Quilt Guild

We had a national speaker, Anna Smith, speak about fabric values at the Utah Valley Quilt Guild. It was great. I took notes for you that I hope you will enjoy. This is a quilt she made for her husband who collects old wind up toys. (Sorry, I took this from the back of the room and used my little zoom in feature. I was far away so it isn't too great.)
I thought this was very sweet and original. Anna made a big version using her mother's vintage aprons. I would have loved to have seen that one. This is her wall size version of it. The ties are loose and just tacked on in different places.
Isn't this a sweet sentiment?
This quilt is all the same square and stars block but putting different values in different places changes the look of the block. This was the basis for Anna's lecture. (It was made from 10 fat quarters. She cut all the pieces of each block out of all 10 fabrics and then just traded them around. Some of Anna's tips:
-Yellow fabric...the more you put in a quilt, the more it will take over.
- Use a design wall and stand back. You will be able to see values more easily.
-Patterns include 20% more fabric than you need just in case you make a mistake.
- Use a "focus fabric"...choose one fabric you like and then find fabrics that pull all the colors from that fabric. (You may not even use that fabric in your quilt. Anna used her focus fabric as backing.
-You can mix all colors as long as you gradate from white to dark. For example, you can use many colors of green in a quilt just start from white and to dark green. She said when you do that, colors of green that you don't normally use together like lime green, avocado, and forest green will look great in a quilt together.
This is Anna Smith. She is standing in front of what looks like a traditional Baltimore album quilt in wool when in fact it is done in cottons (Cherry wood fabrics) and sewn on the machine. Sorry, I only got one close up shot before the camera batteries went dead.
If you would like to learn more about Anna Smith her website is www.simplearts.com She has many podcasts (internet radio shows) you can listen to. Happy Quilting! I even got a little sewing in today. Yeah! Finally!

Thanksgiving Point is having a quilt show August 23.

Quick Quilts is having a quilt show June 25-June 28 from 10-6. The address is 135 South State #7, Lindon, Utah.

The Utah Valley Quilt Guild is having their July Quilt Fair at the Eldred Center in Provo on July 16. I think it starts around 9 am. They will have free classes, lunch for $6, a garage sale, a bake sale, and many wonderful vendors. Plus, they have a quilt auction around lunch and usually free door prizes. It is very fun. If you are a quilter or interested in quilting at all, you would love it.

The Springville Art Museum has a quilt show every summer. I'm not sure of the date but I'll keep you posted. It is always a great show and free too.