Football Around the World

Pieced Pigskin by Deb Rowden,

Quilted by Lori Kukuk, 2009, 25" x 25".

A gift for Deb's Dad

Deb's Dad Walt in 1950

Me and my brother about the same time

I watch a lot of football on TV. The one thing that fascinates me is how they put that colored line on the field digitally.

You can see I am a big fan.

But I do enjoy seeing how quilters turn sports images into quilts---either using sports-themed prints or  piecing or applique.

Football or Futbol

Here's a soccer quilt pattern pieced by Veline. See the pattern at The Pattern Company

http://www.thepatternco.com/products/soccer-quilt.htm 

  

Fleurette in South Africa posted some views of a quilt show on the theme Images of Sports held during the World Cup in July.

See her posts here with images of some clever sports designs:
http://fleuretteellis.blogspot.com/2010/07/images-of-sport-quilt-show.html
http://fleuretteellis.blogspot.com/2010/08/images-of-sport-quilt-show-part-2.html

A pattern for Deb's Pieced Pigskin is in my book Sew Into Sports: Quilts for the Fans in Your Life.
Morna McEver Golletz recently reviewed this in her email newsletter Professional Quilter Online.

Quilt historian Barbara Brackman is not a sportswoman, but that doesn't stop her from making sports-themed quilts for charities and for her nieces and nephews. She points out that the raffle quilts that brought in the most funds were autographed sports quilts, noting that combining the sports fans and quilt fans really multiplies your audience. One potential problem for quiltmakers is the sports fabrics, and here Barbara says to "think defense" and manage "your players." She includes eight projects suitable for the sports fans in your life. And, if you are interested in a charitable project, she's included tips for gathering signatures. I loved the "Slam Dunk Shoe Quilt" with its hightop basketball shoes and autographed soles.

See more about the International Association of Professional Quilters by clicking here:
http://www.professionalquilter.com/

Our Imaginary Booth at Market

Once again our Sunflower Pattern Co-operative is having an imaginary booth at Quilt Market. The semi-annual tradeshow for quilt shops will be in Minneapolis May 20-23.

Everyone else in the quilt business is packing wicker chairs, garden gates and 200-pound ceramic pots to decorate their spaces.

I photoshopped a picture of the Royal Brighton Pavilion in England and put Karla, Deb and me on the porch. That's a virtual quilt design by Susan Stiff  done in Arnold's Attic fabrics in the virtual booth. 

Last year we built an imaginary 2/3 scale model of the Taj Mahal. This year its the Brighton Pavilion. Maybe the Royal Crescent at Bath for next year.

That's probably too big.

Were we to have an actual booth at Market we'd be showing a few things that will be coming out in the summer.

One is Arnold's Attic, an 1890s reproduction fabric collection for Moda.

Another is a book for Kansas City Star Books called

Sew Into Sports: Quilts for the Fans in Your Life

Here's a page from Sew Into Sports with Deb Rowden's Pieced Pigskin wall quilt

I'd tell you to stop by our booth at market in Minneapolis---but you just did.

OUCH!

My Brackets Below

I live in Basketballburg USA, Lawrence, Kansas

You may not know that we lost a big game last weekend.

I wouldn't even bring it up, but I had big plans---

Deb Rowden and I are working on a book about sports quilts featuring Jayhawk basketball quilts.

Deb found one from the 1930s with James Naismith's and Phog Allen's signatures on it.

We made one with signatures of former coaches and players.

How could we have lost?

The show must go on and the book will be out in July.

Why didn't we feature Northern Iowa?

Everyone is upset. Check out this youtube video to see a Hitleresque rage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uejv2zz6bU

Look in your quilt shop in July for the book with the tentative title of Sew Into Sports: Quilts For the Sports Fans in Your Life.

I could probably photoshop some Northern Iowa Panthers onto those shoes

Stripes in Civil War Homefront

Every Civil War reproduction collection needs a stripe or two.

Detail of the tintype I use in my banner shows a neat striped dress and tie from the 1860s.

Stripes large and small were popular throughout the 19th century for clothing. The sisters above were probably photographed in the 1870s. The woman below wears the silhouette of the 1860s. Extra stripes were added with appliqued ribbon.

Border prints were a popular style of stripe.

And if you didn't have stripes you could make them yourself.

She must have heard that vertical stripes were figure flattering---but not in this case.

Prussian blue stripe were particularly popular for clothing and quilts right before the Civil War. This striped basket in a striped set is from a quilt dated 1858.

I have two stripes in my Civil War Homefront collection for Moda. The smaller one above is named Pumpkin Seed Button and the larger stripe below is Hickory Hoops.

Deb Rowden made the most of a package of precut Layer Cakes and the Hickory Hoop stripe in dark blue (Ironclad Navy). Her inspiration was a quilt from the Rocky Mountain Quilts website. Click here to see the antique. http://www.rockymountainquilts.com/files/antiquequilt_q8120.php

Spend some time looking at Betsey Telford-Goodwin's quilts. It's a great website for inspiration---and shopping.

Reproduction Quilt Blogs

Ocean Waves by Barbara Brackman, 2002, Quilted by Rosie Mayhew, 42 x 51"

I'm a fan of reproduction quilts. I make them myself and many of my quilting friends look to antique quilts for color, pattern and design ideas. Above is one I made from some of my earlier Moda reproduction fabrics.

I spend a lot of work avoidance time reading blogs about reproduction quilts. (Can't I call that work since they are so inspirational?) Here's my list of blogs that picture old quilts and the new quilts inspired by them.

Click here for Kathie Holland's blog, called Inspired by Antique Quilts. http://inspiredbyantiquequilts.blogspot.com/

The Dedicated Appliquist from Penelope Tucker features English culture, French fabric and applique reproductions:
http://penelopetucker.wordpress.com/
Here's Penny's reproduction for the American Quilt Study Group "Study in Red and Green."

And here's Deb Rowden's piece for the same quilt study.

Click here to read Deb Rowden's Thrift Shop Quilts
http://debrowden.blogspot.com/

Above, a new Flag Quilt from Jan Patek who puts her own twist on antique patterns at
Jan Patek's Girl Gang
http://janpatek.blogspot.com/

Click here to read more about Jan's new book Flags of the American Revolution:

https://www.pickledishstore.com/productDetail.php?PID=1138

Michele Hill specializes in interpreting William Morris design in applique. Click here to see William Morris in Applique
http://williammorrisandmichele.blogspot.com/

Above is a block by Elizabeth McMahon, who is making the Civil War Bride Quilt, a close version of the American Folk Art Museum's Bird of Paradise quilt. Click here to watch her progress:
http://thecivilwarbridequilt.blogspot.com/
And see a picture of the original at the American Folk Art Museum's website
http://www.folkartmuseum.org/default.asp?id=1523

It's at the bottom of the diagram of quilts.

Two more bloggers for fans of the reproduction look:

Above a copy from Ann Champion's own collection. Click here to see Ann Champion's Blog
http://annchampion.com/

And below an unusual pattern found in Tennessee and Texas at Janet's Quiltsalott blog. Click here: http://quiltsalott.blogspot.com/

Send me comments recommending other blogs about reproduction quilts that I am missing.