Carli The Quilter

Hello my quilty friends! Wow, the technology we use sometimes comes back to haunt us! This whole loss of photos on several of my recent posts I believe were my home computer and my phone just not talking to each other.  I'm sure you've all been there in some way or another? I know all of you, who are all over the latest technology upgrades etc and etc. You are younger than I and I just want to use the darn technology, not have to have a degree in technology otherwise, its all for not! Have you all noticed that those of us over 50 actually do have a vote. Hopefully, you'll continue to follow my blog even though I'm done with changing between photos taken with my phone and those taken by my own camera. It's really quite exhausting to try and keep up with all the changes required for cell phones. So simply said, I'm not taking photos anymore with my phone unless its an emergency! I'm going back to my perfectly good digital camera. As you ca...

Let me apologize, I don't think I have the right settings in place on my phone to add this link into my Blogger posts. So having said this, Sujata Shaw is an American quilt book author that I just love!!

I think my readers will really enjoy seeing this whole layout and see what can be done when making custom quilts. I would love to do a workshop on using this book. Sujata's way of describing her process is really like sitting beside  her. I found this version twist of the Rail Fence really exciting. I love to play with fabric in new and interesting ways, mostly this happens when I'm experiencing a happy diversion. I used the Rail Fence blocks from |Cultural Fusion Quilts" book by Sujata Shah in a commission quilt. I used the method from this book to create what I thought of as water flowing over the whole quilt, in the full view you'll see what I mean. This next photo displays how in my mind these blocks can behave int his manner for a memorial quilt for someone who lived  beside a river all his life would want. This block is also very interesting if you use blocks from two color sets.  These last two blocks of grey/whi...

It was a hard choice to make, deciding to go with Hourglass Baby Quilt pattern done with Sujata Shah's versions of craziness in piecing. I've used her book, Cultural Fusion Quilts- A Melting Pot of Traditions. I totally recommend it if you are looking for a way to make your own original looking quilt. This book is to provide quilters with reasonable guidelines for those wanting to explore playing with fabric. This baby quilt is by far the most interesting version of a baby quilt in my opinion. I'm always seeking something inspiring in a pattern. I see lots of new versions of blocks from this book which anyone can play with and it will not look just like Sujata's, it will be your own. I chose to use lightweight denim with 100% cotton prints from Dr. Suess collection from Robert Koffman I love the free spirited way these blocks go together and hoping that my family will like its modern way. This little quilt was hand quilted with #5 Per...

Here is my winter preoccupation, a commissioned memorial quilt.  I really like how the Rail Fence blocks lend this organic flow of water to this quilt top. I decided on a lighter back ground with darker fabrics being the flow of each block, then as I laid them out, I mismatched the flow to create the tumbling effect of river water tumbling over rocks. The family who commissioned this quilt for their son who passed away late in 2013, have lived all their lives residing steps away from the Kispiox River outside of Hazelton, B.C . This river supplies salmon to First Nations and locals and provides world class fly fishing for steelhead tourists. I've pretty much exclusively working on this large memorial quilt. As you can see, I intend on something special for the center of this quilt. Before I hand applique the center peice, I must reinforce the long flappy inner sides of the centerpiece. I will have to cut away behind the center peice once its hand appliqued onto th...

I encourage anyone to have a photo transfer done for an upcoming quilt, Its so easy and I prefer to use a professional embroidery company or sometimes, its a dry cleaner or others. Photo transfers when done properly by a reputable company is a great way to share photos in a quilt. But if the company doesn't use inks that are NOT water soluble, then they will run into your quilt. So when I get up north again, I'll be going back to this company who has cost me 17 hrs of unpicking on a commission project. I'm breathing a sigh of relief after the nasty offending playing cards that are made from regular ink and water soluble OUT of my flimsey. I'm recreating a poker table including cards, chips and Royal Flush, I discovered the offending ink well into this quilt. And so the rule of the day, check your photo transfers for water solubility. I'm really enjoying the Rail Fence Blocks that Sujata Shah has written about in her new book "Cultural F...

When I purchased Sujata Shah's book "Cultural Fusion Quilts-A Melting Pot of Piecing Traditions" I was thrilled to own a book from a fellow blogger who I'd been following for several years. I have decided to add a bunch of these Rail Fence blocks into an upcoming T-shirt quilt. Stat tuned Happy Quilting from Carli's Winter Studio

Its a great pleasure to let you in on a little secret. Psst, Sujata Shah has written this awesome quilt book and I own it. It was a long awaited Christmas present and I've read it cover to cover. I totally recommend it and here is why. I love fusions of any kind. I rejoice in mixed marriages, gender equality and colorfully putting your face out there. Sujata's book delivers the mixing of colors ideology perfectly while you are gently encouraged to be yourself and explore her techniques. Sujata's style is freedom expressed in fabric, unpretentious and honest. Sujata's Crazy Quilt is so fun, it just explodes across the page like fireworks! This was the ultimate reason for purchasing the book in the first place. I had seen something somewhere on her blog or elsewhere of this Crazy Quilt. I was hooked, line and sinker, I knew that if she could do this, then I had to get to know her even more. Its my dream to meet Sujata in person...