Wendy's Wonderful World

How excited are we to finally visit Wendy Reed's quilt exhibit at the New England Quilt Museum.  Woo Hoo

Wendy, Randy and I planned a post covid, fully vaccinated  getaway with the is event as the centerpiece. 

From the left; Wendy, Pam, the Museum Curator, Gladi Porche and Laura Lane, Museum Collections Manager.  I had never seen this quilt in person before.  It is called "The Grapes of Bath" which is where Wendy's lives in Maine.

Wendy's creativity and exemplary quilting skills make for incredible quilts.  Her favorite style is the potholder setting.  Each block is created and bound individually then whip stitched together.   This was intricately puzzled together quilt.

It was such a joy to meander through the exhibit spaces and admire Wendy's work.

Gladi Porche  met us at the museum and it was wonderful to meet her person.  Her work is a source of inspiration for me.  

She has created two incredible blog posts on Wendy's exhibit here is Part 1 and here is Part 2.   Visit and enjoy all the information and please leave her a thanks in the comments.

We rented a tiny cottage 250 steps from the beach at the north end of Plum Island. Fabric and quilting everywhere you look!

Early morning walks were scented with lilacs and wisteria.

What a charming seaside town.

The beach was wide and beautiful.

Is there anything more silly than a group of mature women trying to take a public selfie? 

Randy I have waited a long time toast a Cosmopolitan.  Cheers!

Thank you everyone for all the kind and complimentary comments on my Chernobyl finish and photos.

I have started a quilt for the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in 1979.  I am still having trouble with the outside seam allowance😖😖.   More details to come.  Here is the first 2 blocks.

I wish you all a Happy and Healthy Memorial Day Weekend and congratulations again to Wendy and her Wonderful World of Quilts.

Chernobyl

Fini~ 

 Nuclear Disaster occured 4/26/86 at 01:23.4 am

I have had a lot of questions as to why I made this Chernobyl themed quilt.  The short answer is I wanted to make a tribute to the people who were killed during the accident and in the months and years after working to contain the disaster.

I used many different themes within the quilt from wildlife, snow, flowers, art, architecture and yes; death.

I used Jen Kingwell's steampunk templates because the propeller design reminds me of a radiation sign.

The disaster was the result of decades of cost cutting and cover up by the scientific community and the Home Office in the USSR.  Ultimately the accident happened during a safety test of the back up power generator.  

RBMK is the Reactor that was housed in building #4 in Pripyat,  Northern Ukraine SSR in Soviet Union.   Here is an aerial view of the wreckage.

After machine appliqueing the letters, I  back stitched embroidered around them to give them more dimension.  It is not perfect on the back, but the sleeve hides most of it.  Needs Must.

For the backing I used this beautiful collage of flowers, birds, music and architecture.  Russia has such a rich tradition in the arts.  It seemed an appropriate contrast to the sciencey nature of the front.

I considered several binding options but the simple black frame seemed best.

The straight and ripply quilting is how I imagine the radiation that is still and will be detected in the exclusion zone for hundreds of years.

Mr. Fun and I have been scouting out photo locations for a while and we ended up using a old forestry shack on the edge of a wooded area near our home.

and a old school building that is right off the Boston Post Road here in Madison, CT.  It was the original school for the town but has fallen into disrepair.

Both seemed fitting somber locations for this quilt.

Thank you for your interest in this quilt.  If you would like to learn more about Chernobyl here is a good link from the World Nuclear Association.

The HBO mini series is what first piqued my interest.  The attention to detail was incredible.  There is also a companion podcast to the series.

I also listened to the audio book "Midnight in Chernobyl" by Adam Higginbothom, which offered more details about the disaster those involved.

If you are still here, thank you for stopping by for the full story of my Chernobyl Quilt.

xo

Merry Month of May

 Cherry on Top is what I think I call this little liberated basket quilt.  I finished sewing the top yesterday.  

Here are a few other design ideas that I auditioned. 

I like the side element in the last photo and I'll use that in a future project I think.

At long last I have finished the machine quilting on Chernobyl.   I have decided to add embroidery stem stitching to the lettering to make them a little tidier.  Then on to binding.

Hand quilting is competed on my Whig Rose Quilt!  Just need to make and attaching binding.....and a sleeve......and oh yeah a label.  So you know still some work to be done.

Things have been pretty wild around here.  I spotted this beautiful male Oriole trying to drink my hummingbird nectar.

I quickly put an orange out and this sweet couple were coming every day for a while.  The male always went first!  

Coco and I spotted this juvenile fox on a walk this week in our neighborhood.  The photo isn't great because it was far away.

And this wild thing?   She went outside and stayed out for about 5 hours.   What's a mother to do?  She was quite pleased with herself and took an extra long nap.

Have you ever made a liberated basket quilt?  I'm thinking of offering it as a workshop because they are so fun and each one is unique.

Here is one I made many years ago.

And some blocks with African fabrics.  

And one of Gwen Marstons'.

Well that is all the news for now.  Have a great day!

xo