The Guest Pieces: My Second Pre-Auction Post

As part of my "40th Birthday Extravaganza, Quilt Show and Online Charity Auction" I invited a few friends to donate pieces to the cause. Each one is very different and adds greatly to the variety within my on-line auction.

Want to see them?

First, "Everyone Forgets that Icarus Also Flew"   (18 3/4 inches by 21 inches) 
by Kathryn Greenwold
She writes, "My art is inspired by the natural world, literature, and traditional needlearts.  The manipulation of surface design, layering of color and light, and finding new ways of working with textiles are important factors in what I create.  This work is the result of a challenge to work with an image from another art work that we love.  I chose Matisse's Icarus.  I have always loved the simple flow of this human form and the ambiguity of whether he is flying or falling.  The image was scanned and manipulated in Photoshop, then printed on silk.  I then incorporated the image with hand and machine quilting to create the final work.  As I was working on this piece I came across Jack Gilbert's poem, Failing and Flying. The first line of the poem is "Everyone forgets that Icarus also flew" which is how I've always felt about Icarus - he achieved something no person before him had, but he is remembered for his failure which I've always felt was unfair.  So, this first line of the poem became my title for this work.  I contacted Jack Gilbert and got his permission to use both the first line and the whole poem which is printed on the back of the quilt.  He was happy that it would be donated for this project."

 
"Whirligig"
by Lee Poremba

 

Measuring a petite 8 1/4 by 9 3/4 inches. This little piece was created for our guild's 2012 paint chip and Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative challenge. Therefore, Lee used only the colors on her paint chip to create this paper pieced work which needed to be no larger than 9 by 12 inches. The design is from the American School of Needlework's book, 202 Little Log Cabin Blocks. WOW! 


Using the "Half Moon Bay" bag pattern featured in the January 2, 2013 post, I made this fun bag using blocks from fellow quilter, Kathleen Heintzman Morris.

Kathleen writes, "After every major quilt I make, I treat myself to randomly piecing from my scrap pile a 12 1/2" block or two.  Of course it is impossible for humans to produce truly random events, and my squares are composed of many personal, qualitative decisions about harmonious and complementary colors with a little "shocking" thrown in at times to keep it lively.  Because there are few other rules I create for myself, these are very relaxing and fun to make. Curiously, they are often more interesting to me than the larger quilts that I so carefully create.  There is wisdom in this process that I am still trying to fully grasp into my conscious living. "

Fellow quilter and young mom of three, Sara Musick made these two adorable dresses for my auction.

Gray Twill Dress (Simplicity Pattern 2392)
Size 12-18 months
Sara adds, "The original pattern for this dress had a daisy embroidery design, but I decided to design my own embroidery and make it a little more elaborate. The embroidery mimics some of the flower and scroll work designs on the print fabric of the pocket interior."

Pink Rose Jacket (Simplicity Pattern 4384)
Size 12 months
Sara comments, "Upon finding this pink rose-covered fabric in a remnant bin, I knew it was destined for a pink, puffy, baby girl's jacket."

Sara's story from sewing to quilting and back to sewing is similar to the creative journey of many a quilt artist. She comments, "My mother taught me to sew at a young age. She would make us any clothing we needed - from pajamas to dresses for special occasions - often using remnants or leftover fabric. I dabbled in sewing clothing but was never seriously interested until my mother gave me my first sewing machine in graduate school. I started sewing clothes for my nieces and nephews and progressed in to designing my own patterns for my daughters. With the motivation of the ladies from a sewing group in New York, I began designing and making my own modern quilts. I get to utilize my background in graphic design to craft my own clothing and quilt designs, which often incorporate custom embroidery or crochet details. Sewing is my escape and allows me to have some hands-on creative time. I love to dress my three girls in clothing that I've designed or decorate our house with pieces that I've created. My future plans include opening an online store to sell my designed pieces and to someday create my own fabric designs. I am grateful for the opportunity to do what I love and love what I do."

Patchwork Twirly Dress (McCall's Pattern 6497)

Little Girl Size 8
Sara speaks to the connection between this second dress and the other auction pieces.

 "The patchwork pattern on the skirt of this dress reminded me of a basic patchwork quilt. 

Small details like the topstitching around each piece on the skirt make it even more quilt-like. 

The appliqué edging is a great contrast between the green fabric and the rest of the bolder prints. 

The very full skirt perfect for twirling and is made from 3+ yards of material."

"Twister Table Runner" ( 15 by 33 1/4 inches)
 by Lucille Makrin, my mother-in-law

Lucille writes, "This was the second 'Twister' piece I was working on and realized from the first one that 
I needed more contrast between blocks.  Got out my "Blue" box and started 
picking lights and darks.  Then I decided that a narrow white border might be 
nice to set-off the pinwheels and added another round of dark blue.  I was very 
pleased with the results.  Hope you enjoy using the piece."

Finally, using the "Twister" template, I created this beautiful and 

tropical looking quilt. It was featured in the March 4,2012 piece titled "Change." 

My friend, Kathie Lutz has been practicing her long-arm quilting skills at our

local long-arm machine quilt for yourself shop At-Home Quilting of Johnstown, NY. 

Here is her work with a quilting design called "Twinkle."

 

This lap quilt measures 52 by 60 inches.

Thank you to all the ladies who have donated their art and their time to help me 

celebrate my 40th Birthday. 

I am very grateful!!!

- Lynn 

     P.S. Interested in placing a bid on one of the pieces or one from the January 21st post? 

Please contact me at LRMakrin@Aol.com. 

Baby Goes Modern, A Pre-Auction Post

Remember my "Window on a Marmalade Sky? 
It was featured in my November 2012 post entitled "Braid in a Day" by Eleanor Burns. Since then it has served as the sample for two classes at The Joyful Quilter and will now headline my special 40th Birthday Charity Quilt Auction. "Your WHAT?" you ask. 

Back in June while my pastor and his son were walking across Spain, our other pastor (the wife and mother of the walkers) was preaching about how we are each moved to action in the way God intends for our lives. ie. What is your calling?...... however small or simple the action. 

I was planning a party for my 40th birthday, but that didn't seem to be enough. I wanted to share my quilt art with my family, friends, church and quilting communities. It came to me after a rare good night of sleep. Here is the plan, for the second half of February a collection of quilts will hang in my church's lounge. I'll have a kick-off reception and finally on February 9th a handful or two of quilts will be auctioned HERE for two charities. They are the Fowler Camp and Conference Center (www.campfowler.org) at which I grew up as a summer camper, and an organization whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research for Alzheimer's disease. The idea is to share and to give back at the same time. 

This quilt was a gift to a new born baby with a quilting mom. It is the second very modern quilt I've made and I really like how it turned out. The patter is from Sweet Jane's Quilting and Design called "City Blocks".  The quilting was done by professional long-arm artist Eileen McCabe of Quilting Threads in my guild. It is not in the auction as the baby won't part from it.

The sister quilt, seen below however, will be auctioned.  It was made following an online tutorial from The Missouri Star Quilt Company. The idea is that you take a 10inch layer cake. Cut all pieces into two at the 3 1/2 inch mark leaving a 6 1/2 inch second piece behind. You mix those up and piece back together. Then, you turn these blocks 90 degrees (so the seam is horizontal) and cut these pieces down the middle at the 5 inch mark. Again mix up, and resew. DONE!   The blocks look like this all put together.

Measuring about 44 by 51inches, this little wonder would make a lovely baby quilt or baby play mat.
It was quilted by local long-arm artist,  Diane Podesva. 

Finally, this amazingly bright yellow quilt  (measuring a large 65 by 80 inches) will also be auctioned at my upcoming charity blog event. The quilting was done by professional long-arm artist Eileen McCabe of Quilting Threads. The blocks are made from the left-over 2 1/2 strips from my "Window on a Marmalade Sky." 

So, Dear Quilting Friends, please tell your family, friends, and quilt-collecting loved ones, about my auction and if you would like to place an early bid for one of these three pieces, just e-mail me at LRMakrin@aol.com.  Thanks and stay tuned for more quilts to be auctioned at my 40th Birthday Extravaganza!!!

 Thanks again, 

Lynn

           

With what will you fill your bag?

“If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”

“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.”

"Poverty often deprives a man of all spirit and virtue; 

it is hard for an empty bag to stand upright"

 Benjamin Franklin quotes

The follow Christmas totes were gifts to the women in my family. The pattern is one of many available from Stephanie Prescott at A Quilter's Dream. It is called the "Half Moon Bay" bag.

The first tote featured below uses fabric my sister brought back from a trip to Africa. I modified the pattern slightly to make each side unique and to practice my free-motion quilting skills in the small blocks.

These are the inside pockets. Again a great space for more free-motion practice.

My mother-in-law, also a quilter, received this batik beauty. In this case I followed the pattern exactly. It is a wonderful and easy pattern utilizing 6 fat-quarters and fusible fleece as foundation. That's it!

For my mother- this lovely floral blue and yellow bag. Many ideas for my free motion quilting practice were collected from Leah Day's blog The Free Motion Quilting Project. Her ideas and online tutorials have opened up a new world of  "creativity without fear" to me.

 The other side is where I practiced some more free-motion quilting.

So, in 2013 with what will you fill your bag? New patterns, fabric, classes, skills? 

I'm still deciding, but will let you know as the year plays out. 

Happy New Year and Happy Quilting!