Quilt Extravaganza!

Good Morning!

It's August and that means it's quilt show time for those of us who live near Berea, KY!  Since moving to Lexington, three years ago, I've tried to attend the annual Quilt Extravaganza every year.  Whether with friends or alone the show is always worth seeing.  Not only does it give me an opportunity to see the kind of work local quilters appreciate, but it also gives me the chance to connect with artisans and art suppliers from my area.  Plus, local shows typically have a different type of vendor that you probably won't find at the really big shows like Cincinnati, Chicago, or Houston: the resident antique dealer.  Antique stores are a great source of quilting and sewing supplies but most don't specialize in this area.  Local shows attract dealers who focus on sewing notions and I try to stock up on buttons, unique bias tape, and other odds n' ends whenever I have a chance!

Contestants could enter quilts they made themselves or made by others.  It could also be a contemporary quilt or an antique.  Visitors were asked to select their favorite quilt from the show and which ever received the most votes won a cash prize.  Take a look at what I thought were some of the highlights from the show:

Interesting modern scrappy quilt.

This detail is of a modern Cathedral Windows
quilt.

I love the colors used in this modern quilt!  Just amazing!!!!

Wonderful example of Drunkards Path!  Can't remember if this was antique or modern.  It could be either!

Beautiful precision and another way to manipulate the block used for Drunkards Path. (antique)

Excellent example of color control.  I believe this was a more modern quilt.

This quilt is gorgeous in the picture but it was mind-boggling in person!!!!
(antique)

Is it just me or does this not look like an abstract painting.  Crazy quilts are
always inspirational! (antique)

Detail from crazy quilt of  hand embroidered flowers.

Very modern quilt with an applique embroidery combination.
I believe the figures were suppose be performing a rain dance.

Hawaiian style reverse applique quilt.  Very striking color
combination!

Traditional applique quilt with very fine detailed embroidery probably all done by hand!  This was an antique.

This modern quilt was pretty awesome not only because it was entirely made out of
double knit fabrics, but because it was made by a woman in her 90s completely by hand!!!!
I hope I can stay that limber!

Well, there you have it!  Did you visit the Berea quilt show this year and if so, what did you think? If you're ever in the area around the beginning of August make a point of visiting the Quilt  Extravaganza.  It's a lovely peek into local quilt flavor and make sure you stay to visit the town of Berea!  Coined as an artisan community, the town is overflowing with artistic charm.  It's well worth the visit!

The Sacred Space of Cathedrals is... Family

Good afternoon everyone!  This spring certainly has been a busy one in the Dixon-DeRouchey household.  We've had more family functions in the last two months than we've had throughout the entire year!  It's good to reconnect with one's family because it's grounding.  It takes you back to childhood and forces you to contemplate those events which shaped your life.  Sometimes they are good memories and sometimes not but whatever they are, they are a part of one's continuing story.  I would rather hear about the "good, bad, and ugly" of my family than be left in the dark because it is the mapping of the path we've tread as a family and I'm very proud of that.  It is especially important for me because as an African American the path is so often next to impossible to trace, up to a point, due to the legacy of Slavery.  When I was a child my father always stressed the importance of history as a way to build one's self-esteem and I have every intention of doing that for my son.  He may not have the luxury of growing up surrounded by immediate or extended family but he will know them.

My family (like most I'm sure) is a "hodgepodge" of different types of people with varying levels of skills that seems to run the gambit!  We have educators, architects, chefs, civil servants, entrepreneurs, performance artists, artists, and even published writers.  My aunt Miki is one of those writers who recently published a photo essay book called Journey to the Woman I've Come to Love.

 The book focuses on women from all walks-of-life and includes the famous and not so famous.  My aunt interviewed and photographed the individuals herself and she asked each woman one question, "at what point did you fall in love with yourself?"  Fascinating in the scope of their own self-awareness, many of the subject's answers were provocative and thought provoking!

My aunt Miki and I on my wedding day.

With the success of her first book well on the way my aunt called me recently.  She asked if I would be willing to create a piece for the cover of her next book!  Of course I took the challenge because not only did I feel privileged to be asked such a task, it was important for me as a budding designer, and it would give me an opportunity to convey my beliefs about "family" as a continuation of an ongoing story through my art!  

Aunt Miki wanted the piece to evoke tradition and the bond between mothers and daughters.  She also wanted it to be a wall hanging and something that could possibly be translated into different things like pins.  As she was talking to me the gears in the back of my mind were turning...  Anne and I for some time now have wanted to attempt making Cathedral Windows in our own individual styles; and now here was my chance!  If you're not familiar with the cathedral window block here's what it looks like:

I snagged this example during a google search and it originally appeared on flickr.  To view a tutorial on how to make cathedral windows checkout the blog Hyena in Petticoats.  It's very informative and the pictures are great!

The block is made through a series of folds with the background fabric as a solid color (typically white) and the diamond accented with a patterned fabric.  The above example is a modern twist with the use of the gray coloring as the background.  It's funny because I actually found this picture after I had picked out my fabrics for my piece.  I too decided to lean more towards the current trend by using grays as my neutrals but I will take it a step further.  Instead of using a solid color as my background fabric I will use a patterned fabric and a more subtle patterned fabric for the diamonds!

It's amazing what you can find these days in fabric!  I found this floral print at Walmart for less than $6 a yard!  Don't snub your nose at that!!!!

This is a close-up of the diamond fabric.  It's a wonderful compliment to the floral fabric because the individual dots have many of the same tones.  It's also wonderful because it's subtle enough that it will not compete with the the next step I hope to implement!

In this close-up you can see the various shades of gray throughout the fabric.

Once I knew the block design and the color choices, I needed something that would convey mothers and daughters.  That's when it hit me...  Why not incorporate a little embroidery?!!!!  I decided I would trace a few of the pictures my aunt took of her subjects, embroider them, and make them the diamond centers.  

This is a picture of my mother and I on my wedding day which was taken by my aunt Miki...

And this is the tracing of that picture.

So far I've traced one picture and once I get my measurements just right I will begin constructing the blocks.  Stay tune for further developments on this piece in progress!

Happy crafting everyone!!!!!