30 Reds on 30 Whites

30 Reds on 30 Whites
by Ilene Atkins

 This one is about 16" x 16", and is part of my red and white heart series of quilts. I had quite a few hearts left from other projects, and when the President's Challenge came up at our guild last year, I put those red hearts into this small quilt. It was the 30th anniversary of our Waterloo County Quilters' Guild, so we had to challenge ourselves to use 30 fabrics in our small quilt.

I was also experimenting with a quilting style that is more heavily stitched, and this is the result.

30 Reds on 30 Whites, detail
by Ilene Atkins

These hearts are glue-stick applique.  This is where you glue the  edges of the applique down onto the back of the pieces, and then they are quick to hand stitch, in this case, to the background. These pieces can also be machine stitched to the background.

My inspiration for this technique is from Kathy K. Wylie, when she was at our guild for a presentation. I wrote about her visit here, when she showed us her fabulous appliqued quilts.

Quilt Guild Fun

Quilters Newsletter Magazine
April/May 2012 issue

What has the April/May 2012 issue of Quilters Newsletter Magazine have to do with my quilt guild?  Last night, our guest presenter was Kathy K. Wylie, from Whitby. She has been quilting for many years, and her most recent quilt, Flourish on the Vine, is the culmination of her work.

Kathy K. Wylie's
Flourish on the Vine, detail

I loved hearing her story, and seeing her quilts. It's easy to see the progression of her quilting style, seeing a lot of her quilts at once. And like myself and many other quilters, she began sewing at a young age, starting with clothing, and later turning to the creativity of quilts.

 I actually saw this spectacular quilt at the International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas. I went back through my photos from that show to have another look. I saw so many quilts at that show, and reviewing my photos brings it all back.

So you can imagine my delight to realize this same quilt was made by our speaker.  It took Kathy two years to complete, and has wonderful details in the applique, machine quilting, and use of colour. Her story and how she developed this quilt are all in the magazine. You may check out her website through this link.  I saw last night all the quilts she has on her website.  What a treat.

The result of all this is that I am pumped about working on my own quilts. I was at my machine all afternoon today, working on one of my photo quilts. I am determined to get some of them finished!