Quilt Inspiration classics: Aquarium quilts and seascapes

This week, we're going positively aquatic! Today's quilts will make you feel that you can dive right in to the underwater scenery. The quilts we're showing include fish, turtles, and other sea-dwelling creatures, in settings that evoke the color and movement of the sea. What a way to keep (your) cool !

Koi, 40 x 68 (or miniature Koi, 11 x 13), by Lydia Russell Albers and Carol Morrissey, at O Carol Designs

Carol Morrissey is renowned for her vibrant, artistic designs. We love "Koi", above, by Lydia Russell Albers and Carol Morrissey, with its orange and red fish cavorting among stylized blue waves. The miniature version (11 x 13) features a single koi, which would make a beautiful motif within an Asian-inspired quilt.   Another stunning aquatic quilt is "Follow Me", below, which measures 40" x 50". The giant green sea turtles are so realistic...the turtle in the foreground appears to be swimming right towards us!

For more aquatic designs by Carol Morrissey, check out Swim Party,  Clown School (with a school of clownfish, of course), and Standing Room Only, to mention just a few ... we're particularly fond of  The Toad ( formerly known as Prince) (!)  Her patterns can be found on the patterns page at O Carol Designs. 

Seascape I and Seascape II,  by Marjan Kluepfel

Marjan Kluepfel is a fabric artist whose work has been shown in galleries around the world.  The inspiration for her magnificent seascape quilts comes from her scuba diving trips on reefs around the Hawaiian islands, and Australia. Seascape I is in a private collection, but Marjan offers a pattern for the dreamy Seascape II, which is shown above. The brightly colored hand-dyed fabric, which blends from blue-green up to yellow,  creates the impression of the sun penetrating the ocean depths; and the textural embellishments really bring the reef to life.   Marjan teaches some great workshops, including one devoted just to seascapes.  Her work can be viewed in her online galleries.

Blue Lagoon, 41 x 41, and Sandhill Cranes, 67 x 63, by Louisa L. Smith, at Quilt Escapes LLC

Louisa L. Smith is a fabric artist, designer, and teacher, whose work has been described as "painting with fabric".  The radiant Blue Lagoon is an example of a "creative nine-patch" quilt, while Sandhill Cranes uses a special curved diamond template; these are just two of the projects in the One Patch Plus book by Louisa L. Smith and Lisa Harris. In these quilts, a few dramatic elements are appliqued on top of pieced backgrounds that evoke the sea and sky. As in all of Louisa L. Smith's art quilts, the colors and values of the fabrics are expertly blended to create a sense of depth and movement (witness the beautiful blue Cycloid II).  Also check out her classes and lectures, which include "The Wonderful Art of Stripping"!

Beach Walk, 59 x 73,  including Whale Watch, by McKenna Ryan, at Pine Needles

Beach Walk has become a seascape classic; we especially like the Water Ballet (jellyfish) and the Whale Watch block, shown above...okay, we like 'em all.   Her other aquatic series include Sea Breeze, which includes a cute pufferfish (Koo Koo Puff); and her newest design, Something Fishy.  And here is something fun about the Pine Needles site:  you can send a free electronic postcard of any quilt block to a friend (how cool is that?)  Check it out by clicking on the exquisite LOVE quilt block (or if you happen to know someone who is snooty, consider sending The Snooty Sisters !

Aquarium Art Quilts: For even more inspiration,  take a quick peek at a few quilts by these outstanding quilters (you'll be glad you did): Janice Potter's Lion of the Sea;  Jean Baardsen's Raffle Reef and aquarium quilts;  Mary Butler's  Into the Deep;   Betty Busby's aquarium quilts at bbusbyarts;  Debra Harry's aquarium and mermaid quilts; and Stacy West's underwater gallery.

Fish samplers:Hmmm, a fish sampler sounds like something on a sushi menu (sashimi, anyone?) But of course we're talking about fish sampler quilts. See the Under The Sea series by Barbara Bieraugel, who lives in Hawaii (lucky devil). Now someone just has to design a sushi sampler quilt so we know what to order at the sushi bar!

Image credits and links: Images are shown with the generous permission of the artists.  This article was first published at Quilt Inspiration on August 9, 2010.

The Best of Cat Quilts! Part One

Every cat owner knows that cats love quilts... and we love cats. Thus it makes purr-fect sense that the cat is one of the most popular motifs in all of quilting.  In order to seek out the best cat quilts from around the world, we "previewed" over 150 Cat Quilts (and we are not making that up). We are so excited to show you our very favorites, in three parts, with our thanks to all of the artists for their inspiring work. Stay tuned... you won't want to miss any of 'em !

Look Out for Scout, 35 x 39, by Penny Sander

When we came across "Look Out for Scout", by Penny Sander, the word that came to mind was: breathtaking. The quilt won first prize for wall quilts in 2009 at the Rising Star Quilt Show. Scout's face contains 16 colors and over 1000 one-inch rectangles. In a word: Wow. The quilt will also be shown this November at the 2010 International Quilt Festival in Houston (if you're going, you can look for it there!) The quilt featuring Scout is not the first of Penny Sander's award-winning quilts: she also created the fabulous Where's Buddy as part of a 2006 quilt challenge (black and white with one accent color). "Where's Buddy" used over 2000 one-inch rectangles to depict the cat in pictorial form; that quilt won first prize for Challenge Quilts at the 2006 RSQ show (if you click on the link, you can read about "Where's Buddy" and ogle all of the winning quilts). Also note that the 2010 Rising Star Quilt show is coming up soon: October 16-17 in Lexington, MA !

In His Dreams, 30 x 34, by Sharon Malec, at Malec Designs

Sharon Malec is a contemporary quilter who creates original art quilts, and a line of patterns, under her eponymous site: Malec Designs. Sharon is best known for her realistic depictions of dogs and other animals. Her highly regarded books include The Dog Lady Speaks and The Dog Lady Goes Wild. However, do not be deceived by the unassuming moniker of "The Dog Lady"... among her achievements, one of her quilts -"Barking up the Wrong Tree" - is in the permanent collection of the Museum of the American Quilter's Society in Paducah. Sharon Malec's designs even include a lion, tiger, and bear. One of her recent creations is the magnificent "In His Dreams", shown above (click on the image to enlarge it and view the exquisite detail). Additional designs in the cat kingdom include a lifelike tabby cat and the dignified black and white cat shown below.

Black and White Cat, 25 x 11, by Sharon Malec, at Malec Designs

Finally, here is something truly wonderful: you can put your own pet into a quilt. Sharon will draft a personalized pet quilt pattern for you, starting with a photo ! This would also make a fantastic gift for any pet lover.  For more inspiration, visit Sharon Malec's online gallery and her animal collection.

Morning Mews, by McKenna Ryan, at Pine Needles

Many of McKenna Ryan’s wildly popular designs include wild animals, but "Morning Mews" is a three-quilt series that features felines of the domestic kind, from left to right: Dora, Clifford, and Chip. Each individual quilt is approximately 17" x 22", and each one is a miniature work of art. Clifford, the curious black-and-white cat shown above, is framed by the colorful leaves of a tree and by majestic mountains in the distance. Alongside Clifford, two yellow birds risk their lives (er, enliven the scene!) These picturesque quilts use McKenna’s own line of fabrics from Hoffman California. For more information, visit the Morning Mews page at Pine Needles, the home of McKenna Ryan Designs. Also take note of the e-postcards on each page, which you can send to friends and family!

Catching the View, 33.5 x 39.5, by Janet Wickell, at About.com

The three silhouetted cats are the stars of "Catching the View", but the attic windows provide the perfect setting. In typical cat fashion, the cats are perched in the windows, staring at the scenery, which includes little butterflies that dart in and out of the windows. The rectangular windows are each pieced with 12 floral squares in the watercolor style, then surrounded by the sky-blue mitered frames. Note that the frames are on all sides of the windows, unlike an attic windows quilt that has frames on two adjacent sides. This pattern was developed by Janet Wickell as one of her "quick little quilt" projects. We admire this quilt because of its combination of beauty with simplicity (which is no mean feat!) For more information, visit Janet Wickell's site on About.com.

Next week:  Stay tuned for Part Two and Part Three of "The Best Of Cat Quilts"... we have some amazing applique and contemporary quilts to show you !

Aquarium quilts and seascapes

This week, we're going positively aquatic! Today's quilts will make you feel that you can dive right in to the underwater scenery. The quilts we're showing include fish, turtles, and other sea-dwelling creatures, in settings that evoke the color and movement of the sea. Plus, we're providing all the links to patterns which you can use to create your own underwater fantasy. What a way to keep (your) cool ! (note: at the bottom of the post there are two quiz questions... if you know either of the answers, please leave a comment.)

Koi, 40 x 68 (or miniature Koi, 11 x 13), by Lydia Russell Albers and Carol Morrissey, at O Carol Designs

Carol Morrissey is renowned for her vibrant, artistic designs. We love the classic "Koi", above, by Lydia Russell Albers and Carol Morrissey, with its orange and red fish cavorting among stylized blue waves. The miniature version (11 x 13) features a single koi, which would make a beautiful motif within an Asian-inspired quilt.   Another stunning aquatic quilt is "Follow Me", below, which measures 40" x 50". The giant green sea turtles are so realistic...the turtle in the foreground appears to be swimming right towards us!

For more fabulous aquatic designs by Carol Morrissey, check out Swim Party,  Clown School (with a school of clownfish, of course), and Standing Room Only, to mention just a few ... we're particularly fond of  The Toad ( formerly known as Prince) (!)  This spring we also featured some of Carol's glorious flower quilts in an article called In Full Bloom... take a peek at that article to see her luscious orange poppies. The patterns can all be found on the patterns page at O Carol Designs. 

Seascape I and Seascape II,  by Marjan Kluepfel

Marjan Kluepfel is a fabric artist whose work has been shown in galleries around the world.  The inspiration for her magnificent seascape quilts comes from her scuba diving trips on reefs around the Hawaiian islands, and Australia. Seascape I is in a private collection, but Marjan offers a pattern for the dreamy Seascape II, which is shown above. The brightly colored hand-dyed fabric, which blends from blue-green up to yellow,  creates the impression of the sun penetrating the ocean depths; and the textural embellishments really bring the reef to life.   Marjan teaches some wonderful workshops, including a workshop devoted just to seascapes!  Her work can be viewed in her online galleries where you can feast your eyes on all of her extraordinary art quilts.  

Blue Lagoon, 41 x 41, and Sandhill Cranes, 67 x 63, by Louisa L. Smith, at Quilt Escapes LLC

Louisa L. Smith is a fabric artist, designer, and teacher, whose innovative work has been described as "painting with fabric".  The radiant Blue Lagoon is an example of a "creative nine-patch" quilt, while Sandhill Cranes uses a special curved diamond template; these are just two of the projects in the One Patch Plus book by Louisa L. Smith and Lisa Harris. In these gorgeous quilts, a few dramatic elements are appliqued on top of pieced backgrounds that evoke the sea and sky. As in all of Louisa L. Smith's art quilts, the colors and values of the fabrics are expertly blended to create a sense of depth and movement (witness the beautiful blue Cycloid II).  If you would like to learn more, check out her classes and lectures, which include such subjects as "The Wonderful Art of Stripping"!

Beach Walk, 59 x 73,  including Whale Watch, by McKenna Ryan, at Pine Needles

NEW!  Beach Walk is McKenna Ryan's brand new series quilt, and we're so pleased to have the opportunity to showcase this design. We especially like the Water Ballet (jellyfish) and the Whale Watch block, shown above...okay, we like 'em all.  The kits for Beach Walk will be released this month, and you can get all the details at the Pine Needles website - the home of McKenna Ryan Designs.  Another delightful aquatic series by McKenna Ryan is Sea Breeze, which includes a cute pufferfish (Koo Koo Puff) and other denizens of the deep.  And here is something fun about the Pine Needles site:  you can send a free electronic postcard of any quilt block to a friend (how cool is that?)  Check it out by clicking on any of the above links, or click on the exquisite LOVE quilt block (it's on our sidebar this week).  (p.s. If you happen to know someone who is snooty, you might want to send her The Snooty Sisters e-card... be sure to type in "just kidding" in the message line!)

Aquarium Art Quilts: For even more inspiration,  take a quick peek at a few quilts by these outstanding quilters (you'll be so glad you did): Janice Potter's Lion of the Sea;  Jean Baardsen's Raffle Reef and her aquarium quilts;  Mary Butler's  Into the Deep;   Betty Busby's aquarium quilts at bbusbyarts;  Debra Harry's aquarium and mermaid quilts; and Stacy West's underwater gallery.

Fish samplers: Hmmm, a fish sampler sounds like something on a sushi menu (sashimi, anyone?) But of course we're talking about fish sampler quilts. Check out the Tropical Fish Paradise sampler by Leslie Kane, and the Under The Sea series by Barbara Bieraugel, who lives in Hawaii (lucky devil). Now someone just has to design a sushi sampler quilt so we know what to order at the sushi bar!

Quiz Question 1:  In quilting, what is a "sushi roll"?

Quiz Question 2: What, or who, is a "surf quilter"?

If you know the answers to either of our quiz questions, leave us a comment below, and stay tuned... the correct answers will be posted later this week!

Image credits and links:  Images are shown with the generous permission of the artists.