world sent in 1756 flags for this exhibit.  The effort was spearheaded by Amy Friend of the blog During Quiet Time and Berene Campbell of the blog Happy Sew Lucky.  See their blog links for photos.

Check out the links below for some of the current press coverage.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston- Facebook photo

MFA Boston To Boston with Love Project Installation Facebook Album

Boston Globe article

To Boston with Love Flickr Group

The Newburyport News article

CBS Boston News Coverage

Channel 7 News Boston coverage

To Boston with Love

Things came down to the wire and then Sarah brought these three flags over.  Aren't they gorgeous?  Liberated letters and a heart.  So nicely done- thank you Sarah!

Kayla made this one with a sweet bird fabric.

Christy made the hug flag- more liberated letters!

Lindsey made these sweet heart flags.

I made one more with XOXO, more liberated letters and it rounded out the number to 10 flags.

Don't they look marvelous together?  They are on the way to Boston and will hang at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts!  They will be on exhibit from May 23 to June 16.  If any of my blog readers have a chance to visit I'd love to see photos and hear all about it.  Wish I could be there myself!  I am still collecting quilt blocks for Boston.  The link for instructions is in the side bar.  I will be sending them on Wednesday, May 22.  Here are the two I've made so far: