Quilt Canada Part 6. The End!

The Mariners Quilt Guild Show, "Home Grown * Sew Proud" will be the last one I'll share photos from. I suspect you might be getting a wee bit tired of Quilt Canada by now, but I do like to show quilts from this great conference so that those who could not attend can see what they missed.



The Mariners Guild is a relatively new Guild and I feel they put on a fabulous show. Obviously they are not lacking in talented members... I did not catch the name of every quilt, but I did at least get the quilter's names... Some of the first quilts you saw upon entering the room were several by Christina Belding. She is obviously a lady with a great sense of humour... don't you just love quilts with humour?? I believe she called this one (at right) Quilt Diva Self Portrait. Close by was Fabric Addict Self Portrait. At this point, I am thinking, Okay, I like this gal... we have a lot in common.. haha  We quilters are all alike- we feed our addiction with fabric - we love to stroke our fabric, hug our fabric, stash our fabric.. okay you get the idea....



 Further down the line, I came upon Mermaiden (below) and yep - you guessed it - it was by Christina Belding too!  Something about those Kaffe Fassett fabrics and all the colour...... I just knew this had to be one of her quilts as well.... The artist statement mentioned that she has done some scuba-diving and is fascinated by all the vibrant colours, unique shapes and amazing sea creatures she finds in the ocean. I have to say, I think Christina would be a fun friend to have.... (And wouldn't she be a blast to borrow fabric from???  lol )






















 This Guild had done a President's Challenge, and some of the entries were on display. I'm not sure
what the criteria were for the Challenge, other than it had to have something to do with Nova Scotia obviously, and each piece did include a piece of that beautiful blue Nova Scotia tartan. I'm guessing that the theme was to do with welcoming visitors to Nova Scotia as three of these quilts proclaim "Cead Mile Failte" which is Gaelic for "A Hundred Thousand Welcomes", and the fourth repeats the word "Welcome" all around the border...
My apologies for not having the names of each quilt. Here are the four winners:
 1st place was won by Jacqueline Adams (at left). I'm not certain, but this looks like the Bluenose II to me, in dock at Historic Properties in Halifax. (The world famous schooner Bluenose II is currently nearing completion of a major rebuild at the Lunenburg Shipyard, site of the construction of the original Bluenose in 1921. I don't know when she'll be launched, but a sail on her is on my bucket list.... )



2nd place winner was Jean Dyer Goulden with her depiction of the World Heritage Site, Old Town Lunenburg. If you have never visited Lunenburg, you must put it on your list of places to visit in Nova Scotia. You won't be sorry. You can read about my last visit there by clicking here. I can't wait to return, hopefully in early July....










 3rd place ribbons went to two winners - Paulette Daoust (at left) and Heather Brown (below right).  Congrats to all Challenge winners and entrants on a job well done...








































To wrap it up, here are a few other quilts from the Mariner's Guild Show. This Bargello by Heather Brown was called Waves of Colour. What a beautiful design!! This would look so great on MY bed....


















Although I did not note the info on this one, I am quite certain it is The Big Bang by Noreen Quilliam. (If anyone can confirm or correct me, please let me know. )

So that completes my "review" of the Shows at Quilt Canada. I hope you have enjoyed my photos and info... It is so inspiring to see so many incredible works in a few short days, One comes home "overloaded" with ideas, inspiration and enthusiasm..... I get frustrated when I overhear comments  from show attendees like "I could never do that" or "My work is so inadequate in comparison" or even "I just feel like giving up". I try to encourage people to remember that we ALL start as beginners and progress with our work at our own rate. Yes we won't all reach this level of  expertise, but we can all take something away from these shows - whether it be one simple idea for a new border treatment, or a color combination we might not have thought of, or a new technique to try- all are useful. Be inspired by these works to try something new, something daring, something fun! Challenge yourself to move along on your quilting journey.....
Thank you, CQA for another great "Quilt Canada" and a HUGE Thanks to the LOC - Local Organizing Committee - for a job WELL DONE!!!

Piece,
Linda

"Try to be inspired by something every day. Try to inspire at least one person every day." ~ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Quilt Canada Part 5

Okay folks, I'm back... I was away for three days this week and you know what it's like when you come home - always lots to catch up on. At this time of year it's mainly gardening. I now have my last planter planted, my vegetable garden in and some weeding done. I still have a few annuals left to put in  the soil (waiting for foliage from bulbs to die down) and one perennial bed which requires some serious thought/planning/revamping. There's always more to do, but overall I'm feeling good about the whole state of affairs right now... The last few weeks have been busy to say the least - getting back into the routine of both kiddos at work, juggling vehicles, etc. I finally have a new car, not quite what we had planned, but I'm more than happy. Laura has her bedroom painted a new color, so now I have another quilt to make.... Picked up some fabric this week for it so I'll have to find my sewing Mojo  and get at it... It'll be a more contemporary design than what she has now. Stay tuned...
So I think it's time to show you the last photos from Quilt Canada 2012 in Halifax, as time is marching on... First up - the "Miniatures" show - Nova Scotia guilds were issued a challenge to create miniature quilts for a concurrent show on the theme Seams Like Home. This show hung in Howe Hall; I didn't count but I think there were roughly 25 little quilts and each one was special. There were 3 winners in each of two categories (Traditional and Non-Traditional). Again, I would not have wanted to be a judge... At the top right is Seams Like Home by Kate Madeloso, which became the logo for the conference theme. I did not take photos of all the winners but here are three of them: First place (at left) in the Traditional category went to Anne Morell Robinson of  Cape Breton for The Cape Breton Heritage Quilt. It is a 1/4 scale replica of a full size quilt she designed several years
ago, featuring Cape Breton icons. To quote her Artist Statement: "All the images represent what makes Cape Breton Special: the farms, the sea, the Cabot Trail, the music, the wildlife, the Scottish,
the English, the Acadians, the Mi'kmaq, the homes and the woods. Cape Breton is full of colour and the colourful." Anne is well known in these parts as a quilter extraordinaire, designer and teacher. Her hand applique on this small piece was exceptional.
First prize winner in the Non Traditional category was Sandra Roch with her piece Blooms and Shells (at right). She combined hand piecing and hand embroidery with hand dyed cottons and cheesecloth, shells and beads and a variety of techniques including printing and tea-dying, silk ribbon embroidery and machine quilting. I thought this little quilt was charming and a great choice for first place.






Second place in Non Traditional was also won by Anne Morell Robinson. Home From The Seams is Anne's depiction of the coal miners of Inverness toiling underground, then walking home to the company houses known as the "red rows". When Anne heard people talking about the red rows, she thought they were talking about Red Rose Tea, so she backed the quilt with a floral fabric of red roses.













Another miniature in this show which caught my eye was Super Lobster by Pam White Tracey. If you are a lobster lover, you know you'd love to have this big guy on your plate! Nothing compares to fresh Atlantic lobster - because our Atlantic water is colder than most, our lobster is more flavourful. (oh dear, I'm starting to salivate...)





 










A Lazy Day by Vicki Burke just made me want to head to the nearest beach. That beach chair just looked so inviting... This was Vicki's interpretation of a pattern from the Spring 2011 Quilting and Embroidery magazine.











Seams Like Home by Jan Holleman also caught my eye - that beautiful blue water again had me wishing there was a beach nearby.  Jan used to own a wonderful quilt shop in the Annapolis Valley - I sure miss her and her wonderful shop!












Linda Smith's quilt, The Hobo, was a representation of a boat they used for family outings to secluded beaches in her childhood home of  Prospect N.S. Linda and I are blogging friends and I had hoped we would meet that week in Halifax but we never crossed paths... You can read more about her piece here on her blog.

It's getting late so I think I'll put up this post and do a separate post for the Mariners Quilt Guild Show..   To be continued...

Quilt Canada Part 4

Are you ready for a look at another QC Show? How about the FAN Show? No, this was not a display of fans, it was a show by the Fibre Art Network - a group of very talented quilters from Western Canada.
"The Fibre Art Network (FAN) is a co-operative of self-defined art quilters based in Western Canada. FAN members come from British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories - and share their learning and news in a monthly newsletter and through a website. It is a long distance meeting of minds that spans artistic challenges as well as geographic ones.
FAN membership includes emerging fibre artists, teachers, authors, judges and award winning quilt artists. Many have shown their work nationally and internationally and some have won both national and international recognition. The cooperative engenders fellowship of like-minded friends and celebrates differences as well as common interests." - (from their poster)
You can visit their website at www.fibreartnetwork.com to view more of their work, by exhibition or by artist. There are 13 "exhibitions" in the Gallery on their website. The exhibition in Halifax was called "From Away". Such an "open" topic allowed members a wide range of interpretation.
Here are a few pieces which really caught my eye.. in no particular order... At the top is Kanaka Creek Sunset by Vivian Kapusta of Maple Ridge B.C. This piece virtually glowed...

This is Aurora Borealis over Marsh Lake, Yukon by Thelma Newbury. If you have ever been fortunate enough to view the northern lights, you know that this vivid green is very realistic. Her hand-dyed fabric was perfect for the sky!










 Crows and Crabapples by Emilie Belak  of Grand Forks B.C. made me smile, reminding me of my love-hate relationship with crows.... I love to hate them, especially on garbage day...



















Just Visiting by Carol Seeley was a beautiful piece, showing Trumpeter Swans, common to Vancouver Island where Carol lives.  The detail shot below shows some of her wonderful thread work... Carol was  named CQA Teacher of the Year for 2007.

Lastly, Reaching the Target by Valerie Wilson  also exhibited talented threadwork skills. One could just see the determination of that little ladybug, steadily crawling up the stalk...






I encourage you to click on the link above and visit the FAN website to learn more about this group  and view their exhibitions and private works. I'm sure you will not feel your time wasted...
The other "art quilt" show at QC 2012 was the show by about 20 Maritime members of SAQA - Studio Art Quilt Associates. This Show at the Mary E. Black Gallery, titled "Rooted", did not allow photography, but you can visit the SAQA website for a taste of the calibre of work in this show (and I'm proud to say I think what I saw in Halifax, by our own Maritime quilters, was of equal calibre to what you'll see on the website). I cannot find a "gallery" of photos from the Halifax exhibit but if it appears in the future I will come back and include a link here.

Piece (and embellish!!)
Linda

"One of your most powerful inner resources is your own creativity. Be willing to try on something new and play the game full-out." ~ Marcia Wieder

Quilt Canada Part 3.

Today I'd like to share with you more photos from the Trend Tex Challenge. I always look forward to seeing this show as it is such a wonderful show of creativity. How so many people can take the same fabrics and the same theme and come up with so many different ideas just boggles my mind. Each one was special and a winner, in my mind. This would be a very challenging show to judge. Glad they didn't ask me! haha!
So... not too much more to say, but thought you'd like to see more of the Trend Tex Challenge pieces.. so here you go... nine of my favs, in no particular order....

My Octopus Garden
by Carol Greenhaigh
Kamloops BC





















Eastwind
by Christina Savoie
Dalhousie NB

Maritime Mandala
by Kim Larracy
Dieppe NB

Octopus Garden
by Carolann Jess
Victoria BC

A Midsummer's Day Dream
by Jeannette Millar
Beaverton ON

Bee-ing by the Sea
by Karen Neary
Amherst NS

The View from My Window

by Ruth Quinn

Utopia ON

Northumberland
by Mary Farrow Sinclair
Amherst NS

Serenity Point
by Suzanne MacDonald
Medicine Hat AB









Please note, all pieces were "straight and square" - it's just the angle I was shooting at that makes some of them look "wonky"...  Hope you have enjoyed your visit to the Trend Tex Challenge, 2012! Kudos to ALL participants!

Piece,
Linda

"Each of us is an artist, capable of conceiving and creating a vision from the depths of our being."
~ Dorothy Fadiman

Quilt Canada Part 2

The Trend Tex Challenge, one of the national shows that can be seen each year at the annual CQA/ACC Conference, is a fundraiser for CQA. Fabrics are generously donated by Trend Tex Fabrics; they are cut up and packaged into kits which are sold to members and the public. Each person gets the same five fabrics, 1/4 meter of each. Participants  may choose to add up to two more fabrics. Quilted pieces are made on the chosen theme and donated back to CQA, then are sold by silent auction at the Conference.

The pieces are judged and prizes are awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, as well as the Trend Tex Award - this piece must use only the five original fabrics, and is given back to Trend Tex Fabrics to hang in their Board Office. Each of the three judges get to choose their favourite for a Judges Choice Award, and the viewers vote for their favourite to win the Viewers Choice Award, announced at the close of show.

This year's theme was "At Home in my Garden by the Sea" and 78 wallhangings were submitted.

 So, without further ado, here are the prize winners! First the Trend Tex Award, "Home Sweet Home"  by Lise Belanger of Trois Pistoles, Quebec. (Top right)


First prize was awarded to  "Paradise" by Pam Kierstead of  Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia (at left)

The Second prize winner was "Picture Perfect" by Joanne Love of Whitehorse Yukon.

Third prize winner was "McPerren  Tartan" by Chris Perren of Canmore Alberta. I have to say, this piece was getting lots of attention and admiration from viewers each time I visited the Challenge. I think people were charmed by the kilt and those darling dimpled knees!

 Judge's Choice winners were:

 "Sweet Peas by the Sea" by Berna Ostapovitch of  Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.



















"Hide and Seek in Our Garden" by Karen Menzies of Oshawa, Ontario

 and lastly "My old Schoolhouse home sits in my grandmother's flower garden by the sea" by Tracy Lawko of Toronto Ontario. I have to admit, I somehow missed getting a photo of this one, so I have "borrowed" this photo from the Quilt Canada Blog.

 I do not know, at this point, who won the Viewer's Choice Award. When I find out, if I have a photo of that winner, I will add it here.

In another post, I'll share more of the Trend Tex Challenge entries.. Y'all come back now...

Piece,
Linda


 "You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have."
~ Maya Angelou

Quilt Canada Part 1

I'm home from Quilt Canada, tired but happy! I could use a new pair of feet, but the rest of me survived quite well; I walked miles but every step was worth it. With 10 Shows to see (and yes I saw them all, several more than once) I knew my little footies would take a beating. I was grateful to be familiar with the Dal campus, so I had no trouble finding my way around nor did I need a map (bonus!). Like any trip I take, I went with a plan and knew what I would see and do each day to maximize my time. I was very grateful to have a parking spot at daughter's apartment so I didn't have to try and find parking- this was the only recurring complaint I heard from attendees -finding a parking spot was challenging!  But then, isn't it always, on campuses?? I must say, with all the rain we have had this spring, Halifax was so green- the trees were lush with foliage and the rhododendrons were in full bloom - beautiful!! Dear daughter and I had a

lovely long walk in Point Pleasant Park one evening (as if I hadn't walked enough at that point!!) and an exploratory drive through Sir Sanford Flemming Park another evening... plus I had a great stroll through the Public Gardens to enjoy all the blooms there, and dare I say it- never saw one mosquito!!! Hard to believe!
 Three Shows did not allow photography, but I think I took enough photos at the others to give you a good taste of what was there! Of course, the creme de la creme is the National Juried Show (NJS) and our Guild was thrilled to find out that THREE of our members had pieces juried into this prestigious national show. Although photos are not allowed of this Show, they did allow entrants to have their photos taken with their own pieces before the Show opened. Because one of our members (and good friend of mine) could not be there, I requested special permission to photograph her piece, so I am very pleased to show you Storm at Sea by M. Monica Washburn. Congrats Monica- it was a thrill to see
your piece hanging in the NJS! Also there early Wednesday morning was another FQG member Trudy Corey, so I felt privileged to get her photo with her quilt - Bill's Peony (above her head). Way to go Trudy! Congrats also to Kathy Tidswell whose thread -painted cape was accepted in the Wearable Art category. (I could not photograph her piece as she was not there, and I didn't want to get "evicted"!) I was also very proud to see FIVE other NJS entries from New Brunswick, and THREE of them won ribbons!! Congrats to ribbon-winners Juanita Allain (25th Anniversary Stars - Excellence for Originally Interpreted Traditional Wallquilt - 2nd Place), Judy LeClue (Saint George and the Dragon - Excellence in Workmanship Domestic Machine Quilting) and Sandra Betts (Just for the Peck of It -  Excellence in Innovation) and also to Juliet Nowlan who had two pieces in the show. I'd say that's a pretty darn good showing from our little province! Yay New Brunswick!!
Those of you who are CQA/ACC members will receive your National Juried Show catalogue with your Autumn issue of The Canadian Quilter. 
EDIT: Photos of the NJS winners can now be seen on the CQA website by clicking here.


The CQA/ACC Invitational Show is an exhibit  of quilts (not judged) by the CQA Board of Directors, the Editorial Team of The Canadian Quilter, the LOC (Local Organizing Comm.), the teachers, the judges, jurors and the Regional Reps. Of course I can not show you all the quilts, but here are a few which caught my eye:
 Spring by Deanne Hemphill (LOC) was hand appliquéd, hand embroidered and hand quilted by Deanne. This is one of four (seasonal) quilt designs by Sieglinde Schoen Smith. Because I met Ms. Schoen Smith and saw her original quilt ("Mother Earth and Her Children") I was most interested in this exceptional piece which I thought was certainly as well done as the original Mother Earth and Her Children quilt. Deanne said after working on this quilt for over two years, she may not be making Summer, Fall or Winter... Pity...



  
Looking West by Daphne Grieg (Editorial team) combined patchwork with a number of contemporary techniques such as fused appliqué, thread and fabric painting, couching and bobbin quilting. Her work celebrates elements and growth in nature, as well as her own personal growth as an artist. She focuses on visual texture of fabrics and surface texture created with stitching and surface embellishments. A photograph taken by Daphne's husband was the inspiration for this original design.



  

 






Marshall House by Susan Tilsley Manley (Teacher) caught my eye as I know Susan and I'm a fan of her work. Susan taught a portrait class for our Guild several years ago and she is truly a gifted artist. This is a new technique she has developed, reproducing photographs on fabric  using rust. Sounds interesting, doesn't it? And knowing Susan, she would make it fun too! Susan, a native Nova Scotian, had another of her "rusted quilt  creations" (for lack of a better term) in the SAQA Show, but no photos were allowed in that Gallery...   :(






I love a quilt with humour and Night Sail by Beth Cameron (Editorial Team) made me laugh.  Like Beth, I love looking at the names people give their boats, and she certainly did a fine naming job on all these little sailing vessels. Don't you just love her sense of humour? I hope you get a smile... In case you cannot read the names, they include Aqua-Holic, Time Well Wasted, Fog Ducker, Sloop du Jour, Passing Wind, Bow Movement, Fish 'N Chicks, Forget Me Naut, First Mistake II, Harvey Wharf Banger, Minnow Pause and Midlife Cruises.

Next up (on the left) is a large wall quilt by Jo Diggs (Teacher): A Full Tank is 71" x 79", hand appliquéd and machine quilted, and is one in her new Fish series. I love her use of color - wouldn't you just like to dive into this underwater scene and play with these delightful fish?
To the right of Jo's quilt is a wallhanging by Jackie White (Editorial team) titled Coneflower. Jackie and I have been blogging friends for a while now so it was great to finally meet her in Halifax. Jackie's work is often whimsical and fun and it just makes you smile. The flower petals are 3D, the cone is stuffed and the background fabric is hand-dyed by Jackie.

Grey Wolf  by Lezlie Zwaal (Regional Rep.- Alberta) really caught your eye when you entered the room. Her fabric choices were perfect and his eyes were so realistic. Lezlie did a great job on the thread work on this piece- her stitching helped to blend the fur colors and add texture. Grey Wolf is a design by Toni Whitney. You may be familiar with some of Toni's other designs- she has done a number of horses and other wild animals.








Canadian Landscape Triptych by Heather Lair (Teacher), is a sample of her original design and technique which she calls "Torn Strip Appliqué". (After seeing this piece, I was wishing I had signed up for this class... ah yes, hindsight is a wonderful thing... lol ) She stitches torn strips of fabric to  a quilted base to simulate landscapes - they were beautiful! The texture provided by the torn edges, ravelling threads, etc. certainly gave the effect of water, land, grasses waving in the wind, etc. Very effective indeed! Silly me, I did not get a photo of the entire triptych- just the individuals, close up.

 Lastly, Where Angels Play by Nova Scotia's own Laurie Swim (Teacher). Laurie is a well known Canadian artist who fashions realistic landscapes with fabric and thread, many of them typical of Nova Scotia's coastal areas. Laurie is a wonderful teacher who works and teaches from her studio in beautiful Lunenburg. Those students who took her classes this past week were fortunate indeed to learn from such a  Master Quilter. Where Angels Play is a scene of Sand Cove, in Blue Rocks N.S. (very near Lunenburg). This piece is just one example of Laurie's masterful use of chiffon and sheer organza overlays to create shadows and water reflections. She also uses hairy textured yarns, spun sari silk and lots of thread painting to create realistic effects in fields and meadows, on trees, etc.. If you are ever in Lunenburg, don't miss a visit to her Gallery.
That's it for today, folks. Next up - the Trend Tex Challenge Show.

Piece!
Linda

"We are all artists gently guided by our Master's hand, painting a vision called life. The blending of colors of joy, sorrow, wisdom and love inspire us to create a magnificent masterpiece of self. "
~ Linda LaTourelle