Down Under Quilts issue 158

AUS $10.95, NZ $13.95

Issue 158, 2013

Quilts F U L L PA T T E R N S ◆ E X P E R T T I P S

Down Under

A U S T R A L I A ’ S F I R S T PAT C H W O R K M A G A Z I N E

65+

INSPIRING QUILTS

THE RAJAH QUILT

for you

AUSTRALIA’S MOST TREASURED TEXTILE STAR QUILTER

SUE DENNIS

BEHIND THE SCENES

JOINS OUR TEAM!

TENTMAKERS OF CAIRO

QUICK MAKES

STUNNING JELLY ROLL PROJECTS

2013

Quilters’ A d v e n t u re Take a textiles tour like no other!

See, learn and do – and be amazed by traditional and modern textiles and the most interesting cultural places. Itineraries are specially developed by quilting experts for the ultimate quilt and fabric experiences.

A truly unique experience!

Check out the fabulous quilt and textile itineraries

All Tours Feature:

Demonstrations Quilt & Textile collections and exhibitions Museums and Castles Local textile history Patchwork and fabric shops VISIT MAJOR INTERNATIONAL QUILT SHOWS PLUS: Air-conditioned Coach Travel, Bilingual Licensed Local Guides, Sightseeing, Entry to events and museums, 4-star accommodation, Some meals – all breakfasts.

England 1–12 August

Japan 3-17 November

Festival of Quilts V&A Museum Liberty of London Hampton Court The Quilt Museum and Gallery, York www.worldofquiltstravel.com/ festivalofquilts.htm

Quilt Week Yokohama Textile Town Weaving, Yuzen Dyeing Nishjin Textile Centre Arimatsu Shibori Itchiku Kubota Art Museum www.jtboi.com.au

Contact Deb textiletours@aol.com Deb Roberts’ Tours #209069440

Contact Kathy FREE CALL –1800 105 451 JTB Australia Pty Ltd #2TA001972

Welcome

Down Under

Issue 158 – 2013 EDITORIAL Editor: Linda Robertus linda.robertus@practicalpublishing.com.au Subeditor: Lorraine Moran Designer: Jo Martin Photography: Colin Bushell www.colinbushell.com Advertising: Jan Saxton jan.saxton@practicalpublishing.com.au Tel: 07 3855 3281 SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscription Manager: Linzi Wilkinson linzi.wilkinson@practicalpublishing.com.au Online: www.practicalpublishing.com.au Tel: 07 3160 9940 PUBLISHING Managing Editor: Debra Hudson debra.hudson@practicalpublishing.com.au Associate Publisher: Gavin Burrell gavin.burrell@practicalpublishing.com.au Finance Manager: Linda Constable linda.constable@practicalpublishing.com.au Group Publishing Director: Rob Wilkinson rob.wilkinson@practicalpublishing.com.au HEAD OFFICE AUSTRALIA Practical Publishing International Pty Ltd GPO Box 1457, Brisbane, Qld Australia 4001 Tel: 07 3855 3281 www.practicalpublishing.com.au EUROPEAN OFFICE Practical Publishing International Ltd St Christopher House, Stockport Cheshire England SK2 6NG Tel: +44 (0) 844 561 1202 www.practicalpublishing.co.uk DISTRIBUTION Australia: Gordon & Gotch Tel: 02 9972 8800 New Zealand: Gordon & Gotch Tel: +64 (0) 9979 3000 England: Comag Tel: +44 (0) 1895 433600 South Africa: Magscene Pty Ltd Tel: 27 11 805 502 Email: tarrynf@magscene.co.za Published by Practical Publishing International Pty Ltd. The style and mark of Down Under Quilts is used under license from Newlife Media Group Pty Ltd. See copyright and trademark notices on page 98. ISSN: 1033-4513.

For overseas distribution enquiries please contact Andrew Randall Eight Point Distribution – Australia Andrew@eightpointdistribution.com.au Telephone: + 61 (0)2 9960 5710

Meet Linda Linda Robertus (right) was born in the Netherlands and moved to Australia in 2007. She made her first quilt in 2006, when she was expecting her third son. Her background is in medicine and she worked as a researcher in Brisbane for five years before deciding to write about quilts instead of diseases. She is an avid reader, a keen amateur photographer and she loves to watch her sons’ acting performances and gymnastics competitions.

This issue of Down Under Quilts is a very special one, as it marks a new beginning. Having being launched in 1988, it’s now time for another editor to join a select few who have taken up the challenging and fun role of leading Australia’s first patchwork magazine.

First off, we would like to thank Deborah Segaert for her very hard work in building a solid, strong base for the magazine to grow. Deborah is staying involved as a contributor, and shares a lovely cot quilt project with us this issue. Check out our news section for more of her plans.

It’s set the scene for our new editor, Linda Robertus, to guide the magazine through a smooth transition.

Linda brings with her strong quilting expertise and creativity, diverse crafting skills and a veritable sewing kit full of enthusiasm.

This time of change has had us all pondering about how this magazine itself is a bit like a patchwork quilt – the myriad contributions from editors, writers and crafters over the years all pieced carefully and skilfully together like so many gorgeous fragments of fabric.

And let’s not forget the other team members behind the scenes that bind and quilt it all together to make it a cohesive, usable whole; a practical yet beautiful work that will stand the test of time.

We are committed to ensuring that Down Under Quilts remains the absolute best quilting magazine available. And we have some ideas for making it even better. One of these you would have already seen – our World of Quilts book, a gorgeous collectable gift that comes free with each issue. We know that quilters love reading and learning about cultural influences and quilting techniques. We promise to take you around the world with this series! And we are absolutely thrilled to welcome award-winning Australian quilter Sue Dennis to the team. Sue will be writing a column, Global Thread, for us each issue, sharing her observations on her textile adventures here and abroad.

So settle back and get ready to enjoy. We’re keen to hear your views, and what has inspired you this month – please visit our Facebook page and let us know.

Debra Hudson Managing Editor

Debra

Linda Robertus Editor

Linda

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Quilts Q

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Down Under

A U S T R A L I A ’ S F I R S T PAT C H W O R K M A G A Z I N E

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46

Projects 40 Metro Blue Jeannette Bruce shows how to piece this striking modern quilt. The dark brown and ice blue fabrics make it just the thing for the man in your life, but it would also look great in another contrasting colour combination.

42 Garden Party Bag Natalie Ross used one Jelly Roll to piece this modern stylish bag. A decorative large button provides the finishing touch.

44 Fairy Sparkles Deborah Segaert’s beautiful baby quilt is made of Snowball blocks bordered

by Pinwheel strips. Deborah used fairy fabric inspired by the artwork of Cicely Mary Barker.

46 Lime Zest Another Jelly Roll project, this time designed by Ally Nicholls. This colourful fresh quilt will add cheer to any child’s room!

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Regulars BONUS!

This issue’s free 52-page book – World of Quilts: Japan – is packed with even more projects and loads of inspiring ideas 48 Postage Stamp Baskets Lorraine Moran used lots and lots of scraps to make this gorgeous traditional quilt. The hand quilting adds a special charm.

6 Snippets & Scraps 23 Meet a Blogger 25 Blog Roll 26 Show & Tell 50 Diary Dates 68 On the Book Shelf 98 Next Issue

SUBSCRIPTIONS 22 Down Under Quilts 28 Down Under Textiles

72 54

30 62

12 Features 12 Jelly Rolls and all that Jazz Just like their cake namesake, Jelly Rolls provide instant gratification, but of creative inspiration, not sugar! We delve into the history of these cute little rolls of fabric and share some examples of what to make with the huge variety available. Get prepared to want to start a new project, immediately.

20 Global Thread Award-winning quilter Sue Dennis travels the world

Exhibitions with her quilting abilities.

Luckily for us, she’s happy for us to come along for the ride. Check out our new regular feature. ` 36 The Rajah Quilt This quilt sewn by convict women on a ship bound for Australia is an extraordinary work of art. It’s rightly also become one of the nation’s most treasured textiles, as Robert Bell from the National Gallery of Australia reports.

54 The Tentmakers of Chareh El Khiamiah – The Film Be transported to Cairo with this evocative story by Jenny Bowker of the plans to bring the story of a street of Egyptian stitchers to the screen.

30 Dear Jane Exhibition 62 Japanology Challenge 72 Bunbury International Quilt Challenge

60 Computer Quilting If our stunning Postage Stamp Baskets quilt project inspires you to make your own version, Jan T Baillie shares her knowledge and expertise about how to use Electric Quilt to draft them.

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SNIPPETS

&SCRAPS

THESE ARE OUR PICKS OF THE BEST QUILTY NEWS AND HAPPENINGS, BOTH HERE AND ABROAD.

Sue Dennis joins the team!

We are very excited to welcome award-winning Australian quilter Sue Dennis to our team! Sue will be writing a column called Global Thread for each issue of Down Under Quilts, inspired by her quilting adventures, both in Australia and around the world. Turn to page 20 to read her first instalment, and how she was inspired by the beauty of Cambodia.

Quilts 1700-1945 The countdown is on for the Queensland Art Gallery’s eagerly awaited exhibition – ‘Quilts 1700–1945’, which opens on 15 June.

This exclusive-to-Brisbane exhibition is from the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. It features objects drawn from the V&A’s collection as well as loans

Francis Brayley, Military quilt, 1864–77, Wool Collection: Victoria and Albert Museum, London, © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

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from selected UK museums and the National Gallery of Australia, which is contributing the Rajah Quilt, sewn by convict women during transportation to Van Diemen’s Land in 1841 (see page 36 for more).

Curated by Sue Prichard, Curator of Contemporary Textiles at the V&A, the exhibition explores over 200 years of British patchwork and quiltmaking, within the context of the domestic interior, cultural and social history.

Some highlights include a coverlet from 1803 showing King George III reviewing the troops, an 1829 coverlet commemorating Wellington, and a 1943 coverlet made in Changi Prison by the Changi Prison Girl Guides Group.

The exhibition runs until 22 September 2013 and admission fees apply. For more information, or to buy tickets and packages, visit the QAG website: www.qagoma.qld.gov.au To accompany this exhibition, the QAG is presenting a show of contemporary quilts by the late leading Brisbane quiltmaker Ruth Stoneley.

The free exhibition will showcase inspiring works from all stages of Ruth’s career. It will run from 3 July to 7 October 2013.

Quilts: In the News

Quilting for computer programmers

At a conference for computer programmers in San Francisco in February 2013, attendees could not just sign up for lectures on programming languages and coding, but also for quilting, printmaking, bookbinding and origami workshops.

Organising software business Heroku decided to bring in crafting demonstrations to broaden the programmers’ horizons.

“We’re treating software development as a craft, and I tend to think of the term ‘craft’ as an intersection of art and science,” said Heroku co-founder Adam Wiggins. “The crafting stations are representation of that.”

Every station invited conference goers to get their hands dirty and spend some time making something, whether that meant carving out a piece of linoleum to make a print or adding stitches to a quilt that will hang in Heroku’s new offices.

At the quilting station, instructor Maura Grace Ambrose encouraged participants to use their needles in different ways to get different stitches, teaching that one tool can produce different results based on your technique.

Stitch One Quilt Too You can follow previous editor Deborah Segaert’s quilty adventures on her new Facebook page – Stitch One & Quilt Too. As well as continuing to contribute projects to DUQ, Deborah is still arranging Quilters’ Adventure overseas tours. Check out her page for more information.

Fairy Sparkles AIDS DYSLEXIA ASSOCIATION After completing the Fairy Sparkles cot quilt (see page 88 for project instructions) Deborah Segaert decided to donate it to the Central Coast Dyslexia Association to be raffled to raise funds.

The association is a neutral organisation, funded by donation, aiming to help disseminate information within the Central Coast of NSW community though events and presentations. http://centralcoastdyslexia.com.au

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Beside the Caloundra Quilters are holding their 13th biennial quilt show on 27 – 28 July at the Arts Centre, 5 North Street, Caloundra on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

Sea

There will be an impressive display of quilts of many designs and different techniques from the more than 100 members. The theme of this year’s

The 2013 Raffle Quilt

A skein of Geese Skein is the collective noun for a group of geese in the sky. We received many responses to the competition to win a copy of Elegant Quilts, Country Charm

by Leonie Bateman and Dierdre BondAbel of The Quilted Crow, Tasmania.

The winner of the book is Ruth Meier of Warradale (SA) and the following ladies will each receive a Quilted Crow Girls Designs pattern – Kathleen Jay of Blackburn (Vic), Judy Ross of Castlemaine (Vic), Hilda Baird of Bowral (NSW), Carmen Bruce of Kings Langley (NSW), Deirdre Kent of Port Pirie (SA) and Karlene Jordan of Duncraig (WA).

Enjoy your stitching ladies!

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show is Beside the Sea, and members are responding to the challenge of making a placemat-sized quilt in which 50 per cent of the supplied challenge fabric must be incorporated. These quilts will be on display and visitors are invited to vote for their favourite.

Members will also be conducting quilting demonstrations, including English paper piecing, machine embroidery using a laptop computer and hand quilting.

A lovely quilt in the seaside theme has been made by several of the members to be raffled to raise funds for a local charity, Multicap Sunshine Coast Day Service. (For more information, visit their website www.multicap. org.au). There will be merchant stalls at the show and many high-quality handmade goods for purchase.

For more information email info@caloundraartsandcrafts.org.au or visit the website www.caloundraartsandcrafts.org.au

Banksia BLOOM

Australian fabric designer Saffron Craig has developed a range of fabrics inspired by Australian nature. It features gum flowers, banksia trees and kookaburras sitting by the river, printed on 100% organic cotton. There are eight different designs in a harmonious array of blues and soft greys, accentuated by punchy orange and soft pinks.

With its small florals, large-scale kookaburras, hand-drawn banksias and a zig-zaggy Chevron this range offers you lots of different ways to use the fabrics. Available in store and online at saffroncraig.com.

Quilts: In the News

Hand Quilted with Love

Sarah Fielke’s new book is inspiring and beautiful! See page 69 for your chance to win a copy.

All you have to do is tell us what type of thread Sarah likes to hand quilt with. You can check out Sarah’s blog or website to find out more about her, the new book, and … what type of thread she uses. You can check out Sarah’s blog (www.thelastpiece.net) or website (www.sarahfielke.com) to find out.

Hand Quilted with Love is published by Hardie Grant, contact Fleur Jacobs for wholesale enquiries: fleurjacobs@hardiegrant.com.au

FACEBOOK FOR QUILTERS – International Quilt Study Center and Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA: www.facebook.com/quiltstudy – Victoria and Albert Museum in London, UK: www.facebook.com/ victoriaandalbertmuseum – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham, UK: https://www.facebook.com/ thefestivalofquilts – International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas, USA: www.facebook.com/QuiltFestival – Liberty London: www.facebook.com/libertylondon – www.facebook.com/ DownUnderQuilts

BARBARA’S LEGACY –

10

years on

Barbara Meredith was passionate about uniting quilters around the country, to get together to ‘talk quilts’ and learn from each other. She was instrumental in setting up Australia’s first quilters’ symposium in Armidale in 1988 – a leader in Australia’s world of quilting at the time – and well-known Australia-wide for the wonderful events they were.

Barbara’s husband, Prof Geoffrey Meredith, was a university professor.

His work took him around the country, and in the late 1990s he took up a position in Lismore and Barbara joined the Gold Coast Quilters Guild to continue her passion of quilting. She became an active member of the guild, sharing her knowledge freely.

Tragedy struck when, in late 2000, Barbara was diagnosed with leukemia.

She underwent medical treatment and continued to go to meetings until she was too ill to do so. Sadly, Barbara lost the fight, passing away a year later.

After Barbara’s passing Prof Meredith asked the Guild if they would be administrators of a Trust to be set up in the memory of his dear wife to enable quilt tutors of international acclaim to visit Australia to conduct workshops. He offered to donate $50,000 to be held ‘in trust’, with the annual interest accrued to pay the international airfare component of a tutor’s visit to Australia.

A sub-committee of volunteer members works under the Trust to choose a tutor and promote a tour schedule to quilting groups around the country. Each workshop location pays for the tutor’s fees, accommodation and meal costs, plus any domestic airfares etc. Without this generous Trust, paying an international airfare on top of these costs would be out of the question for most guilds.

To date they have had tutors from New Zealand, Japan and USA, across a range of quilting disciplines. These workshops are for all members to enjoy, so next time you hear about a BM Trust workshop, sign up and be part of this unique story.

The Barbara Meredith International Tutor Trust is administered by the Gold Coast Quilter’s Guild. It enables the Guild to bring international tutors to Australia and offer a series of workshops to guilds around the country.

Generally, the aim is to bring in one tutor per year.

Sharon Pederson will be conducting appliqué workshops in July. If your guild would like more information, or to participate, contact the Workshop Convenor, Joyce Edmunds at joyce_edmunds@aapt.net.au for further details and costs.

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Quilts: In the News

Art Quilts touring Australia

The latest travelling exhibition by Australia’s national organisation for art quilters, Ozquilt Network Inc. is touring Australia.

Ozquilt Network President, Margery Goodall, said this is the third, biennial travelling exhibition this prolific group has created.

“The 34 stitched, layered works, which are 40cm x 40 cm, showcase original and diverse interpretations of contemporary textile art from Australia’s leading and emerging quilt artists,” she said. “A professionally selected

exhibition of members’ work, Australia Wide Three will excite viewers with the infinite possibilities of ‘the quilt’ in art.

“Founded in 1998, Ozquilt Network Inc. has a long and respected history promoting excellence within contemporary quilt making in Australia.”

Margery said the selectors read as a ‘who’s who’ in the world of textile art: renowned textile artists Deborah Brearley, Victoria, (expert quilter, painter, author and tutor); Tony Dyer, Victoria, (a lecturer and master of diverse textile techniques who has works in many prestigious collections in Australia and overseas); and Carolyn Sullivan, NSW, (highly regarded multiple award winning quiltmaker, embroiderer and author).

“In comparison to other art forms, textile art takes a joyfully long time to create, which is one of the reasons why art quilt exhibitions appeal greatly to the general public.

This form of art has evolved out of utilitarian quilt making into a highly personalised form of self-expression ”.

Australia Wide Three is touring nationally until June 2014.

All 34 quilts can be viewed online at www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au.

Helen Godden teaching in Houston Australian quilter Helen Godden, who has only been quilting for 10 years, has been selected to be a member of the Teaching Faculty for the International Quilt Festival Houston 2013. She will be the first teacher to have a classroom of 25 Handi Quilter Sweet 16s at Houston and in fact in the world. Last year at the Australian Machine Quilting Festival in Adelaide, she and her team at Handi Quilter Australia had a classroom suite of 16 Sweet 16 Quilting machines and their American counterparts were so impressed with how the classroom went and the response from the students, that they decided to start the trend in USA with classrooms of Handi Quilter Sweet 16s.

Helen is very proud to be showing them how we do it so well Down Under and to share her love of free-motion quilting with a new international crowd.

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Barossa Craft and Quilt Cottage Australia’s only ‘licensed’ quilt shop: we needed to share this!

Housed in a unique heritage cottage on the main road between Angaston and Nuriootpa in the Barossa Valley in South Australia, this shop has fabrics, patterns, books, kits and accessories for quilters. But that is not all – at the back of the shop is a wine tasting area and a quilt gallery. Enjoy a sip of boutique wine produced from the fruit from the owners’ vineyard while admiring the amazing quilts on display in the gallery.

Barossa Craft and Quilt Cottage also provides quilting lessons, a fabric club, Block of the Month and Mystery Quilt programs. barossaquilt.allthingsquilting.com.au

Get in touch We’re also interested in your quilty news – if you know of something happening, please get in touch!

You can write to us at GPO Box 1457, Brisbane, Qld, 4001 or email mail@practicalpublishing.com.au

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Jelly Rolls

and all that JAZZ Text by Erica Spinks

THESE VERSATILE ROLLS OF PRE-CUT STRIPS MAKE FABRIC SELECTION EASY. CHOOSE A RANGE BY YOUR FAVOURITE DESIGNER IN YOUR PREFERRED COLOURS AND YOU ARE READY TO START A NEW PROJECT – IMMEDIATELY!

The term Jelly Roll was first introduced by Moda Fabrics to describe a collection of 40, 21/2in strips cut selvedge to selvedge. Each collection is rolled up and secured with ribbon and reminds us of a traditional jelly roll cake, which is a thin layer sponge cake spread with jam and then rolled up.

The presentation of Jelly Rolls of fabric is so attractive that other manufacturers soon followed presenting fabric this way. The term has become a generic one to describe fabric cut and rolled in this fashion.

Not only does the fabric look appealing in the roll, but also the strips are a useful width for many projects. Different lengths of rectangles can be cut from each strip, as well as that versatile building block, the square. Buying a Jelly Roll takes the fear out of choosing fabrics and is a good way to try a complete range of material.

Angie Wilson’s Rainbow Connection shows how a clever arrangement of long strips can create a quilt with impact. She used the Skinny Strips Quilt pattern from the allpeoplequilt.com website. “I used the colours from a classic Kona solids roll in the order they came off the roll,” Angie says. “This was a huge thing for me because I’m

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a little obsessive and struggled with the fact that they weren’t a precise gradient. However, I wanted to stretch myself and so made myself sew them in that order.”

The pattern of the dots on the Jane Sassaman Black Dots fabric from her Sunshine and Shadows line provides graphic contrast against the solids. “I had an idea of using the pattern of the dots to give the illusion that the stripes were floating,” Angie explains. “This is only the fourth quilt I have made so I wasn’t sure whether the idea would work. I don’t think my fabric-shopping partner could visualise it quite like I could, but in the end it is really what makes the quilt pop. This taught me a valuable lesson in listening to my gut when it comes to fabric selection!”

Helen Smith, from Altogether Quilting, professionally quilted Rainbow Connection with variegated thread on the colours and white thread on the background. “This quilt is a great example of how fabric selection can have a major impact on the end product. Just because it’s a simple pattern doesn’t mean it can’t be as impressive as a really intricate quilt design,” Angie notes.

Quilts: In Focus

Angie Wilson, Rainbow Connection, 178cm x 162cm Bronwen McCoy made Aysha’s Quilt with a roll of fabric given to her as a gift. “The colours were a little out of my comfort zone and I had never worked with a Jelly Roll before,” she reveals. “I wanted a simple design, and one that would be fairly easy to work with as I had not made a quilt for quite a few years and was a little out of practice.”

She looked at the colour groups in the roll and decided to place each group together; with each group next to the

one that she thought would best complement it. Almost every fabric contained orange, so Bronwen chose that colour as sashing between the main pieces.

Completing the quilt sandwich with a backing fabric that she had overdyed with pale yellow, Bronwen simply hand quilted Aysha’s Quilt with large circles to soften the straight lines of the strips. “I like the bright, contemporary look of the quilt; it is so suitable for my teenage granddaughter.”

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A Jelly Roll quilt can be quite easy to make – an ideal beginner project – providing a colour palette that works!

Bronwen McCoy, Aysha’s Quilt, 170cm x 157cm

Kimberly Einmo, Rainbow Geese Crossing, 142cm x 142cm Photographed by Charles R Lynch

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Cherie Hoyle combined long strips with smaller pieces to make Curtain Quilt. “It was made to cover a large archway between our bedroom and dressing room and it makes it easier to keep the bedroom warm in winter. This is my own pattern.”

Originally drawn to quiltmaking because of the different ways colours can be used together to create unexpected harmony, Cherie was inspired by Hoffman Bali Pops.

“I could see how two of these rolls could go together,” she says. “I had already bought some beautiful burnt-orange batik, which I wanted to use as borders or sashing in a quilt, but had no idea what that quilt was going to be. When I brought the Bali Pops home, I realised the orange fabric would be ideal to go with them.”

Cherie removed the very light and dark fabrics from both rolls and added some other strips from her batik collection.

She decided to make a Bargello pattern for the centre.

“I separated the rest of the colours into piles on our dining table. Rail Fence patterns and squares came into my mind and I started laying out strips next to each other. Somehow it all came together from that. Playing with colours is my favourite part of patchwork and quilting and I love the colours in this quilt and the way the Bargello almost gives a feeling of being drawn into the quilt.”

Having never done free-motion quilting on anything so large, Cherie quilted Curtain Quilt in three more manageable parts before joining them. “I had so much fun making this quilt that it took me about 50 hours from beginning to end, including the hand stitching on the binding. It’s only the second quilt of mine that has come together like that.”

Lyn Duhig was attracted by a roll of strips in ‘girly’ colours of soft pink, purple and green when she started to make Hannah’s Quilt. “Hannah is the first great-grandchild for my mother’s identical-twin sister and the start of a new generation for that part of our family,” Lyn explains. “Hannah was born in November 2009 and was the first girl since my niece was born in 1984. She has since been joined by a sister (Heidi) who also has a quilt from a different reproduction fabric Jelly Roll.”

Simple Nine Patch blocks were arranged to form an Irish Chain pattern, with the colours arranged diagonally. “I also love free-motion machine quilting – my favourite part of the quiltmaking process – so I wanted spaces to quilt in.”

Lyn quilted a daisy pattern on Hannah’s Quilt. “I found a similar era reproduction print in the green colour to use for the backing. There were pink and purple strips left over,

Quilts: In Focus

Kimberly Einmo, Checkerboarder Rainbow Star, 61cm x 61cm Photographed by Charles R Lynch so I used the pinks for the binding. I made the purples into more Nine Patch blocks that I used, alternated and sashed in cream, to insert into the backing so that I only needed a single width of the backing fabric.”

Linda Graham used white fabric to contrast with the Moda 9 by Sanae Jelly Roll she chose for Tetris. “I love tessellated patterns and wanted to design a pattern that doesn’t have an obvious repeat, other than the crosses,” Linda says. “I created one block at a time and then made sure the colours on the next one merged so there was no obvious join.”

Tetris features almost 1300, 2in squares. “I used more of the 9 by Sanae fabric to create a border that merged into darker shades. I didn’t want a single-strip border.” To finish

the quilt, Linda free-motion quilted with white thread, as well as maroon thread to match the coloured squares.

Brenda Smith devised an efficient technique of joining selvedge-to-selvedge strips lengthwise and then cross cutting to create versatile ‘power units’. Depending on the placement of light and dark value strips, different patterns emerge.

Featuring the vibrant print fabrics of Kaffe Fassett, Melody 33 is the part of Brenda’s Power Stripping series. “The piano key design in this quilt top is made from 33, 21/2in selvedge-to-selvedge strips making it an ideal project for Jelly Rolls and designer strip-sets that typically contain 40 strips,” Brenda explains. “Leftover strips can be used for the binding. Melody 33 is a fun way to showcase Jelly Roll fabrics in a cot or lap-sized quilt.”

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Lyn Duhig, Hannah’s Quilt, 173cm x 127cm

Brenda Smith, Melody 33, 108cm x 143.5cm Photographed by Joe Filshie

Cherie Hoyle, Curtain Quilt, 154cm x 237cm

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Beverley Beeson used the Cotton Candy Dots pattern

by Amelie Scott Designs to make Batik Candy for Me. “I collected batik fabrics while on holiday in Hawaii. I just loved them and had not used them before, so I decided that they would be used for my own quilt – this one is all mine.” Beverley also included fabrics from Robert Kaufman’s Fusions collection.

She searched on the internet for some time before finding a suitable pattern but then couldn’t track down a local supplier. After contacting Amelie Scott Designs and finding they had not sold to Australia before, Beverley was thrilled that they decided to turn the pattern into a downloadable format so she could purchase and print it out for herself.

“When I started making the quilt and realised how easy it was to put together, I decided to do a half-size one as a cot quilt for my great nephew. That was done in blues and whites and also turned out beautifully,” adds Beverley.

Joanne Clay professionally quilted Batik Candy for Me with a design called Cotton Candy.

Kimberly Einmo has written several books showing how to use Jelly Rolls to create more complex patterns with these versatile strips. “I use EQ7 software to design all my quilts on the computer before I ever set rotary cutter to fabric. I always design in greyscale, which means that if I can make a design look good in shades of white, black and grey, then any colour fabric I use will look terrific as long as I am careful to follow the value of the fabric as I have designed it on the computer screen.”

Quilts: In Focus

Linda Graham, Tetris, 183cm x 183cm

When designing Rainbow Geese Crossing, she used this technique to specifically design a quilt for rainbowcoloured bundles. “I was in the process of designing all the quilts for Jelly Roll Quilt Magic (my second book featuring pre-cuts) and wanted to include them. They are so pretty tied up with a bow,” Kimberly explains, “but I hear so many quilters saying that they aren’t sure what to do with them or how to use the rainbow strips effectively. I chose the block and setting, which is comprised of nine, 14in straightset blocks. The great thing about this block is that it creates the illusion of Flying Geese being set on point. But it is actually so easy to piece!”

By extending smaller units into the border, Kimberly calculated that the number of Flying Geese needed to create the quilt was divisible by 40 – which is exactly how many 21/2in strips are included in a typical Jelly Roll bundle.

She carefully planned the colour placement across the design. Rainbow Geese Crossing was made using a Robert Kaufman bright batik bundle and a paisley fabric she purchased in the Czech Republic.

Kimberly’s tip for using rainbow Jelly Roll bundles is to number each strip in the order that it is in the roll. “In most cases, the manufacturer has already done the work for you and the colours are placed in perfect sequence,” she explains. “So I create a legend of fabrics from 1 to 40, and keep the strips in order. A laundry drying rack comes in very helpful for keeping the strips tidy and organised, and I use little sticky notes as well.”

Checkerboarder Rainbow Star was made for the same book, “I love using 21/2in strips to make diamond units.

Beverley Beeson, Batik Candy for Me, 122cm x 180cm

Jelly Rolls are rolled strips 21/2in wide by 42in long (the width of the fabric selvedge to selvedge) and all strips come from the same range of fabric – so you know that all the colours and patterns will go together. Each Jelly Roll normally includes 40 strips, and they usually provide about 3.5m of fabric.

www.downunderquilts.com.au | 17

Quilts: In Focus

Jelly Rolls are also known as noodles and strip rolls.

Kimberly Einmo’s books Jelly Roll Quilt Magic, Jelly Roll Quilts & More, and Precut Bonanza! are all published by American Quilter’s Society (AQS).

For more details, visit the website www.americanquilter.com

I realised that if I used 32 of the 40 strips (which were leftover from another project), I could use one diamond cut from each of 32 strips. There was still enough fabric leftover to add a checked border of 21/2in squares. And mathematically, the number of squares needed was 96 – which is exactly divisible by 32. All I needed were three squares from each of the 32 fabrics. Perfect!” This quilt was made with a solid, bright white fabric and leftover pieces from a Fabric Freedom Noodle bundle. Awardwinning quilter and dear friend of Kimberly’s, Birgit Schüller of Riegelsberg, Germany, professionally quilted both of these quilts.

Kimberly also offers this advice for working with Jelly Rolls. “I find it extremely helpful to use one additional fabric – such as a solid background fabric or a fabric that reads like a solid – with pre-cuts. There is so much going on in a scrappy quilt made with pre-cuts that the contrasting background fabric gives the viewer’s eye a place to rest.

It calms the riot of colour, texture and scale of prints and allows all the pre-cut fabrics to blend, sparkle, and work together beautifully.”

So if you’ve been wary of trying these tempting fabric rolls, take Kimberly’s advice. “I simply love using Jelly Rolls and pre-cuts for quilting because I find them so incredibly

18 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

Visit Kimberly’s website for more information about her books, workshops, quilts and EZ jelly Roll Ruler and workshops www.kimberlyeinmo.com

liberating! You are free to use the fabrics in any number of ways to create gorgeous blocks and yet you can rest assured that the fabrics all work together beautifully – no matter where they end up in the quilt!”

The Moda Bakeshop has free tutorials and patterns for using Jelly Rolls and other pre-cut fabric packs.

Visit the website www.modabakeshop.com The free Skinny Strips quilt pattern used by Angie Wilson may be found on this website: www.allpeoplequilt.com/projects-ideas/throws-wallhangings/skinny-strips_1.html The pattern for Brenda Smith’s Melody 33 quilt is in Down Under Quilts issue 149. To see details of Brenda’s Power Stripping workshop, which covers more than a dozen designs, visit the website www.serendipitypatchwork.com.au/Teaching/power.html The Cotton Candy Dots pattern used by Beverley Beeson is available from www.ameliescott.com

Judy Niemeyer

The Quilters’ Store is the only shop in Brisbane certified to teach this quilt.

Glacier Star by Judy Niemeyer.

Patterns Kits and Classes available now

Suitable for the beginner as well as advanced. Learn how to foundation piece the “Judy Niemeyer” way!!

Click on this QR code to see our full range of Judy Niemeyer patterns and kits, including Glacier Star

To order or for further information go to our secure website –

www.tqes.com.au Or please contact: The Quilters’ Store, The Embroiderers’ Store Shop 4, 286 Evans Road, Salisbury, Qld 4107 Phone: (07) 3875 1700 Email: quilts@tqes.com.au

www.downunderquilts.com.au | 19 02_TheQuiltersStoreDUQ158.indd 1

2/04/13 7:26 PM

Natural colours are derived from these products

Separating the silks strands from the cocoons

Gl bal Thread Welcome to the first Global Thread column, where my observations, encounters and jottings about people, places, textiles and processes that catch my eye will be reported.

The Kingdom of Cambodia: land of temples, tuk tuks and smiling people, won my heart.

The ravages of the Khmer Rouge, Pol Pot era and land-mine legacy are still

A weaving in process

20 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

evident in the amputees who ply their wares on the streets of Siem Reap. This town and area in Northern Cambodia is a tourist mecca, famous for the amazing Angkor Wat complex and many other Khmer temples close by.

The skill of the ancient Khmer artisans from the 9th century to the 12th century is very evident in the individual stone carvings and panels of the temples.

But you can only visit so many temples before your aching legs need a rest from the torturous workout of the unbelievably steep and deep steps.

Having a curiosity and desire to learn more about Cambodian handicrafts, we scheduled a day to visit several local initiatives which are helping revitalise traditional culture and give local people vocational training and sustainable employment.

Today, silk threads are weaving together a bright future for young lives with skills and jobs.

By travelling independently with Mr Sophat, our tuk tuk driver, we were

Meet Sue

Sue has been awarded many prizes for her distinct, original art quilts and has been invited to exhibit in lots of international exhibitions.

Sue is the Australian coordinator of the World Quilt Competition, a Professional Artist Member of Studio Art Quilt Associates, SAQA exhibition committee International representative, a Quilters’ Guild of NSW Inc. Accredited Teacher – Special techniques and a member of the International Quilt Association, Queensland Quilters Inc, The Quilters’ Guild of NSW Inc, Ozquilt Network and Sunnybank Quilters.

Quilts: In Life

Mekong Quilts shop given a longer, more extensive tour of Les Chantiers Ecoles silk farm than the large groups which are rushed through the production process and into the Artisans d’Angkor sales room.

Each day the hundreds of hungry silk worms eat their way through a mountain of freshly picked mulberry leaves which the farm harvests from its own trees. When the worms are ready to spin their silken cocoons they are provided with large round, woven trays from which the cocoons can easily be separated.

Some cocoons are left to complete the cycle of moth hatching and egg laying, for more silk worms to emerge, but most are sacrificed to the production of the queen of fibres.

Being placed in a basin of hot water aids the separation of the fine silk threads from the cocoon, which are manually wound onto a frame.

More mechanical means are then used to spin finer silk threads. Most are coloured with synthetic dyes with

Ready for Ikat dyeing occasional special orders calling for natural plant extracts for colouration.

In the long airy weaving room, single Ikat designs are tied into the threads creating a resist before they are dyed. I forgot to ask if it was the warp or the weft being tied and on further reading have discovered Cambodian Ikat is a weft process, rather than the more commonly tied warp of other countries.

Apprentice weavers are given easier designs to master initially as their skill levels build. But their first attempts are still available for sale at Artisans d’Angkor.

And resistance here is futile; it’s very easy to fall under the seductive silk spell! But with our shopping we

were helping local employment and initiatives! Other ventures to benefit from our visits were the Khmer Ceramics and Fine Arts Centre, Senteurs d’Angkor and Mekong Quilts.

Not to mention the voluptuous owner of a foot massage and manicure salon, who was happy to talk of her love-life and courtship by an Army General and local Police Captain! But that’s a story for another day.

Sue Dennis © 2013 Photographs by Sue Dennis www.suedennis.com www.suedennis.blogspot.com www.artisansdangkor.com www.senteursdangkor.com www.khmerceramics.com www.mekong-creations.org

www.downunderquilts.com.au | 21

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Quilts: Online

Meet a

BLOGGER Rita Hodge Text by Debra Hudson

THIS ISSUE WE MEET THE FACE BEHIND THE VERY POPULAR RED PEPPER QUILTS BLOG, WHICH OOZES FRESH AND MODERN APPEAL.

Why did you decide to start your blog?

How long have you been blogging?

I started blogging in April 2009 as a way of documenting the quilts I was making.

And why do you keep blogging? What in particular do you enjoy about it?

I continue to keep my blog up to date with my latest creations as a way of keeping in touch, as well as sharing information and tutorials with my readers. It is a wonderful community to be part of and I have made friends with many other online bloggers and readers from all around the world. I have learned so much from my readers, from other bloggers about quilting and blogging as well as photography.

Photography is still an aspect that I find difficult but it is probably in the “most improved”category.

Why is your blog called Red Pepper Quilts?

I wish I had a fun story to tell you but the name Red Pepper Quilts was made up in 2008 to attend the Houston Quilt Market and Festival.

Have you always been a crafter?

Is this a job or a hobby for you?

I am a self-taught quilter, although I spent my childhood surrounded (and clothed) by my mother’s handmade endeavours including sewing, cross-

Butterfly Quilt

www.downunderquilts.com.au | 23

“It’s the simple pleasures of methodical cutting and piecing and creating that gives me endless hours of pleasure”

very simple in construction thereby allowing the fabric, colour and prints to be the central feature. I do love fabric!

What trends in colour or style within quilting and patchwork have you noticed since you started your blog?

I am not much of a trendsetter or follower, although since 2009 there are many more very talented quilters blogging and documenting their quilting journey. I have however taken note of trends in fabric with a surge in beautiful quality solid fabrics as well as fabrics with text – letters and numbers.

There is also a recent trend towards “low volume” fabrics – light/white fabrics often with a white background – which I adore!

Zig Zag Rail Fence Quilt stitch, embroidery, knitting and crochet. I started sewing (making quilts) when my children were in primary school and I joined school parents in contributing to the making of a raffle quilt to raise funds for the school. It was the first time I learnt about rotary cutters, 1/4in seams and half-square triangles. Red Pepper Quilts started as a hobby but has slowly turned into a “job”.

What draws you to patchwork and quilting in particular?

I enjoy simple patchwork piecing as well as collating fabrics for a project.

It is my relaxation and I can become mesmerized by bundling fabric in

24 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

colour palettes of choice. It’s the simple pleasures of methodical cutting and piecing and creating that gives me endless hours of pleasure.

What inspires you?

I am inspired by colour and make a concerted effort to notice colour in everyday things. It has become habitual to notice colour as well as shape in nature as well as our everyday environment.

How would you describe your style?

My preferred sewing technique is by machine and generally in the style of traditional patchwork designs. My quilts are fresh and modern, and often

What has been one of your favourite recent projects?

I do have numerous favourite quilts; some because they represent a memory, a point in time, others because I just loved piecing and quilting them. A couple of my favourites include The Zig Zag Rail Fence Quilt because I really do enjoy working with my scraps and The Butterfly Quilt which was the start of my obsession with text fabrics.

What are your sewing plans for 2013?

The plan for 2013 is to keep on doing what I am doing for as long as I enjoy it.

What are your favourite blogs that you like to read? www.lucyandnorman.blogspot.com http://amandasasikirana.wordpress. com/ http://www.houseonhillroad.com/ my_weblog/ http://cabbagequilts.blogspot.com.au/

Quilts: Online

AUSTRALIA

BLOG

author. She loves traditional hand quilting and needle-turn appliqué.

ROLL

cabbagequilts.blogspot.com Cathy Underhill shares her obsession for quilting, colour, texture, shape and design. She is passionate about quilting which she has been doing for around 12 years.

goneaussiequilting.blogspot.com Jeannette Bruce is a longarm quilter specialising in edge to edge (all over).

She loves all stages of making a quilt and is especially drawn to trying anything new. She is also the proud mum of two young boys and wife to an Australian sheep and cattle farmer. In this issue she shares her Metro Blue quilt. karenatsomerset.blogspot.com.au Karen Styles is a quilter, teacher and owner of a patchwork shop, who loves antique quilts. thelastpiece.typepad.com Sarah Fielke is a well-known quilter, teacher, author and fabric designer, and she writes about all these activities on her blog. pamhollanddesigns.typepad.com Pam Holland loves designing quilts. She travels the world to teach and share her knowledge with others. origidij.blogspot.com Dijanne Cevaal is a textile artist who travels the world to teach and find inspiration for new quilts. She loves to dye and print fabrics and assemble them into quilts with lots of stitching both by hand and machine.

THESE ARE OUR SUGGESTIONS FOR BLOGS TO CHECK OUT. ruthdevos.com/blog Ruth de Vos is an artist who stitches hundreds of little pieces of handdyed fabric together to make bold textile paintings. Her current body of work shares a small child’s journey of discovery in this awesome world.

NETHERLANDS denhaanenwagenmakers. blogspot.com This is the blog of the famous Dutch fabric shop Den Haan and Wagenmakers. They specialise in reproduction fabrics, specifically the antique Dutch chintzes. urban-style-jantine.blogspot.com Jantine is a traditional quiltmaker and teacher in The Hague. She blogs in both Dutch and English and shares links to her favourite tutorials and patterns.

NEW ZEALAND theslightlymadquiltlady.blogspot.com Ms Lottie in Northland is a mother, quilter, midwife, and a little bit chicken-crazy.

USA

wwwbluemoonriver.blogspot.com Susan Brubaker Knapp is a fibre artist, quilt pattern designer, teacher and

inspiredbyantiquequilts.blogspot.com Kathie Holland makes quilts that are inspired by antique quilt patterns and shares the process on her blog. ohfransson.com Elizabeth Hartmann is a modern quilter and author of two books on quilting. On her blog you can also find quilt patterns, block patterns and small projects. pippapatchwork.com/blog Pippa Armbrester is a young quiltmaker and designer in Boston. She loves rich solid colours and bold geometric designs. quiltinspiration.blogspot.com This blog truly is inspirational! It features traditional and modern quilts from all over the world, usually in postings around a theme such as stained glass quilts, Baltimore quilts or quilts made with recycled fabrics. It also has lots and lots of links to free quilt patterns. sarahannsmith.com/weblog Sarah Ann Smith is a quilter, teacher, author and proud mother of two teenage boys, living in Camden, Maine. She blogs about her quilts and her family. selvageblog.blogspot.com Karen Griska is the undisputed selvedge queen (or should that be selvage queen?) and her blog is an endless inspiration for ‘extreme scrap quilters’.

UK quiltcandygirl.blogspot.com Sarah lives on the beautiful island of Jersey in the Channel Islands. She is the owner of Quilt Candy, a small business that makes vintage and modern style quilts for babies and children using the latest designer fabrics.

www.downunderquilts.com.au | 25

Show& Tell We love to see what our readers have been making and this new section showcases your fabulous creations!

If you want to see your project on these pages, don’t be shy – send your photos, letters, stories and tips by email to mail@practicalpublishing.com.au or post to: Letters, Down Under Quilts, Practical Publishing, GPO Box 1457, Brisbane, Qld, 4001.

We look forward to hearing from you!

PATCHWORK FUN

COUNTRY CHARMERS

I made this queen size quilt several years ago and it’s one of my favourites. I spent a bit extra on the cotton fabric because I really wanted to use the exquisite rose pattern. I bought the fabric locally and the quilting was also done by a local custom quilter; I requested the circles and I’m so happy with the result. This was an easy quilt to make, composed of 10in squares using three patterned colours. It takes pride on the queen-size bed in one of our holiday cottages and our guests really like it.

26 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

This is a current work in progress.

I bought a disk of the machine embroidery designs at the quilting show a couple of years ago. I love the little dots that it puts around the animals, it really defines them. It was easy to do. I’m planning to piece the top with a batik fabric, and then I have another black frame to go around it.

Lyn McLean Milford Country Cottages, Boonah, Queensland Thanks Lyn – these are gorgeous.

We’re sure the rose quilt would bring a homely, welcoming touch to a holiday cottage and we’re not surprised that it’s a guest favourite. The Indigenous design machine quilting is lovely and we do hope you send us a photo of the project once it is completed.

I want to share with you a quilt I made a while ago. I had decided I would use up all the scraps and remnants that I had in my sewing cupboard, and cut them up to make a patchwork quilt.

While I may not have that much in the way of skill, I think the look on my son’s face says that he is happy with it as a floor rug. I love the magazine and hope to increase my skills by regularly purchasing it.

Suzanne Brown by email We do hope you continue to buy the magazine regularly Suzanne! Why don’t you check out the great subs rate we have on offer? See page 22.

Readers’ Gallery

STARS, SEEDS & LADDERS!

I would like to share some of my projects with you. My husband Peter Rundle took the photographs.

The first quilt (right) is ‘Inspire’ , a Jacobs-ladder design in blue, red and white. It was made as a raffle quilt in 2012 for our school, Cannon Hill Anglican College. It is machine pieced and machine quilted. It’s a twist on a traditional pattern, and these are the college colours.

The second is ‘One Rogue Seed’ (below), inspired by Jane Sassaman and uses some wonderful spotty fabric I have been saving for a number of years.

It is raw edge applique, machine stitched and then machine quilted in a variety of threads – the centre flower is the rogue seed! The flower is beaded with funky bright crystals.

The quilt won First Art Quilt Techniques at the 2012 Queensland Quilters Quilt Show. All free motion quilted, and lots of fun!

The third quilt is ‘Oh My Stars’ (right) and it’s a variety of blue and yellow blocks, some original design mariner’s compass blocks that had been lurking in the cupboard for many years, mixed with some Jan Mullenstyle pieced stars. It was fun to make and each one is different. It is free motion quilted.

Jane Rundle, by email Thanks for sharing these with us Jane.

We love your quilts and are impressed by the breadth of your skills. Keep up the good work!

www.downunderquilts.com.au | 27

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Dear Jane

Exhibition Text by Deborah Segaert Images supplied by Australian Quilters Association

IT ALL BEGAN IN 2007 WHEN THE COMMITTEE OF THE AUSTRALIAN QUILTERS ASSOCIATION INC (AQA) INTRODUCED A DEAR JANE GROUP TO HELP INCREASE THE NUMBER OF MEMBERS ATTENDING THE NEWLY INTRODUCED SIT N SEW, MONTHLY GET-TOGETHERS.

Oh Dear! Blue Jane, Rosalie Franzke

30 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

Around 50 members took up and the challenge, and led by Shirley Lodington, they met monthly to work on their quilts.

At the time, president, Pam Hammer, suggested that they stage an exhibition of the quilts, “…in a couple of year’s time”.

Over the following years, as more members finished their quilts, the question began to be asked: “when is the exhibition?”

A small sub committee was formed to see the project through, with Pam Hammer nominated as the convenor.

Many months were spent finding a suitable venue and time to stage this one-off exhibition. The decision was made to invite Dear Jane makers Australia-wide to enter their quilts to be displayed alongside those made by their own members. Pam explains, “It was also decided to hang quilts that were incomplete to encourage and inspire visitors to the exhibition who may have started on their own Dear Jane Journey, but given up.” The only criterion was that the entered quilts had to be inspired by the book by Brenda Papadakis of the original Jane A Stickle Quilt which was completed in 1863.

The three-day exhibition was held at the Box Hill Town Hall in February this year – which is the 150th anniversary of the Jane A Stickle Quilt. There were 60 Dear Jane quilts

Quilts: On Show

Viewer’s Choice Liberty Jane, Angela Davis

entered with quilts coming from WA, Tasmania, NSW and Victoria. The majority of those entered were made to the original colour and style; however each one was completely different. There were three made with Liberty fabrics, one with jungle prints, one using very bright Kaffe Fassett fabrics, as well as a red-and-white and a blue-and-

white one. Some of the quilts on display were wonderful departures from the original, but still recognisable as using Jane A Stickle blocks.

The almost almost-1400 visitors from all over Australia voted the charming colourwash of Liberty prints made by Angela Davis and called Liberty Jane as Viewer’s Choice.

The Australian Quilters Association was formed in 1979 and is based in Melbourne. Meetings and other activities are mostly held at the Uniting Church Hall, Canterbury Road, Surrey Hills.

Visit their website for more information www.australianquiltersassociation.com

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Blanket Stitched Jane, Nanette Griffith

Delft Jane, Pam Gladstones

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Quilts: On Show

Fussy Jane, Ana Thomas

My Dear Jane, Pam Chaffe

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Liberty Jane, Kaye Hardman

In Jane’s Footsteps, Margaret Tricker

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Quilts: On Show

Magic Carpet Ride, Lesley Soderstrom

Liberty Blue Jane, Julianne Stoyles

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The Rajah

Quilt

By Robert Bell, National Gallery of Australia

A SIGNIFICANT PIECE OF AUSTRALIA’S HISTORY IS SET TO BE A MAJOR DRAWCARD AT THE ‘QUILTS 1700-1945’ EXHIBITION AT THE QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY.

The Rajah Quilt is one of Australia’s most important textiles.

While it is a work of great documentary importance in Australia’s history, it is also an extraordinary work of art; a product of beauty from the hands of many women who, while in the most abject circumstances, were able to work together to produce something of hope.

Its story is one of hope and persistence, and has been a central subject of study into colonial life since its rediscovery in 1987. On its border is a stitched inscription which gives us an insight into the circumstances of the makers: ‘To the ladies of the convict ship committee, this quilt worked by the convicts of the ship Rajah during their voyage to van Dieman’s Land is presented as a testimony of the gratitude with which they remember their exertions for their welfare while in England and during their passage and also as a proof that they have not neglected the ladies kind admonitions of being industrious. June 1841.’

For the origins of such a testimonial, we must look further back into the 19th century. In 1816, Elizabeth Fry, concerned by the plight of women prisoners in gaol and during transportation, formed the Quaker group, the British Ladies Society for the Reformation of Female Prisoners.

One of the many improvements the Society implemented was to offer prisoners useful tasks, such as needlecraft, to keep them occupied during their incarceration. The Society donated sewing supplies, including tape, 10 yards of fabric, four balls of white cotton sewing thread, a ball each of black, red and blue thread, black wool, 24 hanks of coloured thread, a thimble, 100 needles, threads, pins, scissors and two pounds of patchwork pieces (or almost 10 metres of fabric).

These provisions were carried by the 180 women prisoners

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on board the Rajah as it set sail from Woolwich, England on 5 April 1841, bound for Van Diemen’s Land. When the Rajah arrived in Hobart on 19 July 1841, these supplies had been turned into the inscribed patchwork, embroidered and appliquéd coverlet now known as the Rajah Quilt.

It was presented to the Lieutenant-Governor’s wife, Lady Jane Franklin, as tangible evidence of the cooperative work that could be achieved under such circumstances.

A project of this size and technical complexity – the quilt measures 325 by 337 centimetres – would have been the result of skilled labour and planned direction.

It seems such a task may have been assumed by a free passenger on board the Rajah for this journey – Miss Kezia Hayter, from the Millbank Penitentiary. On the recommendation of Elizabeth Fry, Hayter had been sent to assist Lady Franklin in the formation of the Tasmanian Ladies’ Society for the Reformation of Female Prisoners. Her instigation, supervision and completion of the quilt was a clear demonstration of the success of the shipboard project.

The quilt itself is made using the pieced-medallion style common in the late 18th century, especially in Ireland. It consists of a central panel worked with broderie perse, a term used to describe appliquéd chintz, probably because of its resemblance to Persian embroidery.

It is surrounded by a succession of border strips of printed cloth, appliquéd flowers and flower shapes. The inscription is finely worked in silk yarn.

From the quilt’s 2815 pieces, we can see a cross-section of contemporary textile technology of the period, its patterns, printing techniques and design influences. While we do not know the women who worked on it, we can see there was a considerable variation in their skills. Among the women

Quilts: Australia

on that voyage of the Rajah were 15 whose occupations were listed as tailoring or needlework. However, there are small bloodstains still on the quilt – probably from the pricked fingers of some of the less-skilled workers.

At some stage after its arrival in Tasmania the quilt was returned to England, to be presented to Elizabeth Fry. Whether she knew of it before her death four years after its completion, we do not know. Its life and ownership during the following 147 years remains to be revealed.

Textile arts and industry have held societies together for millennia, providing for our needs and stimulating the growth of industry and technology. Despite their fragility, textiles endure because they can be remade with inherited and remembered skills.

The Rajah Quilt has miraculously endured the ravages of time and physical decay to provide us with a tangible

link to this country’s fragile early society and the women who transcended their conditions to work together in the service of art.

The Rajah Quilt has captured the imagination of National Gallery of Australia visitors since its acquisition in 1989, and is the most frequently requested object for viewing in the Gallery’s Collection Study Room, however as it is too large for the Study Room tables it has, until now, only been able to be shown folded in its box.

Due to its size, fragility and the light-sensitive nature of its materials, the Gallery’s textile conservators have advised that the quilt be made available for viewing only once a year.

The loan to the QAG from 15 June to 22 September offers Australians an extended opportunity to see the quilt in its entirety. It will not be displayed at the NGA again until 2015.

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Metro

BLUE THIS QUILT, MADE UP OF ICE BLUE AND DARK BROWN FABRICS, HAS A CRISP, FRESH MODERN LOOK.

The bold geometric design and the various striped fabrics add to the modern element of the quilt. The absence of a border is in keeping with modern quilt trends.

By Jeannette Bruce Dimensions 200cm x 230cm (78in x 91in) The instructions for this quilt appear on page 82.

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Project

SERENELY STYLISH

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Garden Party

BAG

NATALIE DESIGNED THIS ORIGINAL PROJECT USING JELLY ROLLS

The fabrics used in this design are 100% cotton. There is a 1/4in seam allowance included for all pieces unless otherwise stated.

Make a cardboard template of the pattern piece. To do this, place the pattern sheet onto a sheet of cardboard and trace heavily on the lines with a pencil.

Draw in the indents on the cardboard with a pencil. Alternatively you can use a sheet of template plastic.

By Natalie Ross Dimensions 13in x 15in (32.5cm x 37.5cm)

The instructions for this quilt appear on page 85.

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Project

TRENDY TOTE

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Fairy

SPARKLES THE DELIGHTFUL FAIRIES FROM CICELY MARY BARKER FLOWER FAIRIES FLITTING ACROSS THIS QUILT WILL APPEAL TO BABY GIRLS AND MUMS ALIKE.

The humble Snowball block is placed alternatively with print squares that fit together to create the secondary pattern of stars. Tiny Pinwheel blocks at top and bottom add needed length and a touch of fairy-like whimsy.

By Deborah Segeart Dimensions 76cm x 96.5cm (30in x 38in) The instructions for this quilt appear on page 88.

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Project

BEAUTIFUL BABY QUILTS

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Lime

ZEST ACHIEVE MAXIMUM IMPACT WITH MINIMUM FUSS BY USING A JELLY ROLL TO MAKE THIS STUNNING QUILT.

Ally likes using Jelly Rolls for many reasons – they are great value for money with much less wastage than yardage, and being designed to co-ordinate makes the task of matching prints much easier. There is also much less prep time.

By Ally Nicholl Dimensions 127cm x 127cm (50in x 50in)

The instructions for this quilt appear on page 91.

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Project

MODERN & COLOURFUL

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Postage Stamp

BASKETS TRADITIONAL BASKET BLOCKS, IN GENERAL, ARE AMONG LORRAINE’S FAVOURITE STYLES, AND THIS LOVELY LITTLE BLOCK IS TOP OF HER FAVOURITE LIST.

The units in this quilt are only 41/2in square, so this is an ideal portable project to stitch at your quilting group or while travelling.

By Lorraine Moran Dimensions 94cm x 227cm (761/2in x 891/4in) The instructions for this quilt appear on page 94.

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Project

GREAT STASH BUSTER

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ACT

8–11 August Canberra Quilters Exhibition Exhibition Park, Mitchell www.canberraquilters.org.au 31 October – 13 December Art Quilt Australia ACT Craft Gallery 180 London Circuit, Canberra www.craftact.org.au www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au

NEW SOUTH WALES

25 May – 26 June Beneath the Southern Sky Gosford Regional Gallery, 36 Webb Street East Gosford 02 4325 0056 gallery@gosford.nsw.gov.au 31 May – 1 June Macarthur Textile Challenge Camden Civic Centre, Camden MacarthurTextileNetwork@gmail.com 12–16 June Quilters Guild of NSW Annual Quilt Show Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre Darling Harbour www.quiltersguildnsw.com www.craftfair.com.au 2–4 August Mad Quilters’ Gathering Penrith Panthers Exhibition Marquee Mulgoa Road, Penrith www.madquiltersgathering.com.au 3–4 August Camden Country Quilters Guild 24th Annual Exhibition A, H & I Hall, Camden Showground Corner of Murray and Argyle Streets, Camden Chris 02 4655 8293 27–28 September Friendly Patchers Quilt Show Anglican Church Hall, McIntyre St, South West Rocks Jenny jengi@netspace.net.au

QUEENSLAND

Wattle Nation, Sue Dennis (Beautiful Australia)

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18–28 July Jumpers & Jazz Warwick www.warwickartgallery.com.au www.jumpersandjazz.com

Diary Dates

27–28 July Caloundra Quilters 13th Biennial Quilt Show Caloundra Arts Centre, 5 North Street, Caloundra www.caloundraartsandcrafts.org.au Margaret Deakin 07 5499 6572 31 August Quilts and Textile Temptations Milton State School, Bayswater Road, Milton Chris 07 3369 4060, Margaret 07 3353 5557 1–15 September Beautiful Australia Gallery 159, 159 Payne Road, The Gap 07 3300 6491 www.tafta.org.au/gallery-159/

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

4 July – 11 August Beautiful Australia The Gawler Community Gallery, Station Master’s House Gawler Railway Station, Twenty Third Street, Gawler South 08 8523 5995 www.gawlergallery.50webs.com 24 September – 21 October Dare to Differ – Contemporary Quilts Gallery M, Marion Cultural Centre 287 Diagonal Road, Oaklands Park info@gallerym.net.au www.gallerym.net.au 18–20 October Bordertown Gumtree Quilters Quilt Exhibition Bordertown Civic Centre Heather 08 8752 2542

VICTORIA

1 June – 14 July Wangaratta Contemporary Textile Award Wangaratta Gallery, 56 Ovens Street, Wangaratta www.wangaratta.vic.gov.au 03 5722 0865 9 June Alexandra Quilters Exhibition Town Hall, Main Street, Alexandra alexandraquilters@gmail.com Thelma 0409 414 857 12 June – 7 July Journeys in Cloth and Stitch Solo exhibition by textile artist Jan Lowe Bundoora Homestead Access Gallery 7–27 Snake Gully Drive, Bundoora www.bundoorahomestead.com

Sulphur Crested Cockatoo flits through Ghost Gums, Annette McRae (Beautiful Australia)

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Diary Dates

5–14 July Strictly Quilts St Bernards School Hall Williams Road, Wangaratta Frances 03 5721 2598

30 July – 30 August Australia Wide Three Wanneroo Library and Cultural Centre 3 Rocca Way, Wanneroo www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au

13 July Annual Quilt In Willows Quilting Group Inc. Melton Senior Citizens Hall, McKenzie Street, Melton Margaret 03 9743 5099

NEW ZEALAND

25–28 July Craft & Quilt Fair Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, South Wharf www.craftfair.com.au

5–8 September 2013 Craft & Quilt Fair Claudelands Events Centre, Hamilton www.craftfair.com.au

24–25 August Craft Bonanza Churchill Neighbourhood Centre/Gumleaf Quilters Monash University Auditorium Churchill Henry Parniak/Jean Baudendistel 03 5122 2955 churchillnc@bigpond.com www.churchill.org.au

ENGLAND

6–8 September Mad Quilters Gathering Melbourne Showgrounds, Ascot Vale www.madquiltersgathering.com.au 7–22 September Travellers’ Tales Annual Exhibition of the Embroiderers Guild Victoria Embroidery House, 170 Wattletree Road, Malvern 03 9509 2222 www.embroiderersguildvic.org 12–13 October Something Old, Something New Biennial exhibition by Kilmore Quilters Inc Kilmore Memorial Hall 14 Sydney Street, Kilmore Fay 0417 517 109 kilmorequilters@live.com

TASMANIA

28–30 June Island Quilts 2013 Tasmania Quilt Guild Exhibition Derwent Entertainment Centre, Glenorchy Chris 03 6395 1197 www.tasquiltguild.org.au

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

21 June – 21 July Australia Wide Three Artgeo Gallery, 4 - 7 Queen Street, Busselton www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au

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18–23 July Taupo Symposium Fabric Art Festival 5 Story Place, Taupo www.tauposymposium.co.nz

8–11 August Festival of Quilts NEC, Birmingham www.twistedthread.com 10–13 October The Knitting and Stitching Show Alexandra Palace, London www.twistedthread.com

FRANCE

12–15 September 2013 19th European Patchwork Meeting Ste Marie-aux-Mines, Alsace www.patchwork-europe.com

BELGIUM

3–6 October National Patchwork Happening Salle des Acacias et Ecuries du Parc avenue Elisabeth Edingen/Enghien http://www.belgiumquilt.be

THE NETHERLANDS

17–20 October Open European Quilt Championships Koningshof, Veldhoven www.oeqc.eu

SOUTH AFRICA

6–8 September International Quilt Convention Emperors Palace, Johannesburg

JAPAN

14–16 November Quilt Week International Yokohama, Tokyo

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10/04/13 10:38 PM

Kim Beamish filming all the action in the street

The Tentmakers of Chareh El Khiamiah

– The Film

JENNY BOWKER SHARES HER INSIDER’S KNOWLEDGE OF THE PLANS TO BRING THE ENTHRALLING STORY OF A STREET OF EGYPTIAN STITCHERS TO THE SCREEN.

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Quilts: International

This piece was stitched by Ahmed Naguib from a design purchased from Mohamed Dendon There is a narrow covered alley at the edge of the old walled city of Cairo, opposite Bab Zuyweilah. Light slants from gaps in the ceiling, painting dapples in the dust and around the feet of the constant succession of people walking through.

Donkey carts, boys on bikes with two-metre trays of bread on their heads, and carts of shoes and bananas, some hauled by men and some by donkeys – all stir the dust and it swirls to settle in the tiny shops on each side of the alley.

In the shops men sit on broad low benches. There are cheap striped rag rugs below them, and cushions between their backs and the walls. There is usually a glass of dark black tea balanced precariously beside them and perhaps a cigarette in a stained tin ashtray. The walls are covered with incredible colour. Rich appliquéd textiles are staple gunned or put up in haphazard array with brass drawing pins. Some have winding twisting curves reminiscent of the elaborate borders on old manuscripts, some have lotus in 50 possible shapes and exploding with unlikely colour, and occasionally some have Islamic calligraphy, simultaneously graceful and spare – and some really elaborate pieces combine all of these elements.

The men are stitching. They sew so fast that it is hard to see how they are actually placing the stitches.

Photographs of their hands blur. They have learned to sew fast because this is how they make their living and keep their families and they will tell you, “A slow stitcher has a hungry family.”

These are tentmakers. The street has changed very little since an early watercolour from 1907, and perhaps very little since it was built around 1600 AD. Steel roller doors now lock the shops securely at night. Televisions flicker in poor colour,

A wonderful piece from Essam Ali’s shop

Radiating Lotus design by Mohamed Dendon

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Kim with Hosam and Ekramy

Mohksen working for Fattoh

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often luridly green, and sometimes broadcasting Koran reading stations, sometimes Egyptian soap operas.

The stitchers of 2013 have replaced their ancestors.

The most important change of all is the presence of a solitary man with a large camera on his shoulder. Kim Beamish is filming.

Kim Beamish is an Australian. He has spent most of the last year – since three days after he arrived – with the men in the Street of the Tentmakers. He is making a full-sized documentary film, to be called The Tentmakers – Chareh El Khiamiah. They have almost stopped waving at him when the camera is on, though he is still working on that.

Many promising sections have had to be wiped when the main characters turn to give him a cheerful greeting halfway through the filming. He is part of the street now, and accepted. You can get a feel of this from the website for the project: www.tentmakersofcairo.com The work is part of Egypt’s history but a curiously invisible part. There is evidence of appliquéd leather tents in Pharaonic tombs from 1000 BC. Paul in the Bible was a tentmaker. In 1683 Vienna captured a magnificent Ottoman tent when they defeated the Turkish attempt to capture their city.

There are still panels from Ottoman tents, in the style known as Mamluk revival, from the late 1880s occasionally sold in London’s auction houses.

Quilts: International

Work by Mohamed Dendon

Who could believe that greyed blues and terracotta could go with lime and yellows in this piece by Ekramy al Farouk?

Young Mohamed in Essam Ali’s shop

Despite all this there is not one piece in the Cairo Museum. There is a Textile Museum in Cairo too – it has no tentmaker work either. The work is still in common use, but now it is usually printed panels that copy the appliqué street styles and which are cutting heavily into the tentmakers’ ability to survive. Large screens line streets for weddings and henna parties, and for Ramadan, and line the alleys of the City of the Dead for funerals. They line the terminal at the airport to greet pilgrims returning from Mecca. The stitchers even sell the printed fabric as it gives them basic bread money.

The men have adapted their work to make smaller pieces, intended for houses. And yes, it is almost all men who do the work. It was enthralling to watch audiences in America watching the men. Mouths dropped open and people were entranced. The comments were constantly repeated and were summed up by one lady who said in amazement, “It is gobsmacking enough that they are men doing needleturned appliqué. Then you realise how fast they are, how small their stitches are, and you realise that they are using tools we could never even give space in our sewing rooms.

What they make brings tears to my eyes.”

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The real thing – a scruffy khiamiah on the outside of a tent which is the home of a fruitseller

A spectacular piece of work by Ekramy el Farouk

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Kim Beamish has taken on the task of documenting the story of the men and the street. They have faced so much in the last few years – the catastrophic introduction of printed panels which look, from enough distance, like khiamiah, the turmoil of the revolution which has left the tourist industry stricken, and inflation which has shrunk their meagre earnings. Older stitchers are dying faster than they are being replaced, and so far there has been only one serious academic article about the men.

It is a badly needed story. Kim has been shadowing the men, and has travelled with them to exhibitions organised in England and France and the United States of America. He has raised money through a crowd funding campaign to help him to hire an Arabic-speaking film editor and a really excellent translator. More will be needed and he has a Tip This Movie box on his website at: http://vimeo.com/58492667 The Tentmakers of Cairo create work which resonates at an entirely different level, both aesthetically and culturally, from the artistry with which we are familiar. Like many of the readers of this story, they have devoted a lifetime to their craft, largely unrecognized but proud of what they do and who they are. That alone is worthy of recording and support. But most of all, they provide us with another reminder of the power of cultural traditions to excite, to share in the joy of creativity, and to enhance and challenge our understanding of our common humanity.

Quilts: International

The fruitseller with the printed version inside, and a lovely box for mandarins made from the centres of date palm fronds.

Inset: A jewelled piece which feels like Turkish tiles, from Ahmed Goma’s shop

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Postage Stamp Block project in EQ

by Jan T Urquhart Baillie

THESE BLOCKS ARE NOT IN THE BLOCK LIBRARY, SO I WILL WALK YOU THROUGH HOW TO DRAW THEM. ANY VERSION OF ELECTRIC QUILT WILL WORK FOR THIS INTERMEDIATE – LEVEL LESSON. The Postage Stamp Basket is a block that is traditionally made using scrap fabrics. The block was designed for use on a United States postage stamp during the 1900s.

We need to draw the handle which is a curved shape appliquéd on the background of the basket. Click on the Appliqué tab at the bottom of the screen.

In the dialog box that appears, choose break. Repeat with the node at the bottom of the circle.

START WITH A CIRCLE

FORM THE BOTTOM OF THE HANDLE

START WITH A NEW PROJECT

Open Electric Quilt. Create a new project in the dialogue box that opens, and name your project: Postage Stamp Basket.

Using the circle tool, found under the Oval tool at left, click on one intersection of your graph paper and drag straight down two intersections.

Click on the Edit arc tool at left, then on the top node of the circle. You should see the message below. Right click while still on that node and choose Edit.

Select the right-hand side of the circle, which is now separate from the other side, and right click. Choose Resize.

Type 75% in each box and then OK.

DRAW YOUR BLOCK

From the top menu choose: Block > New block > EasyDraw + PatchDraw. Set your graph paper to be 8 x 8.

FLIP THE NEW SEGMENT

While it is still selected, right click and choose Symmetry. Click FlipH to turn it over. Move it into position inside the large arc.

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Computer Quilts

CLOSE THE HANDLE

Use the Line tool at left to draw EXACTLY from one end of the large arc to the end of the small arc. Repeat at the other end.

It is helpful to turn on Snap to Node in the Precision Bar at top.

Zoom in with the Zoom tool from the Precision bar at the top if you can’t see the ends well.

Step 2: Draw the diagonal lines to form the top of the basket.

Choose Clone again and then FlipV. Again choose Clone, and FlipH for the last handle. Save.

COLOUR YOUR BASKET

Step 3: Draw the base of the basket with lines as shown in the next diagram Repeat in each corner of the block. Save.

Once you have completed the handle, click Edit at the top menu and choose Cut.

DRAW THE BASKET

Step 1: On the EasyDraw tab, and using the Line tool, draw a vertical and a horizontal line. Draw a square one grid square away from all sides. Save your progress by adding each step to the Sketchbook. You can erase the halfdone blocks later.

ADD THE HANDLES

Choose the AppliquĂŠ tab, then Edit from the top menu, and Paste.

Drag the handle into position in one basket, then right click and choose Symmetry, then choose Clone.

While still selected choose FlipH, reposition the clone.

Traditionally, the basket uses scraps, but what if you used gradated colours like the quilt design above?

How about dark outside the baskets and light inside? Or the reverse? Or maybe sashing between the blocks?

Or combine both colourings, as I have done below?

Have fun designing with this block.

See you next time...

For more lessons go to: www.jantspatchworkschool.com

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Japanology Challenge Text and photographs by Deborah Segaert

JAPANOLOGY IS THE AGGREGATE OF DISCIPLINES THAT STUDY THE HISTORY, ECONOMY, POLITICS, PHILOSOPHY, LANGUAGE, LITERATURE, AND CULTURE OF JAPAN.

First Quilt, Pam Byatt (WA) “I came on this adventure as a person interested in Japan, accompanying my sister Irene; not as a quilter. So this is my first quilt, and probably my last! But, I did have fun doing it.”

*If you would like to travel to Japan with Deborah on the 2013 Quilters’ Adventure call Kathy at JTB Travel toll free: 1800 105 451 to obtain the itinerary.

Or download at http://www.jtboi.com.au/seasonal/quilt_tour.htm

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For a group of 16 quilters who visited Japan late 2012 for a Quilters’ Adventure tour, our study of Japanology could include only an overview of a few of these topics as our bilingual guides imparted their knowledge generously.

The most interesting insight into contemporary Japan was through the textile expressions seen at the Quilt Week Yokohama exhibition in Tokyo.

Textiles translated the modern view of the traditional, as well as the present expression of quilting, and so much more.

At the end of the 13-day tour, as the exploration came to an end, a challenge was announced – create an A4 quilt that expressed the maker’s feelings of Japanology. Not all the members of the Quilters’ Adventure were able to enter the challenge, but as you can see from the following pages Japanology conjured different memories and images – and you can also feel a similarity of what the textile experience of Japan imparted.

The winner of the challenge received a gorgeous pair of 4in Gingher scissors.

Congratulations, Margaret – enjoy! “What we loved about Margaret’s textile expression of Japanology was the serenity of the geisha, the beauty of the kimono and the precision of the hand-embroidered stitches” said the judges (and tour leaders) Lynn and Deborah.

Exhibition

WINNER of the Japanology Challenge

Memories of Japan, Margaret Graetz (SA) “My quilt incorporates some of the things I saw and loved – the silk, the kimono, the gorgeous red maple leaves and the soft aged green of the palaces.

The silk in the kimono came from the Textile Centre, the window fabric is from Yokohama Quilt Festival and the binding is leftover from the block kit I bought at the festival.”

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Tour leaders Deborah and Lynn also made a quilt in response to the challenge of Japanology. Their quilts were not judged.

Oh Bodoko!, Deborah Segaert (NSW) Throughout our Quilters’ Adventure we saw and experienced a wonderful number and variety of culture and textiles. Even so, I was not prepared for the sights I saw at the Boro Musuem. When I entered a room that displayed old, large Bodoko pieces hot tears stung the back of my eyes! These were old, tattered, and glorious!

My quilt is a translation of this vision that lives on in my head. The quilt also includes a few other elements that round out my Japanology response.”

At the Heian Jingu Shrine, Kyoto, Lynn Hewitt (NSW) “Among the many things I love about Japan are the havens of tranquillity which exist in the midst of bustling cities.

Behind the Heian Jingu Shrine in Kyoto is this beautiful garden with stepping stones, heading – where?”

This is the photo that inspired Lynn’s piece; she transferred it to fabric and then stitched it to the back of the quilt.

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Exhibition

Japan – Day Eight, Betty Jacobs (NSW) The eighth day dawned on our quilting tour Of Japan’s fabrics and fibre arts.

Our plan was to visit Station Five At the foot of Mt Fuji for a start.

But the rain was heavy, the mist was thick, No chance of viewing Mt Fuji today.

A museum visit, that’s the trick, To give the quilters creative play.

Itchiku Kubota’s kimono displays, Impressive with stitches and magic hues, Are housed in a building delightfully set With gardens of leafy autumnal views.

The ponds are flanked by colourful displays, Of reds and yellows, purples and green.

But to surprise us just when we’d had our fill, Mt Fuji appeared to complete the scene.

Of all our wonderful trip to Japan, The quilts and dyes, the friends and fun, The images of the Kubota museum Remains in my memory as number one.

My tiny quilt is a humble attempt To create an impression of that day With a chance to use fabrics from Japan And my first free-motion quilting play.

Thank you Lynn and thank you Deb You gave so much for me to absorb But the greatest of all our experiences Was the Itchiku Kubota reward!

Japan Quilt, Janet Wright (NSW) “I have included the piece of cotton that I stencilled in the traditional yuzen dyeing method in a workshop in Kyoto, presented in a fan shape surrounded by orange quilting to represent the hue of autumn. I added the small florets I purchased at the quilt show in Yokohama.”

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Mt Fuji Autumn, Joy Williams (Vic) “The Hakone area and Mt Fuji where the autumn scenery was quite spectacular was my favourite area.

My quilt is expressing these feelings and visions. The Japanese writing has been stitched with sashiko thread that I bought in Japan, and says Mt Fuji – Autumn. The backing fabric was purchased at the Quilt Week International show.

The quilt was stencilled using Japanese maple leaves from a tree in my garden and then stitched with silk threads.”

Little Japanology Quilt, Irene Dewar (WA) “I have used wonderful textured cottons to create hexagons in the English paper-pieced method for my background.

I included the rabbit from the Japanese story of the Rabbit in the Moon, a flower to represent all the wonderful gardens I saw, especially the hillside garden at the Itchiku Kubota museum, with Mt Fuji hovering in the background.

Lastly, I added a smaller version of the camellia we made with the ladies from the Catpatch patchwork group; an evening that proved that not having a language in common is no bar to fun and friendship.”

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Exhibition

Japanology, Karen MacDonald (Qld)

Grace & Tradition, Wendy Garling (Vic)

“I have used images of Japan cut from fabric and appliquéd onto my piece. Sashiko stitching and small embellishments such as beads and flowers finish it off.”

“My small quilt reminds me of our time in Kyoto where we saw so many young girls in traditional dress. The design was taken from a printed bag that I purchase as a kit and sewed. It was fun to do, and I look forward to creating a larger version.”

Tsunami, Sue Weber (Vic) “My quilt has the great Tsunami of 2011 as its central theme. Japan continues to suffer greatly in the wake of this devastating disaster.

The wording includes basic facts about the tsunami and is printed from my computer with the red moon representing the Japanese flag appliquéd over it. On the red circle the qualities of the Japanese people, that may help them overcome the tsunami, are printed.

The surface embellishment is done with couched-and-stitched fibres and threads to represent the force of the sea. The appliqué of the dragonfly represents courage and strength. The backing and binding fabric were purchased in Tokyo.”

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On the

BOOK

QUILTS FROM THE AMERICAN HOMEFRONT: 121 Quilt Blocks Inspired by Letters from World War II Rosemary Youngs will show you how to piece together an American quilt inspired by letters from seven remarkable American soldiers and their families. There are complete instructions for making a full-sized sampler quilt using all 121 blocks, including a full-sized block diagram for each one, and four diagrams for making smaller quilt projects.

Published by Krause Publications and distributed in Australia by Capricorn Link

SHELF ENJOY SOME OF THE LATEST BOOKS ON THE MARKET, INCLUDING TWO BY AUSTRALIANS.

IN LOVE WITH SQUARES & RECTANGLES STITCH SAVVY

Deborah Moebes presents five ‘tracks’ (home decor, handbags, kids’ items, quilting and clothing), each with five projects that start simple and build up your skills.

Plus she has cross-referenced techniques allowing you to skip around and explore certain skills. If you love the box pleats in the Sashiko curtains, you can check out the A-line skirt with the peek-a-boo pleat!

Bonus CD includes 13 PDF patterns for apparel, accessories and home decor, quilting guides and more!

Published by Krause Publications and distributed in Australia

by Capricorn Link

68 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

Squares and rectangles are not just for beginners! You will surely agree with Amy Walsh and Janine Burke that sewing basic patterns with straight lines is just about the quickest and most satisfying way to get yourself to a finished quilt.

There are 10 quilt projects featuring batiks and solids. The instructions include yardage and cutting requirements for multiple sizes.

Enjoy stress-free piecing, easy construction while you learn how to alter patterns for completely different looks by re-sizing the blocks, trying a different setting or changing the colour palette.

Published by C&T Publishing and distributed in Australia

by Keith Ainsworth

STARS ’N STRIPS FOREVER Merging two traditional blocks gave Carl Hentsch the dynamic design result he sought. Combining Rail Fence with LeMoyne Star yielded his Stars ‘N Strips block, and elevated his quilts into national competition.

All you have to do is vary the number of fabrics used or change their placement to create a limitless number of blocks. Several-sized blocks are shown, along with two variations.

This book is perfect for the confident beginner and will satisfy the desire to grow for intermediate and advanced stitchers who are ready to tackle a challenge with easy-tofollow instructions.

Published by American Quilter’s Society www.AmericanQuitlers.com

Library

* * WIN a copy

LIBERTY LOVE Since 1875, Liberty of London has been producing high-end fabrics renowned for their sumptuous colour, striking design and silky-smooth hand. Alexia Abegg’s fascination with these lavish prints began as a child. You can rekindle your love for Liberty with this delightful collection of 25 quilt and sewing projects. Each design combines fresh, modern aesthetics with the traditional Liberty polish we’ve all treasured for a lifetime.

You will learn how to combine the popular Liberty Tana Lawn lines with other fabrics, plus there are full-size templates with graded tissue-paper garment patterns.

In total there are nine quilt patterns, four small projects, six accessories and six clothing projects included.

Published by C&T Publishing and distributed in Australia by Keith Ainsworth

Answer this simple question and you could win a free copy.

What type of thread does Sarah like to hand quilt with?

Send your answers to linda.robertus@practicalpublishing.com.au

HAND QUILTED WITH LOVE This is the fourth book internationally-known Australian quilter Sarah Fielke has released, and the second as a solo author. In this book she shares her true passion and first love – hand quilting.

This book includes 16 new projects that Sarah hopes will encourage you to step outside your comfort zone and join her passion for this addictive craft. Whether you classify yourself as modern or traditional, a beginner or advanced quilter, there is a project in this book to inspire and challenge your personal passion for quilting. This beautifully photographed book also shares Sarah’s passion for needle-turn appliqué and hand-quilting with Perle threads, both of which add to her contemporary and unique style.

Published and distributed in Australia by Hardie Grant

ELEGANT COTTON WOOL SILK QUILTS Add Asian flair and Rami Kim’s distinctive elegance to your quilts, wearables and home decorating projects. Centuries of Asian art and culture provide the design inspiration for six one-of-a-kind fabric projects. From castle walls to roof tiles to lattice windows, what has been beautiful in Korean architecture is stunning when translated into pieced quilts. Appliqué shapes are taken from paintings depicting nature: clouds, leaves, flowers, rocks, and mountains. Learn the symbolism of lotus blossoms and the ancient fabric arts of chopkey (folding), bojahgey (piecing) and weaving.

Projects are worked in cotton, wool, or silk, the fibres reflecting both Eastern and Western reverence for all things natural.

Published by American Quilters Society, www.americanquilter.com

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KAFFE FASSETT QUILTS SHOTS AND STRIPES Quilt master Kaffe Fassett and co-author Liza Prior Lucy present 24 projects – made with iridescent solidcoloured cotton fabrics and woven striped cotton fabrics.

Inspired by worldwide travels and a plethora of ethnic textiles, including Amish quilts in America, Japanese indigo patched work clothes, and African weavings, the projects featured include full-size bed quilts as well as smaller pieces such as throws, wall-hangings, table runners, and pillows. With Shots and Stripes, Fassett answers the current call for quilts that make bold graphic statements but are not necessarily as time-consuming as some of the work for which he has been previously celebrated.

Published by Stewart Tabori & Chang and distributed in Australia by Thames & Hudson Australia.

STACKED & STITCHED You’ve never seen chenille used like this before! Artist Christine Morgan was playing around with layered fabric and developed the chenille technique into a method that retains the pattern and design of the layers rather than obscure them in ‘fluffiness’. She calls the layered-and-slashed fabric yardage she makes ‘pelts’.

Now you can use chenille the same way, creating truly unique pieces of fabric art for your home. Instructions for four projects are included: a pillow, placemat, table runner and mini wall-hanging. The inspiration gallery shows potholders, wall art, and even an ottoman covered in Christine’s artistic pelts.

Published by American Quilters Society, www.AmericanQuilters.com

JAPANESE QUILTING PIECE BY PIECE Quilt artist Yoko Saito explores traditional folk themes and interprets them with a vintage, yet modern.

The 29 projects feature piecework, appliqué, machine stitching, handstitching, and embroidery.

You can chose from large wall quilts as well as smaller projects, from fabric baskets and handbags to an apron and fabric cushions – all with enclosed paper patterns.

Yoko Saito uses beautiful and meticulous stitching while embracing the ‘wabi sabi’ concept of imperfection, using odd-shaped pieces and quilting with a free mind.

Published by Interweave Press and distributed in Australia by Capricorn Link

NEW YORK BEAUTY DIVERSIFIED The simple paper-piecing technique for the clean, precise block that Linda Hahn showed in her first book, New York Beauty Simplified, is now combined with eight traditional quilt blocks to bring fresh life to this grand old beauty.

Nineteen projects showcase the numerous design possibilities that are suitable for everyone from beginning quilters to experienced sewers. Every block in the book can be mixed, matched or mingled. Quilting patterns for each project are included – an added bonus – for this intriguing block.

Most quilters are initially intimidated by the New York Beauty block pattern because of its curves and sharp points, but quilts made from this pattern are stunning. Using a combination of ‘stress-free’ templates and foundation-piecing techniques, Linda will take you step-by-step through the construction, offering tips and suggestions along the way.

Published by American Quilters Society, www.AmericanQuitlers.com

70 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

Library

BEAUTIFUL BUILDING BLOCK QUILTS Well-known Australian quilter Lisa Walton shows you how to start with an easy quilt block such as Four Patch or Flying Geese, stitch it up in several different sizes, then build your blocks into striking improvised quilts with upto-the-minute style. She shows you how to incorporate solids, batiks and hand-dyed fabrics; and the piecing techniques couldn’t be easier.

The design possibilities are endless with two ways to play: you can make quilts exactly like the ones in the book, or learn to improvise your own unique creations. Includes eight step-by-step complete quilt projects, four bonus projects, plus a gallery to inspire even more possibilities!

Published by C&T Publishing and distributed in Australia by Keith Ainsworth

MEET THE AUTHOR: LISA WALTON We were excited to meet up with Lisa Walton to find out about the inspiration behind her first book, Beautiful Building Block Quilts.

When did you first get the idea for this book?

The idea for the book came in 2010, but I had been making the sort of quilts I show in the book since 2005 – quilts where I used one block but making it different sizes. I didn’t realize it at the time but I was actually creating a style.

I only realised it later, when I looked back and noticed that all these quilts had the same idea behind them.

Who is the book aimed at?

I initially aimed the book at quilters at an intermediate level, who want to try something different. But when the book was finished and we edited it, we realised that it was a book about quilt design for non-designers, suitable for quilters at all levels. It starts with me showing you how to make a simple block in different sizes, with very clear directions, and make a quilt with them; and in the end I show you how to design your own quilt from scratch, using a piece

of fabric you really like or a design you like but are not sure how to get started.

So in the end we found it had turned into a really interesting design book for quilters in all categories. If, for instance, you are a quite experienced quilter but you have never designed your own quilt, you could start midway in the book.

What is your favourite quilt in the book?

That would have to be the last one, Slashed. I like it because it is made with just one piece of fabric, and I really didn’t know what is was going to be like when I started it.

Throughout the book I try to tell people that it doesn’t matter if they make a mistake or if something isn’t quite right, because it’s their quilt. It is a recurrent theme in the book: you can make a mistake and get away with it. For this quilt I actually ran out of blocks. I did have some loose scraps of the fabric, so there are some blocks tucked in that don’t bear any resemblance to the shapes I started with. And that doesn’t matter, because in the finished quilt you don’t notice them.

How did the publishing deal come about?

It came about when I won the ‘Jewel Pearce Patterson Scholarship for Quilting Teachers’, awarded by the International Quilt Association in Houston. I was sitting next to someone who turned out to be the Creative Director of C&T Publishing. I said I’d been thinking of writing a book and she said, ‘Well, you’ve come to the right person!’ And it went from there.

It was a lot more work than I had ever thought it would be, but I was lucky to have friends who kept me going. One friend painted a sign for me that said, ‘You can do this’. It’s hanging in my studio and now and then I look at it and think, ‘You are right, I could do it!’

Signed copies of Lisa’s book are available at Dyed and Gone to Heaven. (www.dyedheaven.com)

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Bunbury International

Quilt Challenge THE 2013 BUNBURY PATCHWORK AND QUILTING GROUP’S ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CHALLENGE CULMINATED IN A SUCCESSFUL QUILT SHOW, HELD OVER THE WEEKEND OF 16–17 MARCH.

The theme for the challenge was ‘City Scene’ and participants were required to use 75 per cent, or more, of the given 28cm square of tone-on-tone mushroom-pink fabric.

Interpretations of the theme ranged from several takes on Perth (including one depicting traffic chaos and congestion), Paris, and New York, Dubrovnik, Jerusalem and another Middle Eastern city. Other ideas included city levels, a tale of two cities (city above ground and ant city below ground), Sun Bonnet Sue as a graffiti artist, a decayed city, and Superman in Metropolis City.

The number of entries received this year was 41, with 10 coming from overseas participants in Taiwan, USA, Ireland and South Africa.

Sponsors of the challenge included The Thread Studio who provided $500 of machine embroidery threads for first prize; Wattlemoon Quilting who donated Wonderfil threads valued at $250; Dyed and Gone to Heaven who donated hand-dyed fabrics; and Craft Collections.

Photographs of all quilts entered in the challenge can be viewed on the website http://stirlingarts.mysouthwest.com.au under gallery.

Viewer’s Choice Coming Home, 45cm x 74cm, Val Giles (SA)

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Exhibition

First The Busker, 57cm x 55cm, Roberta Chantler (WA)

2014 – NAUTICAL

Quilters are invited to participate in the next challenge to interpret the theme ‘Nautical’. A challenge kit, which includes fabric, entry form, rules and list of prizes, is available to Australian residents for $10, contact Helen Wheeler by phone 08 9752 1416 or email rwh81755@bigpond.net.au.

International participants should contact Helen for details of how to purchase a kit.

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Second Central Park City Sunrise, 80cm x 53cm, Peg Pennell (USA)

Third Middle Eastern Metropolis, 67cm x 58cm, Helen Wheeler (WA)

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Exhibition

Highly Commended A Walk in the Park With Fifi, 73cm x 75cm, Isabella Klompe (NSW)

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Exhibition

Main Street, 76cm x 55cm, Trudy Boyce (WA)

My Hometown Milkfish, 76cm x 77cm Chao-Li Hsueh (Taiwan)

76 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

On sale now at all good newsagents or order online at www.practicalpublishing.com.au

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ISSUE We take a close look at Orange Peel quilts in issue 159 of Down Under Quilts, and Jeannette Bruce will show you how to make one of your own. Other projects include Chris Jurd’s gorgeous Noodle Box Quilt, Cathy Underhill’s Oakshott Dahlia, a batik project suitable for beginners and some quick-and-easy cushions.

Have you ever thought about selling your quilts online? We spoke to some quilters who are doing this quite successfully and investigate the places where you could do this too.

Sue Dennis talks about inspiration in her column Global Thread, and shows where she found it in Cambodia.We also have stunning quilts from shows in Australia and abroad, book reviews and diary dates.

And our fabulous free gift series continues, with a bonus 52-pages book for you featuring the stunning quilts of Hawaii and five gorgeous projects.

SO KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR ISSUE 159 – IN STORES ON 7 AUGUST! Noodle Box Quilt, Chris Jurd

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

The Editor reserves the right to include or not, any submissions or part thereof. All articles and projects are copyright of the author and must not be reproduced for commercial or financial gain without permission. Practical Publishing has taken reasonable steps to ensure that the copyright of each article/project resides with the contributing author. Practical Publishing relies on these warranties when asserting that the copyright is owned by the authors. The instructions for the included projects have been checked for accuracy and are published in good faith.

However, we do not guarantee successful results and offer no warranty, either expressed or implied.

The claims and statements made in any advertisements are not those of the publisher. Practical Publishing takes no responsibility for the accuracy of the content of any advertisements, advertorials or paid promotions. All information supplied in advertisements is the responsibility of the company who books and pays for the space.

TRADEMARKS

Many of the brands and products mentioned in the news and projects pages in Down Under Quilts are trademarks of their respective companies. All companies and brands mentioned in the magazine are included for editorial purposes and all copyrights and trademarks are acknowledged.

98 | www.downunderquilts.com.au

Happy Jack Machine Quilting Frame Happy Jack Quilting Frame The Happy Jack frame comes with custom built folding legs and a fully covered bench. It can be used as a 2m frame or extended to 3m for larger quilts. Operate from the front for freehand quilting or, from the back utilising the stylus for pantographs. It will take most domestic sewing machines that have a foot pedal. No need for modifications, just drop the feed dogs. The bench folds down to 1m pieces for easy storage or transportation.

Stingrays

The stingrays are a replacement for clamps on your frame so you can quilt right up to the edge of your quilt without hitting anything with the machine.

Design walls

The Black Beauty The Black Beauty is a 14 inch throat machine featuring a stitch regulator, great fluro light, up/down needle, M size bobbin and speed control. Will fit most home quilting frames.

TruBlu quilting frame

The Kingfisher Design walls are for arranging your blocks before sewing together. They are double sided and self supporting on legs.

The TruBlu can be set up as a 2m frame or extended to 3m for larger quilts. The carriage incorporates a built in cruise control and includes a stylus for tracing a pantograph from the back of the frame. It will take most domestic sewing machines that have a foot pedal. This frame is a table model, sits on your own table.

Ph 02 6292 0183 l Fax 02 6292 0189 email maljac1@tpg.com.au web www.brindabellaquilting.com.au