Spring Greetings, 38 x 50, 2008
"Spring Greetings" is an award-winning quilt, constructed with Frieda's own hand dyed silks and cottons. The quilt displays one of Frieda's "signatures": her resplendent cerulean blue and aqua fabric, which vibrantly captures the tones of sky and water. The golden yellow daffodils create a stunning contrast. Spring Greetings recently (April 2010) won the second place award for wall quilts at an American Quilters Society show. The subtle highlights in the sky and green grass create a lovely glow, which would really brighten up any wall by bringing the outdoors inside. For more information see the Spring Greetings webpage.
Duluth Trees, 26 x 35, 2007
Green triangles depict the foliage of these graceful pine trees, as their gently curved trunks sway in the breeze. The horizontal quilting lines at the base of the tree trunks provides a perfect balance to the vertical focal points provided by the tree trunks. We love this sparkling, contemporary quilt which draws the eye into a serene and enchanted forest. For more information see the Duluth Trees webpage.
Walks In the Woods
Frieda writes that each day, she takes a walk in the woods with her dog, George. Her quilts almost always reflect her fascination with nature, and what she sees on her walks. This quilt celebrates the trees in the woods, with golden sunlight shining through the leaves. By depicting tall slender tree trunks and showing a cut away section of the roots, Frieda has emphasized the vertical lines she sees on her walks. The quilt is in a permanent collection; see the details, here.
Illinois Landscape, 42 x 24, 2007
"Illinois Landscape" depicts the gently rolling hills of the northern prairies. Frieda shows the gradations of the beautiful purple sky with streaks of lavender and magenta in her vibrant hand-dyed fabric. She carries the use of stripes and streaks through to the green, brown, and orange fields, where the stripes suggest freshly plowed earth, ready for planting. For details, click here.
Woodland Treasures II
"Woodland Treasures II" is a fabulous example of Frieda's quilting skills. This lovely piece was quilted with rayon and silk thread, on cotton and silk fabric. During the first week of November 2010, Frieda will be teaching her much acclaimed and attended workshop on machine quilting at the International Quilt Festival 2010 in Houston, TX. Frieda writes about her teaching experiences at major quilt festivals on her blog, Walks In the Woods.
Dancing Trees, 16 x 20, and Autumn Mums, 30 x 20
Frieda sells patterns for some of her spectacular quilts on her patterns page. Above, we're showing two of our favorites: "Dancing Trees" and "Autumn Mums". In Dancing Trees, trees with brilliantly colored leaves seem to embrace each other. We also love Autumn Mums... the joyful flowers seem to jump right off the quilt! In addition to the instructions, this pattern comes with its own step-by-step demonstration on DVD, so that you can easily follow the quilt-making process. You can bring the outdoors in by creating these radiant art quilts. Finally, wouldn't it be great to have fabric in just exactly the shade that you need? Frieda's brand new book, Fabric to Dye For, contains complete instructions for creating your own fabulous fabric; and Fun Fast Fusies provides detailed, easy-to-follow instructions on creating these beautiful images by using fusible applique. The books are available at the Friestyle shop.
Image credits: Images are shown with the generous permission of Frieda Anderson.
