A Summers Day - Martens Family Heritage Quilt - 62" x 53". Depicts the Laurence Martens home, children and neighbors on a typical summer's day in the early 1960's. Mom is on the quilt at the front door holding Eddie and also hanging laundry. She said that if I ever did a quilt, I had to have her doing laundry as she spent most of her life hanging diapers. And, Mom always had to be in two places at one time. The quilt is filled with my memories and each has a wonderful story. I, too, am on the quilt twice (artist's liberty). I am playing marbles with my dog, Red, and also playing kick ball, one of our favorite pastimes.
BIRD IN FLIGHT: First quilt I made. Fabrics are all Linen and Linen type, machine pieced using 4" squares of fabric throughout, hand quilted. Sometimes I hang the quilt up with just the quilting design showing.
Hand Pieced and Quilted Bunk size quilts for each of my daughters. Pillow Shams also quilted with two additional blocks (Not Shown). Each quilt has one square that was chosen as the name of the block applied to the nature of each daughter. This project was started as a result of the only quilt class I ever took thru our park district.
36" hand pieced and hand quilted center square for a Wisconsin quilt based on an article in Quilter's Newletter magazine on the quilt blocks that were created in Wisconsin (I have misplaced this magazine and would love a copy of the article to finish the project, if anyone can locate for me Kathy. Block name is eitehr Bird in Meadow or Lark in Meadow.
Counted Cross Stitch Crib Quilt
Machine Pieced 4" squares, hand quilted large wall quilt entitled "Implosion". I was experimenting with color weight. Hand quilting begins with a small circle in the center of the white square with diagonal radiating "v" shape line going in each direction of the quilt design.
Shadow Quilted Pillows for all occasions. I made and sold over 400 pillows in 6 months. Limitless design and shape possibilities. I have not used this technique in a large project but I do have a Heritage Winter Quilt idea that I plan to incorporate Shadow Quilting.
1986 I taught Art at our
Elementary School as a fill-in. The fourth Grade Class was graduating and
moving to the Jr. High School. I thought it would be nice if each student
made a simple quilt square (Bow-Tie Block)...choosing their own fabric from
the boxes of scraps I brought in and hand sewing the square themselves. No
one in the class had any experience sewing but it was great fun. I machine
stitched the squares together and the students made Tied Quilts, everyone
having a chance to do the tying. I created the pattern pieces but the students
traced, cut and hand sewed their own squares. Even the boys really enjoyed
the project. It was kept secret from the teachers. The quilts were presented
to each of the 4th grade teachers by their respective class on the last day
of school. The students were excited as well as the teachers. I never took
pictures of the quilts, unfortunately.
This quilt was started at that time for my GodChild Andrea. I would work on this while the students were sewing their projects unless they needed help. When the borders are added, the quilt will fit a queen size bed and is designed to be used as a bed quilt. My GodChild is now much older, has a home of her own and her room is no longer pink and gray. This project will be completed this year, however, and it is for her if she wants it. Quilt is Machine Pieced but will be hand quilted.
Back
Front.
Reversible, "authentic" hand designed, african fabric made this
long jacket. Project is pieced and appliqued and is a work in progress. Over
the years, I am embellishing the Black tall Nuer Tribesman (Idea came from
a paper I did on this tribe for an African Anthropology class at Northeastern
IL Univ, outlining each of the Nuer tribesmen in gold craft cord. I was Designer/Project
Manager working with an African fabric artist on an African Craft doll collection
for the craft market. These were fabrics that were submitted but not selected.
Made and wore the jacket to the HIA show in California for the introduction
of this line of craft dolls. Program was successful.
Quilt Submission for our beloved brother Matthew. Quilt is a part of the project and was on display in Washington DC last summer.
