QuiltCon Group Quilts

I have always enjoyed the camaraderie and creativity that shines through with successful group-produced quilts.  Much to my delight, I found five group quilts from QuiltCon 2015 that are new favorite.  Here they are:

 Faraway Fields - Full Circle by Jules McMahon

inset circle blocks pieced by: Cheryl Arkison

quilted by: Heidi Bruce of @goneaussiequilting

Sutton, New South Wales, Australia

Canberra MQG

Jules began this quilt by piecing the improvised blocks in a Denyse Schmidt class at QuiltCon 2013, then added the inset surprise circle blocks pieced by Cheryl Arkison.  

 detail view of Faraway Fields - Full Circle

The creative free-style quilting by Heidi Bruce add the finishing touches to this modern quilt.  Faraway Fields - Full Circle was started in Austin at the first QuiltCon in 2013 and returned to Austin to be on display in the second QuiltCon in 2015.   Jules holds the title of "QuiltCon attendee who traveled the farthest!" and here is her letter to MQG members, as she is currently on the board.

 Improv Pods by Jessica Levitt

pieced by: Robin Buscemi and one other Central Jersey MQG member

Bridgewater, New Jersey

Central Jersey MQG

Jessica states that the three main blocks were made by members of the guild as they practiced Denyse Schmidt's improvisational piecing technique.  These blocks were donated to the guild's charity efforts.  Jessica designed this original composition to be simple yet quirky so as to calm the complexity of the pieced blocks.  Proceeds from this sale of this quilt (I am guessing it may be a raffle quilt, unless it was successfully sold during QuiltCon?) will all go to charity.  The quilting is spectacular on this quilt too, an additional touch of beauty.

 Percolate by Emily Cier

pieced by: Kathy Del Beccaro

quilted by: Angela Walters

Seattle, Washington

Seattle MQG

Directly from the description on display at QuiltCon:  These look like triangles, but they're really ripples on a pond.  Or a rainstorm.  Or drops streaming down a window.  Or a shattered ice sheet.  Something to do with water.  Definitely water.  Or maybe glass?  Well, your call.  We just make the shapes, you get to interpret.   This is an original design, machine pieced and machine quilted.  Simply lovely, whatever aspect of water or shattered glass it may represent.  This pattern is available for purchase here.

 Playing with Little Bits by Rose Daley

pieced by: Anna Levengood, Jill Safford, Jessica Skultety, Jessica Levitt, Robin Tillsworth, Rachel Singh, and Elizabeth Timmons

Columbia, Maryland

Baltimore MQG

This playful quilt was created during the Mid-Atlantic MOD 2014.  Each of the quilters created their section prior to the weekend, using low volume fabrics then adding pops of color.  During the retreat, the participants added their individual sections and pieced additional elements to create the finished quilt top.  The design was a true collaboration of the quilters listed above, and the quilting was inspired by Jackie Gering's Creative Quilting with Your Walking Foot.  Techniques used include machine piecing, paper piecing, improvisational piecing and machine quilting.  This quilt won First Prize in the Group or Bee Quilts category at QuiltCon 2015.

UFO Challenge by Heather Grant

pieced by: Corinne Sovey, Beth Chinderle, Jill Ivie, Emily Thompson, Christi Carew, Mary Anne Williams, Angela Milliman, Gina Pina, Kim Place (Austin MQG Executive Board 2013-14)

Austin, Texas

Austin MQG

This quilt was pieced by the 2013-14 Executive Board of the Austin Modern Quilt Guild to be a prize for the guild member who completed the most number of UFO's in the year 2014.  What an excellent reward for some lucky member!  I love the different sewing elements in each block from the spool of thread to the zipper, but my favorites are the three different sewing machine blocks. 

This quilt is inspiring me to make my own quilt,

featuring the different sewing machines I have sewn with ... dare I admit...

... perhaps even a different block for each of sewing machines I own?

This UFO Challenge quilt is an original design which used these techniques: hand appliqued, paper pieced, machine appliqued, improvisational piecing, machine piecing, machine embroidered, and machine quilted.  

I can't believe I just found this blog post (click here) about the very quilt that is already germinating in my head.  No worries, mine won't look like Cheryl Arkison's here!